NHL Rumors: Kevin Bieksa on the Trading Block

According to Eric Stephens of The Orange County Register, the Anaheim Ducks are looking into trading for Kevin Bieksa.

This is supposed to be a big money deal for the Ducks, and makes perfect sense as they missed out on Willie Mitchell, and now Bieksa is the top defenseman available.

Brad Ziemer of The Vancouver Sun is reporting that Bieksa can still be traded, but it will probably be later than expected. This makes sense as Sami Salo and Alex Burrows are recovering from injuries so they may not count against the cap for a while.

David Staples of The Edmonton Journal is reporting that the Oilers have not had a chance to deal Sheldon Souray but they intend to find a deal.

I find that highly unlikely unless they put him on re-entry waivers. The Oilers are also done adding players this offseason (except in a Souray trade obviously).

David Pollak of The San Jose Mercury News is reporting that the Sharks lost out on Willie Mitchell because the Kings offered more than one year.

He also reported that a source within the organization does not expect Owen Nolan to be signed by the Sharks, and they will not go after UFA goaltender Antti Niemi.

Mike Heika of The Dallas Morning News is reporting that Jere Lehtinen met with Joe Nieuwendyk yesterday because he is still not certain if he will return next year.

Nieuwendyk says there is no deadline for Lehtinen to make up his mind. As for James Neal, the Stars want a two year deal while Neal wants a one or two year deal. I expect a deal to get done with Neal for two years, if not more. 

As for the Ilya Kovalchuk deal, it seems that the Devils and Kovalchuk have a general idea of how the deal will be and the NHL shot it down.

It does not surprise me as I have learnt the offer was supposedly for over 10 years.

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