Trade Deadline Madness...Hopefully Part 3

We are T-minus thirty-nine hours to the trade deadline and though very little has actually happened on the trade front thus far, talk surrounding potential deals is creating a great amount of excitement. The buyers and sellers are slowly being fleshed out, making this season's trade deadline one of the most interesting in recent memory. Though situations that involve rental players do not typically work out, the moves that occur during this season's trade deadline could greatly influence the outcome of this year's playoffs. Especially if the next two players are moved to playoff teams.

4. Brad Richards, Tampa Bay Lightning

At 27 year-old, Brad Richards could prove to be the highest impact player to move during this year's trade deadline. Though Richards comes with a hefty price tag ($7.8 million per year for the next three years), he also comes with one thing that many of the players moving at this year's deadline lack. Playoff experience.

Richards played an integral part in the Lightning's 2004 Stanley Cup run, a part which earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP. Know of any other playoff MVP's that will likely be moving to another team in the next week?

Throughout much of the season speculation has surrounded the possibility of Richards leaving the Lightning via trade due to his hefty contract restricting the team's ability to improve. With the heavy contracts of Richards and mega-stars Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier, the Lightning have had difficulty in finding secondary scoring and have not been able to put money towards a proven goaltender. Moving Richards would likely allow for the possibility of adding one of these elements to a team that expects much more of itself than missing the playoffs.

According to TSN.ca, the Lightning approached Richards to ask for a list of teams that he would approve being traded to, much more than a formality considering Richards' no-trade clause. There has been no confirmation of the teams on Richards' list, but the teams that are being reported as most active in pursuing the center are Columbus, Dallas, and Vancouver. All three teams are in desperate need of centers (Columbus and Vancouver a first line center, Dallas a second who can potentially become their first), but are these teams willing and able to give up the asking price for a player such as Richards?

As stated earlier, the Lightning are looking for secondary scoring as well as a proven goaltender. At the moment, Dallas does not seem to have either of these elements to give up unless they have decided that backup goaltender Mike Smith is ready to take the reins from former All-Star Marty Turco. Though Lightning GM Jay Feaster would likely make the deal for Turco in a heart beat considering his team's goaltending woes since the departure of Nikolai Khabibulin, the Stars would likely be less than enthusiastic about giving up one of the top five goaltenders in the league.

Vancouver could part ways with a troupe of players such as Ryan Kesler, Matt Cooke, Alex Burrows, or long time Canuck blue-liner Mattias Ohlund, but such a move involving any combination of these players and draft picks would be very unlike Vancouver GM Dave Nonis. A student of former Vancouver and current Anaheim GM Brian Burke, Nonis does subscribe to the philosophy of giving up the farm for one player. The only way Nonis would make such a deal would be if he truly felt that a core combination of Richards, Roberto Luongo, Kevin Bieksa, and the Sedin twins would be one that would bring a Stanley Cup to Vancouver. Though such a core does sound promising, it takes role players such as Kesler, Cooke, and Burrows to win a Stanley Cup. However, a player such as Brad Richards only comes along once in a great while, making for quite the situation.

In the case of the Columbus Blue Jackets, if this team is on Brad Richards list, look for them to provide the heaviest pursuit. The team may not have much to give up in the way of the elements that Tampa is looking for, but the Blue Jackets will likely throw everything else they have at the Lightning in an attempt to acquire Richards. Columbus GM Scott Howson has got to be literally salivating at the thought of having Richards centering a line with any combination of Nikolai Zherdev, Rick Nash, or Frederik Modin. However, one of those three players may be part of the asking price in a deal for Richards, and the Jackets would likely have no problems with sending Modin right back to the Lightning in a package deal. Unfortunately for the Blue Jackets a deal for Richards would likely help them much more than anything they could send in return, therefore such a deal is a long shot.

Prediction: The only team of these three on Richards' list is Vancouver, but he ends up being dealt with Johan Holmqvist to Ottawa for Antoine Vermette and Ray Emery or Martin Gerber.

5. Dwayne Roloson, Edmonton Oilers

Deadline talk of Roloson has only begun to pick up over the past week or so due to comments made by Roloson about moving his children out of town due to school yard teasing and his desire to be playing, whether in Edmonton or elsewhere. Roloson was once a participant in a deadline deal, the one that sent him to Edmonton in the first place. In fact, the year Roloson was dealt to the Oilers was the same year the Oilers reached Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. If not for a blown out knee very early in the Finals, the Oilers could have ridden Roloson's superb play to a Cup victory.

Unfortunately for Roloson, his days as a hero in Edmonton have long passed; on the bright side, Roloson may yet receive a second chance. There is one team still searching for solid goaltending in the NHL, and this team may be making a move before the deadline that could open up room for Roloson's $3.5 million salary. Assuming my Richards for Emery/Gerber prediction doest not come to fruition, look no further than the Tampa Bay Lightning.

As stated above, the Lightning will likely shed Brad Richards' $7.8 million salary in order to possibly make room for a proven number one goaltender. The Lightning find themselves in a situation where they need someone to take the reigns between the pipes for the next two to three years until highly touted prospect Kari Ramo is ready to take over. Roloson could slide perfectly into this situation and the Oilers would likely be more than happy to shed the salary cap space for next season.

Considering every other team in the league appears to be fairly content with their current goaltending (fairly being used lightly), the only outs for Roloson appear to be Tampa or an off-season buy-out.

Prediction: Unless they pick up Gerber/Emery, Rollie the Goalie to Tampa Bay for third or fourth round pick.