The latest whispers from the ODBHL underground aren’t about Albert County selling — they’re about buying. GM Nason, caught between shallow winger depth and the eternal cap crunch, is said to be eyeing a Riverview Royals rental player as the missing puzzle piece.
That’s where Elias Lindholm enters the conversation. Not as the rental — but as Albert County’s bait. Signed at a tidy $2.95M cap hit, Lindholm and possibly a draft pick could be the primary chips moving in exchange for Riverview’s playoff-eligible mercenary.
GM Royals, rumored to be holding a rental player like a briefcase full of launch codes, is ready to cash out their expiring asset before it walks for nothing.
GM Nason, meanwhile, is willing to risk shipping out Lindholm — acquired way back in Season 9’s Sunday Mass Meeting — to patch immediate needs with one eye on the standings and the other on his fragile depth chart.
The twist? Albert County only has $1.2M of free cap space. This makes the deal a precarious cap-balancing act that could unravel faster than a rookie under playoff pressure.
If the deal lands, Albert County gets their short-term fix via Riverview’s rental. Riverview, in turn, secures Lindholm — a proven center with just enough tread left on the tires to anchor their own retool.
The danger?
If Riverview’s rental fizzles in Albert County, Nason will look like he swapped a long-term piece for a sparkler.
If Riverview flips Lindholm into a future asset later, they’ll be the ones laughing all the way to the draft board.
In true spy fashion, this is less about who wins now and more about who’s still standing in the spring when the dossiers are declassified.
Classified Assessment:
This isn’t Albert County selling Lindholm off as a rental. This is spy vs. spy tradecraft, where the Royals’ rental piece becomes the lure — and Lindholm is the counter-move. Both GMs are playing chicken with their depth charts, cap sheets, and reputations. Only one walks away looking like a master manipulator.
8/17/2025 - 332 words
