I haven't seen the replays and I'm not an expert..... but after the jump I'll try and take a stab at the NHL's 28 other teams, and possible trading partners for the Avs.  Thanks to Andidee for the idea, hope I'm not stepping on your toes by posting this. You may photochop mean things about me if needed.

Western Conference:

Of course, trading within the conference can be a dangerous affair (see Richardon, Brad and Tanguay, Alex) but sometimes the Phoenix Coyotes just need to be taken advantage of. Ladies and Gentlemen, the 13 Western Conference teams.

Anaheim:

Wants: Team Needs Scoring, Top 6 Wingers

Assets: Strong top 6 defensive corps

Assessment: With their top guys locked up for the next few years and Blake Koivu and Selanne looking at retirement or paycuts next year, the Ducks have plenty of cap space and flexibility.

Verdict: Not a good trading partner. Dumping Cumiskey on their faces is probably the best we’ll get from Anaheim.

Calgary:

Wants: Players that don’t suck.  An end to the JayBo era. Cap Space. Picks. Prospects. Toronto Maple Leaf Players. Top 6 Centers

Assets: A few top 6 wingers, top flight aging goaltender.

Players of Interest: Alex Tanguay, Rene Bourque

Verdict: Unfortunately the greatest asset the Avs had for this trade was Joey Hishon, but with his health up in the air the Avs would have to give up other assets if they wanted to obtain Rene Bourque.  Calgary’s D is pretty weak past the top 3, so Tyson Barrie (as Dater suggested) could be an option here.

Chicago Blackhawks:

Wants: Defensive depth, maybe?

Assets: Everything, this team is set to be great again, but they are especially good in their top 9 forwards.

Players of Interest: Patrick Sharp (a dream player for me, but there’s just no way Chicago is letting him go), Brian Bickel and Victor Stahlberg are both good options to replace Landeskog on the third so he could move up to play with Duchene. Both guys have some top 6 potential, but are more likely 3rd line grinders with some offensive contribution. If Dave Bolland could play wing, he could be a good option here as well. Landeskog-OReilly-Bolland? Ya, I’ll take that.

Verdict: Unlikely: This team looks to be pretty set and there’s not much the Avs have that would interest them

Columbus Blue Jackets:

Wants: Defensive Depth, Goaltending, Top 9 forwards

Assets: Top 6 wingers

Players of Interest: Derick Brassard (if he could play wing), Vaclav Prospal (playing well thusfar)

Verdict: Prospal or Brassard could be decent options, but it would take a Dman like Wilson or OByrne going the other way, of course that opens the door for guys like Elliott, Guance, Hunwick or Barrie.  Hell, maybe we could get em to take Hunwick? CBJ is looking for help now, and unfortunately we don’t have a goalie to offer them.

Dallas Stars:

Wants: Well, this team could certainly use some top 4 defensemen, Lehtonen cant win them games this way all year.

Assets: Left Wingers, without a doubt

Players of Interest: The most intriguing name by far is Jamie Benn, but he’s not going anywhere anytime soon, same with Loui Erikkson. Ribeiro and Morrow however, could find themselves on the outs with the team looking to hump the cap floor while their sale goes through.

Verdict: Do these guys remind you a lot of the 2009 Avs? I mean holy shit, once mediocre goalie is winning them A TON of games, offense is clicking, defense is very meh, and it all looks like it could fall apart at any moment? Ya. Unfortunately with the financial uncertainty in Dallas, and their proximity to the cap floor, it may be tough to trade with them until next year when Jamie Benn has his new, very large contract.  If the Avs wanted to take a chance, I would love to see a trade for winger prospect Scott Glennie, he’s young but I think he’d be a great fit on this team in years to come. Doubtful.

Edmonton Oilers:

Wants: Defensive depth

Assets: Young talent, especially wingers

Players of Interest: Ales Hemsky, Jordan Eberle, Linus Omark, Magnus Pajaarvi

Verdict: Trades within the division are always risky, but if there are a few intriguing names on that list.  Jordan Eberle for Kyle Quincey/Tyson Barrie/Stefan Elliott/Ryan Wilson?  Yeah, its risky, but Eberle is gonna be a talented player in this league. So it could be worth the risk. Maybe.

Los Angeles Kings:

Wants: Not a lot, these guys look solid top to bottom. Clearing cap space could be helpful though.

Assets: Everything, there are guys at every position who they could part with and stay competitive.

Players of Interest: Tough to say, its difficult to imagine anyone from LA coming out the rocky mountains

Verdict: Not a partner. It’s likely the only trade the Kings will look for this season is one that dumps some cap space by getting rid of Dustin Penner, and do you really want him? I didn’t think so

Minnesota Wild:

Wants: Players who know how to play the trap. I would say they need some top 6 scorers, but historically that’s not really their style, so I don’t really know what it is that they want.

Assets: uuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhh. Well, Setogouchi is great, but he’s not going anywhere.

Players of Interest: I know I’ll get verbally smacked for this… But Cal Clutterbuck is an intriguing choice.  Yes he’s a bit of a douche, yes he’s a thorn in our side, yes we hate him…. But that just means he’s doing his job. Fact is, the guy scores goals, draws penalties and sticks up for teammates. Plus, he does have one hell of a mustache. Wouldn’t you be curious to see him lined up with Radar? He’s a hard worker and has some good upside.

Nashville Predators:

Wants: Top 9 two way forwards with scoring upside

Assets: Defense

Players of Interest: Kevin Klein, I know we look good with our revamped defense… But at 6-1 200lbs and an excellent skater, this guy definitely fits our mold, and boy oh boy did he play well in the playoffs, showed a lot of promise for a pretty young dman. Mike Fisher would be great,  but Mr. Carrie Underwood won’t be leaving Nashville if he could help it.  One last intriguing name, Niclas Bergfors, yes, yes, he is the Swedish Wolski, but in many ways I don’t think he’s had the right system or a fair shake.  He definitely has talent, so as we saw with misused Peter Mueller, maybe Sacco could light a fire under him and get this guy’s development back on track.

Verdict: Doubtful, not a lot they would want from the Avalanche, but there are a few intriguing pieces from the Predators. Of course Suter and Weber aren’t going to happen, but I really do like Klein for this team.

Phoenix Coyotes:

Wants: With the financial situation in Phoenix, its doubtful they are looking to make acquisitions that don’t clear cap space.

Assets: Grinding forwards.

Players of Interest: Turris’s name is floating around out there, but the price is probably too high for Sherman and Company.  Shane Doan and Ray Whitney could be had at the deadline if the Yotes are out of contention. Of course is Cal OReilly doesn’t work out, the Avs could make a push to reunite the brothers.

Verdict: Possible. There aren’t perfect matches here, but the two teams have a very good history of trading together. I could see a deal shipping one of our middle d-men or better d prospects for one of their aging wingers and maybe Oliver Ekman-Larsson, although that feels like wishful thinking.

San Jose Sharks:

Wants: Sharks look good top to bottom, their prospect pool is pretty thin however, and while they aren’t in cap trouble, their not swimming in cap space either. Prospects may interest the veteran heavy Sharks.

Assets: Top 9 talent and power forwards

Players of Interest: Ryane Clowe (Goddamn, with this guys size and talent, can you imagine him on a line with Stastny and Jones? Holy Shit that would look good), Jamie McGinn is young and has some top 6 potential, I’d love to see him get a shot on the Avs top 6, plenty of size, good talent. If Clowe can’t be had, McGinn is a good alternative.

Verdict: Unlikely, the Avs don’t have much to offer once again, but if the Sharks run into injury troubles on the back end, one of our dmen could see McGinn or Clowe coming back the other way.

St. Louis Blues:

Wants: So much depends on David Perron. If he comes back healthy, the Blues could look to bolster their blueline by sacrificing some of their top 6 depth, but without him it’s likely they will stand pat.

Assets: Arnott, Backes, Steen, Stewart, Oshie, D’Agostini and Berglund. That’s pretty damn talented group. Add in David Perron and maybe someone finds themselves on the outs.

Players of Interest: Oshie, he’s fallen out of favor with the Blues at times, but he’s big and talented. Work ethic and injury history may deter interest from the Avs.  The other name that sticks out to me is Matt D’Agostini, after limited success in Montreal he had 21 goals last year and he’s already got 4 this season.  He’s a risk but he’s got some serious wheels and grit to go along with. He could definitely keep up with Duchene and my help with puck possession on that line, as he loves to drive the net and play tight along the boards.

Verdict: Possible. The Blues could use a little help on defense, guys like Shatty, Coliacovo and Pietrangelo are talented, but their not the most physical group. A guy like Wilson could be a welcome sight in STL if the team starts to wear down over the winter.

Vancouver Canucks:

Fuck the Nucks I don’t want any creepy Twins. That said, if they wanted to let Hodgson go for cheap…. The change of scenery may help him and it could shore up our organizational depth with Hishon MIA

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed the aimless ramblings of an Avs fan. Ill post my eastern conference thoughts sometime tonight or tomorrow.