Draft, Rumors, Signings Update

The draft may not have been the place for the big moves many were expecting, but there was some significant movement. The Vancouver Canucks acquired Keith Ballard and Victor Oreskovich from the Florida Panthers, for forwards, Steve Bernier and Michael Grabner, and Vancouver's first round pick in the 2010 draft. Seemingly set at forward, the mission of Canuck's GM Mike Gillis, was to shore up his defense. Ballard is a hard-working defenseman who is used to 20 minutes plus, per game against the opposing teams top lines. He will help the Canucks going forward.

Going to Florida is hard-nosed forward, Steve Bernier and winger, Michael Grabner. Bernier has never quite lived up to expectations, but with his size and drive to the net, he might come into his own with higher minutes in Florida. Michael Grabner, is a speedy, creative winger who has shown a lot of promise playing in the AHL. He is only 22 years old, and has a cap hit of just under $900,000. He is a key part to this deal, as he could blossom into a scoring winger for the Panthers. With the twenty-fifth overall pick, Florida then chose left winger, Quinton Howden. He's not a sure fire prospect, but according to scouts, has a lot of NHL potential.

The Montreal Canadiens traded up five spots to the 22nd pick, and selected defenseman, Jarred Tinordi. This monster defenseman stands at 6 feet 5 inches, 205 pounds and apparently has a nasty streak. One scout in The Hockey News wrote, "when he plays a physical, pass-first game, he's as good as there is. But when he starts to dangle, his warts show." Regardless, this is a problem that a lot of young players have. If Tinordi can round out his game, he can become a dependable defensive defenseman and add some much needed size to the tiny Habs.

The Ottawa Senators also traded their only first round pick (16th overall) to the St. Louis Blues, for 2009 first round prospect, David Rundblad. This defenseman has developed nicely over the past year, and was drafted seventeenth overall last year. This is a good deal for the Senators, who have received a prospect already a year along in his development. With the 16th pick, the St. Louis Blues drafted the crafty Russian, Vladimir Tarasenko.

As expected, the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired a second round draft pick from the Chicago Blackhawks. The pick was 43rd overall, and was used to select "Burke type" player, Brad Ross. According to scouts, Ross is a similar player to Darcy Tucker. An agitator who has somewhat of a scoring touch. Playing with Portland in the WHL, Ross played on a line with Nino Niederreiter and Ryan Johansen, two top five picks in the 2010 draft. One scout from The Hockey News said, "he's one of my favorite players in the draft. He's a WHL version of Steve Downie without some of the initial immaturity." He was the only player in the CHL to score more than 25 goals and have 200 penalty minutes.

Not being able to lock Hamhuis into a contract after acquiring his negotiating rights from Nashville last week, the Philadelphia Flyers have now flipped those rights to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a third round pick in the 2011 draft. The Penguins could use a solid shut down defenseman like Hamhuis, especially if Gonchar leaves. If Pittsburgh does not get him signed, Hamhuis will be in high demand come free agency.

After failing to sign Hamhuis to a deal, the Philadelphia Flyers wasted no time attempting to acquire the negotiating rights to another sought after free agent, goaltender, Evgeni Nabokov. TSN has reported that the Flyers have reached a, "verbal agreement" with the San Jose Sharks to acquire the negotiating rights. If the Flyers can get Nabokov signed, they will have filled a big hole on their team.

The Toronto Maple Leafs did not move defenseman Tomas Kaberle at the draft, but that doesn't mean that there wasn't any interest. Apparently there were five teams that made offers to GM Brian Burke, but Burke obviously did not yet receive an offer to his liking. He even went as far as saying that one offer was, "a joke." He did say that offers had picked up for the offensive defenseman, but that he wasn't going to make a deal unless it was for at least a top-six forward.

Brian Burke also eluded to the fact that one team offered the Maple Leafs a first round pick in the 2010 draft for a defenseman that wasn't Tomas Kaberle. It is highly believed that the offer was for Luke Schenn. Burke has received many offers for Schenn, but Burke obviously envisions him as part of the Leafs going forward. It should be noted that Schenn played exceptionally well for the Leafs after Dion Phaneuf was brought in.