Sportsnet  is reporting that former San Jose Sharks head coach Ron Wilson was hired by the Toronto Maple Leafs officially today. This after weeks of speculation. Wilson had this to say about his new endeavour,

“This is an unbelievable day for me. The last couple of weeks have been very exciting.”

Wilson also went on to say,

“I view the Leafs as a team in transition. It’s going to require a lot of work, and a lot of attention to detail.”

Wilson continued by adding,

“As a coach, you just want to put yourself in a position to knock on the door. And if we can be knocking on the door in two years, I think that will be a tremendous accomplishment. Then we’ve just got to knock the door down.”

Ron WIlson is a good coach. The Leafs have a person who could potentially turn the play of the team around. Unfortunately some people are crying tampering.

With the rumours still around that the Leafs are waiting for Brian Burke of the Anaheim Ducks to be their next General Manager, the hiring of one of Burke’s friends is sending flags up everywhere. Sure the Leafs can argue that they hired who they thought was the best candidate for them and leave it at that. If Burke somehow becomes the Leafs next GM however, there will be many people who will question the decision on WIlson.

For now congratulations to the Leafs. Wilson should put them in the right direction.

RDS is reporting that the L.A. Kings have fired coach Marc Crawford. Crawford still had one year left on his contract.

When questioned about his decision, Kings Gm Dean Lombardi had this to say,

“We appreciate what Marc has done here for the past two years. We believe however that a coaching change was the right decision to make.”

Too bad. The Kings young talent like Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown and Patrick O’Sullivan where starting to play well. Something to take note of however, the Kings have no starting goalie. Is that Crawford’s fault?

The Kings will be good in a couple of years. They also have the number two draft pick and should be able to pick someone of good abilities.

TSN is claiming that Wilson is on his way to Toronto to meet with Cliff Fletcher to finalize the contract. Although nothing has been confirmed by Fletcher or Wilson, Fletcher already said that he offered the job to someone ans is waiting for an answer.

If Wilson is to go to Toronto, than they better become a good team next season! Ron is a very coach and is probably the best one the Sharks have ever had in recent years. No coach in Sharks history has ever collected as many wins as Wilson did (206). But Most importantly, no one ever brought the Sharks to more playoffs games than Wilson (52) and I believe that is what makes him a perfect candidate for Toronto. The Leafs fans are not going to accept missing the playoffs next season and if Wilson can’t bring them there, who can?

If the rumor happens to be true, than it should be announced as early as today or tomorrow.

Personally, I hope it’s true, because as much as I don’t like the Maple Leafs, I do want every team in the NHL to be competitive (I think Wilson can do that fro them), therefore giving every hockey fan something good to watch every night.

It’s almost as if Doug Wilson, the Sharks’ GM, is going to have to pick between a season guy and a playoff guy. Thornton does an outstanding job for the Sharks during the season and Marleau does an Ok job compared to what he use to do before. But who would be the perfect one to include in a trade intended to make the Sharks a better team for the future?

Well apparently, among teams interested in acquiring Marleau’s services are The Montreal Canadiens, The Columbus Blue Jackets, The New-York Islanders and the Ottawa Senators. Any team in the Western Conference interested in his services should forget about it right away because Doug Wilson is never going to move Marleau in the same conference as his. Marleau could bring something good to the Sharks, but I wouldn’t trade him.

If I was Doug Wilson and was about to make a trade, I would think of trading Joe Thornton before Marleau. To do so, I’d have to convince Joe to let go of his NTC, but once that’s done with, I believe trading Thornton would bring better players in a bigger trade to San Jose and maybe it would bring Marleau back to his level of play back when Joe wasn’t in SJ. But where would Thornton accept to be traded? Obviously one wouldn’t mind to go where he really wants to go, and in that case, Joe has said it already that the teams he wanted to play for while growing up happen to be The Detroit Red Wings and The Toronto Maple Leafs. I’m sure Joe wouldn’t mind going there, and obviously, any of these two teams wouldn’t mind adding him to their line-up!

In the Western Conference you will see the Dallas Stars against the San Jose Sharks, and the Detroit Red-Wings against the Colorado Avalanche.

Stars, Sharks: Evegeni Nabokov against Marty Turco. Nabokov is the better goalie this year by far, but Turco has played really well, and didn’t play as many games during the regular season as Nabokov, one would have to think that Nabokov will get tired eventually. Nabokov has the edge as long as he doesn’t get tired. The Stars still don’t have Sergei Zubov, which could hurt them in this series. If the Stars hope to defeat the Sharks they will have to do the same thing as they did against the Anaheim Ducks, as the Sharks are also a physical team, however they might be a little bruised after their last series against the Calgary Flames. Technically the Sharks should win, but then again, everyone had the Ducks winning too, as the Stars had a bad end of the season, and look what happened.

Avalanche, Red-Wings: As much as it pains me to say it, with the recent play of the almost extinct Dominik Hasek, Jose Theodore is the better goalie so far, Chris Osgood is a good goalie, unfortunately Theodore has been standing on his head in the play-offs, the edge to starting goalie goes to the Avalanche. Ian Laperriere, he has got a target on his back after smashing Niklas Lidstrom into cloud nine at the end of the season. The scorers for both teams are about even, the defence however goes to the Red-Wings. This series should go to the Red-Wings, but they didn’t impress too many people in their last series, are they too old? The Avalanche have some speed, but will it be enough to win? Colorado could upset.

In the Eastern Conference you will see the Pittsburgh Penguins against the New York Rangers, and the Montreal Canadiens against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Penguins, Rangers: Henrik Lundqvist, enough said. Lundqvist is superior to Ty Conklin, and Marc Andre Fleury, by far. Pittsburgh’s offence is better than the Rangers, but, Jaromir Jagr has come out of his shell, that could hurt the Pens. The Pens are all offence, and didn’t have much trouble sweeping the Ottawa Senators in their last series, but the Rangers are not the Sens. The Rangers have Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, to shut down either the Sidney Crosby line, or the Evgeni Malkin line. But will the Pens be able to defend against the re-appearance of Jagr the great, Brendan Shanahan, Brandon Dubinsky, and Martin Straka? Fleury, or Conklin will have their hands full in this series. The only factor that will not be one is Sean Avery, yes he can score some nice goals, which he just might, but his intimidation antics will not work in Pittsburgh with big George Laraque on the ice, Avery better hope that those two don’t meet, or else Avery can book his hospital room right now. Besides goal-tending which the Blue Shirts hold the advantage, the Pens have more explosive talent up front, question is, will they be able to explode on the Rangers, the Rangers aren’t the Sens. Keep the Pens in their own zone. I believe that the Rangers could win this one, if they are able to slow down the Pens, if not, the Pens take it.

Canadiens, Flyers: Where to start, well to keep it short, Carey Price is better than Martin Biron. The Flyers defence is slow, and Derian Hatcher has seen better days. These two teams were no.1, and no.2 in the regular season on the power-play, with the Habs being no.1. The Habs had a hard time against the Bruins on the p.p., but if they can manage to bring it back now that Saku Koivu is back then they will do well as the Flyers are an undisciplined team. Daniel Briere will be deaf when he leaves the Bell Centre, and may have to work on his confidence as well as the Montreal fans will let him have it big time. Montreal has the edge in coaching staff, and defence, as well as in between the pipes. With Mike Knuble, and Simon Gagne out, for sure the Habs have the edge in offence as well, question is, will Philly be able to contain it for seven games if necessary? Montreal should win this one, as the Flyers only impressed themselves by winning, but you never know, still the Habs should prevail if their power-play clicks, and they play their game, and don’t play the Flyers way, yes the Flyers have Steve Downie, but the Habs have Steve Begin, Tom Kostopoulos, Francis Bouillon, and Maxim Lapierre to a lesser extent. The Habs two best players in Alex Kovalev, and Carey Price, are better than the two best players of the Flyers in Mike Richards, and Daniel Briere. Should be a good one to watch.

Stamford, CONN. (April 8, 2008)—VERSUS, the exclusive cable television home of the NHL, will televise wall-to-wall Stanley Cup Playoffs action starting April 9 with the Conference Quarterfinals as the Ottawa Senators begin their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins at 7 p.m. ET followed by Game 1 of the series between the Calgary Flames and the San Jose Sharks at 10 p.m. ET. VERSUS will kick-off the night with “Hockey Central” at 6:30 p.m. ET. The network will air all of the rounds leading up to and including the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final. Each night during the playoffs, VERSUS will televise one or two playoff games as well as the studio wrap-up show, “Hockey Central.”

Now in its third year televising the NHL, VERSUS has seen a substantial increase in total viewership and ratings for the 2007/08 regular season compared to the 2006/07 campaign. At the conclusion of this year’s regular season, national household ratings were up 50 percent (.3 vs. .2), total viewership showed an increase of 28 percent (272,417 vs. 212,366), household impressions were up 20 percent (192,675 vs. 160,134) and viewership for Men 25-54 was up 45 percent (99,753 vs. 69,018).

In the Conference Quarterfinals, which begin on April 9, VERSUS’ coverage is non-exclusive and subject to local blackouts. In the Conference Semifinals, which are scheduled to begin April 23, VERSUS has two exclusive games per series. During the Conference Finals, which are scheduled to begin on May 8, the network will have exclusive coverage of both series. The total number of playoff games will vary depending upon the length of each individual series. VERSUS’ Stanley Cup Playoffs coverage will culminate with the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final, currently scheduled for May 27 and 29. All VERSUS-produced games in each series will be produced in hi-definition. VERSUS will, when feasible, simulcast games from Canadian networks to give viewers the unique perspective of other networks’ coverage.

“As the exclusive cable television home of the NHL, it is our goal to super-serve hockey fans during both the regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs,” said Gavin Harvey, President of VERSUS. “Our best-in-class production and hours of in-depth coverage, coupled with our tremendous presence online, on demand and on mobile, makes VERSUS the ultimate destination for both the casual and hardcore hockey fan.”

Check out VERSUS’ entire quarterfinal coverage for dates and times.

HOCKEY CENTRAL:

The network’s studio show, “Hockey Central,” is hosted by Bill Patrick with Brian Engblom and Keith Jones and will provide extensive insight and commentary of the games and what’s happening around the Stanley Cup Playoffs each night. VERSUS will also, on occasion, bring players and coaches into the studio to serve as celebrity guest analysts. From April 10 through April 14, Manny Legace, goaltender for the St. Louis Blues, will be the first guest to join the VERSUS studio crew.

Among the regular segments of the studio show are the following:

• Keith Jones’ Odd Man Rush, Keith’s unique look at the plays and players who have put themselves in the spotlight, whether for good or bad
• Brian Engblom’s Reality Check, Brian’s personal opinion on NHL issues
• Highlights from games not airing on VERSUS, as well as Plays of the Week
• Parting Shots; where Engblom and Jones debate bullet point debate topics in rapid fire fashion
• Live-Look-Ins wherever possible, bringing viewers live action from games being played concurrently during VERSUS’ telecast
• Features on NHL players away from the ice
• Historical recaps which spotlight the defining and greatest moments in NHL Stanley Cup history

VERSUS-on-Demand:

Each night VERSUS features a playoff match-up, the network will deliver a condensed highlight version of the game that will be distributed via the network’s VOD platform. These will be available the morning after game play, so that hockey fans who may not have seen the previous night’s game won’t miss out on any of the playoff action.

WEB AND MOBILE:

Throughout the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs, VERSUS.com will continue to provide extensive information about the NHL, including editorial coverage from some of the most knowledgeable hockey sources. The network also launched the playoffs specific microsite (www.versus.com/stanleycup), which features a video library of the defining moments from last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs as well as the best moments in Stanley Cup Playoffs history. The network’s website will ramp up daily coverage to include game Podcasts and highlights from all of VERSUS’ games as well as daily insider video featuring VERSUS’ NHL talent on the network’s broadband channel “The Player.” Each night after the studio show, VERSUS’ talent will film web-exclusive content that will give the inside scoop on what has happened to-date in the playoffs, as well as their predictions for the future games in the series. The website will also feature a fan zone area where viewers can submit their ultimate NHL moment and photos of a game they attended for a chance to win great playoff prizes.

The network will run media rich banner advertisements on national sports and endemic hockey websites which will, when clicked on, feature expanding video of the previous night’s game highlights. In addition to the media rich banners, VERSUS will also place flash banners on these national sports and endemic hockey sites which will allow viewers to enter their mobile telephone number to receive real-time game alerts throughout the playoffs including when games are about to go in to sudden-death overtime.

VERSUS celebrates real competition in all its forms across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 74 million homes, the network is the national cable home of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Stanley Cup Playoffs as well as best-in-class events such as The Tour de France, Davis Cup Tennis, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and Professional Boxing. The network also offers collegiate sports featuring nationally-ranked teams from top conferences such as the Pac-10, Big 12 and Mountain West. VERSUS features the best field sports programming on television and is a destination for sports fans, athletes and sportsmen to find exclusive, competitive events that audiences can’t find elsewhere. VERSUS, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

Last week San Jose Sharks player Torrey Mitchell injured Minnesota Wild player Kurtis Foster, the incident occurred when both players where in a race for the puck, and foster got hammered into the boards breaking his leg, it was a play for the puck, but someone got injured, so perhaps it’s time for the league to stop looking at more ways to make money, and start looking more carefully at increasing the safety of the players who bring the league money.

The NHL, more like Gary Bettman, is trying so hard to introduce the basketball aspect to the game that safety is put on the back burner, why else would it take so long to implement no touch icing? Well, there have been some reports that Bettman likes the NASCAR aspect, meaning that two players are racing for the puck, and there is a crash at the end. There is only one problem with that, in NASCAR the cars do the crashes, not the people driving them, in hockey, it;s the players that do the crashing, but when it comes to full on racing for a call that could have been made already, well that’s just ridiculous.

The NHLPA I’m sure, is all for the league adopting this rule of no touch icing, look, the season is already long, add the play-offs to that and it’s even longer. The NHL is even toying with adding more games, are they nuts? The players are already tired at the end of the season thanks to some moronic scheduling by the league, the schedule is too ridiculous, some teams don’t play each other for a year or two, most teams play let’s say, two games in California, fly to Phoenix, then come back to Cali, what is up with that? Some, or most players are tired enough as it is, why give them a schedule like that, and plus, now, the league is looking at possibly adding more games. Like I said, stop with the trying to make money, and concentrate on player safety, if you would like your product to stay and help you make money!!

With the increasing injuries, the NHL has no choice but to adopt the no touch icing rule, under certain factors of course, not to just have it be an automatic, but it should still be implemented some how, I’m sure that the self called NHL wizards will come up with a way to install this rule while still preserving the race aspect, after all, they do such a bang up job with the way they schedule games, and the way they are not bias when handing out suspensions, that this latest rule should be a piece of cake right?

Mainly, the Blue Jackets will look to add a couple of puck-moving defenseman.

With all of Rostislav Klesla, Ole-Kristian Tollefsen and Kris Russell signed through at least next season, the Blue Jackets have three spots to fill in their top-six.

Dick Tarnstrom is unlikely to return.

And then there’s restricted free agents Jan Hejda and Ron Hainsey, who may not be brought back if Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson finds their asking prices too costly. Hejda is likely to get a raise on his current $1 million salary, and it is thought that Hainsey may seek upwards of $3-4 million per season.

Staying in-house is an option for Howson. The Blue Jackets have Marc Methot and Aaron Rome in their system (both RFAs) who “are held in high” by the club. The Blue Jackets could also bring up Duvie Westcott, who is currently playing for the Blue Jackets’ AHL affiliate team.

However, picking up reinforcements from the open market appears to be a more viable option for Howson if he really wants to give his club a stronger defense.

John-Michael Liles of the Colorado Avalanche, Wade Redden of the Ottawa Senators, Brian Campbell of the San Jose Sharks and Brad Stuart of the Detroit Red Wings are all set to become UFAs July 1st. A number of second tier defensemen could also become available.

“… I hope I stay here. This is where I want to be. I don’t want to go anywhere. I love it here. For me it’s an honour to play with the Leafs.”

If the Maple Leafs do not earn a playoff spot, Kubina’s contract stipulates that he cannot invoke his no-trade clause from June 20 to August 15. Kubina says that he would understand if the Maple Leafs tried to take advantage of the short period time where they could trade him without asking his permission.

“As a player, you can’t control what happens in those circumstances,” Kubina said yesterday, acknowledging the opportunity the Leafs might have to swap him.”

Due to his recent boost in production and overall improved play, the Maple Leafs may be tempted to deal the Czech blueliner and his $5 million average salary. An assortment of picks and prospects, along with the opportunity to clear some salary cap space, would really benefit the rebuilding Maple Leafs.

So where might the veteran defenseman land?

The San Jose Sharks were apparently interested in Kubina before last month’s the deadline. Sharks GM Doug Wilson tried to acquire Kubina, and a deal was thought to be done. However, Kubina decided to invoke his no-trade clause.

With Kubina’s strong play as of late, he could become “attractive on the trade market this summer.”

Nashville Predators GM David Poile tells John Glennon of The Tennessean that he is unlikely to sign any of the club’s pending free agents until season’s end.

The Predators have a group of free agent that includes defensemen Shea Weber (RFA), Ryan Suter (RFA) and Kevin Klein (RFA), forward Martin Erat (RFA), goalie Dan Ellis (UFA) and forward Darcy Hordichuk (UFA).

San Jose Sharks pending unrestricted free agent forward Jeremy Roenick tells USA Today’s Kevin Allen that he doesn’t plant to retire at season’s end. Roenick has revitalized his career in San Jose, and hopes to continue playing for a little while longer.

“I’m definitely thinking about (continuing to play),” Roenick said. “With the way my body feels, and the way it has gone and the quality of this organization, I definitely would like to play another year. But I’m not going to make this an in-season thing and cause any distractions.”

Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports that a number of teams called to inquire about the availability of Florida Panthers forward Olli Jokinen before the trade deadline.

First off, the Oilers could use a “sniper” to bolster their attack, some in the mold of San Jose Sharks forward Jonathan Cheechoo.

Secondly, the Oilers will look to add some toughness. While it’s unlikely that former Oilers tough guy Georges Laraque will return to Edmonton, there are other options. Those include UFAs Wade Belak of the Florida Panthers, Jody Shelley of the Sharks, Darcy Hordichuk of the Nashville Predators, and Todd Fedoruk of the Minnesota Wild.

Jean LeFebvre of The Calgary Herald suggests that Calgary Flames pending UFA forward Kristian Huselius may have a hard time getting the contract he wants this summer.

While his play in the months of October, December, January, and so far in March, has been superb, November and February saw the skilled forward play the worst hockey of the season.

Ottawa Senators pending UFA forward Cory Stillman tells James Gordon of The Ottawa Citizen that he’d love to re-sign with the club.

“I’d like to stay. It’s close to home, to my home town,” the Peterborough, Ont., native said. “You know, I was happy in Carolina, but (Ottawa) is one of the places I had said that if I ever had the chance to play, I would jump on it.

“So I’m here now and hopefully I can continue on for a couple years.”

Stillman says he hasn’t had any talks about a contract extension with Senators’ management, yet.

“My thing right now is to come play, win hockey games and continue to play into June,” the 34-year-old said.

According to Tarik El-Bashir of the Washington Post, Washington Capitals pending restricted free agent forward Brooks Laich could receive a significant raise this summer. A three-year, $3 million deal isn’t out of the question.

As witnessed by their reported interest in Brad Richards of the Tampa Bay Lightning before he was moved to the Dallas Stars, the Blue Jackets are willing to spend big bucks to fill their biggest needs (i.e. a number one and number two center). And with between $15 million to $20 million in salary cap space at their disposal, they may just pull the biggest moves of the summer.

With that in mind, Portzline suggests that Blue Jackets GM may inquire about the availability of Daniel Briere of Philadelphia, Patrick Elias of New Jersey, Scott Gomez of the New York Rangers. The thought there is that those three clubs may be looking for “roster and payroll flexibility.”

Of course, rumors continue to swirl that the Blue Jackets will trade for San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau before the entry draft, as Portzline and Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun both have reported. As Gary Peterson of the Contra Costa Times documents in his article, Marleau has had a tough season with the Sharks and has seen his name pop up in numerous trade rumors.

So, getting any one of the aforementioned players would definitely resolve their need for a top-line pivot. But what will Columbus do about their second-line center position?

Portzline suggests that trading for Matthew Lombardi of the Calgary Flames may be an option.

The Flames have two pending unrestricted free agent forwards they would like to re-sign in Craig Conroy and Daymond Langkow, and would consider shedding Lombardi’s salary to make it happen.

“You don’t get (a top-six role) by acclamation, you have to earn it,” Flames GM Darryl Sutter said last week. “To be quite honest, Langkow and Conroy have outplayed him this year.”

“This season is going to get played out,” said Campbell, who appeared in his 400th game Friday. “It’s nothing against nobody; I just need to be in the best frame of mind to play my best hockey, and by leaving that on the back burner is the best for me.”

Campbell says that he was distracted by contract talks with the Buffalo Sabres earlier in the season, and doesn’t want to go through that situation with the Sharks.

“It bothered me a lot in Buffalo – it just got to me so much that it affected my play,” he added. “There’s too much at stake, too much on the line, and it’s not fair to me or the guys in the locker room probably. I haven’t heard anything anyway.”

But that doesn’t mean Campbell isn’t interested in staying in San Jose. Campbell says there are a lot of reasons why he could remain with the Sharks.

“I’ve been treated really well here,” Campbell said. “I really like the makeup of the team. I’ve said before it reminds me of what we had in Buffalo going into the lockout with a good mix of young guys and a good mix of veteran leaders.”

“I was told earlier that every person who has come here has enjoyed playing here and has liked it. I’ve been very impressed with the home crowds. Obviously the city isn’t too crazy big, which I kind of like. It’s been a lot of fun. The guys have been really good to me. I can’t say there have been too many negatives so far.”

Of course, playing with childhood friend, forward Joe Thornton, doesn’t hurt either. It also doesn’t hurt that the Sharks are keen on re-signing the puck-moving defenseman long-term (though they are yet to approach him with an offer).

Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun speculates that it would take a five-year deal worth $30 million for the Sharks to lock up Campbell before he reaches free agency.

However, by naming Peca an alternate captain, management may be sending him a message.

“Hopefully, it says they want me to be around for a little while,” said Peca, 33.

“This is a place we would love to stay and there has been an indication that it might be a reciprocal feeling on their part, but we’ll see what happens.”

Bob Hunter of The Columbus Dispatch suggests that the Blue Jackets may pursue a trade for struggling San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau to fill their first-line center position.

The Blue Jackets could receive a first round draft pick, from a deadline deal that saw defenseman Adam Foote moved to the Colorado Avalanche, that they can package along with “a good player or two” to acquire Marleau.

Marleau has a no-trade clause that takes effect July 1st, so he’d have to be moved before then without his approval.

Speaking of the Sharks, USA Today’s Kevin Allen suggests that should Sharks defenseman Brian Campbell become an UFA he could get a six-year deal worth at least $50 million this summer.

Campbell will undoubtedly be the most sought after blueliner on the market due to the lack of top-tier defensemen due to become available.

Allen also believes that pending UFA defensemen Wade Redden of the Ottawa Senators and Michael Rozsival of the New York Rangers could also get significant contracts.

As for Pittsburgh Penguins soon-to-be UFA forward Marian Hossa, he could definitely land a deal averaging more than the $7 million per season the Atlanta Thrashers were offering him before they traded him.

Lastly from Allen, he suggests that the Thrashers will have a big off-season after losing Hossa, while the Edmonton Oilers continue their efforts to land a “Star” player. Look for the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders to possibility do the same.

Their biggest need appears to be on offense, where they need some skill up front as well as a puck-moving defenseman to patrol the blueline.

Two potential candidates to fill those roles are forward Marian Hossa of the Pittsburgh Penguins and defenseman Brian Campbell of the San Jose Sharks. However, either, and certainly both, would be expensive acquisitions. Especially when taking into consideration that the Bruins have almost $39 million committed for the 2008-09 season, and even though the salary cap will rise to approximately $53 million.

Word is that Hossa could get as much as $8 million per season for a five-year deal, or more. That would be a steep price to pay for the Bruins. Unless of course they dump forward Glen Murray and his $4.15 million cap hit.

In San Jose, players are already trying to convince Campbell to re-sign with the Sharks. Longtime friend Joe Thornton was among them.

“Whoever plays here just loves it,” Jumbo Joe told the Ottawa Citizen last week. “You’re in shorts. I’m in shorts. Life is good out here.”

Expectations are that Campbell could receive at least $7.5 million per season on a five-year deal. And with around $38 million already locked in towards next season’s payroll, the Sharks aren’t in a much better position to sign Campbell than the Bruins. Still, they have the upper hand as they have the right to negotiate through to July 1st.

The one plus for the Bruins is that their assistant GM, Jim Benning, was the Sabres’ director of amateur scouting when Campbell was drafted by the the Sabres. Surely he’ll try to make a case to Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli for bringing in Campbell.

With a weak unrestricted free agent market for centers (i.e. Martin Straka, Brendan Morrison, Daymond Langkow and Vaclav Prospal), the Blue Jackets will have deal to fill their biggest need.

The Blue Jackets could have two number one draft picks this summer. They will have their own pick, and if they make the playoffs they will get the Colorado Avalanche’s pick as part of the deal for Adam Foote.

Portzline suggests San Jose Sharks struggling center Patrick Marleau as a possible acquisition.

Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports that the Sharks offered forward Steve Bernier to the New York Rangers in exchange for pending unrestricted free agent forward Sean Avery before last month’s trade deadline.

Rangers GM Glen Sather passed on the deal, however.

Before sending Bernier to the Buffalo Sabres for pending UFA defenseman Brian Campbell, word is that the Pittsburgh Penguins were also interested in acquiring the 22-year-old.

Brooks also reports that Sather sees Avery’s value as $2.75 million per season, and may not want to spend more than that to re-sign him.

Tampa Bay Lightning GM Jay Feaster claims the club’s new ownership group will try to sign All-Star forward Vincent Lecavalier to a multi-year contract, reports Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times.

And that appears to be just fine with Hejda, who tells Derek Van Diest he’d very much like to remain with the Blue Jackets.

“I would like to stay here. I don’t like moving. My family is here, my daughter’s in school. I don’t like to move around.”

It’s expected that the Czech blueliner will receive a pretty good raise on the $1 million he earned this season.

Should San Jose Sharks pending UFA defenseman Brian Campbell become available on the open market, Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun suggests the Ottawa Senators will try to sign him. Especially if the club decides not to re-new defenseman’s Wade Redden contract, who is also set to become an UFA July 1st.

Word is that the Senators tried to acquire Campbell from the Buffalo Sabres before the trade deadline, but the Sabres had no desire of dealing him to an Eastern Conference rival.

Scott Morrison of the Toronto Sun reports that New York Rangers pending UFA forward Sean Avery is looking for an average salary of $3.5 million on his next contract.

The news, however, doesn’t signal the two sides are parting ways. At least not as far as Hainsey is concerned.

“I definitely like it here,” he said. “I like playing for the coaching staff.”

“This team is getting closer as we grow together, and that’s especially happened in the last seven to 10 days. It was getting that way before, but we have a lot of young guys who have come together in the last week, and there’s a lot of positive stuff that I’d like to be a part of.”

Expectations are that Hainsey will receive a healthy raise from the $900,000 he earned this season whether he hits the open market or re-signs in Columbus.

The Blue Jackets, who will have plenty of salary cap space to throw around, may decide to go in a different direction.

Possible targets could include Brian Campbell of the San Jose Sharks and Wade Redden of the Ottawa Senators should they become are available.

The Blue Jackets will no doubt have to make a few hard decisions, including what to do with the club’s other soon-to-be UFA blueliners in Jan Hejda and Dick Tarnstrom.

Do they go big and give their defense group a whole new look? Do they bring back their UFA trio? Time will tell.

“I left it in their hands,” Blake told the Sun yesterday. “It was up to them.”

A number of teams, including the Colorado Avalanche, Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks and Ottawa Senators, are said to have called the Kings to inquire about Blake’s availability.

And while it may have been tempting to go to a contender and try to win another Stanley Cup, Blake says that the club’s decision to hang on to him was received well. It was Blake’s desire to remain with the Kings all along.

“I’m happy it worked out the way it did. Yes, going to a contender with a chance to win the Cup was an exciting possibility, but when I signed here two years ago, it was to help this team to improve and make the playoffs. I just wanted them to do whatever they felt was right. It hasn’t quite worked out the way I wanted it to work when I signed here, but there’s a lot of young talent here, a lot of young skilled players and we’ve just got to get some pieces in around them to help them improve.”

Not only did Blake want to finish the season in Los Angeles, but the veteran blueliner is also hoping to sign a one-year contract extension with the Kings. Among his reasons is the fact that the Kings have a bright future ahead of them due to their slew of young and talented players.

“The young guys here just have to make the next step,” said Blake. “Guys like (Alexander) Frolov, (Anze) Kopitar, (Jack) Johnson and (Mike) Cammalleri, these are the guys who get the minutes and they just need to take it to the next step with the right people around them.”

Kings GM Dean Lombardi says that Blake’s return to the club will depend mostly on him.

“A lot of that is going to be up to (Blake),” said Lombardi.

Translation: Blake will have to take a significant pay cut if the Kings are to bring him back. Especially if they have any intentions of chasing other UFAs.

In an effort to reshape their blueline, Garrioch suggests that the Kings may make a play for Senators defenseman Wade Redden, who can hit the open market July 1st.

“There are a number of ways we can get better and one is by adding more bite to our game,” Fletcher said yesterday as the Leafs took off for Boston. “I don’t think it will be that hard. Once you have an idea of what you’re looking for, there are a lot of players out there.”

Should New York Rangers pending UFA forward Sean Avery hit the open market, might the Maple Leafs take a run at him?

Stan Fischler of MSG Network suggests that Avery will not leave the Big Apple because he loves playing in New York.

San Jose Sharks forward Joe Thornton tells Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun that he has already begun trying to convince newly acquire defenseman Brian Campbell to re-sign with the club.

If he does not sign a contract extension with the Sharks, Campbell is set to become an unrestricted free agent July 1st.

Campbell claims David Pollak of the Mercury News that he does not want to think about a contract until the end of the season.

Michael Zuidema of mLive.com reports that forward Darren McCarty will return to the Detroit Red Wings Monday when his two-week conditioning stint with the Grand Rapids Griffins ends.

“It’s a different style,” he said. “I find it more fun to play. I know last year when I went to Calgary, I liked it more. The games were a little more intense.”

So, could it be with the Red Wings?

“I think I’m hoping things go well and that maybe I find a spot here,” he said. “I can see myself enjoying it here and wanting to stay.”

Red Wings GM Ken Holland is believed to have pursued Stuart during the past off-season, but the blueliner decided to sign with the Los Angeles Kings.

Still with the Red Wings, Holland tells George Sipple of the Detroit Free Press that the club is close to signing with pending UFA forward Dan Cleary to a contract extension.

“We’re talking term,” Holland said. “We’ve been talking anywhere from four to six [years].”

Erik Erlendsson of The Tampa Tribune reports that Tampa Bay Lightning GM Jay Feaster is interested in re-signing pending UFA forward Chris Gratton.

With the acquisition of pending UFA goaltender Cristobal Huet from the Montreal Canadiens on trade deadline day, George Solomon of the Washington Post implies that the Washington Capitals may be sending a message to their long-time starter, Olaf Kolzig.

Kolzig, a soon-to-be UFA himself, could be nearing the end of his tenure with the organization he has played for the past 18 years.

“There are things in life and in the game of hockey that are out of your control. It’s how you deal with it that separates you from other people.”

According to Michael Russo of the Minnesota Star Tribune, the Minnesota Wild was ready to deal forward Benoit Pouliot at the trade deadline. However, clubs were more interested in players like James Sheppard, Mikko Koivu and Colton Gillies.

San Jose Sharks pending unrestricted free agent forward Jeremy Roenick tells David Pollak of the Mercury News that he hopes to play hokey past this season.

“I’ll talk to [Sharks GM] Doug Wilson at the end of the season and see if he’ll give the old man another wheel around,” Roenick told reporters. “I definitely feel I can do it - I’m at 190 pounds and I haven’t been there in 10 years.”