1:00 pm: The St. Louis Blues made a push Ilya Kovalchuk, but felt the Thrashers wanted a little more than they were willing to give up. ”We had been working at it for the better part of the week,” Davidson said. “We had great conversations with Atlanta. We talked to them about various thoughts and ideas and put (a trade proposal) together. It never came to fruition.” Davidson wouldn’t comment on whether they would pursue Kovalchuk in the off-season 10:00 am:
Darren Dreger of TSN: Sheldon Souray has provided GM Steve Tambellini with a list of at least 6 teams that he’d waive his no-trade clause for. Western Conference teams are the Anaheim Ducks, Dallas Stars, and Los Angeles Kings. Eastern Conference teams are the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers, and Washington Capitals. It hasn’t been said if any of those teams are interested in him.
Carolina Hurricanes: Available are Ray Whitney, Matt Cullen, Niclas Wallin (going to SJ?), Aaron Ward and Stephane Yelle.
Washington Capitals: Could use an upgrade on defense. Do they need to add another goalie with the health issues surrounding Semyon Varlamov?
Nashville Predators: Dan Hamhuis is a UFA at seasons end, and they may not be able to pay him what he could get on the open market. Could use some scoring help. Also involving the Predators but not mentioned by Allen is that both Dan Ellis and Pekka Rinne are UFAs at seasons end.
Atlanta Thrashers: Colby Armstrong and Kari Lehtonen can be had for the right price.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Forwards Alexei Ponikarovsky and Lee Stempniak are available. Tomas Kaberle might think about waiving his no trade clause.
Edmonton Oilers: Lubomir Visnovsky and Ethan Moreau amongst others are available.
Dallas Stars: If they are out of the playoff hunt, Jere Lehtinen, Marty Turco, and/or Steve Ott could be available.
Pittsburgh Penguins: They could use a scoring winger or two for Malkin and/or Crosby.
New Jersey Devils: After trading Dman Johnny Oduya, Lou may look at adding a Dman.
Ottawa Senators: May add a piece or two.
Tim Sassone of the Daily Herald: The Chicago Blackhawks could be looking to add a defenseman or 2, and perhaps a center. Could they make a run at Scott Niedermayer if he becomes available?
Scott Burnside of ESPN: Could the Nashville Predators trade UFA Dan Hamhuis at the deadline if they feel they can’t sign him to a contract extension?
Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal: The Oilers are trying to move UFA Fernando Pisani. Some things that might hold up a deal; he makes $2.5 this year, and has missed 107 of the Oilers’ last 218 games with ulcerative colitis, a broken leg, and a bad back. The Oilers say they won’t give up draft picks to move the contracts of Ethan Moreau or Steve Staios. The Oils may also look to move UFAs Mike Comrie and Jason Strudwick. Patrick O’Sullivan and his $2.9 cap hit could also be on the move. The Montreal Canadiens might have an interest in O’Sullivan.
