from Elliotte Friedman of CBC,

- I'm hearing Yzerman is trying to trade Ryan Malone. Tampa Bay would prefer to avoid a buyout payout and the Lightning are offering a draft pick as an enticement. Malone has a no-move clause in his contract until July 1, which gives him some control of the situation. It is a limited no-trade after then.

- There is incredible skepticism about what Sakic, who is Colorado's executive vice-president of hockey operations, and head coach Patrick Roy are saying. However, there are at least two reasons to think they are telling the truth. First, Roy had the best seat in the house in 2012 QMJHL playoffs as Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin led Halifax back from a 3-0 deficit against Quebec. MacKinnon had eight points in the last three games. Second, the Avalanche are trying to rebuild their name in the Denver community. If they are not going to take Seth Jones, who has major local ties, it's not the worst idea to prepare fans in advance.

- This is going to be an interesting two weeks for the New Jersey Devils. There are some real concerns. There was a rumour that Portland Winterhawks owner Bill Gallacher was going to purchase the club, but "that is no longer happening," according to an NHL source. There is a lot of frustration internally and externally that so little business is getting done, especially with important free agents on the market. If guys like Patrik Elias and David Clarkson walk, how will New Jersey replace them?

more plus some buyout talk...