Seguin (Plymouth Whalers) currently leads Hall (Windsor Spitfires) by two points – 105 to 103 – with only three games left, beginning Thursday night when the two superstars face off against each other in Windsor.

This year has seen a massive outburst from Seguin in comparison to last, where he was third in rookie scoring behind Evgeny Grachev and John Carlson with 67 points.

Seguin attributes some of his success to the change in stick blades.

“Growing up I was using an (Steve) Yzerman curve,” he said.  “My dad told me that a big curve makes you go top shelf.   I just tried different things and  felt out what I liked and now I use the (Joe) Sakic curve.”

It seems appropriate that the two blades Seguin has used in his career were two of the most defensively responsible players the game has ever seen; including one – Yzerman – who he is most compared to.

Being a great two-way forward takes hard work, and to also put up over a 100-point season is even more impressive.  Seguin believes that his success this year also stems from his coach in Plymouth, Mike Vellucci.

“Coming into the OHL it was a whole different level and atmosphere,” he said.  “He really helped me adjust and thought at what I had to improve in my game like defensive zone play.”

Hall on the other hand is into his third season in OHL, consistently getting better each season.

In his first year, 2007-08, Hall scored 84 points, good for second in rookie scoring behind then London Knight Patrick Maroon.

The following season, Hall improved on his point total – 90 – but declined in his goal scoring out put.  He had 45 in his rookie year, but dropped down to 38 en route to helping his Spitfires win the Memorial Cup.

This year, he should finish between these two benchmarks, the second season in a row that he’s finished with more assists than goals.

Hall would be the first Spitfire player since Peter Sarno in the 1997-98 season to capture the scoring title, something he’d be proud of.

“”That would be a really good accomplishment,” he said.  “I don’t think there has been a Spitfire that has won it in a really long time. At the end of the day it’s not a huge deal. It’d be a nice accomplishment for sure and it’d mean that I had a really good season.”

At the end of the day though, both know that the outcome of the scoring race will have little to no merit on what position they end up being drafted in in June.  However, both admit it would be special go to first overall.

“For sure I want to be selected first,” said Hall.  “I’m a pretty competitive guy. But if I don’t it’s not the end of the world. My ultimate goal is to play in the NHL and win the Stanley Cup some day.”

As for Seguin…

“Obviously it’s like a bonus,” he said.  “In the end I think getting drafted anywhere is just a true honor”

One thing’s for sure.  Both will be drafted.  But only one of them will be going to their new NHL team with an OHL scoring championship in their back pocket.

The playoff race has been alive and well for the last three weeks, with teams battling desperately to grab the final positions.

The Western Conference has already been decided, but there are still three spots available for four teams in the Eastern Conference; Peterborough (58), Niagara (57), Sudbury (56) and Oshawa (53).

Other than the jostling for spots six through eight, the Brampton Battalion (62) sit in fifth and by the end of next week, they could end up as low as seventh.

In the West, as mentioned, all eight positions have been clinched, but spots four through eight have yet to been decided.

As well, London (97) sit five points behind Windsor (102) in the battle for top spot with three games remaining for both.

First a look at the overall standings from both Conferences, followed by the key match-ups beginning Wednesday night.

x = Teams who have clinched a playoff spot.
y = Teams who have clinched the title

Games To Watch This Week

Friday

7:00 pm *
@ the John Labatt Centre in London
Windsor
London

* If London wins, they could set themselves up to take the Conference title with a win in their final game on Sunday

7:30 pm
@ the Sleeman Centre
Erie
Guelph

*One of the only head-to-head battles with close teams within range of each other in the final week.  Beginning only three points apart, this game could have a huge bearing on where both teams finish in the standings.

Saturday

7:00 pm
@ the Peterborough Memorial Centre
Oshawa
Peterborough

* If Peterborough loses their game earlier in the week in regulation, and the three other teams chasing them win, Oshawa has a chance to capture a playoff berth and eliminate the Petes at the same time.  If Peterborough wins however, it could effectively end Oshawa’s playoff hopes.

7:30 pm
@ the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre
Guelph
Owen Sound

*If Guelph loses and Saginaw wins their game today, they will finish in eighth place and end up facing the difficult task of taking on the Barrie Colts in the first round

Sunday – The final day of the season

2:00 pm
@ the Powerade Centre
Kingston
Brampton

*If Brampton wins, they lock up fifth place in the Eastern Conference, and set up a date with the much improved Kingston Frontenacs.  A key to their success  has been the play of Cody Hodgson, who has 20 points in 12 games since coming back from a severe back injury.

2:00 pm
@ the Ottawa Civic Centre
Sudbury
Ottawa

*Sitting in eighth place, this could be Subury’s last chance to squeak into the playoffs if they lose two of their games early in the week and Oshawa runs the table winning all three of theirs.

2:00 pm
@ the Compuware Arena
Saginaw
Plymouth

*If Plymouth is unable to win two of their first three games during the week, they will need at least a point to secure fourth place in the West and home ice advantage for the first round of the playoffs.

I will be back next week with an in-depth look into the first round of the playoffs.

Toronto, ON – The Canadian Hockey League announced yesterday that Michael Stickland of the Swift Current Broncos is the CHL Player of the Week for the week ending February 28. The forward recorded seven points in two games scoring two goals and adding five assists with a plus-minus rating of plus-4.

Stickland’s seven points led the Broncos to two straight home wins beginning on Friday night against the Regina Pats with a 6-4 victory. He opened the scoring on the power play at 4:05 of the first period and later tallied his 20th goal of the season at 7:01 of the second period. He added two assists for his first four-point game of the season as second star of the game. On Saturday Stickland contributed three assists as part of a 5-3 win over the BC Division leading Vancouver Giants where he was named first star of the game.

Stickland, a 20-year-old from Red Deer, AB, is playing in his fourth WHL season joining the Broncos midway through last season after beginning his career with the Kootenay Ice. He has 20 goals and 30 assists for 50 points in 64 games so far this season.
-

Voltigeurs’ Jake Allen Named CHL Goaltender of the Week

Toronto, ON – The Canadian Hockey League announced yesterday that Jake Allen of the Drummondville Voltigeurs is the CHL Goaltender of the Week for the second time this month.

For the week ending February 28, Allen went 4-0-0-0 with two shutout victories posting a goals-against-average of 0.500 and a save percentage of .980 while producing the second longest shutout streak in QMJHL history at 188 minutes and 47 seconds.

Allen’s shutout streak began after allowing a first period goal at 6:16 Wednesday night to the PEI Rocket in a game where he made 31 saves to earn a 3-1 victory. The streak continued with back-to-back shutouts including a 22 save performance Friday as second star of a 3-0 win over the Quebec Remparts, and a third star performance Saturday with 14 saves in a 7-0 win over the Gatineau Olympiques. The streak was ended by his former team the Montreal Juniors at 15:03 of the first period on Sunday falling short of the mark of 207 minutes and four seconds established by Mathieu Chouinard of the Shawinigan Cataractes in the 1997-98 season. Allen still made 33 saves to preserve the 4-1 win for the Voltigeurs who have now won 11 straight games.
-

Top Three Goal Scorers After Week 23

1) Bryan Cameron (Barrie Colts): 56 Games Played, 49 Goals

2) Kyle Beach (Spokane Chiefs): 62 Games Played, 48 Goals

3) Jeff Skinner (Kitchener Rangers): 61 Games Played, 47 Goals

-

Top Five Point Scorers After Week 23

1) Tyler Seguin (Plymouth Whalers): 58 Games Played, 99 Points

2) Jordan Eberle (Regina Pats): 52 Games Played,  97 Points

3) Taylor Hall (Windsor Spitfires): 54 Games Played, 95 Points

4) Jordan Weal (Regina Pats): 67 Games Played, 94 Points

5) Brandon Kozun (Calgary Hitmen): 59 Games Played, 94 Points

-

Top Three Rookie Point Scorers After Week 23

1) Shane McColgan (Kelowna Rockets): 65 Games Played, 65 Points

2) Kevin Connauton (Vancouver Giants): 64 Games Played, 65 Points

3) Ryan Johansen (Portland Winterhawks): 66 Games Played, 63 Points

-

Top 3 Goaltender Wins After Week 23

1) Peter Di Salvo (Barrie Colts): 46 Games Played, 35 Wins

2) Troy Passingham (Windsor Spitfires): 48 Games Played, 34 Wins

3) Drew Owsley (Tri-City Americans):  50 Games Played, 33 Wins
-

*News and Notes provided by the Canadian Hockey League*

This is calculated by dividing $2 million by the number of days in the season (193).
The amount ($10,363) is then multiplied by the number of days remaining in the season from
the day the trade is made (40 days if trade is on March 3) to ascertain the amount charged
against the team’s cap ($414,508).

	F Matt D’Agostini	TO		F Aaron Palushaj
	D Derek Morris	TO		fourth-round pick in 2011
	D Martin Skoula	TO		Fifth-round pick in 2010
	F Craig Weller F Byron Bitz 2nd-round pick 2010	TO		D Dennis Seidenberg D Matt Bartkowski
	D Aaron Ward	TO		G Justin Pogge Fourth-round pick
	F Scott Walker	TO		Seventh-round pick in 2010
	F Yan Stastny	TO		F Cedric Labrie
	F Peter Mueller F Kevin Porter	TO		F Wojtek Wolski
	F Kris Newbury	TO		F Jordan Owens
	D  Mathieu Schneider	TO		D Sean Zimmerman Sixth-round pick 2010
	F Jeff Halpern	TO		F Ted Purcell Third-round pick 2010
	F Eric Belanger	TO		2nd-round pick in 2010
	G Curtis McElhinney	TO		G Vesa Toskala
	F Raffi Torres	TO		D Nathan Paetsch 2nd-round pick in 2010
	F Clark McArthur	TO		Third-round pick in 2010 Fourth-round pick in 2010
	Sixth-round pick in 2010	TO		D Milan Jurcina
	F Lee Stempniak	TO		D Matt Jones Fourth-round pick in 2010 Seventh-round pick in 2010
	D Joe Corvo	TO		D Brian Pothier F Oskar Osala 2nd-round pick in 2011
	F Fred Modin	TO		Conditional Pick
	D Andrew Alberts	TO		Third-round pick in 2010
	F Stephane Yelle F Harrison Reed	TO		F Cedric Lalonde-McNicoll Sixth-round pick in 2010
	G Joey MacDonald	TO		Seventh-round pick in 2011
	D Mathieu Roy	TO		F Matt Rust
	D Lubomir Visnovsky	TO		D Ryan Whitney Sixth-round pick in 2010
	Sixth-round pick in 2010	TO		D Chris Peluso
	Dustin Boyd	TO		Fourth-round pick in 2010
	F Alex Picard	TO		F Chad Kolarik
	D Steve Staios	TO		D Aaron Johnson Third-round pick in 2010 or 2011
	Sixth-round pick in 2011	TO		F Petteri Nokelainen
	D Anders Eriksson	TO		G Miika Wiikman Seventh-round pick in 2011
	D Andy Delmore	TO		F Riley Armstrong

Ponikarovsky, who is only four goals behind his career mark of 23, has been having an excellent season for the blue and white, but just did not fit into Brian Burke’s rebuilding structure.  As one of the longest serving Leafs on the roster, Ponikarovsky gives the Penguins an experienced top-six forward and someone who will most likely skate on Evgeni Malkin’s wing.

Going the other way is Caputi, who has put up 47 points in 54 games for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL.  It remains to be seen where Caputi will fit into the Leafs immediate plans.  Signs point to him joining the AHL’s Marlies, but don’t rule out him being called up to the big club for the remainder of the season, especially since the team is no where near the playoffs.

Skoula, the journeyman defenseman who is now joining his sixth team in 12 seasons, was thrown into the deal to accommodate the salary of Ponikarovsky under their salary cap crunch.  TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the Leafs could try to flip Skoula in a deal tomorrow before the 3 pm deadline.

*************************************************************************************************

Chris Chelios could be suiting up in the NHL as soon as this weekend.

The Atlanta Thrashers has signed the 48-year-old blueliner for the remainder of the season. He has spent the past 44 games with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL amassing five goals and 21 points.

The three-time Norris trophy winner has to clear waivers before suiting up with the Thrashers. He was placed on waivers earlier today after being signed.

Chelios was a second-round pick 40^th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 1981. This will be his fourth NHL team (Montreal, Chicago and Detroit) over 26 seasons. He has won three Stanley Cups, two with Detroit and one with the Habs.

Atlanta sits two points out of the final playoff spot in the East.

*************************************************************************************************

In other news today the Ottawa Senators deal with a familiar friend to get another defenseman.

The Sens shipped out a second-round pick to the New York Islanders for veteran d-man Andy Sutton.

Sutton, who turns 35 next week, is a defensive defenseman who has five goals and 12 points in 54 games so far this season with the Isles.

Last season the Sens dealt a first-round draft pick and Dean McAmmond for another Islanders defenseman, Chris Campoli and Mike Comrie.

The Senators currently sit one point ahead of the Buffalo Sabres for first in the Northeast division and third in the conference.

*************************************************************************************************

The Minnesota Wild have ending speculation that they are shopping veteran offensive defenseman Marek Zidlicky by signing him to a new contract.

The 33-year-old signed a three-year, $12 million contract that has a limited no trade clause earlier today.

Zidlicky is coming off a strong performance at the Olympics for the Czech Republic registering five points.

He has 52 goals and 253 points over six seasons split between the Wild and Predators.

*************************************************************************************************

The Philadelphia Flyers will likely be in play for one of the many available goalies tomorrow after announcing that Ray Emery is done for the remainder of the season.

The 28-year-old has hip issues and will have a bone graft done to alleviate the problem.

That leaves the Flyers with Mike Leighton and Brian Boucher to lead them into the playoffs.

Marty Turco, Dan Ellis, Chris Mason and Martin Biron could all be available for the right price. However, the Flyers are running into cap issues.

The Flyers sit in sixth in the East four points up on the ninth place Thrashers.

Sept. 4, 2009: Anaheim traded RW Jason Bailey to Ottawa for LW Shawn Weller.

Sept. 5, 2009: Chicago traded Toronto’s 2nd-round pick in the 2010 Entry Draft (previously
acquired) to Toronto for Calgary’s 2nd-round pick in 2011 (previously acquired) and
Toronto’s 3rd-round pick in 2011.

Sept. 12, 2009: Ottawa traded LW Dany Heatley and a 5th-round pick in the 2010 Entry
Draft to San Jose for RW Jonathan Cheechoo, LW Milan Michalek and a 2nd-round pick in
2010.

Sept. 18, 2009: Philadelphia traded D Patrik Hersley to Nashville for future considerations.

Sept. 18, 2009: Boston traded RW Phil Kessel to Toronto for Toronto’s 1st- and 2nd-round
picks in the 2010 Entry Draft and a 1st-round pick in 2011.

Sept. 24, 2009: Anaheim traded D Steve McCarthy to Atlanta for future considerations.

Sept. 28, 2009: Calgary traded D Anton Stralman to Columbus for a 3rd-round pick in the
2010 Entry Draft.

Oct. 7, 2009: Chicago traded D Aaron Johnson to Calgary for LW Kyle Greentree.

Oct. 8, 2009: Atlanta traded LW Jordan LaVallee-Smotherman to Columbus for future
considerations.

Oct. 18, 2009: Boston traded RW Chuck Kobasew to Minnesota for RW Craig Weller, RW
Alexander Fallstrom and Minnesota’s 2nd-round pick in the 2011 Entry Draft.

Oct. 20. 2009: Columbus traded RW Stefan Legein to Philadelphia for D Mike Ratchuk.

Oct. 20, 2009: Buffalo traded LW Daniel Paille to Boston for Boston’s 3rd-round pick in the
2010 Entry Draft and conditional pick in 2010.

Nov. 23, 2009: Minnesota traded LW Benoit Pouliot to Montreal for LW Guillaume Latendresse.

Dec. 1, 2009: Montreal traded C Kyle Chipchura to Anaheim for a conditional pick in the
2010 or 2011 Entry Draft.

Dec. 3, 2009: Toronto traded C Jiri Tlusty to Carolina for C Philippe Paradis.

Dec. 8, 2009: St. Louis traded D Brendan Bell and C Tomas Kana to Columbus for LW
Pascal Pelletier.

Dec. 28, 2009: Columbus traded LW Jason Chimera to Washington for RW Chris Clark
and D Milan Jurcina.

Jan. 31, 2010: Calgary traded D Dion Phaneuf, LW Fredrik Sjostrom and D Keith Aulie to
Toronto for LW Niklas Hagman, RW Jamal Mayers, C Matt Stajan and D Ian White.

Jan. 31, 2010: Anaheim traded G Jean-Sebastien Giguere to Toronto for LW Jason Blake
and G Vesa Toskala.

Feb. 2, 2010: NY Rangers traded LW Chris Higgins and RW Ales Kotalik to Calgary for C
Olli Jokinen and LW Brandon Prust.

Feb. 4, 2010: Atlanta traded LW Ilya Kovalchuk, D Anssi Salmela and a 2nd-round pick in
the 2010 Entry Draft to New Jersey for D Johnny Oduya, RW Niclas Bergfors, C Patrice
Cormier and New Jersey’s 1st- and 2nd-round picks in 2010.

Feb. 6, 2010: Detroit traded LW Ville Leino to Philadelphia for D Ole-Kristian Tollefsen and
a 5th-round pick in the 2011 Entry Draft.

Feb. 7, 2010: Carolina traded D Niclas Wallin and a 5th-round pick in the 2010 Entry Draft
to San Jose for Buffalo’s 2nd-round pick in 2010 (previously acquired).

Feb. 9, 2010: Atlanta traded G Kari Lehtonen to Dallas for D Ivan Vishnevskiy and Dallas’
4th-round pick in the 2010 Entry Draft.

Feb. 11, 2010: Pittsburgh traded D Nate Guenin to St. Louis for D Steve Wagner.

Feb. 11, 2010: Florida traded C Dominic Moore to Montreal for Montreal’s 2nd-round pick in
the 2011 Entry Draft.

Feb. 12, 2010: Carolina traded C Matt Cullen to Ottawa for D Alexandre Picard and
Ottawa’s 2nd-round pick in the 2010 Entry Draft.

Feb. 12, 2010: San Jose traded LW Jody Shelley to NY Rangers for a conditional pick in the
2011 Entry Draft.

Feb. 12, 2010: Chicago traded D Cam Barker to Minnesota for D Kim Johnsson and D
Nick Leddy.

Mar. 1, 2010: Florida traded D Jordan Leopold to Pittsburgh for Pittsburgh’s 2nd-round pick in 2010

Mar. 1, 2010: Chicago traded G Joe Fallon to St. Louis  for G Hannu Toivonen and D Danny Richmond

Mar. 1, 2010: Atlanta traded D Nathan Oystrick and a conditional draft choice in 2011 to Anaheim for F Evgeny Artyukhin

Mar. 1, 2010: Edmonton traded D Denis Grebeshkov to Nashville for Nashville’s 2nd-round pick in 2010

Mar. 2 2010: Ottawa traded  San Jose’s 2nd-round pick in 2010 to the New York Islanders for D Andy Sutton

Mar. 2 2010: NY Islanders traded F Greg Moore to Columbus for D Dylan Reese

Mar. 2 2010: Edmonton traded D Cody Wild to Boston for F Matt Marquardt

Mar. 2 2010: Toronto traded F Alexi Ponikarovsky to the Pittsburgh Penguins for 4th-round prospect F Luca Caputi and D Martin Skoula

On March 10, 2003 – The New Jersey Devils made two moves first they acquired RW GRANT MARSHALL from Columbus for a conditional choice in 2004. Their second move saw them acquiring D RICHARD SMEHLIK and a conditional choice from Atlanta for a fourth-round pick in 2003 (D MIKE VANNELLI).

Compared to 2002 the Devils were relatively quiet at the 2003 trade deadline. In ‘02 they obtained C Joe Nieuwendyk and RW Jamie Langenbrunner from Dallas for C Jason Arnott, RW Randy McKay and New Jersey’s first round choice in 2002. Grant Marshall provided timely scoring for the Devils (6-2–8) including a series-clinching goal in triple overtime against Tampa Bay.

On January 27, 2004 the Tampa Bay Lightning acquired D DARRYL SYDOR and Columbus’ fourth-round pick in the 2004 Entry Draft (D MIKE LUNDIN) from Columbus for C ALEXANDER SVITOV and Tampa Bay’s third-round pick in 2004 (later traded to Calgary). This trade was completed 40 days before the trade deadline and the only move the Lightning needed to make.

The 31-year old Sydor brought with him the experience of having appeared in three Stanley Cup Finals, including playing with a championship team in Dallas in 1999.

On March 9, 2006 the Carolina Hurricanes acquired RW MARK RECCHI from Pittsburgh for LW NIKLAS NORDGREN, C KRYS KOLANOS and Carolina’s second-round choice in 2007 (later traded to San Jose).

The 38-year-old Recchi, who had won a Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh in 1991, had 16 points (7-9–16) during the 2006 Stanley Cup Playoffs, including six points in the Final against Edmonton. He scored the game-winning goal in Game 4 that put Carolina up 3-1 in the series. The Hurricanes had also added a key piece to the puzzle on Jan. 30 when they acquired Doug Weight from St. Louis (along with Erkki Rajamaki) for Jesse Boulerice, Michael Zigomanis, Magnus Kahnberg and a first-round draft choice.

February 27, 2007 the Anaheim Ducks got out and toughen up by acquiring LW BRAD MAY from Colorado for G MICHAEL WALL.

A veteran of 15 NHL seasons and 932 regular-season and Stanley Cup playoff games, May brought plenty of experience to the Anaheim lineup for the stretch drive. The 35-year-old Toronto native appeared in 18 of the Ducks’ 21 postseason games as the franchise won its first Stanley Cup championship.

February 26, 2008 the Detroit Red Wings sured up their defence when they acquired D BRAD STUART from Los Angeles for Detroit’s 2nd-round pick in the 2008 Entry Draft (later traded to Colorado) and 4th-round pick in 2009.

Stuart arrived in Detroit with more than 500 games of NHL experience and quickly formed an effective blueline partnership with hard-hitting Niklas Kronwall. Stuart appeared in all 21 Red Wings’ playoff games in their 2008 Stanley Cup campaign, tallying seven points (one goal, six assists). He ranked third in the NHL with a +15 rating, just behind Kronwall and Conn Smythe Trophy winner Henrik Zetterberg (+16).

March 4, 2009 – Pittsburgh Penguins acquired RW BILL GUERIN from NY Islanders for a
conditional pick in the 2009 Entry Draft.

The Penguins brought in a high-scoring wing for center Sidney Crosby at the trade deadline for
the second consecutive season, having benefited from the acquisition of Marian Hossa a year
earlier. In Guerin, the Penguins added a 17-year NHL veteran with 408 goals, 811 points and a
Stanley Cup ring. He made a major contribution to the Penguins’ Cup drive, recording seven
goals and 15 points in the postseason.

The Penguins also acquired W Christ Kunitz and prospect Eric Tangradi about a week before the trade deadline for D Ryan Whitney.

If there’s one thing you can take away from all of these trades, it’s that you don’t need to make a blockbuster deal to win the Cup. All of these moves were depth moves. Insurance plans for the long playoff run.

How about Rob and Scott Niedermayer hooking up once again for another Stanley Cup?

Anaheim Ducks
F – Saku Koivu
F – Teemu Selanne
F – Kyle Calder
D – Scott Niedermayer
D – Nick Boynton
D – Sheldon Brookbank

Atlanta Thrashers
F – Vyacheslav Kozlov
F – Colby Armstrong
F – Evgeny Artyukhin
F – Jim Slater
F – Maxim Afinogenov
F – Eric Boutlon
D – Pavel Kubina
D – Mark Popovic
G – Johan Hedberg

Boston Bruins
F – Mark Recchi
F – Steve Begin
F – Miroslav Satan
F – Shawn Thornton
D – Derek Morris
D – Andrew Ference

Buffalo Sabres
F – Mike Grier
F – Adam Mair
F – Matt Ellis
D – Toni Lydman
D – Henrik Tallinder
G – Patrick Lalime

Calgary Flames
F – Chris Higgins
F – Jamal Mayers
F – Craig Conroy
F – Brian McGrattan
D – Aaron Johnson

Carolina Hurricanes
F – Ray Whitney
F – Scott Walker
F – Stephane Yelle
D – Joe Corvo
D – Aaron Ward
D – Jay Harrison
G – Manny Legace

Chicago Blackhawks
F – John Madden
F – Ben Eager
F – Adam Burish
F – Colin Fraser
D – Kim Johnsson

Colorado Avalanche
F – Darcy Tucker
F – Marek Svatos
F – David Koci
F – Matt Hendricks
F – Chris Durno
D – Brett Clark
D – Ruslan Salei
D – Adam Foote
G – Peter Budaj

Columbus Blue Jackets
F – Fredrik Modin
F – Raffi Torres
F – Derek MacKenzie
F – Milan Jurcina

Dallas Stars
F – Jere Lehtinen
F – Mike Modano
F – Krys Barch
F – Toby Petersen
F – Warren Peters
G – Marty Turco

Detroit Red Wings
F – Tomas Holmstrom
F – Jason Williams
F – Todd Bertuzzi
F – Kirk Maltby
F – Kris Newbury
F – Brad May
D – Nicklas Lidstrom
D – Andreas Lilja
D – Brett Lebda
D – Ole-Kristian Tollefsen

Edmonton Oilers
F – Fernando Pisani
F – Mike Comrie
F – Jason Strudwick

Florida Panthers
F – Kamil Kreps
D – Dennis Seidenberg

Los Angeles Kings
F – Alex Frolov
F – Raitis Ivanans
D – Sean O’Donnell

Phoenix Coyotes
F – Matthew Lombardi
F – Robert Lang
D – Adrian Aucoin
D – Zbynek Michalek
D – Anders Eriksson

Minnesota Wild
F – Owen Nolan
F – Eric Belanger
F – Petr Sykora
F – Derek Boogaard
D – Shane Hnidy
D – John Scott

Montreal Canadiens
F – Tomas Plekanec
F – Dominic Moore
F – Glen Metropolit
F – Mathieu Darche
D – Paul Mara
D – Marc-Andre Bergeron

Nashville Pedators
D – Dan Hamhuis
D – Francis Bouillon
D – Wade Belak
G – Dan Ellis

New Jersey Devils
F – Ilya Kovalchuk
F – Rob Niedermayer
F – Ilkka Pikkarainen
F – Dean McAmmond
D – Paul Martin
D – Mike Mottau
G – Yann Danis

New York Islanders
F – Dough Weight
F – Jon Sim
F – Richard Park
F – Tim Jackman
F – Trevor Gillies
D – Freddy Meyer
G – Martin Biron

New York Rangers
F – Olli Jokinen
F – Vaclav Prospal
F – Jody Shelley
F – Brandon Prust

Ottawa Senators
F – Matt Cullen
F – Shean Donovan
D – Anton Volchenkov
D – Andy Sutton

Philadelphia Flyers
F – Aaron Asham
F – Mika Pyorala
D – Lukas Krajicek

Pittsburgh Penguins
F – Bill Guerin
F – Ruslan Fedotenko
F – Matt Cooke
D – Sergei Gonchar
D – Mark Eaton
D – Jordan Leopold
D – Jay McKee
D – Martin Skoula
G – Brent Johnson

San Jose Sharks
F – Patrick Marleau
F – Scott Nichol
F – Manny Malhotra
F – Ryan Vesce
F – Jed Ortmeyer
D – Rob Blake
D – Niclas Wallin
D – Jay Leach
G – Evgeni Nabokov

St. Louis Blues
F – Paul Kariya
F – Keith Tkachuk
F – Brad Winchester
D – Carlo Colaiacovo
D – Darryl Sydor
D – Mike Weaver
G – Chris Mason

Tampa Bay Lightning
F – Alex Tanguay
F – Jeff Halpern
F- Stephane Veilleux
F – Mark Parrish
F – Zenon Konopka
D – David Hale
D – Kurtis Foster
G – Antero Niittymaki

Toronto Maple Leafs
F – Lee Stempniak
F – Alexei Ponikarovsky
F – Wayne Primeau
F – Rickard Wallin
F – John Mitchell
D – Mike Van Ryn
D – Garnet Exelby
D – Joey MacDonald

Vancouver Canucks
F – Pavol Demitra
F – Kyle Wellwood
F – Ryan Johnson
F – Jannik Hansen
D – Willie Mitchell
D – Shane O’Brien
D – Brad Lukowich
G – Andrew Raycroft

Washington Capitals
F – Brendan Morrison
F – Boyd Kane
D – Brian Pothier
D – Shaone Morrisonn
G – Jose Theodore

* a small number of pick designations are subject to change based on conditional trade terms
** As of March 3 2010, 23:15

Usually the rental player is an aging veteran on his last legs. This year some of these players include: Scott Niedermayer, Marty Turco, Maxim Afinogenov, Kurtis Foster, and Keith Tkachuk. Each of these players still has a lot to offer to teams down the stretch run. You can never get enough experience in a line up.

The problem is that with the parity in the league, there are fewer teams looking to get rid of their players. That lack of sellers is driving rental player prices through the roof. Something that is making NHL GM’s cautious of making deals.

“I think teams are leery of it,” said Columbus GM Scott Howson. “But, I think if you’re in the right situation with a real chance to win the Stanley Cup, you can get a really, really good player, I think you still have to do it.”

One of those really good players that Howson is talking about is from two years ago when the Pittsburgh Penguins traded for Marion Hossa.

“I don’t think either team would take back that deal because I think it worked for both teams,” said Howson. “It can certainly work if it’s the right player with the right team.”

“The pressure doesn’t change,” said Burke. “It’s unrelenting, unremitting.”

In a case of injuries, a team is looking for a short-term fix. The UFA is the best option for that because there aren’t any long-term financial implications.

“Sometimes you don’t even want the player to stay,” said ex-Calgary Flames head coach Mike Keenan. “And, that’s based mostly on financing. In some cases you do, and you’ll have the conversation with the player when he arrives.”

Last year there had been a lot of talk about one particular potential UFA. Jay Bouwmeester. Panthers GM Jacques Martin was in a tough situation. His team hadn’t made the playoffs since ’00. Bouwmeester was one of his best players. Martin couldn’t afford to lose him for nothing. But decided to keep the pending UFA and make a run at the playoffs. Martin later moved Bouwmeester at the Entry Draft in Montreal.

Leafs’ GM Brian Burke feels that it’s a risk that teams are going to be taking more and more as the age of unrestricted free agency drops. He thinks the NHL will switch to more of a NFL philosophy.

“I think you’re going to see a shift in the paradigm on the way we do business,” said Burke. “ A guy makes your team at 18. At 25 he’s unrestricted. If he goes, he goes, and you have to replace him.”

Burke knows that especially in Toronto, there is lots of pressure to make a ton of moves to turn an organization into a Cup contender. Even if that means adding a rental player.

“The pressure doesn’t change,” said Burke. “It’s unrelenting, unremitting.”

“Therefore, the temptation to add to your team or take from your team at the deadline, regardless of the price, is always there.”