This is a new one. Travis Konecny, a top prospect in the Philadelphia Flyers system who the team selected late in the first round just this past April, is reportedly already drawing trade interest. Or is on the trade market. Or is in some way being connected with the word "trade."
Perhaps more importantly, based on the wording of the report, it sounds like the Flyers and GM Ron Hextall may be willing to move the diminutive scorer. According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, people well-connected within the OHL are already on "trade watch" where Konecny is concerned.
"For Flyers fans: people who know junior hockey more than I do (and there is a long line of such people) are on the Travis Konecny trade watch in the OHL," Friedman wrote on Thursday.
Now, whether Friedman is suggesting that he's hearing Konecny is on the verge of being dealt or just that Konecny is drawing interest, is unclear, but it certainly sounds like there's a possibility the Ottawa 67's center won't long remain a member of the Flyers' organization.
Konecny, widely viewed as one of the top prospects from a talent level in the 2015 NHL Draft, fell due to concerns over his size - 5-foot-10, 174-pounds - and what effect it would have on his play at the professional level.
In 14 games for Oattaw this season, Konecny has five goals and 18 assists.
Here's what Elite Prospects has to say about the smallish center...
"A talented scoring forward that can play either as a center or on the wing; plays with the bite and intensity of a guy who is willing to do anything to win a game. Possesses dynamic skating ability that allows him to accelerate rapidly with each step, incredible hockey sense, electrifying puckhandling skills, and a lightning release on his shot; when you put this skillset together with hard-nosed determination, proactiveness in all three zones, and a physical willingness to grind and persevere, you get a game-changer who can be extremely difficult to play against."
Now, why Hextall and a Flyers team desperate for forwards with scoring touch would want to deal a young and potentially elite, if physically-challenged, center, is beyond us here at HNGN.
But if they're willing to deal, or at the very least talking deal, it's probably pretty safe to assume they'd be getting something significant in return - like a landing spot for Vinny Lecavalier and Luke Schenn, perhaps.
