There are still nearly three weeks until the Feb. 26 NHL trade deadline, so that means there are nearly three weeks left of incessant trade rumors that will make the rounds.

They may be nothing for than fun and profit for fans and media alike, a way to fill space and further conversations in the realm of what if, but for the players whose names are bandied about, it can offer the potential of becoming a huge distraction.

For veteran players, they come to learn to live with the talk as merely being part of the business of working in the business of hockey.

“You can’t really focus on that,” Detroit Red Wings forward Gustav Nyquist told Mlive.com. “You’ve just gotta focus on what you’ve got to do on the ice.”

Enjoying a resurgent season with 15 goals, already three more than he scored in all of the 2016-17 campaign, as the Wings slide further out of the playoff picture and into selling mode, there definitely figures to be some interest in Nyquist’s services from other teams, although he does have the protection of a no-trade clause in his contract that he’d need to waive in order to be moved.

Still, that won’t keep the talk to a minimum.

“There’s always the possibility,” Nyquist admitted of a potential moving involving him. “It’s part of being in this league. I’ve heard rumors before. I’m sure I’ll hear rumors again. You never know what’s true or not.

“It goes for all the guys in the room. I’m sure they’ve heard their name pop up at some point.”

As much as the players insist they don’t read the papers, the fact of the matter is that there are secondary sources - friends, family - who will bring up the subject to a player if they happen to come across the mention of their names in trade talk.

“I’m not a big social media guy, but you watch Twitter or whatever and you see a bit,” Nyquist said. “But I think guys start paying more attention as we’re getting closer to the deadline.

“I think right now, I don’t think you hear too many rumors. I think they’ll start heating up closer to the deadline.”

Having been done this road before, Nyquist’s best advice to his younger teammates is to ignore the noise and get on with the task at hand.

“You know what? Since you can’t really do anything about it – I’m not making the call, I’m not trading myself, I don’t have anything to do with it – you can’t let it bother you,” Nyquist said. “You’ve just gotta focus on your play, and help your team out as much as possible.”

One fact of like that is entirely verboten in the world of the player - you don’t ever give credence to a rumor by seeking out a team executive to request clearance on whether there is any truth to the talk.

“No,” Nyquist said bluntly. “I don’t think anyone does, really. No.”

Follow me on Twitter @asktheduffer

Join the Discussion: » 9 Comments » Post New Comment

» Five of Last Six First Rounders To Start Season In AHL

» Zadina, Veleno sent down

» Opening-Night Roster Not Set In Stone

» Back Where Pro Hockey Started

» Abdelkader Looking To Bounce Back