Saturday, June 21, 2008

Wheelin' and Dealin' in Ottawa


So of course the big news of yesterday and today is the 2008 NHL Draft. To no one's surprise, the number 1 pick was Steve Stamkos, who will be headed to the land of sunshine and bikinis as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Another deal that brings a smile to the newly buzz-cut Tampa Bay star Vincent LeCavalier, is that his bud Vinny Prospal is coming back to the Bolts after a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers. And while the Barry Melrose rumor regarding his possible new deal as the new coach of the Lightning is still floating around, I found an awesome Melrose-themed hockey blog. The theme of this blog is "nothing says hockey like a greased mullet" - awesome!

The Capitals have made several moves of their own. One of the most notable is the drafting of Swedish player Anton Gustafsson, son of former Caps phenom Bengt Gustafsson. Unfortunately, the Caps will have to part ways with d-man Steve Eminger, who was traded to Philadelphia. I really like Eminger and personally will be sad to see him go...especially to the team I love to hate most in the NHL. But I hope this is a good deal for him and he gets a lot of playing time in the City of Brotherly Love. In another deal, the Flyers lose a big player in R.J. Umberger, who's off to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

So the NHL GM's will doing more wheeling and dealing this weekend than a blue-haired retiree at the craps table in Vegas! Stay tuned - I'm sure there will be more wacky trades to come!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

I’m not surprised the Capitals traded Eminger but to the Flyers is a punch in the stomach. It’s like throwing a lamb into the lion’s den.

I’m sorry to see him go because he seemed like a nice guy but the Caps needs strong defensemen, and I don’t think Emi played the part well enough to be on this elite squad [at this time].