More Hossa Rumours

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Originally post by The Fourth Period.

The Marian Hossa rumors continue to heat up, as Montreal’s La Presse is reporting that the Atlanta Thrashers have been scouting the Canadiens.

On Sunday, Thrashers GM/head coach Don Waddell took in the Canadiens’ home game against the NY Rangers.

Waddell told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he was merely on a scouting trip and wasn’t specifically there to talk trade with Habs GM Bob Gainey.

However, La Presse reports Waddell’s right hand man, Mark Dobson, the Thrashers’ Director of Player Personnel, also attended Sunday’s game.

In fact, Dobson and Thrashers pro scout Peter Mahovlich were in Montreal Tuesday for their game against the Ottawa Senators.

The paper notes that a Hossa trade to Montreal is not set in stone. Sources tell TFP the two sides are talking, but nothing appears imminent.

According to La Presse, Waddell is covering his bases and weighing his options. If he cannot sign Hossa to an extension before the Feb. 26 trade deadline, he’ll have to explore trading him.

If Hossa is traded, the Thrashers would apparently want a young NHL-ready player and a first-round pick, however the team might be interested in one of Montreal’s top defensive prospects, a source said.

Canadiens Looking at Marian Hossa?

TSN and Team 990 are reporting that Montreal is in serious talks with the Atlanta Thrashers and Marian Hossa’s agent as they weight out a potential trade. We all expected to hear Ryder’s name thrown around but he’s not enough to grab a sniper like Hossa; Chris Higgins’ name has been tossed out there by Team 990.

This is still speculative (remember all the fuss about Alex Tanguay?) - I’ll update here when more news leaks! Remember, the trade deadline is on February 26th!

Tanguay Waives NTC?

TSN is reporting that Alex Tanguay has officially waived his no-trade clause with the Calgary Flames, opening up trade possibilities with several teams, Montreal included. Rumours have been circulating of a deal potentially involving Michael Ryder or Saku Koivu but Calgary GM Darryl Sutter has been seen all over North America lately, attending games and fanning the gossip flames.

To be fair, the CBC is reporting that the clause has not been waived, so obviously nothing has been confirmed. More on this as the news leaks!

Alex Tanguay For Michael Ryder?

Rumours are flying that the Montreal Canadiens are looking at Alex Tanguay of the Calgary Flames in exchange for Michael Ryder as the Habs look to strengthen their team and the Flames look to cut down their salaries to free up room to sign superstars like Pheneuf. Ryder has obviously been an underacheiver this season and, while I love having a talented Newfoundlander on the team, it may be the best move for everyone concerned.

Have an opinion on this proposed trade? Leave a comment!

What Would You Do For Vinny?

Let me start off by saying that this post is full of speculation and wishful thinking! While the Montreal media went through a frenzy when the rumour that Vincent Lecavalier would like to play for the Habs late in 2007, things never went any further and no official talk came from the Habs and the Lightning. Before I commit to calling the dream of Vinny in Montreal wishful thinking, let’s break down the potential specifics.

Would Tampa Bay part with him? Given that Lecavalier is the leading points scorer in the NHL at the moment, one would assume that the Lightning would either be unwilling to trade or would want such a high price tag that we simply wouldn’t bite. But, being that Tampa is floating in last place in the Eastern Conference at the moment, maybe there is a chance that they would trade in order to fix their goaltending woes.

What would we have to trade? Given the goaltending situation in Tampa, Huet would be a good starter. Throw in an all-star forward (Koivu, anyone?) and we may just have a deal. The questions from the Montreal end of things:

- Is Carey Price ready to take over as a true number one? Sometimes he looks like it, other times not so much. Halak has the potential to be a star backup and that is important to remember.

- While we all love Saku, he just hasn’t been living up to expectations lately (save for the past few games). He is a star centre and a great playmaker, but he isn’t the high scoring front man that we need.

The real question for the readers is, assuming Tampa were open to negotiations, who would you trade for Vinny?