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Ducks Need A Top 6 Forward https://t.co/YnHHBD4hJ9 pic.twitter.com/xUs7lPVTmU
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) November 7, 2017
I'm in Buffalo tonight for Sabres-Caps.
In October, the Sabres stabbed westward and played San Jose, Anaheim and Los Angeles. The Capitals won't play the Ducks until December 16. The Ducks have a scout here tonight. The Kings also have a scout here tonight.
I'm wondering of the scouts are looking at Evander Kane as a possible replacement for the injured Ryan Getzlaf (see below).
The Ducks have been patiently looking for a scoring left winger since last season. They now are looking for a left shot center to fill in for Getzlaf, as well as the scoring top six forward.
On Sunday night, the Ottawa Senators traded top six forward Matt Duchene to Ottawa in a three-team, seven-asset blockbuster trade. Now that Duchene is a Senator, Evander Kane assumes the bird's nest position atop the NHL trade rumor charts. Kane's trade value has never been higher during his three seasons in Buffalo. Kane is tied for the Buffalo team-lead with 13 points in 14 games. He leads the Sabres with 7 goals and 69 shots on goal.
In 510 career NHL games, Kane has 164 goals and 149 assists for 313 points. He has accumulated 605 PIMs. Kane has never played in an NHL playoff game.
It's been reported that the Ducks were one of the serious contending teams in the Matt Duchene Saga. In the end, Bob Murray held firm and didn't meet Joe Sakic's shockingly high asking price.
At 6'2" and 215 lbs., Kane is the 30-goal scoring power left winger that the Ducks are looking for. He plays heavy, fast and skilled hockey. He takes zero crap from opponents on the ice.
Anaheim kept serious tabs on Kane last season.
Kane is a plug-n-play performer. It's no wonder that Bob Murray would like to trade for him. Kane can likely be had for a lot less than the seven-pieces it took to get Duchene out of Colorado.
Duchene can score goals but he cannot match Kane's truculence and physicality. There were many time last season when Bob Murray sent his AGM and pro scouts to Buffalo for in-person viewings of Kane and former Sabres LW Marcus Foligno.
Kane is a pending UFA. He is a $5.25M AAV this season. If he keeps scoring at his current torrid pace, he will earn himself a multi-year contract in the $7M AAV neighborhood. Be it in Buffalo or elsewhere.
Is Kane worth seven pieces? No. However, Sabres GM Jason Botterill certainly can trade Kane now to take possession of a bonafide top four D and a D prospect. Injuries to key D-men like Rasmus Ristolainen, Zach Bogosian and Josh Gorges have crippled Phil Houlsey's blue line. Housley has been having to play AHLers Matt Tennyson, Taylor Fedun, Justin Falk, and Zach Redmond while Ristolainen, Bogosian and Gorges heal from their injuries.
Jack Eichel will likely have a lot to say if the Sabres are interested in trading his line mate Evander Kane.
Should Sabres GM Jason Botterill decide to hold onto Kane, the Ducks may be inclined to inquire about Sabres center/winger Samson Reinhart, who will become RFA at the end of the season.
Other teams in attendance in Buffalo are: Las Vegas, St. Louis, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Nashville, Toronto, and NY Rangers.
Scouts gonna scout.
**
The Anaheim Ducks are a hurting unit right now.
NEWS: Executive VP/GM Bob Murray said Ryan Getzlaf had surgery to repair a fracture to his zygomatic bone. Recovery could be up to 2 months.
— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) November 7, 2017
OUCH!
Ducks GM Bob Murray broke the news earlier this afternoon that his captain Ryan Getzlaf will be out long term with a facial injury.
Getzlaf has seven points in six games played this season.
In 74 games played last season, Getzlaf scored 15 goals and assists for 73 points.
Murray also updated the injuries to Cam Fowler and Ryan Kesler.
Murray said Getzlaf had surgery Monday to repair a fracture to his zygomatic bone (cheek) and recovery could be up to two months. Murray said screws were put in to fix a displacement. The 32-year-old center will have to wear a shield "for a while" once he returns to the lineup. Getzlaf was injured during his first shift in a game on October 29 against the Carolina Hurricanes and has missed the past three games.
Murray said Fowler is "moving really well," workouts are progressing into lateral movement. Won't change timeline; seeing positive response.
— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) November 7, 2017
Fowler, who suffered a serious knee injury on October 20 against the Montreal Canadiens, Murray said his timeframe remains six weeks from the time of the injury. "He's doing lateral movement in the gym," Murray said. "He's reponded much better to this one than the one last year which is amazing because they thought this was worse. He's coming along really, really well."
Kesler’s return date still remains sometime “around Christmas…, perhaps sooner. Kesler underwent hip surgery on June 8 to remove several pieces of floating hip capsule. "He's skating much harder now," Murray said. "He's had to learn his stride all over again, to be quite honest. For a couple years, he's been, for a lack of a better word, short-striding it. You could see he wasn't pushing. He has to learn to lengthen his stride again and get the muscles back."
Murray knows full well that there are no tears being shed for him and the injuries to his star players. There are teams that want the Ducks to suffer, especially out west where Anaheim has been power house for the past decade.
Murray, on injuries: "Hard to remember one w/ such elite players, important people out of your lineup. No one will feel sorry for you."
— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) November 7, 2017
Look for the Ducks to be active in the trade market. They don’t have another veteran power forwards the echelon of Getzlaf in their organization.
The Ducks are 6-6-2 and are in 12th place in the Western Conference standings.