By Brandon Macdonald
NHL Hot Stove Editor

On paper it seems that the Toronto Maple Leafs should have an impenetrable back end. Boasting the likes of Dion Phaneuf, Luke Schenn, John-Michael Liles and with up and comer Keith Aulie, they are a force to be reckon with for the forseeable future. There were, however, some question marks when it came to veterans like Mike Komisarek, Brett Lebda and Jeff Finger.

Many Leaf fans will tell you Finger is the first Leaf that needs to be traded, but Lebda wasn’t far behind on the list. GM Brian Burke came through on that today, dealing the rear guard to the the Nashville Predators, along with forward Robert Slaney. In return the Leafs received highly touted defenceman Cody Franson and speedy center Matthew Lombardi. Although Lombardi is currently suffering with a concussion, the real gem in this deal is the 23-year-old Franson.

Cody Franson (BridgetDS/Flickr)

In his first two seasons in the NHL, Franson has put up 14 goals for 50 points and is a plus-25. Franson is known for being reliable in his own zone, but also possesses the skills to jump in the rush and provide that much needed outlet pass. Since it’s so early, there is no telling where Franson will fit on the depth chart, especially with newly acquired Liles. But it’s expected for him to be a top-four on the depth chart and will likely see time playing along side Schenn.

Also in the deal the Leafs picked up Lombardi, who is known for his blazing speed. After only playing in two games this past season, it’s unclear whether or not he will be ready for opening night. Lombardi was injured in the second game of the season against the Chicago Blackhawks and did not see any ice time after the concussion. If and when Lombardi is able to make his debut to the Leafs lineup, it’s yet to be seen where he fits with the club. With the recent signing of Tim Connolly, along with Mikhail Grabovski, Tyler Bozak and Nazem Kadri the Leafs are pretty set up the middle.

Another trade could be in the works for Burke, as he tries to find someone to play on the right wing.

After signing Lebda in the 2010 offseason it provided a lot of questions as to what exactly Burke was doing. Aside from his $2.9 million dollar contract, Lebda brought experience and that highly sought after Cup ring from 2008 with the Detroit Red Wings. He was never known for his offensive prowess — he scored a career high 18 points in 2007 — and he did not impress Leaf fans in his first campaign in the blue and white sweater only posting four points in 41 games.

On paper, it seems the Leafs fleeced the Predators. Nabbing one of their strong, young defenceman. It’s the contract of Lombardi that Preds GM David Poile was looking to rid the team of, needing all the cap room to sign Norris trophy finalist and all around beast, Shea Weber. Luckily for the Preds, they have fantastic scouts who have stock piled their defensive core with prospects Ryan Ellis, Jonathon Blum and Teemu Laakso who are nearly ready for full time NHL duties.

The Leafs back end is strong and it should help second year net minder James Reimer avoid the infamous sophomore slump. Being able to roll out six solid defensive lines will help when the team is having problems scoring on any given night. It’s just a question now of whether or not they can gel as a team.

Brandon Macdonald
NHLHS Editor
bmacdonald@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter @bMacdonald8

Based on Matthew Pouliot’s series on Circling the Bases, I have decided restore the rosters for every NHL team. Like Pouliot, I have established some ground rules for my selections.

1. Each team contains players they originally drafted or signed before any other NHL team. This includes players drafted and not signed, as well as European free agents coming over at an older age.
2. I have chosen to leave retired players off the list, and lean toward players in the AHL rather than those deported (KHL, SEL, DEL, etc.).

Essentially I am choosing the best available players for a team to succeed in the current NHL season. All 30 teams will be covered, with grades assigned to forwards, defense and goaltending. After all 30 articles are written, they will be ranked in order. This series’ intent is to reward or shame NHL scouts.

This team is setup pretty well moving forward, with 13 current players on the roster home grown. The core of the team is still young and if they can hold onto them moving forward, lookout for 2009-2010 to become the norm instead of the exception when it comes to Colorado’s place atop the standings. Can Wolski, Stastny and Duchene develop into the superstar NHL’ers that other Avalanche/Nordiques draft picks (such as Joe Sakic, Mats Sundin and Owen Nolan) have? Only time will tell. But it looks like it’ll be a fun ride 

Forwards:

A good mix of youth and experience. The core top 6 forwards have an average of 4 years experience in the NHL. Still learning the game and continuing to improve their play can only be good for this young Colorado team.

Wojtek Wolski – Paul Stastny – Chris Stewart

Alex Tanguay – Matt Duchene-Milan Hejduk

Ryan O’Reilly – Chris Drury – Radim Vrbata

Sammy Pahlsson – Owen Nolan – Brandon Yip

Bench – Marek Svatos – Wade Belak

While the bottom 6 forwards have an average of 6 years exp in the league, it’s a mix of old (Nolan 1167 games) and young (Yip 10 games) by no means making the bottom 6 grey beards in the league. Being more established and set in their ways, the bottom 6 are solid at their roles. With Yip and O’Reilly ready to jump up to the top 6 and switch spots with Tanguay and Hejduk in the coming seasons. All in all, a pretty good setup for the forward unit, with current players already in place to ascend the ranks when called upon.

Grade: B+

Defence:

Based on all six starting D being in the top four of their respective teams, and the top four of this team being the top pair on their respective teams, this crop of D earns a solid A.

Adam Foote – Kyle Cumiskey

Robyn Regehr – Tom Gilbert

Jean-Michael Liles – Jeff Finger

Bench – Martin Skoula

You could mix up the top 4 to make any pairings you want, but I decided to keep Colorado’s top pair of Foote and Cumiskey together. Foote’s experience and rock solid dependability will allow Cumiskey to continue to find his game while not having to worry about growing pains. Regehr and Gilbert, both solid top pair on their teams, make a very formidable 2^nd pair on this team. Regehr’s defensive responsibility allows Gilbert a little more freedom to contribute offensively.

Grade: A

Goaltenders:

Tim Thomas

Peter Budaj

Tyler Weiman

What can you say about US Olympic Goalie Tim Thomas that hasn’t already been said? Not a personal fan of his style, or lack thereof to be specific. He’s more of a reaction goalie a la Dominik Hasek or Curtis Joseph, but he’s made it work for him and that showed with a Vezina Trophy last season. He’s a solid #1 on any team, and it’s taken a Herculean effort by Miller to have Thomas sit on the bench in the coming Olympics. Budaj has shown flashes of brilliance in his time with Colorado, but hasn’t been able to make the jump to a bonafide #1 just yet. Having the best numbers of his career in his limited role this season, could this have been his year if it weren’t for the stellar play of Anderson? Still, a formidable 1-2 punch if I’ve seen one, especially with this D corps in front of them.

Grade: A-

Jose Simoes
NHLHS Contributor
jsimoes@nhlhotstove.com

As we approach the midway point of the 2009-10 season in the National Hockey League, many questions remain unanswered.

Which teams are serious about playoff contention?  Who needs a massive upgrade to make the push from a bubble team?  Which team should sell off the year and attempt a mini-rebuild?

Those are some thoughts circulating the League as we take a look at the state of all teams around the NHL.  Now, when perusing through certain rosters some names that could bring in returns which would benefit a team in need of depth.

Today, we look at the defensemen around the NHL likely to be moved by the March 3rd, 2010 trade deadline. As a side note, be sure to tune into “The Hockey Guys” on deadline day as there will be an all day live event with a live chat room for discussion on all the rumors and news as it breaks in the NHL.

If you have not noticed the way d-men are being brought into the NHL, I will help you understand the recent developments. We are beginning to see, more and more, the crop of blueliners entering the NHL have an offensive style game. To give you an example of what I mean:  Drew Doughty, Erik Johnson, Jack Johnson, Duncan Keith, Zach Bogosian, Mike Green, Michael Del Zotto, Shea Weber are a few names from recent drafts with the gift of scoring from the blue line.

When you think playoffs, it’s about experience, two way hockey, leadership and heart and soul type players.  You also think about, outside of goaltending, offense.  However, the defense is an absolute crucial part of a roster and the game as it gives a balance at both ends of the ice.  As a team you need to be able to protect your end of the ice as well as get the puck up the ice to an offensive transition.  So, in summary the blue liners play a very vital part of the team and there will be some names in discussion come the new year and second half of the
NHL season.

Some of the potential names that can see their names sewn onto the back of a different sweater:

As discussed recently here on NHL Hot Stove as well as the recent “The Hockey Guys!” podcast, Scott Niedermayer will be the biggest name on the trading block when the deadline approaches. With the Ducks currently out of a playoff position and the season not looking like it will take a turn for the better, the Ducks would be smart to move out the duel captain (named Candian Olympic team Captain earlier today).  Scott can make one more run at a cup and the Ducks can get an important piece for their future.

Possible destinations: NJD, WSH, LAK, PHI

Joe Corvo, when healthy, provides a team looking to shore up some help on the blue line with veteran experience as well as an offensive touch that can help out a power play when called upon.  The News Observer’s Javier Serna first reported Corvo on the block on December 2nd.

Possible destinations:  PHX, NYI, BOS

Jean-Michael Liles might not be having his best season this year; queue the rumors. Liles could be packaged with a forward in order to get an upgrade up front. He is a good puck mover and has the ability to score from the blue line as well.  Another potential PP QB to add to this list.

Possible destinations: FLA, NJD

Sheldon Souray hears his name come up in rumors all season.  As the Bruce Garrioch of Ottawa Sun reported the Oilers are falling apart and if they can move Souray and relieve
themselves of the cap hit they kill two birds with one stone.  Souray will provide not only a massive shot from the point, but a leader both on and off the ice.  He plays with grit and is one of the better power play quarter backs in the league.

Possible destinations: MTL, NYI, PHX, BOS, WSH

Kim Johnsson and  Marek Zidlicky are both important pieces to the blue line in Minnesota, but if the Wild season doesn’t tame there will not be a playoff appearance. Both players bring puck moving abilities as well as defensive presence.  Pure speculation on my part, but wouldn’t you move these two if your team falls out of the race?

Possible destinations: BUF, NYI, FLA

Michal Rozsival of the New York Rangers, although a hefty price tag, could be shipped out just to have one of the younger blue liners step up and into the line up on a full time basis. It helps free up cap space in New York to acquire more important pieces which are scoring forwards. This could be one of the key figures in a Pavol Demitra deal, or a salary moved to fit said player under the cap.

Possible destinations: VAN, FLA, PHX, BUF

One of Alexander Picard or Chris Campoli, who are both RFA’s at seasons end, could be shopped by the Senators as The Sporting News recently mentioned.   Carlo Colaiacovo and Darryl Sydor of St. Louis could also be shopped.  Sydor would add great veteran depth to a playoff team. Brett Lebda, if the Wings are out of the playoffs around the deadline, could be a welcome addition as well to a younger team.

We hope you enjoyed our latest feature here at the NHL Hot Stove.  You can help NHLHS stay alive by visiting our sponsors to the right.

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Anthony Curatolo
NHLHS Contributor
achockeyguys@gmail.com

With Avs rumors swirling around the internet, beat writer Adrian Dater of The Denver Post puts pretty much every current rumor involving youngsters Matt Duchene or Ryan O’Reilly to shame.

So the answer to the talented twosome leaving Colorado is no.  These rumors are false. No move will be made for Ilya Kovalchuk.  No need to swap veteran underachievers with the Flyers.  Nothing.

Dater, however, does hypothesize as to what till happen once Kyle Cumiskey returns from his foot injury.  Cumiskey, a young defenseman known for his offensive prowess very well could be the odd man out.  However, a 23-year-old d-man with limited NHL experience and a lengthy injury history provides limited value in the current trade market.

That leaves two players likely on the block: Jean-Michael Liles and Ryan Wilson.  The latter an undrafted free agent who at the ripe age of 22 actually is producing at the NHL level.

Turning a free-agent signing into a need would be excellent asset management as long as the team feels the current player they see is his ceiling. His reasonable capt hit of $ 551, 667 through 2011 certainly adds remarkable value should he be shopped.

Liles, on the other hand, is an experienced NHL commodity.  A player which most general managers know and one who has considerable Olympic candidacy with Team USA.  As Dater mentions Liles is in the second year of a four-year, $16.4 million deal so teams may feel the annual 4.2 million cap hit could be too pricey.  Still any team needing a solid, younger offensive defenseman could do worse than his consistent 10 goal, 40 point year.

So the Avs are in contention in the West, in fact in the lead of the Northwest Division as of this current writing, therefore dealing in the Western Conference is certainly not advisable. This fact leaves us with a team in the East that contains both a need for a defenseman and an ability to move a large winger.  The Islanders fit the need but do not have the assets, as does most of the teams we could list.

There is one team with both the assets and now the cap room, the Washington Capitals. With the return of Mike Knuble, would they part with a player like Eric Fehr?  Only time, at least another week of this freeze, will tell but these two teams certainly would make intriguing trade partners.

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-Alexander Monaghan
NHLHS Founder
thehotstove@gmail.com