from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,

Josh Anderson, who remains unsigned eight days before the Columbus Blue Jackets begin their regular season, has requested a trade from the NHL club.

Anderson, an improving player who took a big step last season, was expected to be an important piece in the team’s plans for 2017-18. The Blue Jackets worked hard to avoid exposing him in the NHL Expansion Draft and it’s believed they rejected Colorado’s requests to include him in any Matt Duchene trade.

But negotiations have been difficult. Anderson is a restricted free agent. On Tuesday, The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline reported the team and player were “as little as $150,000 per year (apart) on a three-year contract — but both sides are standing firm on principle.”

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added 11:14am,