from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun,

- Sooner or later, Colorado GM Joe Sakic will lower his asking price for centre Matt Duchene (and others) but right now it’s high because there’s heavy interest. Though the Avs are looking for up to five elements in return for Duchene, they’ll probably settle on three — a young defenceman, a high-end prospect and a first-round pick — if Sakic does decide to make a deal. “They can ask for whatever they want because they’re in no hurry,” a league executive said Saturday. “They can wait and they can do it at the draft but they might be able to get more now.” The Senators and the Montreal Canadiens are among the teams that have kicked tires in Duchene.

- There’s talk the Blues gave a team in the East permission to talk contract with defenceman Kevin Shattenkirk a couple of weeks ago but the deal fell through and he remains on the market. The Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Devils and Sharks all need help on defence. At this point, it may make sense for Shattenkirk to wait until July 1 to sign anywhere because he’s the top blueliner available.

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