NHL Trade Rumors: Evgeni Nabokov and Goalies Likely on the Move

With the NHL trade deadline less than a week away, the frenzy for the big-name players has shifted into gear. The madness has begun.

One position that gets forgotten much of the time during these trade talks is goaltender, but this year has plenty of scuttlebutt surrounding the masked men.

All of the following goalies are at risk of being traded, but they will fetch serious value on the market nonetheless.

Evgeni Nabokov

With the New York Islanders assuming their role as young team with tons of potential that fails to live up to that potential and finishes near the bottom of the Easter Conference Standings, it’s time to cut Evgeni Nabokov loose.

The Islanders aren’t going to win with him and he is too old to be part of any sort of rebuilding project. That’s why New York should get what they can why he still has value.

With instability in net for many teams in serious playoff contention, most notably the Philadelphia Flyers, Nabokov may be a serious option for those teams. If the Islanders get picks or prospects back, it will be a smart deal.

Sergei Bobrovsky

With the Philadelphia Flyers having veteran Ilya Bryzgalov locked up for the better part of the next decade, using young goalie Sergei Bobrovsky as a bargaining chip is the smart thing to do.

The Flyers have Finnish prospect Niko Hovinen coming down the pike, so the idea of having a temporary fix as the backup until next season is something Philadelphia is used to doing in net. Its goalie situation has always been patchwork.

With Columbus and several other teams kicking the tires on a possible deal involving Bobrovsky, the only way the young goalie is moved would be as part of a blockbuster deal. Don’t count that out yet either.

Jonathan Bernier

With the offense falling flat on its face, the Los Angeles Kings are starting to get desperate for the kind of scoring that a player like Rick Nash could bring. It would mean parting with Jonathan Bernier at the very least.

While it’s obvious there would have to be other major additions to the package to make it work, the goalie of the future for the Blue Jackets could be Bernier. It depends on how they view him.

If he is a better piece than Bobrovsky from Philly, the Blue Jackets will lean more towards trading their captain to Los Angeles instead of the Flyers. Either way, goalies will be involved in the trade.

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