Mark Stone perhaps is the biggest name left on the NHL trade market. But if teams are going to pry the star forward from the Ottawa Senators, it’s going to cost them.
A slew of teams reportedly are “serious suitors” for Stone, including the Boston Bruins. Though they, like other clubs, might be scared off by Ottawa’s asking price.
Here’s a report from Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos:
“The market is drying up on Mark Stone for the Ottawa Senators, for no other reason than because their ask is so high,” Kypreos said.
“They’d love to mirror the pieces that they got with (Matt) Duchene. The difference is the prospects out of Columbus are regarded as maybe Bs and Cs, and what they’re looking for for Stone is grade-A — guys that actually can step in and play right away. And right now, there doesn’t seem to be any teams biting, including the Winnipeg Jets.”
In case you missed it, the Senators on Friday traded center Matt Duchene to the Columbus Blue Jackets for a pair of prospects and conditional first-round draft picks. The prospects — forwards Vitaly Abramov and Jonathan Davidsson — are highly regarded, but were not considered the top prospects in the Blue Jackets system.
So, is Stone worth paying even more than that?
The 6-foot-4, 26-year-old Canadian is one of the better power forwards in the NHL. He’s racked up at least 20 goals and 30 assists in each of his last five seasons, including 28 tallies and 34 dimes through 59 games this season. He’ll also be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
