Jonathan Drouin has already stated that he wants to stay with the Tampa Bay Lightning, and his agent confirmed Friday that his client's previous desire to be dealt has been officially rescinded.
Drouin's trade demand was withdrawn during a conversation between Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman and agent Allan Walsh that came after the forward's expression of loyalty to the club, according to ESPN's Pierre LeBrun.
"As (Jonathan) said at the end of the season, he wants to be back in Tampa next year,” Walsh told LeBrun in an email Thursday. "It's a tight-knit group, and going forward, he's happy being part of it."
At the team's final media availability in late May, Drouin made it clear that he'd changed his tune.
"I definitely want to be here," Drouin told reporters, according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times. "I love the way this ended, I guess, with this different and weird year. … It's definitely somewhere I want to play."
That same day, Yzerman implied there was no reason to believe Drouin wouldn't return to the Lightning next season.
Drouin was suspended by the club in January for failing to report to an AHL game. Walsh announced earlier that month that he and his client demanded a trade in November.
The 21-year-old returned to the Lightning for the final two games of the regular season, scoring a goal in both contests.
Drouin carried that success into the playoffs, notching five goals and 14 points in 17 postseason games.
Walsh's confirmation was essentially a foregone conclusion, but it puts to bed any lingering doubts about his client's intentions.
