With the NHL’s holiday trade-freeze period fast approaching
— Dec. 19-27 — several struggling clubs are believed to
be shopping around in hopes of finding a deal, but the salary cap
is making it difficult to make trades at this time of year. Still,
desperation could force some of the following clubs to make deals
in the coming weeks.
New York Rangers — After a hot start to the
season they’re in free-fall in the standings, losing four of
their last five heading into mid-December .They need a quality
backup goalie to spell overworked starter Henrik Lundqvist and
scoring depth at forward. GM Glen Sather reportedly tried to land
promising if currently underachieving Phoenix Coyotes forward Peter
Mueller, but the Coyotes wanted either Brandon Dubinsky or Ryan
Callahan in return, two players Sather doesn’t want to give
up. With only $2 million available cap space and too many players
on big contracts there might not be any significant changes coming
for the Blueshirts.
Philadelphia Flyers — Like the Rangers the
Flyers are mired in a lengthy slump after a hot start, are sliding
in the standings and have limited cap space to make a significant
trade. They recently lost starting goalie Ray Emery for six weeks
to abdominal surgery but appear intent on riding backup Brian
Boucher to carry the load until Emery’s return. The main
problem is a lack of offensive production, a puzzling problem for a
team with offensive stars like Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Danny
Briere. It’s been suggested Carter or Scott Hartnell could be
traded but GM Paul Holmgren doesn’t appear keen to part with
either player.
Columbus Blue Jackets — Winners of only two
of their last 10 games by mid-December, the Jackets are sliding out
of playoff contention. That's not the kind of follow-up to the
first postseason appearance in franchise history they were hoping
for. With blueline stalwart Rostislav Klesla sidelined to
mid-January with a torn groin it’s believed general manager
Scott Howson is interested in landing a quality defenseman and has
depth in wingers to offer up, but finding the right deal is
apparently hard to come by.
Tampa Bay Lightning — GM Brian Lawton
insists he’ll be patient with his roster and hopes the Bolts
can overcome a horrific slide which saw then win only one game in
eight by mid-December, but that hasn’t stopped trade
speculation from dogging the club. It’s been suggested team
captain Vincent Lecavalier could be moved, but he’s a
big-salaried player under a multi-year contract with a no-movement
clause so that’s not going to happen. Head coach Rick Tocchet
recently benched struggling forwards Alex Tanguay and Jeff Halpern
to shake things up, but at some point shakeups might not work,
which could force Lawton to consider the trade route.
Anaheim Ducks — Inconsistent goaltending, a
struggling defense and lack of scoring depth have combined to bury
the Ducks at the bottom of the Western Conference. GM Bob Murray
earlier this month denied his acquisition of checking center Kyle
Chipchura was setting the table for more deals, but that was before
losing veteran scorer Teemu Selanne to a broken finger for several
weeks. Murray probably won’t make any significant moves
before or immediately after the trade freeze but if his club fails
to gain any ground in the playoff race he could be forced to swing
a deal in January.
Montreal Canadiens — The Habs made news in
the rumor mill this past week when GM Bob Gainey apparently tried
to shop backup goalie Jaroslav Halak to the Flyers. While Halak
played coy about reports he asked for a trade, it’s possible
he could be playing elsewhere before season’s end. The
Canadiens could use more offensive depth but they might have to
package another player or a pick/prospect with Halak to land a
scoring forward.
Carolina Hurricanes — Their playoff hopes
are all but gone and GM Jim Rutherford is already trying to dump
salary, reportedly shopping forward Scott Walker and defenseman
Aaron Ward. Teams however will likely have more interest in leading
scorer Ray Whitney, but it’s unlikely he’ll get dealt
any earlier than the March trade deadline. Expect Rutherford to
keep trying to find new homes for Ward and Walker in the coming
weeks. Don’t put any stock into recent rumors claiming the
Hurricanes could move center Eric Staal as Rutherford intends on
rebuilding around him.
