Draft day News and Rumor update – Evening edition
Minnesota – San Jose trade
New York Rangers favorites to land Brad Richards, plan to go all-out to get All-Star center: sources
Oilers re-acquire Smyth from Kings: report
Winnipeg Jets name returns
CAMPBELL WAIVES NO-TRADE CLAUSE, DEALT TO PANTHERS FOR OLESZ
Minnesota – San Jose trade
The San Jose Sharks acquired the topflight defenceman they had been seeking, sending a package headlined by forward Devin Setoguchi to the Minnesota Wild for all-star Brent Burns.
The Sharks paid a steep price to acquire the 26-year-old Burns, who is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent after next season.
They sent a former 30-goal scorer who hasn’t even reached his prime in the 24-year-old Setoguchi, last year’s first-round pick Charlie Coyle and the 28th overall pick in this year’s draft for Burns and a 2012 second-round selection.
Burns is one of the top offensive defencemen in the league, with his 17 goals last season ranking third among all blue-liners. He also had 29 assists, giving the Sharks another proven puck-moving defenceman to go along with veteran all-star Dan Boyle.
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2011/06/24/sharks_wild_trade/
New York Rangers favorites to land Brad Richards, plan to go all-out to get All-Star center: sources
The NHL draft begins Friday night in St. Paul, but the Rangers are focused just as heavily on their immediate future as they are on which prospect they might add with the No. 15 pick.
The Blueshirts are emerging as the favorite to land the top unrestricted free agent in this summer’s class, All-Star center Brad Richards. The center, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the playoffs for the John Tortorella-coached 2004 Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning, has been the Rangers’ top summer target for months, and they can sign him as soon as next Friday.
Sources have told the Daily News that the Rangers plan to go all-out to get their man, who had 28 goals and 49 assists for the Dallas Stars in the final season of a five-year, $39 million contract. Nobody seems to know what Plan B is for the Rangers, and one source indicated that the reason is that they are so confident they will land Richards, they don’t need a fall-back option.
The Canadian network TSN reported Thursday night that Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk asked Richards to waive his no-movement clause to allow Dallas to get something back for the exclusive rights to negotiate with Richards until he becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1 – a request that was then rejected. It is believed that the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Rangers’ chief rival in the Richards sweepstakes, were the team that struck a deal with the Stars, but Richards’ agent, Pat Morris, told The News earlier this month that the 31-year-old had no intention of agreeing to a deal before reaching free agency.
Los Angeles also was expected to pursue Richards, but the Kings’ interest ended Thursday when they traded for Flyers center Mike Richards. It was a busy day Thursday for Philadelphia, which also signed goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov to a nine-year deal and traded Jeff Carter to Columbus. That led the Canadian network Sportsnet to report that the Flyers would look to bid against the Rangers for Brad Richards. The problem for Philadelphia would be fitting Richards under the salary cap, set Thursday at $64.3 million for next season – the Flyers are expected to have less than $4 million in free space, barring a further facelift for the franchise.
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/hockey/rangers/2011/06/24/2011-06-24_brad_or_bust_for_rangers.html
Oilers re-acquire Smyth from Kings: report
Captain Canada is back in Edmonton again.
On Friday, Ryan Smyth’s agent Don Meehan confirmed that the Edmonton Oilers reacquired their former longtime leader from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for forward Gilbert Brule and a fourth-round draft pick.
Neither team has officially confirmed the trade, but Smyth had to waive his no-trade clause to OK the move.
Smyth spent just over 10 seasons with the Oilers franchise (1995-96 to 2006-07), leading them to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2006 when they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes.
He was dealt the following year to the New York Islanders for Robert Nilsson, Ryan O’Marra and a first-round pick.
http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2011/06/24/sp-nhl-lakings-edm.html
Winnipeg Jets name returns
Winnipeg’s NHL team will be called the Winnipeg Jets.
The news, confirmed by CBC Sports earlier in the day, was officially announced by True North chairman Mark Chipman ahead of the team’s first selection at the NHL entry draft on Friday night in Minnesota — seventh overall.
Executive vice-president and general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff then stepped up to the podium and used the pick to take Barrie Colts centre Mark Scheifele. Scheifele, who led all Team Canada scorers at the Under-18 World Championships with six goals, recorded 22 goals and an OHL rookie-leading 53 assists in 66 games for the Colts last season.
The Kitchener, Ont. native put on a sweater bearing the black and grey colours of the NHL’s logo as he stood on the stage, meaning the team has not yet officially unveiled their new jersey.
The Canadian Press reported that the team is expected to go with a logo different from the one used by the previous incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets until the franchise moved to Phoenix in 1996.
http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2011/06/24/sp-nhl-winnipeg-name.html
CAMPBELL WAIVES NO-TRADE CLAUSE, DEALT TO PANTHERS FOR OLESZ
Defenceman Brian Campbell has agreed to waive his no-trade clause in order to go to the Florida Panthers.
The Chicago Blackhawks sent Campbell to the Panthers in exchange for forward Rostislav Olesz.
Campbell still has five years left in his current contract at $7.1 million per year.
The 32-year-old defenceman had 27 points and was a plus-28 last year for the Blackhawks. The former sixth-round draft pick has 312 points in 11 seasons in the league.