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I feel like I have written about this before. I definitely have. Alas, the rumours about P.K. Subban being shopped or supposed deals that are in the works just don't want to quit, and it is high time that they did.
Ever since Marc Bergevin said that no player is completely safe, Subban has been the primary focus of any conversation regarding the Montreal Canadiens making a trade. It isn't because of his character, or his play, or anything to do with him at all.
It is because talking about a Subban trade has been — and will be, until July 1 — about as sexy as speculation comes. It's a guaranteed hit.
Remember that rumoured deal with the Edmonton Oilers, and how Peter Chiarelli himself debunked it, saying that there had never even been a conversation about it, and that there likely never would? Most of this stuff is being cooked up because it has been slow times for news, and there's a desperate need to create things to talk about.
We do know that Marc Bergevin has been active heading into the draft, but that doesn't mean he's looking to blow up the team and rebuild. He knows he has the makings of a contender on his hands, and Subban is a part of that recipe. The only way he'd make a deal involving Subban is if it makes the team better this season.
That probably wouldn't be the case in any hypothetical deal.
Some have suggested they'd package him as part of a deal to move up in the draft. That is insane, because again, they're not in a rebuild, and they already have a decent stock of picks to get prospects with. I couldn't see them trading for forward help either, because they have cap space and can afford to take on a free agent.
Pretty much the only scenario in which moving Subban makes any sense is if he gets a superstar defenceman in return, to avoid leaving a gaping hole in his lineup. Does anyone really see that happening? I know I don't.
L'intérêt pour PK Subban semble augmenter depuis 48 heures. Je compte près d'une dizaine d'équipes qui ont un intérêt pour ses services 1/2
— Renaud Lavoie (@renlavoietva) June 23, 2016
Stop the presses... Numerous teams around the league are interested in acquiring an elite defenceman.
Comme on le répète depuis longtemps, les Canadiens ne tentent pas de l'échanger, mais le devoir de Marc Bergevin est d'écouter. 2/2
— Renaud Lavoie (@renlavoietva) June 23, 2016
Bergevin is listening to calls about his availability? Well that seems logical, because that's a thing he is paid to do. With the season they just had, I bet he has taken at least a few calls about most of their core players. Probably even Carey Price. The fact that teams are asking about player availability means exactly nothing, it is just part of the job.
And if the calls specific to Subban are really heating up, that could have more to do with the constant rumour mongering than it does with reality.
So for the love of all that is good in this world, can we ease up on the speculation?
As it stands Bergevin has stated he's not interested in trading his core players, and the odds are that P.K. Subban will remain a member of the Canadiens long into the future. In the meantime, July 1 can't come fast enough.