Wheelin' and Dealin'

Today marks ten days until the NHL deadline, and already, some big deals have gone down.  One of the sellers in the market is the Ottawa Senators, who have, in a matter of days, traded away Mike Fisher (Nashville), Chris Kelly (Boston), and Jarko Ruutu (Anaheim).  Also selling, despite being six points out of the playoff race as of this morning is the Toronto Maple Leafs, trading away Francois Beauchemin (Anaheim) and Kris Versteeg (Philadelphia), with the ever-eternal Tomas Kaberle trade rumors hanging over their heads.  Now, Toronto is obviously trying to right a few wrongs from the previous regime that traded away prospects and draft picks left and right, something that began with the Dion Phaneuf trade last year.  All of that will be rendered moot if either Phil Kessel gets traded before the deadline or Tyler Seguin and whoever becomes the pick Boston has this year turn out to be superstars.  Who else could be selling?  Well, the New York Islanders are in a seemingly eternal rebuilding mode, and have already traded away Dwayne Rolosson to Tampa Bay.  Potentially on the trading block?  Milan Jurcina would be good for a team who needs blue line depth, and well, that's about it, since the Isles are mostly youth.

Need goaltending?  Tomas Vokoun could be on the market.  Florida doesn't look like a contender, and unless they feel that they can make a run, Vokoun is a trade candidate.  After all, he is in his walk year, and Jakob Markstrom is waiting to take over the goaltending reins.  Even though Craig Anderson is having an off year, he's another player to look for.  Colorado is fading fast in the playoff race, and now, without Matt Duchene, Colorado's playoff hopes are all but gone this year.

Edmonton isn't making the playoffs this year, but you already know that.  So, who could be on the trade block?  Dustin Penner could help a team, as he is the leading goal scorer on the team.  30 goals is the norm for him in a season, but he was woefully miscast as a first option on offense.  If he's healthy, Ales Hemsky could be traded, and he could be a contributor for a team in need of offense.  The key word: if.  In a perfect world, the Oilers would be able to trade Nikolai Khabibulin and get out from under the contract that looks bad in hindsight.  However, it's not as easy as it sounds, as Khabibulin is 38, and has been inconsistent since winning the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004.

Ten more days to go, and speculation as to who will be going is already running wild.  Better fire up the coffee machine because it will be a long one.

UPDATE: Craig Anderson was traded to Ottawa for Brian Elliot.  I figured Anderson would be traded, but not to a non-contender.  I call this one a push.