Contenders pull out of Patrik Laine’s trade sweepstakes!

Patrik Laine has been officially cleared to return from the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and the Columbus Blue Jackets and his agent are working together on a trade to provide the Finnish forward with a fresh start.

Laine has been linked several teams in recent rumour circles, including the Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals, Minnesota Wild, Pittsburgh Penguins, Montreal Canadiens, Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs.

However, recent reports have proven that some contenders that were considered to be in the lead might have decided to pull out of the Laine sweepstakes.

First, Eric Engels of Sportsnet has reported that the Canadiens now only have minimal interest, going on the “The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro” to explain how the rumours linking Laine to the Habs made him laugh:

“I would say the interest is pretty minimal,” said Engels, pointing out how Laine’s game isn’t up to par in every aspect that excludes goal scoring.

On top of that many believe that Laine, who has a 10-team no-trade list on the two years he has left on his contract with an $8.7-million cap hit, would not wanted to live in Montreal and its tough pressure after exiting the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program to get help for his mental health.

As for the Capitals, insider Sammi Silber for the Hockey News claims that a Laine trade does not make sense for Washington, seeing the Caps have limited cap space to handle the star forward’s AAV.

For now, there is a sense that the Hurricanes could be the front-runner to acquire Laine. Last week, Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell accidentally spoke on a potential trade when endorsing Eric Tulsky to be his former team, the Carolina Hurricanes’, general manager.

“Eric’s the brains,” Waddell said. “He’s way smarter than I’ll ever dream about being. … I have no doubt he’ll do a great job. We’re trying to make a trade right now, so…”

We are all wondering if he was hinting at Laine.