"Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose, Jonathan..."
Ok, stop me if you have heard this...
It once again appears as though the Lightning are entertaining the idea of moving Jonathan Drouin.
All indications are the organization has prioritized signing RFA's Johnson and Palat heading into 2017-18. The return on a young player with as much upside as Drouin would be huge and it's no secret what the Lightning are looking for here.
"They want immediate top 2/4 help on the defensive end and a pick/prospect," a NHL source summarized...and my guess is they will get it.
I am thinking this way because I have been closely tracking the Drouin rumors for the better part of 2 years and there has been no shortage of teams working on ways to make this happen. As one source said, "Yzerman knows who likes him and what's available."
Here are the top 5 possibilities...(not in any particular order...well maybe a little)
On Nashville...
The Preds have been poking around about Drouin for the better part of 16 months now. They really liked him a lot as recently as three months ago. They may have some very interesting decisions to make depending on how far they go in the playoffs. I am also not yet sure how their playoff run will affect their interest in Drouin. The Preds would have to move an established D man plus.
On Philadelphia...
If the Preds have been high on Drouin for 16 months the Flyers are probably closer to 22 months. Hextall really loves Drouin and owning the second pick in the draft may free up the Flyers to move their second or third rounder along with a player like Travis Sanheim...But make no mistake about it. The Flyers LOVE Travis Sanheim and all indications are they view him almost as highly as Provorov and slightly higher than Gostisbehere...
On Carolina...
The Hurricanes were coming on strong in the second half of last season and are on the right track for sure...They are also one of the deeper teams on Defense...Hanafin or Justin Faulk are the key pieces the Lightning have asked about. Faulk could get it done. I have also heard they have a goalie in their system who Tampa really likes...
On Montreal...
I have been assured that Claude Julien isn't afraid to make a "very bold move" to increase the Habs talent level up front. "Julien is used to having more firepower and star power than he has in Montreal and he doesn't love the mix currently. The current mix was more suited to Therrien's style," a former Hab told me.
On Winnipeg...
Sources tell me the Jets are trying to acquire defensive help from elsewhere in order to be able to offer up Jakob Trouba (Yzerman's top choice) for Drouin. This would appear to be a perfect match in terms of moving players that aren't thrilled with their current situations for each other...However, Cheveldayof will NOT move Trouba unless he finds help on the D end elsewhere.
As for Colorado...
The Avalanche will look to (and need to) make some sort of bold move this summer after losing out in the lottery. Obviously Nathan and Jonathan have a history together..However as of now I am told the Avs don't have the right pieces for Yzerman..
Teams who could still get in on it:
The Islanders...
Is Drouin maybe the key to Tavares? The Isles do have Hamonic, and Hamonic sure would look nice in Tampa...
The Blackhawks...
I am just starting to hear rumblings about Chicago and Drouin. They appear to be tied to the early exit and initial reaction to the surprise way the Nashville series went down...The Hawks could be bold. They have some very experienced talented D men....
The Devils...
NJ and Shero have money and will have a superstar coming in to play with Hall...whether it is Nico or Nolan...
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