Zemgus Girgensons’ future in Buffalo might be unsettled for the moment, but the player has not lost his sense of humor even while rumors about his future continue to swirl.
Two days ago, Latvian KHL writer Aivis Kalniņš (pronounced Eye-vis Kahl-Ninsh) tweeted that the 2012 NHL Draft overall #12 pick was looking to move to Dinamo Riga. The Latvian team is in the Bobrov Division of the Kontinental Hockey League.
Dinamo Riga has started moving pieces. Been told that Girgensons is considering a deal in #KHL
— Aivis Kalniņš (@A_Kalnins) June 16, 2016
Last night, Girgensons took to social media to respond to the rumor in a way that will not be forgotten any time soon.
https://t.co/xQRlCxUnJn pic.twitter.com/tRUGaeM2t1
— Zemgus Girgensons (@zemgus94) June 16, 2016
Whether there is anything to this story or not, any links to the KHL would severely undermine Girgensons’ trade value ahead of the 2016 NHL Draft should Sabres General Manager Tim Murray decide to move the player.
At the end of the 2015-16 season, the Latvian player had stated his frustration in coach Dan Bylsma’s system as he didn’t have the role clarity he wanted. Even earlier in the year when the team was adapting to the new coach, Girgensons had initiated an on-ice one-on-one with Bylsma during practice to discuss his usage.
Back in October, this is what the two said about that conversation –
Dan Bylsma:
“I think we all can be better, and I think we all need to be better. Some of that is more than just effort. I don’t think I’ve ever questioned Zemgus’ effort, but we need to be better in some areas. That’s our conversation.
“We’re in a process right now with our group and our team, and Zemgus is a part of that. That conversation was on the ice today, but it’s not a conversation that’s just limited to Zemgus and just limited to on the ice.”
Zemgus Girgensons:
“We talked about lots of stuff. It’s always nice to get to know coach better.”