Fansided

NHL trade rumors: Top 10 trade candidates in 2020-21

By Simon Vacca

SAN JOSE, CA - APRIL 07: Jonas Brodin #25 and Matt Dumba #24 of the Minnesota Wild look on during the game against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on April 7, 2018 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Rocky W. Widner/NHL/Getty Images)
SAN JOSE, CA - APRIL 07: Jonas Brodin #25 and Matt Dumba #24 of the Minnesota Wild look on during the game against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on April 7, 2018 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Rocky W. Widner/NHL/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 23: Shayne Gostisbehere #53 of the Philadelphia Flyers controls the puck against the New York Rangers at the Wells Fargo Center on December 23, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 23: Shayne Gostisbehere #53 of the Philadelphia Flyers controls the puck against the New York Rangers at the Wells Fargo Center on December 23, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

3. Shayne Gostisbehere

Team: Philadelphia Flyers
Position: D
Age: 26

For the better part of a year, Shayne Gostisbehere’s name has ceased to disappear from the NHL’s rumor mill.

A high-risk, high-reward defender, Gostisbehere’s 2019-20 season was nothing to write home about. He posted a mere five goals and seven assists in 42 games played, while battling the injury bug — including a looming knee issue — and the prospect of serving as a healthy scratch on a team carrying seven defensive options.

Despite having seen far better days, the talk surrounding Gostisbehere was somewhat pooh-poohed by Philadelphia Flyers President and general manager Chuck Fletcher. “We were certainly not looking to move him,” Fletcher stated shortly after the NHL trade deadline. “Teams have called me on him. Nothing really makes sense right now to me to move one of our seven D unless we’re getting a really great impact player back in some area. Those types of trades usually don’t happen right now.”

“I like Shayne,” he later added. “Frankly, I think Shayne can get back to where he was and help us.”

That said, the summer ahead may be the turning point that pundits have long gestured to for the 26-year-old. Signed to a $4.5 million deal through 2022-23, a team in need of a puck-moving blue liner may look to acquire the struggling defender in hopes of offering him an avenue to resurgence.

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