Rumor of the Day, Nordiques Will Play Once Again. Halak to St.Louis?

It appears the next NHL expansion team might be in Quebec City.  Almost 15 years after they lost the Nordiques to the Colorado Avalanche, Quebec premier Jean Charest told QMI News Agency that “planets are aligned” for them to get a team and that the profitability of the team isn’t even a question.  This comes after Charest met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, who was apparently very open to the idea. There will likely be no shortage of potential owners for the team, and a new coliseum is being built to accommodate a potential team.  Bettman has previously said he does not want to relocate any of the current NHL franchises, despite the financial troubles some of them are facing. And he has also said expansion is definitely something he wants to do, especially into Canada.

More Rumors From the Ice.

Anaheim Ducks GM Bob Murray was spotted at the Atlanta Thrashers-Toronto Maple Leafs game, which might indicate that something is going on between the Leafs and Ducks.  Meanwhile, Leafs scouts have been spotted at previous Ducks games, only furthering the speculation.  Rumor is that Murray has been entertaining numerous trade scenarios.  Teams have inquired about the availability of Bobby Ryan and Scott Niedermayer, but it appears Ryan isn’t going anywhere while Niedermayer may be trade bait.  Two names that keep coming up in Ducks trade talks are Joffrey Lupul and Jean-Sebastien Giguere, so those guys may be moved at some point this season.  Though the Leafs will likely stay away from Giguere, Lupul might be the guy they’re after.  One possible scenario might be a Giguere for Vesa Toskala deal, with other pieces involved.

Canadiens goalie Jaroslav Halak going to the St.Louis Blues is looking like a possibility. Some have felt Halak should be starting over Carey Price in Montreal, but since that doesn’t look like it’s going to happen, it might be time they spun their backup goalie into some gold.  One possible destination for Halak is Philadelphia, where Flyers starting goalie Ray Emery is hurt and while backup Brian Boucher is taking on the No. 1 job, there seems to be no long-term option there, so Halak might be the fix.

Another rumor is that the St. Louis Blues are interested.  With Chris Mason and Ty Conklin, though, it doesn’t seem it’s an urgent matter.  As with every goalie rumor, the Detroit Red Wings might be looking this direction, too, but acquiring Halak might mess with the development of Jimmy Howard so the Wings might be favoring a short-term veteran stop-gap.  Even so, NHL scouts say that teams are interested in Halak.