from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun,

General manager Pierre Dorion was fielding phone calls for Karlsson _ and several other players _ right up until the club made the No. 4 selection in the draft Friday night but the Senators couldn’t find the right fit and if you’re going to make a blockbuster deal it had better be good because he’s the best player in the deal.

The indications are the Vegas Golden Knights were among a group of teams that tried to push to get a deal done for Karlsson before the 31 teams headed to the draft table, however, the two sides are at a stalemate with the Senators pushing for a bigger return because he’s a franchise player.

Yes, the Golden Knights are prepared to take the four years and $7.25 million left on Bobby Ryan’s contract in return, but that’s not the only team interested in making a deal for Karlsson. League sources say the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals and San Jose Sharks have all shown varying degrees of interest.

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