Nothing will top today’s USA-Canada showdown for gold in Vancouver for overall hockey interest this year. But on the list of rivals for overall eyeballs, the NHL’s annual trade deadline day is sure to be a top-five finalist.
The advent of blogs and 24-hour channels with all that airtime to fill has created a cottage industry of rumor and speculation that reaches a fever pitch when the clock strikes zero hour. The accuracy ratio of rumor to actual completed trade is approximately 4:100, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t make for a great day of frenzied whispering and the eyebrow-raising “I hear something’s brewing between . . .” murmur that is irresistible to all hockey people.
Wednesday at 1 p.m. is the cutoff time for NHL deals to be done, and it is expected to be a quiet day for the Avalanche. Unless it isn’t. Avs fans have been surprised before with megadeals that gave little advance warning, so the fail-safe attitude to have with them on deadline day for years has been, “You never know.”
But with a youthful roster that has produced one of the most surprising records in the league, the smoke signals from team headquarters seem to indicate only a minor tweak or two will be in store.
“I think (the way) the Avs have always approached it is, if they can do something to better the team without hurting the future, they’ll do it,” said Avs captain Adam Foote, who couldn’t have parroted Pierre Lacroix’s standard line for years on the subject any better. “They’re pretty smart with it. Whatever happens, we’ll deal with it. We’ve been a pretty good dressing room as far as things not bothering us, and sticking together.”
History probably will record that the biggest trades of 2009-10 have already been made. Calgary’s deals involving Dion Phaneuf and Olli Jokinen rocked the puck world, and Atlanta’s parceling of superstar Ilya Kovalchuk to New Jersey was off the charts.
That said, many deals figure to go down, and if the Avs are to get their Monty Hall on at all, one of their two reserve defensemen figures to be part of the action. John-Michael Liles, the 29-year-old with two years left on a four-year, $16.8 million contract, is a natural target for trade speculation, given the several healthy scratches on his game log this season. And veteran Ruslan Salei, in the final year of a deal worth $3.25 million, could interest several teams needing a proven name for a playoff run.
Coach Joe Sacco will continue to say his is a nice problem to have, as long as he has eight defensemen on the roster to delegate playing time. But teams rarely carry more than seven defensemen at a time, for practical (and budgetary) purposes. Liles and Salei want to play, and moving one of them could be a win-win for both sides in the end. Moving Liles’ hefty contract could prove too difficult — and the Avs are not on record saying they are trying to work a deal for him in the first place, preferring not to comment at all — but his situation has potential, on paper at least, to be a distraction if the status quo prevails.
For now, Sacco operates under the assumption he’ll have eight D-men to juggle, along with the rest of his roster as it currently stands.
“I don’t focus on (the deadline),” Sacco said. “For the young players, it’s something they’re going to have to learn to go through every year, and the veteran guys have been through it so many times that I think they’re used to it by now. The biggest thing for me and us as a coaching staff is to make sure that we don’t get distracted. It’s going to be an extremely important push for us down the stretch, and, man, it’s going to be competitive.”
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com and
Deadline nears
The Avalanche currently has a payroll of about $52.4 million, $4.3 million under the NHL salary cap (not including the long-term injury status of right wing David Jones). Here are some names that might interest the Avs leading up to Wednesday’s 1 p.m. trade deadline:
Joe Corvo, Carolina: Offensive defenseman, in the last year of a contract worth $2.75 million.
Sheldon Souray, Edmonton: Has two years left on a huge contract, but has one of the most feared slap shots in the league. Currently out with a broken hand, though.
Slava Kozlov, Atlanta: He’s 37 and a former Red Wing, but he’s unhappy with the Thrashers and wants out.
Colby Armstrong, Atlanta: An agitating, hard-hitting forward. If Avs feel veteran Darcy Tucker isn’t up to snuff for a playoff run, a player of his caliber could be an option.
Ray Whitney, Carolina: Just about every team in the league is said to be interested in the reliable veteran winger. With the Avs currently playing a rookie — T.J. Galiardi at left wing on the top line — could a more proven commodity be desired for the short run?
Adrian Dater, The Denver Post
