Two thoughts came immediately to mind after the Blues dealt D.J. King to the Washington Capitals.
1) New Blues GM Doug Armstrong did a nice job converting a current asset into a future asset, moving King for potential mucker/agitator Stefan Della Rovere. Armstrong didn’t have roster room for two enforcers, especially with Brad Winchester, B.J. Crombeen and Tyson Strachan willing to rumble as needed. King is a true heavyweight, capable of breaking faces, but Cam Janssen is the better overall player.
2) The Eastern Conference could a real Blood Circus this season with top heavyweights gravitating to that side of the NHL. When the Rangers bucked up to land super-sized ruffian Derek Boogaard, other teams had to reassess their security forces. Gary Bettman must be so pleased!
King’s primary task will be protecting Capitals megastar Alex Ovechkin, who has a flair for aggravating opponents. This need arose again Wednesday when Penguins pest Maxim Talbot bad-mouthed the Russian scorer.
When apprised of Talbot’s chirping, King gave Washington scribes a great response: “Wow. I guess that's not going to be happening too much longer.”
Such WWE-caliber stage setting is what makes hockey great. Bettman is probably beside himself today, but true fans can't get enough of this fun.
As for the Blues, they get a gritty prospect likely to earn a blue-collar role in the NHL some day. In his last two seasons for the OHL’s Barrie Colts, he scored 45 goals in 114 games. So he has a bit of skill.
He has played a couple of games in the ECHL and a couple of playoff games in the AHL. He participated in the Capitals’ recent prospects camp.
By all accounts, he is a tenacious sort who should go to the AHL and start working his way into the NHL. He isn’t big (5-foot-11, 200 pounds), but he could a nice Crombeen-like career if he sticks with it.
AROUND THE RINKS: With the Ilya Kovalchuk situation back on hold, the KHL took another stab at signing him. But that league would be an utter waste of time for an elite, prime-age NHL scorer. Fortunately for Ilya, it appears the Devils are ready to work out a deal the NHL will accept . . . You would think the Blackhawks would have made cornerstone goaltender Antti Niemi happy by now, but this is turning into an ordeal. It's good thing other teams are capped-out or financially strapped right now or Niemi might have an offer sheet in hand . . . For the 1,017th consecutive day, Leafs defenseman Tomas Kaberle finds himself the subject of trade rumors. He'll be 77 years old, eating pudding in the Old Players Home and his name will still be circulating in the rumor mill . . . Given the tight money in the NHL these days, a lot of mid-level free agents are giving Europe a good look. And why not? The money is good and the hockey is way less grueling . . . New Rangers winger Alexander Frolov should follow in the proud tradition of that franchise's overpaid, underperforming free agents.
