Saturday, November 08, 2008

NHL and Hockey Rumors for Nov 9, 2008

Here are the latest rumors from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun:

There appears to be a logjam in net for the Atlanta Thrashers and it's believed that goalie Kari Lehtonen is available. Both Garrioch and Al Strachan of HNIC are reporting that GM Don Waddell is shopping the 23-year old Finn around the league. Garrioch speculates that the Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers will make inquiries. Brochu's take: The Flyers are pushing the cap as it is, so they won't get him. The Wings will stick with Osgood for this season at least.

The Florida Panthers are looking more and more likely to be dwelling in the division cellar, which has fueled speculation that Jay Bouwmeester will be traded. The Ottawa Senators are interested, but the asking price is forward Antoine Vermette. GM Jacques Martin has coveted Vermette for sometime. The Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils and Anaheim Ducks are also interested. Brochu's take: Martin's time in Florida is running out, and if he does deal Bouwmeester this season, he won't have a job for long.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are shopping defenseman Christian Backman, forward Jiri Novotny and goalie Frederik Norrena. Garrioch believes there's not much interest in any of them. Brochu's take: For once, I agree with Garrioch.

Garrioch also believes that the Ducks will shop forward Bobby Ryan if they can't find a way to get him into the NHL. Brochu's take: I don't think that's a particularly good reason to shop a young forward.

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