That headline caught your attention, didn’t it?
Guess so, if you’re reading this.
Since you’ve come all this way, you might as well keep reading, right?
There may not be a reporter whose word is worth more in the hockey world than Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, and he had a few Chicago Blackhawks-related nuggets to share in his most recent “32 Thoughts” podcast, which was released on Monday.
In the middle of the episode, there’s a discussion on the New York Rangers, which touches on some of the recent games between New York and Chicago. Right around the 29-minute mark, though, Friedman interjects with a quick aside regarding the Ottawa Senators and a certain Blackhawks defenseman.
Here are Friedman’s words with some light punctuation added for clarity:
You know something else I heard? We’ve talked about how the Senators have looked at every possible defenseman you can think of. I think one of the guys that they, at least, asked about — and I don’t think it went anywhere, but I thought it was interesting — was Seth Jones. They just made a call and said — and they’ve dealt with Chicago before on the DeBrincat deal — I think they just called and felt it out. I don’t think it’s happening, I don’t think it’s going anywhere. But I heard that on the weekend. They’re calling on everybody and they called on Seth Jones. But I just don’t think it’s happening.
Well that’s something, isn’t it?
Friedman quickly snuffs out any hopes that this deal would come to fruition. And the phrase “made a call” casts a pretty wide berth in terms of how interested Ottawa actually was in making a deal for Jones. Those who want Jones’ mammoth contract moved out of Chicago ASAP will take this as signs of potential that it could actually happen. Detractors will point to how quickly the conversation went nowhere. It feels more like a Rorschach test for opinions on Jones and his contract than anything else.
But if there’s a scenario that ends with Jones moving out of Chicago, a situation like Ottawa’s would appear to be the ideal setting: a team desperate for defensive help that decides the short-term production Jones can deliver — and make no mistake: he can still deliver plenty in the right situation — will be worth the long-term pain caused by the contract. It doesn’t seem like Ottawa is that team right now, though. There’s also a no-movement clause involved here as well.
One other Blackhawks name was mentioned just before the 25-minute mark: Sam Lafferty.
“Lafferty, by the way, is a guy who is on the Oilers radar,” Friedman said on the podcast.
He attributed that report to Bob Stauffer, a color commentator for Oilers broadcasts, before adding: “I think he’s right about that one.”
The full episode of Friedman’s always excellent podcast is below, for those who want the full experience.