The Opiated Sherpa Works the Rumour Mill

Sweepstakes for Jagr?

2011-06-20T16:08:00.000-06:00

Word that there is some suitor shopping going on by the agent of Jaromir Jagr has got a little bit of buzz to it these days.

The 39-year old Czech winger has spent the last few seasons as one of the best players in the Kontinental Hockey League in Russia and might be shopping his services around in the NHL in hopes that might get him some more money back in Russia, where salary caps don't really exist.

The rumour mill has the Penguins, Red Wings and Canadiens in on his services, although by the sound of some ramblings on rumour sites, Montreal may be less into Jagr than the other two teams. The Penguins should have some pull, being the original team that Jagr played for in the NHL, while the Red Wings are a team that enjoys taking on ageing veterans for their poise and coach-ability, while the Habs are a team that have seemingly been on Jagr's radar, as a team that he would like to play for.

It is somewhat unclear as to how much a team would be able to offer a player like Jagr, as he had shown at the Vancouver Olympics, his skills haven't really diminished in his time over in Russia and he was a top-dollar player (whether he deserved it or not) when he was last playing in the NHL, back in 2008.

The Red Wings do have some cap space available, but I couldn't see them making a move for Jagr unless it was on their terms, which would likely put the cap hit down around $2.5 to $3 million, at best. The Penguins are in even worse shape than Detroit, having less cap space to worry about, but the allure of a top end scoring winger for either one of their top two centres must have some appeal to it.

Personally, I have no nostalgic feeling for Jagr, so I could really care less as to whether or not he actually comes back. If this isn't an elaborate ruse to suck more money out of the KHL teams, I would think that this is a significant blow to the KHL's credibility as a hockey league, especially one that is trying to rival the NHL. Jagr wanted to play hockey closer to home and make a lot of money doing it, but I would think that the competitive drive of most players would still like the game to be at its best for a player of his calibre to still be playing in it. Taking less money to play better hockey, that could be damaging for the KHL, if they ever could make a big push for another superstar free agent out of North America.

Blue Jackets in on Jeff Carter?

2011-06-10T08:10:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2010-2011 NHL Statistics				July 1st Status
To Columbus	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jeff Carter	F	26	80	36	30	66	11	$5.3 million
--------------------------
To Philadelphia	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jakub Voracek	F	21	8	14	32	46	0	RFA
2012 1st Round Draft Pick

Now, this is what I call an excellent trade rumour!

Not long after the Philadelphia Flyers acquired Ilya Bryzgalov from the Phoenix Coyotes, the flags started going up, asking the question, how the hell are the Flyers going to sign a goalie that wants top dollar for the long-term to a deal with so much cap trouble as it is? The easiest and most likely answer is that a player of significant value, possibly two players that add up to significant value, would have to depart in order to get this to go. Hence this rumour.

As you can see in the trade table above, the Blue Jackets will help the Flyers out by moving some serious assets to Philadelphia to acquire Jeff Carter, a player of reasonable magnitude and good offensive skill. The Jackets would send Jakub Voracek, an under-whelming prospect with Columbus, who becomes a restricted free agent in July, and the team's 1st round pick at the draft in a couple of weeks.

Let's quickly look at the Flyers, who not only clear some space for the signing of Bryzgalov, they get to name their price with a talented centre in Voracek, who could very well be signed for the short-term for some testing out money, and a decent 1st round pick (8th overall) to help build their youthful depth.

For the Jackets, they have the cap space to take on a top end centre like Carter, who should give some immediate help to a winger like Rick Nash, likely increasing their fantasy value for the 2012 season, which is one thing that the Jackets are desperately seeking. In order to win now, the Jackets would almost be silly not to make this deal, granted they are probably the team pushing this one in the end.

I like this rumour a lot, I think both teams could certainly benefit from this one in a lot of ways. Granted, this is a deal that is almost too good to be true, so it will be interesting to see whether or not this one goes down before or at the draft. The only thing I could see slowing this deal down is that the Flyers would not really want to part with Carter, but their depth down the middle is very impressive and Carter has fallen down the depth charts behind Claude Giroux and Mike Richards.

A Flames & Devils Blockbuster?

2011-01-23T20:37:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2011 Season				2011	Remaining
To New Jersey	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Cap Hit	Years	Cap Hit
Jay Bouwmeester	Defense	27	49	4	12	16	$6.7 million	4	Same
Rene Bourque	Forward	29	47	15	13	28	$3.3 million	5	Same
Mikael Backlund	Forward	21	41	5	6	11	$1.3 million	1	Same
1st Round Draft Pick
3rd Round Draft Pick
--------------------------
To Calgary	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Cap Hit	Years	Cap Hit
Zach Parise	Forward	26	12	3	3	6	$3.1 million	0	RFA
Brian Rolston	Forward	37	31	5	10	15	$5.1 million	1	Same
Bryce Salvador	Defense	35	0	0	0	0	$2.9 million	1	Same
Mattias Tedenby	Forward	20	26	5	6	11	$875,000	2	Same
Vladimir Zharkov	Forward	23	10	1	1	2	$850,000	0	RFA

Well, our good friend, Eklund, has given us a real doozy to ponder over... and for the most part, laugh at considerably. I mean, this is a blockbuster by all standards of trades, but the names and dollar figures going either way just make this rumour into a beautiful mess of impossibility, in my opinion.

For one, I can't see the Devils ever moving Zach Parise without some sort of falling out or contract dispute. Secondly, all of the players heading to Calgary in this deal have been problematic or injured for the better part of the 2011 season, none of which, in my opinion, would be tempting for any NHL team, including a fumbling team like the Flames. Next, the Flames have made mention of the word "rebuilding," so trading top end draft picks is somewhat counterproductive to that cause, despite getting a franchise player like Parise. Even if the Flames were to get a player like Parise, I can't imagine what kind of deal he would be seeking in the Summer, so that would only further handcuff the Flames and their salary cap dealings.

No, this deal, as exciting as it may be, does not seem at all reasonable. I'm sure there are plenty of other reasons I have yet to even make mention of yet, but I think the ones that were mentioned were more than good enough.

Nabokov on Waivers, Who's In On Him?

2011-01-21T20:02:00.000-07:00

I've found myself some time tonight and looked at my StatCounter and found that some people were looking for the waiver order for Evgeni Nabokov, as he awaits to see whether or not he will be picked up by another team or be allowed to join the Red Wings' 23-man roster. I can't believe the amount of anticipation to see what happens out in the Twitterverse, but I'll admit, I'm kind of excited as well.

So, as it stands, the Detroit Red Wings signed Nabokov to a 1-year deal, worth $570,000 annually, which works out to be about a $250,000 cap hit for the rest of the season. There is a no-movement clause to his deal, meaning any team that actually takes on Nabokov, won't be able to shift him to the minors or deal him without issue. The Red Wings put those clauses in the deal, in order to try and stave off some interest from other teams and it should work in some cases.

As the waiver order goes, it goes from the lowest point percentage earned to the best, in terms of priority, if more than one team put a claim in for Nabokov. Let's see how that shakes out.

First up is the Devils, as they are currently the worst team in hockey. Nevertheless, with Martin Brodeur starting to finally show some life in the Devils crease and a capable back-up in Johan Hedberg, those are two pretty good reasons why the Devils commented to the negative side, that they'll be in on Nabokov tomorrow morning. Despite the bargain basement price of $250,000 for the rest of the season, the Devils are still wrestling with some cap issues of their own and don't need the headache.

The Oilers might be in the basement of the Western Conference, but I really think that their believe in their goaltending, as that really hasn't been the worst part of their season. They held onto Jeff Deslauriers and carried three goalies until it was safe for them to demote him, I don't think they want to do the same with Devan Dubnyk, who might be tempting to another team that may be in on Nabokov.

For my money, I really think the Islanders will take a shot on Nabokov, because they don't really have anything to lose. Rick DiPietro is playing an on-again, off-again schedule, they have two back-ups competing for time and the team still looks like they want to play spoiler for the rest of the year. They have cap space up the ying yang and they could really give their franchise goalie some more time to get back to 100% and to a point where he doesn't have to rest every other day.

Failing the Islanders desire to improve their goaltending status in the league for the rest of the season, the Senators are probably looking at their 13-point deficit in the East and thinking that they have an outside chance at making it with a goalie they can play for the rest of the season. For the cost, it isn't a bad gamble to take for most people's money, but there is also the thought process that they might as well give more time to Mike Brodeur or Robin Lehner, work the future in their favour.

With the rumour mill still churning J-S Giguere through, grinding him down into a trade-able pulp, the only real way I could see the Leafs picking up Nabokov, would be to deal away their already well-paid veteran goalie. They don't really lose anything in terms of skill, since Nabokov hasn't likely played much in the last month and had terrible numbers in the KHL, compared to Giguere's work today. The Leafs are awfully tight to the cap ceiling themselves, so a deal has to be in place, no matter which way you slice it, by the looks of things.

The term rebuilding may have surfaced this week when talking about the Flames and it would seem awfully odd for this team, who hasn't had much traction in the schedule or in the win column, try to improve their standing with a veteran goalie like Nabokov. Miikka Kiprusoff almost looks like he's at his wits end this season and with Henrik Karlsson getting more starts, adding another chef for the stew doesn't make too much sense either today or tomorrow. I don't expect the Flames in on Nabokov.

The Panthers are coming in at number seven and with the attitude that Tomas Vokoun has developed over getting passed over for Scott Clemmensen, it doesn't sound unreasonable that the Panthers would try to move Vokoun and bring in Nabokov to help finish their season off. The word that I've read surrounding the Panthers is that the team is still trying to re-sign Vokoun to a new deal, which would likely suggest that a spur of the moment decision is unlikely for Dale Tallon and his crew.

The Sabres got off to a terrible start to the season, but that doesn't really effect Ryan Miller's stock too much, as their All-Star goalie is playing really well at the moment, minus Friday night's game against the Islanders, where bad luck was all he had. Even if they were to claim a guy like Nabokov, it doesn't seem really likely that Nabokov would report, knowing full well that he wouldn't get the time that he wants to play. Even if Nabokov was to get this far, I don't expect the Sabres to be anywhere near the Russian keeper.

Neither goalie in Columbus has been too jaw-dropping, but there seems to be a lot of faith in Steve Mason, in his 3rd season, and Mathieu Garon does play the back-up role fairly well. Adding Nabokov would be a pretty heavy sleight against Mason in this case and that just seems rather unlikely tomorrow. The Jackets are only five points out of a playoff spot in the West, which might be that little itch that keeps Scott Howson up at night, but I have the feeling he'll sleep well.

The Los Angeles Kings have to be thought of as a team that is quite comfortable with their goaltending tandem going forward, no matter how poorly the team in front of them are going. Jonathan Quick and Jonathan Bernier are two quality goaltenders that have some long-term potential with the club and are doing a fine job of fighting for minutes as it is. Nabokov would not be a very good fit, despite being just outside the playoff picture at the moment.

If the Atlanta Thrashers going to be thought of as players in the Nabokov sweepstakes, their mindset may be that Ondrej Pavelec may need some more help to develop his game and playing behind a regular season superstar like Nabokov would be a treat for his development going forward. There is also quite the European flavour to the team, so Nabokov wouldn't be out of place and with Chris Mason on the Injured Reserve with a knee injury, there might be some room for him. I could see Atlanta be in for the end of the year, helping to get into the playoffs.

The rumour mill has suggested that the San Jose Sharks would be putting a bid in for their former number one goalie, who they didn't re-sign to a contract, believing a deal would likely cost them an arm and a leg. With a cheap deal already in place, Antero Niittymaki hurt at the moment and being a point out of the playoffs, it doesn't seem too far-fetched. Antti Niemi has started to take the minutes now and the team has turned a corner of sorts, so picking up a guy like Nabokov would suggest that Niittymaki's groin injury may be more serious that initially reported. It could be a full house if Niittymaki was to return to two starting goalies already there.

Already, I have found four teams out of these twelve that I think will take a long look at claiming Nabokov and with the Hurricanes with two good goalies, the Blues working over Jaroslav Halak, the Ducks riding Jonas Hiller, the Wild having Niklas Backstrom and Jose Theodore, the Avalanche riding Craig Anderson, it really begins to thin out the crowd.

The only other team beyond the Avalanche are the Chicago Blackhawks, who have been rather disappointing as defending champions, might not be terribly comfortable with the inexperienced Corey Crawford or the aging Marty Turco, who have been good enough to keep the Blackhawks in the playoff race, but confidence will likely become shaky when the playoffs roll around. In theory, the Blackhawks may have enough cap space to fit in the small cost of Nabokov, so there is a chance a claim could be thrown in. Will it get any priority? Seems unlikely to me.

We don't have too much longer to wait, I know I'll be eagerly anticipating the news.

Hemsky for Weiss?

2011-01-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

			2011 Season				2011	Remaining
To Florida	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Cap Hit	Years	Cap Hit
Ales Hemsky	Forward	27	31	9	20	29	$4.1 million	1	Same
--------------------------
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Cap Hit	Years	Cap Hit
Stephen Weiss	Forward	27	42	13	18	31	$3.1 million	2	Same

One of the few rumours that have one name going for another has dropped over the weekend and showed up again this afternoon, as the going rate is the Edmonton Oilers moving scoring winger Ales Hemsky down to Florida for playmaking centre Stephen Weiss.

From the first glance, I kind of like this rumour, as it looks like it could help out both teams right from the get-go. Hemsky would provide some much needed offense to a Panthers team that has an outside shot at a playoff spot, while Weiss would add some depth down the middle, likely taking a number one or number two spot at the pivot position between some quality young talent.

This deal also has the benefit of being a wash for the salary cap, since neither team have any cap concerns and it is only a difference of $1 million going either way this season, but Weiss is locked in for another year, which likely appeals to the Oilers all that much more.

The real trouble that I have with this rumour is that the Panthers aren't necessarily deep in the centre position as it is, so moving their top scoring skater, who also plays the centre position for a 1st line winger doesn't exactly seem like a great trade off, unless there are some more pieces to this deal. The Panthers are very plentiful at the wing position, but I don't really see many that could slide into the middle and make an impact. The addition of Hemsky would definitely give the Panthers some more zip, but even in Edmonton, it's been somewhat proven that Hemsky needs a bit of help to be truly effective.

That all being said, a straight one-for-one deal doesn't seem to be terribly likely as a standalone transaction. The Panthers, if they really were to be moving towards a playoff spot, would likely have to have another player coming back that they could use on their roster or another deal in place to somehow make a deal like this one pay off right away.

This still does sound like a decent rumour, who's to say it really has legs, but in some respects, it does kind of make sense today. It could be a great deal, if the Panthers have something worked out to make that final push, in my opinion.

Possible Big-Name Rentals in 2011

2011-01-15T10:16:00.000-07:00

I haven't found a great deal of sizzling rumours to spell out in the past few weeks, as there really hasn't been many hands tipped in that general direction. There have been a number of names churned through the rumour mill, but no names have really been attached to other names, so there is little we can actually play with. So, I thought I would have a crack at pointing out some of the possible rental players, that may or may not be available at the trade deadline at the end of February.

Generally, when you're talking about rentals, you are looking at players who are going to be unrestricted free agents in the Summer, which suggests a team can use the player's talents through the end of the regular season and hope they help during a long playoff run and then not have to worry about them on their books anymore. Rental players are also coming from teams that have little hope of making the playoffs, in most cases, hoping to get something back, like draft picks or prospects, for players that might otherwise leave the team in the off-season anyways through free agency. There are plenty of exceptions to these guidelines, but the discussion usually reverts back to the guidelines.

But of course, we'll start the post off with an exception to the guidelines, as Brad Richards' name keeps landing in the rumour mill and likely for good reason. The Dallas Stars are still running into ownership issues, which suggests some serious cash flow problems. Richards, a top 10 scorer in the NHL this season, has done a marvelous job with the team, but there are many questions abound as to whether or not the Stars will have the ability to re-sign him to the numbers he'll likely demand.

Richards' 2011 annual cap hit is $7.8 million and the Stars had committed to that contract long before the ownership issues came to pass. That being said, there will be (or likely has been) a great deal of internal discussion as to whether or not the team can afford not to have him on their payroll, especially since they lead the Pacific Division standings with him in the line-up.

I really don't think it is a matter of 'can he get dealt?', rather it being a matter of 'will he get dealt?'

Next up on the list is our first goaltender of the bunch and there has been plenty of scuttlebutt surrounding Tomas Vokoun of the Florida Panthers. Vokoun will be an unrestricted free agent this Summer and has been having a mediocre season with the 11th place team in the East. Teams looking to shore up their goaltending situation going into the playoffs may have a second or third look at Vokoun down this last stretch before the deadline, knowing full well that he can play some pretty good hockey.

The Panthers have a pretty good situation going for them in Florida at the moment, stocking up on some excellent prospects to go with some of their younger veterans, trying to build a solid contender. Some of those prospects are also goaltenders, like Jacob Markstrom or Alexander Salak. The sticking point for the Panthers would likely have to be whether or not they would like to have a guy like Vokoun for another season, waiting for their prospects to mature, or jump right into the young player game and let their prospects ride.

I'm sure there are a number of teams who are willing to look at the remainder of Vokoun's $5.7 million salary cap hit, just to give them some added security down the stretch, likely for a late 2nd or early 3rd round pick in the Summer.

Next up on the list sits Alex Tanguay, who may come in as a runner-up prize to the likes of Richards, in the sense that a team could be looking for a quality play-making forward. Tanguay will also be a decent runner-up prize, because his annual cap hit is so much lower than Richards' at $1.7 million and going to a contending team should make it rather appealing for him to waive his limited no-trade/no-,movement clause, if he has to.

It's no secret that the Flames have definitely been struggling in the 2011 season and with new management in place to make some changes to the team, a guy like Tanguay is ripe for the picking, when it comes to making deals for future assets, like picks or prospects. I could definitely see Tanguay go for a reasonably low set of draft picks.

The name that keeps popping up in trade rumours continues to be Tomas Kaberle of the Maple Leafs and despite his desire to stay in Toronto through this contract, the Leafs do have a very valuable asset on their hands, in terms of what they can get back via the trade market.

Kaberle has been having a pretty decent season in Toronto, despite their low scoring numbers, and that has to remain attractive to a playoff-bound team that is looking to increase their production from the back end. The addition of Kaberle to most bluelines should be an easy fit and the value going back to Toronto could be adequate to calm some of the critics down. Of course, the description of the package going back to the Maple Leafs would be a real indicator as to how the team will approach the 2012 season, but that's another story altogether.

I don't personally think that the chances of the Maple Leafs moving Kaberle are that good, but me saying that probably increased his chances by 15%. If the Leafs get the deal that they really want out of Kaberle, I would imagine that there would be a relentless pursuit to force his hand and waive the clause, but so many factors are in the way before they get to that point.

Let's face it, the Devils have been terrible this year and they are in a good position to start selling off some of their unrestricted free agent assets, especially since they have already traded away their (former) captain, Jamie Langenbrunner to Dallas, this season. Jason Arnott's name has popped up a few times already in the past weeks as a possible name to move and frankly, it makes sense. Arnott is a quality forward with leadership qualities, he has a Cup ring and experience and he will be an unrestricted free agent in the Summer.

Arnott's numbers are down considerably in the 2011 season, but the New Jersey Devils have not been the best model of great offense throughout their line-up this season, to date. With firepower like Zach Parise on the shelf for the bulk of the year and Ilya Kovalchuk underachieving, it should come as no surprise that the rest of the players are coming up a little short. Still, at the end of the day, Arnott should garner some interest from a team that is in need of what he has to offer and should find a new home with a new opportunity.

Could the Ottawa Senators possibly move Alexei Kovalev in a deadline deal this year? Well, it's hard to believe that anyone would take Kovalev on his merits from this 2011 season, but the NHL is a funny place sometimes and some managers seem to think that some players can still add something to their team, even if that player has had a bad run of things in the current season. There might be hope for a guy like Kovalev, but his $5 million annual cap hit may have a lot to do with him staying in Ottawa for the duration of the season.

Kovalev does still have some talented hands on his side and the rumour mill does keep churning his name around, so there does seem to be a little bit of smoke around his name. If I had to guess, I would think that Kovalev may be one of those secondary prizes at the deadline, as many teams will covet the same player, but only one team will get that top end player, forcing a team that still wants to make a move into picking up a guy like Kovalev. If Kovalev does go, he might be a guy that goes for a cheap draft pick, near the end of the day on the 28th.

Whether or not any or all of these players are going to be traded remains to be seen. The rumour mill will continue to churn out names that have potential to be moved, but it all really depends on the supply and demand of the teams involved. Some teams may want way too much for players of this calibre to be moved, especially a team like the Dallas Stars, who may only part with Richards if the price meets their satisfaction. I am definitely looking forward to the deadline this year... I might even have to take a day off for it.

Zajac for Regehr?

2010-12-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2010/2011 NHL Statistics
To Calgary	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Travis Zajac	Forward	25	26	3	8	11	3	$3.89 million
--------------------
To New Jersey	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Robyn Regehr	Defense	30	26	0	3	3	3	$4.02 million

A new rumour to play with... hooray!

From the Hockeybuzz article this morning, "Calgary would like to grab Zajac, NJ wants Regehr...of course there would be more... each team would want a young, cheap player to replace the player they are trading as well..."

Yes, I know... Hockeybuzz is considered rubbish, but I love rumours, no matter how rubbish they may or may not be. I'm not afraid to admit it either.

So, it's fair to say that this deal is based on filling needs that both teams have at the moment. The Flames need a centre to help their scoring woes, preferably one that can be a number one centre, while the Devils desperately need some defensive help, since Anton Volchenkov and Bryce Salvador can't stay healthy. In this sense, it kind of makes sense.

On the other hand, who is actually scoring for the Devils that they can make a deal that sends offensive talent out the door? Even if the Devils want to go back to playing those 1-0 or 2-1 kind of games, they will actually need someone to score those goals. With no Parise, cold scoring from Kovalchuk, Rolston, Langenbrunner and Elias, who else is left?

For the Flames, one of their biggest problems, besides diminished scoring from their top six, is some of their atrocious defense they have been playing and moving a stalwart defenseman like Regehr is just going to leave an even bigger hole on the blueline.

Looking at the cap numbers, this deal appears to be somewhat of a wash, value-wise, but even still, the Devils are taking on an extra smidgen of cap space, which can't possibly appeal to their capologist, despite some early Long Term Injury Reserve time for guys like Brian Rolston. The Devils cap number has been poked and prodded so many times, it would be hard to get an exact reading, but if any deal was to come down, I would imagine that one of those extra pieces mentioned going to Calgary would have to be a defenseman that is currently on the roster, like a Matt Corrente or a Mark Fraser. The Flames would then send one of their medium-level forward prospects the other way, so the Devils don't take on any more space right away, possibly a Kris Chucko or John Armstrong.

Frankly, if this deal is to have any legs at all, both teams have to hope that they are going to get some more offense/defense from adding more defense/offense. Even then, it doesn't really matter what kind of cheaper, younger talent goes either way, this deal does appear to be on the dark edges of crazy.

Saying that, Sutter and Lamoreillo haven't quite been themselves over the last 12 months...

Iginla to the Kings?

2010-11-17T12:10:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR		2010/2011 NHL Statistics
To Los Angeles	Position	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jarome Iginla	Forward	16	3	7	10	3	$7 million
--------------------
To Calgary	Position	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Brayden Schenn	Forward	8	0	2	2	3	$3.14 million
Other considerations

Gee whiz, you step away from the computer for a night and the hockey world goes a blitz with a trade rumour between the Flames and Kings, which would see Jarome Iginla head down South to Los Angeles for a package that would include Brayden Schenn.

First of all, I'm not going to write this off as wild talk, because the early building blocks has some kind of merit to it, since the Kings want to win now and the Flames could be on the verge of rebuilding. I don't think either of those statements are far-fetched, but this whole notion is taken with a grain of salt.

The Kings have found themselves in a very interesting position as we close on the quarter-pole of the 2011 NHL season as the Western Conference leaders and a trade for a player like Iginla would be the sort of move that could keep the team in that fine position, especially if they could trade pieces that are not necessary to the team's immediate success, like Brayden Schenn.

The Flames on the other hand are in a state of limbo in the public's eye and only Flames management know exactly where the team is heading in the foreseeable future. As much as the rebuild idea does have some merit with the team mired in 14th place in the Western Conference, the Flames are only 5 points behind the 8th place Phoenix Coyotes and a comeback is definitely possible, which would mean that if Iginla was to go anywhere, the Flames would require players that would help them to win now.

As for Iginla, there is plenty of scuttlebutt around how happy he is with the team and/or his play of late, which is leading to more smoke from the rumour mill and even that doesn't seem to be far-fetched. The question then becomes, would Iginla waive his no-movement clause and accept a deal to California in a deal, which would see him join a current contender.

The salary cap numbers do provide an interesting challenge to this rumour, as the Kings were projected to be in tough for any big additions to their side going into the year, but they would be able to dump a good chunk of what they'd take on if Schenn's entry-level cap hit was struck from the books. I don't have anything in terms of concrete numbers, but I would imagine that the package heading back up to Calgary would have to be somewhat sizable from their own roster.

In the overall scheme of things, there are a lot of wheels that have to be in motion for this deal to go down. A lot of approvals need to be made from a lot of different people, especially some people that haven't been in consideration up until this point. This deal is not a rental agreement, since Iginla still has two more seasons after this one on his contract, so there is that to deal with and whatever the Flames decide in terms of how they want to proceed with the rest of their season and their long-term plan.

I won't write this idea off, but I can definitely see it getting ki-bosh'd at some point or another because there was a no keeping any progress from happening.

Commodore for Souray?

2010-09-20T07:38:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Columbus	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Sheldon Souray	Defense	34	37	4	9	13	2	$5.4 million
--------------
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Mike Commodore	Defese	30	57	2	9	11	3	$3.75 million

The latest rumoured solution for the Edmonton Oilers and their standing history with Sheldon Souray is to deal him to Columbus for veteran defenseman Mike Commodore.

This rumour has been picking up some steam in the past couple days, especially with an early injury to Kris Russell in training camp and now on Monday morning, there have been a tweet from Ryan Rishaug of TSN (here), confirming that this deal has been batted about, although it sounds like it was a while ago.

To me, this deal doesn't look terrible from either standpoint. The team that truly stands to gain is more likely the Oilers, since Souray is not going to be at their camp and he now is a potential $5.4 million lump against the salary cap without even playing a game for the team. Of course, there will be ways around, but this is kind of where it stands at the moment. The Oilers bringing in another body to replace the cap lump would be a huge win.

The knock on Commodore is that he can have seasons where his health is kind of sketchy and his body finds ways to get injured, but then he can also have 80+ game seasons and he's a solid figure on the blueline. He doesn't score a great deal, not really a great hockey pool player, but at least he can give a team some solid minutes.

For Columbus, acquiring Souray would be a definite upgrade offensively on the blueline, but even more so of a health-risk during the season. Souray is a member of the injury prone list, as of this year, and is coming off of another harsh season between a concussion and a broken hand (which happened when he tried to avenge his concussion). There's no question that Souray will be able to give the Blue Jackets what they want on their power play, but the price tag is awfully high and there are no guarantees about his health.

Neither team is stressing about the cap ceiling going into the regular season, but a move like this would have the Blue Jackets a little closer. The Jackets currently sit at a projected number of $54.5 million with Commodore on the books, which would take on another $1.7 million with the acquisition of Souray. The Oilers are currently pretty low on my projected list, but that is currently without the rookie bonuses of Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Magnus Paajarvi. Nevertheless, the Oilers would also be saving money on this straight-up deal, if it were to happen.

I don't buy this deal and its probably for the same reasons that Howson has bitten on it (as per the Rishaug tweet), the risk is just too high. With the Oilers, there is no risk in a straight-up deal like this, because Commodore is much more durable than Souray and that isn't saying a great deal about Souray. The Oilers would likely have to part with another piece for the Blue Jackets to take this deal on, likely for the sake of security that they are getting their money's worth. This is definitely a spot where Andrew Cogliano could come in handy, throwing him in the mix, while the Jackets throw in a pick, just to call it square. To me, that would make a lot of sense to both sides.

Souray for Fleischmann?

2010-08-21T14:33:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Washington	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Sheldon Souray	Defense	34	37	4	9	13	2	$5.4 million
--------------
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Tomas Fleischmann	Forward	26	69	23	28	51	1	$2.7 million

Well, I saw this trade rumour in a couple of tweets (one & two) this afternoon and thought I would have a good time with this one. The Oilers would move unhappy defenseman Sheldon Souray out of town for Tomas Fleischmann, a scoring winger who has had some longer contract negotiations with the Capitals and only seems to sign on a year-to-year basis.

Souray has been on the blog a couple of times since he had requested to be traded out of Edmonton, so it should be no surprise that he is back, since he hasn't been moved yet. The Capitals would be an interesting fit for Souray, as they are in need of a bit more veteran scoring from their blueline, lessening the pressure on young John Carlson, who is emerging as a real blue chip prospect.

The cap hit for Souray is a pretty big one, but with the way the Capitals are built at the moment, they could use twice the cap hit that Fleischmann would leave behind and move forward with it. Whether or not Souray would live up to that big cap hit depends a lot on his health, as he is a player on my injury-prone list.

The Oilers, on the other hand, would be very happy to be finally rid of the Souray distraction in their office and on their books, taking on another young scoring forward like Fleischmann. Unfortunately for the Oilers, Fleischmann is another winger, not exactly what they are after, but he could provide some more help to the centres that are already on the team, possibly making them better.

I don't think that this deal as it stands is one that can happen, there will likely have to be some padding from one side or the other to try and even it up. I would think that the Oilers would have to send a prospect or a mid-round pick to the Capitals, just so they would take that cap hit off their hands, especially for a talent like Fleischmann. The essence of the deal would be Souray for Fleischmann, but at the end of the day, there would need to be a bit more to make it real.

For now, I could see this deal being done, because of the higher prices for top-to-mid level defensemen are quite high and I don't believe the Capitals have enough in their system today to make it as far as they would like in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Tampa In On Kaberle?

2010-08-15T19:41:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Toronto	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Ryan Malone	Forward	30	69	21	26	47	5	$4.5 million
--------------
To Tampa Bay	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Tomas Kaberle	Defense	32	82	7	42	49	1	$4.25 million

The late name being thrown around the rumour mill on Sunday night has been Ryan Malone coming out of Tampa Bay for Tomas Kaberle and I wanted to have a look at what the numbers may pan out here for.

Of course, this wouldn't be the complete deal, I would have to think that giving up Malone would mean that the draft pick that should be involved would be low, unless the Leafs have another ace up their sleeve to upgrade the pick.

Interesting point to note, Malone's long-term deal does have a no-movement clause, which could be tough to move and why would Malone want to move away from playing on the top line with Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis?

The Lightning have done well in this off-season adding Simon Gagne and Domenic Moore, but trading away Malone does make me a little weary of where the forward corps are going in Tampa Bay. I'm not sold on this idea as a way to help win games, especially with some good minute-eaters on the blueline, where does everyone fit and how do they mesh?

Even if the Maple Leafs were able to turn this deal, who is going to service all of these gritty scorers? Is there going to be a centre or two in the Leafs future?

Last Day for Open Kaberle

2010-08-15T10:32:00.000-06:00

It's now the middle of August and we know a few things about the Maple Leafs situation with Tomas Kaberle. August 15th (today) is the last day that Kaberle has before his no-trade clause takes effect again and he would have to then okay a deal by waiving that clause for any new deals that may or may not surface after today. We know that Burke is not in the business of taking less than his value in any deal and he is looking for a top six forward with size and scoring ability or a "futures package," which would include a high pick and a "quality young player."

In 2010, Kaberle was the 10th ranked defenseman in scoring with 49 points in 82 games and in 2011, the final year of his deal, he will have a cap hit of $4.25 million. Of those top 10 defensemen, Kaberle's cap hit ranks 7th, which suggests that he is a pretty good bargain for any team that decides to pick him up.

The Leafs are battling against the salary cap and have some great defensive depth on their side at the moment. Not including buyouts or bonus penalties, the Leafs have 20 players signed on, including eight defensemen, for $56.5 million, which doesn't leave the club for very much wiggle room for immediate improvement as it is. Tack on the extras and the Leafs are sitting at $58.9 million. The Leafs could very easily get to a playing line-up of 20 players, possibly having an extra defenseman in the line-up for a reasonable cost, but that would force the Leafs to use some younger, cheaper talent.

For the 2011 Entry Draft, Toronto is the only team that doesn't have their 1st round pick, which is the last piece of the deal that saw Phil Kessel get dealt to the Leafs, almost a year ago now. If we were to eliminate teams by that notion, we really couldn't, but I think it's fair to think that if the Maple Leafs are going to take a "futures package," a team's 1st round pick will be front and centre for a deal.

The teams most often pointed out in the rumours going around include the Bruins, who have Toronto's 1st round pick in 2011, the Sharks and Ducks, Pacific Division foes in need of blueline help, and the Devils and Kings, who have been dealing with the Ilya Kovalchuk situation for the better part of this Summer. It's too bad we don't get to see what offers have been made or how the picks/players stack up in some of these deals that have been on and off the table, leaving us only to assume.

Personally, I think there is enough that adds up to Kaberle getting dealt on Sunday before midnight. The Leafs would probably prefer to have some cap flexibility, a 1st round pick and a little bit more youth in their system and they would likely prefer to get it from anyone.

Kaberle has expressed much interest in staying with the team, likely vetoing a trade after the no-trade clause falls back into place, so Burke has only so much time to make a deal.

On the other hand, the 1st round pick might be a pivot point on any deal, not settling for anything less, where the prospect that may come in return, could be downgraded just as easy, since there is a little bit more flexibility with coaching and development in their own system. I guess this is what would keep me from being surprised if Kaberle wasn't to move on Sunday, plus he would be a hard defenseman to replace, despite the Leafs depth.

Bieksa for Chimera?

2010-08-12T12:56:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Washington	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Kevin Bieksa	Defense	29	55	3	19	22	1	$3.75 million
--------------
To Vancouver	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jason Chimera	Forward	31	78	15	19	34	2	$1.875 million
Draft Pick

It's been a while since I had something for the Rumour Mill blog, but a quick tweet got the wheels turning and we have some numbers to play with. It's nothing more than a rumour and should be take as just that, but I don't mind having a quick peek, see what it looks like.

The Canucks are knee deep in defensemen and cuddling up to the salary cap ceiling this Summer, so a deal to move a blueliner and get some cap space should be considered as a viable option. Moving Bieksa to an Eastern Conference team definitely has some merit and getting a 3rd/4th line player in return makes some sense, as that was one of their weaker points in the playoffs last Spring.

For the Capitals, they are dealing with plenty of depth on the forward ranks and a bit of a shortage of offense from the blueline past Mike Green. Bieksa would definitely solve the issue of finding a top-3 defenseman, for a reasonable cap hit, some toughness will be a value-add for the team as well.

I've definitely heard of worse rumours than this.

17 Years for Kovalchuk (and the 100 percent rule)?

2010-07-10T11:22:00.000-06:00

Since one of the biggest contract jokes in the NHL is Rick DiPietro's 15-year deal in 2006, I would think that the NHL has evolved into a more civilized group of savvy managers. Sure, the league has seen it's share of 10, 11, 12, 13-year contract extension since the DiPietro debacle, but everyone can just look at those long-term deals and not laugh quite as hard, especially since DiPietro has 11 years still left on his deal and has done nothing with it.

Now, we're looking at a potential deal, which has been rumoured to be tabled by the New Jersey Devils, which would give Ilya Kovalchuk a 17-year deal, worth $100 million in just the first ten years alone. Of course, the back end of this deal would likely see the salary numbers drop off significantly to lessen the overall cap hit to something more flexible for the Devils to build around with.

With Kovalchuk already being 27 years old as of April 15th, a 17-year deal would see him conclude this deal at the ripe old age of 44. The benefit for the Devils is that if Kovalchuk does decide to retire after his 10 years, $100 million, he won't hurt the Devils past his retirement, because the cap hit can be nixed due to retirement processes on a deal that was signed before the age of 35. The Devils, therefore could have a $10 million salary count as a much smaller number, thanks to not paying him quite as much in the last seven years.

Let's see if I can come up with as a possibility of what the deal may look like...

Article 50.7 in the CBA: "100 Percent Rule" for Multi-Year SPCs. The difference between the stated Player Salary and Bonuses in the first two League Years of an SPC cannot exceed the amount of the lower of the two League Years. Thereafter, in all subsequent League Years of the SPC, (i) any increase in Player Salary and Bonuses from one League Year to another may not exceed the amount of the lower of the first two League Years of the SPC (or, if such amounts are the same, the same amount); and (ii) any decrease in Player Salary and Bonuses from one League Year to another may not exceed 50 percent of the Player Salary and Bonuses of the lower of the first two League Years of the SPC (or, if such amounts are the same, 50 percent of the same amount).

So, with that being said, according to the CBA, Kovalchuk could be down to a $1 million salary (which is the popular finishing number for most deals that are front-loaded) as soon as the 2022 season, where he'd be 39 years old at the end of the year and it would bring down the cap hit significantly, if that was the case.

Year	Salary	Cap Hit
2010-2011 (age 28)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2011-2012 (29)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2012-2013 (30)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2013-2014 (31)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2014-2015 (32)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2015-2016 (33)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2016-2017 (34)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2017-2018 (35)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2018-2019 (36)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2019-2020 (37)	$10 million	$6.53 million
2020-2021 (38)	$5 million	$6.53 million
2021-2022 (39)	$1 million	$6.53 million
2022-2023 (40)	$1 million	$6.53 million
2023-2024 (41)	$1 million	$6.53 million
2024-2025 (42)	$1 million	$6.53 million
2025-2026 (43)	$1 million	$6.53 million
2026-2027 (44)	$1 million	$6.53 million

That is a crazy amount that the Devils could definitely deal with, I'm sure. You could work the back end of the deal, so its a rounder number like $7 million, but frankly, why would you throw that cap space away at this point?

These are just numbers I am throwing out there, I don't have any idea what the deal would actually look like, I'm just gauging this on a deal that needs to get done, with the lowest cap hit possible for $100 million over the first 10 years. It all makes sense to me.

Hjalmarsson Gets an Offer Sheet

2010-07-10T09:30:00.000-06:00

The offer sheet has got a nasty reputation in the NHL, as one of the coldest acts of general managing an NHL GM can do, thanks in large part to the Dustin Penner offer sheet, which happened almost three years ago now. Personally, I like the offer sheets, as much as restricted free agency gives teams a good hold on top prospects, it also guarantees that team compensation if a team covets that player more.

There is also some added security for teams that are fighting against the salary cap ceiling with fitting all of their players contracts for the year, making sure that if they were to lose them to insufficient cap space or another team putting a little excess pressure on the team having trouble by overpaying, compensation would be granted in futures.

That being said, here is what the compensation chart looks like in 2010:

OFFER                                                     COMPENSATION

$1,020,348 or below                      None

Over $1,020,348 to $1,545,981   3rd round choice

Over $1,545,981 to $3,091,963   2nd round choice

Over $3,091,963 to $4,637,944   1st round and 3rd round choice

Over $4,637,944 to $6,183,925   1st round, 2nd round and 3rd round choice

Over $6,183,925 to $7,729,907   Two 1st round choices, one 2nd and one 3rd round choice

Over $7,729,907                          Four 1st round choices

So, this is where the San Jose Sharks come in. They have obviously decided to put some more pressure on the Chicago Blackhawks, who are sitting on a couple of top end restricted free agents, in Antti Niemi and Niklas Hjalmarsson, and only $3.7 million in cap space remaining. The Sharks looked at that situation and didn't want to wait for either one to potentially get snapped up via trade to somewhere else, they got their pen in the ink and signed Hjalmarsson to an offer sheet to try and sway him away from Chicago.

The reported offer sheet is said to be a 4-year deal worth $13 million in total, a $3.25 million cap hit per season. According to the table above, that cap hit would give the Blackhawks the Sharks' 1st round pick and 3rd round pick in 2011.

Hjalmarsson's numbers were not exceptional in the regular season for the Blackhawks, only 17 points in 77 games with the team, but played solid minutes with the club and made good use of the time he was given as the 4th or 5th defenseman on the team. In the playoffs, he was far more effective, 8 points in 22 games and he raised his compete level to those of good historical playoff performers, full of compete and sacrifice for the team. It's almost fitting that the Sharks are going after him, since that was a lot of what they lacked against the Blackhawks in the Western Conference Finals.

If we were going to talk market value, moreso for the regular season, the Sharks are prepared to overpay for Hjalmarsson. I think the greatest factors in market value is age, position and regular season scoring, with some added features like potential and x-factor can given taken into account, but the first three are the most tangible. The Sharks do have the closest deal in this range to what Hjalmarsson has been offered in Marc-Eduoard Vlasic, who is also 23, plays defense and had 16 points in 64 games with the Sharks. Vlasic has a cap hit of $3.1 million for the next three seasons. The Sharks GM said in this article that they feel Hjalmarsson is a top-three defenseman on any team and I suppose if he got the minutes of a top three defenseman, he might have the same points as Kristopher Letang, who will make $3.5 million over the next four seasons and had 27 points in 73 games. That doesn't sound out of the question at all.

I think this is a good deal, if the Sharks are right about Hjalmarsson. They don't have plenty of room for error, since Letang only had 27 points, so that's only an increase of 11 points, but Hjalmarsson is supposed to bring some extra playoff gusto, so you could justify that if he brings it.

Redden to Start in the Minors?

2010-06-29T08:28:00.000-06:00

Four years left, $6.5 million against the cap per year... this is what is staring the New York Rangers in the face going into the 2011 season. In theory, this doesn't look like a terrible deal for what was a pretty good defenseman in Ottawa, right? Well, his 2010 numbers were horrible, 2 goals and 12 assists in 75 games is not going to cut it for a $6.5 million player.

So, now there is rumblings that Redden and his massive cap hit may end up down in the minors to start the season, saving the Rangers from his cap hit, but not his actual salary. Redden will be paid in full whatever part of his $6.5 million salary he earns in the AHL, but for salary cap purposes, the Rangers would save the math there, giving them a little more flexibility in the marketplace.

With Redden on the active roster, the Rangers currently have 12 players signed on for $43.4 million against the cap, with no buyouts or other penalties on the go at the moment. That leaves $16 million for 11 players and we all know how much the Rangers like to spend, don't we?

At age 33, this will likely be a huge slap in the face to Redden, but he can't say he didn't have this coming to him. His play has not been of the high calibre that the Rangers expected of him when he signed as a free agent in 2008. In 156 games with the Rangers, he has 5 goals and 35 assists for 40 points and only a +3 plus/minus rating. If Redden finds his way down to the minors, I would almost be amazed to see him back up with the club, unless there was some depth issues on the blueline, like injuries, because his cap hit would probably bump him down the depth chart little by little.

I'm going to keep a close eye on this, but for now, it's still labelled as a rumour, so I'll keep it on this blog for now. Once he actually drops down, I'll post something on the hockey pool blog, reminding everyone to stay away from Redden in their hockey pool draft. Actually, I will say it right now... until further notice, stay away from Redden in your hockey pool drafts.

Thinking Out Loud: Savard and Thomas

2010-06-26T22:21:00.000-06:00

In some regards, I find it somewhat puzzling that the Boston Bruins are going to try and move a couple of their long-term assets in both Marc Savard and Tim Thomas. I'm sure signing these long-term deals with these players were good ideas at the time, a 7-year contract extension in December for Savard and a 4-year deal in April 2009 for Thomas. On the other hand, both players are already into their mid-30's and haven't had the best track records beyond some really good flashes, some longer than others, in each player's career.

With Savard, the Bruins have his entire contract extension looming over him, his head was knocked three ways from Sunday during the regular season on a massive hit, their depth at centre is getting to be something else after drafting Tyler Seguin and the team does have its fair share of cap issues, so the long-term prognosis on Marc Savard is not good staying with the Bruins. The reports coming out after the Entry Draft concluded was that Savard, who has a no-trade clause at the moment in his deal, has said that he would waive the clause, but only if it was a deal that would land him either in Toronto or in Ottawa, two of the Bruins' division rivals.

Well, isn't this a fine pickle jar that the Bruins have backed themselves into? Really, I'm going to stick this one on the Bruins management bowing down to the demands of Savard and company, who obviously wanted some security in a 7-year deal, just to get the deal done and questions lifted for the remainder of the year. If your team's blueprint is to include centres and by December 1st, you already had a feeling you were going to get a very good pick out of Toronto from the Phil Kessel deal, then why would you sign Savard to a longer, very long-term deal like this? That's poor foresight. On top of all of that, Savard will only okay a deal to go to a team that could potentially screw the Bruins, strict use of the word potentially, which also looks pretty bad on this situation. Both the Maple Leafs and the Senators are the two teams that Savard would okay a deal to, but we all know what their situations are like at the moment and it might be a while before they do a lot of damage to the Bruins in the regular season.

At $4.2 million a season against the cap, Savard has almost a Rick DiPietro-like deal... a long-term deal with a cap hit that can either look like a bargain when the player is healthy all year and performing to his highest level or an anchor around the team's neck, if the player cannot stay consistently healthy and can't perform at the highest level. It's all quite relative, to be honest. Both the Maple Leafs and the Senators are in good cap positions to take on a guy like Savard, even if the Bruins shuffle him off for next to nothing, now that they are in selling mode and everything (or all things Savard) must go.

If a deal is to go down with Savard leaving Boston, I would be awfully surprised if it positively impacts the Bruins in the end.

Tim Thomas is not as curious of a case as Savard is, especially since the Bruins gave the veteran netminder his new deal after he won the Vezina Trophy for being voted the best goaltender in the entire league. The best thing for any team taking on Thomas would be that the Bruins only signed him to a 4-year deal and that he was Tuukka Rask's back-up for the better part of the first year of that deal.

The only reason Thomas is out the door is really because of Rask and his play through the season and into the playoffs, the Bruins don't really want to keep a back-up with a starter's contract in their organization and it's hard to blame them. I wouldn't say that the contract that Thomas received before free agency is bad business, they had to hedge their bets against Rask being the goaltender he was in 2010, especially with a Vezina Trophy winner already getting the reps in net.

With three years left and a cap hit of $5 million per season, Thomas is on the more expensive end of the salary cap scale, but fortunately for the Bruins, there are a number of teams that should be interested in Thomas' abilities, despite the contract. My goaltending holes in the NHL post would see to that. The Bruins could just as easily use one of these team's need for a top end goaltender to their advantage, especially since most of them have the cap room to spare.

Thomas does have a no-trade and no-movement clause in his deal, but since the Bruins are already pointing at Rask for being their number one guy going forward, Thomas can look at this situation, say that he wants more minutes and a number one job and gladly accept a trade to somewhere else. That's a very plausible situation.

The rumour mill has a number of teams interested in Thomas, but the Bruins may not be able to figure out a trade until the market value has been set on a few other goalenders in the league, or the demand level for a starting goalie for that matter. The chances of Thomas getting dealt look pretty good to me from where I'm sitting.

Nabokov Heading to Philly?

2010-06-26T20:58:00.000-06:00

One of the bigger stories of the second day of the Entry Draft was that of the alleged verbal deal that sees the Philadelphia Flyers get the negotiating rights to potential unrestricted free agent goaltender, Evgeni Nabokov.

Clearly, Nabokov should be considered one of the top unrestricted free agents this Summer, even if he is only known as a good regular season goalie and a sub-par playoff goalie in his career playing for the Sharks. Regular season success is worth a lot of money to teams, since it lasts the longest part of the hockey year and Nabokov is a guy who can put in 70 appearances a year.

In his time with San Jose, Nabokov has been a guy that has needed to pull some games out of the fire and steal from time to time, but of course, that really only applies to the regular season. Nevertheless, if the Flyers can get themselves a goalie that can steal some more games in the regular season, they might be on the right track with their thinking, applying a good goalie behind a big defense and a more-than-capable offense.

What is Nabokov going to be worth to the open market? In some designs, Nabokov should have the ability to write his own number down and be able to stick to it. That's something that the Flyers would hope to slip away from in some early negotiations, but being surrounded by Martin Brodeur ($5.2 million), Ilya Bryzgalov ($4.25 million), Ryan Miller ($6.25 million) and Roberto Luongo ($5.3 million), you would have to think that Nabokov has dollar signs in his eyes, when determining his cap hit. Even if Nabokov agreed to the average cap hit of those four goalies (and their current cap hits), he would be looking at $5.25 million against the cap and it's hard to say that he isn't worth it... in the regular season.

As the Flyers know, all they need is to get to the playoffs and they can let the team do the rest, in front of any goalie that is ready to go. What the may want is a guy that can get the team to the Stanley Cup Playoffs and hopefully impose some dominance over their Eastern Conference rivals, but they will need to pay for it.

As of Saturday night, the Flyers have 10 forwards, 3 defense and Brian Boucher signed on for the 2011 season for an approximate cap hit of $47.2 million. With the salary cap number rising to $59.4 million, that leaves the Flyers with $12.2 million. Let's say Nabokov can sign for $5.2 million (for a nice round number and easier to work the math out with), that would leave $7 million to sign the remaining eight players for the 23-man roster. We can take into account that they don't need all 23 players all season long, but it's just good to keep in mind when doing the math.

I don't think this signing is out of the question, by any means, but I think the Flyers would have to get awfully creative with their youth, their AHL team and possibly some more transactions after the fact to make everything work. Boy, it's a good thing they didn't sign Dan Hamhuis, eh?

Penguins and Flames to Deal?

2010-06-23T11:37:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Calgary	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jordan Staal	Forward	21	82	21	28	49	3	$4 million
--------------
To Pittsburgh	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Eric Nystrom	Forward	27	82	11	8	19	0	UFA
Robyn Regehr	Defense	30	81	2	15	17	3	$4 million

I'm not sure where this rumour came from, but I've now seen it three times on Twitter and thought I would have a go with it, since it does have some juicy names on it. The Flames would acquire Jordan Staal from the Penguins for the rights to Eric Nystrom and defenseman Robyn Regehr.

Well, as it stands, this deal would have to hinge on the ability that the Penguins would sign Nystrom in just over a week's time and that they also highly regard him enough to do so. The Flames, who are in a bit of cap trouble are likely going to lose Nystrom for nothing to free agency, while Regehr has not had a lot of great press in Calgary over the last little while. The Penguins are going to be going into a new era, likely moving on without Sergei Gonchar for the 2011 season, a move for a defensive defenseman would surely help out both Kristopher Letang and Alex Goligoski.

In return, the Flames would get a very good centre, who has been playing much of the defensive centre role for the Penguins, but would get a chance to prove himself as a premier centre with the likes of Jarome Iginla, if this move were to happen. It would be another experiment that has some potential, but an experiment nonetheless. Furthermore, the elimination of Regehr from the roster would then make Jay Bouwmeester top dog in Calgary on the blueline, while Marc Giordano would likely be his partner in grime, so there is a positive there for most Flames fans.

The Flames would not necessarily be dropping any cap weight with this new deal, but they would be in a bit better shape with the proposed/rumoured 5% increase that could be on the books, plus they would have a number one centre in their line-up for a $4 million hit. Not bad.

The Penguins definitely have room for Nystrom after the straight swap of Regehr and Staal, plus Nystrom's potential market value should only touch $2 million, barring some over-spending or a bidding war (which seems unlikely on either side). So, for both sides, this deal does have some potential, cap-wise.

Too much hinges on this deal, especially the Nystrom signing. The Penguins will likely keep their strength down the middle, as that is starting to become its own little trend among high-spending clubs. The Penguins don't have the depth at centre to necessarily replace Staal, so I don't bank on this one happening, no matter how much the Flames or Penguins would benefit from this move. If anything like this were to come to happening, I would expect some more elements to fall into place, just for security measures.

Columbus in on Spezza?

2010-06-21T19:53:00.001-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Columbus	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jason Spezza	Forward	27	60	23	34	57	5	$7 million
--------------
To Ottawa	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Kristian Huselius	Forward	31	74	23	40	63	2	$4.75 million
Derrick Brassard	Forward	22	79	9	27	36	4	$3.25 million
2010 1st Round Pick (4th overall)

An interesting rumour starting to fly around on Monday night sees the oft-mentioned Jason Spezza heading down across the border and down into Ohio, where he would join the Blue Jackets for playmaking forward Kristian Huselius, Derrick Brassard and the 4th overall pick on Friday night. This is a pretty hefty rumour with the backing of two teams looking to make some changes and some names that constantly swirl around the rumour mill.

Of course, it wasn't too long before news came down that it hasn't been done (and here too), but it's definitely a good one to look at.

The Senators, at first glance, would be getting a lot for Spezza in this incarnation of the rumour, so I think it might be a little too weighted to one side, but I could see another pick and a prospect going back to Columbus on the other side, just to sort of comb it out. Otherwise, this could have some legs to it.

The Senators are a bit on the high side of the salary cap numbers before this deal goes down, but adding an extra player, plus a million or so does make things a little easier to swallow for Ottawa. The Blue Jackets would bring the average cap hit per roster player up a bit with the acquisition of Spezza, but the potential combination of Spezza and Rick Nash has to be appealing to the Columbus faithful.

Thinking Out Loud: Horton

2010-06-19T09:17:00.000-06:00

We're now a week until the Entry Draft and the Florida Panthers keep coming up as the team with the most to move and a laundry list of trades to make. The name really making headlines again is Nathan Horton, who I had singled out because of some rumours last September, including one interesting rumour that would have seen him move to Vancouver. Not surprisingly, that didn't work out and he played the entire season with the Panthers and had a decent season, despite missing 17 games to a fractured leg.

So, now the Panthers have some new management in Dale Tallon and he has the ability to shape the team the way he wants and he has a track record of great success and great patience, just look at the Chicago Blackhawks and all the good work he did there.

Reading the rumours this morning, Horton has links to Boston, but Boston has links to just about everywhere for all sorts of re-tooling. It's almost like the Bruins are in panic mode after giving up the 3-0 series lead to the Flyers in the 2nd round of the playoffs. I've seen some thoughts about Horton moving West again, with a possibility of Calgary making a pitch for him, sorry I don't have any links to it here right away.

Horton has been a curious case to say the least though. As the 3rd overall pick in 2003, he hasn't quite lived up to the billing of being such a high draft pick, but there are plenty of valid arguments that the Panthers have not been able to give him the right talent or help around him to get him to flourish. Horton has topped out at only 62 points (twice) and in 2010 would have likely beaten that at his scoring pace, if it wasn't for his injury, so there is still some potential left in him to be a top end player. With a salary cap hit of $4 million over each of the next three seasons, if he does start to score at a reasonable pace, he could end up being a bargain.

Remarkably, according to my spreadsheet, which is somewhat incomplete, but should be good enough for this statement, there are 13 players in Horton's draft year (2003) that have earned bigger contracts than him, including the two that were taken above him. 11 players drafted after Horton, have earned bigger deals, including Thomas Vanek, Dion Phaneuf, Mike Richards, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Jeff Carter, Ryan Kesler, Patrice Bergeron, Shea Weber, Milan Michalek and Loui Eriksson. I think in this case, Horton might be considered a bit of a bust.

Don't get me wrong though, the Florida Panthers talent argument should be in play to a certain degree, since a number of those player have had some help in their career to achieve some pretty good goals, so if Horton was to move to an NHL city with some more scoring punch, I think we could measure him a little more soundly. For now though, his price tag is kind of low and I would wager that there are a number of teams that wouldn't mind a 2nd-line centre like Horton, take the pressure off and possibly turn him into a real scoring threat.

The Proposed Boston & Columbus Blockbuster?

2010-06-18T09:23:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Columbus	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Marc Savard	Forward	32	41	10	23	33	7	$4.2 million
Blake Wheeler	Forward	23	82	18	20	38	0	RFA
--------------
To Boston	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
2010 1st round pick (4th overall)

Not sure where this rumour came from exactly, but I saw it in this tweet this morning and thought I would post it.

In essence, what this trade looks to accomplish is that Columbus would want to win right away, adding talent for Rick Nash to play with in Marc Savard, while the Bruins would then have two of the top four picks in the Entry Draft, making a rebuild far faster with two top end blue chip prospects.

belt and dealing the 4th overall pick gives them a good chance to do just that. The Jackets have a top end goal scorer in Nash and they need to get him some servicable playmaking so he can regain his 50-goal touch and Savard is definitely that kind of talent. Wheeler is an interesting addition to the deal, likely there to help pad the cost of giving up on a potential franchise player from the 4th pick.

With the 2nd and 4th overall picks, the Bruins can then add Tyler Seguin, a possible franchise centre and then add a Cam Fowler or Erik Gudbranson, both of which can help pivot from the blueline with a Zdeno Chara or a Dennis Wideman, but what this does is it hurts the Bruins chances of drawing into the playoffs in 2011, even though they didn't really have Marc Savard for a good portion of the season due to the concussion and Wheeler was not the impact player that really decides whether or not a team makes or breaks the playoffs.

Both teams have decent reason to make a deal like this and it would be really interesting if the Bruins could get their 2nd and 4th overall picks to make their opening night roster and give the team some added punch, but I think there would have to be a bit more to this deal for it to go through, possibly some more picks going either way. It's a fairly savvy move, but even the scope of how big this deal is might make these teams hesitate to pull the trigger.

Spezza to Edmonton?

2010-06-17T11:29:00.000-06:00

One rumour floating around HockeyBuzz today that I think has some serious merit to it is the Jason Spezza to Edmonton suggestions, which has him being moved at the Draft. First of all, I would like to reiterate that I'm all over these Spezza rumours, because I think Bryan Murray has done a terrible job in Ottawa and has made some of his best players not want to play for the team anymore, which has got to be frustrating as a Senators fan.

Today's post sees Spezza head West for a nice package in return, which includes either Sam Gagner or Andrew Cogliano, a couple of prospects (one being NHL ready) and a mid-round pick. Since there was very few details, I didn't want to draw up the trade table, because I save that for some good mock-ups.

Nevertheless, the rumour does stand on it's own, especially since the Oilers are in desperate need of a quality centre (not to say that the Senators should be giving away one) and it would then justify drafting Tayor Hall with their number one overall pick in a week's time, possibly forming a formidable pairing.

Oh, okay... let's draw up something. But let's be clear, this is me just playing around. I am not trying to start a rumour here, I'm just drawing up what I think would be an alright deal... thinking out loud, if you will.

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jason Spezza	Forward	27	60	23	34	57	5	$7 million
--------------
To Ottawa	Position	Age	GP/MIN	G/W	A/SO	P	Years	Cap Hit
Sam Gagner	Forward	20	68	15	26	41	0	RFA
Alex Plante	Defense	21	4	0	1	1	2	$1.075 million
Devan Dubnyk	Goalie	24	1,075	4	0	8	0	RFA
2010 4th Round Pick (91st overall)

The price for Spezza is going to be steep, no matter which way you look at it and I think this deal looks about right for what the Oilers will have to pay for him. The Senators can help fill some voids with this deal, getting Gagner to replace Spezza, Plante to replace Volchenkov and give Dubnyk a shot at earning a place against Brian Elliot and Pascal Leclaire.

The Senators are also going to be shedding a lot of payroll and cap space with this deal sending Spezza out of town, so that should make them pretty big players in the free agency market. It's all quite relevant, but who's really to say it would happen?

Brodeur for Semin? Really?

2010-06-15T13:23:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Washington	Position	Age	MIN	W	SO	P	Years	Cap Hit
Martin Brodeur	Goalie	38	4,499	45	9	111	2	$5.2 million
--------------
To New Jersey	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Alexander Semin	Forward	26	73	40	44	84	1	$6 million

I think we can consider this rumour to be the Mother-of-all-rumours and there should be no surprise where it has come from, but that won't stop me from playing with it. It's just way too juicy to pass up.

I suppose by now, you've seen the proposed deal above and probably laughed like many have already. In this deal, it is suggested that the Capitals would look after their goaltending woes by going out and acquiring one of the greatest goalies of all time, Martin Brodeur, working in his twilight years in the NHL. In exchange, the Capitals would send oft-maligned forward, Alex Semin, in order to sway Ilya Kovalchuk back into the fold in New Jersey... or so the rumour states. In theory, the motive could be justified by either side, but could it really work out?

Actually, I'd like to look at the points that Eklund has in his post, just to see how much footing he has here.

1. The Devils want to keep Kovalchuk. No surprise here. Who wouldn't want to keep one of the premier snipers in the game?

2. Martin Brodeur is not a given to keep playing much longer, and will be hired the second he retires to work in the Devils front office. True, he isn't a given to play much longer... and it does seem likely that he will get a job with the Devils, making him a "career Devil." I think the quotation marks really speak for themselves here.

3. Kovalchuk would consider staying if the Devils would go out and get Semin to play with him. I don't doubt this, since Atlanta bent over backwards to bring in Antropov, Kubina and Afinogenov, all in the hopes they would keep him happy. Very plausible.

4. Brodeur would agree to play one (possibly 2) years in Washington. Firming up their goaltending situation and making the Caps the HUGE favorite to win a Stanley Cup. Then he could return to work for the Devils, who would be in a much better situation. If this trade does go down, Brodeur would HAVE TO agree to play one or two (which is the remainder of his current deal) more seasons and then play in the quotation marks of "career Devil." This isn't a reason, it's a product of the the rumoured situation happening.

5. Semin is a great player, but the Caps are not opposed to moving him for Brodeur. Interestingly, the Caps signed him to a very short deal. Semin is a ticking time-bomb, looking forward to unrestricted free agency and the opportunity to be the big fish, even if it's in a small pond (which is my understanding). Semin would again be the smaller fish against Kovalchuk, but at least he'll go unrestricted next July, so he could be as greedy as he wants.

Okay, so the salary cap is a pretty big factor when it comes to just about anything these days, but with these cap hits being fairly similar for the 2011 season, the only thing that really comes into play is what each team would need beyond this deal. The Capitals, in theory, would be set with a good pack of forwards, maybe an underwhelming defense corps, but at least they will have a reliable keeper for a playoff run. The Capitals could spend the extra cap space on improving the depth they'll need to sign. With Semin going to the Devils and taking away Brodeur, this means that the Devils would have to both improve their defense, which has been underwhelming in its own right and actually replace one of the best goalies of all-time. The Devils would have to greatly improve both while taking on an extra $800,000 hit on the cap space, in order to get back into the division race in the Atlantic. To me, this is a no-brainer to say no to.

Besides the salary cap issues, which are huge and would make so much more work for Devils management, the term "career Devil" just lingers as something that has to happen. Brodeur is not a player in the twilight of his career looking for a last gasp to win a Stanley Cup. Brodeur has his name etched on the Cup, three times, and probably doesn't "need" another one before his career ends. He has all of the clutch NHL records, a few championships, numerous awards and international accolades. All Brodeur is doing is playing for the love of the game, you would have to believe and another Cup, which would be awesome no matter which way you look at it, would likely be sweetest in the Swamp.

Also, why would Lou Lamoriello want to make the Capitals a better Cup contender, just to keep Ilya Kovalchuk? Doesn't make much sense to me.

Looking at the Goaltending Holes in the NHL

2010-06-14T22:43:00.001-06:00

I thought I would climb through the roster tables that I've put together for my Pool Outlook pages on my Hockey Pool Blog and I thought I would look at the goaltending holes I could find, especially when it comes to starting goalies. There are a few goalies on the market that will make the offseason awfully interesting. All of these holes will need to be filled or some positions could also be upgraded. Here's where I think those positions are and possibly how they might look to fill them.

The Thrashers don't have a goalie with many minutes signed on to their roster this Summer as of yet and they will be in the market for a goalie this year. Ondrej Pavelec is a restricted free agent and he'll be looking for a starting job, but it's unclear how much ice-time the team wants to give him at this point. The Thrashers have the ability to be in on an unrestricted free agent goalie, so that will likely determine a lot about Pavelec's role come October.

I wouldn't say that the Blackhawks have many holes to fill, as they could keep Cristobel Huet, who is signed on for a couple seasons more, while Antti Niemi could find himself out of the picture, but after winning the Cup, that does seem unlikely. It isn't a good bet that the Blackhawks will be testing the unrestricted free agent market, but their crease is right in the middle of the rumour mill gears. There's plenty of speculation and it's only a matter of time before we see some movement.

It does sound like that the Oilers are comfortable giving Nikolai Khabibulin a second chance with the team, after an injury-plagued year and some legal troubles away from the rink, so the number one spot is his to lose (for a while). The Oilers have a couple of restricted free agent goalies that saw plenty of time in 2010 in Jeff Deslauriers and Devan Dubnyk, who might be able to fetch a decent enough return via trade. Khabibulin still has a few years left on his current deal with the Oilers and if he stays healthy, one of those two young goalies will get some itchy feet to move on.

Who is it going to be? Is it Jaroslav Halak or Carey Price as the number one guy for the Canadiens? Maybe the question should be, do they only keep one or do they keep both, as they are both restricted free agents, both hungry for number one minutes. If they only decide to keep one, the Canadiens will likely deal the other away, flooding the goalie market a little bit more and possibly bringing in a talented veteran to help the chosen one through the 2011 season.

How comfortable are the Flyers going forward with Brian Boucher and Johan Backlund going forward? If I had to guess, it would be... not very. Boucher was a solid replacement for some much needed minutes, when there was no one else. Backlund shouldn't be immature at age 28 (29 in July), but reliability at the NHL level does pop up as a reasonable question. I would imagine that the Flyers are going to be players in the startin goalie marketplace, but what can they afford or what are they willing to spend?

With some interesting talent potentially available on the open market, can the Sharks gamble their future on what they can afford on the open market or do they use the last couple weeks of June to try and give a new deal to Evgeni Nabokov, while they still have his exclusive rights? Personally, as of June 15th, I would have thought that if they wanted to keep with Nabokov, they'd have signed him already, but that's just me. They have some negotiating power with a good offense in front of whoever takes the crease, so maybe they'll be looking to try a fresh face in the crease in 2011.

I have seen word on Twitter from some of the Blues sources that talks are open between themselves and potential UFA Chris Mason, which would solve their goaltending issue, in terms of their number one guy. If I remember correctly, they have been going for over a week or so, which suggests that this is not a slam dunk. The Blues are a team that has plenty of flexibility around the cap and probably doesn't want to pay too much for Mason, but may open the purse strings for a big UFA goalie that has a better reputation in the league as a winner. I'm expecting the Blues to drive prices up on UFA goalies.

If you ask me, I think the Lightning are in a solid position to upgrade their goaltending, after giving a solid shot to Mike Smith to be their number one, but he might just fit better as the back-up there in Tampa Bay. That isn't to say that Smith won't be the number one guy on opening night, but with a new General Manager in town, he might have some good ideas on how to help brace the crease for plenty of shots against in the 2011 season. The Lightning are another team with cap room, so I expect them to be in the market to spend some money in the crease.

The Capitals have a situation not unlike the Montreal Canadiens, but with the likely departure of Jose Theodore to unrestricted free agency, the Capitals do have a couple of restricted free agents in Semyon Varlamov and Michal Neuvirth, who may be good enough to platoon the number one job, but with the Summer quickly approaching, they might weigh their options, flash some superstars in the direction of a highly rated unrestricted free agent and then go from there.

Oilers Shopping Their Veterans?

2010-06-14T10:47:00.000-06:00

After a Twitter discussion with @Forcheck this morning, interest was sparked to see what the Oilers were rumoured to be doing this Summer and I eventually found this article from the the Edmonton Journal website suggesting that the Oilers are looking to rid themselves of some unappealing contracts that they have on the books. That's definitely more than enough to perk up the ears over here and have a quick look at what is being suggested.

The names in trouble, according to the article, are Ethan Moreau, Patrick O'Sullivan and Robert Nilsson, thanks in large part to some underachieving in recent years. None of the three players listed are huge weights upon the club as salary cap hits, O'Sullivan topping out at just under $3 million for just one more season, while the other two have a cap hit of $2 million each. The article suggests that if these players cannot be moved in trades before the end of June, that there is a good chance that they will fall victim to the buyout period of the NHL, but frankly, with only one more year left on their current deals and the team's likelihood of making the playoffs, having an extra season of a cap hit (although discounted) seems somewhat unreasonable for making roster spots for their youth.

Nevertheless, the talent that underachieved in 2010 in those three players does still have some upside to them, which I think will make them marketable, if they are actually available. If the Oilers are desperate to get rid of these guys at the Draft, they might be able to re-stock their youth system with a bunch of new picks, making themselves very flexible to the Jordan Eberle's and Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson's that are coming up through the system in 2011.

Hodgson for Hall or Seguin?

2010-06-13T10:52:00.001-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Boston	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Michael Grabner	Forward	22	20	5	6	11	1	$843,000
Cody Hodgson	Forward	20	0	0	0	0	2	$1.6 million
--------------
To Vancouver	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Milan Lucic	Forward	22	50	9	11	20	3	$4.1 million
2010 1st Round Pick (2nd overall)
2010 2nd Round Pick (32nd overall)

Well, when I saw this one on Twitter this morning, I had to laugh, as there doesn't seem to be too much rhyme or reason for this one. Between the two teams, there is a lot being thrown around and for what going to Vancouver, to me, the Bruins are banking on way too much of a gamble with Cody Hodgson.

What this rumour is suggesting is that to the Bruins, Hodgson is worth more to the Bruins than either Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin, depending on who the Oilers choose, of course. Hodgson, dealing with back injuries and attitude problems, should be discounted straight away, unless the Bruins have some inside scouting information that the Canucks may only know in secret. With Hall and/or Seguin preparing to be franchise players in the league, it's hard to believe that it would be the deal this year, but the Bruins have said that the pick is in play.

Next, is the salary cap issue. Yes, the Bruins would probably love to dump a salary like Lucic's, since it is fairly big, especially for a borderline 2nd line player, better suited as a 3rd line player. If the Bruins could dump that deal, they would definitely be happy campers going into the Summer, without a doubt. Unfortunately, the way this deal works out, the Canucks really are not giving up definite cap hits in either Grabner or Hodgson and then taking on a lump of salary, that would affect the team's chances of adding some more veteran experience or defensive help.

At best, there would have to be some cap space going the other way to Boston, if this trade was to go anywhere near reality, in my opinion. Hodgson instead of Hall or Seguin, is mildly believable, Hodgson had his share of honours in juniors, even after he was drafted, but there would have to be some assurances to Boston that he'd be good to go right away. A salary dump on a team that is already relatively high in their cap situation seems rather unlikely, no matter how much of a reception that Lucic would receive, returning to the city that he won a Memorial Cup with. In another possible scenario, there would have to be another deal brewing that would see a pick and a salary dump by the Canucks to go out of town to fit this in, but speculating on anymore deals past one rumour, is just nonsense. This rumour has too many ways to fail, it's ludicrous.

Jersey In Play for Kaberle?

2010-06-11T12:31:00.001-06:00

The buzz is building around New Jersey making a play for Tomas Kaberle. TSN says they have their sources confirming interest from New Jersey for the Czech blueliner, which adds up to me. The Devils haven't really been the same without a good puck moving defenseman and Kaberle fits that bill to a tee.

The consistent word about Kaberle is that he would prefer to stay in the Eastern Conference, if at all possible, and the Devils have been a pretty good team over the past number of years, so I would have to believe that if there was a list of teams that Kaberle would okay a deal to, New Jersey would be one of them. I can easily be wrong about that, Kaberle might have something against the Devils, who am I to really say?

The asking price that was quoted in the last Kaberle post I had on here had Burke asking for a 1st round pick or an NHL-ready young player. The Devils do not have their 2010 1st round pick, so you would have to comb through their youth program to find someone appropriate in return. I would suggest a player like Matt Halischuk, Adam Henrique or Nick Palmieri, who are developed mid-round picks or a higher price of either Jacob Josefson or Mattias Tedenby, who are former 1st round picks.

The Devils do have some assets that the Maple Leafs could easily use in their line-up next season, it would be interesting to see what the end product is of all these rumours, if anything. There is some real meat to this situation, I like the odds of something like this going down.

Greener Pastures for Toskala?

2010-06-09T15:15:00.000-06:00

With unrestricted free agency looming for Vesa Toskala, the Calgary Flames didn't want to leave much doubt that the Finnish netminder will be smack dab in the middle of the free agent frenzy and not a part of the Flames organization on that day.

In a statement and interview with the Calgary media on Wednesday, GM Darryl Sutter had put to rest any concern, doubt or curiosity as to whether or not the belittled goaltender will back-up Miikka Kiprusoff in 2011, saying that Vesa Toskala still has an eye on being either a number one goalie or platooning on a regular basis, getting consistent starts. I suppose the real question becomes, 'is there some team in the NHL that would be looking to Toskala to fill that kind of role?'

Toskala just finished a 2-year contract extension, which he signed in Toronto before the 2007/'08 season, which gave him a substantial raise and a cap hit of $4 million through the 2009/'10 season that has just passed. Well, after a horrible pair of seasons as the Maple Leafs number one, he was dealt to Anaheim for J-S Giguere, where he didn't see any action and then was dealt again at the deadline to Calgary, where he saw a bit of action behind Miikka Kiprusoff until the end of the regular season. Toskala only finished the year with 9 wins and a shutout in 2010, ranking him 48th among goalies according to my own list, but what kind of value would he be looking for in a new deal?

His market value, if comparing 2010 numbers for his age band (32 to 34 years old), he could be compared (only in numbers, not by playing style or confidence) to Scott Clemmensen in Florida, scheduled to make $1.2 million in 2011 or even Brian Boucher in Philadelphia, who will make $925,000 in 2011. Staying in that age band, Toskala will be up against Jose Theodore and Martin Biron for new deals as unrestricted free agents and you would have to believe he would rank third to those two guys and only Theodore really has a good shot at getting a starting job. I would also assume that if Toskala wants a starting job, he'll also be looking for starter's money as well and I couldn't see any NHL GM justify $3.5+ million a year for Toskala.

It might be a wise career move to see if he can resurrect his career outside of the NHL and get away from the leering eyes of the judgemental media around here that has it out for him and see if he can regain some of his confidence before trying to tackle a number one job here again. But that's just me giving my two cents about the whole thing.

Thinking Out Loud: Plekanec

2010-06-09T10:27:00.000-06:00

The Montreal Canadiens have a lot of cap space tied up in 12 players going into the Free Agent Frenzy and they have some high-priced decisions to make before the Frenzy actually drops on the calendar. This really leaves a guy like Tomas Plekanec, the team's leading scorer in 2010, in limbo until some of these factors can be ironed out and dealt with.

With $43.4 million already tied up, the goaltending situation likely the team's top priority, I would have to imagine that the team's management is waiting for the new salary cap ceiling number to be passed down from the league's head office before they can hammer out the actual numbers for everyone who's looking for new money starting in the 2011 season.

Plekanec, being an unrestricted free agent, has to be a bit of a concern for the Habs, as they don't have a lot of time to hammer out the details, when you think the Free Agent Frenzy is just over three weeks away and the salary cap number doesn't usually drop until a few days before the Entry Draft, but there has to be a plan of attack in there somewhere I'd imagine... from both sides.

My expectations of a new deal for Plekanec sits in around $4.5 million per season, since he's only had one really big year in the scoring columns and he's really only starting to find his stride. Of course, if the Canadiens are going to try and lock him up long-term, there could be an argument for a little bit more money down the road, possibly back-loading the deal, keeping his cap hit relatively affordable, helping the team build. That would be very helpful on Plekanec's part to agree to something like that.

Expectations may change if he hits the open market on July 1st, if the Canadiens cannot put pen to paper before then. Plekanec really established himself as a good two-way centre with a good scoring touch, finishing 27th among forwards in scoring last season. That may be a hot commodity in this weaker free agent class, which could fetch him $5.5 million a year or a longer-term deal which is around $5 million per season. Comparable players in the league now would be Mikko Koivu (1 year remaining at $3.25 million) or Derek Roy (3 years remaining at $4 million), multiplied by the demand of the position.

So, let's say he hits the open market, playing a little Devil's Advocate here, where does Plekanec go, signing at $5 million per season, likely in a 3-to-4-year deal? Now, Plekanec is only 27 years old, so his absolute desire to win may not be as strong as the 35+ free agents looking to win a Cup right away, so I would imagine Plekanec will take a big deal where he can get it. I think that puts a good number of teams in play, including a lot of the basement rung teams, like Atlanta, Long Island and Tampa Bay. If Patrick Marleau happens to leave San Jose, I could see the Sharks making a play for Plekanec as a 2nd line centre, he'd be an interesting fit there, but he'd be a 3rd priority to a couple other marquee free agents.

Plekanec is definitely going to be one of the better UFAs on the market this Summer, if he isn't re-signed by the Canadiens before July 1st. I have him down as the number two centre on the market, behind Marleau, and we all know teams like to have good options at centre. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the top end teams signs him and moves players around to get him to fit in their scheme.

What About Whitney?

2010-06-08T14:17:00.000-06:00

I'm kind of blown away by talk that the Carolina Hurricanes are setting themselves a budget of $44 million for their payroll in 2011, which is low-balling it significantly. Now, as I can gather, that works out to be $44 million in payroll, which is quite low, but thankfully for 2011, the Hurricanes have more back-loaded deals for their young players, like Eric Staal, and front-loaded deals for their elders, like Rod Brind'Amour. According to CapGeek's salary chart for the Hurricanes (I don't do salaries on my chart, just cap hits), they are currently sitting with a payroll of $41.9 million, which is deathly close already. This number will drastically effect how the Hurricanes are tinkered with in the Summer months, including their free agents.

Enter: Ray Whitney. Whitney is an unrestricted free agent this Summer and at 38-years old, he still seems to have plenty of life left in him to warrant a brand new deal from someone, but that someone isn't going to be the Hurricanes.

In 2010, Whitney had himself a cap hit of $3.55 million, which may have been front-loaded at the time, but was definitely worth a good chunk of change. In return, Whitney did post 21 goals and 58 points in 80 games for the Hurricanes, which was about right for the value he possesses against the salary cap. For 2011, I would be expecting that Whitney will be in the same cap hit neighbourhood for a 1-year deal, less if it was a 2-year deal, when signing with a new club and I imagine there will be some reasonable suitors for his services.

I could honestly see Whitney sign a 2-year deal worth about $2.5 million against the cap for his new team, which is looking for some Cup-winning experience, 15-20 goals a year and some decent skating speed. If I had to point to a few teams that I think would look at Whitney seriously, they would be Detroit, Ottawa, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Vancouver, Los Angeles and Washington. I wouldn't expect teams that are outside the bubble to really be in on Whitney, nor would I expect Whitney to want to be in on teams that aren't likely to win.

Thinking Out Loud: Theodore

2010-06-08T10:56:00.001-06:00

I can't say that I'm terribly surprised that Jose Theodore hasn't had any discussions with the Washington Capitals (as read here this morning), but I am exceptionally curious to know what kind of leverage he might have when negotiating a new deal away from the US capital.

First of all, Theodore is coming off of a 2-year deal that had an annual cap hit of $4.5 million, which is a fair chunk of change for a number one goalie. I don't think it was unfair to pay Theodore as a number one goalie, as he was brought in to fill that role in 2008 and he has done the job admirably, when called upon. Unfortunately for Theodore, the Capitals have some wealth in goaltending prospects, including Semyon Varlamov, who took back the starting role before the playoffs this year and Michal Neuvirth, who is currently leading the Hershey Bears in the AHL Calder Cup Finals at the moment. With two young goalies like that, the big contract of Theodore has become expendible.

As for his numbers, Theodore has managed to win at least 30 games in his two seasons with the Capitals, but arguably, with that much firepower up front, 30 wins should be expected of any goalie that can figure into 45+ games a year. It's definitely a credit to his play that he didn't stink it up behind Alex Ovechkin and company and won a lot of games, but how much credit is it actually worth? I would imagine in some negotiations, you might have teams try and discount his value because of the team in front of him.

What is going to be the role that Theodore has when he signs with a new team? I would have to think that he'll be holding out for a starting job, so the longer he stays on the market, would suggest the likelihood that he'll have to take a back-up role, which will greatly affect his pay scale, but looking at the teams that will (or may) be shopping for a starter (Atlanta, Philadelphia, San Jose or Tampa Bay) he might get snapped up in a hurry.

At age 33, there should be no consideration that Theodore is over-the-hill at all, especially since he put up some tremendous numbers in the regular season for a contending team. The length of deal he will likely attract couldn't be all that big, likely again in the 2-year range, especially with the amount of young talent most teams have coming up through their system. Most teams would be looking at Theodore as a short-term solution or use him in more of a mentoring role.

All of that being said, I am expecting to see an annual cap hit of about $3 million, maybe $3.5 million, for Theodore for the 2011 season, which is quite reasonable for his experience and the new team that he joins will probably be in need of a number one guy, so there will be a marketable price given.

Right now, I think his best fit would probably be in Tampa Bay, as they have some good young keepers coming through their system and Theodore could platoon the role with Mike Smith. Theodore would be a fresh face in a rebuilding city like Tampa and they could be a pretty good team in a couple of seasons, likely to help fuel better contract negotiations for another deal down the line.

That was just me thinking out loud again...

Troubles With Kulemin?

2010-06-07T10:04:00.000-06:00

Over the weekend, TSN.ca ran this article saying that negotiations with Nikolai Kulemin are not going very well, which gets me to wonder, how much does Nikolai Kulemin think he's worth?

In the age group of 23 to 25-year old forwards, Kulemin had a very middle-of-the-road season with the Maple Leafs, only picking up 16 goals and 36 points in 78 games. His 16 goals ranked him 25th in that age group in the category, which shouldn't necessarily translate into a whole lot of money. Currently signed on to deals in that same age group and goal range are Blake Comeau of the Islanders (17 goals, $650,000 in 2011), Rostislav Olesz of the Panthers (14 goals, $3.125 million in 2011), Drew Stafford of the Sabres (14 goals, $2 million in 2011).

Definitely, the best (and most telling) line of the article was, "While they can say: 'he was on your first line last year,' there is no one who would say Nikolai Kulemin is a first line left winger. He's a first line left winger by default because we did not have a very good team. I'm not paying for someone who gets the position by default." There is a distinct level of truth to that statement, which makes the art of negotiations a more colourful piece to watch. Kulemin is not a first line winger on pretty well every team in the NHL, especially when you match him up against other wingers in the league, nor should Kulemin get paid like a top line player, according to his numbers. Comeau, Olesz and Stafford don't normally have the luxury of playing on the top line of their teams, unless there is a benching or injury.

A fair counter-argument that the Kulemin camp may want to use is how good would he be if he actually had some talent to play with? Sure, he had 16 goals getting some top line action with the club, that really didn't have a top line centre on it. Granted, if the Maple Leafs actually found a number one centre to fit on the roster, there is no reason that Kulemin deserves to play with him more than Phil Kessel, who is easily the team's top sniper. It's not an unreasonable argument to make as a whole, but it is one that falls a little short, due to the pecking order in Toronto.

I would say fair market value for one season would be $1.75 million for Kulemin, which would be a fair raise coming out of his current deal, which only had $1.487 million against the cap. If the Leafs can get Kulemin some help and he can put up the numbers, I think Burke would definitely be more likely to talk turkey at giving time.

As a restricted free agent, Kulemin will likely be given a qualifying offer by the club, just so they don't lose his signing rights for nothing. I suppose if Burke is pissed at Kulemin for these deallings, he may just walk away from him and let him slide into unrestricted free agency, but that's nothing for me to speculate about, just saying it's a possibility. If Kulemin gets his qualifying offer, then the Leafs will get the right to first refusal, the ability to match or let go for compensation. Compensation for a $1.75 million offer sheet would be in the neighbourhood of a 3rd round pick, where any sort of compensation would be enough to see Kulemin out the door. I honestly can't see a team paying any more of him in a deal than that, unless they know something that we don't.

I have much doubt that anyone will be out to scoop Kulemin, but I could see Burke trying to move his rights if this goes any further. If Burke can move him, I would expect to see either another troubled free agent or a mid-round pick coming the other way.

Love of the Cup or Money: Kovalchuk

2010-06-07T09:20:00.000-06:00

I believe we can all agree that Ilya Kovalchuk is the most talented sniper in the potential UFA market going into July, correct? Yes, I thought so. Patrick Marleau and Tomas Plekanec don't hold a candle to th scoring ability of Kovalchuk, so there will very well be some interesting discussions in the NHL about Ilya Kovalchuk. But hold on a second, there are now offers abound from Russia to get one of their best exports to North America back in their regime and they are willing to pay big money to get him.

Word is on Monday morning that SKA St. Petersberg has offered the Russian sniper a 3-year deal worth $42 million, which would also include some major signing bonuses on top of the deal. I cannot confirm about the bonuses, but I have seen it floating around as well. So, that equates to $14 million per year, where the NHL maximum due to the salary cap constraints is about $11.5 million in 2010, with expectations that the salary cap ceiling will go up by about $2 million, which would bring the league maxium to upwards of about $11.9 million, which is 20% of the salary cap total.

The questions now remain, how much is Kovalchuk worth and how much can an NHL team get him for, in terms of a cap value? Salary-wise, an NHL team should be able to frontload Kovalchuk's deal heavily, so they can really give him the money that he wants and the cap hit a team needs to build around him, but you would have to believe that Kovalchuk is not going to come to any team easily, unless there is a reputation for winning on their side.

Alex Ovechkin will go into the 2011 season (as of right now) with the highest cap hit at $9.538 million with the Washington Capitals and his deal runs for the next 11 seasons. Ovechkin sets the bar really high for Kovalchuk and would likely draw more comparisons to his structure than to anyone else. Ovechkin did re-sign with the Capitals as a centrepiece to the team that he was drafted by, so there has to be some leverage in from the Capitals when dealing with a restricted free agent at the time. Kovalchuk, on the other hand, will be looking to join a new team from the unrestricted free agent market, which has the ability to turn into a bidding war. This will drive up Kovalchuk's value and it will be up to him to decide whether or not he wants to hedge his bets towards a Stanley Cup Finals appearance or taking the money and running.

Kovalchuk and his agent have to know that the $14 million per season offer for the next three seasons cannot be topped by any team in the NHL and they may have the ability (not 100% sure) to sign right away, since the season has been completed and Kovalchuk is just days away from free agency anyways. If the money was the biggest factor, the $14 million would have to be very tempting to him and he would have just left. I'm thinking more along the lines that he's waiting to see what kind of offers come in on July 1st, see what teams are making a push and then make a decision from there.

There is also the point that we have not seen the official salary cap ceiling number for the 2010-'11 season either, which may be holding up the proceedings of any concrete rumours lifting to the surface from NHL teams. This new offer from Russia does seem to cover that and offer a bit more, so we'll really get to see if it's for the love of the Cup or money when Kovalchuk decides on his own future.

Spezza to Boston for the #2?

2010-06-06T14:41:00.000-06:00

RUMOUR			2009-2010 NHL Statistics				2011 Cap Info
To Boston	Position	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
Jason Spezza	Forward	27	60	23	34	57	5	$7 million
--------------
To Ottawa	Positiion	Age	GP	G	A	P	Years	Cap Hit
2010 1st Round Pick (2nd overall)

Yes, I am going to continue to buy into these Jason Spezza rumours, because I think they have some legs to them. Well, moreso that he is going to leave Ottawa than the actual rumours themselves, but thanks to ol' Eklund and his blog, we get to see what is floating around. This afternoon's specialty sees Spezza going to Boston for the 2nd overall pick, which may or may not be a real game changer.

Spezza, the number two overall pick in 2001, would be a curious fit in Boston, a team that already has Patrice Bergeron and Marc Savard signed on. Any deal could see Bergeron or Spezza move to the wing, if necessary, so it probably shouldn't be held out of the question due to position. The Bruins are finding themselves in a very positive window for becoming a contending team and adding a great puck moving centre like Spezza could make things a little more interesting.

Which team wouldn't want to take on the 2nd overall pick in this year's draft with the talent coming out of the top four or five players? The Senators could then likely turn around and make a good offer to Anton Volchenkov with Spezza's cap hit leaving the books and Ottawa can remain a very good defensive team with a shot at making the playoffs again.

The real concern for the Bruins taking on a player like Spezza at the Entry Draft would be the build up against the cap, especially if no cap space opens up with another player going in the other direction. Spezza is a $7 million cap hit and would potentially lift the Bruins' cap number up to $56.7 million, leaving very little room for six to eight players.

Dropping $7 million from the Senators books would leave them at $40.1 million, if the deal were to go down now, which would give them all sorts of room to fill in the eight to ten gaps in their roster.

I don't like the chances of this straight swap happening, because it would be much harder to decide which pieces of the puzzle need to be taken out of Boston to help fit everyone in underneath the salary cap. That being said, unless there is a plan in place or a few more factors that are not taken into account in this post, I really don't see this move happening.

Semin Part of a Major Deal?

2010-06-05T22:44:00.000-06:00

A short and sweet post from Eklund suggests that the Capitals may be looking to a major trade, likely to move Alexander Semin and a "star goaltender most think is untouchable."

Anybody at all surprised that Semin could very well be on the block? There is no question that the kid is talented, but he hasn't been terribly clutch for the Capitals, especially in the playoffs. That $6 million cap hit this season does weigh his value down as a bargain, but maybe the kid just needs to go to a city where he can play top fiddle for a while.

As for the goalie who most people would think is untouchable would likely have to be Semyon Varlamov, who has been able to take most of the reps for the Capitals in the playoffs, but even then isn't quite as solid. The Capitals may even be higher on Michal Neuvirth than we have been thinking. That's awfully interesting, don't you think? Heck, maybe it's Neuvirth that we think is untouchable in the organization and another team wants to give him the starting job somewhere. Very tempting, either way.

If I was to offer two guesses, one West and one East... I would have to say it would be the Edmonton Oilers who swing this deal, with Nikolai Khabibulin going the other way... or it's the Atlanta Thrashers, who would take both Semin and Varlamov for some division jockeying, likely giving up one of their 1st rounders with a couple of youths.

The Oilers make some sense, because they want to have a superstar sniper, maybe even to go with Tyler Seguin, who could be their number one overall pick. Certainly, a pie in the sky sort of dreaming, but definitely feasible with how they are structured against the cap and also not having to worry about Khabibulin anymore.

The Thrashers, on the other hand, really seem to like Russians nowadays and picking up a couple more could somehow put some more butts in the seats in Atlanta with some flash and dash in their line-up. It would give Max Afinogenov a little more help on their offense and maybe give Slava Kozlov someone to mentor in Atlanta, possibly some more ice-time.

When you have vague statements like this Eklund post, the imagination can run wild, couldn't it?

I'm Buying Stock in Spezza Rumours

2010-06-04T14:10:00.000-06:00

I suppose making the playoffs is what keeps Bryan Murray employed in Ottawa, because it certainly isn't the assumed treatment of his highly-paid superstars that allows him to keep working at his post as General Manager. If that was the case, I would have to think that the leaks of Jason Spezza coming into his office and having an emotional discussion after the season had ended would suggest that he has lost another star's confidence and may be forced to deal him.

This whole debacle really does seem to me, especially how everything had leaked, to be planted and framed up for Murray to make a deal this off-season, if at all possible. Spezza does owe the Senators his silence through this whole charade, because they gave him all the patience and time that Spezza needed to become a good NHL player that can earn $7 million per season. Since this soap opera has been kept under wraps and is slowly blowing up into a bigger and bigger deal, there might be a team or two that can fit him into their system and make a reasonable play for him. This is me just thinking out loud again, there is no real basis to these thoughts other than calling it as I see it.

I would have to believe that the 2001 2nd overall pick is unhappy that he has seen one of his favourite playmaking targets, Dany Heatley, has left the team to greener pastures (also citing some differences in the organization) and you may even draw Ray Emery into the conversation as well, since it was believed that Spezza and Emery were friends in the organization.

This situation also reminds me a lot of the Heatley saga last Summer, when Bryan Murray was defiant in talking about dealing Heatley, until everything really boiled over. I am going to buy into most Spezza rumours this Summer or at least write about the ones that are pretty well laid out. I'm thinking that there should be a team or two that would want a $7 million guy, but can't seem to find one on the free agent market this year. Look at Patrick Marleau, he'll be a prized possession and he's much older than Spezza.

Kariya Back to Anaheim... With Selanne?

2010-06-03T13:16:00.000-06:00

I saw some interesting tweets from Andy Strickland of HockeyBuzz.com, suggesting Paul Kariya is waiting to see what the market will bear for a return in 2011 and hoping to possibly reunite with former teammate, Teemu Selanne, in Anaheim, where he started his career. This sort of news gets a guy to thinking, you know? Could this possibly work out for the Ducks to get both both players signed on for the 2011 season?

Both players are firmly into their Summers, especially since the Blues and the Ducks failed to make the playoffs in April, so there must have been a number of free moments between then and now to contemplate their futures. Obviously, it sounds like Kariya has come up with some conclusions, while there is some belief that Selanne will hang up the skates at age 39 (or 40 in one month's time). I guess, the better first question will be, would the prospect of Kariya going back to Anaheim be enough for Selanne to return for another year? If the answer is no, then all other discussions about this topic are now moot.

For the sake of saying yes though, I suppose it would have to be a look at possible cap numbers going forward, before we try and fit something into the Ducks annual cap numbers. Let's remember, both players did take less money to play together once before in Colorado, so I think we can safely assume that there could be a special incentive for the Ducks to have both of these players signed on for the 2011 season.

In 2010, Selanne was signed on to a cap hit of $2.625 million with the Ducks as a 39-year old winger and he finished with 48 points in 54 games. Kariya, on the other hand, had an annual cap hit of $6 million with the Blues as a 35-year old and he only picked up 43 points in 75 games. It might be high time that Kariya took a bit of a pay cut, don't you think? So, saying that, what kind of pay cut are they looking at, especially since Selanne could almost argue for a fine raise with the production he managed in 54 games, but that's another story altogether. It may not be unreasonable to say to both, here's a 1-year deal for $3 million each, call it square. I'm sure the Kariya camp may barder for a bit more, but seeing what kind of offers that are made by quality teams might mean he'll be low-balled in discussions. Fair enough, Kariya has barely scored enough to warrant a $6 million cap hit lately anyways.

Okay, we've settled on $3 million each, which if playing well together on the same team works wonders, it may just be a good bargain for the Ducks to pick up. Currently, in accordance to my spreadsheet and the Pool Outlook, the Ducks currently have $35.3 million in cap space allotted to 14 players, which looks like plenty of room to slip two players at $3 million each, bringing their total up to $41.3 million for 16 players, leaving over $15 million for seven players. A big thumbs up to some quality bookkeeping here.

This idea is plausible, but first you have to convince Selanne to make a return and the Ducks would have to come out and say that this is a good idea. It's not a terrible idea, for the right price, of course.

Thinking Out Loud: Kaberle

2010-06-02T10:31:00.000-06:00

Massive post on TSN.ca from their insider, Darren Dreger, about the Maple Leafs expressing through e-mail to the other 29 teams that Tomas Kaberle is officially available for a deal to take him out of town. This is really big news, as it really does spell the end of Kaberle's run in Toronto and the reshaping of the Maple Leafs will continue with some more major measures this Summer.

According to the post, the asking price for Kaberle is a 1st round draft pick or an NHL-ready young player, which actually doesn't seem too high of a price, to be honest. The post also suggests that the Leafs brass are not in a big hurry to move Kaberle out of town, as he could still be a valuable asset to the team in the 2011 season, the last year before he become an unrestricted free agent.

CapGeek.com reports the No Trade Clause as being open after the Entry Draft to August 15th, whereas the Leafs can find a deal for Kaberle outside of that window, but only to an exclusive list of teams provided by Kaberle. We're still about three weeks away from open season on the Czech veteran, but that isn't to say that interest won't be peaked by most teams and that they can't make a play for him, but I suppose if any of the exclusive teams makes a big enough pitch, likely including their 1st round pick in three weeks, Burke would have to listen. The Leafs don't have their 1st round pick in 2011 either, so holding out for a pick in that draft doesn't seem to be a bad idea either.

Nevertheless, this will mean that it's open season on the rumour mill, as it was this morning on HockeyBuzz, suggesting some possible teams, possible scenarios and the like. What I liked in that post was one source was citing offense to be the biggest thing the Leafs are looking for this season and with the defensive depth they have signed on for 2011, that sort of makes sense.

This post is now a pretty good jumping off point for the Summer talks with Kaberle and I'm expecting to return back to it with comparisons of some rumoured deals until the day the deal is done. I expect to see a good number of deals posted leading up to that day.

Early Rumours of Marleau & Kovalchuk

2010-05-30T17:07:00.000-06:00

Oh, I love how rumour season is kicking into gear... I do keep a close eye on HockeyBuzz, because it's a lot of fun to play with the rumours. Sunday afternoon sees an interesting paradigm shift in the Pacific Division with the suggestion of the Los Angeles Kings going after Patrick Marleau on July 1st, opening up the door for the Sharks to go after Ilya Kovalchuk.

Looking at what the Kings already have in place, Marleau looks like he'd be a pretty good fit down the middle for the Kings, but do they really want to drop a ton of cap space on one player on a young team. The Kings already have a good captain in Dustin Brown, but you would have to think Marleau would get an "A" if he steps on the ice for Los Angeles. Depth at centre is somewhat questionable, so having a centre like Marleau to play with a guy like Ryan Smyth does seem rather tempting, so I think the rumour does have some merit.

Last week, I did toy with the idea of what Marleau might be worth on the open market and my best guess would suggest that $6.5 million will be the eventual cap hit for him and since the Kings have $43.4 million already taken up for 15 players, they'd be riding $50 million if they added Marleau. That's getting pretty tight.

Now, the Sharks targeting Ilya Kovalchuk is super interesting, wouldn't you say? How far would the desired salary cap hit slide to play in San Jose? That would be my first question when thinking about this potential signing. I'm thinking that if Kovalchuk did decide to go to San Jose in July, he would have to think that moving to the West would give him the best chance to win a Cup, so I'm thinking the desired cap hit may drop down to $7 million per season, which would be well suited to the Sharks, who only have a current cap hit of $34.6 million for 10 players, including Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley and Dan Boyle. That would be a boatload of offense and then depth and goaltending would have to be sorted out with the remaining cap space, which might not be a hard task, because they should be able to attract some top talent to play for less with the four players signed (hypothetically).

The Sharks are definitely in a position to go shopping with Marleau and Evgeni Nabokov hitting the open market, relieving a lot of cap space, and they will have to win something big soon or else the management may be finding itself in some real hot water.

Would Volchenkov Fit in Washington?

2010-05-28T10:00:00.000-06:00

I had to raise an eyebrow at one of the rumours that Eklund posted this morning, seeing that the Washington Capitals have a lot of interest in potential free agent defenseman, Anton Volchenkov. It should come as no surprise that Volchenkov is really drawing some interest, because he is a valuable defenseman, from a defensive standpoint. He might not put up a great deal of points or generate a ton of offense by himself, but the guy is exceptionally physical and is able to block a lot of shots. I would be drawing the interest around Volchenkov to the same amount of interest that Jay McKee got when he flipped into being an unrestricted free agent.

Offensively, Volchenkov does not tip the scales too far with a career-high of only 19 points, so his fantasy value has not been high, in terms of scoring. I suppose if you work one of those deeper statistical pools, you may find some good uses for Volchenkov in the blocked shots, shots on goal, plus/minus (on a good year) or penalty minutes, but otherwise, he's strictly your defensive defenseman. Of course, if he moved to Washington and was able to unleash the cannon of a shot that he has on a power play, he might actually find himself with some more assists, possibly even some more goals, but that's if he was to move there.

Now, the next thing is determining what his actual cap value will be with his potential deal to see if he could possibly fit in a place like Washington or what they might have to do to fit him in. Volchenkov's last deal, a 3-year, $7.5 million in 2007, was a cap hit of $2.5 million each year and was a pretty solid deal for the Senators, especially for all the hard work they got out of him. In terms of defensive defensemen getting a brand new deal, McKee's deal in 2006 netted him $4 million a year, which was awfully high for a defenseman that doesn't score much. Well, I think $4 million is a good jumping off point for Volchenkov, even four years down the road.

I think the greatest aspect of the Volchenkov free agency situation is that he will be a popular guy come July 1st and there just may be a bit of a bidding war for his services. If the auction was to start around $3.5 million per season, I could easily imagine him being overpaid at around $5.5 million per season by a contending team this Summer. That's a lot of scratch for very little offense, but blocked shots and hits are becoming big business in a very offensive NHL.

Let's call it, the worst-case scenario for the winning club at $5.5 million per year for likely between four or five years in his first unrestricted free agency deal. The Washington Capitals currently have plenty of cap space taken up with their current list of players, 13 players at $43.6 million, so a massive cap hit like the worst-case Volchenkov would really limit the rest of their depth and possibly give more reason to keep some of their developing blueliners in the minors for another year, which is one of those lumps they would have to take. Of course, there may just be a market for a guy like Tom Poti, who has one year at $3.5 million against the cap left on his deal, to a team that needs a bit more offense from the blueline. Out of general speculation, that might just work like a charm.

I would definitely say that Volchenkov signing in Washington is a plausible rumour, especially since a guy like Poti is marketable and the Capitals don't need much more offense from anyone, rather a lot more defense.

Thinking Out Loud: Nabokov and Marleau

2010-05-27T08:58:00.000-06:00

Since I have a bit of time today, I thought I would look at some of the impending free agents and sort of think out loud here. With the San Jose Sharks potentially having two of the top three unrestricted free agents this Summer come out of their system, it might be worth a go to look at their valuation and what could possibly happen.

I think one of the worst things about having both Evgeni Nabokov and Patrick Marleau come up at the same time in July is that they both had pretty good regular seasons, ranking well in their respective measurable statistic categories and also, Marleau did have a pretty damn good playoffs as well.

If it were me, I would first be looking at what their market values should be for both players and then make a better decision from there. I think once you have determined what their cap values are, you can then weigh the pros and cons compared to those values. Hell, once you determine the values, you might even be able to keep both, if that was Doug Wilson's prerogative.

Let's start in goal with Nabokov... a 44-game winner in the regular season and was good enough to lift the Sharks into the number one spot in the Western Conference and that did literally give them the best chance at making it through the conference rounds of the playoffs, on the merits of their competition through rounds one and two. In a lot of cases, most teams would want that goaltending just to get to the big dance and then from there, it's a whole new ball game. Nabokov is going to be 35 years old at the start of the 2011 regular season, which probably only gives him 3 to 4 years maximum on a new deal and he'll likely want a sizable paycheque when it's all said and done. The average cap hit for the six goalies with 38 or more wins is $4.1 million, but I would say he'd be looking for a cap hit of about $5 million, likely front-loaded, just in case.

For Marleau, you can't argue with his consistency as a whole, he might ride a wave of some ups and downs, but for the most part, he's done well to remain in the conversation as some of the game's best players. Marleau set a new career-high in goals in 2010 with 44, after setting his previous high the year before with 38. You can't take goal scoring away from him, that's for sure. The market value for a 40-goal scorer these days is actually quite high and having back-to-back seasons in the neighbourhood of 40 goals is a very marketable feat. Marleau's last contract extension had a cap hit of $6.3 million and frankly, there is little reason for it to go down and more reason for it to go up a touch. Marleau will start the season at age 31, so the decision will likely come down to whether or not the Sharks want him for the remainder of his career, which could lessen his cap hit thanks to front-loading his potential deal, or let him take $6.5 million (or slightly more) in a market looking for a veteran forward with leadership qualities.

So, let's head to the ballpark with these figures. Right now, I have the San Jose Sharks sitting with a roster of 10 players signed on for $34.6 million, with the bulk of those players signed on as defensemen. If we added two deals that were short-term and full expected cap hit, we'd be adding $11.5 million and only two players to the scheme. That would give us 12 players at $45.7 million, which is approximately where the Boston Bruins sit right now, leaving about $10 million for 11 players, if the Sharks were to carry a full 23-man roster. That would be considered less than flexible for the remainder of the Summer.

I would have to imagine that both players, if they hit the open market in July, would get some nice looking offers from other teams. There are plenty of teams out there that could use a fresh face as their franchise goaltender or use a veteran forward to help grow their future superstar youth, with cap space to spare.

This is a real major crossroads for GM Doug Wilson and the future of the San Jose Sharks and with the lack of great talent in their system, I would have to bet that he would take the safe road and try to get both players under contract for the long-term and work like hell to expand his youth system through better trades for picks. Of course, if he can get both cap hits down with longer-term deals, he might be able to afford some better depth and a better shot at making the Cup Finals soon.

But this is just me thinking out loud.

The Move to Winnipeg Seems Real

2010-05-11T14:13:00.000-06:00

I have been mildly vocal on Twitter about all this relocation talk of the Coyotes, especially last season, when I was reasoning with the NHL as to why they would keep the Coyotes in Phoenix and it really did make sense to me. Show the people of Phoenix and Glendale some quality hockey, some winning hockey and more people will come out and watch the game. Thankfully, there was a good playoff run (of only one series, but still) in 2010 and the seats were filled. "If you win some, then they will come."

I was not prepared, as an NHL fan, to let Phoenix go without hoping for a good fight. I really like hockey and I would really love it if more people watched the game and admired how good it is, much like I do. Building the hockey community is one of the best things we can do as individual ambassadors of the game. Hell, one day I'd like to go down to Phoenix, more likely in the Winter, and I wouldn't mind taking in a hockey game down there, just so I can have some of the seasonal luxuries without the blah weather.

What I'm not going to do, however, is argue a point which has little to no arguments, because it's just beating one's head into a brick wall, there just isn't any point.

That brings us to today. There was a report published by the CBC, posted on Twitter by Puck Daddy's @Wyshnyski, which says that the NHL has a contingency plan in their scheduling for the possibility that the Phoenix Coyotes have to relocate to... Winnipeg!

I only get excited for this because there are league officials talking seriously about the possibility of the relocation, not as a comment or a rumour, but as a generalized fact. At the very least, that is very exciting news, because if they are officially thinking about it, then we now have an official reason to keep our fingers crossed (for those who really want a team in Winnipeg or Canada, for that matter).

Of course, there are plenty of circumstances that have to be measured out and weighed accordingly in order for the team's fate to be officially decided, but I think there are some interesting things being said that may have the scale tipped towards Winnipeg more than Phoenix/Glendale.

The biggest hurdle, which looks to be a well placed mountain in the path, is that the NHL and their potential owners are looking to the City of Glendale, where the Jobing.com Arena is located, to cover the losses incurred by the Coyotes and the NHL in order to seal a lease agreement. You would think that would just be a business deal that just involves money, but there are a lot of concerns of where that money is coming from and how it looks playing out. In the CBC article, there is a big quote box that reads: "Under Arizona's constitution, cities are not allowed to give subsidies to private sports owners, or any private businesses for that matter." Constitutional matters are not historically easy to overcome, which leads me to believe that this is a purposeful matter that the NHL needs the City of Glendale to say no to and then the league can officially wash their hands of the matter, claiming that they've done all they can in order to keep the franchise alive in Arizona and have no choice but to move it.

The league obviously doesn't want to fork out any more money for losses, neither do their owners and board members, so if there is a potential suitor to the franchise that would take on that lump sum and the put the team in a place where there is plenty of support, then the league really has no choice and there is no argument pending. This is why I can back it, because it must be done.

I didn't back the Balsille bids for the sake of moving a team to Canada for the sake of moving the team, I think that just looked exceptionally greedy of Canada as a whole. "It's our game and we're taking our puck and going home." Now, at least there is proper reason assessed and all the avenues have been exhausted to keep hockey with fans that are likely just discovering the game for the first time. I really hate to take this wonderful sport away from them, but it's not my choice, all I can do is say if I like the move or not and in this case... I do.

Hudler to Return in 2011?

2010-04-30T11:43:00.000-06:00

Reports are surfacing that Jiri Hudler wants to come back to North America for another run. Hudler bolted for Russia and the KHL when the Red Wings couldn't pull together enough cap space to fit his $2.875 million underneath the cap ceiling comfortably. This doesn't seem to be the worst-case scenario of a player that had bolted for Russia for the sake of money, more so the sake of playing. The Red Wings obviously didn't want to deal him away for nothing, so it does look like more of a loan to the KHL more than anything. Now that Dynamo Moscow has folded and closed it's doors for good, a look back to the NHL is favourable for the 26-year old Czech, now that the Red Wings are solving cap issues by waiting for UFA contracts to expire.

These reports and rumours do seem to have legs to them and it could very well be a possibility for training camp in September.

Ponikarovsky Rumours Heating Up

2010-03-02T18:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it looks like there is some preservation going on in Toronto, as they scratched Alex Ponikarovsky against the Hurricanes. There has been quite a bit of scuttlebutt surrounding where he might end up before the end of the night, if not tomorrow, but it's hard to say which team is in on him. I'm not going to say, because I don't have any "sources," but Ponikarovsky was scratched tonight, so stay tuned!

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Huet for Finger?

2010-03-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics
To Toronto	Position	Age	MIN	Wins	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Cristobel Huet	Goaltender	34	2,431	24	56	$5.625 million	$5.625 million
----------
To Chicago	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Jeff Finger	Defenseman	30	30	2	9	$3.5 million	$3.5 million

Who doesn't love an absurd rumour? I saw this one on Twitter this morning, which really shakes one's head. Huet for Finger, two large cap hits, which extend past this season getting dealt. I think the backing of this one was that Brian Burke stated that he would take on salary cap hits for teams as help. Well, whichever bonehead came up with this is forgetting that Burke wants to be rid of his acquired cap space in July so the Maple Leafs remain flexible in the off-season. If Huet was to go to Toronto, there would also have to be picks to compensate the Leafs for taking on such a big lump of salary, which wasn't mentioned. Skip it...

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The Asking Price for Hamhuis?

2010-03-02T10:15:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics
To Philadelphia	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Dan Hamhuis	Defenseman	27	57	4	16	$2 million	UFA
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To Nashville	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Braydon Coburn	Defenseman	25	59	5	17	$1.3 million	RFA
Ryan Parent	Defenseman	23	28	0	2	$855,000	RFA

I'm not going to go into a lot of detail, but I wanted to piece together what a rumoured asking price is for Dan Hamhuis, arguably one of the hottest commodities on the trade wire this week. The Predators look to be looking for a roster player and a top end prospect for Hamhuis, which is pretty expensive, but that's the cost of winning in the end. The Predators are stacked in defensemen as it is, but it really is turning into the Defenseman Market Place at this deadline, much like it was last season as well. This cost might be a little too high for a team like the Flyers, as Parent has a lot of upside, but just lacks in the ability department right now to crack the roster. The numbers here are interesting, I would be keen to hear what other offers are on the table, if any.

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Kozlov Asks For a Trade

2010-02-26T16:54:00.000-07:00

The Thrashers are in the middle of somewhat of an overhaul and ever since the deal sending Ilya Kovalchuk out of town, there have been indicators that we could be seeing all sorts of changes to the Atlanta line-up before March 3rd. The healthy scratch posts about Slava Kozlov did give me the feeling that he'd be out of town sooner rather than later. Well, its being reported on Friday that Kozlov has asked for a trade and will waive his no-trade clause to end up with a contender.

Kozlov isn't enjoying a great season in Atlanta, having only 8 goals & 16 assists in 52 games with the Thrashers and has a horrible -16 rating. At age 37, you might get the feeling that his legs might not be helping him out much. He does have a lot of veteran experience, including a number of playoff runs with the Red Wings, including a Stanley Cup ring in 1998.

Well, Kozlov has an annual salary cap hit of $3.7 million, which is quite heft to look at, but when the roster freeze lifts, his remaining cap hit will be about $860,000. That's not a daunting number at all and there are a number of teams that could fit him into their fold, if they so chose to do so. Kozlov is also set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, so he may have picked up some interest as a rental, despite his no-trade clause.

I really wonder if the Penguins would like to take another shot at renting an aged veteran, hoping to rekindle his passion for the game. The Penguins have been thrown around the rumour mill about the Thrashers' Russians, which has some legs, because the Penguins have draft picks to throw about this year and the Thrashers must like the idea of a few more picks.

Nevertheless, I would think Kozlov would be worth a 3rd or 4th round pick only, which is pretty affordable to a contender, if they can fit a veteran player into their line-up.

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Hamhuis a Popular Name

2010-02-23T15:30:00.000-07:00

I was doing some checking in my site stats and I see that Dan Hamhuis has been a keyword of sorts to get to the page, so I thought I would have a look at him in a little bit more depth.

The former first round pick (12th overall in 2001) was touted as a smooth, skating offensive defenseman coming out of Prince George of the WHL, but the Predators did their best to make him a lot more responsible as an NHL defenseman, which included a couple of seasons in the AHL to help his game out. As a whole, he's developed quite well and has proved to be very durable in his NHL career, which is a huge plus.

The Predators, however, are in a bit of a quandary when it comes to their defensemen situation. They are ridiculously deep at the blueline position, especially with Cody Franson making a charge up the depth charts and Jonathan Blum still working his way up. Hamhuis is now 27 years old and is about to become an unrestricted free agent, so the question is for them, with all this depth in the organization, can they afford to move Hamhuis before a run into (and likely through) the playoffs because of their depth? If the answer is yes, they will be able to move a highly-valued defender like Hamhuis for a good package in return. If the answer is no, they will have Hamhuis for their run, but will likely not get a chance to re-sign him, as he'll likely go somewhere that can give him the minutes he could thrive in.

One of the most attractive things about Hamhuis for the stretch run of the season is his cap hit. Annually, Hamhuis is worth $2 million against the cap, so with only 42 days left in the regular season on Monday, the number against the cap would be in the neighbourhood of $470,000, which is very good for any team.

Now, trying to attain a market value for Hamhuis is not an exact science, but there is a level of assumption we can take from other contracts in the league. 26-to-28 year old defensemen in my pool rankings in the range where Hamhuis has been in, could net the future UFA somewhere between $2.5 to $4 million, in terms of a cap hit. Other defensemen in his bracket include: Joni Pitkanen, Fedor Tyutin, Dennis Seidenberg, Keith Ballard, Trevor Daley, Johnny Oduya and Paul Martin. That's purely on a scoring level over the past couple seasons, it doesn't include intangibles or defensive prowess.

Dan Hamhuis' situation does not lead me to believe that if he's moved, he'll be a rental player, because he should be easy to re-sign or picked up with the intention of re-signing him. If his cap hit could be stripped down to $3 to $3.5 million in a longer-term deal, he could be an absolute bargain for any team. I really don't think any team can be held out of the conversation, if you were speculating on what team would be involved in a deal.

We don't know for sure if Hamhuis has been made available for negotiations from Nashville, nor is it likely that we will. If he was made available, I would hope that my favourite team has at least inquired about his cost.

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Rental Players at the Olympics

2010-02-22T18:54:00.000-07:00

We're only a week away before the roster freeze lifts and all hell breaks loose before the NHL trade deadline. This gives us ample time to have a look at the future rental players that are playing at the games and assess if their value has gone up or down because of the games.

There are plenty of rental players to choose from, but a lot of them didn't make their potential Olympic teams, likely because of age, production and/or style the coaching staff was looking for, but its those players who were taken to Vancouver from basement dwelling teams that I'll be looking at here, sorted by pool scoring.

Maxim Afinogenov, forward
Atlanta - 19 goals, 27 assists in 60 games
Russia - 1 assist in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $800,000

Afinogenov leads the way on the list and I would think he would definitely be a prime candidate to move when the roster freeze lifts, because he was under the guise of having him play with Ilya Kovalchuk all season. With Kovalchuk gone to New Jersey, he might be an attractive pick-up for a team hoping to add a second-line winger. His cap hit is reasonable enough that it won't be a terrible gamble, even if they had to lose him on waivers. As for an Olympic effect, I think Russia is getting what everyone thought they would from him, especially as a depth line winger.

Scott Niedermayer, defense
Anaheim - 6 goals, 31 assists in 62 games
Canada - 1 assist in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $6 million

It's not entirely clear whether or not Niedermayer will indeed be a rental player, especially if Anaheim decides to make a run at the playoffs. In Niedermayer, they could expect to get some good futures for the veteran rearguard, but if they want to use him for their own good, he'll be off the market. After three games in the round robin, it really doesn't look like Niedermayer's value has gone up, mostly because his ice-time has gone down and does not compare well to Shea Weber or Duncan Keith thus far. Nashville and Chicago likely won't be after Niedermayer, but teams still may want to add the veteran presence, but at what cost?

Marek Zidlicky, defense
Minnesota - 5 goals, 31 assists in 60 games
Czech Rep. - 5 assists in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $3.35 million

Flying a little under the radar heading into the Olympics, Zidlicky is quietly having a pretty good season with the under-performing Minnesota Wild, but during the games, he's been racking up some points for a pretty good Czech Republic team. The Wild should be sellers when the roster freeze lifts and I would have to think there might be a bit of a bidding war getting ready for the blueliner. At age 33, he should have the veteran poise that most teams are looking for and brings some good offense to a team. If he can find his way onto a good team making a run, he should compliment their scorers well, especially on the power play.

Pavel Kubina, defense
Atlanta - 5 goals, 29 assists in 59 games
Czech Rep. - 0 points in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $5 million

Kubina might be considered an expensive option with a questionable amount of intangibles to justify his cap value. His scoring abilities are okay, as he's rated 157th in pool scoring this year, he does have a Stanley Cup ring from 2004, but I would still question what he's able to bring to a team, especially after his days in Toronto, where skills and intangibles went to die. Kubina should end up as a reasonable Plan B for some teams that are trying to shop for either Niedermayer or Zidlicky. No points and minimal defenseman minutes in the Olympics should see to that.

Saku Koivu, forward
Anaheim - 12 goals, 21 assists in 53 games
Finland - 2 assists in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $3.25 million

Teemu Selanne, forward
Anaheim - 18 goals, 11 assists in 37 games
Finland - 2 assists in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $2.625 million

With another pair of Ducks on the list, you would have to wonder whether or not they will be making any moves at the trade deadline when it comes to selling players. Both Koivu and Selanne have both dealt with injuries this year, which has had an effect on their numbers during the year, but they are both dressing for a solid Finland team in these Olympics and their teamwork has to be mentioned as a huge plus. Both players are on the older side of the ledger, which has negotiated some smaller cap numbers. Those cap numbers are very appealing to teams that want to add some veteran presence either down the middle or on the wing. Both players look exceptionally healthy at the minute and should get an audience, if Anaheim wants to have their Yard Sale.

Dennis Seidenberg, defense
Florida- 2 goals, 20 assists in 61 games
Germany. - 1 goal in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $2.25 million

The Panthers are in the midst of their fire sale phone calls and I would imagine that Seidenberg's experience with the German national team will increase his stock for the March Roster Thaw. A smaller cap hit, a potential UFA and the leading minute-getter for Germany should make him somewhat intriguing to a lot of teams. Seidenberg could also play in the rent-to-own motif, as he's young enough to be a player that teams would consider re-signing, given a good performance by the defender. Value has had to have increased, in my opinion.

Jere Lehtinen, forward
Dallas - 3 goals, 9 assists in 38 games
Finland - 0 points in 3 games
Annual Cap Hit - $1.5 million

It hasn't been a good NHL season for Lehtinen, who has suffered from injuries all season, only appearing in 38 games this season. The depth in Dallas has certainly dropped Lehtinen in the depth charts, limiting his ice-time and his ability to score more points to more of a defense-first role, which will be what he's looked upon to do, if he was to be picked up for a playoff run. His cap hit is very new team friendly and his role would be easily laid out, especially with a Stanley Cup ring already on his finger. With Finland, he's definitely playing third-line minutes and is a -1 for the team, but as a guy who should be taking on a team's top line and penalty killing, that's fairly reasonable. Value should remain the same.

Well, those are the players that are in the Olympics and could be dealt rentals, as they are all potential unrestricted free agents come July 1st. It's an interesting mix, especially if they were all to get dealt before the March 3rd deadline.

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Kaberle for Hodgson?

2010-02-18T12:49:00.000-07:00

			2009/2010 NHL Statistics
To Vancouver	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Tomas Kaberle	Defenseman	32	61	6	46	$4.25 million	$4.25 million
----------
To Toronto	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Cody Hodgson	Forward	20	0	0	0	In Juniors	$1.696 million

An interesting thought was posted on the Hockey News website on Wednesday, which suggested the Maple Leafs could move Tomas Kaberle and land Cody Hodgson from the Canucks. It's just a suggestion, hardly a rumour, but its still fun to play with, because looking at it from the outside, this does have some merit in the franchise-building ideology.

First off, the Maple Leafs. They are in rebuilding mode and they have said that they are not keen on moving Kaberle, but cap flexibility that the team would gain in moving him must be somewhat appealing and a nagging thought in the back of Brian Burke's mind. In this deal, they would gain some flexibility for 2011 and they would end up with a former 1st round pick, which would ease the burden of having moved their 2010 pick to Boston in the Phil Kessel deal. After Hodgson's performance in the 2009 World Juniors and the OHL season, he has a serious upside to him, almost to the point of a franchise player down the stretch. In moving Kaberle, they would accomplish a lot in this deal and it could possibly give the Leafs critics a little less to talk about. We all know they won't shut up, but they would have a little less to go on.

As for the Canucks, they have pieces in their franchise that they can move in order to win now. The Canucks are arguably a top-two defenseman away from being a real contender down the stretch and if it costs them a big piece to do it, it has to be tempting for them. Kaberle has been very good for the Leafs this season and should provide a veteran presence and some extra blueline offense, which would make the team a lot more credible and would ease the pressure on players like Kevin Bieksa (when he returns) and Sami Salo. Moving Hodgson might be on the management's checklist, because they don't trust his health issues despite his offensive upside, so he might be a reasonable piece to move, since the price of winning now is quite high.

As mentioned, the cap burden on the Maple Leafs will be relieved of sorts in this deal, where they could end up saving an entire season of Kaberle's cap hit, if Hodgson was to have a development season in the AHL with the Marlies, which has to be appealing. In theory, this move would give a potential cap hit of $41.2 million for 14 players, which is much more relaxed if you added Kaberle's number in.

For the Canucks, they would have to absorb the remaining hit on Kaberle, which is likely just hovering around hte $2 million mark, which they could have in discounts from their injures this season. With both Willie Mitchell and Kevin Bieksa currently on the shelf for the long-term, they have saved some cap space and also have an open spot on the blueline for Kaberle. Then the question surrounds the 2011 season, where Kaberle has his deal in place for, which adds the $4.25 million on top of the Canucks' $42.6 million already in place for 13 players. That's getting awfully close, especially for adding another nine players and they have serious free agents to deal with. Having a piece like Kaberle does create some flexibility in dealing with free agents, but the won't cross that bridge unless they get there.

In the world where anything can happen in NHL trades, it's hard to say that this is completely impossible, especially for the reasons given above. Between Toronto not really wanting to give up Kaberle and Vancouver needing a second-line centre in their future, Hodgson doesn't seem to be a wise piece to move, there is plenty of reason to make this move for both sides. Two teams with different ideas when they want to win will need to make a move to achieve their goals and both sides are believed to be actively doing some talking during this Olympic Break... it's really, really interesting.

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Trying to Assess the Panthers Situation

2010-02-15T17:03:00.000-07:00

If you didn't think that the trade deadline was going to be crazy enough with the rental players who have been noted as likely available, the Florida Panthers took to the e-mail around the roster freeze on Friday (Feb. 12th), alerting their season ticket fan base that there are going to be changes because the management and coaching staff are not pleased with how the season has gone for the team and they want to do something about it.

So, with this being said, the scuttlebutt surrounding the Panthers is definitely going to be the most interesting, because the Panthers are not quite out of the race, but if any change is to happen right away, it does sound like they will pull themselves out of the race to ensure they take advantage of the player movement that involves high returns in trades and likely some good shots at high draft picks for the summer.

Now, the letter didn't specify what the actual direction of the team will be or who they will want to build around, but that's certainly not going to stop the speculation of which way they are going to go, who they are going to target or how they are going about changing it up.

I have a feeling that looking at some of Pete Deboer's previous teams in junior, he'll want to be keeping some of that high end scoring talent to keep up with the other major scoring talent in the Southeast Division and he'll want to make sure that he's continuing to keep his top end goaltending talent. Now, the Panthers already have David Booth, Stephen Weiss and Nathan Horton, who are considered top end talent, while they have Michael Frolik and Michal Repik, who are still coming up through the ranks, but their time may be limited to make the team on a full-time basis.

It's hard to say who the Panthers will be targeting in terms of picking up new players or who they will want in return for players they want to deal from their roster, but of course, that just comes with the territory of speculation. The Panthers are likely toying with a owner-imposed salary cap, likely around the $51 million mark, so there will likely be a strategy to build their franchise, much like the Nashville Predators have, with quality hard-working veteran talent, a good young defense and finding some solid goaltending. The strategy has worked wonders in Nashville, so why couldn't it work for the Panthers?

That now leaves the questions, who do the Panthers have up for grabs and are possibly shopping? Now, let's go with some of the obvious ones first, as the unrestricted free agents will likely be the first ones to be shopped or at least added to some potential deals, since these players may not be back with the team and draft picks, no matter how low, would be better than losing these players for nothing. Dennis Seidenberg and Jordan Leopold are the only two active players scheduled to be come UFAs in July and both should carry some trade value. I would say at worst, these are guys that can get a team an extra third round pick, if they were given out as rentals.

The Panthers have hit the Rumour Mill page already this season, with the rumour that Nathan Horton may be heading out of town, so there is a return to those rumours as the first potential player headed out of town. But hold on! Will Horton be healthy enough to be dealt, he's got a broken leg? Well, the 4-week mark will hit about next week and the top end of six weeks, will come just around the end of the Olympics, so yes, he should be good to go and ready for a trade.

Eklund, from who I picked the letter from, suggests that both David Booth and Stephen Weiss are also not very safe or at least open for offers, to which a number of teams would have to look twice at these guys, because they do bring a solid amount of talent, especially to a team's top or second line, giving teams depth. Both players do have longer-term deals already in place and they are both reasonable cap hits. I think that point leads me to believe that the Panthers won't be too quick to part with them, because they have done such a good job negotiating cap-friendly deals with these two players and it makes the team more flexible down the line with good scoring.

Personally, I would have bets on guys like Cory Stillman, Steven Reinprecht, Rostislav Olesz, Radek Dvorak, Bryan Allen and Ville Koistinen becoming the guys on the block. None of which would be considered rentals, because they all have at least one more year on their deals, but none of them are terribly expensive when it comes to cap hits for what they bring, except for maybe Olesz, who is believed to have great top end talent and he might need a change of scenery in the end.

The Panthers have done well to stay around their self-imposed cap number, to whichever it may be, especially after dealing Dominic Moore before the break and dropping $1.1 million from their annual cap number. Their annual cap number, with the injured Horton, is $51.4 million for 22 players, but you can add a good portion of Moore's cap hit, minus Horton's missed time, minus Tarnasky's injury, Booth's injury, Matthias' time in the minors and there you should get their overall hit, which is likely around the flat $50 million mark.

For next season, they currently have 14 players signed on and expected to have a full-time role with the team for an annual cap hit of $43.5 million and since that includes their theoretical top six forwards, two top defensemen and starting goalie, that's a pretty impressive number, no matter what team you're looking at. If the team can improve their potential cap number, they should be able to improve their top six, in terms of skill and they should be in great shape for 2011.

When the roster freeze lifts and the gun goes off, I would imagine that the Panthers will have set-up all sorts of potential moves and will likely not wait for any dominoes to fall. I don't think its really going out on a limb to suggest that Booth, Weiss, Keith Ballard, Bryan McCabe and Tomas Vokoun are safe, as that isn't a bad core of five players, taking care of each segment of the line-up. Since general managers are able to negotiate over these next couple weeks, this could drum up some real business for a lot of teams, including the Panthers.

Even if they move a large number of their major players for the end of the season, they can still be a winner at the deadline, in my opinion. It just has to be looked at with a patient eye.

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Another Frolov to Habs Rumour...

2010-02-11T14:04:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics
To Montreal	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Alexander Frolov	Forward	27	58	13	37	$2.9 million	UFA
----------
To Los Angeles	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Matt D'Agostini	Forward	23	38	2	4	$500,000	RFA
Yannick Weber	Defenseman	21	5	0	0	$875,000	$875,000

A few interesting tweets this morning (example) have a rumour flying about, saying that Alexander Frolov is soon to be traveling to Montreal to be a part of the Canadiens for a rental package. As we come down to the rental time of year, this is the kind of deal which is really interesting.

Frolov, who is only just qualifying for unrestricted free agency, has been on the bubble with the Kings all season, as you may have noticed by reading this blog and other rumour blogs on the net. Montreal has also been one of the more interesting targets, where the rumours have been interesting, to say the least. Well, now that its crunch time and the Olympic roster freeze is quickly coming upon us, the rumour mill is in high gear.

The Canadiens are looking for some more depth scoring, especially since the injury bug has been taking big chunks out of the collective skin. With Mike Cammalleri and Andrei Kostitsyn out of the line-up, just to name a couple, the Habs are likely out looking for some more lamp lighters to help fill the roster gaps. Alexander Frolov is that kind of guy, who should be able to help that cause out, although you may not think he can very well, since he only has 13 tallies for the Kings this year. He has topped out at 35 goals in his career, so he does have the skills to do it.

If the Kings are indeed going to move Frolov, it is primarily to make sure that they get something in return, instead of losing him to unrestricted free agency for nothing. The Kings are still in the thick of the Western Conference playoff race, going into Thursday night's action with a firm grip of 5th spot. Asking for a roster player and a prospect is a fair request for a potential UFA who has scored 35 in his career, so this does seem somewhat likely.

From one tweet I had just recently seen (at the time of writing this post), it looks as though the prospect, defenseman Yannick Weber, may be the key to this deal and holds the most value. That makes some sense, but it is kind of interesting that the Kings are looking for another young defenseman.

Matt D'Agostini almost looks to be a throw in as the roster player at this point, since he has a very low cap hit, the Canadiens look to be taking on this reasonably-sized hit of Frolov's with little concern to their own overall hit. D'Agostini isn't going to bring anywhere near the offense that Frolov leaves behind and he'll likely be a depth 3rd or 4th liner, which the Kings do seem to have enough of. It would be interesting to see how he'd fit into their line-up.

Cap-wise, the Canadiens were going into the season with a little bit of buffer space between themselves and the ceiling, but with new injury discounts, they should be able to take on the new cap hit that Frolov would take and be able to take back the players from injury without too much of a hiccup.

The Habs have seen discounts from Brian Gionta, Andrei Kostitsyn, Andrei Markov and Andrei Kostitsyn, so they should be able to house Frolov from their annual cap hit of $55.8 million (approx.). I would also have to think Mike Cammalleri will be close to a discount, despite the Olympic Break, he should be able to miss at least five games after the fact, so that should also be a discount.

The Kings, on the other hand, don't even hit the $50 million mark in annual cap hits, even with Frolov in their active roster. That's an easy cap move there.

Like I had mentioned earlier, a roster player and a prospect is a good price around rental time and if the Kings are really high on Yannick Weber, then this deal does seem to be good for both sides... although, I can't really see what the Kings would like about D'Agostini... but if he's getting thrown in, there must be something to it. I would say it makes sense, but don't be surprised if there is a pick or two in there as well, just to level out the deal.

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Souray Submits a List

2010-01-26T15:02:00.000-07:00

As we near the Olympic Break and the Trade Deadline, it really appears interesting to me that Sheldon Souray finds himself on the trading block after submitting a list to the Oilers to which teams he would waive his no-trade clause for. To me, this is a real break in the case of dissecting rumours and such, but now the rumoured list is somewhat of a hot topic.

First things first, why the heck would the Oilers want to move a guy like Souray? He's a top-two defenseman, who brings a wallop of a shot from the point and a real veteran presence. The Oilers, if they were to have a quick rebuilding turnaround, would actually require a guy like Souray to quarterback their power play. To me, this is very reminiscent of the Maple Leafs situation with Tomas Kaberle, it's very curious to deal away your cornerstone piece on the point.

In the Oilers case, they do have a bit more depth, especially with Lubomir Visnovsky still being part of the equation and some youth in Alex Plante and Taylor Chorney coming up through the system. Obviously, that seems to be enough for the Oilers going forward or else they would be taking a stand on keeping Souray for the better part of his contract. If the rebuild is going to take three or four more year, Plante and Chorney should have ample time to develop and who knows what the Oilers are going to get from the future drafts.

As for his list, I like to believe what's being speculated, that the list of teams are all on the West Coast, trying to stay near his kids. Souray has two more years left on his deal, so he cannot play the rental and sign somewhere in the West after moving to the East for the remainder of this season. That's some reasonable forward thinking on his part, so it will be interesting to see if any of the California teams like what they see from him, maybe even Dallas or Phoenix, it does sound more like a Pacific Division-type move, rather than going down the road to Calgary or Vancouver. Still though, you would have to think that if the Flames or Canucks came calling with a package, the Oilers would have to listen.

So, speaking of his salary cap status, he does have two more seasons left at $5.4 million against the cap in each of those seasons and a good portion remaining on this season. That is a pretty big hit for a Trade Deadline move, especially for a rental player.

In terms of this season, we're now at a point in the year where the math gets to be awfully complicated, after injuries and demotions and such, so any team that is generally speculated to be in this, should have some space left for the $2.5 million or so Souray would need to fit in. The easy fits, just looking on the surface of some teams and their annual hits, I can see Anaheim, Phoenix and Los Angeles being really easy moves and they are all in the playoff discussion.

Long term, the Pacific Division seems to be a ripe place to be building from, as a lot of teams are going to be dealing with free agency right off the hop. Even the San Jose Sharks has a list of only 11 players signed on for next season at a cap hit of approximately $35.2 million. If the Sharks could open up a ton of space, you would have to think they might be players to pair up Souray with Boyle. Call it somewhat unreasonable, for chemistry reasons though.

As always, there are teams that are unhappy with certain players, which we can throw into supposed deals all we like. One that comes to mind would be Phoenix trying to package Peter Mueller out of town, since he's been mentioned a few times this year, for Sheldon Souray. I'm sure the Oilers could use another young, talented centre to help mould into their form. Personally, I think that kind of package is reasonable. Sadly, I have no sources or contacts to justify this, I'm just speculating all I like with the pieces in front of me.

No matter what happens, if Souray goes down South to the Pacific Division, I don't think that brings enough to the table for any of those teams.

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Backes for Schneider

2010-01-22T17:11:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics
To Vancouver	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
David Backes	Forward	25	49	10	26	$2.5 million	$2.5 million
----------
To St. Louis	Position	Age	MIN	Wins	Points	2010 Cap Hit	2011 Cap Hit
Cory Schneider	Goaltender	23	78	0	0	$1.084 million	RFA

An interesting trade rumour floated through Twitter this afternoon and I thought I would have a look at its validity. The Canucks would finally send blue-chip goaltender, Cory Schneider, away to St. Louis and in return, the Blues would send gritty forward, David Backes.

This is a very curious deal, especially since we are coming to the time of rental deals, where this deal has plenty of long-term value. The Blues would get a new franchise goaltender and the Canucks would get some more speed and grit for at least another season after this.

For the Canucks, they would upgrade their depth with a former 30-goal scorer in Backes, which has to be a very tempting player to pick up. Backes would likely slot between the second and third line, depending on chemistry, production and discipline.

For the Blues, they are on the verge of unrestricted free agency with Chris Mason and they only have one year remaining with Ty Conklin, so they would likely be giving Schneider a year behind Conklin, which would be valuable for his NHL experience.

Since this deal would see a player join the Canucks without giving up a roster player, there might be some complications, especially with the return of Pavol Demitra to their line-up this month. The Canucks would have to likely free up some space, which may also include another player or two in this deal.

In terms of the 2011, the Blues are in full flexibility mode, having only 12 players signed on for an approximate cap hit of $28.5 million. They will be happy to take a piece like Schneider and build around him. The Canucks, on the other hand, have most of their core in place and are paying for this core for years to come. They currently have 13 players signed on for $42.6 million, which doesn't leave a great deal for depth, but that's the trick of management.

I do like this deal a whole lot, especially being a Canucks fan. The potential of Cory Schneider being a good NHL goalie is there and David Backes has the ability to score 30 goals, so the value does seem to be there. Backes did miss the Blues' last game with an upper-body injury, so if there is supposed to be a hiccup on this deal, it would be that.

Discuss in the comments...

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Lecavalier to the Rangers?

2010-01-19T12:53:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To New York	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Vincent Lecavalier	Forward	29	48	12	46	11	$7.727 million
--------
To Tampa Bay	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Brandon Dubinsky	Forward	23	36	10	26	2	$1.85 million
Wade Redden	Defenseman	32	42	1	7	5	$6.5 million
Matt Gilroy	Defenseman	25	44	4	7	2	$1.75 million

I saw this rumour this morning on Puck Daddy and I thought I would draw it out, despite it being denied right off the hop and with much vigor as well. Frankly, this is just a discussion point to which there is little basis to this, it's just an interesting thought, don't you think?

From the Tampa Bay side, they have been in the middle of the Vincent Lecavalier rumour cloud for quite some time now and in some cases there might be some fire to all the smoke. It does seem awfully silly to be thinking about a move for Lecavalier, the face of the franchise, but the mistake of giving him a boat load on a very long-term deal does seem to be biting the team management in the ass a little bit. We all know that trying to move a cap hit over $7 million is one of the hardest things plaguing some NHL general managers these days.

The Rangers know all too well about trying to move a big cap hit and this proposed rumour has that individual case in this deal going back the other way. Wade Redden and his $6.5 million cap hit has been a plight upon Rangers management, especially with the lack of decent play from the blueliner. I can see what the writer of this proposed rumour was thinking... "let's swap the big contracts and then give the Lightning a little bit more, because they are taking on Redden." I can see it, it makes some sense, but for the Lightning its somewhat of a dumb move, especially since they wouldn't be getting anywhere near the offense from Brandon Dubinsky and their depth gets challenged a bit more.

On the face of it all, something is likely going to happen with Lecavalier, but this deal certainly isn't going to be it. I have a feeling that the Lightning now have some reason to be waiting to see what Ilya Kovalchuk garners in a trade from Atlanta. Sure, it isn't quite the same situation, but its two teams in the Southeast Division trying to figure out what their superstars are worth on the market. Both teams seem to be looking to rebuild a bit, so there could be a little bit of a market comparison in there somewhere.

I still don't know why the Lightning would trade Lecavalier away until Steven Stamkos is up for negotiations and the team feels they want him more than Lecavalier.

Plus, I truly believe that the Rangers are stuck with Redden for the duration of that deal.

Souray for Theodore?

2010-01-07T14:06:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Washington	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Sheldon Souray	Defenseman	33	27	3	12	3	$5.4 million
--------
To Edmonton	Position	Age	MIN	Wins	Points	Years	Per Year
Jose Theodore	Goaltender	33	1,140	9	18	1	$4.5 million

Without a doubt, this is one of the more interesting deals that I've seen on HockeyBuzz this year, but it really does solve a number of issues, the age range is right and the cap hits are about the same.

Both teams are going in opposite directions this season and both have their own issues to deal with. The Capitals need some depth and some veteran presence on their blueline, while carrying three qualified goaltenders. The Oilers are spinning their wheels in the Northwest Division, with all sorts of high priced talent, which is hurting their books and not winning games. The Oilers goaltending situation is also not very secure, with Nikolai Khabibulin on the verge of season-ending surgery and two young goalies now holding down the fort.

Looking at the two pieces of this rumoured deal, Sheldon Souray is a good veteran leader on the blueline and would be able to add that extra depth to the Capitals in the end of this season and a couple seasons afterwards. Jose Theodore is now turning out to be the odd-man out, once Semyon Varlamov is officially healthy again, and the former Hart Trophy winner would likely enjoy some more starting minutes, no matter where it is.

The cap hit, although has very similar numbers does pose a bit of a concern, mostly on Washington's side of the ledger. If the Capitals were to take on Souray, they would have him at his $5.4 million cap hit for the next two seasons, without having made any accommodations to Nicklas Backstrom or Tomas Fleischmann, who are both becoming RFA's this summer. Yes, they would have some depth on the blueline, but the Capitals are looking very well thought out in cap management, it might be a bit of a smear adding such a big name to the mix.

The Oilers would certainly be happy taking on a number one goalie in Theodore, who would essentially be a rental player, as Khabibulin recovers from his back problems. The team can remain competitive, even play spoiler, with a decent starter in their stables.

The elements are there, but again, its the cap concern that would easily nix this deal in the end. The Capitals would have a very formidable second power play unit, if Souray was to quarterback it and the Oilers would have $5.4 million more in cap room this summer if they were to end up moving him. That's a lot of flexibility given to a team that really needs it.

Caps & Jackets Cooking Up Something?

2009-12-28T12:40:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Washington	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Nikita Filatov	Forward	19	11	2	2	3	$2.225 million
--------
To Columbus	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Karl Alzner	Defenseman	21	10	0	4	2	$1.675 million

Now, this is a rumour that really getting some traction on the Twitter feed on this Monday morning. The Blue Jackets and Capitals are supposedly talking blockbuster trade and two of the prominent names floating around the mill is Nikita Filatov, the out-of-place sniper in Columbus, and Karl Alzner, who currently doesn't quite fit the Capitals budget as a balanced blueliner. Of course, there is probably more to this supposed deal, as trading these two prospects may be a bit short on calling it a blockbuster, but it does have some significant ramifications if it does go down.

Filatov, currently in Saskatchewan for the World Junior tournament with Russia, has been playing in the KHL since leaving the Blue Jackets earlier this season. Filatov was not the right fit in Ken Hitchcock's defensive system and Filatov was better suited to go back to Russia to develop his offensive talents a little bit more. I had a feeling that Filatov was not likely to see much more ice-time with Columbus, as long as Hitchcock was coaching.

Alzner, on the other hand, has been a bit of a burden to the Capitals management, but for the right reasons. Alzner is a former 1st round pick and has a cap hit that reflects that in his entry-level deal. The Caps are busting at the cap ceiling, thanks in large part to the Michael Nylander's nuisance of a deal, which the team finally cleared not long ago. Unfortunately, his defensive play isn't quite enough to make Alzner untouchable and he hasn't quite clicked offensively.

On paper, this deal looks like kind of a dud, but when you consider the style of play from each player, it really does have a lot of merit. Filatov could be slotted into a very offensive system, albeit next season for all intensive purposes (and cap reasons) and Alzner would be a great young piece to an already solid (on paper) blueline core in Columbus. Alzner could also be a quick fix for some defensive responsibility that the Jackets so desperately need. I like this deal for its merit.

Kovalchuk Vancouver-bound?

2009-12-20T17:33:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Vancouver	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Ilya Kovalchuk	Forward	26	28	19	36	1	$6.389 million
--------
To Atlanta	Position	Age	GP/MIN	Goals/Wins	Points	Years	Per Year
Pavol Demitra	Forward	35	0	0	0	1	$4 million
Cory Schneider	Goaltender	23	78	0	0	1	$1.084 million
2010 1st Round Pick

Well, this one is a doozy, wouldn't you say? The Thrashers have been the focus of many rumours and speculation and this one is no different. This rumour is thanks to this tweet, which popped up on Sunday afternoon.

Ilya Kovalchuk is an impending unrestricted free agent this summer and the Thrashers have been trying to lure their 1st overall pick in 2001 back into the fold for the long-term with some contract talks. The trade speculation has been amplified because the talks are supposedly not going very well.

The Canucks are trying to find their stride in the Western Conference playoff race, sitting in 10th spot going into Sunday's action and if there was any meat to this rumour, it would suggest that the Canucks are looking to add more consistent scoring to help out their defensive play.

The Canucks, in fairness, should be looking to unload Pavol Demitra, because of his high price tag and inability to make an impact in the line-up and they have a good trading piece like Cory Schneider, who is considered to be one of the top goaltending prospects in the NHL. The first round pick is more of a piece that puts the deal over the top.

I can't see this deal going down in the slightest. The Canucks have no cap space and I don't believe they would pay that much for a rental player. The Canucks won't have the cap space in the coming seasons to deal a long-term Kovalchuk contract, so you can immediately say that this is a rental agreement.

Another point against the possibility of this deal would be that the Canucks are not built on offense or a true offense style. The Canucks are trying to pride themselves on defense and a good transition game and/or forecheck. Yes, Kovalchuk would improve the transition game, but I don't think he has the defensive responsibility that the Canucks are looking for.

Deal Brewin' Between Oilers & Rangers?

2009-12-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Brandon Dubinsky	Forward	23	18	3	10	2	$1.85 million
--------
To New York	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Andrew Cogliano	Forward	22	29	3	8	1	$1.13 million

Now, this is by no means a complete rumour, but there were names going both ways, so I thought I would toy with the names posted on Hockeybuzz this morning. Hell, I got to use a pretty cool picture of Andrew Cogliano while I'm at it, so that's okay.

So, in theory it looks like this isn't too terribly far off from being a straight swap. The Oilers would get what was thought to be the perfect centre for Marian Gaborik in Brandon Dubinsky and the Rangers would get a speedster that could actually keep up to Gaborik in Cogliano.

The Oilers need offensive depth and Dubinsky can be great behind or ahead of Shawn Horcoff in the depth chart at centre, which means he could be slotted in with either Ales Hemsky or Sam Gagner, depending on how the coach feels that day. That has to be rather exciting.

Cogliano, as explained to me earlier today on Twitter, hasn't been able to slow down and be in more control for the Oilers, so he's not really fitting in. Well, what city in North America loves the flash & dash? You're right, it's the Big Apple. As mentioned before, Cogliano could find himself playing with Gaborik, who is considered one of the fastest skaters in the league... so it's a perfect match. Now, if Gaborik's scoring rubs off a bit too, the Rangers are in business.

Now, I think we can all agree that Dubinsky will come with a higher market value than Cogliano, so that would indicate that the Oilers may have to throw in a little more to get this deal done. Would the Rangers be so bold as to get another defenseman to keep around? Probably not, their top six is so good that they don't even keep a seventh around. Maybe there is another prospect in there that the Oilers can pick up and then maybe throw a deep pick in going back with Dubinsky to call it square?

I think this has some merit to it... what do you think?

Canucks & Coyotes Talking?

2009-12-07T14:25:00.001-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Vancouver	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Peter Mueller	Forward	21	24	1	4	1	$1.7 million
--------
To Phoenix	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Shane O'Brien	Defenseman	25	20	0	0	1	$1.6 million

In an interesting tweet I saw today, the Canucks and Coyotes may be talking trade to help deal a couple of underachieving players from one team to the other. As you can see above, the Coyotes would ship Peter Mueller to Vancouver for Shane O'Brien. Both Mueller and O'Brien have drawn the ire of their coaches, being healthy scratches in the line-up of late, which does help to facilitate a trade and upon further review, you notice that they are both worth the same against the cap this season and they are both free agents at the end of the season.

Now, I do find it a tad hard to believe that this is a deal worth doing, as O'Brien is very one dimensional as a pugilistic defender, but if Mueller is available, there does seem to be some merit here. I would have to think that there is some extra value in Mueller being much younger than O'Brien, so if there was any discussion in this direction, the Coyotes would likely be looking for a 2nd round pick to make up the difference. Mueller comes with plenty of upside and the Canucks could use a little more depth up front, so if the Canucks can part with a decent pick, I suppose I could see it happening.

Rumour Revision

2009-12-01T12:08:00.001-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Montreal	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Shawn Horcoff	Forward	31	23	5	11	6	$5.5 million
Gilbert Brule	Forward	22	24	8	17	1	$800,000
--------
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Andrei Kostitsyn	Forward	24	24	2	10	2	$3.25 million
Sergei Kostitsyn	Forward	22	3	0	2	1	$817,000
Ryan O'Byrne	Defenseman	25	7	0	0	2	$942,000

In a rumoured deal already put forth in the blog, we potentially saw Shawn Horcoff going to the Habs for the Kostitsyn brothers, straight up. That rumour I thought had some muscle to it. Today, however, I wanted to throw into the ring a quick revision that I found a day or two ago, adding in a couple more players, likely to even out the odds a little bit.

The addition of Gilbert Brule and Ryan O'Byrne to the mix is fairly interesting. Brule is enjoying a rebirth to his career, which had fizzled quite badly in Columbus, while O'Byrne has been an up-again, down-again defenseman in Montreal, so he'll be looking for full-time work. Brule could give the Canadiens some more flexibility if some of the other rumoured deals are true (ie. Scott Gomez leaving Montreal), while the Oilers could be infatuated with O'Byrne's size (6'6", 228 lbs.).

Salary cap-wise, the Habs new hit won't be as hard with another $142,000 shaved off the cap hit they take on, which I thought was necessary to move the Kostitsyns, so that becomes somewhat of a wash.

In my opinon, the only thing really nixing this deal going forward would be what kind of value the Oilers have in Brule. They have done well to make them one of their own and actually get some secondary scoring from him as well. That can be easily counteracted by the value they put in both Kostitsyn brothers and whether or not they can turn them into valuable members of the run & gun style of play.

With Hemsky's season done, could this be a move forward, getting the brothers in hopes they can play with Hemsky and start to produce big numbers. Trading Horcoff and Brule away may be considered to be a season-ending move, but it's really all just if's and but's at this time.

A Staal in Edmonton?

2009-11-28T16:06:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Eric Staal	Forward	25	16	3	7	7	$8.25 million
Undetermined Draft Pick
--------
To Carolina	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Andrew Cogliano	Forward	22	25	3	8	1	$1.133 million
Denis Grebeshkov	Defenseman	26	19	3	10	1	$3.15 million

Well, how about this one? This is a doozy of a rumour, which could have been brewing up for some time now. It takes a couple of different ideas and combines them into one really awkward and hard-to-believe notion.

The Oilers have been anything but quiet about trying to get themselves a superstar, including Dany Heatley and Phil Kessel. The Hurricanes could very well be looking for a change in direction altogether after their disastrous start to the year. A trade for both teams seems likely. Is this really what the mill has in mind though?

The Hurricanes would be trading away a franchise player from their roster with a heavy salary cap hit for the next seven seasons after this one. You could argue that this could be more of a salary dump to help buy themselves a new superstar when the free agent marketplace opens in July 2010.

The Oilers would then be moving the two players that they have been reportedly trying to deal for some quality talent and would be willing to take on that excess of salary that Staal has already been signed to.

I can't honestly see this going down though. There just doesn't seem to be enough going to Carolina in this deal. The Oilers are getting a 100-point player (when healthy) and the Hurricanes are getting two impending free agents for next season. There has to be more to it. The Canes could be looking for some more draft picks to help ease their way in the rebuilding phase of their franchise. Maybe then it would make some sense, especially if it was a really high pick.

Still though... moving Eric Staal is mildly far-fetched. Between him and Cam Ward, those are the two players Carolina should be building around.

Hawks & Leafs in Cap Move?

2009-11-24T13:42:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Toronto	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Patrick Sharp	Forward	27	22	6	19	3	$3.9 million
Brent Sopel	Defenseman	32	21	1	3	2	$2.3 million
--------
To Chicago	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Matt Stajan	Forward	26	21	5	15	1	$1.75 million
Jiri Tlusty	Forward	21	3	0	0	1	$855,000
Garnet Exelby	Defenseman	28	11	0	0	1	$1.4 million

With the Blackhawks desperately seeking out ways to trim down their projected salary cap number for the 2011 season, in order to re-sign Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith to long-term deals, the Maple Leafs might be the team to help solve their problems, but its going to cost the Blackhawks dearly... or so we are to believe. Another rumour from the mill today saw Patrick Sharp and Brent Sopel heading North to Toronto for Matt Stajan, Jiri Tlusty and Garnet Exelby, which not only is a big player swap, there is plenty of cap room heading to Canada in return for two veteran players with large contracts extending past this season.

The surface of this deal is straight cap dump, but on a skill level, this is no real improvement to the Blackhawks, who are going after a championship this year, rather it's a big turn in the opposite direcetion. A feeling most people/fans would honestly believe. The real key to that argument would be Patrick Sharp, who has proven that he is far more valuable as a two-way player than his counterpart in the deal, Matt Stajan.

Despite clearing off $6.2 million of cap space off the books for the 2011 season, the Blackhawks likely won't want to sacrifice a season where they can actually win it all, unless they are somewhat confident that Stajan and Exelby can fill the void left behind by Sharp and Sopel. Exelby and Sopel are somewhat of a wash, skill & scoring-wise, so that isn't too bad. I really don't see Tlusty being the guy to bridge the gap between Stajan and Sharp, but the system in Chicago could be way more beneficial for both players... who is to say?

Sharp is just too valuable and it's the point that keeps coming back around to predict that this deal won't go down. Burke has been able to twist some arms off before, so you just never know for sure.

Horcoff For the Kostitsyns?

2009-11-24T08:33:00.000-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Montreal	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Shawn Horcoff	Forward	31	19	5	10	6	$5.5 million
--------
To Edmonton	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Andrei Kostitsyn	Forward	24	23	2	9	2	$3.25 million
Sergei Kostitsyn	Forward	22	0	0	0	1	$817,000

I saw this rumour in a tweet on Monday and thought I would have a look at it. Just to see how it might work out.

Well, on the surface of this deal, you can acknowledge the fact that we are dealing with three underachieving players, especially for the money that is getting doled out between Horcoff and the older Kostitsyn.

Horcoff is a medium-to-small type of centre that can move the puck pretty well and skate with quick wingers, which is exactly the kind of team that the Canadiens are. Horcoff would sit as a number two centre behind Scott Gomez and there could be a little bit of balance given to the top two lines, putting Mike Cammalleri on one line and Brian Gionta to the other. There is a certain ring to it that seems rather appealing here.

The Kostitsyn brothers are very much offense first kind of players, that skate well and have a little bit of dangle to their game. Edmonton is filled with smallish forwards and two more just couldn't hurt the team more, right? Both brothers would be able to try out a number of centres that the team has to try and find some chemistry, plus they shouldn't be able to get into too much trouble in Edmonton.

I don't think that this is a terrible deal either way. Cap-wise, it will be pretty tight on both ends of the deal, but it does show some bits of relevance, enough so that it can't necessarily be shot down right away citing anything in particular.

The Habs should be looking to take on more salary in this cap era for moving these two players, that would be the easiest thing to do to facilitate a deal for kicking the Kostitsyns out of town. Maybe a low round pick would go with Horcoff, just to seal the deal, but that's just my own speculation.

I'd give this potential deal some legs... see what happens.

Giguere to Detroit?

2009-11-12T10:12:00.003-07:00

RUMOUR			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Detroit	Position	Age	GP/MIN	Goals/Wins	Points	Years	Per Year
J-S Giguere	Goaltender	32	213	0	0	2	$6 million
Erik Christensen	Forward	25	7	0	0	1	$750,000
Luca Sbisa	Defenseman	19	9	0	0	2	$875,000
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To Anaheim	Position	Age	GP/MIN	Goals/Wins	Points	Years	Per Year
Brian Rafalski	Defenseman	36	15	1	8	3	$6 million
Jimmy Howard	Goaltender	25	322	2	4	2	$717,000

Well, I love crazy rumours and I love looking at them on a numbers basis. Today's rumour came from my Twitter feed, so I thought I would give it a link and see how it pans out.

This one sees the reportedly disgruntled J-S Giguere making his way out of Anaheim and heading to Detroit, who has been a part of many Giguere rumours, for a defenseman of equal cap value in Brian Rafalski and then some even out type players.

The element of this deal, which I find most interesting is the inclusion of Luca Sbisa, a prized young defenseman, who was sent back down to juniors again this season, as to think that the Ducks are so desperate to unload Gigure, that they would throw in a young player of this calibre. I would suggest that a high pick would go instead of Sbisa, just because the Ducks love their defensemen, which is shown by their desire to have Rafalski in return.

Erik Christensen and Jimmy Howard can make some sense, as Christensen is a healthy scratch all the time for the Ducks and Howard is a prepared back-up goalie for Jonas Hiller. I think that's a pretty suave move.

Cap-wise, this is a pretty straight-swap. Both teams were dealing with cap issues to start the season, but if all the books are equal here, then this deal could work in cap principle. Whether or not the Red Wings would be willing to move Rafalski, that would be the real question.

Giguere or Hiller?

2009-11-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

It would be awfully silly to think that there wasn't a bit of a goaltending controversy at the beginning of the season in Anaheim, as both Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Jonas Hiller were both vying for the number one job. The argument was somewhat one-sided towards Hiller, as he received all the ice-time in the playoffs and played exceptionally well in doing so. Saying that, the Ducks and their coaching staff did maintain that the job was left wide open in camp, for either one to take.

On Monday, there was an interview that surfaced from down in California that has some direct quotes from Giguere, which is seemingly giving the Ducks an ultimatum to either move him or move Hiller.

With Giguere returning to the line-up from a groin injury there are questions being surfaced, in regards to this article. The Ducks have reportedly refuted the article as being true or accurate, which does seem awfully defensive and doesn't mean a great deal now. The trade winds have been surrounding Giguere have been blowing since the playoffs, around the time when Hiller was taking that number one job by the throat.

Thanks in large part to the Giguere injury, Hiller has played in 13 games for the Ducks, amassing a 6-5-1 record with a shutout, behind a team that has really yet to find their mid-season form. Hiller carries a 2.76 GAA and .919 save percentage, which are very respectable, especially for a goalie on a somewhat struggling team.

The other point of contention is that of the contract situation. Giguere is currently on the backend of a 4-year deal he signed in 2007, with another season after this with a cap hit of $6 million, while Hiller is in the final year of a 2-year contract extension, which has a cap hit of $1.3 million and will make him a UFA in the summer.

If this report and interview is actually accurate, the Ducks have a pickle on their hands. Giguere is the elder by five years and has experience of a Cup win, a Conn Smythe and another Cup Finals under his belt, but the younger Hiller doesn't have the experience, but is still earning the starts. With his pending free agency, the Ducks can mould the Swiss keeper under their projected cap number, which I believe is the tipping point for the Ducks. The interview (if true) should expedite the process of getting a trade done, but if he goes, he'll be going somewhere that needs a starting goalie, especially for the cost against the cap.

Hiller should continue to get the bulk of the starts, but if a trade doesn't happen in the next month, I would expect Giguere to get some showcase starts, trying to prove his value to teams that are interested.

Frolov for the Kostitsyns?

2009-10-21T16:52:00.001-06:00

			2009/2010 NHL Statistics			2010 Cap Hit
To Montreal	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Alexander Frolov	Forward	27	8	1	5	1	$2.9 million
--------
To Los Angeles	Position	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Per Year
Andrei Kostitsyn	Forward	24	8	1	3	2	$3.25 million
Sergei Kostitsyn	Forward	22	0	0	0	1	$817,000

Another one from the Eklund files came out this afternoon, seeing the disgruntled forward Sergei Kostitsyn and his NHL-playing older brother, Andrei, head to Los Angeles for often-rumoured forward Alexander Frolov.

On the forefront, the Habs would pick up a quality scoring forward that may be a bit bigger (at 6'2") then what their used to, but should bring enough skill to help spread out the offense through the line-up.

For the Kings, they would get a pair of Europeans that do come with some attitude issues, but they are young and they do have some flash. The question is, can a guy like Terry Murray rope in Sergei into the system?

Well, the Western Conference is a little more wide open for the Kings, especially in the Pacific Division. Something would have to happen, like a conditional pick coming the Kings way, if they are not able to reel in the two brothers and get them in working at 100%. To me, it isn't a terrible move, but its still a questionable one.

Plekanec For Hamhuis

2009-10-16T10:57:00.000-06:00

			2009-2010 Statistics		2010
To Montreal	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Dan Hamhuis	D	26	6	1	1 year, $2 million
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			2009-2010 Statistics		2010
To Nashville	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Tomas Plekanec	F	27	6	6	1 year, $2.75 million

In another Eklund special, this deal may have a bit of legs to it. The Predators, who are deep in defensemen, would deal a future UFA in Dan Hamhuis to the Canadiens, who need a solid defender after the injury to Andrei Markov, for a forward in Tomas Plekanec, who is also set to become an unrestricted free agent. The move would certainly address issues for both teams, but the Habs have not started to score throughout their line-up, so this move may be a little premature.

Plekanec has certainly upped his value at the start of the season with a good start in the offense department, while Hamhuis continues to be a solid defender for the Preds. If anything to the effect of this were to go down, I would expect a pick or two to go either way, just to offset some of the excess cap cost.

Horton to Vancouver?

2009-09-21T09:08:00.000-06:00

			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Vancouver	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Nathan Horton	F	24	67	45	4 years/$4 million
------------------------------------------------------------------
			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Florida	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Defenseman
Top Prospect

Another interesting rumour floating around the boards and the tweets over the past 24 hours sees the Canucks going after Nathan Horton of the Panthers. There were no names suggested from Vancouver in the rumour, so what is listed above is how it looks.

From Florida's perspective, they are piecing together a defense corps that is getting somewhat respectable and would do well to add a little more stability to it. The Canucks, on the other hand, should be looking to shed more cap space than taking more on, especially the $4 million per season Horton will cost over the next four seasons.

If I was to wager a guess on this one, I would have to say it would be Kevin Bieksa and his $3.75 million being the defenseman going to Florida, along with a player like Michal Grabner or Jannik Hansen to complete the deal. There still isn't enough cap space moved out by the Canucks, but that is the only reasonable thought out of this supposed rumour.

An addition of Horton to the Canucks would give a lot more size to the middle of the ice and it would lessen the responsibility of Cody Hodgson's rookie season.

The Panthers would get a lot more grit for their blueline, if Bieksa was to go the other way. That would be something that they would need playing against some of the Southeast Division superstars in Alex Ovechkin, Vincent Lecavalier and Eric Staal.

Personally, I think if this deal goes down, the Canucks would have to pony up a little more and get a prospect back themselves to make things a bit more comfortable.

Frolov to Chicago?

2009-09-20T17:59:00.000-06:00

			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Chicago	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Alexander Frolov	F	27	77	59	1 year/$2.9 million
Unknown Defenseman Prospect
------------------------------------------------------------------
			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Los Angeles	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Kris Versteeg	F	23	78	53	3 years/$3.1 million
Cam Barker	D	23	68	40	3 years/$3.1 million

In another Eklund special, we find that Alexander Frolov is in yet another speculation or rumour. Frolov and what would likely be a rookie prospect defender being traded to the Blackhawks for both Kris Versteeg and Cam Barker.

According to the article, the defensive prospect is holding up the deal, but even still, that does seem to be a bit of a stretch. The Blackhawks are still in some cap trouble, but if there is a prospect coming back, there isn't a great deal of help being done here, just $3.3 million. This doesn't make a great deal of sense.

Predators In the Mix For Kessel?

2009-09-17T22:06:00.000-06:00

			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Nashville	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Phil Kessel	F	22	70	60	RFA
------------------------------------------------------------------
			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Boston	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Alexander Radulov	F	23	0	0	RFA
2010 1st Round Pick
Top Defensive Prospect

The rumour mill kept on churning some interesting thoughts on Thursday, as the Predators have been dropped as a big suitor in the Phil Kessel sweepstakes. I would have to think, looking at the rumoured deal above, that there would have to be a conditional pick added if Alexander Radulov wasn't going to sign with the Bruins, but otherwise, this does look like a reasonable proposal. This might have a little bit more appeal to the Bruins, as the Predators are so incredibly deep in defensive prospects.

Kessel For Picks?

2009-09-15T10:04:00.000-06:00

			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Toronto	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Phil Kessel	F	22	70	60	RFA
------------------------------------------------------------------
			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Boston	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
2010 1st Round Pick
2011 1st Round Pick
2010 2nd Round Pick

With Phil Kessel still sitting on the shelf with a shoulder injury until November/December and without a contract, his situation does seem to be fairly cut and dry. Why pay the guy if he's not gonna play, right?

Well, even if the Bruins were to try and sign Kessel, there would be all sorts of cap issues, because today they sit in training camp with 19 players signed at an approximate cap cost of $53.8 million, leaving very little room to sign on the remaining players they would need for their 23-man roster, let alone a sniper like Kessel.

This is where the Leafs come in. They have 21 signed at a cap hit of $48.7 million, leaving plenty of room for a guy like Kessel. Even if they sign Kessel long-term, his cap hit will be lowered a bit right away because of the Long Term Injured Reserve. So, they are one of the teams that have plenty of room for him.

The deal above is now floating around the rumour mills online, suggesting that this one is on the table from the Leafs.

I've never been a big fan of Kessel, nor has Brian Burke, but he has proved that he is a goal scorer in the NHL and that you have to give him credit for. He did score 36 goals last season and that's pretty tough to do when you consider only 13 players scored 36 or better. That's the kind of player that the Leafs would do well with having in their line-up, but is the cost of three top end picks worth it?

If you consider the Maple Leafs' drafting history, they would do well with just throwing picks away for established talent. It may not help their youth system, but it would be an easier way to try and win right now, which is the goal for the new Leafs regime.

The Bruins would be wise to take this deal, as they actually do have a good scouting staff and no room on their current roster to put any sort of players that they may receive in exchange.

A Three-Way Deal in the Works?

2009-09-10T08:40:00.000-06:00

			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To San Jose	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Dany Heatley	F	28	82	72	5 years/$7.5 million
------------------------------------------------------------------
			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Los Angeles	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Patrick Marleau	F	30	76	71	1 year/$6.3 million
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			2008-2009 Statistics		2010
To Ottawa	Pos	Age	GP/MIN	Points	Cap Hit
Jarret Stoll	F	27	74	41	3 years/$3.6 million
Alex Frolov	F	27	77	59	1 year/$2.9 million

Well, isn't this a tasty morsel of information to play with? Reading the rumours this morning, I found this little whisper through the grapevine and I had to write it down. I'm not sure what the actual chances of this happening are, but it sounds like it's just pending the approval of Marleau and his no-trade clause.

There is plenty to consider in this deal, especially since it doesn't help the Sharks' cap woes at all, as they end up taking more cap filler on, which is counter-productive to their current situation. The Kings would be moving two key players to their upcoming season and gaining somewhat of an underperformer. The Sens would definitely be the happiest of the bunch, being able to move Heatley and picking up two quality players for less of a cap hit than the one player that they moved out.

All this deal would be is a means to an end of this whole Heatley saga, if any.