Oliver Ekman-Larsson Addresses Latest Trade Rumors

Oliver Ekman-Larsson has spent his entire career in Arizona and if the Swedish defenseman was changing teams this past offseason he was only considering the Boston Bruins or Vancouver Canucks. A deal never materialized and Ekman-Larsson will start next season as a member of the Coyotes.

A position where he's totally comfortable to be and he's willing to put the trade talks behind him. Ekman-Larsson recently met with the media and had this to say:

(General manager Bill Armstrong) got in at a tough time, needed to make some decisions and stuff like that. But we've had some good conversations so far and I'm looking forward to getting to know him better. It's been good, but at the same time, it's easier to talk face to face than over the phone or Skype or Facetime. I don't think it's going to be a problem putting that behind, not from me at least. That's all I can talk about.

Ekman-Larsson is still only 29-years-old and has seven years left on his contract paying him $8.25 million per season. Even though he's played over 700 regular season games, 'OEL' has only appeared in 25 playoff games and it's starting to wear on him enough to accept a change of scenery.

While he didn't end up with the Bruins or Canucks, that can easily change come the trade deadline next season.

I also get that it's a business side of things, and that's how it works. I hope that's one of the reasons why I'm the captain of this club, because I do think about other people and my teammates. That's something I grew up doing and it's who I am as a person.