Flashback to Tuesday
Ever since his attack on Steve Moore, the Todd Bertuzzi we once knew has not returned. Since that incident Bertuzzi has plead guilty to assault and was sentenced to probation and community service, been suspended from the NHL (causing him to miss 13 regular season games, the 2004 playoffs and about half a million in salary), sued by Moore in Colorado (a case that was later thrown out), sued by Moore in Ontario, was reinstated by the NHL (softies), played for Team Canada in the Olympics (Why? Who the hell knows!) and now has had Moore file a writ against him in British Columbia.
All the while Bertuzzi has shown remorse for his brutal action in March of 2004 and has embarked on a subpar return to the NHL and the Vancouver Canucks and had a horrendous run in the Olympics.
Now, he faces Moore’s legal charges again and one has to wonder if or when Bertuzzi will be traded along with his $5.2 million price tag.
Jump to today
And he wasn’t. The Canucks have kept Bertuzzi (at least for the run this season).
On the other hand, Minnesota finally made a move by trading Dwayne Roloson to the Edmonton Oilers for a 1st round pick in 2006 and a conditional pick. This is a good move for both teams as Minnesota had already signed their other goaltender, Manny Fernandez, to a contract extension and it gives them another crack at adding more young talent to their system (a system which many NHL insiders adore) and the Oilers get a guy that can quietly lead them into the postseason. By quietly I mean it’s not a move that will mean that anything less than the Stanley Cup will be a dissapointment. The talk had been that the Oilers were after Belfour or CuJo and either one of those names would suddenly inspire Edmonton fans into thinking that they would be going all the way to the Finals. Which was nearly an impossible thought early on in the season but Roloson is quite capable of raising the Oilers stakes in the playoffs.
The Oilers also picked up Sergei Samsonov from the Boston Bruins for Marty Reasoner, a prospect and a second round pick. For Boston this is nothing more than a salary dump and they pick a mid-level guy while the Oilers are looking to solidify their playoff position and beyond. Samsonov will surely help this team get over the hump now and if they can re-sign him, for a long time to come (or at least for whatever the length of his contract is) :)
The Wild also made a deal with Dallas for Martin Skoula and Shawn Belle in exchange for Willie Mitchell and a pick.
The Colorado Av’s continued their trade deadline tradition by sending David Aebischer to the Habs for Jose Theodore, who remains on the IR until about the last week of the regular season. While Theodore hasn’t had the best of seasons and quite actually hasn’t had a great season since his Vezina/Hart year 4 years ago the Avalanche have taken a big step forward. Aebischer has played well for the team since he took over the No. 1 spot, at a very reasonable price but for some reason GM Pierre Lacroix has seen fit to part with his young goalie.
In Theodore, you get a guy who can get the job done in the regular season and who can take you far into the playoffs, let’s face it, the Habs don’t have the firepower that the Avalanche do…or the defense. Colorado won’t win the Cup, but this move might be so bad….unless you start looking at the AV’s salary cap.
The Mighty Ducks made several moves as they traded Keith Carney to Vancouver for a pick and a prospect. They sent Sandis Ozolinsh to NYR for another pick and acquired Sean O’Donnell from Phoenix and brought back Jeff Friesen via the Devils. All of that for a playoff spot push and putting things together for next season.
The Hurricanes picked up Mark Recchi from the Penguins for Niklas Nordgren, Krys Kolanos and a 2nd round pick. Recchi won’t replace Eric Cole’s goal production but he can still put the puck in the net and brings some more leadership to go alongside of Doug Weight. Oh yeah, and more age.
In what will end up as being a steal for both sides, the Kings and Isles made a deal with each other again (their other deal being the Palffy/Jokinen bargain several years back) as the Kings sent hot prospects Jeff Tambellini and Denis Grebeshkov, along with a pick for Mark Parrish and Brent Sopel. The Islanders are still on the outside looking in in the Eastern Conference playoff picture and the two youngsters will probably not do much for their cause this season. The Kings pick up Sopel and Parrish, two guys who can help with the Kings dreadful special teams and if the Kings can re-sign Parrish (goodbye Roenick!) then Los Angeles can look forward to having a much more threatning offense.
Overall, much of what was expected happened. The Canucks loaded up with defensemen, Brendan Witt of the Capitals was traded (to Nashville), the ‘Theodore to Colorado’ rumors were true and other playoff hungry teams did what they could to get ready for the postseason.
What wasn’t expected was the Panthers resigning Oli Jokinen, not trading Luongo and the Ducks making so many moves. The Coyotes and Flyers also made a number of moves but they weren’t much other than adding depth guys. The Flyers did it for the postseason, the Coyotes did it for some other year.
A slow trade deadline frenzy, for sure.
