Rumor: Two Canadian teams talking trade with Blue Jackets

Nick Kypreos drops a bomb! Could we see the first deal of 2018-19?

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 5 years ago
Rumor: Two Canadian teams talking trade with Blue Jackets
Zuma Press

In case you missed Saturday night’s Saturday Headlines segment during CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada broadcast, NHL insider Nick Kypreos named Columbus Blue Jackets forward Josh Anderson as someone who could be in play on the trade market this season. Even more interesting, Kypreos tipped his hand and revealed two teams who are believed to be interested in acquiring Anderson.

Check it out:

“Interesting, he started the game on the weekend on the fourth line,” indicated Kypreos. “He’s a big, strong, heavy guy. There is no trade request yet from Josh Anderson, but clearly he’s unhappy. Two teams that have always shown interest in Josh Anderson in the past - Toronto and the Montreal Canadiens.”

Interesting. It’s unclear just how recent the interest from the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens is, but from a purely speculative position it’s obvious to see where Anderson would fit in on either club. The 6 foot, 3 inch, 220 pound winger would be a good fit on either the Leafs of the Habs, but of course the sticking point, as with any trade, is obviously the asking price. The 24 year old Anderson topped the 30 point plateau last season and nearly hit the 20 goal plateau, scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 63 games. He’s a big body winger who’s not afraid to use his size along the boards and in the corners. He’d be a perfect fit on the wing with either club.

On an appearance with TSN 1050 radio in Toronto yesterday, TSN analyst and NHL insider Darren Dreger addressed Kypreos’ report saying that he cannot confirm or deny the rumours.

"No, I can’t," indicated Dreger. "And that stuff surfaces on a semi-regular basis. Josh Anderson is one of those players that I don’t know if he doesn’t fit the eye of John Tortorella, or whatever it is. But you remember was it a year ago there was a stalemate there, and there were all kind of trade rumors percolating around the National Hockey League. I recall at that point Toronto being in that, in the sense that Toronto was being speculated as having considerable interest. And that’s likely where that’s generating from now."

"He’s a good player, so all teams would be interested providing there was a way to make this happen."

Where there's smoke there's fire? Could we see the first deal of 2018-19 going down right before our eyes?

Source: Nick Kypreos