Forward Elias Lindholm was traded by the Calgary Flames to the Vancouver Canucks last month, which led to rumours of a potential contract extension for the pending free agent to stay in Canada.
But then, the trade deadline and the pressure got in the way, and with rumours linking the Canucks to Pittsburgh Penguins’ Jake Guentzel, there are now rumours that Lindholm could become a sacrificial lamb and be on the move for the second time in less than a month.
According to insider Chris Johnston, the Canucks could look at the possibility of acquiring Guentzel and potentially flipping Lindholm to the Boston Bruins as part of the machinations to make it happen.
Guentzel is currently on the Penguins’ long-term injured reserve, potentially ruling him out beyond March 8, but he might have just played his last game with the team. He is a pending unrestricted free agent carrying a cap hit of $6 million. He has 22 goals and 52 points in 50 games this season and could be what Vegas wants to gamble on. However, it will have to keep in mind that there is a possibility that teams looking to acquire Guentzel might call about extending him before they make their trade offers to the Penguins. He’s been linked to the Canucks for weeks now but also to the Carolina Hurricanes, Vegas Golden Knights and Edmonton Oilers.
The Bruins would love nothing more than an added boost like Lindholm up front, though they would need to make room for him, especially if the plan is to extend him beyond this season.
Lindholm, who was traded by Calgary just ahead of the All-Star weekend earlier in February, has played 15 games with the Canucks, posting four goals and six points with his new team.
Could he already be on his way out of Vancouver???
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