- Bob McKenzie of TSN: Canucks forwards Mason Raymond and/or Mikael Samuelsson could become trade bait to upgrade their top 6. They may also be looking for a 4th line center. The Calgary Flames could look to move Steve Staios or Anton Babchuk. They could look for draft picks for Alex Tanguay, Brendan Morrison and Curtis Glencross, and might look at moving Robyn Regehr if they fall out of the playoff race. If the Oilers are going to move Andrew Cogliano or Ladislav Smid, they’d want young players in return. They may also try to move Dustin Penner and/or Ales Hemsky. There is an outside chance Sheldon Souray will be put on re-entry waivers, but it’s more likely he’ll be moved in the off-season.
- Joe MacDonald of ESPN Boston: The Bruins are having internal discussions whether or not to shut down Marc Savard for the season. Before a decision is made, he’ll be re-evaluated today. “With the time between concussions, and with the severity of the concussion , and the time between when he basically stopped having concussion symptoms, is certainly something you would have to consider,” Chiarelli said. If they shut him down, they can put him LTIR and use his cap to bring in an impact player.
- Seth Lakso of NESN: The Bruins might have an interest in Senators defenseman Chris Phillips. They currently have about $1.7 million in cap space, and could increase if Savard is put on LTIR. The Bruins may have to include a roster player to bring in Phillips contract.
- Fluto Fhinzawa of the Boston Globe: The Bruins are looking to some more offensive consistency from their centers, and may look to replace Savard’s offense closer to the deadline. Chiarelli has said that with so many teams within playoff reach, the current market is sparse. They have depth down the middle, so they may look at the wing and on the blueline. The Bruins are unlikely to part with the 1st round pick they got from the Maple Leafs, but have their own that they might be willing to deal.
- Dan Rosen of NHL.com: Penguins GM Ray Shero,
“I can only speak for myself and I’ve talked to a few (GMs),” Shero said. “I haven’t talked to all the teams, but I have kept in touch with a few guys. With our team I have a pretty good idea of what we want to do so I’m not contacting every team. You do that a week or two before the deadline to make sure you’re covering everything off, doing your due diligence, but it hasn’t been that active now. As you get through the All-Star break it tends to pick up and we’ll see that over the next few weeks of course.”
- EJ Hradek via twitter: Hradek says the Kings need a top 6 forward, but to have patience as they are building for the long run and some key pieces are in place.
- Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune: The net is getting crowded in Tampa with Mike Smith finishing his AHL conditioning stint. The Lightning now have 3 goaltenders on their roster. “I’m just going to let the situation evolve a little bit and see how it goes,” said GM Steve Yzerman. Yzerman added “But ultimately we have to do what makes sense for the team, and in any trade you shop around and you try to make the best deal that you can if that’s what you’re looking to do.” Ryan Malone practiced but still wasn’t ready to return from his ‘mid-body injury,’ but could be ready for their next game.
- Darren Dreger via twitter: The Penguins say Jordan Staal will automatically be suspended, but the NHL will review it. Staal will be suspended ‘x’ amount of games, have suspension rescinded, or fined for the incident.
Jordan Staal’s punch on Brandon Prust