A Case of the Mondays: The Calm Before the Storm

With the recent Jaroslav Halak trade and the two deals involving the Nashville Predators (trading coveted soon-to-be-UFA defenceman Dan Hamhuis to the Flyers and captain Jason Arnott to New Jersey) over the weekend, trade rumours and speculation are increasing in both frequency and duration heading into the NHL Draft this Saturday and the upcoming free agent frenzy. While all has been quiet on the Flames‘ front recently, Sutter rarely stands pat at the Draft, as we’ve seen evidence of over the past few years when he dealt for Alex Tanguay, Mike Cammalleri, and last summer when he swapped Jordan Leopold and a 3rd round pick for the rights to Jay Bouwmeester. For the Flames, and many other NHL squads, this week may indeed be the calm before the storm.

Links after the jump.

Everything you need to know about the Flames and this weekend's NHL Draft [FlamesNation] [Coming Down the Pipe] 

Arik continues his look at the Flames’ potential UFA targets [The 4th Line Blog]

The NHL's top 100 UFAs [The Globe & Mail] 

Jarome Iginla recalls the day he was drafted eleventh overall by the Dallas Stars [The Calgary Herald]

Exactly how good is Sam Gagner? [The Cult of Hockey]

A comprehensive Flames off-season preview from the bad guys up North [The Copper & Blue] Also, a beautifully written piece on Father's Day in the NHL that nobody should miss

An in-depth look at draft prospect Alexander Burmistrov [The Hockey News]

A profile of pending UFA Thomas Plekanec [The Red Light District]  

Alexei Ponikarovsky and Jay McKee are unlikely to re-sign with the Penguins this summer [The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

Puck Daddy profiles the top ten UFA centres set to hit the open market 

Signs you're not getting drafted this weekend [Down Goes Brown] 

Jason Spezza has reportedly told Senators GM Byran Murray that he “wouldn’t object” to a trade, but where to? [The Calgary Sun]

The successes and failures of fourth overall picks in the NHL Draft over the past twenty years [From the Rink] 

Two Calgary goalies prepare for the Draft [The Calgary Herald]

The germaphobe's guide to the Stanley Cup–just how clean is it? [The Chicago Tribune]  

Lightning GM Steve Yzerman puts the Lecavalier trade rumours to rest…for now [The St. Petersburg Times]

What no GM, no scout, and no fan knows about the NHL Draft [Lighthouse Hockey] 

Have a good week everyone and look forward to the prospect of actual Flames news this weekend in the comments. 

by Hayley Mutch