CALGARY - The Calgary Flames were sellers heading into Wednesdays NHL trade
deadline, but buyers had yet to open their wallets a day out.
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items on Calgarys lot were forwards Mike Cammalleri and Lee Stempniak. Both will
be unrestricted free agents this summer. Interim general manager Brian Burkes
theory for slow business was shoppers were temporarily preoccupied elsewhere.
Other forwards said to be on the market were New York Rangers captain
Ryan Callahan, Vancouver Canucks forward Ryan Kesler, Matt Moulson of the
Buffalo Sabres, Ales Hemsky of the Edmonton Oilers and Thomas Vanek of the
Buffalo Sabres. "I think theres a logjam thats been presented or created by two,
three, four players thats going to paralyze the rest of the league," Burke told
reporters Tuesday at Scotiabank Saddledome. "Youll see other deals happening but
I think the hold up for a high-end forward has kind been captivated by two,
three, four players. "I think were on the backburner for a lot of teams right
now. Doesnt mean nothing is going to happen, but thats where we are today. "Weve
been in discussions with every team in the league and what theyre trying to do.
We have some unrestricted free agents we will move if the price is right. Im not
close on anything that makes sense for us." Trade speculation in Calgary has
centred on Cammalleri, but with a record of 23-31-7 and destined for a fifth
straight season out of the playoffs, the only Flames that Burke considered off
limits were captain Mark Giordano and rookie sensation Sean Monahan. "When youre
in the place we are in the standings, your list of untouchables should be either
nonexistent or tiny," Burke said. Burke, the Flames president of hockey
operations, stepped in as interim GM when he fired Jay Feaster on Dec. 12. He
intends to hire a new GM. But Burkes mandate is to speed up Calgarys rebuild by
whatever means necessary: trades, spending to the cap or the signing of free
agents. "You cant be waiting for the next guy," Burke said. "Were going to do
what we can to improve. If that means theres a few less decisions for the new
guy, thats fine. "The dynamic of the trade deadline is, you want to show your
players first and foremost, if youre close, you want the room to feel youve done
something to add. You want the players to believe management is trying to make
the team better." Only the Buffalo Sabres have scored fewer goals than Calgary
in the NHL this season, but upgrades are needed both up front and on the
blue-line. Cammalleri, 31, scored 39 goals and had 43 assists as a Flame and a
linemate of Jarome Iginla in 2008-09. Cammalleri is in the final year of a
five-year contract paying him $6 million annually. With the right linemates,
Cammalleris offensive skills and experience make him an attractive rental for a
playoff push. "Things change very quickly in the business," Cammalleri said.
"When it comes to that, I think you understand why certain things take place and
why they might be thinking along certain lines. "I feel my best hockey is ahead
of me and I feel great about my game. Whether its here, or whatever happens, Im
not concerned about my ability to help my team out." Stempniak, also 31, is in
the second year of a two-year deal that counts $2.5 million against the salary
cap. He has eight goals and 15 assists in 52 games this season. His wife gave
birth to twin girls following the Olympic break and he could be on the move
Wednesday. "I know thats a very likely possibility and have sort of braced
myself for that," Stempniak said. "Ill either get a phone call or I wont get a
phone call. "It could be two big life changes in the span of five days, but its
part of the business. Thankfully on the family front, everything is going well
there and everyone is healthy. Thats the most important thing. Whatever else
happens, you think you can deal with it." Defenceman Chris Butler, whose salary
is $1.7 million this season, is also scheduled for unrestricted free agency in
July. Burke said he prefers adding a player who can upgrade the Flames
immediately over acquiring draft picks. Calgary has a healthy dose of cap space
to take on unwanted contracts as part of a deal as well. "I hope to be up here
in a year talking about buying players, not selling players. Were selling,"
Burke said. "That being said, if we can salvage a hockey deal out of this were
going to do that. "If we can turn our cap space into assets were going to do
that. It could be a very important day for the franchise, the next 24 hours, but
its not the same as when youre adding to try to make a push." The Flames host
the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday. Coach Bob Hartley said Joni Ortio will get the
start in net. Ortio was called up from Abbotsford, B.C., when goaltender
Karri Ramo injured his knee Feb. 2. Ramo skated Tuesday for the first time since
the injury prior to Calgarys optional skate.
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are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and
sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in
hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two.
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Nathan MacKinnon, Jamie McGinn and Jan Hejda also scored for the Avalanche, who
won despite being outshot 38-23. MacKinnons goal, also on the power play, came
with just over a minute remaining.
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. After dropping their final six games of December, the Wild opened the new
calendar year with four consecutive wins. Following a loss to Colorado on
Saturday, Minnesota rebounded the following night to blank Nashville 4-0, but
then had the tables turned on them Tuesday.MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Dallas
Mavericks have struggled at times this season to close out. They didnt let that
happen against the Memphis Grizzlies. Dirk Nowitzki scored 26 points,
Brandan Wright added 17 and the Mavericks used a second-half surge to grab a
110-96 victory over Memphis on Wednesday night. "Weve obviously had a little
trouble sometimes finishing games with leads, especially on the road," said
Nowitzki, who was 10 of 14 from the field, including 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.
"Teams are putting pressure on us and really getting into us, and we havent
really responded well to that. But (against the Grizzlies) I thought we were
solid." Samuel Dalembert and Monta Ellis had 14 points apiece and Dalembert
added 10 rebounds. Vince Carter had 13 points and seven assists to help the
Mavericks win their third straight game. Zach Randolph scored 25 points for
Memphis, while Courtney Lee finished with 22. James Johnson added 17 and
Nick Calathes scored 16 starting his third game in place of injured starting
point guard Mike Conley. Dallas began its rally in the closing minutes of the
third quarter and carried it into the fourth, eventually leading by as many as
17. The Mavericks are eighth in the Western Conference, two games ahead of the
Grizzlies for the last playoff spot. Dallas also assured itself of winning the
season series with its third win over Memphis this season. "If we would have won
it, we would still be able to make the playoffs. If we lose, it doesnt change
anything," said Memphis centre Marc Gasol, who had 12 points. "We have a lot of
games left. . Of course, we would like to win every game, but if you lose, you
move on. If you win, you move on. Theres no other way around it." The Mavericks
dominated the paint, holding a 56-32 advantage in points and 35-32 edge on the
glass. "To get 40, 50 points in the paint on them is impressive," Nowitzki said.
"It means we were driving the ball and sharing.
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our own on the boards with this team and almost double them on points in the
paint, thats a fantastic job for us." Memphis led 55-52 at halftime after having
a basket taken away by a clock malfunction at the end of the half. Ellis scored
with 10.1 seconds left, and on the ensuing Memphis possession Johnson appeared
to hit a layup with less than a second left. But the clock didnt start properly
following Ellis basket, and officials ruled that if it had, Johnson would not
have gotten the shot off in time. "In the first half, we didnt defend very
well," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. "We knew we were going to play better in
the second half." The Mavericks took their first lead of the game on a 3-pointer
by Nowitzki early in the third period, but then the game settled into poor
shooting on both sides. The result was a quarter with six ties and three lead
changes. Dallas broke a 71-all tie by closing the period with a 7-1 push for a
78-72 lead. That started a 14-3 Mavericks rally spanning the quarters. When
Wright converted a 3-point play with 8:27 left, Dallas had stretched the lead to
14 points. The Mavericks 110 points snapped a Memphis string of seven games
during which the Grizzlies had not allowed an opponent to surpass 90 points.
"They always have five guys on the floor that you have to guard, and they can
all shoot," Memphis coach Dave Joerger said. "I did a poor job at getting us
ready against the multiple action pick-and-rolls that they ran. "Defensively, we
were awful." NOTES: It took 7 minutes after the teams left the floor at halftime
for officials to review the final play before disallowing Johnsons basket. ...
Mavericks F Shawn Marion returned after missing two games with shoulder and rib
contusions and had eight points. ... Calathes, who hadnt committed a turnover in
the last two games starting for Conley, had six turnovers. ... Nowitzki has five
straight games with at least 23 points.
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