You have to think if there's an issue in a locker room, Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella would intend to deal with it head on. And that seems to be exactly the case when asked how he would be dealing with the rumour that Pierre-Luc Dubois wants a trade.
"John Tortorella says Pierre-Luc Dubois' desire for a trade will be handled similarly, in one respect, to how [Sergei] Bobrovsky / [Artemi] Panarin played out two seasons ago," said Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. "They'll confront it as a group and deal with it out in the open, he said."
It's not surprising this was brought up when Tortorella spoke with the media Sunday. Dubois just signed a new two-year deal with Columbus worth $10 million, but that didn't stop the trade rumours at all. In fact, it's been reported by TSN's Pierre LeBrun that Dubois signed the short-term deal, even though longer offers were on the table, to make it easier for Columbus to trade him.
As for how teammates will deal with Dubois, Cam Atkinson told reporters he's already spoken with him, and nothing will change.
"We'll treat him like a teammate," Atkinson said.
-
-
41101
