Jonathan Drouin no longer wishes to be a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning franchise. His agent, Allan Walsh, made that much clear on Sunday night, indicating that he had "formally requested a trade" from the Lightning in Nov. and suggesting that the situation had since become "untenable" since. Tampa Bay GM Steve Yzerman responded quickly, stating that while they were willing to "acknowledge" Drouin's request, via Walsh, they would continue to "act in the best interest" of the Lightning.
Drouin, now with the team's AHL affiliate, the Crunch of Syracuse, is a former first-round pick, third-overall, who seemed set for a larger role for coach Jon Cooper's group just last year. But in 70 regular season games, Drouin saw limited action and the 20-year-old wound up spending nearly the entirety of the team's playoff run as a healthy scratch. H
is limited use has continued this season. Drouin has appeared in just 19 games, potting two goals and adding six assists.
Of course, the problem of Drouin's limited use then becomes Yzerman's problem, because potential or no, it's no easy feat to trade, and get commensurate value for, a player averaging just 14 minutes of ice time on the season.
Where that leaves things is anyone's guess at this point.
According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, nothing is "imminent" on the Drouin trade front, though the Bolts have "worked the phones."
Determining value for Drouin will be a major impediment to any deal. Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman appeared on Calgary's Sportnet 960 on Monday morning and said that he expects the price to be "high," and that Yzerman & Co. have attempted to move Drouin in the past, but that the offers simply weren't in line with what they were seeking.
"I asked somebody yesterday, 'Has Tampa been looking to move this guy in the past,' and what one GM told me was, 'Look at it this way. If they had a deal that they could have traded this kid, they would have done it," Friedman said, per Today's Slap Shot's transcription.
Of course, as we've seen all too recently with Travis Hamonic and Patrick Marleau, a player's desire to be dealt means little if the personnel man tasked with making the move isn't particularly motivated. And it sure sounds like Yzerman is willing to wait this out.
And as with any player looking at a possible trade before they've able to fully develop as an NHLer, the horror stories associated with a name Tyler Seguin likely have Yzerman thinking twice, thrice and even more about enacting a deal.
"I would love to steal him," an NHL talent evaluator told ESPN's Craig Custance. "There isn't anything he doesn't have. I wouldn't say he's a tough guy, but I don't think there's a courage issue. You'd be scared to trade a guy like that, just like you'd be scared to trade Seguin. You want to find out what you have in him, not let him die on the vine."
