from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet,

- When Martin St. Louis asked to be moved, he made it clear the Rangers were the only team he wanted to go to. I’ve written before about The Blueprint, a book about the New England Patriots that Detroit GM Ken Holland advised me to read, and there are passages about how dangerous it is to be sentimental in a cap system. New York is tight, with restricted free agents Jesper Fast, Carl Hagelin, JT Miller and Derek Stepan. I never thought I’d be asking this question, but, even at a reduced rate for St. Louis, can they do it? And if they don’t, would New Jersey take a run at him? Close to Manhattan, the Devils will need short-term veterans to bridge the gap, and he could be a good trade-deadline piece for extra picks or prospects.

- There were reports Saturday that Phil Housley was in the lead for the Devils’ coaching job (I’d heard a similar rumour, although not as strongly worded), but that came with some pretty strong denials. It’s always difficult to predict what New Jersey will do, but it does appear as if something is coming within the next day or so. I do believe AHL Wilkes-Barre coach John Hynes is a finalist, but a couple of sources indicate there is at least one other person in the mix.

- A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned Colorado would be looking for a defenceman to play with Erik Johnson. It’s well-documented Columbus is also looking. You can add San Jose, too. Doug Wilson despises July 1, but the Sharks need a goalie and at least one defenceman. Does he dip in, or stick to taking a big cut in the trade market?

- Can’t confirm, but it doesn’t sound like the Devan Dubnyk contract talks began last week, as we’d believed. Nothing to worry about, just a matter of aligning schedules. One GM who is looking for a goalie wasn’t counting on Dubnyk getting to free-agency.

much more