Trade Winds Update 11:30 PM Eastern

Just three trades to report since we mentioned that defenseman Andy Sutton was headed from the New York Islanders to the Ottawa Senators for a second-round pick.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have traded left wing Alexei Ponikarovsky to the Pittsburgh Penguins for defenseman Martin Skoula and left wing Luca Caputi. Caputi has spent some time with Pittsburgh and also in the American Hockey League with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

The Anaheim Ducks have sent defenseman Nick Boynton to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for future considerations.

The Edmonton Oilers have acquired left wing Matt Marquardt from the Boston Bruins, who are receiving defenseman Cody Wild. Marquardt has spent time this season with Providence of the AHL and Reading of the East Coast Hockey League. Wild has played in the AHL with Springfield and in the ECHL with Stockton.

We here at the Lounge will pass on any information we get on any player movement as we approach the NHL trade deadline, which is at 3 pm Eastern on Wednesday.

Trade Winds Are Blowing

The Ottawa Senators have moved a second-round pick in the 2010 draft to the New York Islanders. Headed to Ottawa is defenseman Andy Sutton.

That is the first trade of the day and one of many that will be made until we reach the NHL trade deadline, which is at 3 pm Eastern tomorrow. The NHL Network will carry the trade deadline show from TSN in Canada.

If you don't get the NHL Network or you don't live in Canada, you can still hear trade deadline shows on Wednesday on TSN.ca and on Sportsnet.ca.

And we, here in the Lounge, will try to keep track of things tomorrow as well.

The Tuesday Spreadsheet

Do I miss the Olympics? Not a chance. The real games are back on. No handshakes until the end of a playoff series. The trade deadline is approaching and people are ready to be on the move again.

Teams are stocking up for the playoffs So am I. WiFi is being rebuilt. Beverages are being hoarded. Cable bill is being paid. Weather is getting warm. I am feeling strong. Hitting all the right notes. It does not get any better than this. Trust me. No? Too bad for you.

Welcome back, NHL.



NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Detroit 3, at Colorado 2
Standings are here.
Summary is here.
Recap by Sportsnet.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.

One More Thing About the Olympics

The cynic in me is like a player who jumps over the boards too early on a line change, always eager, if a little too quick on the draw.

I’ll risk the penalty for too many on the ice this time, though, because I don’t see the NHL getting any significant bounce out of the unbelievable gold-medal final in Olympic hockey on Sunday.

It has to be terribly gratifying to long-time hockey fans to hear how the game captured everyone’s attention and was the prime topic on most sports radio shows Monday morning.

But this won’t be the seminal moment in the NHL’s development. We won’t look back on Sunday’s game and point to it as the moment the NHL roped in a significant quota of new fans and moved itself into the front row of the American sports conversation.

That won’t happen because the NHL will not embrace the necessary changes to make it happen.

Olympic hockey is made compelling because it is free of the retribution that leads to gratuitous fighting and keeps guys like Cam Janssen and Colton Orr under contract and because it unfolds over a compact time period that helps ratchet up the drama.

But the NHL has not shown any inclination to tame its product, to steadily drum out the staged brawls that turn off the people who tuned in on Sunday. The NHL would also make its game more attractive by condensing its season, making it less of a tedious slog and perhaps allowing the league to stop holding its marquee event – the Stanley Cup final -- at a time of year when most viewers have already mowed their lawn a handful of times.

The other element that has made Olympic hockey must-see TV is the inclusion of NHL players. At this moment, the league has not consented to making its players available for the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, and anything less than NHL participation at this point, reduces the quality of Olympic hockey considerably. For every 6-1 semifinal stinker such as the game between the United States and Finland, there is enormous payback such as was played out on Sunday.

Over to you, NHL. My shift is over.

A Loss, But No Bitter Tears

You could see the pain building behind the mask of Ryan Miller as he began to realize his gold medal had eluded him. Sidney Crosby. Quick shot. Five hole. Canada's prize.

The disappointment, the sniffles, everything you'd expect from someone who felt he needed to be perfect to win, and who felt less than so in defeat. But the class act that the American goaltender is came through in postgame interviews. No ducking. Taking on all questions as he did shots on Sunday afternoon.

The best side of Miller came through later Sunday when he joined several of his teammates at the Vancouver Games' closing ceremonies. He proudly wore his team colors and a smile. Disappointment in a loss? Yes. Pride in a fine job for his country. Yes.

That's the face I take from these Olympics. The face of the American men's hockey program. The team fell short, but it pushed forward the notion that this country can produce a strong program even when the number of stars on the American roster does not match those on the flag or on the roster of the opponent.

This silver medal, coupled with the gold earned by the United States this past January at the World Junior Championships in Saskatoon, offer a hint of what is to come. The challenge is on USA Hockey to continue to build on this and not live on the past.

The Miracle on Ice was great, but that was 30 years ago. USA Hockey cannot accept 20- or 30-year intervals between gold medals. It's time to get to work. Kudos to Canada for its Olympic gold medal. And kudos to the American team for raising our expectations for the gold medals to come.

We Beg Your Pardon

No, nothing like being too depressed or too excited to write anything about hockey or the Olympic men's tournament final.

The WiFi is down in the Lounge. I am working at a remote site. Soon, the whole network at the Lounge will be back up. Just in time for the restart of the National Hockey League season, the prospect of which has this employee of the Lounge fired up and ready for action.

Detroit at Colorado tonight on Versus, a 9 pm start in the East. Get your grub. Get your beverage. The real games are back on ice, starting tonight. Fresh bodies. Fresh animosity. Somebody is going to get hit. Boom, Boom. Out go the lights.

Did I just see a smile break out there. Thought so.

More later.

The Monday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Gold medal game
Canada 3, United States 2 OT
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Bracket and final standings are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Hershey 2, at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 1 SO
At Lake Erie 6, Grand Rapids 5 SO
Norfolk 3, at Syracuse 2
At Chicago 4, Rockford 2
Milwaukee 4, at Peoria 0
At Portland 4, Albany 2
At Lowell 4, Hartford 3
San Antonio 5, at Texas 3
At Rochester 4, Binghamton 3 OT
At Hamilton 5, Toronto 1
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Kalamazoo 4, Charlotte 2
At Florida 3, South Carolina 2 SO
At Las Vegas 6, Stockton 3
At Reading 4, Johnstown 3
At Ontario 2, Bakersfield 0
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Moncton 7, Halifax 2
At Chicoutimi 3, Baie-Comeau 1
At Victoriaville 8, Lewiston 4
At Drummondville 4, Montreal 1
Rouyn-Noranda 7, Val-d'Or 1
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Brampton 5, Owen Sound 2
At Mississauga 7, Oshawa 4
Ottawa 5, at Niagara 2
Windsor 6, at Sudbury 0
At Saginaw 4, Guelph 3
Kitchener 6, at Erie 4
At Sault Ste. Marie 5, London 4 OT
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Tri-City 6, at Seattle 3
At Portland 3, Prince George 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Indiana 6, Team USA 2
At Green Bay 5, Youngstown 3
Team USA 6, at Sioux City 0
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

HOCKEY EAST
At Vermont 3, Boston University 2
Standings, recap and summary are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
Alabama Huntsville 3, at Niagara 2 OT
Standings, recap and summary are here.