NHL Insider

November 20, 2008

Melrose Place Replaced, Devil’s Dilemma, Injuries, Rumors etc.

If you recall, the Tampa Bay Lightning were the most active team in the off-season.   It was no secret that new owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie would be active in free agency; they said so during their introduction to the Tampa Bay media in June.

Being extremely active in free agency wasn’t something that Tampa Bay had done in the past as prior ownership put a lock on spending.  Being active via trades was mostly done at the trade deadline for help at a post-season run or shedding salary as in last year’s case of the Brad Richards trade to Dallas.

New owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie were very active in free agency and they were also very active in the trade market – essentially cleaning house for new coach Barry Melrose.  Koules, Barrie and Melrose liked certain types of players and in order to get these types spending mega dollars was just about the only way to do it. 

Nineteen players were either brought in or re-acquired and the Lightning on paper looked unbeatable.  Most around the league thought the Lightning would be among the NHL’s most improved teams.  They had the No. 1 pick from the summer’s entry draft, they had a mega-deal signed and sealed for Vincent Lecavalier, no doubt have the top six forwards in the league skating on their top two lines and a top veteran netminder as a back-up.

Through 16 games the Lightning showed no signs of being this unbeatable team or among the most improved teams.  Their No. 1 pick Steven Stamkos has played sparingly, Lecavalier’s ice-time has been greatly reduced, their top six forwards (St. Louis, Vrbata, Malone, Prospal, Stamkos and Lecavalier) don’t look like the league’s elite six and Ollie Kolzig is coming up short as a backup.

So, what happens when things go bad?  You can’t fire the players but you can fire the coach and that’s just what the Lightning did on Friday night when GM Brian Lawton relieved Barry Melrose of his duties as the Lightning coach. The players had issues with Melrose and the personnel didn’t come together the way expected.  

A not so “Sweet Sixteen” was all it took for Lawton to see that Melrose just wasn’t getting the job done.  Now it looks as though the new owners are getting ready to clean house once again as the Melrose firing could be just the tip of the iceberg.  Rumors are circulating that GM Brain Lawton is offering up nearly everyone on the roster with the exception of Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, Steven Stamkos, Paul Ranger and Andrej Meszaros. Lecavalier, St. Louis and Meszaros all have no-movement clauses.

Devils Dilemma

Things have been bleak in New Jersey ever since Martin Brodeur went down with his elbow injury, and it’s not going to get any better.  The Devils are 2-5 since Brodeur’s injury, and have scored just five goals in the five losses… but Kevin Weeks and Scott Clemmensen aren’t going to cut it between the pipes during Brodeur’s absence.

Devils GM Lou Lamoriello can look at things two ways – first he can try to bolster the offense and secondly he could trade for a goaltender.  If offense is what Lamoriello wants he could go after Brendan Shanahan (who would like to stay close to his New York-area home), or he could throw in his hat in the Mats Sundin sweepstakes.  Maybe the Lightning would consider trading underachieving over-paid Radim Vrbata (he’s scoreless in 40-games)?

Weeks is only as good as his offense – the more offense New Jersey can muster, the less pressure Weekes is under.  But, there is the issue whether or not Weekes can take on the load until Brodeur’s return. 

Edmonton has three netminders – Mathieu Garon, Dwayne Roloson and Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers.  Garon, (3-4, 3.68, .881) started out the season going 3-0, but has since lost four consecutive starts, Roloson (2-2, 2.62, .918) has recently begun to play much better and Drouin-Deslauriers (3-1, 2.44, .927) isn’t likely going anywhere.  Simple guess is that Garon and or Roloson would be the ones that get moved.

Edmonton could possibly throw in Dustin Penner.  “He’s not competitive enough or fit enough to help us, so why put him back in?  He’s never been fit enough to help us,” said Oilers head coach Craig MacTavish.  The Oilers were hoping to be getting more bang for their buck when they signed Penner to a five-year, $21.25-million offer sheet, luring him away from the Anaheim Ducks. Not the case…

Penner is officially in the doghouse, largely due to the fact he’s only registered four points through his first 16 games. There were high expectations on the six-foot-four, 245-pound winger coming into the season, but apart from opening night where he scored a pair of goals, he has been nearly invisible.

Despite seeing his stock rise with his early solid play, Chicago’s Nikolai Khabibulin could be New Jersey’s answer.   What remains to be seen is whether or not the Blackhawks are ready to trust Cristobal Huet full-time.  Huet hasn’t been all that steady in net, but Chicago would love to lose Khabibulin’s pro-rated salary ($6.75-million).

Maybe Ottawa would part with Martin Gerber, but for sure Lamoriello has a television and has seen Gerber play, so forget that idea… then there is the latest rumor coming from the Ottawa Sun that the Devils are eyeing Tampa Bay’s Olaf Kolzig.

Rumors Du Jour

Bob McKenzie from TSN.Ca reported that the Chicago Blackhawks have a standing deal in place with the Washington Capitals to acquire center Michael Nylander at a moment’s notice but the Blackhawks first must free up sufficient cap space to absorb Nylander’s $4.875-million cap hit. McKenzie cites several teams (New Jersey, Colorado, Columbus, St. Louis, Dallas, Philadelphia, Ottawa) that have or had goaltending issues but points out most if not all would probably balk at picking up Khabibulin’s huge salary.  

Approximately 11 teams are interested in unrestricted free agent Mats Sundin services and it looks as though Sundin is inching closer to a mid-December return according to the Toronto Star.  Sundin is currently training daily with the intension to return said J.P. Barry, Sundin’s agent.  The Maple Leafs would welcome Sundin back, although the Star lists the Vancouver Canucks, Ottawa Senators, New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Philadelphia Flyers as teams believed to be most interested in the Swede.  The Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks are also in the mix, while the Montreal Canadiens are reportedly no longer interested.

The Canucks are trying to move D Mattias Ohlund, who would have to waive his no-trade clause.  Talk is GM Mike Gillis wants young players in return.  The Senators, Lightning and Flyers are interested. It's believed any team that makes a deal will ask for the chance to talk contract extension with Ohlund, who can become a UFA July 1, before completing the trade.

The heat has been turned up on Florida Panthers GM Jacques Martin.  League sources say not only does owner Alan Cohen want the club to cut up to $3 million from the budget because of non-existent ticket sales; he also wants the club to re-sign D Jay Bouwmeester and make the playoffs.  Bouwmeester really doesn’t want to stay with the Panthers and assistant GM Randy Sexton is already fielding offers.  

The Ducks are going to look to make roster moves after losing D Francois Beauchemin for six months with a knee injury. The club recalled F Bobby Ryan. That means new GM Bob Murray will be looking to make a trade.

Keep an eye on Carolina coach Peter Laviolette. His status is day-to-day and many say his lifeline behind the Hurricanes bench is short. Wonder if they’d take a gamble on former Tampa coach John Tortorella?

It may just have been an opportunity for several teams to take in a game involving the defending Stanley Cup Champions, but the Tampa Tribune reports 10 different teams were represented at last Thursday’s Detroit Red Wings-Tampa Bay Lightning contest.  Aside from Chicago’s Scotty Bowman and New Jersey’s Pat Burns, who are based in Florida and usually attend Bolts games, scouts for the Dallas Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks attended.

The Camden Courier-Post speculates the Flyers’ decision to waive defenseman Lasse Kekkonen may mean the team is closer to signing free agent Brendan Shanahan.  Moving Kekkonen, who is expected to be sent to the minors if he clears waivers, gives the Flyers $1.675 million of cap space to work with. Shanahan is believed to be seeking a one-year deal worth $1.3 million.

Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon told the Arlington Daily Herald he does not intend to “mess with a successful situation” right now, but are willing to listen to offers for Cristobal Huet or Nikolai Khabibulin. Tallon admitted he is looking to acquire a center.

The Injury Ward

There were three significant injuries this past week that could impact the play of Ducks, Bruins and Blues.  Francois Beauchemin (Ducks), Andrew Ference (Bruins) and Andy McDonald (Blues) all suffered major leg injuries that will keep them out of their respective lineups for an indefinite period of time.

For the Ducks, Beauchemin suffered a torn ACL in Anaheim’s 4-3 loss to Nashville on Thursday night, and is expected to miss the next six months.  Beauchemin has been a steady 25-minute per game player for the Ducks since being acquired in a trade with Columbus during the 2005-06 campaign.

Beauchemin was also one of the team’s best shot blockers and penalty killers.  His injury, combined with the early season trade of Mathieu Schneider to Atlanta (for salary cap purposes) has left the Ducks once vaunted defensive unit rather depleted.

Meanwhile, Boston suffered a significant blow to its blue line when the team lost its best puck-moving defenseman in Andrew Ference, to a broken leg in the Bruins 6-1 win over Montreal on Wednesday. Ference suffered the injury when he took an Andrei Markov slapper directly to his right leg, knocking him out of the lineup for two months.

St. Louis Blues lost their leading scorer thus far, Andy McDonald, to a broken leg when he awkwardly slid into the corner boards during their 3-2 loss to Montreal on Sunday.  McDonald had registered 18 points in 16 games for St. Louis, and had picked up six points in his previous six games.

This past week the Ottawa Senators were hit with a couple of injuries.  Mike Fisher and Chris Neil will be out of the lineup for a significant amount of time.  Fisher sustained strained knee ligaments during the Sens loss to the Rangers on Monday night, while Neil tore the meniscus in his right knee against the Islanders on Saturday.

The Rookie Watch

If you like this column, Althea also writes the MLB Insider, the Rays Corner and Lightning Nutz and Boltz all while serving as VP of Sports for NutzMedia.  Listen to Althea on NewsTalk1220 -WSRQ Sarasota and TBSNRadio510.com Sunday's, live from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm as Althea Co-hosts "Speaking of Sports" with Ted Fleming.