To CAR: Tuomo Ruutu

To CHI: Andrew Ladd

So…hmm. This trade is really fairly even, except in terms of age and immediate (as in “over the last ten or so games”) benefit. Tuomo is 25, which isn’t bad but isn’t great either.  But the trade did kinda need to be made–I mean, our second-line center is Trevor Letowski; do you really think that will last much longer?  I don’t.

So yeah. Scouting reports from my friends in the Western Conference leave me skeptical–Ruutu is a bit injury-prone, and he has a reputation for being a bit dirty; two things that will reduce his half-life here by a fair amount if they continue–especially the dirty part. Hard-hitting is one thing. Standing up for yourself is one thing. But being a cheap-ass bastard is uncool. However, I will give him a few games to see what he can do for us.

In other Divisional news: the Channelside Drive Boatlift continues as Brad Richards and Johan Holmqvist are the latest Bolts to flee the tinpot dictatorship of Fidel Tortorella; they head to Dallas for Mike Smith, shootout specialist Jussi Jokinen, and Jeff Halpern. The Capitals have traded a second-rounder to the Habs for Cristobal Huet, which makes me wonder what if anything the Caps have planned for Olie Kolzig. Team rivalry aside, I like Olie and I would hope that GMGM will allow him to finish out the season and retire a Cap.

And Wade Belak has been shipped to Florida for a fifth-rounder. That poor bastard, he must have really pissed off Chairman Mo to get exiled to Florida hell like that.

Canes and Devils throw down at the RBC tonight at 7:00. Y’all have fun with that, I’ll be flat on my back yet again, dosed on painkillers and listening to ChuckandtheletterK.

Go Canes.