With the return of Chris Stewart, the Colorado Avalanche believe they have a surplus of forwards. Enough to where they’d be willing to move a player in exchange for a quality D-man.

One player I’m hearing Colorado has thrown out there is Brandon Yip.

Speaking of Colorado, who knew tough guy David Koci was so important to the teams success? The Avs have gotten points in nine of the ten games Koci has played this season. Their record without Koci is around .500….I’m just sayin.

When evaluating potential UFA’s this summer it very well might be in Tomas Fleischmann’s best interest to test the free agent waters this summer.

Kaberle Watch begins…..again

Toronto D-man Tomas Kaberle’s name has been tossed around in rumor mills as much as any player the last few years. Word is he’s still set on staying in the East and would consider a trade if a long-term (4-5 yrs.) extension was in place.

Could Ottawa D-man Chris Phillips pull a Doug Weight?

If the former first overall pick is moved before the trade deadline there’s a decent chance he re-signs in the summer with the only team he’s ever known. Several players have accepted trades to become rentals for a few months only to re-up with their original team after the season. Keith Tkachuk and Doug Weight both did this in recent years with St. Louis.

Ottawa isn’t actively shopping any of their guys as of now but any astute team out there is certainly dialing up GM Bryan Murray. Forward Mike Fisher is a player teams have inquired about.

San Jose still looking to deal…

Will the Sharks be able to pull off a deal to get a D-man they covet? They’d be willing to move a top six forward to make this happen although many of them have no-trade clauses.

Kostopoulos ruling too harsh...

I was tucked away in the hospital last week with my wife who gave birth to our first child and never had the opportunity to comment on the Tom Kostopoulos suspension. Six games! Are you serious? Didn’t Rick Rypien get six games for grabbing a fan? The most important plays to eliminate are the dangerous one’s where there’s obvious intent to injure an opposing player.

Anytime a player is trying to make a clean, hard, hockey play but due to the speed of the game the play goes wrong, shouldn't it be evaluated differently? The difference between a shoulder and a chin in this case is a matter of inches. I agree the player might deserve to be punished but to a lesser degree. These are different circumstances than say a bare fisted sucker punch or a crosscheck from behind which are intentional acts and therefore dangerous and illegal. It should be considered a blessing if a player escapes injury from a dangerous play, but not a reason to lower the penalty to the offending player.  

How could Matt Cooke’s hit on Keith Yandle not even receive a hearing when you factor it took place in a 5-0 game and PHX was on the PP? Certainly looked like a direct elbow to the head to me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0sMqyR3TIU
 

More to come,

Andy Strickland

strickland.andy@gmail.com