Insider refuses to deny monster Elias Pettersson rumour!

Over the holidays, maybe because some wishes do come true during that time of the year, a rumour emerged that Vancouver Canucks pending free agent and star forward Elias Pettersson was considering the possibility of signing with the Chicago Blackhawks. You read that right.

It all started when Matt Murley of the podcast Chiclets Game Notes revealed how he heard talks that Pettersson could end up with the Hawks.

“Do not be surprised if you see Elias Pettersson try to make his way to the Chicago Blackhawks to be with Bedard next year,” Murley said, adding that another speculation about Toronto Maple Leafs’ William Nylander signing with the Blackhawks, too.

“Restricted free agent, though, so I’m not exactly sure how that goes… I could see him moving out of there, and what a spot to go to, and that’s a team that has the cap space, right?”

While the report raised a lot of eyebrows, most fans expected someone, some insider like the talented Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet to deny it.

However, on the 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman did not dismiss the rumour only saying that any talk of Pettersson leaving Vancouver was “premature.”

“I’ve listened to Matt Murley’s work. He’s not an idiot. He hears things. I’ve seen the stuff that he reports. He gets information. People talk to him,” Friedman said. “[But] I would say about this one, I think it’s premature.”

Here is an important fact: Petterson is slated to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights on July 1. This prompted Murley to acknowledge that he’s “not exactly sure” how Pettersson could end up with the Blackhawks, but he did point to Chicago and its salary cap space, $49 million in 2024-25 that is, is plenty to make a signature happen.

There is a sense that Pettersson could command above $11 million per season on his next contract.

As for the Maple Leafs and Nylander, Friedman did not speak more on the rumour, focusing on Pettersson. Nylander is due to become an unrestricted free agent this summer and could seek as much as the Canucks’ star in negotiations. On Tuesday, Nick Kypreos reported that Nylander and Toronto were getting close to a helfty deal.

If I’m a Blackhawks’ fan, I’m not mad about these rumours and Friedman not denying any of it!

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