00:00Training camps opened around the NHL Thursday as the league looks to build on the momentum of an historic 24-25 season.
00:08Threatening to overshadow all the great things that happened on the ice,
00:11the possibility that some of the biggest stars in the game could be on the move.
00:18Everyone has been chasing the Florida Panthers for the last two seasons, and that figures to be the case once again.
00:24The team managed to re-sign high-priced stars Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, and Brad Marchand to make a run at a three-peat.
00:32The Panthers' Stanley Cup Finals opponent the last two seasons wants to keep pace.
00:37There's just one issue.
00:39The league's best player, Edmonton's Connor McDavid, is entering the final year of his eight-year, $100 million contract.
00:47And though he's been offered an extension by the team, he hasn't signed it.
00:50He wants assurances the Oilers will do what it takes to get over the hump and win a cup.
00:56General Manager Stan Bowman said he talks to McDavid daily and doesn't have to give him a sales pitch.
01:02He does ask me about, like, where do I envision things, so that's a part of it.
01:07We talked about this year, too, and we talked about, you know, what did we do well last year?
01:13What do we think we could change or should change?
01:16If the two sides don't agree on a deal, a mid-season trade could shake up the entire league.
01:22McDavid could also become a free agent at the end of the season, which could start the biggest bidding war in league history.
01:29A similar scenario is playing out in Minnesota, where 28-year-old superstar Kirill Kaprizov rejected an eight-year, $128 million contract
01:38that would have made him the highest-paid player in the league.
01:41He's on the same timeline as McDavid, sign a new deal, be traded, or become a free agent at year's end.
01:49And as if that wasn't enough drama involving generational talent, the original, modern-day NHL superstar Sidney Crosby could be on the trading block.
01:59Pittsburgh Penguins General Manager Kyle Dubas doesn't know where the rumors started, but he's going to try and rebuild the team his way.
02:06We can't alter the course that we're on, which is to bring the team back into a team that can contend for the Stanley Cup year in and year out
02:13because of what different media members may want, where they may want to see Sid play, different things of that nature.
02:23We have to focus on doing what's right for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
02:26Crosby also addressed the rumors on Monday, saying he loves Pittsburgh and wants to finish his career with the Penguins.
02:32That said, in sports, we know there is no such thing as an unmovable star.
02:38Wayne Gretzky was traded more than once during his Hall of Fame career,
02:42a thought that has fans in certain cities feeling a little anxiety before the puck drops on October 7th.
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