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Rumors, Emery, Savard's Injury, Phaneuf, Souray, Kovalchuk, and More...

January 9, 2010, 1:34 PM ET [ Comments]
Eklund
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Happy Saturday Hockey Fans! I was up most of the night putting the finishing touches on the Hockeybuzz Trade Deadline Chart For TD DAY 2010. Really an interesting crop of tradeable players this year. A few of the biggest names we have had in years in Kovalchuk and Scott Niedermayer. Several other game changers, and more role players...the kind of which every Cup winning team needs to be the one team that gets to win its last game.

Hockeybuzz Season Ticket Holders should look for the Chart in the next few days.

now onto the news and rumors...

On Emery....
Ray has been loaned to the Phantoms (as reported by Timmy P) and will play tonight to see how he feels. It is expected that Emery will return to the suddenly hot Flyers tomorrow and likely get his first start since the injury this Tuesday against the Stars in Philly.

On Savard...
According to The USA Today's Kevin Allen's twitter (if you can follow on hockey insider on twitter, it should be Kevin Allen. Follow him here ) Marc Savard will miss 3-4 weeks with a partial MCL tear. No surgery required. Good News for Bruins fans.

On Phaneuf...
Dion needs a change of scenery. Coach Sutter denied Dion had asked for a trade, and whether or not he did ask is really not the point. The issue is the Flames are a serious contender but also they have some rather odd situations going on. Phaneuf and Jokinen are not appearing to be fitting in to the team chemistry. Right or wrong, the Flames may need to take one step back to move way forward and really go far in the playoffs.

The Flames have been consistent for years in the regular season, but the problem remains...in the West you really have to finish in the one or two hole or your first round matchup can become little more than a coin toss. Everyone is so strong.

Teams that are interested in Phaneuf are the Devils, Capitals (look out if they get him), and today I heard the St. Louis Blues have interest in Phaneuf. There is a rumor on ESPN that the Flyers have interest as well. The Flyers denied this and confirmed to me that they have "not had any talks at all."

Do I think Phaneuf gets dealt? I still feel the chances are slim during the season, but I can't see Dion as a Flame any later than the draft in LA. Prior to the last week I gave Dion a 15% chance that he is dealt during the season. However, I talked to enough people who are adamant that he is going to be dealt. Some saying that Dion himself believes he won't be a Flame come March. So I raised that to 30% chance based on the past week of conversations, but it is of course very subjective.

On Souray...
Souray actually came out and admitted he would indeed waive his NTC if the team he was going to made sense for his family. Players rarely say that much and usually when they do start saying these kinds of things in public it is because they are mentally preparing. Souray is a class act through and through. He has refused to waive his NTC in the past. I know for fact that Souray refused to go to Ottawa a few days before July 1 as part of the foiled Heatley deal. There are some who believe that Souray wants to be an LA King. There was definitely talk last deadline that almost saw Souray included in the three-way deadline deal that saw O'Sullivan move from LA to Edmonton.

As for now....as I reported that the Washington Caps are deeply exploring a deal I would put at a 40% chance of getting done, but there are other teams with various degrees of interest. Two teams from Sheldon's past. Montreal and NJ.

On Kovalchuk...
As much talk that there is here, there, and everywhere on the 4 teams that are interested in pulling off a blockbuster for Ilya, sources tell me to expect a "major push over the weekend and into next week to work out an extension and keep Kovalchuk in Atlanta."

I give it a 60% chance of getting done. Don Waddell, for whom I have the upmost respect, and Kovalchuk, who does love being a Thrasher and living in Atlanta, are about to get that 11th hour motivation. At the end of the day, I would not be shocked in the least to hear Kovalchuk has signed an extension and will remain a Thrasher.

more to come...
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