The Flames have acquired forward Mike Cammalleri from the Los Angeles Kings as part of a three-way trade.

Calgary sent their first-round selection (17th overall) to the Kings who then ship that pick and the 28th overall selection to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for the Ducks’ 12th overall draft pick.

Sources have told TSN that the Calgary Flames are in process of trading forward Alex Tanguay to the Montreal Canadiens for 25th overall pick in the draft. The deal has yet to be finalized, however, as the trade call must still go through

The trade was confirmed by TSN’s draft show

Bourdon was one of the Vancouver Canucks’ top prospects, next to Alexander Edler. He spent his time split between the Manitoba Moose and the Canucks last year, and was really showing plenty of potential.

“Luc was a winner, he was a competitor,” said Kent Hughes, his agent. “There was no quit in him. He persevered through a lot. He was a great guy and a great teammate.”

His agent didn’t even know he’d gotten into motorcycling. “I had no idea,” he told CKNW in Vancouver. “Another client of ours, Kris Letang, said Luc let him know he was riding his dad’s motorcycle with some friends a week or two ago. I have since been told - though I don’t know - that he actually bought a motorcycle two days ago.”

He also won a gold medal for Canada in the 2006 World Junior Championships, and followed that up with a Memorial Cup that same year. He signed a 3 year entry level deal immediately afterwards with the Canucks.

“We are deeply saddened by today’s news and on behalf of the entire Vancouver Canucks organization, I would like to extend my sincere sympathies to Luc’s family,” said Canucks general manager Mike Gillis in a statement.

“Luc was an extremely talented player with a bright future. He brought great passion to the game and was a valued team member on and off the ice. He will be greatly missed.”

RIP Luke, and Condolences to the Bourdon Family

Its that tough pill to swallow with a big glass of Conference Final hockey; fans often will align themselves with one of the remaining teams in an effort to stay intertwined in the emotional fabric of the playoffs, hoping to stay (in a masochistic sense of course) in that heightened paranoia-like state where every aspect of the previous game is scrutinized. Most of all, since they can’t do with their own teams (some who have long ago been dispatched), we want to be able to revel in what could be a glorious Stanley Cup victory.  Its the next best thing, right?

I’ve found  that there is a hangover following a series defeat (it gets bigger with every year of one and done); its hard to stay in touch with the goings on of the second season. The injuries, the storylines, etc. that come with the other series’; its just hard to care when the team you want to root for is now making 10 am tee times. Eventually you get over it, much like a broken heart, and you gain that thirst back for playoff hockey, because lets face it, its the Cup. You gotta watch it.

But it just ain’t the same when your team is done for the long, long, hot summer.

With Minnesota’s second consecutive Quarterfinal dismissal from the Stanley Cup Playoffs, all of the parties involved (fans, players, Brass, media types, passers-by) are scratching their heads, wondering “What went wrong?” I just wrote on my blog (ya, you like that shameless self-promotion?) how the high water mark for the franchise, the magical “David vs. Goliaths” run of 2003, has spoiled Wild Nation; we’ve seen the heights we can reach, so why hasn’t The Wild gotten back there since, especially since on paper (a harbinger of doom if there ever was one) each of the teams the past two years are stronger?

Last year it looked promising; the newly assembled roster rallied behind new starting goalie Niklas Backstrom, and roared into the postseason for a match up with the Anaheim Ducks, who promptly kicked our ass. Literally, kicked our ass. For a team not used to the brutal physicality that Anaheim brought, it was an eye-opener for players and Management alike. So in what could be considered a knee jerk reaction, in an effort to boost toughness, we brought in Sean Hill, Todd Fedoruk (a great pickup, but more for his overall play), and in the biggest public relations-egg-in-your-face transaction ever, Chris Simon. (Before you go back to my column on acquiring Simon, I stand by my opinion that it could have been productive. However he saw very little ice time, and when he did, he did very little aside from beating up Jim Vandermeer.)

Onward to this year, where with Division title in tow, we faced off with the Colorado Avalanche; we matched up well because both teams can skate; the added toughness will work to our advantage, right?

Not if the team you face doesn’t fight; maybe it was Anaheim that skewed the definition of “toughness”- its not about just having the firepower to win a line brawl, but more about being consistently physical, and being more of an irritant than a pain-reliever. I realized that playoff hockey isn’t necessarily honest hockey; you need guys who will goad, prod, mock, talk, hit, and instigate because its not about keeping it clean- its about winning the Stanley Cup. Look how effective Sean Avery is in the East; he single handedly drove Martin Brodeur nuts. Even closer to home, which Minnesota fan didn’t want to ring Cody McLeod’s neck? Luckily for Minnesota we’ll have that pest sooner than later- Cal Clutterbuck, come on down!

Its a learning experience with every playoff “run” (for the lack of a better term.) Each series brings about a moral to the tale, whether its to serve the purpose of reminding the management of making that move to enhance depth, whether it be at center or defense, or to bring in that player or two you know can be effective without the puck. Lessons learned indeed; its just that everyone has all summer to rue over it.

Details are going to come shortly.

UPDATED: Several media sources are confirming that former Nucks GM Brian Burke may be the leading candidate to replace Nonis; funny, isn’t he supposed to be going to Toronto?

Nonis has been the general manager since May 2004, which was his 6th year of being senior vice president of the Vancouver Canucks. He replaced Brian Burke.

Now, wouldn’t it be a twist if Burke replaced him again? Though, the thought is that Pat Quinn will usurp the throne.

Discuss it on the Faceoff Boards: http://faceoffboards.com/nonis-fired-t272.html

Playoff Time is a different animal; both papers now have extended coverage and features, the wretches contribute Wild-Related columns nearly daily (much to the dismay of the Wild faithful, for the reasons stated above), Sports Radio is now aimed at Wild coverage and subsequently flooded with callers, many of whom desire more consistent attention from said radio station. One could surmise that when the playoff berth (and Division Title) was clinched, everyone climbed aboard the bandwagon. Now that its nearly wall-to-wall coverage of the playoff “run” (depending on the first series, of course), I kind of liken the whole situation to some sort of drug-induced haze.

The games are like hits; time drags until the next one. You crave more, despite the fact that the two overtime games so far (a columnist from the Winnipeg Sun had the gaul to say that the playoff season so far has been boring!) has put you on the edge of agony and ecstasy. One more hit like the two before and there is the distinct chance your heart may just explode. I don’t think that is just the case for those rooting for the Red and Green; I’m sure there are Colorado fans whose lifespans are incrementally decreasing with each passing game. But you want the next fix…all the attention just serves to whet your appetite until the faithful for both sides can hunker down for the next dose. Its like everything about the game is heightened; every hit, shift, shot, save, and goal is put under the microscope; trends are looked for and dissected from these aspects of the game, and then the current opinion of the series changes.

Would we pour over the same things if this was game #32? Game #62? The diagnosis? We have Playoffs on the Brain.

The drama is addicting however, and the junkies in all of us (whether you are a Wild Fan, an Avs fan, or just a hockey fan in general) wouldn’t have it any other way.

Many people are attempting to draw similarities between this series and the 2003 playoffs, when the upstart over-achieving Wild squad ended not just the Avs’ playoff run, but also Patrick Roy. The roles are reversed; Minnesota just clinched their first Division Title while Colorado had to work to get in and dealt with injuries to key guys all year long. Minnesota dominated the regular season series, but since the “second season” has started you can throw that out the window. Both teams match up very well; both play a skating game, and have great offensive firepower. Just from talking to the Avs fans who were nice enough to strike up conversations over Jameson Whiskey and Coors Light at Brooklyns, many were glad that this was the matchup to be.

Nick Schultz’ appendectomy is a huge blow; especially for a blueline core in which depth could become a pressing issue. Kurtis Foster went down a short time ago, and now Nick Schultz is out for at least the first round. Suddenly aging guys like Sean Hill and Keith Carney will be asked to step up their minutes; Petteri Nummelin and his ineffective pokecheck will now see time every game. Schultz was going to be the shutdown guy; he would be on the ice everytime Sakic, Stastny, Forsberg, etc. hopped the boards. Now to me, that task has to go to Kim Johnsson and Martin Skoula; these two guys, as a pairing, have played very very good over the past few months, and since they are minute munchers, they will be able to handle an extended workload. Skoula, for one, plays better when he has a huge workload, and Johnsson is no stranger to seeing 30 minutes a game. The skating style will work well for Nummelin; but the real question marks are Carney and Hill. The two veterans, no strangers to playoff hockey, have been bad this year. Carney has been disappointing this year, and Sean Hill, when he has gotten into the lineup, is prone to running around for the big hit, which often leads to goals against or penalties. If Hill can tone it down, he should be able to step into a bigger role. As for Brent Burns, he has to play his game; maybe being paired with Carney can increase his effectiveness.

I like how the forwards match up; Adrian Dater of the Denver Post mentioned that the checking line of Stephane Veilleux, Mikko Koivu, and Branko Radivojevic would be the difference; these guys will have to step it up even more so Schultz out; Colorado’s big guns will see plenty of these guys. With that being said, Dater talked about how the Avs lack a true checking line, one that will be responsible for containing guys like Gaborik and Rolston. Ryan Smyth is not a checking winger. With the dustup between Ian Laperriere and Gaborik Sunday, the tone was set; the star players are going to be receiving physical attention. The Avs didn’t like how the Wild played Peter Forsberg last week, and sent the message that Marian Gaborik and Co. would be getting played the same way. With this, I don’t think you’ll see all three of “The GOONies” in the lineup; Todd Fedoruk is a given. I think you have to go with Chris Simon in this series; don’t get me wrong, we love our Derek Boogaard, but he can’t play. Plain and simple- Simon has the experience and the ability to play to boot, and along with James Sheppard and Mark Parrish they could be an effective 4th line, a team that can get it down low and cycle the hell out of the puck; that has to be the sole purpose for this line. All three are strong along the wall, and can do what they do best to keep the play in the Avs zone, and maybe create a scoring chance or draw a penalty or two.

I really like how Niklas Backstrom is playing coming into this series; he seems like he’s peaking at the right time, and is beginning to look an awful lot like he did last year and into the playoffs, where he even kept us in a few games. He has to be on his game; on paper the defense looks like it took a hit because of the loss of Schultz. However, Colorado has some very good firepower, so its imperative that the D and Backstrom are on the same wavelength.

Granted I speak from a Minnesota perspective, but with Colorado you have experience, but for the most part the key guys are aged; this isn’t 2001 anymore. But with that comes with a ton of playoff experience, which will come in handy when alot of their roster has little to no playoff seasoning, which you could make the argument that Minnesota is similar in that aspect; but I think that we (despite no Schultz) are just the better team, and aside from guys like Scott Hannan and Adam Foote that Colorado will have a hard time shutting down our top lines.

I got Minnesota in 5.

Then there’s Minnesota. Granted, we did ink our 2007 First Round Pick Colton Gillies to a 3-year entry level contract, and then signed him to an Amateur Try Out so he could finish the season gaining valuable experience and development with the playoff-bound Houston Aeros. Gillies, by all accounts, will have every opportunity to make the team out of Training Camp in the fall.

What about Ondrej Fiala, who was Gillies’ teammate on a horrid Saskatoon team, and Minnesota’s 2006 2nd round pick? As Gillies’ linemate, the two put up career totals, and Fiala proved he could stay healthy after reconstructive knee surgery in the offseason. He was a fixture at the Prospects Tournament in September, even drawing praise from the club for his play; yet, no news on whether he’ll be signed at all.

Another wasted pick. Add it to the growing list. Maybe Minnesota should just draft the first 3 rounds and give the rest away…

Maybe there are contingencies with Fiala that I don’t know about; and maybe I am just taking this at surface level, but to me it looks like the Scouting Staff for the Minnesota Wild are doing a terrible job. I get that people can point at picks like Gaborik, Koivu, Sheppard, Bouchard, Burns (a home run if there ever was one), and now Pouliot- those are all first round picks; those guys should be contributing at the NHL level; there shouldn’t be any sort of surprise there. Aside from Nick Schultz and Josh Harding, how many 2nd round picks are playing, or are even signed? 3rd rounders? Anyone else?

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/teams/dr002331.html

There is every draft since Inception; By my count there are 19 guys from those 8 drafts that are under contract (Ryan Jones should get signed, meaning 20 guys), with another another 10 or so guys that have signed, and been busts. To say that outside of the first 3 rounds Minnesota isn’t very good at drafting would be an understatement. They haven’t signed an NCAA free agent since Mark Cullen, and even then he never saw any time at the NHL level; Travis Roche, whom they signed right out of North Dakota, saw 10 games total with Minnesota before they cut him loose. And the list goes on…

I know that scouting is for the most part a crap shoot; that the mythical notion of “projection” is an inexact science, and that opinions all differ. What’s most alarming is that complete lack of action; Why didn’t Minnesota go out and sign a guy like Hillen, or some other high-profile collegiate player? Is it because the Travis Roche experiment failed? Is it because of Hubris? There was a report that came out a few weeks ago, which had Minnesota and Atlanta tied for last with the least amount of draft picks in the current lineup (I think the number was 8, but that was before Benoit Pouliot was called up.)

Not very good, especially for an organization that “builds a team from within.”