Rick Nash has one year left on his contract with the only team for which he has played, and the Blue Jackets want to sign him to a long-term deal before he can become an free agent next summer, according to an Associated Press report on Tuesday. One of the top forwards in the league, it?s not just a wild rumor that the Maple Leafs covet the kid who grew up in suburban Brampton.

The Blues are cutting ties with Jay McKee, buying out the final year of the defenseman's contract, according to an ESPN report on Monday. McKee signed a four-year, $16M free agent contract in 2006 and was due $4M for next season. The Blues are responsible for two-thirds ($2.64M) of McKee's salary, which will be spread out the next two seasons.

Ron Wilson's coaching staff for the U.S. Olympic team has added John Tortorella and Scott Gordon as assistants. Tortorella coaches the Rangers and Gordon coaches the Islanders.

Capitals general manager George McPhee has hinted that the club doesn't necessarily need an enforcer. "If you are fortunate enough to make the playoffs, you are always looking up and down your roster for more talent," McPhee said. "You go into games and say, 'Geez, are we better than these guys and do we have more talent on our team?' "One thing that happened for sure with the tough guys is their salaries have gone down because people don't want to spend as much on them because they need the money for more talent. The next step is,do we really need it at all, or should we take a page from Detroit's book and just throw as much talent at this other team as we can. If people want to screw around, then you beat them up on your power play if you have a good power play."

Trading for center Brian Boyle appears to have cost the Rangers a shot at Boston's Phil Kessel. New York traded a third-round selection in next year's Entry Draft to the Kings for Boyle. The Rangers could have signed Kessel on a Group II free agent offer sheet. Signing Kessel would have cost New York their first, second and third-round picks in the 2010 NHL Draft.

The Anaheim Ducks announced today that Teemu Selanne has elected to return to play for the club next season (2009-10). Selanne, already under contract for the 2009-10 campaign, informed Executive Vice President/General Manager Bob Murray of his decision this morning. ?This is obviously great news for the Ducks,? said Murray. ?Teemu is still playing at a high level, brings passion and energy to the locker room and is a loyal member of this franchise. It?s fantastic he?s chosen to continue his playing career.? Selanne, 38 (7/3/70), is a veteran of 17 NHL seasons, 10 of which have been played with Anaheim. A 10-time NHL All-Star, Selanne is Anaheim?s all-time leader in goals (352), points (743), plus/minus (+114), power play goals (133), power play points (304), game-winning goals (59) and overtime goals (6). Since re-joining Anaheim after the lockout, Selanne has scored 127 goals over the last four seasons (127-134=261 points in 253 games). He won his first Stanley Cup in 2007. During the 2006-07 regular season, he finished third in the NHL in goals, while ranking first in the league in power play goals (25) and tied for first in game-winning goals (10). ?I?m very happy to play another season in Anaheim,? said Selanne. ?The way we played toward the end of last season, I?m excited about our chances. We definitely have what it takes to win.? In 2008-09, Selanne became the sixth European-born player to eclipse the 1,200-point mark in his career, finishing the regular season ranked 18th on the NHL?s all-time goals list, 41st in all-time scoring and 64th all-time in assists. He also became the Ducks? franchise leader in assists (370, Nov. 7 vs. DAL) and games played (617, Jan. 31 at COL) in 2008-09. The Helsinki, Finland, native ranked fifth in the NHL in power-play goals during the regular season, despite missing 17 games with a leg injury. In 1,132 career NHL games, Selanne has scored 579-633=1,212 points with 505 PIM and a +89 rating. The 6-0, 204-pound winger has averaged 34 goals per year over his 17 NHL seasons. He has twice been named a First-Team NHL All-Star (1993, 1997), twice named a Second-Team All-Star (1998, 1999) and was chosen to be a member of the NHL?s 1993 All-Rookie Team. Selanne won the 1999 Maurice ?Rocket? Richard Trophy, given to the league?s top goal scorer, and was the 1993 Calder Memorial Trophy winner (league?s top rookie). Selanne was drafted by Winnipeg in the first round (10th overall) of the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. He was originally acquired by Anaheim from Winnipeg with Marc Chouinard and a fourth-round draft pick in the 1996 Entry Draft in exchange for Chad Kilger, Oleg Tverdovsky and a third-round pick in the 1996 draft on Feb. 7, 1996. On Mar. 5, 2001, Selanne was traded from Anaheim to San Jose for Jeff Friesen, Steve Shields and future considerations. Selanne signed as a free agent with Anaheim on Aug. 22, 2005 and has signed subsequent deals to remain a Duck ever since.

The first round of the 2009 NHL Draft was completed in Montreal on Friday night. 1. Islanders: John Tavares, C, London (OHL) 2. Lightning: Victor Hedman, D, Modo (Sweden) 3. Avalanche: Matt Duchene, C, Brampton (OHL) 4. Thrashers: Evander Kane, C, Vancouver (WHL) 5. Kings: Brayden Schenn, C, Brandon (WHL) 6. Coyotes: Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D, Leksand (Sweden-2) 7. Maple Leafs: Nazem Kadri, C, London (OHL) 8. Stars: Scott Glennie, RW, Brandon (WHL) 9. Senators: Jared Cowen, C, Spokane (WHL) 10. Oilers: Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson, LW, Timra (Sweden) 11. Predators: Ryan Ellis, D, Windsor (OHL) 12. Islanders (from Wild): Calvin DeHaan, D, Oshawa (OHL) 13. Sabres: Zack Kassian, RW, Peterborough (OHL) 14. Panthers: Dmitry Kulikov, D, Drummondville (QMJHL) 15. Ducks: Peter Holland, C, Guelph (OHL) 16. Wild (from Blue Jackets through Islanders): Nick Leddy, D, Eden Prairie (USHS) 17. Blues: David Rundblad, D, Skelleftea (Sweden) 18. Canadiens: Louis LeBlanc, C, Omaha (USHL) 19. Rangers: Chris Kreider, C, Andover (USHS) 20. Devils (from Flames): Jacob Josefson, C, Djurgarden (Sweden) 21. Blue Jackets (from Flyers through Ducks): John Moore, D, Chicago (USHL) 22. Canucks: Jordan Schroeder, C, Minnesota (WCHA) 23. Flames (from Devils): Tim Erixon, D, Skelleftea (Sweden) 24. Capitals: Marcus Johansson, C, Farjestad (Sweden) 25. Bruins: Jordan Caron, RW, Rimouski (QMJHL) 26. Ducks (from Sharks through Lightning, Senators, Islanders & Blue Jackets): Kyle Palmieri, C/RW, USA U-18 (USDP) 27. Hurricanes: Philippe Paradis, C, Shawinigan (QMJHL) 28. Blackhawks: Dylan Olsen, D, Camrose (AJHL) 29. Lightning (from Red Wings): Carter Ashton, RW, Lethbridge (WHL) 30. Penguins: Simon Despres, D, St. John (QMJHL)

A group headed by Jerry Reinsdorf has made a $148 million bid to buy the Coyotes. The bid is $64.5 million less than the one submitted by James Balsillie, a Canadian who hopes to move the franchise to southern Ontario. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman is said to oppose the move because the presence of a third team in the region could affect the Buffalo and Toronto franchises.

Canadian-born NHL veteran Claude Lemieux took the U.S. citizenship oath before a federal judge in Phoenix. "My wife and my children are all proud to be Americans," he said before the ceremony. "Today when we walk out we can all say we're Americans, and that means a lot to me and to them as well."

The NHL has increased its salary cap to $56.8 million, the league announced on Friday. The number is just $100,000 higher than it was for the 2008-09 season. The cap has risen for a fifth consecutive season.