James Murphy of ESPN Boston: With Marc Savard being put on LTIR, “We’re obviously going to have some flexibility now with replacement players, so in the next few weeks prior to the trade deadline, we’ll be busy,” Chiarelli said. Chiarelli could go after a defenseman and scoring depth, and not necessarily a center to replace Savard as they are deep up the middle. The Bruins have been looking for a puck moving defenseman for awhile. Tomas Kaberle and Chris Phillips have been mentioned, but Murphy thinks they have other Dman similar to Phillips, so he may be a last resort. Kaberle has a no trade and hasn’t submitted a list of teams he might waive it for. Sources are saying there may be teams he’d consider going to. One other option could be Thrashers Zach Bogosian (price tag would be high), who’s struggle this year, is a RFA this year and the ownership problem may cause them to shed money.
Tim Sassone via twitter: The Chicago Blackhawks could use a spark, GM Stan Bowman has 3 weeks to find that piece, could be a defenseman or a top 9 forward. They won’t do a blockbuster trade, nor do they need or over-react to recent slide. The ‘Hawks don’t have much cap space to take on a big contract for draft picks or prospects. Would teams be interested in Skille, Stalberg, Kopecky or Boynton?
David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury News: The San Jose Sharks are on a roll at 7-0-1 and may not be looking to make any trades at the moment. “We’ve already made changes,” Wilson said, referring to the Jan. 18 acquisitions of Kyle Wellwood and Ben Eager. “The majority of changes now are going to be the growth of our own players, playing up to their abilities and they’re trending in the right direction.”
Iain MacIntyre of the Vancouver Sun: The Vancouver Canucks have lost another defenseman as Keith Ballard left last nights game in the 1st period with a knee injury. He’ll have an MRI today. Sami Salo might be ready to go on Saturday against the Flames.
Don Brennan of Ottawa Sun: Jarkko Ruutu is on the trade block for the Senators, and was made a healthy scratch last night. When asked if he wants to get traded, “The way I look at things, if I happen to get traded, I get traded … The other stuff I can’t control.”
David Pagnotta via twitter: Scouts at the Maple Leafs-Thrashers game last night: Anaheim, Carolina, Detroit, Edmonton, Montreal, Nashville, NY Rangers, Ottawa and San Jose.
Joshua Cooper via twitter: Scouts at the Oilers-Predators game: San Jose, Phoenix, Vancouver, Columbus, Chicago and 2 from Atlanta.
Columbus Dispatch: According to the ‘Sports Business Journal’, local Fox Sports Net numbers are 10,000 for Columbus, Phoenix at 9,000, Atlanta at 6,000 and Florida at 3,000.
