Today's news around the NHL
Big changes coming for Tampa
The Lightning's epic collapse over the last four weeks will probably cost head coach Rick Tocchet and general manager Brian Lawton their jobs, as it probably should, writes Martin Fennelly in Tuesday's Tampa Tribune.
"Where's the system, the discipline, the consistency?" Fennelly asks. "More than once I've wondered whether Tocchet has provided enough structure, consistent structure, for this team and these players. This team seems all over the road."
You think? The Bolts, who were in sixth place in the East this time last month, now languish 28th overall.
Leafs still eyeing Bobby Ryan?
There was buzz earlier in the season that Ducks winger Bobby Ryan might be traded, and with him headed for restricted free agency, the possibility is still there.
So the Toronto Star's Paul Hunter has an idea: The Leafs could parlay young defenseman Luke Schenn for Ryan, since Anaheim is short on blueliners.
We know GM Brian Burke covets Ryan. Burke drafted him in Anaheim and he talks very highly of him, even now. And since the reports out of Anaheim are that Ryan and the Ducks have yet to make any progress on an extension, it might be worth it for the Leafs to call over to see what Ryan would cost them.
Only problem is that the Leafs don't have many assets in terms of draft picks; they gave their next two first-rounders and this year's second-rounder to Boston for Phil Kessel. It seems that trade comes to bite them in the butt every time they have a big move they can make... or when they think about the possibility of drafting Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin.
Leafs next captain?
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been without a captain ever since longtime leader Mats Sundin skipped town almost two years ago. But now, it seems the original six club might have finally found someone worthy of the honor in recent acquisition Dion Phaneuf.
Phaneuf himself won't discuss the topic, but his teammates are quite happy to put his name forward, writes Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star.
"He was definitely one of the leaders in Calgary," Fredrik Sjostrom, who accompanied Phaneuf to Toronto as part of January's blockbuster deal with the Flames, told the paper. "No one was going to bump Jarome (Iginla) from being the captain, but Dion could have been a captain there. He gets everyone going, he's good at getting guys ready."
Contract looming between Monster & Leafs
Jonas Gustavsson is headed for restricted free agency this summer, and and he has yet to begin contract talks with Leafs brass. Still, Paul Hunter of the Toronto Star fully expects the Swedish backstop to return to TO next season.
That's good news for long-suffering Leafs fans, who have watched the "Monster" settle into a groove since veteran Jean-Sebastien Giguere arrived in a January trade with Anaheim. Gustavsson, who credits his relationship with Giguere as one reason for his improved play, has won four straight games.
Big changes coming for Tampa
The Lightning's epic collapse over the last four weeks will probably cost head coach Rick Tocchet and general manager Brian Lawton their jobs, as it probably should, writes Martin Fennelly in Tuesday's Tampa Tribune.
"Where's the system, the discipline, the consistency?" Fennelly asks. "More than once I've wondered whether Tocchet has provided enough structure, consistent structure, for this team and these players. This team seems all over the road."
You think? The Bolts, who were in sixth place in the East this time last month, now languish 28th overall.
Leafs still eyeing Bobby Ryan?
There was buzz earlier in the season that Ducks winger Bobby Ryan might be traded, and with him headed for restricted free agency, the possibility is still there.
So the Toronto Star's Paul Hunter has an idea: The Leafs could parlay young defenseman Luke Schenn for Ryan, since Anaheim is short on blueliners.
We know GM Brian Burke covets Ryan. Burke drafted him in Anaheim and he talks very highly of him, even now. And since the reports out of Anaheim are that Ryan and the Ducks have yet to make any progress on an extension, it might be worth it for the Leafs to call over to see what Ryan would cost them.
Only problem is that the Leafs don't have many assets in terms of draft picks; they gave their next two first-rounders and this year's second-rounder to Boston for Phil Kessel. It seems that trade comes to bite them in the butt every time they have a big move they can make... or when they think about the possibility of drafting Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin.
Leafs next captain?
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been without a captain ever since longtime leader Mats Sundin skipped town almost two years ago. But now, it seems the original six club might have finally found someone worthy of the honor in recent acquisition Dion Phaneuf.
Phaneuf himself won't discuss the topic, but his teammates are quite happy to put his name forward, writes Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star.
"He was definitely one of the leaders in Calgary," Fredrik Sjostrom, who accompanied Phaneuf to Toronto as part of January's blockbuster deal with the Flames, told the paper. "No one was going to bump Jarome (Iginla) from being the captain, but Dion could have been a captain there. He gets everyone going, he's good at getting guys ready."
Contract looming between Monster & Leafs
Jonas Gustavsson is headed for restricted free agency this summer, and and he has yet to begin contract talks with Leafs brass. Still, Paul Hunter of the Toronto Star fully expects the Swedish backstop to return to TO next season.
That's good news for long-suffering Leafs fans, who have watched the "Monster" settle into a groove since veteran Jean-Sebastien Giguere arrived in a January trade with Anaheim. Gustavsson, who credits his relationship with Giguere as one reason for his improved play, has won four straight games.
