Gaborik Rumors

Source: www.spectorshockey.net

Marian Gaborik speaks out on the trade rumors swirling about his name, the salary cap could limit his potential destinations, and the latest on the rumored interest from the Canadiens.
PIONEER PRESS: John Shipley reports Minnesota Wild forward Marian Gaborik remains as much in the dark over his future as the fans, adding he doesn't know if there's any truth to the trade rumors because he doesn't know anything about them. Contract talks between Gaborik and the Wild remain at an impasse.

MINNEAPOLIS STAR-TRIBUNE: Jim Souhan reports the Wild could find it difficult to move Gaborik now as teams struggling with the salary cap are unlikely to offer up what Gaborik is worth. Souhan suggests moving Gaborik at the March 3rd trade deadline makes the most sense. "That presumes, though, that Gaborik will be healthy and productive enough before the March 3 trading deadline to incite a bidding war for an injury-prone player asking for big money in a league filled with teams pushing the salary cap" writes Souhan.
MONTREAL GAZETTE: Pat Hickey reports "you can discount the rumours that Gaborik is headed this way (Montreal) for Christopher Higgins and Jaroslav Halak", citing the Habs lack of available cap space for Gaborik's salary, team chemistry "and the advisibility of giving away Halak, who's off to a strong start".
SPECTOR'S NOTE: Souhan and Hickey are merely pointing out what I've been saying for days now: Gaborik's salary and injury history will make him tough to move this early in the season. If the Habs are interested as rumored it'll cost a helluva lot more than Higgins and Halak, and quite frankly, the Wild have no reason to acquire Halak given they possess a strong goalie tandem in Niklas Backstrom and Josh Harding.

Ottawa beginning to panic?

After last night's disappointing loss to the Montreal Canadiens, another goalie may be on GM Bryan Murray's wish list come trade deadline day.
Ottawa Sun columnist Bruce Garrioch believes the Senators may need to trade for a legitimate No. 1 goalie after Martin Gerber came out with a sub-par performance in arguably Ottawa's most important game of the season.
And then there's Ray Emery...
League sources told the Sun that Bryan Murray has been one of the most active GMs heading up to deadline day.
It's believed Murray has spoken to the Kings, Lightning and Coyotes to see who they will make available should they become sellers. But because of their recent struggles, teams are putting the squeeze on Murray and increasing their asking price.
The Senators might be willing to dangle prospects Brian Lee, Ilja Zubov and Nick Foligno as part of a deal.

Forsberg Update

The Foppa sweepstakes has taken a few more turns this week, as Peter Forsberg's camp has reportedly turned down a handful of NHL teams that have expressed interest in him.
The Nashville Predators are officially out of the running, as the Tennessean reported Wednesday that general manager David Poile said that Forsberg had passed on a deal with the team. Forsberg finished the season with Nashville last year after being acquired in a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Dallas Stars are also out of the running. Co-general manager Les Jackson said Tuesday that he spoke with Forsberg's representatives Friday.
"They called back (on Saturday) and said he was going to pursue other options," Jackson told The Dallas Morning News. "I think we made a good effort, but now we move on."

Reports out of Detroit say Forsberg has also turned down the Red Wings while the San Jose Sharks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Calgary Flames have also been told that he won't be playing for their teams.

The Philadelphia Flyers and Colorado Avalanche are frontrunners for Forsberg's services, while the Anaheim Ducks, Ottawa Senators and Vancouver Canucks remain in the hunt.

Leafs may have no choice but to buyout no-trade contracts

The Toronto Maple Leafs may have no option except to buy out some of the larger contracts if they cannot find a team willing to take them on before trade deadline day.
The Toronto Sun is reporting Mats Sundin is leaning towards playing out his contract and re-signing with the club while Darcy Tucker, Pavel Kubina, Bryan McCabe and Tomas Kaberle have made indications that they will 'dig in their heels' if asked to waive their no-trade clause.
This leaves the club with little option but to buy out some of these contracts as interim GM Cliff Fletcher has said he won't resort to demeaning his players by demoting them or reducing their ice time.
Source: http://www.sportsnet.ca/

Forsberg a Sen?

The longest soap opera of the NHL season may finally be coming to a conclusion as Peter Forsberg has chosen a short list of teams for his return.
The Ottawa Sun is reporting that Ottawa is on the shortlist but the frontrunner is still believed to be Philadelphia.
Despite the list, Flyers GM Paul Holmgren is still unsure of whether or not Forsberg is truly committed to returning to the league.
"I honestly don't have a feeling for what his decision will be and I didn't get to see him skate," Holmgren told the Sun. "From talking to him, I am not sure he is ready in his own mind. He doesn't seem to know if he's okay. When he's ready, he'll make a decision."