On Monday, it was reported that the Pittsburgh Penguins are shopping Ian Cole on the trade market, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
The 28-year old defenseman is an unrestricted free agent after this season and had been unsuccessful in his attempts to work out a new contract with the Pens.
Cole’s agent had been given permission to seek out a trade, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
Mackey reported on Tuesday that the Vegas Golden Knights, Colorado Avalanche and Toronto Maple Leafs are considered the leaders in talks for Cole.
It was noted that Cole won’t be traded to anyone in the Metropolitan Division.
Toronto has been pursuing defense since last season.
Vegas, on the other hand, doesn’t seem like a likely landing spot for Cole, due to their lack of assets to offer and their logjam at the position already.
While Colorado has played well this season, adding Cole to the mix would go a long way and making them more complete and more viable as the season wears on.