NHL Morning Papers (Monday Edition)

Note: Illegal Curve will be live-blogging tomorrow's trade deadline day from 7am CST until 3pm CST. In lieu of our usual posting schedule, we will be providing up-to-the-second news, analysis and we may even attempt to provide you with some comic relief.

Here are the national morning papers:

• With Mats Sundin announcing that he won't waive his no-trade clause, Dave Shoalts of the Globe & Mail examines the ramifications his decision may have on his teammates.
• Kevin Allen of USA Today takes a look at some of the players who may be traded before Tuesday afternoon.

Here are the Eastern Conference morning papers:

• Marian Hossa isn't the only Thrasher that teams are interested in trading for, writes Craig Custance.
• Peter Chiarelli is still seeking a top-six forward via trade, writes Fluto Shinwaza. On the injury front, Patrice Bergeron skated yesterday for the first time in four months.
• Judging by his comments, Brian Campbell doesn't consider the trade deadline to be a contract deadline, writes John Vogl. In positive news, Maxim Afinogenov is close to returning to the Sabres line-up.
• Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford is not expecting to force any moves before Tuesday's 3pm EST trade deadline. One of Rutherford's earlier acquisitions, Patrick Eaves, is getting closer to returning to the line-up from a shoulder injury.
• The Rangers were dominant last night in their 5-0 home victory over the Panthers, writes Larry Brooks. Brooks also tells readers that the Rangers are very interested in acquiring Dan Boyle if he's made available by the Lightning.
• With Mike Richards sidelined for the next three weeks, the Flyers are looking at possible trade possibilities.
• Ty Conklin wasn't impressive in yesterday's shootout against the Sharks, but if not for his play during regulation, the game would never have made it to a shootout in the first place, writes Dave Molinari. Marc-Andre Fleury has been recalled from the AHL, and the young netminder says he has no problem with his team carrying three netminders.
• The Capitals didn't play a bad game yesterday against the Devils, they just ran into the best goaltender in the NHL, writes Tarik El-Bashir.
• The Panthers played an awful game on Sunday versus the Rangers, and deserved the 5-0 loss, writes Steve Gorten. In other Panthers news, Mike Van Ryn's wrist is feeling better these days, and the defenseman is hoping to be back in the line-up next month.
• Habs defenseman Mike Komisarek knows his ice-time was less than usual on Saturday and he will be looking to rebound next game, writes Dave Stubbs. "We just have to focus on playing defence more. Lately, we've been giving up too many goals," said Habs winger Alexei Kovalev about his team's recent troubles.
• After yesterday afternoon's victory over the Capitals, the Devils sat alone atop the entire Eastern Conference.
• Greg Logan of Newsday wonders if Ruslan Fedotenko, Mike Comrie and Miroslav Satan are on the trade block.
• According to Bruce Garrioch, the Senators have made a very strong offer from Marian Hossa. On the ice, Ray Emery will get his fifth straight start tonight.
• Much will be decided within the Tampa Bay front office today, writes Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune.
• The Leafs organization doesn't deserve Mats Sundin, writes Rose Dimanno of the Toronto Star. Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun wonders if the Leafs will lose out on the top draft spots because Mats Sundin is staying put.

Here are the Western Conference morning papers:

• Ducks winger Teemu Selanne is proving to be the bargain of all bargains, as the super sniper had a hat trick and two assists in yesterday's 6-3 home win over the Blackhawks.
• The Flames overtook the Wild for first place in the Northwest Division last night on the back of a terrific performance from Miikka Kiprusoff. Yesterday afternoon's victory was the Flames' fourth in a row.
• The Blackhawks missed Nikolai Khabibulin yesterday in their 6-3 loss at Anaheim, writes Chris Kuc.
• The Avalanche were excited to have Joe Sakic back in the line-up last night, however, his return was not enough, as the Avs fell 3-2 to the Oilers at Rexall Place.
• Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock is more concerned with his team's next four games than he is the trade deadline, writes Tom Reed.
• Sergei Zubov has been lost to the Stars for another month after undergoing foot surgery, writes Mike Heika.
• Wings GM Ken Holland has been very busy lately, writes Helene St. James. The Wings have offered former grind line member Darren McCarty a contract for the remainder of the season.
• The Oilers came back from a 2-0 deficit yesterday to defeat the Avs 3-2 on home-ice, writes Joanne Ireland. Ireland's colleague, John MacKinnon, provides readers with a number of positives that can be taken from the remainder of the Oilers' lost season.
• The Wild's bad week came to an end yesterday with the team sitting in second place in the Northwest Division, writes Michael Russo. Coach Jacques Lemaire wasn't happy with the effort from a number of his players.
• Here is an informational article on the Predators' new owners.
• Coyotes netminder Ilya Brygalov was terrific on Sunday, turning aside 35 shots in his team's 2-0 victory over the Blues.
• The Sharks dominated the shootout yesterday and came away with a 2-1 shootout victory over the Penguins.
• The Blues continue to play their way out of contention, as they lost 2-0 at Phoenix last night, writes Jeremy Rutherford.
• Are the Canucks willing to pay the price for Brad Richards?

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

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