Here are your rumours for Feb. 19:
- The Ducks continue to free fall in the standings, and they've still played a few more games than everyone else. It looks very likely that Scott Niedermayer will be dealt back to the Devils. It also looks like Chris Pronger could be headed East, and that Eastern could be, wait for it...The Habs.
- Phoenix now finds themselves last in the West, meaning bodies are about to fly. Derrick Morris is a target of the Buffalo Sabres, while Olli Jokinen is the target of many. Jokinen could find himself with the Flames or Sens when all is said and done.
- The Leafs continue to shop Antropov, and a 1st round pick is what is required to bring him in. Seems steep? Consider that Antropov is on pace for more points than any other forward available in this year's deadline. Rumours like yesterday's Leafs/Pens ones (Antro for Whitney, Antro for Gogli and a 1st) are not far-fetched, this is the type of the return Burke expects.
- The Flyers and Thrashers are talking about a deal that would send Kari Lehtonen to the Flyers for James Van Riemsdyk. Honestly, I feel the Flyers would be overpaying, and I wonder if teams like Minnesota (Backstrom), Toronto (Toskala), Anaheim (Giguere) and Montreal (Halak) may get involved in this.
- Speaking of Backstrom, I'm hearing it's very likely he is traded. Minnesota is set to go with Josh Harding in net, and is pretty confident at this point that Backstrom will not re-sign with the club. The Leafs are planning on going after him on July 1, it will be interesting to see if they make a move for him at the deadline.
- Jay Bouwmeester is very available, and the shopping of him will be stepped up starting next week. The Panthers will make one final contract offer to him in the next seven days, and if he doesn't accept then he's gone. The Panthers are too far along in their rebuild to let Jay-Bo walk for free. If he's not signed, he will be traded. The Oilers are still leading this, don't count out those Flyers, who may blow the Panthers away with an offer.
- Ryan Smyth is out there for the taking, and yes, Montreal is in on him. However, at this point, I am hearing that it's a Western team that has the early (and I mean very early, this is going down to the deadline) lead. That team? Calgary.
- The Rangers are once again pushing to acquire Jovanovski.
- Nashville defenseman Ville Koistinen has requested a trade out of Nashville.
Stay tuned for Hockeyleaks.com for all the latest. Thanks to all to came out for the chat last night, it was fun. Check the blog and forums often for an update on when the next chat will be held.
