Insider Trading: The latest on Jake Guentzel

Pens winger Jake Guentzel sits atop TSN's Trade Bait board, so what kind of return is Pittsburgh expecting? Would a move in Ottawa start a domino effect in the nation's capital? What are the Oilers looking to add before Friday's deadline? TSN Hockey Insiders Darren Dreger, Pierre LeBrun and Chris Johnston discuss this and more.

What’s the latest on Jake Guentzel and the Vancouver Canucks?

Jake Guentzel Pittsburgh PenguinsChris Johnston: The Guentzel domino seems like it’s about to tip over at this point in time. The Pittsburgh Penguins have a high degree of ‘want’ to get this deal done by Wednesday night and they’re working through the final offers.

One of the teams that has shown up with interest is the Vancouver Canucks. A lot of connections there between Patrik Allvin and Jim Rutherford. How could they make this work if they were the team to get Guentzel? What I’ve been able to uncover is that they have had discussions with the Boston Bruins about potentially flipping Elias Lindholm, who they just acquired from Calgary a little more than a month ago, to the Bruins as a way to maybe have all the machinations fall into place in terms of cap space, getting back some assets that could be used in this deal.

I wouldn’t necessarily put Vancouver at the front of the line. It sounds like there’s a little bit of sticker shock from the Canucks' end of things. But the mere fact that they’re out there potentially, or at least contemplating trading Lindholm so soon, tells us first of all how aggressive Vancouver is right now, and how thin the market is at centre. The Bruins don’t see a lot of options out there, and that’s what’s got them having these conversations.

Darren Dreger: It’s interesting that the Canucks would be spooked by the high price tag that the Penguins have established on Guentzel. The Canucks are part of why the ask is so high on Jake Guentzel because of the price they paid to acquire Elias Lindholm from the Flames.

When you look at what Kyle Dubas needs for Guentzel you’re talking about a first-round draft pick, you’re talking about a young NHL roster player, and a very good prospect or prospects. There could be some flexibility in all that. If the NHL roster player is a good player or the prospect is a top prospect, perhaps that lessens or sways the overall look. We’ll find out about that in the next 24 hours.

When the first domino falls, whether it be Guentzel or Noah Hanifin, does a team like the Ottawa Senators immediately become involved with all the players they have to deal?

Vladimir Tarasenko Dreger: No question about that. Jake Guentzel, given the trades we’ve already seen to this point, would be considered the jewel in the crown.

But what about Vladimir Tarasenko? Tarasenko is a little more complicated because he has the full no-movement clause but he is a player of interest because he can flat out score. There are so many contending teams that like the idea of adding that finishing touch.

Could a team like Vegas step up? They want to add at least one forward, maybe a couple of forwards.

And what about Jacob Chychrun? When Noah Hanifin goes from the Flames, and that’s going to happen in the next couple of days, then I think that the action that’s been established over the last couple of days on Chychrun will move up another layer. All sorts of permutations as we look at the Ottawa Senators.

What forwards might be at the top of the Edmonton Oilers’ list?

Adam Henrique Anaheim DucksJohnston: Over time they’ve gone through a lot of the names at the top of the list, the Guentzels and the Tarasenkos. At this point, the priority for Edmonton is to try to acquire Adam Henrique from the Anaheim Ducks. He’s viewed as a good fit on multiple levels. He does have some trade protection on his contract but I believe he has warmed to the idea of a move to Edmonton if a trade can be consummated between the Ducks and Oilers. At this point, it seems like that’s where Edmonton is aiming a lot of its focus over the next couple of days.

Jason Zucker, on paper, seems like the kind of forward Edmonton might like but I’m told they’re not in on him. He is being held out of Arizona’s lineup on Tuesday for trade-related reasons because action has picked up around that forward.

Does a trade of Tyler Toffoli become a last-minute decision for the New Jersey Devils?

Tyler Toffoli New Jersey DevilsLeBrun: It sounds like the Devils want to go right to the wire on Toffoli for a couple of reasons. One, they just had the coaching change. They are really trying to save their season and the couple of games before Friday’s deadline are a factor in how they go on Toffoli. The biggest factor is balancing the kind of offers that they get on him, and there’s strong interest, versus ‘that’s not good enough, let’s just keep him for this run'. It’s going to go to the wire on Toffoli and it should because the Devils feel like they can still perhaps make it into the playoff run here.

Let’s discuss a couple of the other main names, starting with Sean Walker in Philadelphia and Max Pacioretty in Washington.

Sean Walker Philadelphia FlyersLeBrun: Finally, on Tuesday, the Flyers started getting more serious attention on Sean Walker. They’ve been getting more calls from teams they had heard from, now with teams perhaps showing their hand a bit more. I think that was a welcome development for the Flyers. They haven’t ruled out keeping him because they’re in a playoff spot. They haven’t ruled out trying to sign him, although talks on that front have been quiet.

The next player is Max Pacioretty, who has a full no-movement clause. He can afford to be picky but I also think he wants to go join a contender. If he can, he’d rather stay East. A team that I’m wondering about is the Florida Panthers, potentially, as a fit for him.