The Ottawa Senators have had a tough year. Between the Mike Hoffman situation, and Randy Lee, the franchise is in a tough spot, and it’s getting worse. Less so if you’re a Dallas Stars fan.
Earlier today, the Athletic’s Ottawa writer caught wind of scoop on the Erik Karlsson trade front.
NHL source tells The Athletic he thinks Dallas has emerged as front runner for Karlsson and Bobby Ryan will not be part of the deal. No other details.
— Chris Stevenson (@CJ_Stevenson) July 3, 2018
The Bobby Ryan contract — which is so much worse than you think — has been typically tied with Karlsson and was the source of debate when the Vegas Golden Knights were the frontrunner at the trade deadline to acquire the Norris winner.
With the Ryan contract presumably a non-starter for Dallas, Ottawa is naturally looking for Dallas’ best futures.
Talks on going between Dallas and Senators … Senators focusing on Miro Heiskanen third overall to Dallas last year, one source suggested. Dallas would rather give up Julius Honka, 14th overall in 2014. Played 42 games with Stars last season. Stay tuned.
— Chris Stevenson (@CJ_Stevenson) July 4, 2018
Karlsson is arguably the best defenseman on the planet. Would it be worth Miro Heiskanen? Another Ottawa insider has since quelled the notion that the Senators might get Heiskanen.
Good scoop by CJ. FWIW two NHL sources told me Dallas was close to landing Karlsson as well. Deal would be centred on prospects/picks. Devin Shore the only roster player mentioned. Bobby Ryan not part of it. Can the Sens get Heiskanen? One source said no. https://t.co/peRBrZsJ6B
— AJ Jakubec (@AJonSports) July 4, 2018
But this is still just talk at this point. One has to assume that Julius Honka, Devin Shore, and a 2019 1st round pick is just the beginning.
But negotiations are always tricky. Why does Ottawa trade Karlsson if Dallas isn’t sending back Heiskanen? If you’re Dallas, do you go ahead and pull the trigger? Or do you find some way to make the package better in order to keep Ottawa’s focus off Heiskanen. Would Dallas be willing to part with an extra defenseman, like Esa Lindell? An extra forward, like Jason Dickinson or Radek Faksa? What combination works best?
Those are difficult questions, but when you’re trading for the best blueliner money can buy, you have to think that anyone is up for grabs.
Ottawa has given Karlsson’s camp permission to talk to teams regarding a contract extension. So the assumption should be that this trade is likely not going to be for just one season of Karlsson on the roster (think a trade and almost immediate contract extension, since he is eligible to sign an extension now that it is past July 1). That makes the asking price quite hefty, and why some Senators fans have proclaimed that only a package of Tyler Seguin AND Heiskanen are the bare minimum Ottawa should accept in a trade (we are going to go ahead and state that this kind of return is likely a non-starter for Dallas, but keep dreaming big, Sens fans.)
Talks should resume sometime this morning. Hold onto your butts…