- James Mirtle of the Globe and Mail: Mirtle looks at Maple Leafs forward Mikhail Grabovski’s worth. Brian Burke has said that despite being a UFA, he could remain with the Leafs. A comparable mentioned for Grabovski is Canadiens Thomas Plekanec’s $5 million a season deal. Other possible names are David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron, which puts him in the $4.5 to $5.5 million range. Burke may have to move out a body to fit that number in.
- Bob Mitchell of the Toronto Star: Mitchell looks at Tuomo Ruutu and the Maple Leafs. GM Rutherford is looking for a 1st round pick or a top prospect. The Leafs would like that he “can hit, skate, score and provide playoff toughness” and they can afford to move a prospect. Joe Colborne and Nazem Kadri’s names have come up in rumors. Burke may not like the deal as it is a gamble since he’s a UFA, unless he thinks he can get him signed to an extension. He could ask for something in the $5 million range, similar to what Grabovski could be after.
- Bob McKenzie of TSN: McKenzie notes there is a real chance that the Maple Leafs don’t make any big moves. They want a top 6, but there aren’t many available. James van Riemsdyk has a concussion. Jeff Carter has a big contract. The Ducks may not move Bobby Ryan or any of their big 3. The Leafs would consider moving Luke Schenn or Carl Gunnarson, and have made Clarke MacArthur and Nikolai Kulemin available at some point during the season.
- Scott Burnside and Pierre LeBrun of ESPN: Burnside doesn’t think the Oilers will trade Sam Gagner. Teams will be interested in Ryan Smyth but he may not want to go anywhere:
“Obviously, it’s very flattering from that front, but I haven’t been approached at all, and this is where I wanted to come back to,” Smyth said. “Time will tell, but I’m enjoying myself with the Oilers.”
The Lightning still think they are in the playoff hunt. They’ve likely been getting calls on Dominic Moore, Ryan Malone and Pavel Kubina.
“We’ll see how we do in the next few games. We’ll see how it all plays out. There’s no rush to do anything. There haven’t been any difficult decisions to make at this point because any potential opportunities really haven’t made sense for us, short-term and long-term.”
- Elliotte Friedman of CBC: The Red Wings will remain patient and run with Ty Conklin and Joey MacDonald. One GM:
“If you’re trying to follow the Boston model of adding depth, there’s going to be something out there for you. But, if you’re looking for a real impact player, I don’t know who that’s going to be.”
The Blues had 3 scouts at the Canadiens-Jets game. They are looking for a LD and could be interested in Hal Gill and Johnny Oduya. Friedman is under the impression that Oilers wouldn’t mind signing Ales Hemsky to a 1 year extension as his trade value isn’t that high at the moment.
- Damian Cristodero of the Tampa Bay Times: Lightning GM Steve Yzerman is no rush to make a move.
“The team is playing well,” Yzerman said before Tampa Bay’s 3-1 loss stopped its 6-0-1 points streak. “We’re winning games. There’s still lots of time left. … Let this play itself out.”
- John Vogl of the Buffalo News: Sabres winger Tomas Vanek skated yesterday but won’t return until the weekend at the earliest from his upper-body injury.
- Derek van Diest of the Edmonton Sun: Oilers rookie Ryan Nugent-Hopkins sprained his left shoulder on Monday and will be out 7 to 10 days. “It’s the same area, it’s the same shoulder, but it’s a new thing on top,” he said. “Compared to the first one, it’s not even close. That’s a good thing, but I’m looking to get back sooner than later.”
- Paul Friesen of the Winnipeg Sun: Jets forward Evander Kane returned to the lineup from his concussion that has held him out since Jan. 20th. He revealed that the initial injury may have occurred some time before and he played 14 games before it was diagnosed. “The hit that probably rung the bell the most was against the Islanders a while ago (Dec. 20),” Kane said. “It didn’t really bother me too much. I got over it the next day. No symptoms or anything.”
- Frank Seravalli of the Philadelphia Daily News: Flyers James van Riemsdyk missed his 11th consecutive game with a concussion. “It’s a pretty slow process,” van Riemsdyk said. “But I have to keep the good mind-set. That’s all I can do.” He skated briefly yesterday.
- Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said that Jordan Staal could return in 5 to 10 days.
- Bob McKenzie via twitter: The Islanders signed center Frans Neilsen to a 4 year deal with $11 million.