- Darren Dreger: Teams are saying that the Hurricanes could trade one of their goaltender, including Cam Ward.
- David Pagnotta: There is lots of Ryan Kesler trade talk going on. Pagnotta has been told that just about half of the league has called.
- The Fourth Period: Source saying the Red Wings have shown interest in Canucks Ryan Kesler and Alex Edler. It’s unclear what assets GM Ken Holland would consider moving.
- Craig Custance of ESPN: Custance thinks Alex Edler is a more likely player (over Ryan Kesler) to be moved by the Canucks at the deadline. Whether it’s Edler or Kesler, the Canucks are looking for 22-24 year old center. Problem is, basically every team would like one of those guys. Would the Red Wings be interested in Kesler? They have young forwards in Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tater that could interest the Canucks. Would the Capitals put Evgeny Kuznetsov in a package?
- Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Province: Canucks GM Mike Gillis.
“Apparently it came out of Sochi. If he did want out or he didn’t want out, I wouldn’t discuss it publicly anyway,” Gillis said.
“It’s just like any other matter, anything internally, with our players. Whether it’s personal or business, we don’t discuss it outside our offices.
“I’m not going to sit here and debate whether (the report) is accurate or not.”
It will be tough for the Canucks to win on a Kesler trade. The Canucks can’t trade him without getting a center back, preferably 25 or younger.
- David Pagnotta: The Canadiens have received a pretty serious offer for defenseman Andrei Markov. They rejected the offer, but could counter. The Canadiens would prefer to keep him.
- Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette: Don’t expect any major moves by the Canadiens at the trade deadline. GM Marc Bergervin isn’t going to move any of their young assets, and there isn’t much of a market for players he wouldn’t mind moving.