NHL: Player News and Rumors (Thread finished)

Another Trade!

Canadiens deal Ribeiro for Niinimaa
TSN.ca Staff
9/30/2006 8:57:28 PM

MONTREAL - The Montreal Canadiens have acquired defenceman Janne Niinimaa and a fifth-round pick in 2007 from the Dallas Stars, in return for forward Mike Ribeiro and a sixth-round pick in 2008.

''In judging by our team needs, what we really need and where we are vulnerable, it responds with an experienced player,'' Canadiens GM Bob Gainey said. ''He can be a good, strong participant in that group and he can give us some added experience and added weight to our defence, as well as depth.''

Ribeiro said he was shocked by the move.

''I'm disappointed and sad at the same time,'' the Montreal native said. ''I didn't expect this now.

''There were rumours last year that I'd be traded, but I didn't think about it this year. I just concentrated on getting ready for the season. I guess Montreal wanted defence and Dallas wanted a centre. It's a great city for me. No winter. No snow. So I'll be happy.''

Ribeiro, 26, is coming off a disappointing 2005-2006 season, during which he scored 51 points and posted a minus-6 rating, down from the 65 points and plus-15 rating he had produced in 2003-2004.

The 6-foot, 177-pound centre was a second-round pick of the Canadiens in 1998 and has scored 153 points in 276 career games.

''Dallas has great players, a great team, and they'll be playing for the Stanley Cup,'' said Ribeiro. ''I always dreamed of winning a Stanley Cup here (in Montreal), the 25th, but I guess it won't happen.''

Niinimaa, 31, struggled last season, putting up 16 points and a minus-12 rating combined with the New York Islanders and Dallas Stars. Acquired in January for John Erskine, Niinimaa ended up being a healthy scratch at times late in the year.

''I know he had an ankle injury, but he had it fixed this summer,'' said Gainey, who was not concerned with Niinimaa's ice time.

Niinimaa will earn $2.508 million on the final year of his contract this season while Ribeiro is on a one-year deal worth $1.9 million.

The 6-foot-1, 220-pound Finnish blueliner has recorded 356 points and a plus-56 rating over a 10-year career with Philadelphia, Edmonton, the New York Islanders and Dallas.
 

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In one part of his interview, Ribs joked, "Now I can hang out more with T.O." Yeah, no doubt. Birds of a feather, those two. Not sure the Habs needed another d-man like Niinimaa (who last yera played like a less impressive version of Streit) but I like the trade as an addition by subtraction. Pleks gets more ice time with better wingers and Tender gets a decent spot in the lineup, too.

Oh, and one last desperate call for players in the pool. It's just me, DB and Tef so far, we could use a few more bodies.
 

Oilers rely on scoring to offset defence
Canadian Press
10/1/2006 1:32:59 PM

EDMONTON (CP) - They don't have Stanley and they don't have Pronger. And it seems the Edmonton Oilers also aren't getting a whole lot of respect.

The NHL's Western Conference champions are being touted by some prognosticators as longshots to repeat last spring's fairy-tale run to the seventh and deciding game of the Stanley Cup final.

But the Oilers, who begin their season at home Thursday against the Calgary Flames, say their retooled lineup that emphasizes big guns up front is going to surprise.

You have a taste of what it's like to go far in the playoffs. Now that we've had that taste, we kind of want to get there again,'' said forward Fernando Pisani.

Pisani, the hometown hero who had a stellar post-season with 14 goals in 24 games, is part of an offence that can spread the scoring over three lines.

Forwards Shawn Horcoff, Jarret Stoll and Raffi Torres had breakout seasons and are expected to again complement stars Ryan Smyth and Ales Hemsky.

Joining them is free agent Petr Sykora. The Czech has looked solid at centre in the pre-season, though he struggled in the face-off circle.

Winger Joffrey Lupul -- a native of nearby Fort Saskatchewan -- has generated the biggest buzz in the Alberta capital. He scored 28 goals last season with the Anaheim Ducks, then came north in the blockbuster trade that sent defenceman Chris Pronger to southern California.

Smyth says the best defence may well be a strong offence.

Defence first is the old saying, but if they can't get it out of their own end, then we're not going to be playing defence,'' he said.

The blue-line is the big question mark and the main reason the Oilers are being picked to struggle - The Hockey News has them pegged to finish 12th in the Western Conference and one Las Vegas oddsmaker has them at 25-1 to claim their sixth Stanley Cup.

No one expects the Oilers to replace Pronger. The six-foot-six 220-pound rearguard did it all last year. He played 28 minutes a night, anchored the special teams, shut down the opponent's top offensive threat and led the team in playoff points.

Citing family reasons, he asked for a trade just days after the Cup final to begin what became a summer of transition. A third of the playoff roster eventually walked out the door, including defenceman Jaroslav Spacek, forwards Mike Peca and Sergei Samsonov and tough guy Georges Laraque.

The defence will be led by veterans Jason Smith and Steve Staios. Matt Greene and Marc-Andre Bergeron are also back. Ladislav Smid came to Edmonton in the Pronger deal and free agent Daniel Tjarnqvist signed with the Oilers after spending last season in Minnesota.

Besides Bergeron, the blue-line lacks an offensive threat and will miss Pronger's ability to fire deadly accurate passes to lead the breakout.

There may be growing pains, but at the same time the defence is anchored by two proven veterans,'' said Greene.

Smyth added if the Oilers have to win every game 6-5, so be it.

It's probably the coaches' and goalies' worst nightmare, but as long as you win.''

The goaltending will rest on the skill and savvy - not to mention the rebuilt right knee - of Dwayne Roloson. The 36-year-old re-upped with the Oil after a standout performance in the playoffs. He suffered the knee injury late in Game 1 of the Cup final but said it has healed. Jussi Markkanen will handle backup duties.

Horcoff said the team that had known hard times for more than a decade will now face the pressure of being a measuring stick for other squads. Their opponents will be that much more tenacious in the corners. Every night they'll see the No. 1 goalie.

He said if the Oilers struggle, general manager Kevin Lowe will plug the holes, much like he did at the trade deadline last March to get Roloson.

Kevin has pretty much shown that he's going to start the season with some younger guys (on the blue-line),'' Horcoff said. -They're going to get more minutes and they're going to have to run with it.''

That's a prediction you can take to the bank.
 

Devils deal Malakhov to Sharks
TSN.ca Staff
10/1/2006 8:56:17 PM

The New Jersey Devils acquired left wing Alexander Korolyuk and defenceman Jim Fahey from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for defenceman Vladimir Malakhov, and a conditional first-round pick in the NHL Entry Draft.

Korolyuk, 30, recorded 19 goals and 15 assists for 34 points and 86 penalty minutes in 45 games with Vityaz Chekhov in the Russian Super League last season. He last played in the NHL during the 2003-04 season, posting an NHL career-high 19 goals and 18 assists for 37 points in 63 games with San Jose.

The 5-foot-9, 190-pound has 62 goals and 80 assists for 142 points and 140 penalty minutes in 296 career games, all with the Sharks.

Fahey, 27, will be entering his fifth professional season. He posted two assists in 21 games with San Jose last season. Fahey has career totals of one goal and 23 assists for 24 points and 65 penalty minutes in 79 games, making his NHL debut in 2002-03.

The 6-foot, 205-pound defenceman has also seen action with Cleveland (AHL) during parts of three seasons from 2002-03 through 2004-05. Fahey was San Jose's ninth choice, and the 212th overall selection in the 1998 draft.

Malakhov, 38, posted nine points and 26 penalty minutes in 29 games with the Devils last season. Malakhov's NHL career includes 86 goals and 260 assists for 346 points and 697 penalty minutes in 712 games with the NY Islanders, Montreal, New Jersey, the NY Rangers, and Philadelphia.
 

Hockey Hearsay
October 01, 2006

Bertuzzi happy to blend in
After a messy last few years in Vancouver, Todd Bertuzzi is hopeful for a fresh start in Florida.

In Sunday's Sun Sentinel, it is written that when Bertuzzi attended a Panthers fans' barbecue in July, he told reporters that time heals and he'll eventually change people's minds about the Steve Moore incident.

Part of being able to change people's minds involved leaving Vancouver behind and gettuing a fresh start.

The day after he was traded, Bertuzzi said the change would be good, in part because South Florida "is a place you can kind of hide out."

Bertuzzi has been able to do that so far. He says he hasn’t gone out much. When he has, he has rarely been identified. One night, Bryan Allen, who arrived with Bertuzzi and Auld in the Luongo trade, said, he, Bertuzzi and Auld were out locally and within earshot of a small group of people discussing the Panthers’ trade of Luongo.

The group could see the trio of players involved in the trade, but didn’t recognize them.

As far as people forgeting the Moore incident?

Animosity toward Bertuzzi remains great two years after his notorious hit. Myspace.com features several profiles on Bertuzzi, most ridiculing him, like the one that lists his likes as candlelit dinners, teddy bears and “breaking necks.”
 

Knightfall1972 said:
Devils deal Malakhov to Sharks
Click to expand...

I thought I read that Malakhov retired. What's SJ doing? A condtional 1st rounder, does that mean a 1st rounder regardless, year TBD? That's an odd trade. Did Lou just pull the Devils' bacon from the fryer? Mally is 3.6 mil, Fahey is 500k, I don't know Korolyuk's contract, as he must have been sent to the farm.

Did NJ get Mogliny's contract waived from the cap due to his "injury", I haven't heard much about that yet. I'm sure this still means Gionta still can't be signed. How confusing.
 

Okay, I get it now. Mally's retired, NJ still has his 3.6 mil as a cap hit (even though they don't have to pay it). So SJ gets a 1st rounder and gets rid of Korolyuk for taking the cap hit and giving up Fahey.

Still don't know much about the cap relief situation for Mogilny and his "arthritic hip". I don't think the trade sare done.
 

Leafs play waiting game with goalies
Darren Dreger (TSN.ca)
10/2/2006 12:46:03 PM

For the moment, goaltender Mikael Tellqvist remains with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

However, the same cannot be said for veteran defenceman Brad Brown, who today was placed on waivers as teams carve down to their opening day rosters.

There has been much speculation as to whether or not Toronto will attempt to unload Tellqvist in order to annoint Jean-Sebastien Aubin as Andrew Raycroft's back-up.

Sources say Leafs general manager John Ferguson Jr. intends to wait, potentially to fully exhaust the trade market for Tellqvist, before going the waiver route.

Meanwhile, other Canadian teams have used today's waiver deadline prior to the roster freeze.

Jamie Allison, Tomas Malec, Serge Payer and Andrew Hedlund were all placed on waivers by the Ottawa Senators.

Patrick Traverses' return to Montreal may be cut short as well, as the Canadiens have made the veteran defenceman available.

The Edmonton Oilers have put Toby Peterson and Mathieu Roy on waivers, while the Flames have made Brad Ference and Eric Godard available.

Other notables put on waivers today include Tampa Bay's Sean Burke, Jason LaBarbera of the Kings, Tyson Nash of Phoenix, the Devils' Grant Marshall and Chris Thorburn of the Sabres.

Burke is on re-entry on the waiver wire. If anyone claims him, Tampa Bay will have to pick up half of his $1.6 million salary and it counts against the cap. The full $1.6 million will count against the Lightning's cap until someone picks him up.
 

Leafs' Kubina suspended for one game
TSN.ca Staff
10/2/2006 3:31:32 PM

Toronto Maple Leaf defenseman Pavel Kubina has been suspended for the first game of the regular season as the result of a cross-checking incident on Detroit Red Wings player Jiri Hudler during a pre-season game, October 1.

Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and based on his average annual salary, Kubina will forfeit $26,737.97. The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

Kubina was assessed a major penalty for cross-checking and a game misconduct at 18:03 of the first period.

He will miss Toronto's opening night game against Ottawa on October 4.
 
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Park signs two-year deal with Islanders
Darren Dreger (TSN.ca)
10/2/2006 12:59:05 PM

Veteran NHL forward Richard Park has agreed to a two-year deal with the New York Islanders. Sources tell TSN the one-way contract will pay Park roughly $500,000 per season.

Park had been skating with the Islanders on a professional tryout basis.

Last season, Park scored eight goals and 10 assists in 60 games with the Vancouver Canucks. Park has played 368 NHL games in his career, scoring 50 goals and 57 assists for 107 points.

"Richard has worked hard for us everyday and has proved to us that he belongs on this team," said Islanders head coach Ted Nolan. "He's a battler and fighter and knows how to get the job done. We're confident that he'll get the job done for us, and more."

The Islanders have also assigned forwards Brandon Cullen and Peter Ferraro and defenseman Rick Berry to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL.
 

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