In the weeks leading up to the NHL Trade Deadline, it was impossible to avoid the speculation surrounding Columbus Blue Jackets forward, Rick Nash.
He made it known that he was unhappy in Columbus and that his preference was to be traded. In the end, the Jackets ended up hanging on to Nash but you can guarantee they will once again be exploring potential trade options this off season.
If you followed this site pre-deadline (and you damn well better have!), you'll know that I maintained from the outset that the Ottawa Senators were never real players in the Rick Nash sweepstakes. Adding a big ticket player like Nash just wasn't in the cards for this team this past season.
But that doesn't mean the Sens weren't interested.
From what I've been told, Bryan Murray is a huge fan of Nash and did make a call to Jackets GM Scott Howson prior to the deadline. The asking price was astronomically high and apparently included two or three significant prospects out of the Sens system. Too rich for the Sens blood at that point in time but it does show that Murray and his staff thought enough of the player to at least pick up the phone.
I would expect the Senators to explore this option again this off season. Murray has made it known that he'd like to add another scoring forward and with the free agent market relatively thin, his options could be fairly limited.
With depth in goal (Bishop and Lehner) and up front (Zibanejad, Stone, Silfverberg, etc.) it's pretty clear that Ottawa has the pieces needed to make something happen.
From a personal stand point, I would much rather see the Sens go the free agent route and nab someone like Zach Parise but that may not be in the cards, especially when you consider the run the Devils have gone on this season.
When the Rick Nash sweepstakes were in full swing leading up to the deadline, Nash had submitted a list of teams he would accept a deal to. The belief is there's a chance that list could expand during the off season with more teams willing and able to explore a trade.
The Ottawa Senators showed some interest before and I expect they'll show interest again this off season.
What would it take to get Rick Nash in a Senators uniform? Is this an option you'd like to see the Sens seriously explore this offseason?
