TSN’s Hockey Insiders on the Leaf captain’s status, interest in Elias Pettersson and Evander Kane, the Leafs and Bobby McMann/Scott Laughton, how the Brett Kulak deal frees up space for the Avs, the latest on the Flames, and the IIHF and three-on-three OT.

GINO REDA: With the Insiders, Darren Dreger and Chris Johnston.

Gentlemen, teams across the league open up the post-Olympic stretch drive Wednesday night.

Auston Matthews and his gold medal-winning American teammates were invited to Tuesday night’s State of the Union, which had some fans worried about the timing of his return, but apparently they figured out a resolution, C.J.?

CHRIS JOHNSTON: Yeah, they basically split the difference here did Matthews. It’s obviously been a very busy two-to-three day stretch for all those American players after winning gold in Milan.

Matthews did want to take part in those celebrations. He went to the White House on Tuesday where they did have a luncheon and met with President Donald Trump there, but was able to get to Tampa later in the day and is expected to play Wednesday night against the Lightning.

Obviously a critical time for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Matthews just being six points out of a playoff spot and needing a strong finish to the season. So he wanted to make sure to prioritize that while also soaking in the gold medal. But it was each individual player’s choice.

I’ll note that one of the American players that didn’t go to the White House was Kyle Connor of the Winnipeg Jets. He was back with his team at practice on Tuesday, and said he wanted to get to making sure he was ready for what the Jets need to be a strong second-half in order to try to get back in the playoff race.

REDA: Looking ahead, the trade deadline is a week from this Friday.

The Vancouver Canucks are dead last in the league. They’ve made it clear they’re open for business. Could they be in store for a seismic shift on the coast, Dregs?

DARREN DREGER: Yeah, it’s possible. And we’re talking about Elias Pettersson because there’s renewed trade interest in Pettersson.

Now, the Canucks, frankly, are hoping that that interest progresses into a worthy trade offer that they can consider. That’s not the case to this point.

I can tell you that Pettersson’s agents from CAA are well aware of the trade discussions that are happening around their player, but they’re not going to include Pettersson, who has a no-move clause, until it gets to a point where there is a potential deal. So it’s still early, but there is a bit more buzz around Pettersson now.

JOHNSTON: A much more straightforward transaction that we could see the Canucks complete relatively soon here involves Evander Kane, a pending unrestricted free agent who did receive a fair amount of interest in discussions that were held over the break.

Now that the Olympic freeze has lifted and trades are allowed to happen again, the expectation is that Kane will be moved on to a team with playoff aspirations. Those like the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, Dallas Stars, among others, have at least inquired here, and it shouldn’t be a high cost with Kane potentially having half his salary retained by the Canucks.

REDA: The Leafs are six points out of a playoff spot with 19 games over the final 50 days of the regular season. But could team management end up deciding the direction they want to head as soon as the end of this coming weekend, Dregs?

DREGER: They could, and it sounds strange what I’m about to say: It’s less about Toronto’s playoff chances and really more about the cost effectiveness of extending certain players like Bobby McMann and Scott Laughton. So there are decisions pending.

But what I’m told is that there is a plan in place, and Brad Treliving and hockey operations for the Maple Leafs are going to follow this plan. They are not going to chase an expensive extension.

What will get noteworthy and interesting, given that we do have some time, is what if Toronto closes the gap and they’ve got to make the call on these pending unrestricted free agents. They can’t let them walk for free, so it could be interesting the next several days.

REDA: The Colorado Avalanche sent Samuel Girard and a second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins for defenceman Brett Kulak, but could this just be the first step towards a bigger move for the Avs, C.J.?

JOHNSTON: Absolutely. Not only are they strengthening their blueline with the Kulak addition, at least in terms of a player that can soak up some hard minutes, but they’re aiding their cap with this deal.

At this point in time, the Colorado Avalanche have about $8 million in space, a little bit more than that, free to make additional moves. The expectation is they will use a good chunk of that to bring in another forward, perhaps a centreman.

So, we can attach them to all the big names out there on the Trade Bait list. Nazem Kadri, who obviously had a time throughout, with the Avalanche, but also others as the Avalanche are all in on trying to win a Stanley Cup this season.

DREGER: The Flames are still testing the market on Kadri, who, by the way, wants to be traded at this point. They’re looking at the interest in Blake Coleman, MacKenzie Weegar. There are other options, including Zach Whitecloud.

But Craig Conroy is going to play the patient game and just make sure he has full assessment of what that market is.

REDA: Days after the Olympic gold was settled in the three-on-three overtime, the debate rages on. But, C.J., those hoping for a format change should not hold their breath.

JOHNSTON: No, get used to it. That’s the message from the IIHF and President Luc Tardif, who points to the fact that there was 30 men’s games played during the Milan Cortina Olympics. None of them went to a shootout.

All things being equal, the IIHF feels that they’d rather see games ended in three-on-three overtime than in a shootout, and so you’re going to continue to see that format in future international events.

REDA: Get used to it, my friends. They are the Insiders, Chris Johnston and Darren Dreger.