On the Los Angeles Kings …
Dennis Bernstein: Coach Darryl Sutter made it pretty clear that he plans on returning to coach the Kings next season.
Helene Elliott: Vincent Lecavalier declined to comment on his playing future. He promised to answer questions about his ‘retirement’ in the next couple days when they have their exit interviews.
Helene Elliott: Pending UFA Milan Lucic on if LA is where he wants to play next year: “Yes, 100 percent. I definitely have no plans or even think about anywhere else. I’m sure there will be a lot of conversations in the near future and I hope it works out for both sides.”
Dennis Bernstein: Kings Trevor Lewis will be able to get a better contract on the open market than from the Kings. He could get a deal in the $2 million per range, which is something the Kings can’t do for their bottom-six anymore.
On the Montreal Canadiens …
Chris Nichols of Today’s Slapshot: Elliotte Friedman on Sportsnet 960 on Larry Brooks report that the Canadiens are prepared to listen to trade offers for P.K. Subban.
“I think they’re going to listen, because I think you always have to listen. But I don’t think it’s happening unless the trade is one that – I think they know that if, if, if they trade P.K. Subban, whoever comes in there is going to be starting at a deficit from the fan point of view. You have to be able to say that a) this trade makes sense for us, and our fans will understand it, and b) you have to be able to know that you are bringing in somebody who is going to be able to handle it. The backlash initially will be severe.
“And I think it’s hard in this day and age, especially with social media, and a lot of players like to interact on it. You have to have somebody who’s going to come in with a thick skin as you can possibly imagine and say, ‘I can handle this.’
“And I’ll tell you this. I think if they do put Subban on the market, I think they will get good offers for him. I think there are teams that will be interested, No. 1, and I think teams will know that if they want to make a trade with Montreal, they’re going to have to give up quality.”
