On the Kevin Shattenkirk …
Jimmy Murphy: Jorden Neumann, Shattenkirk’s agent, told that reports that they’ve narrowed his list down to the Bruins and Rangers are “inaccurate.”
Mike Harrington: After the Sabres conference call yesterday afternoon, and likely forget about Shattenkirk.
Chris Nichols of FanRag Sports: Bob McKenzie was on TSN 690 talking about the New York Rangers heading into free agency. doesn’t think the Rangers were into Kevin Shattenkirk as much as everyone made them out to be. They are trying to get younger and have shed some longer-term deals – Derek Stepan and Dan Girardi. Signing Shattenkirk would put them back with another long-term, big deal.
“So I think they’re real hesitant to lock in on big numbers for a big number of years. And so I’m not sure that Shattenkirk to New York makes a lot of sense, unless he’s prepared to take a hometown discount. And the fact that he did grow up not too far from New York City literally makes it his hometown.
“The New Jersey Devils are a team that I think have been linked to Shattenkirk in a big way and they’re the team that doesn’t have cap issues. I think Ray Shero and the ownership in New Jersey have decided: ‘We’re a rebuilding team, but we’d better start accelerating that rebuild a little bit here. We’d better start getting a lot more competitive a lot more quickly.’”
Pierre LeBrun was on TSN 1040 and was speculating on where Shattenkirk could end up.
“Interesting. Buffalo has definitely looked at him,” noted LeBrun. “New Jersey. I’ve got to think somewhere East. But it’ll be interesting to see if he ends up getting what he thought he would get. Tampa Bay, I think, has looked at him. But again, I don’t think Tampa wants to open the vault.
“So that’s what I’m most curious about. Now, no team has more cap room than the New Jersey Devils. I mean, they’re locked and loaded and ready to do some things if they want, or if players want to go there. And he’s from New Jersey.
“But those are some of the candidates, I think.”
