NHL Trade Rumors: Latest Reports on P.K. Subban, Jacob Trouba and More

With just over a week remaining until the 2016 NHL draft, hockey's offseason should be getting ramped up in the coming days.

Most of the focus had been squarely placed on the Stanley Cup Final, but that should change now. Trades, free agency and the draft are all going to come washing over in a wave, with a number of high-profile talents potentially on the move.

Free agency and the draft are generally easier to project. We have a good idea of who will go where in the entry draft, and free agency is all about speculating price points. Trades are another animal entirely—especially with so many All-Star talents being bandied about on the rumor mill.

Here's a look at a few notable names going around at the moment. 

P.K. Subban Not Going Anywhere?

Matt Slocum/Associated Press

Time is ticking if the Montreal Canadiens want to trade All-Star defenseman P.K. Subban. His contract calls for a no-trade clause to kick in July 1, meaning he would have veto rights on any potential move until his contract expires in 2022.

With the Canadiens finishing with the fourth-worst record in the Eastern Conference and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2011-12, there has been some speculation about a rebuild. If that's the case, Subban would likely bring the biggest trade haul of anyone on the roster.

There doesn't, however, appear to be any smoke to the fire. Darren Dreger appeared on TSN 690 on Thursday and said the Canadiens don't have interest in moving Subban (h/t Chris Nichols of Today's Slapshot):

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What I know is this. Very recently, I reached out to a couple of general managers who I know have had some contact with Bergevin over time. One in particular, a Western Conference general manager, flat-out said he asked Bergevin about the availability of P.K. Subban. Now, this is probably in the last two, three weeks, maybe a bit longer than that. And he was flat-out told that he wasn’t going to be available.

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Subban posted over 50 points for the third straight season in 2015-16. He was publicly frustrated with the downturn by the Canadiens throughout the campaign, but he's one of the league's best defensemen. There may be a time in the future where Montreal wants to move him; this just isn't the perfect time. His numbers were down a bit across the board from last season, and teams know they're under the gun if they want to move him.

The best move in these situations is typically to stay the course and hope it works out.

Trouba Willing to Sign Long-Term Deal?

Kelvin Kuo/Associated Press

One of the more interesting trade situations this summer may be Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba. 

On paper, there's not much reason to trade him. He's 22. He's been successful at the NHL level since his arrival. The Jets were plus-10 with him on the ice this season and have been positive overall in all three of his campaigns. This is, typically, the type of guy you build around.

But Trouba is a restricted free agent, and according to a December report from the Winnipeg Free Press' Tim Campbell (h/t Sportsnet), the 22-year-old indicated he was asking for an exorbitant contract—right in the neighborhood of eight years, $56 million.

That's star-level money for a guy with elite talent but only three years of NHL experience. It would require a ton of faith to tie that much cap space up in Trouba—even if the actual demands are closer to, say, $48 million than $56 million.

NHL teams hold the power in restricted free agency, so Trouba's tied to the club so long as it wants him. There has, thus, been speculation that the Jets could trade Trouba—or watch him as he holds out over the summer for the contract he wants.

Dreger, appearing on TSN 1290, said Trouba would not accept a bridge deal but is open to signing long term (h/t Nichols): 

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I don’t expect that he’d accept a bridge deal. I think that Trouba believes that he’s shown enough in the National Hockey League to warrant a longer term and a bigger number, but we don’t know exactly what that term or what that number is. I believe that that number, term and dollars, is prohibitive from a Winnipeg Jets perspective. And I think honestly, that’s what fueling a lot of this trade speculation. Because look, we know player agents and players use sometimes outrageous terms to encourage a trade. But I’ve been told by both parties here that Jacob Trouba is absolutely willing to sign and stay in Winnipeg.

"

This is one of those situations where there's not really a good answer. Giving Trouba $7 or $8 million a season is a huge number. This isn't Subban. Trouba hasn't made an All-Star team and has only seen the playoffs once.

Then again, he's a good young player. Locking him up for eight more years only gets him to his 30th birthday. Free agents aren't flocking to Winnipeg, and it's unlikely the Jets could replicate Trouba's production elsewhere.

Other Notes

Tyson Barrie to be Traded?

Bob McKenzie was on TSN 1260 and said he thinks Tyson Barrie will be traded, (h/t Nichols):

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Yeah. Here’s what I think. This is not going to make any sense, but I’m going to say it anyways. Colorado is looking for a defenseman. But I don’t think they like the economic leverage that Tyson Barrie has right now. Tyson Barrie has got a very strong arbitration case. I think he’s going to be looking for a sum of money that Colorado doesn’t feel comfortable in giving him. Therefore I think they’re looking for somebody who – looking for a different type of defenseman maybe, or one that’s not going to cost them as much money.

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Barrie, 24, scored 49 points last season and is one of the most productive defensemen in the NHL. He's, like Trouba, a restricted free agent who is going to command a big salary. After strangely dumping off Ryan O'Reilly to the Buffalo Sabres a year ago, it'd be a horrible look for the Avs to pull the trigger on moving another young star so early in his career.

If only Colorado was as good at talent retention as it was at drafting.