Are the Knights shopping Michael Hutchinson?

Two sources have confirmed that the London Knights are trying to trade goaltender Michael Hutchinson's rights. The Guelph Storm seem to be the front runners with the Oshawa Generals and Sudbury Wolves also said to be interested.

Hutchinson attended the camp of the Boston Bruins and with Rask and Thomas on the NHL roster there is no room there. He was recently sent down to the Providence Bruins training camp. And with Dalton and Schaefer ahead of Hutchinson on the depth chart for Providence, it seems like the ECHL may be the next destination for Hutch.

The problem is the Bruins share their ECHL affiliation with the LA Kings and there is no guarantee of the quality or number of starts Hutchinson would get in the ECHL. While the Bruins would like Hutchinson to play in as many games as possible, no one would confirm whether the Bruins had asked the Knights, who are set in goal, to trade his rights.

The sticking point to a trade now is the overage rule and the fact that Hutchinson is signed to an NHL contract. It will make a trade a little harder to complete. But sources say it could happen very quickly this week.

Correction: The Royals affiliation is with the Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs, not the LA Kings.

Bruins affilation with JYP Jyaskyla and what it means

I had a lengthy conversation with agent Ian Pulver and thought i would touch on what he had to say about the affilation between the Boston Bruins and Finnish team JYP Jyaskyla.

On how he sees the affiliation: It may be a move done to move some pro contracts. Can't comment on that.

On whether it will affect draft picks; It won't affect junior eligible players as they are still bound by the same rules.

On European players: The NHL can only have 50 players under contract. A European drafted player may want to chose Finland as a destination to play against better competition and could sign with them while the Bruins still retain his rights.