UPDATE 1:45 p.m. PT
In a move that's been two years in the making, Roberto Luongo has been traded to the Florida Panthers.
Returns are uncertain so far, but it looks like it's G Jakob Markstrom and C Shawn Matthias:
I'm pleasantly surprised. Will be very interested to find out what we learn in terms of the financial restructuring in the coming days, but I'm so glad that Luongo has gotten his wish and that the situation is finally resolved.
It also means he'll be sharing the crease with his old nemesis Tim Thomas until the end of the season.
The rest of my blog from earlier today is below. I've deleted the part about how Luongo was supposed to start in Phoenix tonight :)
Vancouver Canucks at Phoenix Coyotes - Tuesday March 4 - 6:00 pm - Sportsnet Pacific, Fox Sports Arizona Plus
Vancouver Canucks: 28-25-10 66 points 10th in Western Conference
Phoenix Coyotes: 27-23-11 65 points 11th in Western Conference
The voice of Tank Nation is strong. According to yesterday's poll, 78 percent of you would rather see the Canucks miss the playoffs and improve their draft position this year. In that case, you'll be happy to hear that Dallas, Minnesota and L.A. all won last night, squeezing Vancouver's playoff chances down another couple of notches, to 15 percent.
With Dallas and Winnipeg already ahead of the Canucks in the standings, Vancouver needs to beat Phoenix outright tonight in order to avoid dropping another spot to 11th place. Both the Stars and the Jets are also playing tonight.
Will we see any deals before game time, or players held out of the lineup because their names are in play? Should be a very interesting day.
Darren Archibald was recalled from Utica on Monday to fill in for Daniel. Still no sign of Nicklas Jensen and his newly-acquired goal-scoring prowess.
Tradewinds:
One thing's for sure about these Ryan Kesler rumours—they've gotten Mike Gillis' phone ringing. Kesler is the most attractive asset in play in the entire league, which means Gillis should be dictating the pace of this year's main deals. Most GMs will want to see if they have a chance at Kesler before making decisions on rental forwards like Thomas Vanek, Matt Moulson or Marian Gaborik.
It seems like there's enough smoke surrounding the situation that Kesler could, in fact, be dealt. Bob McKenzie reported a very specific price tag Monday night on TSN's
Insider Trading: a young center who can step into the lineup immediately, a second young prospect (preferably a forward) and a first-round draft choice.
Click here to read.
That list just reinforces my deja vu about how closely this current Canucks decline mirrors what happened after the '94 team went to the playoffs. Looks like Kesler could end up playing the role of Trevor Linden.
That being said, as emotionally gutting as the Linden trade was, it was one of the best in franchise history. Trevor brought back Todd Bertuzzi, a draft pick that became Jarkko Ruutu, and Brian McCabe, who was eventually packaged as part of the deal that allowed Brian Burke to draft both Sedins.
As the bidding war for Kesler heats up, Mike Gillis has a chance to hit a home run here, dramatically strengthening Vancouver's prospects for the present and the future.
The Penguins continue to send out messages that they will not be ignored in their quest for Kes:
Both TSN's Darren Dreger and Pittsburgh beat writer Rob Rossi are reporting that Shero has made it clear that he'll top any other offer the Canucks receive.
Ben Kuzma likes what the Flyers could bring to the table, and so do I. Brayden Schenn is a much more tempting replacement than Brandon Sutter:
Kuzma also says in that article there's no chance that Kesler would waive his no-trade for Columbus—but says that Pittsburgh is in play. I still can't wrap my brain around the possibility of Kesler being satisfied in Jordan Staal's old role. I mean, Jordan Staal won a Cup with the Penguins and it wasn't enough to keep him in that third-line spot.
If Gillis really plays hardball, he'll try to package David Booth, at the very least, into the deal—get a bad salary off the books as well as acquiring some assets.
A few other quick tidbits to catch up on where we're at:
As Murph also points out, Overhardt is also the agent for Vancouver's Kevin Bieksa, Eddie Lack and Andrew Alberts.
Finally, for a guy whose name has been bandied around all year, Alex Edler has become a bit of an afterthought. Apparently Philadelphia hasn't forgotten about him—and boy, would he be a great fit on that team's aging blueline:
The Flyers make big moves and are in a position to redeem themselves from an awful start to the season. If I was Mike Gillis, I'd definitely be taking Paul Holmgren's call.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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