#64

Biscuits and Breezers

        Welcome back to another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! In this blog I would like to talk about the trades in the NHL and all of the boys from the Helena Bighorns at Nationals in Rochester, Minnesota. Starting off with the NHL trades. Since the Trade Deadline has come and gone, I just wanted to catch everyone up on what went on with these trades because there were so many of them. So here in a short summary is what happened since March 24th!

 March 24th:

- Pittsburgh Penguins acquire Brenden Morrow and a third-round drafte pick from the Dallas Stars for Joe Morrow and a fifth-round draft pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft

 March 25th:

- Pittsburgh Penguins Douglas Murray from the San Jose Sharks for a second-round draft pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft and a conditional second-round draft pick in 2014

March 27th:

- Pittsburgh Penguins acquire Jarome Iginla from the Calgary Flames for Kenneth Agostino, Ben Hanowski, and a first-round draft pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft

March 30th:

- Philadelphia Flyers acquire Kent Huskins from the Detroit Red Wings for a conditional seventh-round draft pick

- St. Louis Blues acquire Jordan Leopold from the Buffalo Sabres for a second-round draft pick and a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft

April 1st:

- Chicago Blackhawks acquire Michal Handzus from the San Jose Sharks for a fourth-round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft

- Anaheim Ducks acquire Jay Rosehill from the Philadelphia Flyers in turn for Harry Zolnierczyk

- Los Angeles Kings acquire Robyn Regehr from the Buffalo Sabres for a second-round draft pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft and a second-round pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft

- St. Louis Blues acquire Jay Bouwmeester from the Calgary Flames for a conditional first-round draft pick, Mark Cundari, and Reto Berra. 

April 2nd:

- Carolina Hurricanes acquire Marc-Andre Bergeron from the Tampa Bay Lightning for Adam Hall and a seventh-round draft pick

- Vancouver Canucks acquire Derek Roy from the Dallas Stars for Kevin Connauton and second-round draft pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft Pick

- Boston Bruins acquire Jaromir Jagr from the Dallas Stars for Lane McDermid, Cody Payne, and a conditional second-round draft pick

- Montreal Canadiens acquire Davis Drewiske from the Los Angeles Kings for a fifth-round draft pick

- New York Rangers acquire Ryane Clowe from the San Jose Sharks for a second-round draft pick, third-round draft pick, and a conditional second-round draft pick

April 3rd:

- San Jose Sharks acquire Scott Hanan from the Nashville Predators for a conditional seventh-round pick

- Edmonton Oilers acquire Jerred Smithson from the Florida Panthers for a fourth-round pick.

- Pittsburgh Penguins acquire Jussi Jokinen from the Carolina Hurricanes for a conditional seventh-round draft pick

- Tampa Bay Lightning acquire Ben Bishop from the Ottawa Senators for Cory Conacher and a fourth-round draft pick

- Philadelphia Flyers acquire Steve Mason from the Columbus Blue Jackets for Michael Leighton and a third-round draft pick

- Columbus Blue Jackets acquire Marian Gaborik from the New York Rangers for Derek Dorsett, John Moore, Derick Brassard and a sixth-round draft pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft

- Minnesota Wild acquire Jason Pominville from the Buffalo Sabres for Matt Hackett and John Larsson.

-Columbus Blue Jackets acquire Blake Comeau from the Calgary Flames for a fifth-round draft pick

- San Jose Sharks acquire Raffi Torres from the Phoenix Coyotes for a third-round draft pick

-Toronto Maple Leafs acquire Ryan O'Bryne from the Colorado Avalanche for a fourth-round draft pick

-Boston Bruins acquire Wade Redden from the St. Louis Blues for an unspecified draft pick

-Anaheim Ducks acquire Matthew Lombardi from the Phoenix Coyotes for Brandon McMillan

-New Jersey Devils acquire Steve Sullivan from the Phoenix Coyotes for a conditional seventh-round draft pick

-Washington Capitals trade Filip Forsberg to the Nashville Predators for Martin Erat and Michael Latta

    Well I hope that helped some of you out! There will definitely be a lot of change up in some of the teams, some for the good and some for the bad, but all in all it is over! I hope that the players fit into their new towns soon and warm up to their new team mates! The question you must ask yourself now is that, were these the right moves to make to ensure playoff spots? Will these players enhance or suffocate the team? We shall all see in the games to come!

   Now the next thing I want to talk about are the Helena Bighorns at Nationals in Rochester, Minnesota. Going into Nationals this year, they are back to back Lewis and Clark Cup Champions, Regular Season champions, battle tested veterans, and now playing every game for their best friend that they tragically and unexpectedly lost. You can see all of this when you watch them play too because it is just amazing. They truly do have fire and ice running through their veins. In Game 1 they played the New Jersey Rockets and fought viciously into overtime tied at 1-1 until the NHL-bound forward, fast paced, skill packed Swede Christian Axelsson scored to make it 2-1 and to lift Helena past the Rockets. I was watching the game and I was just shocked at the coordination and team work they had going for them. Jett Salinas, who was in the cage that night, was absolutely on top of everything. Even though he got a little wake up call when New Jersey slipped one past him, he was confident in what he did. I seriously think that he needs to go back up to the NAHL because that is where he belongs. Of course he needs his brothers in Helena but I think that for hockey purposes, he needs to be in a higher league. One thing that I think gets overlooked sometimes in hockey games is the defense. The d-men were rocking things in Rochester. They were working like a well oiled machine and making the big hits that were necessary to knock some of the opposing players out of the way for a minute. The forwards were always there to meet the puck and to make the shots on the goal. They are a powerful group of guys who know why they are fighting, why they are climbing to the top, who they are fighting for, why they are going to be the best, and who put them there. In Game 2, they really put everything on the table. Playing against the Boch Blazers, Helena took this game as well with 11-2 being the final score. This is the usual outcome of their games and since a lot of scouts are at Nationals, they are bringing out the heavy artillery. I swear that in the next couple of years, some of these boys' names will show up on NHL rosters. They are such a strong unit and have a deep bond that a lot of them have grown to be near blood brothers. Alex Lazarski was great in the cage blocking numerous shots from the Blazers that were coming fast and furious. Alex is a very good goaltender who has a lot of potential to grow and expand his area of play. The boys are doing very well and are making the necessary connections to make the big plays. They are banging bodies, checking fiercely into the glass, shooting hard, and shooting accurate. They play the Atlanta Knights soon and that should be a sick game to see because there is quite a bit of rivalry between these two teams! I will definitely be watching this game and I hope you all will too! Good luck boys and I hope you can go all the way! 

    Thanks for reading another blog of Biscuits and Breezers! Every blog will be filled with updated hockey news, player reviews, and much more! Until next time remember, don't get your breezers in a bunch because hockey is always around the corner. Remember, it's always a great day for hockey and it's a lifestyle not just a sport!