Blackhawks unlikely to work trade
The defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks are not looking to add any players at the trade deadline, general manager Stan Bowman said Saturday.
“We aren’t focused on the deadline,” Bowman said prior to the Blackhawks’ game against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Soldier Field. “We’re really happy with the team we have.”
Canucks at a crossroads, and that Kesler trade could be a make-or-break moment in relationship with fans
The onetime golden boy has given GM Mike Gillis a get-out-of-jail-free card by either asking for a trade or indicating he’s receptive to the idea. True, it’s never good news when one of your core players is looking for a way out — especially after the Luongo-Schneider mess, the Cody Hodgson affair and assorted other miscalculations which blot Gillis’s resumé. But take a step back, get out the wide-angle lens and consider the possibilities.
Ehrhoff could be the next to leave town
Christian Ehrhoff is scheduled to play in Buffalo until 2021. He may not make it to Thursday.
The Sabres have asked Ehrhoff to supply a list of eight teams to which he will not accept a trade. The defenseman, who is in the third year of a 10-year contract, has a modified no-trade clause but can be moved to the 21 teams he did not list.
Paul Stastny, Avs could part ways if new deal not done by Wednesday
A young team in the midst of its most successful season in years, the Avs are not about to trade away first-round draft picks or top prospects in their system with the kinds of trades the St. Louis Blues made Friday — when they acquired Ryan Miller and Steve Ott from Buffalo in exchange for a boatload of young talent.
Here’s where it gets tricky, though: While the Avs cannot justify importing expensive rentals, as they could in the days of Ray Bourque, Theo Fleury and Rob Blake, neither can they be stuck in the situation of having essentially their own rental player on the roster beyond Wednesday in the form of top players with expiring contracts.
Final days with Oilers for likes of Ales Hemsky, Nick Schultz?
Hemsky is one of several unrestricted free agents that general manager Craig MacTavish has on his roster, but definitely one he won’t want to let walk.
MacTavish had tried to move the veteran in the off-season, certain that Hemsky needed a change of scenery after seven losing seasons, but then said he valued the winger more than his peers. Hemsky returned in the fall, committed to being more of a leader, then settled into a third-line role without complaint.