With two weeks of hockey to be played before the trading deadline expires, all eyes are going to be on Blues defenseman Eric Brewer. Brewer 27 years old struggled during the first half of the season but since Andy Murray took over as head coach Brewer has evolved back into the player he was in Edmonton. The Blues, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, have had discussions with Brewer’s agent about re-signing him, and they’d like the 27-year-old to be a veteran mentor to 2006 No. 1 overall draft pick Erik Johnson. Despite the on going negotiations Brewer is expected to test the free agent market which puts the Blues in a tough situation. Teams interested: According to the Edmonton Journal The Oilers have been scouting Brewer the past couple weeks. On a Penguin note, Penguins scouts have attended the Blues last two games but i haven’t been able to figure out who they are scouting. It is obviously not Tkachuck or Guerin and the possibility of trading for Brewer seems slim to none so only guess can be their scouting Martin Rucinsky or Radek Dvorak. The Dvorak – Scuderi rumors were flying around a few months back but i don’t see a spot on the roster for Dvorak. Just putting that out there. Been trying to find out some info but haven’t been able to get any feedback.
1. Latest rumored deal – Shawn Horcoff for Eric Brewer. I don’t see the Oilers giving up Horcoff unless Brewer signs a extension.
2. Keith Tkachuk – Teams interested: NYR, Det, Montreal and in the past couple days NJD have been rumored to having interest in Tkachuk. The Rangers seem desperate to get back into the race and Tkachuck is a strong possibility and Larry Brooks of the New York Post is reporting the Rangers may make a attempt to trade for Joe Sakic which sounds like a Eklund rumor.
3. Bill Guerin – Prediction: ends up with the Dallas Stars. The Stars have just traded for Ladislav Nagy but that hasn’t stopped the Guerin to Dallas rumors one bit.
Other quick hits
Shane Doan is expected to sign a 3 year extension with the Phoenix Coyotes so scratch him off your wishlist Penguin fans. The Coyotes are reportidly shopping Owen Nolan, Georges Laraque, Jeremy Roenick, Yanic Perreault. Five years ago that team would have been a Stanley Cup contender. Never realized how many old hacks they have in their lineup. What kind of team is Gretzky trying to build in Arizona? Darcy Tucker might not be leaving Toronto after all. According to a report in The Toronto Sun, the Maple Leafs and Tucker’s agent, Carlos Sosa, exchanged proposals this week. GM John Ferguson made an initial offer, which Sosa countered. Both sides talked again Tuesday and will continue to negotiate throughout the week. The Marco Sturm rumors are heating up. Latest rumor has Sturm getting shipped West to the Canucks for a 2nd rounder, which seems very high for a guy with a -18.
