Rumor: Oilers ask Evander Kane to waive no-trade clause.
National Hockey League insider reports that Evander Kane's name has come up in the rumor mill.
It sounds as though there is at least a possibility that Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane could be traded over the course of the summer.
On Saturday night, National Hockey League insider Elliotte Friedman revealed that Kane's name has circulated in the rumor mill, with talk that the Oilers may be looking to deal the veteran forward as they face a cap crunch.
"There were rumors that they had asked Evander Kane to waive his no-move clause," revealed Friedman on the 32 Thoughts podcast.
Friedman made the comments regarding Kane and a potential trade in conjunction with a statement regarding the Oilers pending free agents, which leads me to believe the Oilers feel they need to get Kane's cap hit of $5.125 million off the books in order to be able to retain those players.
"If you heard Jeff Jackson at the end of the first round, he said they are trying to sign all of their UFAs and they are working at it," said Friedman.
If the Oilers are indeed looking to move Kane in order to clear cap space, it doesn't sound like they have a deal in place just yet. Friedman reports that, as of Saturday, Kane has not yet been asked to officially waive his no-movement clause.
"As of Saturday that had not occurred," said Friedman. "That's another one to keep in mind, we'll see if that becomes a thing at all, but as of Saturday it had not happened."
Kane is coming off of a tough Stanley Cup playoff run in which he was badly limited by injuries and as a result isn't likely going to be viewed as the most valuable asset by rival teams, especially given his significant cap hit and history of off-ice issues. That could very well make it difficult for the Oilers to work out a trade in their favor, especially with Kane still having 2 more years on his current contract.
