By Allan Muir

The NHL Network has its flaws — that’s a post for another day — but it deserves full marks for treating yesterday’s trade deadline like E! handles a Kardashian wedding. The wall-to-wall coverage (courtesy of TSN, mixed with its own cut-ins) fed our boundless fascination with an event that has no chance of living up to the hype, but keeps us transfixed anyway.

But one of the best views it offered came well after the event coverage had ended. Later in the evening, the league provided a video look at the behind-the-scenes trade call that finalized the deal that saw the Rangers send Marian Gaborik to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

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Broadway smash: Ryane Clowe and the retooled Rangers pounded the Penguins. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• Roberto Luongo may say his contract sucks, but no one believes he’ll nullify it even though money isn’t buying him happiness.

• It’s official: Glen Sather won the trade deadline. After watching his new guys light it up, guess we can go ahead and hand them the Cup, eh?

• Here’s a New York view of the Marian Gaborik trade, and here’s what they were saying in Columbus 1 and 2. And here’s a copy of his no-trade waiver. Ever seen one of these before?

• The Blue Jackets also bid goodbye to Steve Mason, the author of the greatest moment in franchise history.

• Jim Matheson labels the Bruins, Penguins and Blue Jackets the winners of the trade sweepstakes.

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With the Isles in the playoff picture, captain Mark Streit will likely stick around. (Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

A abbreviated trade deadline day guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• A big splash at the trade deadline is no guarantee of playoff success.

• Could Calgary GM Jay Feaster have another deal up his sleeve before the deadline?

• Who might be on the trade block in Edmonton?

• The Islanders are for real! With another impressive win on Tuesday night, they now own the seventh spot in the East.

• With that long-awaited chance at the postseason within their grasp, don’t look for the Isles to trade captain Mark Streit, even if they can’t get his contract extended before the deadline.

• History extended an invitation to the Penguins. The Pens chose to wash their hair. Or something. Clearly they weren’t interested in competing against the Sabres hard enough to extend their 15-game winning streak.

• The Dallas Stars are a mess right now. And that’s exactly what they need to be.

• Does the arrival of Jaromir Jagr put the Bruins back on target for the Stanley Cup? Probably not if Patrice Bergeron’s injury is serious.

• They’re asking the same question in Vancouver about the acquisition of Derek Roy.

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The Rangers have traded struggling sniper Marian Gaborik to Columbus for three players. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

I’ll be constantly updating this post with the latest rumors and confirmed deals during the lead-up to the NHL’s trade deadline on 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, April 3. You can read my previous takes on the first major deals — Jaromir Jagr to the Bruins, Derek Roy to the Canucks and more — here.

TRADE TRACKER: Complete team-by-team list of transactions since March 24

Wednesday, April 3

6:10 p.m. That’s a wrap

Deadline Day 2013 was destined to be a low-wattage event until a flurry of bold deals at the buzzer set some teams up for a dramatic finish…and others for a much brighter future.

You have to be impressed by Jarmo Kekalainen’s willingness to go big to push his Blue Jackets toward a short-term reward, and Darcy Regier’s ability to maximize the return for Jason Pominville. If you need a snap judgement on the winners of the day, those top two the list.

As for losers, you have to consider Jim Rutherford and Kevin Cheveldayoff, who were unable to improve their sides with the Southeast division title up for grabs. Maybe their cautious approach pays off in the long-run, but in the short term they lost ground to their rival in Washington…and that may mean another spring on the playoff sidelines.

If you missed out on the action, here’s how it played out, warts and all.

5:05 p.m. TRADE: Jeff Deslauriers to Minnesota

And so deadline day goes out like a lamb as the Ducks send their fifth string netminder to the Wild for future considerations–the proverbial “bag of pucks.”

4:55 p.m. TRADE: Martin Erat to Washington

The day’s last deal paints a clear picture of the pressure Washington GM George McPhee is under to get his team into the playoffs. The Caps needed immediate scoring help and Erat, despite having just four goals this season for Nashville, has a resume that proves he can be much more productive. Moving to a new system might be what he needs to get his game back on track. The Caps also get Michael Latta, a physical forward who is developing into a decent playmaker. He’s close to being NHL-ready as a bottom-six center.
It’s a good haul for the Caps, but they paid a steep price in Forsberg, the 11th overall choice in last summer’s draft. Pretty unusual to see a top pick dealt so quickly, but the Caps have some depth in this part of their prospect pool. He’s a highly regarded kid, and while there are varying takes on his upside ranging from third-line power forward to first line sniper, he’s sure to be a player. Scouts rave about his heavy shot and his compete level. He’s a huge get for an organization that lacks blue-chippers up front.

4:21 p.m. TRADE: Jason Pominville to Minnesota

Full details are now in on this deal…and they are stunning.
In exchange for Pominville and a 2014 fourth rounder, Buffalo gets Matt Hackett, Johan Larsson, a 2013 first rounder and 2014 second rounder. Sabres fans? For all the grief you’ve given GM Darcy Regier–and heaven knows he’s earned every bit of it–he deserves flowers and cookies for this deal.
Good grief, what a fleecing this is! Hackett can play as a backup in the NHL now, and has the potential to become a No. 1. I talked to a scout about him last week before he played against the Stars and he was very enthusiastic about Hackett’s athleticism and skill set. Larsson is a big-bodied pivot who plays a defensively-minded game. There’s not a lot of flash to him, but he’ll be a solid No. 3 at worst, and possibly a decent No. 2. Add in the picks and it’s great haul for a player who would have been tough to re-sign.

The trick now will be convincing Thomas Vanek that dishing the captain is a re-tooling, not a rebuild, when they try to extend his contract after this season.

It was a heavy price to pay, but not too steep for a Minnesota team that has a deep system and hasn’t made the playoffs in four years. Pominville plays a gritty, 200-foot game and can be used in all situations, which makes him a significant upgrade to their top-six and makes the Wild a much more dangerous team.

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Under the new CBA, AHL teams chasing the Calder Cup won’t be as handicapped by NHL call-ups. (Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

While general managers still have to worry about what to do with expiring contracts ahead of the April 3 trade deadline, one big concern has been taken off their plates.

The old American Hockey League Clear Day roster deadline, once a hand-in-hand event with the NHL trade deadline, is no more, thanks to the new CBA.

What does that mean? In the past, teams had to determine which eligible players they would make available to their farm teams for the postseason the same day as the trade deadline. Once those decisions were made, NHL teams were limited to four minor league call-ups the rest of the regular season, unless an emergency situation dictated the need for more.

And now? NHL clubs still have to decide which eligible players they want to participate in the chase for the Calder Cup, but they won’t have to worry about the paper transactions — sending players down to the A and then recalling them in time to play that night — that used to take up valuable time on the busiest day of the year.

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Acquiring center Derek Roy made sense for the Stars last summer, but he didn’t pan out. (Dustin Bradford/Icon SMI)

By Allan Muir

Multiple sources report Derek Roy going from Dallas to Vancouver in exchange for a 2013 second-round pick and defenseman Kevin Connauton.

Canucks skinny

Finally, the Canucks get a legitimate, second/third line center to fill a long-gaping hole, and they did it without tampering with their current roster. Roy brings veteran experience and proven playmaking ability (18 assists in 30 games), but as I’ll explain below, his game is not without flaws. Still, he’s an upgrade over what they had, and he gives coach Alain Vigneault some flexibility in his top nine. That kind of depth will be key as the Canucks push into the playoffs.

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Jaromir Jagr is not your classic banging Bruins winger, but if he can juice Boston’s power play, he’ll be a good add. (Photo by Mark Humphrey/AP)

By Allan Muir

The deal

The Boston Bruins acquired winger Jaromir Jagr from the Dallas Stars in exchange for prospects Lane MacDermid and Cody Payne and a conditional draft pick.

Bruins skinny

There will be a lot of talk about his remarkable career when this deal is discussed, but the Bruins didn’t trade for the 1996 Jagr. They got the 2013 model — far from a superstar, but still a solid contributor at age 41. He had 14 goals and 26 points in 34 games with a low-rent Dallas offense, generating most of his chances with hard work down low, something coach Claude Julien says the B’s have gotten away from lately. What’s most intriguing about him is that, despite his considerable size, he’s not a typical banging Boston winger…and that’s not a bad thing. Given his familiarity with top center David Krejci, he could replace Nathan Horton on that unit and give it a very different (and tougher to defend) look 5-on-5. But where the B’s really need him to shine is on their 24th-ranked power play. Jagr’s a left-handed shot but plays off the right boards, which changes the angle of attack from what was a predominantly left-side assault.

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Trading veteran Jaromir Jagr is part of the Stars’ plan to get younger. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

Midway through the second period of last night’s 4-0 loss to the Anaheim Ducks, a message appeared on the video board teasing a look at the new jerseys the Dallas Stars will be wearing in 2013-14. The news generated a buzz through the crowd of 9,000 or so diehards who’d been beaten into silence by another error-filled performance from the Stars.

The third period comes around, and finally, the big reveal. A curtain parts and out comes some idiot in a horse-head mask wearing the much-despised mooterus jersey from a decade ago.

Ha ha! April Fool’s! It’s a joke! Get it?

You know, if this had been a playoff team, or even one that was taking care of business instead of getting blown out at home for the third time in a week, maybe this bit works. Instead, the ill-conceived gag served to perfectly encapsulate the 2013 Dallas Stars: Tease something big, then spectacularly under-deliver.

The Stars, well, new owner Tom Gagliardi, made the mistake last summer of believing a couple of 40-somethings like Jaromir Jagr and Ray Whitney would push this close-but-no-cigar squad back into the playoffs.

It hasn’t worked. There have been bright spots in this roller coaster season–a 2-0 win in Los Angeles two weeks ago comes to mind–but there have been too many passionless efforts like the one last night. And so, with the team on the verge of making it five consecutive years without a sniff of the postseason, the Stars surely realize it is time to start the fire sale.

MUIR: Stars trade Roy to Vancouver | Jagr to Boston

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The Bouwmeester trade is another questionable rebuilding move by the Flames after trading captain Jarome Iginla last week. (Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

At some point, maybe not too far into the future, Calgary Flames fans might look back at the deal that sent Jay Bouwmeester to the St. Louis Blues for a first-round pick, along with defenseman Mark Cundari and goaltender Reto Berra, as the deal that righted this badly listing franchise.

More likely though, this will be remembered as the third entry in GM Jay Feaster’s 2013 trilogy of failed decisions.

This is just a bad, bad deal for the Flames.

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No big gun: Michal Handzus has produced one goal and one assist in 28 games this season. (John Hefti/Icon SMI)

By Allan Muir

Multiple sources are reporting that the Chicago Blackhawks have acquired veteran center Michal Handzus from the San Jose Sharks.

In return, Chicago sends a 2013 fourth-round draft pick to San Jose.

The Hawks have been looking for help at center all season, but the need was clearly for a second-line pivot after Dave Bolland failed to make an impact in that role. Will Handzus help there? Not a chance.

Remember, this is the player whose role the Sharks hoped to diminish with the acquisition of Scott Gomez. If Gomez is seen as an upgrade, then that tells you all you need to know about what Handzus brings to the table.

So, what’s the appeal? He’s big (6′-4″, 220), he can chip in on the penalty kill and he’s been great on the draw, winning 55.6 percent of the time. That’s appealing to a Chicago team that ranks 18th in the league with a 49.9 winning percentage, but probably not going to terrify any of the other Western Conference contenders.

Handzus, 36, is in the last year of a deal that counts $2.5 million against the cap. The Hawks reassigned Brandon Bollig to clear space on the roster.

For the Sharks to get a fourth-rounder out of him is a win. That’s two for GM Doug Wilson this spring after snatching two second-rounders from the Pens for Douglas Murray.