Teemu Selanne Returning?

There are many reports in the main stream media that are confirming the same thing. The 42 year old is back. He scored an amazing 29 goals last season. In his career, he has scored a staggering 633 goals. This is surely a treat to all hockey fans young and old, as they all have something to cheer about together.

Players That Won't Be Back

Jason Blake and Niklas Hagman will not be back next year according to Anaheim Ducks.
Also, Nashville GM David Poile announced today that Andrei Kostitsyn will not return for next year as well. He will be a UFA. This could be big in re-signing start defenceman Ryan Suter.

Ducks May File Tampering Charges?

James O' Brien of Pro Hockey is saying that the Anaheim Ducks may file Tampering Charges toward a “team that already has gotten to Schultz.” Michael Russo Audio has also speculated that Justin Schultz may have already decided which team he would like to go to on July 1st. Early indications suggest that the Toronto Maple Leafs have the highest odds of landing the coveted UFA. He was drafted in the 2nd Round (43rd Overall) by who else? Leafs GM Brian Burke. Also, he is good friends with Leafs Defenseman Jake Gardiner. This is just a testament of how good he is, "Adam Wodon, the managing editor of College Hockey News, called Schultz "the best offensive defenseman in college hockey in a long, long time, but he will never be anything like Coffey or even Potvin. There's no prospect out there that everyone's talking about as 'the next Orr' or anything." (source: online.wsj.com)


This is an interesting scenario and more to come...
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Saku Koivu resigns with Anaheim

Saku Koivu has agreed to stay with the Ducks for one more season.

The 37-year old centre recently signed a one year $3 million deal for the former Montreal Canadien's captain to play on for his 17th NHL season.

Although his point production has tailed off, Koivu is still a valuable two way player who centres a line with fellow Finn Teemu Selanne.

He scored 38 points in 74 games during the 2011-2012 NHL season, his third as a member of the Ducks.

Syracuse Crunch opts out of Anaheim

The Anaheim Duck's AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch declined to pick up their affiliation agreement with the Anaheim Ducks. This action could lead to the Crunch landing a new parent NHL club.

The Ducks-Crunch deal is in it's second year and according to the Syracuse owner, the Ducks and Crunch agreed on a provision that would extend the deal for another 2 years.

This leaves the Crunch with 2 options. The first one would be to strike a new deal with Anaheim and remain their AHL affiliate. The second one would be to look for a new parent club in the NHL.

Howard Dolgon, the owner of the Syracuse Crunch, didn't hint which option he would choose, but if he chose the second one, the Tampa Bay Lightning would be a viable option.

The Crunch and the Ducks have had their differences in the past like last season, where the Ducks loaned Jason Jaffray to the Manitoba Moose instead of the Crunch because the Moose was willing to pick up part of his salary. The Crunch also did not make the playoffs last year and they don't seem to be near contention for a playoff spot this year.

Overall, the Crunch seemed to be at ends with Anaheim and maybe its best if they went their separate ways. There are always other AHL and NHL affiliates for both of these clubs.

3 overrated and 3 underrated players on the block

With the trade deadline approaching, we take a look at the top 5 overrated players and the top 5 underrated players on the trading block this year.

3 Overrated Players

1. Sam Gagner, C  Edmonton Oilers
   He's been getting so many hype ever since he had that crazy 8 point night against Chicago. Even though he's been on a good run, he's overrated because he hasn't been consistence offensively.

2. Rick Nash, LW  Colombus Blue Jackets
    Because he is an all-star and an Olympian, many people think he is the best player out there. He does have size and skill that make him attractive but he is having a terrible season right now. He didn't contribute much in the olympics. they tried him on the first line but he failed and ended up on the fourth line.

3. Derek Roy, C   Buffalo Sabres
    Roy isn't a bad player but he is not worth that much. He puts up god numbers but his playoff performances are sup-par. If you want to make the playoffs and have a deep run, he's not your guy.

3 Underrated Players

1. Ray Whitney, LW   Phoenix Coyotes
    The desert is known to always hide players. Ray Whitney has quielty been piling up points and at 39 years of age, he's leading the Coyotes in points. He won a cup with the Canes so he has the experience and the veteran leadership.

2. Ryan Suter, D    Nashville Predators
    Shea Weber has been given much credit for the extremely strong defensive game of the Preds. weber's defensive pair has also been a strong leader both on and off the ice. The Preds must have been really happy when they drafted those two in the 2003 draft (Suter was drated 5th, weber was drated 49th)

3. Lubminor Visnovsky, D    Anahiem Ducks
    Visnovsky has always been a terrific puck-moving defensemen. When he started out with the Kings, LA basically tried to cover the existence of him until he started producing too much to not get noticed. Last year, he led defensmen in points. Need I say more?

Breaking: Two Trades.

The Dallas Stars have traded D Nicklas Grossman to the Flyers for their 2012 2nd round pick , and a 2013 3rd round pick.
Grossman is a stay at home defender that the Flyers wanted very desperately. He will anchor the blue line and try to fill some of the void that Chris Pronger has left.

Winners:
Wexler: Flyers because they needed a defensive defenseman to fill the void from Pronger. The two picks wont do much because the flyers are a high ranked team looking to make it deep in the playoffs.
Kyle: Flyers needed a shutdown defender after Pronger was declared out for the season with post concussions syndrome. The picks won't get good unless the Flyers breakdown and fall out of playoff contention

The Anaheim Ducks trade D Bryan Rodney to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for C Ryan O'Marra.
Rodney is Defender that has played rather well for the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL, I expect him to only be called up when there is an injury. O'Marra is a good bottom six center, that can be physical but needs to get more of a scoring punch. He is a good gritty physical player though.

Winners:
Kyle: Edmonton, they need defencemen and I believe he should get called up soon. Anaheim already has gritty forwards like Perry and Parros so they basically gave up an NHL Defencemen for an AHL forward.
Wexler: I'm gonna say the Ducks because the addition of O'Marra is going to help during the offseason when the contracts of three veteran forwards expire (Sealane, Blake, Koivu)

Some quick news and trades.

The Anaheim Ducks trade Maxime Macenauer to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Riley Holzapfel.


Macenauer is a good center that always knows where to be when he wants to bank in a few goals. He will be a long term project, and after that I can't really be sure if he will be a good player. After a lot of reading and analysis I see him as a minor leaguer and nothing more.


Holzapfel is a lot like Macenauer ,but needs to beef up if he wants to make it to the bigs. He has some potential but I think his overall skill set is a bit better than Macenauer's.


To follow up on yesterday Sutton's deal is 1 year $1.5 Million. 


Decision on Tuomo Ruutu is expected later this week.

Jean Francois Jacques to waivers.

Jean Francois Jacques has been put on waivers by the Anaheim Ducks. He will be forever known as the as the pick New Jersey sent to Edmonton to draft Zach Parise. The Oilers slid down to the 22nd pick and selected Marc Antoine Puliot, and the other pick on Jacques. He is a tough, gritty player that won't back down from a fight. He has dominated the minor leagues but hasn't been able to ranslate that into his own success.

His contract breaks down into this according to capgeek.com

Length: 1 Year
Expiry Status: UFA
Cap Hit $650,000

Therefore, whoever grabs him will get him at the price of $325,00.

Ducks GM Bob Murray confirmed both Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan are both in play on trade talks. However, the only players considered "untouchables" are Saku Koivu and Teemu Selanne.

Just a funny side note, Randy Cunneyworth by starting off with "Je suis tres content pour Lars." Just wanted to say to Cunneyworth, good job.

Leafs, Ducks Trade!

Breaking: Luca Caputi has been traded to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Nicolas Deschamps.

Analysis:
Both players have been disappointing after being drafted at such a high spot. Even though Caputi was drafted in the fourth round, he was drafted before players such as Keith Aulie, and Jamie Benn. Maybe you consider them late round gems, but consider this. Caputi was considered a 40th overall pick by some scouts. They claimed that he was a great package of both size and skill possessing a long reach, but he managed to drop into the 4th round. Teams passed on him due to his inconsistent play of edge and skill with a lack of effective hitting. He has the making of a power forward ,but will need to improve on his skating speed. At best, he projects to be a third liner on a good team, second liner at a bad team.


Nicolas Deschamps was drafted in the second round by the Anaheim Ducks. 35th overall, he was drafted ahead of players like Roman Josi, Patrice Cormier, Luke Adam, and Derek Stepan. He has the making of a good offensive center. He has shown that he is a good offensive threat in juniors where he racked up 38 goals and 96 assists in one year.  He projects to be a second line center, but many scouts do not expect him to live up to his potential.  They expect him to be an emergency NHL'er at best.

News Update

Breaking News: Terry Murray has been relieved of his duty as LA Kings Head Coach. John Stevens will be replacing him on an interm basis. Sources tell us that it is unlikely he will stay as head coach. There has been speculation that he will be replaced. I have also been told that if he is to be replaced it will be for Daryl Sutter or Randy Carlyle.

Trade: The Anaheim Ducks have traded Kurtis Foster and Timo Pielmeier to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Rod Pelley, Mark Fraser, and a 7th Round Pick.

Talent Analysis:
Timo Pielmeier: Projected as a back up goalie with unstable potential. Has some flaws. Could be a good back up goalie or a top goalie prospect. Example: Scott Clemmensen or Alex Auld

Mark Fraser: Projected 5,6,7 D-Man. Not many flaws. Could be a third line defenseman or top AHL defenseman.

Rod Pelley: ^ Read above.

Christmas Special: Anaheim Ducks

Wishlist from the team: Scott Niedermayer to come out of retirement and go play for them. He's only 38 right? Instead of Francois Beauchemin and Cam Fowler could you imagine Niedermayer and Beauchemin playing together? That's one great lineup...

Side Note from the writers- Niedermayer is only 38? He looks older than Chris Chelios...


Source: http://www.csnbayarea.com/common/medialib/223/430080.jpg
Source: http://www.nhlsnipers.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/redwingchelios3.jpg
Wishlist from the writers: Bring back the old logo! This new one looks not as good as the other one!

Source: http://images.picturesdepot.com/photo/a/anaheim_ducks_wallpaper-29999.jpg
Source: http://content.sportslogos.net/logos/1/1/full/1.gif
Does the first one not look as bad? BRING BACK THE ORIGINALS!

What happens now for the Ducks?

Now that Randy Caryle is fired, and Boudreau is a the new coach, does that mean the Bobby Ryan fiasco is over? So if you've been living under a rock for the last few days, Ex-Caps Coach Bruce Boudreau was unemployed for a grand total of 65 hours and 25 minutes. Also, Bobby Ryan has been shopped around the league.  So now that the coach is fired, is Ryan no longer being shopped? I would have to think he still is. It'd be one of those situations where the Ducks would still be talking with teams and that if for example by the Trade Deadline, the Ducks are still doing pretty bad, they would trade Ryan away to the highest bidder. So thats my take on it. We'd love to hear from you! Comment Below!

Part 3 of 3 Blue Jackets and Bobby Ryan

So here's the last one. Columbus and Anaheim. Would this be possible?  This is a good idea in a way. There have been a lot of players in discussion from Fedor Tyutin and Derrick Brassard but all in all there's been one name that's named A LOT for one to one player. Jeff Carter. It's been clear that he is unhappy with Columbus and his desire to leave to a different place. Would this work? It could? but a big problem with that is Anaheim does NOT want him to be in the western conference because they fear of the damage he could do when the two face. So in conclusion would this deal happen? Probably not, but weirder things have happened in sports.

Part 2 of 3 Sabres and Ryan.

Another interesting team that was listed was the Sabres. Sabres have a good goalie, (supposedly) good defense and an alright set of forwards. There was a small rumor going on for Ryan Miller to the Ducks for Bobby Ryan. A one for one trade. This was because Hiller was struggling and Buffalo has a capable number one goalie playing as a back up in Jhonas Enroth. Personally, I think this is just a really bad rumor. The Ducks are NOT giving up on Enroth and Ryan being traded apparently has partly to do with money. Ryan's contract is $5.325M while Miller's is $6.25M so if the rumor about money is true, this wouldn't work.

A source affiliated with Queen City Sports says that Sabres have an offer on the table with Drew Stafford, A young NHL ready player (probably Ennis) and a Defenseman Prospect.

So what do you think the Ducks will do?

Leafs and Bobby Ryan. Sabres and Blue Jackets to come soon!

Recently, a big name on the trading block has been Duck's Bobby Ryan. This has been big because there hasn't been such a big name on the trading block since let's say Dany Heatley. But if the difference is Dany Heatley's problem was that he was unhappy playing in Ottawa. In this scenario, Bobby Ryan is HAPPY in Anaheim and it according to people, Ducks management isn’t "giving up" but that it's a money issue. I'm not too sure what it's meant, but it has become a full on battle for the talented winger.

Anaheim sees this opportunity and knows it. They would prefer to trade him to the east because they wouldn’t have to face him. It just comes to show how good of a player he is. His old team doesn't want to face him because he's such a dominant player. 

Toronto, Columbus, and Buffalo are said to be the top teams looking for his service.

Toronto has a history with Anaheim management wise. If you remember, Burke was from Anaheim and has done numerous trades with them before. It would be a smart deal for Toronto but who would the Leafs have to give up for him? The starting price would have to be a young defenseman, such as Luke Schenn or Cody Franson a young guy like Kadri, and a 2012 First Round Draft Pick. Is this a smart idea? Personally, I think yes it is completely worth it. Luke Schenn OR Cody Franson, not both. If one gets traded away we have the other to take their spot. Kadri hasn't done well this year and his time is ticking. If he hasn't improved this year you'd have to think he's not going to be the player Burke drafted him to be.  The last thing is a 2012 First Round Draft Pick. Under any circumstances I don't like the trading of a first round pick. First Round Picks usually end up at least an average player. However, this is different. The Leafs are doing pretty well so the pick I’d have to think it'd be a mid-level pick. Bobby Ryan was a second overall pick. He was behind a guy named Sidney Crosby (turned out to be pretty good eh?) So if it wasn't for once in a decade player like him, Ryan would be the first overall pick.  So a young defenseman that we have many of, a failing prospect and a draft pick we have a few of. So we're trading our extras and a failing prospect for an established TOP SIX player that we desire so badly. What would you do if you were the Leafs? COMMENT BELOW!