Travis Hamonic is available via trade from the New York Islanders. But a word of warning for interested NHL GMs - get ready to back up the NHL bus and unload at least one of your best players, and quite possibly more, if you want Hamonic, because Islanders GM Garth Snow isn't going to just give away his elite blueliner. While Snow is obviously doing what he can to fulfill Hamonic's request of a move to or near Western Canada - Hamonic's family is there and some issue is apparently fueling his desire to return posthaste - Snow's also doing what he can to keep the Islanders' larder stocked with NHL talent. Per a recent report from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun, Snow isn't just pushing for value comparable to Hamonic in return - he's seeking more.
"In fact, he's asking teams for more than Hamonic's value. He's asking for a ridiculous return. They're not trading this guy unless they get exactly what they want," a league source told Garrioch. "I think they want a comparable asset or greater."
Really, it's not all that surprising to hear. Hamonic is a top-four defenseman who, at just 25, still has room to grow into one of the best blueliners in the league. He's a stay-at-home guy, able to chip in offensively - tools that rarely become available, especially not when they're on the verge of their prime professional years.
He's also signed to a relatively affordable deal - Hamonic's current contract carries him through the 2019-20 season at an annual cap hit of $3,857,143. His base salary jumps to $4.875 million next year, but it's a small price to pay for the kind of minutes-eater he is and the elite shutdown defender he can become.
Still, numerous reports of late have suggested that trades are simply difficult to enact at this point of the NHL season. GMs are reticent to admit defeat on certain players and money, as it always is, is tight, even more so this season thanks to the Canadian dollar.
And while Hamonic, who has made it clear that the Winnipeg Jets are his No. 1 destination, obviously would like a deal to be consummated as quickly as possible, it sounds like he and his representatives know that a trade may very well have to wait until the offseason.
"I think there's an understanding between (Hamonic) and the Isles that he may have to play the whole year there," Garrioch's source said. "Not that he has a choice anyway. This thing just got public before they wanted."
