NHL Rumors: Latest on Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Marc-Andre Fleury Trades, More

It appears the Arizona Coyotes may soon be trading Oliver Ekman-Larsson. However, because the defenseman has a full no-movement clause, he has control over where he could be heading.

And according to Chris Johnston and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, there are only two teams that the 29-year-old will approve a trade to: the Boston Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks.

The Coyotes' attempts to get Ekman-Larsson to expand that list "have proven unsuccessful," per the report, and "barring a last-minute change of heart," he'll be heading to one of those two teams if he is dealt.

Johnston and Friedman reported that the return for Arizona would likely start with a 2021 first-round draft pick, another pick and a prospect:

"The Coyotes like Boston's prospects more than Vancouver's, but, on the weekend, it seemed like the Canucks were the more motivated buyer, liking the idea of a long-time left side of Ekman-Larsson and Quinn Hughes. It is believed Arizona asked about Thatcher Demko, which would have been a non-starter."

Ekman-Larsson has spent his entire 10-year NHL career with the Coyotes, tallying 125 goals and 239 assists over 723 games, and he's been their captain the past two seasons.

However, Arizona now has new leadership after hiring Bill Armstrong as general manager on September 17, and a trade for the Swede would be one of his first major moves.

On Tuesday, Ekman-Larsson's agent, Kevin Epp told TSN that he's setting a Friday deadline for a trade to get done, otherwise the player will stay in Arizona (h/t NHL.com). So, there should continue to be discussions and rumors over the next few days.

Golden Knights Looking To Trade Fleury?

John Locher/Associated Press

Marc-Andre Fleury's time with the Vegas Golden Knights could soon be coming to an end, as the team's "No. 1 focus at the moment" is to trade the goaltender, according to a report by TSN's Frank Seravalli.

Vegas will be looking to shed some salary by dealing the 35-year-old, but that also appears to be one of the things preventing the Golden Knights from currently getting a trade done.

"They've been engaged with a number of different teams to act as a third-party broker to take or retain some of Marc-Andre Fleury's salary," Seravalli reported.

Fleury is set to make $6.5 million in 2020-21 and $6 million in 2021-22. Seravalli noted that Vegas is hoping a team will take $3.5 million of that each of the next two seasons while it would throw in a second-round draft pick, but it's expected that it would take a first- and second-round selection in order to make that happen.

The Golden Knights signed goaltender Robin Lehner to a five-year, $25 million deal on Saturday, so it makes sense why they'd be looking to move the veteran's salary and not have so much money tied up at one position.

After spending his first 13 NHL seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Fleury came to Vegas in the expansion draft prior to the 2017-18 campaign. In three seasons with the Golden Knights, he has a .915 save percentage and 2.51 goals-against average in 156 games.

Lundqvist Heading To Washington In Free Agency?

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

Henrik Lundqvist may be 38 years old, but the goaltender doesn't appear ready to retire just yet. And after playing 15 seasons for the New York Rangers, he may be heading to a different team for the first time in his career.

According to TSN's Bob McKenzie, the Washington Capitals are the "clear front-runner" to sign the Swede, who would likely be signing a "short-term bargain contract." He will not be able to officially sign until free agency begins Friday.

Lundqvist is a two-time All-Star and a former Vezina Trophy winner, although he posted career worsts in save percentage (.905) and goals-against average (3.16) over 30 games for the Rangers in the 2019-20 season. He'll be looking to prove he can still play at a high level, like he has for the majority of his career.

If the Capitals sign the veteran, it will likely mark the end of Braden Holtby's time in Washington. He spent his first 10 NHL seasons with the Caps but is set to enter free agency on Friday.

The Capitals also have 23-year-old goaltender Ilya Samsonov, who emerged as a strong player during his 2019-20 rookie season and could be the team's starter moving forward.