Morning hits: Grabovski hearing, quarter mark trends, O’Reilly, Myers and MacDonald
  • Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star: Zwolinski notes on some trends in the NHL at the quarter mark. The Maple Leafs still need a big No. 1 center. The Senators are expected to make a trade for a center to fill in for Jason Spezza. The Stars may start dealing their veterans. Roberto Luongo is likely to stay in Vancouver. The NHL will expand to 32 teams at some point. Trade rumors will heat up on Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Stephen Weiss and Jarome Iginla. The Oilers have lost 3 of their top 4 centers to injuries.
  • Adrian Dater of the Denver Post: If the Avalanche were to sign Ryan O’Reilly to a one-year deal and he played in six games, he would become arbitration eligible this summer. If that happened, it might land him the big contract he wants. The Avs are likely not wanting this to happen and wouldn’t offer him a one-year deal because of this. Most people that are around O’Reilly are expecting him to be dealt now.
  • Scott Brunside of ESPN: At the end of last season, Penguins GM Ray Shero pulled defenseman Paul Martin into his office and asked him if he wanted to be traded. Martin said:

    “I basically told him I have a lot of pride in what I do,” Martin told ESPN.com. “I came here for a reason. It wasn’t just because of the money. I came here because I wanted to win a Stanley Cup.”