Wild 2009 Pre-Draft rumors, let the fun and speculation begin!

Before the blur that is the NHL draft, the rumor mills crank up with talk of trades as teams try to acquire more picks or key players before the opening of free agency on July 1st. Like any rumors, most are unfounded speculation and few of these 'stories' actually materialize into reality. Trades on draft day can be as much a story as the draft selections themselves. One such trade was made a few seasons ago by the Wild when it traded its 1st round pick (the 2nd one it had in the 2006 draft who became forward Trevor Lewis) and talented prospect Patrick O'Sullivan to the Los Angeles Kings for Pavol Demitra. It was a significant trade in franchise history as the team boldly declared, in Vancouver of all places that it wanted to win now. Wild fans have debated whether that was a good decision or not; but most agree it was a necessary step for the franchise to take to show its fans it was serious about building a truly competitive team. As the old axiom goes, 'you have to give up something to get something' and it often means having at least a slight feeling of regret after making such a deal. Like most decisions in life, it involves an element of calculated risk and you often have an equal chance at failure as you do at success. Some mild speculation that does not need to be glorified for a whole rumor is one that is being circulated by the Minneapolis Star Tribune's Wild beat writer Michael Russo. Russo has stated several times in his daily 'wild blog' that he believes the team will strongly consider trading down in the draft to acquire more picks; perhaps those in the 2nd and 3rd round where the team has no selections due to trades the team made last year for Marek Zidlicky and Marc-Andre Bergeron respectively. I would consider this to be a very safe assumption on his part since new Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher has stated the need to 're-stock' the team's prospect pool. Yet, there is another Wild related draft rumor; this one courtesy of ESPN and NHL Live's EJ Hradek. According to Hradek, the Wild are very interested in London Knights (OHL) centerman, Nazem Kadri. Kadri is currently the #8 rated skater by the International Scouting Service and most drafts have him being selected before the Wild make their pick at #12 overall. With this minor speculation out of the way here are some of the more significant pre-draft trade rumors swirling around the Wild.Wild / Penguins RumorPittsburgh Post-Gazette sports columnist Mark Madden reported that Wild General Manager Chuck Fletcher is apparently hoping to work a deal that would bring back speedy right winger Pascal Dupuis along with promising minor league defenseman Ben Lovejoy to the State of Hockey. Dupuis first got his shot as a tryout player back during the team's inaugural season and after a strong season with the team's first minor league affiliate (the Cleveland Lumberjacks of the IHL for those who don't know or had forgotten) he got a shot late in the season before earning a roster spot back in 2001-02. The Laval, Quebec-native had his best season for the Wild back in the memorable 2002-03 season, where he notched 20 goals and 48 points. After that season, Dupuis never seemed to be able to establish that same level of offense and quickly transitioned to being more of a penalty killer / checker and has limited success in that capacity. The team dealt Dupuis a few years ago for center Dominic Moore, but the 6'1" 205lbs former Shawinigan Cataractes star has spent the last 3 seasons bouncing from the New York Rangers, Atlanta Thrashers and now winning a Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins this spring. Dupuis played in 71 regular season games and had 12 goals and 28 points, and was a +1. Many Wild fans are not real happy at the prospect of seeing Dupuis return because they are fully aware of his limited potential; especially in the offensive end. He has blazing speed and is a great skater but he has terrible hands and his decision making on the rush usually leaves a lot to be desired as evidenced by his numerous attempts to blister a shot by a goaltender by firing an unscreened slap shot (usually way off target) from just inside the blueline. On the otherhand, it is logical to see why Chuck Fletcher might consider such a move since Dupuis' cap figure of $1.4 million per season makes him somewhat cheap and his great speed would seem to make him a natural fit for an up-tempo style of hockey. He does have two years left on his contract, but if you asked most Wild fans they'd likely see Dupuis' return as a step backward for the organization. Lovejoy on the otherhand is a (mildly) intriguing possibility. He earns rave reviews for his work ethic and development he has shown in the American Hockey League, where he was a 2nd team All Star while playing for the Penguins' minor league affiliate in Wilkes/Barre-Scranton. The 25-year old defenseman from Concord, New Hampshire played college hockey first at Boston College and then transferred to Dartmouth where he got significantly more ice time. The 6'2" 205lb blueliner was undrafted out of college, was signed to a minor league deal by the Baby Penguins, but quickly became a stalwart on their blueline. Lovejoy plays a safe, simple game where he is noted for being an excellent puck mover who is also very responsible defensively. He is not afraid to get involved physically and Fletcher had stated that he felt Lovejoy was 'NHL-ready.' The former member of the Dartmouth Big Green had 7 goals and 31 points along with 84 penalty minutes and was an AHL-leading +42 in 76 games. The addition of a player like Lovejoy makes a lot of sense in the fact he'd be a cheap defenseman with good two-way skills looking for his shot at the NHL level. It is not a secret the team is hoping to stock up offensively by signing some quality forwards and will be looking to save money by reallocating some of its cap resources by perhaps not re-signing defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron and / or Martin Skoula who would likely be far more expensive than Lovejoy. Even though Lovejoy's credentials are pretty solid, I do not think many Wild fans would like to see him be the replacement for Martin Skoula if the organization believes he's too expensive to keep. Skoula was the team's whipping boy much of his first two seasons with the team, but he had an excellent 2008-09, and many Wild fans (even those who enjoyed ripping the 6'3" Czech) reluctantly wished the team would re-sign him. As far as Dupuis goes I do not want him back; no matter if he is able to add more speed to the lineup. His role, which would probably be as a penalty killing specialist, could easily be supplanted by Dan Fritsche (who is an Restricted Free Agent this summer) who also possesses great speed, and likely more affordable as well. Overall, the rumor is hardly outlandish and considering the Wild's cap situation as well as the franchises' new direction it is speculation that could very well become reality. Before I shut the door entirely on the Wild / Penguins pre draft rumor I would like to toss out one little tidbit I also noticed while reading ESPN the Magazine. EJ Hradek also tossed out the idea that the Pittsburgh Penguins might consider signing soon to be unrestricted free agent forward Marian Gaborik. Obviously, Gaborik's health is the wild card of any organization that has him (including the Wild), but the thought of Gaborik working with Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby is enough to make most Eastern Conference General Managers lose sleep. Hradek never really let on if this was more of a rumor or just speculation on his part. How about that for an "oh by the way" kind of deal? Wild / Maple Leafs Rumor Perhaps the most intriguing pre-draft trade rumor involving the Wild is one from Toronto-based writer Al Strachan. Strachan reported that the Maple Leafs might just trade defenseman Tomas Kaberle for Marek Zidlicky and goaltender Josh Harding. Kaberle, 31 is entering the final year of his contract with the Maple Leafs and has been the team's most reliable defeseman the last few years but as the team begins its long rebuild under General Manager Brian Burke (who has a good friendship with Chuck Fletcher) there is a belief that Toronto really likes Harding. The Maple Leafs have struggled to find the right goaltender and while Vesa Toskala has shown flashes of brilliance he hasn't been consistent enough to lift the team from mediocrity. It is no secret that Fletcher has put Harding on the trading block as he will likely be too expensive to be Niklas Backstrom's backup as he becomes a restricted free agent this summer. The Wild is spending $6 million per season and will be looking for a dirt cheap backup as Backstrom will be carrying most of the goaltending load as he has already done the last two seasons. Adding Zidlicky, who is also in the last year of his contract will make the cap hits about even between the two organizations. Yet there is something that is rather puzzling about this rumor. While Harding is a promising young goaltender, who could perhaps take that next step to being a #1 netminder under the tuteledge of goaltending guru Benoit Allaire the Maple Leafs do not have a financial reason to get rid of Kaberle. Toronto is already $15 million under the cap with Kaberle's contract on the books. So why get rid of your best overall defenseman for an unproven backup goaltender? This is no insult to Harding, who has performed very well despite not-so-great looking win totals but it still seems odd that Burke would deal away one his best veteran commodities at this point. We know Leafs fans are desperate to win another Stanley Cup but I can't see how trading away their best defenseman for a backup goaltender gets them closer to that goal. Harding knows the writing is on the wall for a deal to be done, with him being at the center of it. He has told the Minneapolis Star Tribune's Michael Russo he loves being in Minnesota and the organization but he also realizes that he wants to be a #1 goaltender (as they all do) yet realizes that in the here and now this is Backstrom's gig. He has been a paragon of class since the team drafted him in 2002, and Wild fans do not want to see him go but they understand its a nature of the business. I highly doubt this rumor will come into fruition even though it does bring up an intriguing possibility. From the Wild perspective it would be a decent deal, especially if a draft pick was thrown in as it would give the team an excellent blueline with Kim Johnsson, a recovering Brent Burns, and the steady Nick Schultz to make for an impressive Top 4. Yet, why would Toronto do it? Its sort of like sentence conjugation, if it doesn't sound right, more often than not its wrong. (If I see any more Wild-related pre-draft rumors I'll add them to this article)