Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun: A couple GMs who could be under the gun this offseason: Scott Howson, Pierre Gauthier, George McPhee, Brian Burke, and Dean Lombardi. The Sharks might be willing to trade Joe Pavelski, prospects and picks for Rick Nash after the season. A Nash to Rangers deal didn’t happen because they wouldn’t include Chris Kreider. The Bruins and Blackhawks tried to get Sheldon Souray at the deadline. The Avalanche and Canucks tried to get Steve Ott. The Flyers were close to trading Sergei Bobrovsky, but decided against it due to Ilya Bryzgalov’s inconsistent play. The Lightning, Maple Leafs and Blackhawks were looking for goaltending. Flyers winger James van Riemsdyk was almost traded at the deadline. Sources say that 3 or 4 teams were bidding for him, including the Maple Leafs. The Ducks would have moved Teemu Selanne, but he didn’t want to go anywhere. The Rangers, Sharks, Bruins and Kings were interested. Sergei Gonchar could be moved in the offseason.
Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal: The Predators weren’t shopping goalie Anders Lindback at the deadline, but he could be moved after the season. They could get a 2nd round pick at the draft.
Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times: Jonathan Toews has missed 6 games with a concussion, and will be out at least 2 more. He hasn’t started skating again, but has done some off-ice workout. There is a chance defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson (concussion symptoms) plays on Tuesday.
Toronto Sun: Canadiens forward Scott Gomez suffered an eye injury in the 3rd period against Minnesota the other night and is out indefinitely. He may have played his last game in a Canadiens uniform. There is the outside chance that he’s traded (2 years left on contract, $7.3 million cap hit), but it’s more likely he’ll be bought out or buried in the AHL. If he’s bought out, he’d have about a $1.6 million cap hit for the next 4 years.
Kevin Paul Dupont via twitter: Tuukka Rask’s injury is believed to be his left knee, which was previously scoped.
Ira Haufman of the Tampa Tribune: Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman missed his 4th straight game with an upper-body injury, but he’s expected to practice this week, and could be cleared to play for Tuesday. Their trainer said it is not a concussion.
Tim Campbell of the Winnipeg Free Press: Jets defesneman Zach Bogosian left yesterday’s practice early after aggravating an injury. He’ll be a game-time decision on Monday.
Darren Dreger via twitter: The Leafs put Jay Rosehill on re-entry waivers yesterday.
Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun: MLSE has faith in Brian Burke:
“Obviously the team is struggling,” Tom Anselmi, executive vice-president and COO for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, said in a Thursday e-mail to the Toronto Sun. “It’s been disappointing for our fans, but it’s not over yet. We have faith in Brian and his people to get us back on track.”
Dallas Morning News: Steve Ott on all the trade talk that surrounded him leading up to the trade deadline:
“For sure, I would be lying if I said it didn’t bother me. 12 years in the Dallas area that I’ve been in, my daughter is a Texan and I can go down the list on how I feel about the Dallas area being my home. Anytime you talk about uplifting yourself from a community that really you enjoy, it’s tough. I was thinking about it for a month and a half when I started hearing stuff and talking to people about it, but the professional side is you go out there and work as hard as you can and you continue to take care of the things you can control, and that’s kind of how I approached the whole situation. Obviously, Monday was a difficult day because I didn’t know where I stood until 2:05 when the deadline came in and you find out where you’re supposed to be. I had a couple of cocktails and. some Bud Light to relax. I had trade center on the whole night and tried not to pull my hair out or bite my nails off. I made it pretty clear that I wanted to be a Dallas Star and continue to be a Dallas Star.”