Slow down the trade talk

Tuesday January 08, 2008 @ 11:13 AM EST

Well, the e-mails have started. I heard the Senators are going to get Mats Sundin. Why do the Bruins want to move Glen Murray? Can Rob Blake still play? I was told the Hurricanes are going to move Eric Staal. Did Alex Ovechkin demand a trade? Will Jaromir Jagr play in Edmonton? Is Markus Naslund on his way out in Vancouver?

The time has come to tell every one of you to relax. The vast majority of the rumors you are hearing are just that – rumors, often made up to attract your interest! Maybe people are bored and want to “stir” the pot a bit. Maybe they really believe what they write. Maybe, just maybe, they are trying to draw you in.

How do I know all of this? Maybe there really is “talk” about all of these players moving. Being an avid NHL fan for 45 years, I have witnessed this type of hype each and every year, and yes, it is getting worse, but that doesn’t mean it is going to happen.

The trades that seem to happen are the ones we did not expect. Heck, the last major trade that was on the radar may have been Brendan Shanahan to Detroit in 1996.

We are in a salary cap era, meaning even money, in most cases, has to be moved. Sure, some teams feeling the need for that one player to put them onto a Cup run could take a chance on a player who will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, but even then, teams are beginning to realize the loss of draft picks and roster players may be too much.

You are about to read and hear more of these types of rumors. My suggestion is this: Put yourself in the shoes of the other team, the team that is rumored to be giving up that key player. Would you make that trade? You probably will have your answer, listen to the part of your brain that says NO, and then move on!

All Positive

The recent NHL Winter Classic still is being talked about, and all is good. It was a great day, the weather made the game and we have moved on. Now every city wants the next game, and from Fenway Park to Southern California, everyone has tossed their location in the ring.

Where and when the next outdoor game will be played, who knows? But I must say, the NHL made the perfect choice for the game in Buffalo and I am sure they will do the same for the next outdoor game. My only fear is they will not choose to put a game in the “Big House” in Ann Arbor, Mich. Imagine 110,000 people, about 40,000 of them heading over from Ontario, to watch the Leafs take on the Wings. Now that would be CLASSIC.

Have you noticed

Teams no longer freeze the puck along the boards. I can’t recall the last time I saw a stoppage of play when a scrum of players held the puck along the boards. Fewer whistles mean faster games, which has turned out to be very good for all of us.

Whatever happened to the goalie mask cam?

Shouldn’t teams be scoring more with a 5-on-3 power play?

I never realized how much the Detroit Red Wings needed a right-handed shot from the point until Brian Rafalski came to town.

My favorite day during the regular season is fast approaching – Feb. 9 – Hockey Day in Canada. All hockey, all day, I am in heaven!

OK, that is enough from me. Feel free to leave your comments below or e-mail me at pk@kuklaskorner.com

Have a great hockey week!

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