The Ottawa Senators looked at every available right-handed defenseman
Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen: Ottawa Senators GM Steve Staois tried hard to find a top-four right-handed defenseman before Friday’s deadline, but wasn’t able to pull it off.
“We had plenty of conversations,” Staios said. “We took the approach with this deadline that it was an opportunity, like always, to try and make our team better. So we looked at just about everything.
“At the end of the day, we feel very good about our team, the direction that it’s moving, the way we’ve been playing more recently, particularly.”
Calgary Flames MacKenzie Weegar had been the Senators’ top trade target. According to league executives, they checked in on every right-shot D that was available.
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It’s still not known who the one player was that got away from the Montreal Canadiens
Sportsnet: Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas on 32 Thoughts: The Buzz is back in Buffalo episode, on if there was anything further on the Montreal Canadiens and the player they were in on at the deadline, but weren’t able to land.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Bukauskas: “Any further inroads on the Montreal trade that Ken Hughes tried to get done? There was a big one that could be revisited, that what, what was it?”
Friedman: “You know, like I said I had a theory. I asked it was denied to me. I just don’t think it’s, there were some Canadians fans who sent me DMs saying that wasn’t a very nice thing to do. I’m sorry, guys. Like, I really, I really didn’t. I’m not trying to do that for like to torture anyone or taunt anyone.
It’s just like, you know, I really do believe if I’ve been told something’s wrong, you shouldn’t do it. Aside from joking about McKinnon begging for Kadri. I think that’s actually a fun thing to joke about, as opposed to this.
I, you know, Dave Pagnotta had a note about a right-shot defenseman that they were looking at. I, I didn’t get the sense that that was the one that was didn’t get over the finish line. But, you know, I could be wrong. I think it was a forward, and you know, we’ll just see where it goes over time.
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So the answer is, is no, I think it was a forward. But I don’t, like I said the idea I had was denied to me in multiple places. So it’s, it’s, it’s not the right thing to come out with it. But you know, someone’s gonna figure it out, like it’s, it’s, sooner or later, we’re all gonna figure out what this is.”
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