Hockey Trade Rumors

Their general manager is on more solid footing than the coach, ownership is miffed at another spring in which Stanley Cup expectations weren’t met and there’s expected to be a shake-up of some sort in the hockey operations department — whether it involves the bench boss or his assistants.

This is the situation in San Jose. It parallels the uncertainty in Vancouver.

We speak here of the Detroit Red Wings and the approximately $20 million they have at their disposal to chase free agents, and an owner, Mike Ilitch, with the track record indicating he’s going to do just that. Question is, will realignment go ahead after Collective Bargaining Agreement talks are finished or not?

After the Canadiens formally announced that Chicago Blackhawks assistant GM Marc Bergevin will take over their vacant general manager’s job, Louis Jean of Sportsnet reported on AM 590 in Toronto that Gomez’s contract will in fact be bought out by Montreal.

Maybe all you folks with those trade ideas to move the No. 1 overall pick in the June NHL entry draft should forward your proposals to Steve Tambellini. You could go right to the guy making the final call, never mind voicing your opinion on the talk shows and the blogs.

The Montreal Canadiens will hold a news conference at 2pm et/11am pt to introduce Marc Bergevin as their new general manager.

You can watch it live on TSN and TSN.ca and listen in on TSN Radio 990 at TSN.ca/Montreal.

Bergevin most worked last season as the assistant general manager of the Chicago Blackhawks under Stan Bowman – his seventh with the franchise.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are ready to move on from Steve Mason. Could Antti Niemi be the answer?

According to the Columbus Dispatch, Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson said:

“We need a different look in goal. We need better play from that position. I told Steve in our exit interviews (earlier this month) that we’re going to have a different look at that position next year, but that right now, nobody can predict what form that’s going to take.”

Three years ago, a popular discussion in NHL circles was a debate about rookie goaltenders: if you started a franchise, would you rather have Steve Mason of the Blue Jackets or Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators as your building block?

A perfectly laid out plan often gets tossed in the trash before it can be executed.

Or at least, that’s what appears to be the case in regards to the Tampa Bay Lightning’s seemingly endless search to find a long-term goaltender.

Rational thought led many to believe the trades made by Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman prior to the deadline were done with a primary focus in mind – acquire as many assets as possible and use them to work out a deal with the Vancouver Canucks to acquire 26-year-old goaltender Cory Schneider.

On Hockey Night in Canada, there was much speculation that Jordan Staal of the Pittsburgh Penguins could be had for the right price, mainly because the Penguins might want to change things up and Staal might want a bigger role on a new team, as he is playing behind Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin right now. Said analyst Glenn Healey: “This player is not going to ask to be traded but the hockey world knows something has got to happen.”

Tim Thomas’s no-movement clause will expire on July 1. The same day, Tuukka Rask will become a restricted free agent. The Bruins could move Thomas and allocate part of his $5 million annual cap hit toward Rask’s next contract. Chiarelli, however, downplayed any possibility of trading Thomas.

While the Canadiens brass has maintained their general silence on the the hiring of their next general manager, reports have surfaced that they continue to speak with candidates. Renaud Lavoie of RDS, who seems to have good sources on this search, wrote on his blog this week that while Geoff Molson is not in any rush, it’s very possible the new GM could be in place within two or three weeks.

We’ll know that Daniel and Henrik Sedin are the identical faces of the franchise when the Vancouver Canucks are known universally for their talent, professionalism, humility and candour. Until then, it’s Ryan Kesler’s team.

It’s not like Kesler doesn’t also possess those noble traits, especially since humility made a late charge to the front of the pack on Tuesday when the Canuck centre discussed his National Hockey League season gone wrong.