Penguins/NHL
LIVE DRAFT UPDATES & RUMBLINGS FROM CONSOL ( Latest Update: Staal traded to Carolina, draft Pouliot, ; Inquire about Yandle? Talking with Preds & Pens Wishlist)
11:13 pm – Penguins GM Ray Shero has confirmed that Zbynek Michalek has been traded for a third round pick, defenseman Harrison Ruopp and goaltender Marc Cheverie.
10:25 pm – The Penguins and Predators continue to have discussions. Shero, assistant GM Jason Botterill and Preds GM David Poile were all just recently in discussions together once again
9:57 p.m. – The Pittsburgh Penguins have selected London defenseman Olli Maatta with the No. 22 pick. Maata was the No. 8 rated North American Skater.
9:37 p.m. – PENS WISHLIST – Following the trade of Jordan Staal, Pittsburgh’s wishlist which will be difficult to accomplish is a long-term scoring winger for Sidney Crosby and while the Penguins are certain they will move a couple bodies on the blueine this summer, the team is also aggressively seeking a defenseman who can be paired with Kris Letang long-term.
9:31 p.m. – GM Ray Shero has been chatting it up with Coyotes Gm Don Maloney. Shero has also been very chatty with the Predators brass tonight. The Penguins are believed to have interest in defenseman Keith Yandle. There is also talk of Ray Whitney’s rights possibly being in play for the right team.The asking price is high on Yandle. Pittsburgh selects No. 22, while Phoenix has the No. 27 overall selection.
8:15 p.m. – The Penguins have selected Portland defenseman Derrick Pouliot with the No. 8 selection. A puck moving defenseman, Pouliot had 59 points in 72 games TSN’s scouting report: “Derrick is a QB Type defenseman who relies on excellent vision and precision passing. He understands the game so well and sees what is unfolding and then is able to exploit it. He has great poise with the puck and doesn’t force things but ensures when you get the puck, that you can do something positive with it. His skating is very good and he has a burst of quickness that allows him to gain a little extra time or space to make a play and he utilizes uses it offensively or defensively.”
8:08 p.m. – Here is the blockbuster Jordan Staal has been traded to Carolina for No. 8 overall pick, Brandon Sutter and Brian Dumoulin.
8:05 p.m. – Wild select D Matt Dumba – The No. 11 rated North American skater, Dumba is a hard hitter
8:04 p.m. – Canes, Pens on phone? – GM Ray Shero and Canes GM Jim Rutherford were both on the phone at the same time. Carolina holds the No. 8 overall pick.
7:58 p.m. No. 6: Anaheim takes D Hampus Lindholm – The No. 4 rated European skater is regarded as a strong two-way defenseman.
7:47 p.m. No. 5: Leafs select D Morgan Reilly – Reilly the No. 5 rated North American Skater, suffered a torn ACL on November 6 and returned to action in the WHL East Finals. He had 3 goals and 18 points in 18 games played this season.
7:44 p.m. – Shero chatting with Predators – GM Ray Shero has been chatting with the Nashville Predators often throughout the start of the first round. Before Shero just went over to their table, Bylsma, Jason Botterill and Shero were all in discussions. For what it’s worth Shero has been seen chatting with the Predators, Leafs, Canes, Rangers, and Senators at times in the past 90 minutes.
7:43 p.m. No. 4: Isles select D Griffin Reinhart – Defenseman from Edmonton of WHL, was the No. 10 rated North American Skater.
7:35 p.m. – WILDEST RUMOR OF THE DAY – The wildest rumor of the night so far pertaining to the Penguins is the Ottawa Senators inquiring about Zbynek Michalek and approaching Pittsburgh about a possible deal centering around Sergei Gonchar being sent back to Pittsburgh in exchange for Michalek. Pittsburgh is said to not be receptive about the idea at this point. Gonchar has one year left on his deal with a $5.5 million cap hit.
7:30 p.m. No. 3 – Habs select C Alex Galchenyuk – The No. 4 rated North American Skater, Galchenyuk appeared in just two games last year, tearing his ACL in a preseason game. In 2010-2011, he had 31 goals and 52 assists.
7:28 p.m. – Capitals acquire Mike Ribeiro – The Dallas Stars have traded center Mike Ribeiro to the Washington Capitals for Cody Eakin and a 2012 2nd round pick.
7:27 p.m. – No. 2: Blue Jackets select D Ryan Murray – The No. 2 rated North American Skater, Murray had 9 goals and 31 points for Everett of the WHL.
7:18 p.m. – Islanders acquire Lubomir Visnovsky – The New York Islanders have acquired defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a 2013 second round pick. Visnovsky has one year left on his deal with a $5.6 million cap hit.
7:15 p.m. – No. 1: Oilers select RW Nail Yakupov – The No. 1 rated North American skater, Yakupov scored 42 goals and 69 points last season. Columbus is on the clock.
7:10 p.m. – Chatter is heating up on the Penguins draft table. GM Ray Shero and assistant GM Jason Botterill were both away from the Penguins table for over 15 minutes and didn’t return until just minutes before the No. 1 pick is to be selected. Shero though didn’t sit down for more than 30 seconds. At the same time Canes GM Jim Rutherford was away from his draft table, in addition to Ronnie Francis for a considerable amount of time. In the past hour, Shero has been seen talking with the Canes GM Jim Rutherford, Rangers GM Glenn Sather, Leafs GM Brian Burke and Senators GM Bryan Murray.
