In an NHL news and rumors update, there is news on the negotiations between the Boston Bruins and Torey Krug, there are a lot of unhappy people in Toronto and Ottawa over Jason Spezza and there is news out of St. Louis where the Blues and Alex Pietrangelo need to figure things out.
Bruins and Krug are Talking Contract
Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports has kept up on the situation in Boston between soon-to-be free agent Torey Krug and the Boston Bruins. Krug had been disappointed up to this point that the team had not started talking contract extensions with his side.
That all changed this week and Krug seems little relieved. He said:
“It’s exciting. Now that we’re in the regular season I don’t want to talk too much about it just out of respect for my teammates and the process. But it’s obviously exciting when you’re talking about where you could be for the future while taking care of the present obviously. That’s the most important thing. But it’s an exciting time and hopefully things work out.”
We’ve said it before and still believe, Krug will be in line for a considerable raise over the $5.25 million cap hit he carries this season.
Jimmy Murphy of Boston Hockey Now also confirmed that the Bruins are negotiating with forward Charlie Coyle. Coyle said of the process, “To me, I’m not really worried about it at all.”
He added:
“It’s nice to have that communication right now and I’ll talk with my agents and they’ll talk with Don just to keep that open line of communication is good. But, it’s not something where ‘we gotta get this done! We gotta get this done!’ just so it’s off my mind. I’m really focused on this year. I’m under contract this year, so I feel like I can just play and do what I need to do to help this team win and be the best player I can be. That stuff will work itself out if I keep focusing on the task at hand I think. So yeah, I’m not too worried about it. That will play out and like I said, we have that open line of communication and that’s good going forward.”
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Maple Leafs Disrespect of Spezza
There are some rumblings in Toronto today over the lack of respect shown by coach Mike Babcock to newly acquired forward Jason Spezza. Spezza signed with the team this offseason to play a depth and leadership role, he’s from Toronto, was excited to join his hometown team and was a healthy scratch in the home opener.
Spezza, who grew up as a Leafs fan in nearby Mississauga, Ontario, took it like a pro and said, “I’d by lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed but I’m also a professional.” But, there are plenty of other people up in arms over the decision.
Related: Toronto Maple Leafs: Should Babcock Have Made Jason Spezza a Healthy Scratch?
Blues and Pietrangelo Deal
In his latest “31 Thoughts” column, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman cited an NHL executive that said unless one of the sides doesn’t want to get a deal done, the St. Louis Blues and defenseman Alex Pietrangelo should agree to a new contract. Pietrangelo is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next July but there’s been some friction between the two sides in the past.
There is also a report that the Blues are going to take a serious run at trying to re-sign Brayden Schenn. Is there room to sign both players with a number of important RFA’s on the docket for next summer as well?
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