Hockey Beat » Trades

Latendresse and Pouliot Switch Teams

Jeanne Dupuis — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:41:23 +0000

The Montreal Canadiens have acquired Benoit Pouliot from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Guillaume Latendresse. The pair of them are pretty comparable in terms of age and goals/assists amassed so far this year so I’m not completely sure why this trade happened.

image: TSN

Latendresse is 22, has scored two goals and recorded one assist. Meanwhile, Pouliot is 23 and has scored two goals and two assists in 14 games this season. “The forwards are two players at the same stage in their careers who were still looking to make a place for themselves with the teams that drafted them,” Canadiens GM Bob Gainey said. “Often times a different environment, new teammates and a new situation can be beneficial for a player.”

We’ll see. Pouliot has been out of commission since suffering an upper body injury on November 13th but is expexted to be back in the lineup sometime in the near future.

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Kobasew Traded to Minnesota Wild

Jeanne Dupuis — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:33:17 +0000

Chuck Kobasew has been traded from the Boston Bruins to the Minnesota Wild after only seven games. I am a little surprised by this deal but it just seems like a move that was more motivated by the salary cap than anything else.

The Bruins picked up winger, Craig Weller, and the rights to prospect, Alexander Fallstrom, in exchange for the veteran forward.

image: TSN

Overall, I don’t think it’s a bad move for Kobasew since I think he will fit right into their lineup and I actually think the Wild are getting the better end of this deal. They need all the help they can get at this point so hopefully this will get things started.

As a Calgary Flames fan, I wish he’d come back to our club. I thought he played pretty well with Jarome Iginla and I really don’t understand why they let him go in the first place.

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Heatley Heading to San Jose Sharks

Jeanne Dupuis — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 04:36:12 +0000

Finally, Dany Heatley has left the Ottawa Senators and has found a new home with the San Jose Sharks. This rumor has been floating around but it’s finally confirmed. In exchange, the Sharks sent Jonathan Cheechoo, Milan Michalek and second round pick to the Sens.

image: TSN

”I’m excited obviously, I’m excited to be a Shark,” Heatley said. ”I want to thank everyone in Ottawa, the organization, the fans, and the city. I had a great four years here (and) I’m happy to move on.”

Good. I hope he finds what he’s looking for in San Jose so that we can put all of this Heatley drama behind us. I think he could be a good fit with that team but you never know.

What do you think of Cheechoo and Michalek with Ottawa? Both of them have spent their entire careers (seven and five seasons, respectively) with the Sharks so it will be interesting to see how they fit into a different organization. This could be the boost the Sens really needed so I’d like to see them doing better this year.

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Heatley Whines About “Diminished Role”

Jeanne Dupuis — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 05:38:04 +0000

Hockey fans couldn’t have been too surprised by what disgruntled Ottawa Senators forward, Dany Heatley, had to say when he addressed the reasons for his request to be traded. “When I signed in Ottawa two years ago, I felt it was to be an integral part of the team,” Heatley said. “Over the last two years and more recently over the past year, I feel my role was diminished. This past season, it diminished a lot more. This is a straight hockey decision. I have nothing against the fans of Ottawa, or the city of Ottawa. I would like the opportunity to go somewhere where I can play to the best of my capabilities and be the player that I can be.”

Of course, he’s not willing to let his disappointment keep him from playing if he gets no offers from other teams: “I have a contract, and if I’m still a Senator at training camp time, I’ll be ready to go. But at the same time, I think we know that there are other teams out there that are interested, and hopefully something can get done.”

As you can imagine, it’s not easy to find teams who will be interested in both his high price and pissy attitude. Sens GM, Bryan Murray, said: “I think (the Heatley camp) believed that I would present them with four teams who were willing to give Ottawa a package (for Heatley), and he could pick and choose from them. That has not been the case by any means. There are still a couple of teams that I’m talking to, but they are nowhere close to (offering) what I need to get back to protect this franchise.”

Talk about finding out that you’re less desirable than you think you are. Heatley clearly believed that the offers would be coming in left and right and now it seems like his pride won’t let him back down. I thought he was a complete idiot of turning down the Edmonton Oilers but he had an explanation for that too. He said: “It has nothing to do with Edmonton. It has everything to do with the options. To this date there has only been one option, and I know that there are other teams out there. I don’t feel I can make the right decision until there are a few options and I can make the right decision for my career.”

I think that Murray is just as irritated by Heatley’s actions as I am (and I’m sure many of you feel the same way) and it really puts the GM in a weird position – it’s not like he can force teams to make an offer for Heatley. Murray went on to say: “It’s been a frustrating time for us, trying to find a place for him. I heard him continue to say that he wants to be traded, and we will continue to work in that area. I think if I can get one more deal that’s realistic for our team, then I can propose it to their side, and that would probably be the limit.”

Heatley said that he didn’t want any of this to go public since he loves the fans in Ottawa and thinks it’s a great city but the reality is that when you’ve signed a six-year, $45 million contract extension, a request for a trade is going to get leaked.

Again, I’d like to say that this was absolutely dumb on his part. If a team is willing to pay you $7.5 million per season, it’s not because they want to see you warm the bench. I’m sure they are just as frustrated since he just had his worst season in four years with 72 points (39 goals). I don’t want anything bad to happen to him but I’d like to see him humbled and I’d also like to see him take a look in the mirror when he wonders why his role has suddenly diminished.

image: TSN

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Tampa Bay Tweets Artyukin Trade

Jeanne Dupuis — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 08:23:04 +0000

It seems like the whole world has gone Twitter crazy and the NHL is no exception. The Tampa Bay Lightning tweeted that they had traded forward, Evgeny Artyukin, to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for forward Drew Milller and a third round draft pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

image: TSN

In case you’re not following them, you can keep up with the latest Bolts announcements @TBLIGHTNING since it looks like that’s the place to look for breaking news.

“In acquiring Drew Miller today, we were able to add a character individual, a versatile with good size and the ability to kill penalties,” said Lightning GM Brian Lawton. “Drew finished the season nicely in Anaheim a year ago, and he has played well for the Ducks in the postseason over his career.”

I hope it was a good trade since Tampa could use all the help they can get…

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Heatley Going to the Sharks?

Jeanne Dupuis — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 07:32:39 +0000

Are you sick of hearing about Dany Heatley? I know that I am. Whether he’s staying with the Ottawa Senators or going someplace else, I want it to happen quickly so that everyone can move on with their lives.

The latest news is that Heatley could end up going to the San Jose Sharks (Sens GM Bryan Murray brought this “option” up) if third team gets involved and some are saying it will be the Montreal Canadiens. The Sharks are willing to ship Jonathan Cheechoo along with Christian Ehrhoff and a first-round selection but it’s unclear whether this is interesting enough for the Sens to consider.

A league executive is quoted as saying: “if the Sharks don’t have what the Senators want, then (GM) Doug Wilson might have to go get it from another team. ‘The Senators want a proven scoring winger in return and that means you might have to get a third team involved.”

In order for this to work, the Sharks would have to acquire someone from the Habs (presumably) but the player would need to be of interest to Ottawa. I just think this is too much effort to dump a disgruntled, ungrateful player like Heatley. I hope it works out for the teams but I don’t give a rat’s ass what happens to Heatley at this point.

image: TSN

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Ward Now Teammates With Sucker Puncher

Jeanne Dupuis — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 20:59:06 +0000

The Carolina Hurricanes have reacquired defenceman, Aaron Ward, in a trade that sent Patrick Eaves to the Boston Bruins. The deal also included a fourth-round draft pick next year.

Canes GM, Jim Rutherford, seems happy to have Ward back with the team: “With this trade, our defence really takes shape. We envision him complementing Joni Pitkanen well as a defensive pairing.” I agree that it will be good for Carolina to have Ward back in the lineup. He still lives in Raleigh and he helped the team capture their first Stanley Cup back in 2006.

image: TSN

Of course, a lot of fans are probably going to think back to that nasty sucker punch that Scott Walker (Carolina) delivered to Ward (then with Boston) during Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Walker got away with it and Bruins coach, Claude Julien, was furious.

Just in case you forgot and would love to see it again, here’s a video of the punch. Hopefully, the boys have ironed out any issues before the season begins

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Habs Sign Sanford, End for Halak?

Jeanne Dupuis — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 17:16:30 +0000

The Montreal Canadiens have signed goaltender, Curtis Sanford, to a one year contract (no financial details were disclosed). This is just the latest in a flurry of activity surrounding the transformation of the Habs.

Being out on the west coast, I’ve seen Sanford in action a lot and I like him. In two seasons he’s had a 11-11-1 record, 2.69 GAA and .903 save percentage in 35 regular season games with the Vancouver Canucks. I don’t think he’s ever going to be a starting goalie but I think he’s a pretty decent backup (at the very least, you’ve got a 50/50 chance with him).

Of course, many are wondering what this means for Jaroslav Halak who has been shadowing Carey Price. I have to say that I actually really like Halak too. I think that he was better a couple years ago but this past season wasn’t great. I’d like to see him come out to a Western Conference team (the Flames could use a tested backup…).

image: TSN

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Calgary Flames Acquire Dawes, Seabrook

Jeanne Dupuis — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 06:48:20 +0000

The Calgary Flames have been busy over the past few days. They have accepted defenceman Keith Seabrook from the Washington Capitals (the Caps will cash in on this at a later date) and I think it makes a lot of sense since he has been playing with the Calgary Hitmen for the past two seasons.

image: TSN

In another move to add depth to the lineup, the Flames have claimed Nigel Dawes off waivers who had filed for salary arbitration with the Phoenix Coyotes. The restricted free agent will have his case heard next Wednesday unless Calgary signs him by then. This is another unsurprising acquisition since he did play under the Flames’ new coach, Brent Sutter, at the World Juniors. He split last season between the New York Rangers and the Coyotes and posted 10 goals and 11 assists in 64 combined games.

I’m in Calgary and I love that they are adding some good defencemen (who have relatively cheap salaries) because we really have been lacking in that area. When someone gets injured (Robyn Regehr) or just has a crappy ass season (Dion Phaneuf) then the Flames have no defence so it’s great that they are beefing up the lineup.

My only question is about salary. I feel like they have acquired a lot of folks. I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t always do the math correctly when it comes to the cap but I’m starting to worry that a big trade is coming. I guess only time will tell…

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Rangers and Avalanche Trade Defencemen

Jeanne Dupuis — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 18:46:41 +0000

The New York Rangers have sent defenceman, Brian Fahey, to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange fellow d-man, Nigel Williams.

Fahey played 66 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) last season where he recorded 24 points and his 10 points helped the Chicago Wolves win the Calder Cup during the 2007-2008 season.

Meanwhile, Williams racked up 21 points in 70 games with the Lake Erie Monsters last year.

Neither 28-year-old Fahey nor 21-year-old Williams have played in the NHL. I hope this is the start of something good for the players and the teams.

image: TSN

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