Trade Rumor Extravaganza!

It's time to take a look at some trade rumors as the deadline approaches. Some of these may be legit and some of them are simply wishful thinking on my part. I''l leave it to you to decide which fall into which category.

Sean Avery to Tampa Bay for Brad Richards

There's absolutely nothing to this "rumor", and the cap numbers probably wouldn't even work. I just like the idea of Sean Avery on a last place team and the Rangers bringing in the most overpaid player in the NHL.

Mats Sundin to Calgary for David Hale

Sundin heads to a true contender in the Western Conference and the Leafs get a young defenseman in return. Makes sense for both teams, so it will probably never happen.

Mats Sundin and Bryan McCabe to San Jose for Jonathan Cheechoo and Christian Ehrhoff

This is another move that would send Sundin to a team with Cup aspirations. This deal would also allow the Leafs to unload McCabe while at the same time replacing him with a solid young blueliner in Ehrhoff. The change in scenery would hopefully jump start Cheechoo's game for Toronto, but I'm not sure who they would have left to feed him the puck.

Ales Hemskey to Pittsburgh for a Sidney Crosby autographed puck

Just try and convince me that Kevin Lowe wouldn't make that deal. Just try...

Rob Blake to New Jersey for David Clarkson

Blake will only waive his no-trade clause for a move to a serious contender, but I think the Devils are solid enough to convince Blake to switch coasts and leave the Kings again. The Kings would get some toughness in return and not lose Blake for nothing via free agency in the offseason.

Alex Tanguay to Montreal for Michael Ryder

This would allow the Habs to get a quality player in return for the seemingly unwanted Ryder. For the Flames, the get a guy with something to prove who can walk away after the season ends and give them some cap room to try and re-sign guys like Phaneuf and Huselius.

Martin St. Louis to Dallas for Marty Turco

The Stars and Lightning swap Martys (or is it Marties?) in a deal that actually makes a lot of sense for both teams. So once again, it will probably never happen. You get the feeling though that Tampa needs to do something drastic if they are going to be relevant again any time soon.

That's all I've got for now. I'm sure there will be more to come between now and the trade deadline. I'm sure will hear more out of Pittsburgh once Sidney's injury situation becomes a bit clearer. There will also surely be some teams that fall out of the playoff race and become big time sellers. Hopefully GM's won't be too handcuffed by the cap and we'll see some exciting deals go down.