Trade Talk Continued

Further moves:
Montreal receives D Paul Mara from Anaheim for 2012 5th round pick. Once a high-scoring defenseman, Mara has fallen on hard times lately. In 33 games this season, he has just 2 points. In the past 3 season, he has played for 3 teams: the Rangers, the Canadiens, and the Ducks. After a disappointing season in Montreal last year, With a -16 in 42 games, Mara is headed back to Montreal, in an attempt to solidify the injury-plagued blue line for a playoff-run. When Mara is on, he is a great defenseman; he had two 40-point seasons in Phoenix. But don't look for him to be much of a force for the Habs.

Anaheim receives W Jarkko Ruutu from Ottawa for 2011 6th round pick. After trading away tough guy Aaron Voros earlier this week, the Ducks filled the void with goon Jarkko Ruutu. While Ruutu won't provide much offensive help for the Ducks (the 35-year old has topped 20 points only twice in his career), but he will bring a physical presence and lots of playoff experience for a possible Cup run.

Colorado receives G Brian Elliott from Ottawa for G Craig Anderson. This is a good move for both sides. Each of these teams is struggling massively and need some kind of shake-up to their everyday lineup. Brian Elliott is a young goalie who has lots of upside. The victim of a terrible season for Ottawa, he helped the Senators reach the playoffs last season with surprisingly stellar play. The same can be said for Anderson. After being tossed around the league as a backup, Anderson signed with Colorado and shocked the hockey world when he led the Avalanche back to the post-season. This season, his numbers have been more than disappointing. The Senators will need to find a way to attract Anderson to stay when his contract is up at the end of the season.

Atlanta receives W Blake Wheeler and D Mark Stuart from Boston for C Rich Peverley and D Boris Valabik. Depending on events which soon could go down, this is a good trade for both sides. Boston picks up a good forward (I say forward, not center, because Boston has a severe log-jam down the middle with David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron, Tyler Seguin, Brad Marchand, Chris Kelly, Greg Campbell, and now Peverley all able to play center) who has similar numbers to Wheeler. Valabik is not an everyday defenseman, but adds a little depth for a young blue line. Most importantly, this frees up cap space for the Bruins to pick up Tomas Kaberle, which according to a number of reports is now an inevitability. Atlanta probably gets the better pacakage for the moment though. While inconsistent, Wheeler has tons of potential and has been a 20-goal scorer in the past. Also, Mark Stuart, when healthy, is a solid defensive defenseman who will help bolster the Thrashers defensive game. Also, these two have played under Coach Craig Ramsay before, as he was the Bruins' assistant coach just a season ago.

Boston receives D Tomas Kaberle from Toronto for C Joe Colborne, 2011 1st round pick and conditional 2012 second round pick. After moving some salary to Atlanta, Boston finally got their man after several months of on and off rumors. This is a good move for both sides. Kaberle brings outstanding and consistent numbers and with him setting up Zdeno Chara on the point instead of Mark Recchi, the Bruins will have a fearsome powerplay. Kaberle also brings plenty of experience to a fairly young blue line. After losing their own 1st round pick two years ago to Boston in the Phil Kessel trade, Toronto has now picked up 1st round picks from Boston and Philadelphia, and Joel Colbone is a 6-5 young centerman with loads of potential to help the Toronto rebuilding procject.

Southeast Division:
1. Tampa Bay Lightning-34-16-6-74 pts-2nd in East
Late in the season, Tampa Bay is still playing strong hockey. With a good mix of veterans and youngsters, some of the most dynamic scorers in the game, and a sturdy blue-line. There is not much to fix for the surging Bolts. Some may question Dwayne Roloson's ability to compete at age 41, but Rolo is as good as ever, and is only a few years removed from taking the 8th-seeded Edmonton Oilers on a Cinderella Cup run. In fact, if he had not been injured in Game 1 of the Finals, the Carolina Hurricanes likely would not have won the 7-game series. If Dwayne can stay healthy, the Lightning have a dependable veteran between the pipes, who can take them deep into the post-season. If anything, adding a veteran with playoff experience is never a bad move.
2. Washington Capitals-30-19-10-70 pts-5th in East
The Caps have been lackluster of late, and they need something to not only spark the team for a strong finish, but also to ensure they don't suffer the massive collapse they experienced last year as the top sed taking an early exit. Despite having a great season by most people's standards, Alex Ovechkin is not the explosive goal-scoring machine that we expect him to be this season. Alex Semin has been great, but the Caps are in serious need of more depth. Aside from Ovi, Semin, Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Knuble, and Brooks Laich, there's nobody all that impressive on offense. The Caps would be smart to add another scorer to their second line, and perhaps some extra depth for the third line. They have a young offense and a young defense, and veterans with some playoff experience would also be beneficial. Lastly, a more proven and dependable goaltender could help solve the Caps post-season woes. For a team doing so well and with so much talent, you wouldn't think there would be much to fix, but clearly there are some important pieces missing for the Capitals.
3. Carolina Hurricanes-27-23-8-62 pts-8th in East
After sneaking into the final playoff spot, the Hurricanes may need to make some moves to ensure they not only stay there, but have a fighting chance to move past the first round come April. There is no secret that the Canes trust in Cam Ward, having won them a Cup early in his career and having been an All-Star this season, so they are set between the pipes. With seven players with at least ten goals, including superstar captain Eric Staal and rookie scoring sensation Jeff Skinner, the Canes have plenty of production, but like most teams I've cited, are a youn team who could use some veteran leadership and experience. One more strong defenseman wouldn't hurt either.
4. Atlanta Thrashers-25-24-10-60 pts-10th in East
After a strong showing early in the year, the Thrash have been just plain awful over the last stretch, 2-6-2 in their last 10. Dustin Byfuglien has scored only 3 points in his last 17 games, after scoring 41 in his first 42. His drop is representative of the whole team, who is struggling greatly at this point.. A team that has been stockpiling young talent since they joined the league, the Thrashers have made only one playoff appearance, and they suffered a first round sweep at the hands of the New York Rangers. Not exactly a hockey hotbed, the Thrashers are itching to draw fan interest from the city of Atlanta, and in order to do that, they need to start contending. They have a wealth of prospects, so the time may be now the make some big moves, sacrificing some of those prospects to bring in some big name players. They could use a shut-down defenseman, and some offensive punch up front.
5. Florida Panthers-24-25-7-55 pts-12th in East
The Panthers are doing okay and are not entirealy out of the playoff picture yet, but GM Dave Tallon should continue his rebuilding path. He did a remarkable job in Chicago, bringing in most of their Stanley Cup pieces and is capable of doing the same in Florida. He will continue to add young depth and maybe some streaky veterans. Florida will be sellers, with hardly anyone safe. Tomas Vokoun, Stephen Weiss, and Bryan McCabe could all be wearing different jerseys by 3 pm on the 28th.

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division:
1. Detroit Red Wings-35-16-6-76 pts-2nd in West
The Red Wings are as set as they could be. With key players returning to the lineup, they have been unstoppable, making fools of the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning. A return to full health is all that is needed for the Wings to prepare for their perennial postseason run.
2. Nashville Predators-31-19-8-70 pts-4th in West
Nashville has been playing decent hockey of late, and now sit in fourth place in the West. With the recent addition of Mike Fisher, the Predators have added some depth down the middle. However, this one move is not enough to ensure a strong post-season campaign for the Preds. They have a solid, but young and inexperienced blue line and should look into adding an experienced shut-down defender to take the load off of hot goalies Pekka Rinne and Anders Lindback. One more experienced scoring winger would also be a huge help.
3. Chicago Blackhawks-29-22-6-64 pts-11th in West
The Hawks have little cap space to make much improvement, but if they don't do something soon, not only will they lose their chance to repeat a Cup run in the postseason, but the defending champs could miss the playoffs altogether. GM Stan Bowman needs to do something drastic. Trading away a high-profile player for another decent player with a smaller cap hit I think would be a great move. Shaking up the team a bit could be enough to improve their play, and if it doesn't then the unloading of salary will give the Hawks some room to make improvements over the off-season. One such player to trade is Brian Campbell. Campbell is one of the most talented defenseman in the NHL, but he is inconsistent, often injured, and carries a cap hit over $7 million. The Hawks should look to trade him either to a contending team that can afford to take on his contract, or to a rebuilding team with lots of cap space and a need for a mentor for their young defensive corps. Outside of trading trading down, the Hawks have few options. The team definitely needs some movement, and the only other option may be swapping players for similar talent and salary, like the move they made earlier this week trading Jack Skille for Michael Frolik. The Hawks were reportedly interested in Bruins D-man Mark Stuart before he went to Atlanta, so they may make a move for a defensive defenseman.
4. Columbus Blue Jackets-28-23-6-62 pts-12th in West
The hungry Blue Jackets are the only team in the league who has never clinched a playoff berth, and they have a choice to make. Do they let this be another rebuilding year and look to next season? Or do they make some noise now and finally show the city of Columbus why hockey is something to cheer about? Poor Rck Nash is one of the best players in the league night in and night out, season after season, and has never tasted playoff action. Now may be the time to finally make a playoff push. Steve Mason is apparently tradeable, and a rebuilding team would love to have him. Perhaps he could be moved to Florida for Vokoun? A team that has been stockpiling high first round picks for the past decade, the Blue Jackets have plenty of talent in the system that could be traded for potential playoff pieces from teams like Ottawa, Edmonton, and Toronto who are looking to start over. They should try to see what they can get from Edmonton,who are shopping around talented wingers Ales Hemsky and Dustin Penner.
5. St. Louis Blues-25-21-9-59 pts-13th in West
After having high hopes to start the season, the Blues have fallen on hard times. Again. With a ton of injuries and disappointing play from their "stars," the Blues find themselves at the bottom of the Central division. WHile they have a decent team, a partial rebuilding might not be a poor choice. They have talent up front, but nobody who is all that dangerous with the puck. They need scoring, plain and simple, and perhaps they can use their blue line to attract that scoring from other teams. 2006 1st overall pick Erik Johnson is apparently expendable and could draw a massive return from teams looking for a young defenseman with tons of potential. The Blues would also love to ship off Captain Eric Brewer, who is absolutely despised by the St. Louis fan base.

Northwest Division:
1. Vancouver Canucks-37-13-9-83 pts-1st in West
The top team in the league, the Canucks continue to lay waste to the entire league despite being without FIVE defenseman. I repeat. Five defenseman. Andrew Alberts, Kevin Bieksa, Alex Edler, Dan Hamhuis, and Keith Ballard are all out of the lineup, and veteran Sami Salo just returned from injury. Many may say that the Canucks may need to add to their D in this time of need, but I say stand pat. Despite this massive hole in their lineup, the Canucks continue to dominate, and any help they bring in would be useless when these players return and eat up salary once again. With an explosive offense led by the Sedin twins and Ryan Kesler and stone wall Roberto "Bobby Lu" Luongo backed up by an outstanding young Boston College product in Cory Schneider, the Canucks will be virtually unstoppable once their blue line regains full health, which should be happening just in time for the playoffs.
2. Calgary Flames-30-22-8-68 pts-9th in West
Calgary is on the playoff bubble right now, which is impressive considering it was not too long ago that they were completely out of the playoff pictures. The Flames have been hot of late (no pun intending), which has caused the trade rumors surrounding big name players like Robyn Regehr and Jarome Iginla to cool. The Flames may be looking to add some depth without sacrificing much of their existing lineup. They should see if anyone is interested in picking up the struggling Ales Kotalik, who was recently sent down to the minors and is in need of a serious change of scenery to try and salvage his career.
3. Minnesota Wild-30-20-5-65 pts-10th in West
The Wild have 8 players with over 10 goals, but zero players with over 20, and many players with unimpressive +/- ratings. They are on the playoff bubble and if they are serious about making a run, they need to add a 20 or 30 goal scorer,another decent defenseman, and a two-way forward who can help out the defense. The return of Marek Zidlicky to the blue line should help a bit with both the offense and the defense, but the Wild should still be open to making some trades.
4. Colorado Avalanche-25-26-7-57 pts-14th in West
The Avalanche have been the worst team in hockey lately. After being close to a playoff spot, the Avalanche are now only ahead of the Edmonton Oilers in the West, the Avs haven't won a game in almost a month. This collapse is too much to come back from, especially now that Matt Duchene is out indefinitely. The Avalanche should give up on this season and look to the future. They have a good young team, and should see what kind of depth they can pick up from around the league.
5. Edmonton Oilers-18-32-8-44 pts-15th in West
The Edmonton Oilers have been in rebuilding mode for quite some time, and will continue to do so at the deadline. They are shopping around both Ales Hemsky and Dustin Penner, and are also praying that someone will show some interest in once-valuable defenseman Sheldon Souray. With a young core of talent up front comprised of Taylor Hall, Magnus Paajarvi, Jordan Eberle, and Linus Omark the Oilers should continue to pick up draft picks, and also add to their depth on defense.

Pacific Division:
1. Phoenix Coyotes-31-19-9-71 pts-3rd in West
The Coyotes are very hot right now, having won six games in a row. They like Minnesota, have plenty of 10-goal scorers, and no 20-goal scorers. Also, elder statesman Ray Whitney is leading all forwards in points. The Coyotes have a strong defense, including Keith Yandle who leads all defensemen in the NHL with 50 points, and a strong goaltender in Ilya Bryzgalov. What they need is some more scoring touch. They have been missing that big 20 or 30 goal scorer for the past few years, and that's probably what cost them a decent playoff run last year against the Red Wings.
2. Dallas Stars-31-21-6-68 pts-7th in West
After a surprising first half, the Stars aren't shining so bright anymore in Dallas. After leading the Pacific Dvision, the Stars are 2-7-1 in their last ten and have dropped into 7th place in the West. In a Conference where the playoff race is so tight (4th and 12th are separated by only 8 points), the Stars need to right the ship quickly, or else may miss the playoffs after seeming to have a spot locked up for most of the season. Scoring hasn't been an issue for most of the season, they have 4 players with at least 20 goals, plus All-Star Loui Eriksson, who has 19 and has cooled off dramatically since the All-Star break. With a potent offense and goaltending that they trust despite recent inconsistencies, the Stars should look to shore up their D. They have a fairly you and inexperienced blue line and could use a veteran or two to help for a playoff push, perhaps one defensive D-man plus another who can put up decent offensive offensive numbers. With their season in question, they may see the green light to trade star centerman Brad Richards, assuming he waives his no-trade clause. They have plenty of offensive depth to continue scoring in his absence, but may want to make sure the return includes at least one decent two-way forward.
3. San Jose Sharks-32-21-6-70 pts-5th in West
After having some regular season struggles for the first time in years, the Sharks have rebounded with a 7-2-1 record in their last 10 and now sit in 5th place in the Western Conference. The Shars have three 20-goal scorers led by rookie surprise Logan Couture, with 24. The other two, Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton are scoring at decent paces, but have terrible +/- ratings. The Sharks have good depth up front and on the back end, but could use some good defensive forwards and maybe another veteran defenseman. Antti Niemi is no superstar, but he did just win a Cup with Chicago, and the Sharks always underperform come April; it is unlikely the Sharks will try to pick up a goalie, so for now they should look for defense.
4. Anaheim Ducks-32-22-4-68 pts-6th in West
The Ducks are another hot western team, 7-3 in their last 10. The Ducks can score: Corey Perry has 29 goals, Bobby Ryan 28, and Teemu Selanne 18, and on the back end Lubomir Visnovsky has 45 points and rookie Cam Fowler has 29. Defensively they're pretty good too, Toni Lydman leads the NHL with a +27 and they just brought back old friend Francois Beauchemin. If Anaheim needs anything, it might just be some depth forwards, but they should also look for a reliable goaltender for the stretch run in case All-Star Jonas Hiller's health woes persist.
5. Los Angeles Kings-32-22-4-68 pts-8th in West
When the Kings moved into eighth last nght, the continued the tightest division race in the league; all five Pacific Division teams are in a playoff spot. And excluding Dallas, who has seven LOSSES in their last ten games, every team in this division has 7 wins in their last 10. The Kings have had a disappointing season thus far after being highly touted as potential Western Conference champions during the offseason, but are starting to turn things around. The Kings are likely to end the season with five 20-goal scorers in AnzeKopitar, Dustin Brown, Ryan Smyth, Jarret Stoll, and Justin Williams, and have some great young talent on the blue line, plus standout goaltender Jon Quick. If the Kings want to keep their Cup dreams alive, the should think about adding some experience, particularly some veteran leadership on the back-end.