OffThePost.org

RUMORS DU JOUR: There's something admirable about the way the Carolina Hurricanes are going about their rebuilding phase, without any pretence about their prospects for the current season, which are lost anyway. First, they installed Eric Staal as captain in place of Rod Brind'Amour, so he can adjust to the yoke of leadership, with comparatively little stress. Secondly, they've acknowledged publicly via general manager Jim Rutherford what everybody knew already – they will be sellers at this year's NHL trading deadline and that any number of veteran players with Stanley Cup championships on their resumes (Ray Whitney, Matt Cullen, Scott Walker, Joe Corvo, Niclas Wallin) will be available to the highest bidder. In recent years, teams have paid a premium for 11th-hour help just because the buyers vastly outnumbered the sellers. This year, the separation between the good and the bad came earlier in half-a-dozen precincts, meaning the market could be deeper than it has been.