Big trade day!

Only a massive trade day like today would awaken me from my blogging slumber! So to review:

The Calgary Flames have traded defenceman Dion Phaneuf, forward Fredrik Sjostrom, and prospect defenceman Keith Aulie to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for forwards Matt Stajan, Niklas Hagman, Jamal Mayers and defenseman Ian White. Brochu's take: My philosophy is that the team that the best player goes to "wins" the trade, and in this case I would have to say Toronto gets the better end of the deal. Phaneuf is capable of much more, and he will get plenty of ice-time in T.O. Hagman/Stajan are good players, and I'm not sure how the Leafs will score from now on. Calgary gets a lot more offensive in this deal.

The Leafs have also acquired goalie Jean-Sebastian Giguere from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for goalie Vesa Toskala and forward Jason Blake. Brochu's take: Toskala's contract, along with Blake's, were essentially dead weight. After the signing of Hiller, Giguere's contract was the same on the Ducks. I see this trade more of moving dead money around than actual players.

The Anaheim Ducks have signed goalie Jonas Hiller to a 4-year, $18 million contract extension. Brochu's take: Not a bad deal.

The Philadelphia Flyers have signed defenseman Lukas Krajicek to a contract. The Tampa Bay Lightning had terminated his contract when he didn't show up to his AHL assignment.

Hockey and NHL rumors for Aug 29, 2009

The San Jose Sharks have traded defensemen Christian Ehrhoff and Brad Lukowich to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for defenseman Daniel Rahimi and forward Patrick White. Brochu's take: For the Sharks, this is a bit of a salary dump. With Ehrhoff and Lukowich off the books, the Sharks free up around $5.5 million in cap space. For the Canucks, they have significantly improved their defensive depth, while also acquiring assets in preparation for a trade.

The Canucks have also officially signed defenseman Mathieu Schneider to a one-year, $1.5 million contract. Brochu's take: A sweetheart deal with GM Mike Gillis' old client.

The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed forward Alex Tanguay to a one-year, $3.25 million deal. Brochu's take: You have to wonder why it took so long, but regardless, this makes the Bolts a more dynamic offensive team.

The Lightning have also re-signed defenseman Matt Lashoff to a two-year deal.

The New York Islanders have signed forward Tony Romano to a three-year, entry-level contract.

The St. Louis Blues have re-signed forward Chris Porter and Justin Fletcher to two and one-year deals, respectively.

The New Jersey Devils have re-signed defenseman Mark Fraser and forward Patrick Davis to one-year deals.

The Boston Bruins have re-signed goalie Kevin Regan to a one-year deal.

NHL and Hockey Rumors for Jan 19, 2009

Here are some of the latest hockey and NHL rumors from Bruce Garrioch of the Toronto Sun: (Hmmm, is he getting two cheques for this?)

St. Louis Blues forward Keith Tkachuk is likely to be dealt at the March 4 trade deadline. The 36-year-old Massachusetts native would like to be sent to the Boston Bruins, but the B's are pushing the salary cap and GM Peter Chiarelli would like another defenseman instead of a forward. Brochu's take: Let the Keith Tkachuk sweepstakes commence!

There are rumours that the Atlanta Thrashers are about to trade defenseman Mathieu Schneider to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Maxim Afinogenov. Brochu's take: While this makes sense for Buffalo, I'm not sure why Atlanta would do this deal. Afinogenov is only a shadow of the player he was three years ago.

According to the St. Petersburg Times, the Tampa Bay Lightning have an interest in Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Ian White. Source

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NHL and Hockey Rumors for Nov 3, 2008

The Toronto Maple Leafs are rumored to be on the verge of trading one of their surplus defenseman, and the most likely two are Ian White and Carlo Colaiacovo, who were on display in Sunday night's game between the Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes. "We've had preliminary discussions with a few managers," GM Cliff Fletcher said during the game. "And there will be a time I'm sure in the near future when a trade could be available for us. We'd be looking to move just one defenceman and hopefully get a forward in return that would fit into our scheme of things." Fletcher was also spotted in a suite with Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford, who has been looking for a defenseman. Brochu's take: Stay tuned, there could be a trade brewing between these two teams. Source

Fletcher also dismissed rumours that he was interested in Atlanta Thrashers forward Ilya Kovalchuk and insisted he has not talked to the Thrashers about anything. GM Don Waddell claimed the speculation as a "wild rumour".

Brochu's European rumor roundup:

Ottawa Senators forward prospect Alexander Nikulin has demanded a trade or he will return to Russia. The 23-year old Nikulin has stated that he will return to Russia if the Senators do not have a deal in place by Monday. GM Bryan Murray has shopped the forward for some time, but no one was seriously interested. Brochu's take: This is going to happen more and more with Russian draft picks. Source

Minnesota Wild forward Petr Kalus has signed a contract with KHL team HK MVD Balashikha. Kalus bolted from the AHL farm team in October.

New Jersey Devils forward Erik Rasmussen has signed with Finnish team Assat Pori.

Florida Panthers forward Rob Globke has signed with Frederikshavn White Hawks in Denmark.

NHL and hockey rumors for Oct 16, 2008

According to Al Strachan of The Score, the Montreal Canadiens will shop goaltender Jaroslav Halak at the trade deadline. Brochu's take: If the Habs are in the playoff race by then, Halak could be an asset at the deadline.

The Toronto Sun is reporting that Mats Sundin's agent believes the Swedish forward will play in the NHL this season. Source Brochu's take: *Yawn*

Alexander Radulov left the door open for a possible return to the NHL and the Nashville Predators. Radulov also said recent comments attributed to him in a letter to KHL president Alexander Medvedev, which Radulov said he was not interested in arbitration and wanted to promote hockey in Russia, were incorrect. Brochu's take: Maybe Radulov should go on 20/20 and tell Barbara Walters the"real" story... Source

Toronto Maple Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher has denied a report that he is shopping defenseman Ian White to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for their first round pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. However, there are still rumors that he is looking to unload forward Matt Stajan. Source

Ron Wilson fired by San Jose

The San Jose Sharks have fired coach Ron Wilson. The Sharks announced on Tuesday that Wilson's tenure with the club was over and that they would start looking for a replacement immediately. Brochu's take: Teams are going to be lining up for this guy. He's one of the best coaches in the NHL and it won't be long before he is snapped up. As for his successor, the usual suspects will be considered. Source

The Nashville Predators have signed forward Martin Erat to a seven-year, $31.5 million contract. Erat was due to be a restricted free agent. Brochu's take: Was GM David Poile afraid that Erat was going to get an offer sheet? $4.5 million per year for a player that has scored around 60 points a year just doesn't make much sense.

The Carolina Hurricanes on Monday announced that the club has agreed to terms of a one-year contract with defenseman Bryan Rodney. The deal, which includes a $30,000 signing bonus, will pay Rodney $500,000 at the NHL level and $55,000 at the minor league level.

The Montreal Canadiens have signed forward Ryan White to a three-year, entry-level contract.

The St. Louis Blues have signed forward Lars Eller to a three-year, entry level contract.