FanHouse Nhl Rumors

The Columbus Blue Jackets drafted a super-skilled freelancing forward a year ago and are now wondering why he's not developing into Jere Lehtinen. So on Tuesday, Nikita Filatov took his sticks and went home to Russia and the KHL -- as the Blue Jackets always knew he could.

Now the big question is, where do the Blue Jackets and their "prized" prospect go from here?

As if being a goalie in the National Hockey League is not difficult enough. As if 6-3 power forwards standing in front of you on power plays is not enough of a distraction.

From now until the day he is dealt -- and he almost definitely will before the March 3 deadline -- Martin Biron is going to hear his name in trade rumors. This is what happens when you're on a one-year contract at a very reasonable $1.4 million. This is what happens when your team has an established No. 1 goalie (Dwayne Roloson) under contract through 2010-2011 and their best netminder (Rick DiPietro) in the fold for another eleven years. This is also what happens when you're low-maintenance, talented, accomplished and respected.

The NHL season is almost upon us. That means the weather is getting colder, leaves are falling off trees and coaches are ever closer to getting the proverbial axe. Last year, it took only four games for the Chicago Blackhawks to fire Dennis Savard. The Penguins let Michel Therrien go with 25 games left in the season and it was just what the doctor ordered. The team went 18-3-4 under Dan Bylsma the rest of the season on their way to a Stanley Cup victory. Here, I'll be taking a look at the coaches most likely to end up like Savard -- coaches who are starting the season on the hot seat.

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SAN JOSE -- Patrick Marleau doesn't always pay attention to trade rumors, but Thursday night's report on ESPN that he'd been traded to the Kings was a little different because his phone started ringing non-stop.

Marleau, the Sharks' all-time leading scorer, knew there was no three-way deal with San Jose, Ottawa and Los Angeles. He has a no-trade clause and no one had asked him to waive it.

The NHL could be home to quite the comeback story this season.

Longtime star forward Theo Fleury faded away a few years back, thanks in part to a track record of substance abuse that led to his suspension from the NHL. Recently, word got out that Fleury wanted to play again. Now, the 41-year-old, who played in 455 games over his NHL career and took part in eight international competitions as a member of Team Canada, has been cleared by the NHL to come back.

The San Jose Sharks are often linked to Dany Heatley, like many other teams this offseason, but the latest whispers out of San Jose are that this time, something might happen.

No one is denying anything, and while that doesn't guaranteed a deal is struck, it makes it highly likely that talks are ongoing.

While fans eagerly await the start of the 2009-2010 NHL season, there is one high-profile player who still doesn't know what team he will spend it with.

Phil Kessel had a breakout season in 2008-2009, scoring 36 goals and picking up an impressive plus-23 rating. He was solid on the power play and dangerous in the clutch, finishing second on his team with six game-winning goals. That team, the Boston Bruins, doesn't have enough cap room to sign Kessel, and it sounds like the fourth-year pro is tired of waiting around.

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our daily look at the previous night's action. During the offseason, it's our occasional link dump that looks at some of the storylines and moves taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

One of the most intriguing moves made by the Toronto Maple Leafs this offseason was the addition of free agent goaltender Jonas Gustavsson. On Sunday, the Swedish prospect, nicknamed "The Monster," made his first appearance for the Maple Leafs in the 2009 rookie tournament and stopped 35-of-36 shots in a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. According to Steve Buffery of the Toronto Sun, Gustavsson "looked steady, if not spectacular," and flashed a quick glove hand on an Eric Tangradi shot. Sportsnet referred to him as being "nearly unbeatable" as the Penguins peppered him with shots during the second and third periods.

Ottawa Senators forward Dany Heatley finally broke his silence and spoke on a conference call about his trade demands from his home on Friday afternoon. The basic gist of his demands: it's a hockey decision and has nothing to do with his contract, the coaching staff or the fans in Ottawa. He also stated -- multiple times -- that he never wanted the demand to go public, and that he still wishes to be dealt from the Senators.

After the jump, some highlights from the two-time 50-goal scorers conference call on why he asked for a trade and why he rejected a trade that would have sent him to Edmonton.

The temperature was over 90 degrees here on Long Island for the second day in a row. So, about two months late, summer has finally arrived in my neck of the woods. Glad to see that it could take the time to finally stop by. But along with the heat comes a weird time in the hockey news cycle. Basically, anything and everything is a story. Alright, so the Patrick Kane twenty-cent-cabbie-punch thing is a pretty big deal, even if he ends up getting acquitted. But other than that the hockey media -- myself included -- is really just grasping at straws to write about which reminds me, has training camp started yet?

Let's start with Theo Fleury. It's all well and good that the 41-year old with a long history of off-ice issues that derailed an otherwise successful career is trying to give it another go. You can't hate on a guy for giving it a shot. But let's realize the hurdles that Fleury left for himself to jump.