Remember when Phil Kessel went from the Bruins to the Leafs and you kind of knew it was going to happen to for about a month or two before it did?
The Leafs needed a young forward to build around and the Bruins - for reasons that remain unclear - didn't want anything to do with the young scoring forward who has blossomed into one of the leagues best players. (Inexplicably, they didn't want Tyler Seguin either and are a declining season from Zdeno Chara away from losing their grip on "contender" status, though it remains to be seen when that will occur as Chara is, apparently ageless).
There is a player in a similar situation, with similar skills to Phil Kessel and his name is Evander Kane. Call me a bizarre optimist, but I predict to you that he will be playing in Phoenix come October.
Now, there are absolutely no rumours that this is something anyone is considering - it just seems to me to be a logical destination for a player who is clearly going to be traded.
The Coyotes have one of the best young defense groups in hockey and because of the youth coming through the pipeline- Stone, Summers, Gormely, Murphy - which is nearly NHL ready, the Coyotes have one of the games most tradable assets in Keith Yandle.
Signed at a reasonable 5.25 Million dollar cap hit for two more seasons, Yandle is a 50+ point defenseman who is just entering his prime at the age of 27.
Kane is five years younger, has four years left on his contract and the exact same cap hit (all number Capgeek.com). The difference in their ages and years left on their contracts can be made up by the rumours that Kane - whether deserved or not - is a distraction who is more about himself than the team. In recent days he has potentially sabotaged his value by doing things like favoriting a Tweet that erroneously claimed he was traded to the Flyers and talking in a way that clearly indicates he wants to be traded.
I tend to ignore stuff about "character"as nothing but annoying chatter, but NHL teams apparently don't and it's reasonable to think you might get a talented player at a discount because he's a "headache."
My personal view is that Winnipeg has the worst media in the league, in the sense that they seem petty and gossipy - and it looks to me that they are trying to run the guy out of town for stupid reasons. There seems to be this small-town mentality, where a fun loving, 22 year old millionaire just can't do anything right.
I don't believe that Kane is a bad guy, nor do I think character is a valid reason to discount his talent, but whatever, this is professional sports and the narratives and public perception seem to matter as much as reality, so if that can help the Coyotes acquire the potential franchise forward they've been missing, I am all about taking advantage.
Yandle might or might not be enough, but I'd be willing to throw in a young forward like Samuelson or Gaudet and a first rounder to make this happen.
Arizona is a perfect fit for Kane - he's exactly what the team needs, i.e a first line player, of which they have zero at the moment. He'll get all the ice-time he wants, and would be the perfect foil for the recently heisted Sam Gagner. (Still can't believe that happened for a sixth rounder, by the way).
The Jets would get one of the best offensive defenseman in hockey - who they could flip or keep depending on their prerogative, but I do think Byfuglien, Enstrom, Yandle, Bogosian and Trouba would give them one of the best groups of D in the NHL.
The fact is, Kane and Yandle are the two most marketable available players at this time in the NHL and a fit - to my eyes anyways - seems perfect here.
Kane is exactly what the Coyotes need, and they should do whatever it takes to get him.
Thanks for reading.