Friday, August 29, 2008

Bolts/Sens Make Trade

The Ottawa Senators have traded defenceman Andrej Meszaros to the Tampa Bay Lightning for defencemen Filip Kuba, Alexandre Picard and a first round pick (previously acquired from San Jose).

Expect Meszaros to sign a multi-year deal worth around 5 million dollars per shortly.

Tampa fans may not recognize this team when the puck drops, especially since more heads will fall before the start of the season

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Sens Hit With Offer Sheet

Andrej Meszaros has signed an offer sheet. I'm hearing it's a five year, 25 million dollar contract, but that information is fuzzy for the moment. I've been working on teams and at the moment nobody seems to know. Teams I've heard it could be are Phoenix, Atlanta and Montreal, but these are just whispers and I honestly have no clue who it could be. The Senators have made it very clear to others in the league that if they were going to make an offer on Meszaros, they'd rather let him go via trade. Ottawa will not be happy that they are losing him for just draft picks. This leaves an even bigger hole on their blueline, as I doubt very much that they will match this offer sheet.

This could start a lot of things in motion, as Ottawa will now be in a scramble to fill a hole on their blueline. Look for them to get right back in the Matthieu Schnieder sweepstakes...

Make sure to check the Rumour Mill at Hockeyleaks.com for the latest rumours including

- Thrashers/Kings Blockbuster In The Works?
- Antropov to Atlanta?
- What Will The Canucks Do Next?

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Latest On McCabe

As Hockeyleaks.com was FIRST to report, Mike Van Ryn is indeed part of the Toronto/Florida trade. Sportsnet has now confirmed this, 18 hours after Hockeyleaks.com reported it.

There is more to this deal than just a McCabe for Van Ryn trade. Names I'm hearing today include Ponikarovsky and Peltonen. Other Bloggers are insisting that Bouwmeester is part of this deal, but I cannot stress enough that this is untrue. Under no circumstances will Bouwmeister be on his way to Toronto as part of this Bryan McCabe deal. The Leafs do have serious interest in Weiss and Horton, but as of this point niether is in the deal worked out by the two sides. The deal will be announced around September 1st, and could still change slightly between now and then. With that said, McCabe and Van Ryn seem to be the two concrete names in this deal.

Make sure to check out the rumour mill for the latest rumours, including: Gionta on his way out of New Jersey? Rangers Shopping Drury? And many more...

Stick to Hockeyleaks.com for the latest, as we are your best source for the latest NHL news and rumours, as we've proven once again.

McCabe Waives For Florida

Props to Sportsnet for confirming this, the Panthers interest has been rumoured all over the internet over the past week. This is what I'm hearing:

McCabe has said he will go to the Florida Panthers, though the Leafs still have to work out a deal with the Panthers. With that said, he has waived his NTM for a total of four teams, and I can confirm the Islanders and Devils are on that list, unsure of the fourth team.

As far as Florida is concerned, the name I am hearing is Mike Van Ryn. He has two years left on his contract, with a cap hit of 2.9 million. I am also hearing that Martin also wants Chad Kinger in the deal, sending him back to the Leafs. Kilger is still on personal leave and is not expected to start the season with the Panthers. The Leafs want Bouwmeister, but at this point Florida's asking price is too high, I doubt that gets done. The Leafs are trying to get David Booth in this deal however, and that could get done. This will not likely be a McCabe for Van Ryn swap, both teams are likely to add other players to this deal, and thats where it could get tricky. Both teams have some cap room to work with, so that shouldn't be an issue, but I am hearing that the Panthers want the Leafs to take Van Ryn in any McCabe deal. With that said, I'm also hearing that Toronto is pushing to get either Bryan Allen or Karlis Skrastins instead of Van Ryn.

It should be an interesting couple of days in Leaf land, and I'm sure we will hear lots of rumours over the next few days, and until this deal gets done.

For All The Latest make sure to check Hockeyleaks.com and join in the great discussions going on in the forums.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Sundin Can't Win...

Today while talking to Hockeyleaks.com team member Yick I started to feel for Mats Sundin. He is a class act guy, who has done nothing but great things for the NHL. He is the reason many young Swedish players have such a passion for the game, and if it wasn't for him, Toronto would have rebelled against their team years ago. Mats has been nothing but great for the NHL, and now he finds himself in a situation in which he cannot win.

If he signs with Vancouver, he's in it for the money.

If he signs with Montreal, he's a traitor

If he signs with Toronto, he has no passion to win the cup.

If he retires, he simply quit too soon.

For me, it's too bad the Detroit Red Wings didn't have interest in this guy. Detroit is in the West, so he wouldn't be called a traitor. Detroit wouldn't pay him more than Lidstrom, so it wouldn't be about the money. Detroit is defending their cup, showing Sundin wants to win. Finally, the team is basically team Sweden, another great reason for Sundin to end up in Hockeytown U.S.A.

For Sundin, I think the only safe bet for him at this point is to return to Toronto, or retire. Returing to Toronto shows loyalty, and yes it would basically stamp his career with no stanley cups, it's better than winning no stanley cups in Vancouver, while selling out for the money, because lets face it, the Canucks are not contenders with or without Sundin, and the only reason to sign there would be for the money.

With that said, I'm hearing the Rangers, Avalanche and Senators are all still hoping to land Sundin, with the Rangers and Avs much more likely than Ottawa. Sundin shouldn't retire, as this is not how his career should end. A return to Toronto is his best option, but Montreal, NYR or Colorado wouldn't be terrible choices.

Make sure to check out the rumour mill section of Hockeyleaks.com for the latest rumours on the Devils, Habs, Oilers, Canucks and of coarse that defenseman on Toronto named McCabe.

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

The Rest of the RFAs

Before I talk about the RFAs, I want to remind all of you to check out the new Hockeyleaks.com. The site is much improved, and I am enjoying it a lot. I also ask all of you to join the forums, and join in on the discussions. The new site makes this easier than ever! Our hit counts are up, but most of you are still just reading, and not participating! We need discussion and participation if hockeyleaks.com is to grow, so help us out!

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Patrick O'Sullivan - Likely the best RFA available, teams are interested in him. With that said, nobody is making him an offer because LA has the cap room to match whatever you throw at him. O'Sullivan is not eager to sign with LA, and thus each day this drags on, the chances of O'Sullivan being dealt, and I'm hearing it will be to the East, increase.

Jarret Stoll - Stoll was not happy with the trade out of Edmonton, but is expected to eventually sign with the Kings. That said, it won't be a longer deal, likely around two years. I don't expect the Kings to trade this guy, nor do I expect anyone to offer sheet him.

Andrej Meszaros - Arbitration is not far away, but the Sens are hoping to avoid it. The Sens need to lock this guy up, as their defense is way too weak for their liking. With that said, if they can deal him, they may. Meszaron, along with Vermette, have been the subject of trade rumours all summer long, and I expect one of them will be moved by the start of the season. Vermette is signed, making Meszaros the likely one on his way out.



All three of these players are very important to their teams, and if dealt, the return should be comparable.

As for the Leafs naming a permanent GM (as per Eklund), I still don't see it. I've heard nothing of that sorts, and I'd be surprised if such a thing happened.

Devils really going hard for Shanny, who really wants to return to the Rangers, but is stuck in limbo as the Rangers wait for Mats. Is anyone else getting really tired / losing a lot of respect for Mats? This game is getting old.

For all the latest, check out hockeyleaks.com