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Add the Minnesota Wild to the list of teams that have at least talked to the New York Islanders regarding Travis Hamonic. Makes sense, of course, given that Minnesota isn’t too far from Hamomic’s home province of Manitoba. Having said that, considering the Wild are among the deepest teams in the NHL on the blue line and, perhaps more importantly, have zero cap room, it's not an easy deal to get done. But both teams have indeed talked, for what it's worth. My TSN colleague Darren Dreger reported during our Insider Trading segment Thursday evening that Colorado is also in the mix, which again would make sense given the Avs' blue-line needs. Dreger also reported Hamonic’s agent, Kevin Epp, was given the green light by the Islanders about seven to 10 days ago to talk to teams about facilitating a trade. Hamonic, who confirmed his trade request Thursday, desires to be closer to his family in Manitoba. The Edmonton Oilers are most definitely interested in Hamonic and have been in contact with the Islanders since before the season. According to a source, Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli had in fact tried to pry Hamonic away from the Islanders even before he requested a change of scenery. Which is to suggest, simply, that Chiarelli’s interest in Hamonic pre-dates the circumstances that led to Hamonic’s trade request. But can the Oilers and Islanders find a trade match? Of course the Winnipeg Jets, Hamonic’s hometown team, have been in the Hamonic conversation from the beginning as well. But again, the cost? If the asking price is Jacob Trouba, that’s likely too rich a cost. Mind you, Hamonic is signed long term, and Trouba is not yet.
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