NHL Trade Deadline - Done Deals and Speculation

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It’s NHL trade deadline day which is always a great day for hockey fans, not so much for players. So far it’s been quiet but deals are starting to come down the pipe.

The done deals so far has seen the Toronto Maple Leafs send Alexei Ponikarovsky to the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins in return for defenseman Martin Skoula and prospect Luca Caputi.

But before Martin Skoula could even get to Toronto, he was already on the move again, this time to the New Jersey Devils for a fifth-round draft pick this summer. The Leafs had to take Skoula from the Penguins for salary cap reasons in Pittsburgh, so general manager Brian Burke essentially received Caputi and a fifth-rounder for Ponikarovsky.

The Boston Bruins have been active this morning, as they have made a few moves on their blue line. Derek Morris has been shipped to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2011,a and they brought in Dennis Seidenberg who comes to the Bruins from the Florida Panthers.

The Carolina Hurricanes are in sell mode big time, and general manager Jim Rutherford continued making moves as he has sent winger Scott Walker to the Washington Capitals and Aaron Ward to the Anaheim Ducks. For Ward, it appears he couldn’t be happier to get out of Carolina

"I'm surprised it's Anaheim," Ward told TSN. "I didn't see Anaheim coming. I'm happy. I feel like it is a new lease on life."

Wojtek Wolski of the Colorado Avalanche has just been shipped to the Phoenix Coyotes for Peter Mueller and Kevin Porter.  It will be a fresh start for Mueller who was originally the Coyotes 8th overall pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft but has been a bit of a bust since scoring 21 goals in his rookie year.

Wolski has 17 goals and 30 assists in 61 games so far with the Avs and is the best player in this trade right now.  He was the Avalanche's first round pick, 21st overall in the 2004 NHL Entry draft.

The names that that are still expected to be moved on Wednesday include Florida Panthers goalie Tomas Vokoun and forwards Ray Whitney of the Hurricanes, and Raffi Torres of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Vokoun has a no-trade clause and only wants to go to a contender, but the Philadelphia Flyers are in the market for a goaltender and they’ve been playing much better of late. After losing Ray Emery for the remainder of the season because of a hip injury, they are going after a number one guy very hard. It could be Vokoun who makes his way to Philly or possibly Dwayne Roloson of the New York Islanders, who just made 41 saves for the Islanders to beat the Flyers.

Leafs defenseman Tomas Kaberle’s name has been the subject of trade rumours for what’s seemed like years, but inside reports are saying that he could be convinced to waive his no-trade clause. The main reason why is Kaberle has a clause in his contract that would allow general manager Brian Burke to trade him without needing to consult Kaberle.

Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens could be on the move, especially seeing as how stong Halak has been playing lately, including his Olympic performance.