I think I found the source of the rumour. Friedman's article was posted on CDC, and people began hashing out whether it was a good value. 3 or 4 posts in someone said:
"roster player and shink
or
roster player and 6th
We shouldn't give up all 3, especially if the roster player is Tanev."
4 posts later, someone else says:
"Boy I'm mixed about this, get Reinhart for Shink and a roster player like Hansen or Burrows might persuade me but not for Tanev as well."
A few posts after that, someone else says:
"Tanev/Garrison, Shinkaruk, 6th for 1st
Kesler, 36th for any combination of Vatanen, Perrault, Etem/DSP/Rakell, 10th, and 26th"
... and that's how most of these things start. Tanev was never mentioned anywhere in the article. No one in the media ever claimed they'd heard from anyone involved he'd been part of the discussion.