Latest Lecavalier rumors refuted by Lightning general manager

Posted Jan 18, 2010 by Erik Erlendsson

Updated Jan 19, 2010 at 08:08 AM

It sure can be a busy day when one travels on the day of a game, such as I did today, hopping on a plane in Tampa at noon, flying to Charlotte and just getting on my connecting flight to Raleigh after we took off 30 minutes late out of Tampa and had to pull up on initial approach into Charlotte. That’s why day-of-game travel can be an adventure, and sometimes not worth the hassle. But after enjoying a rare three consecutive days off, it was certainly worth it, especially after getting the chance to jam out to Lego Rock Band with my kids on Sunday night!!!!!! We rock!!!

So, with that said, I’m a bit behind on getting this info up tonight, but Lightning general manager Brian Lawton laughed off the latest Vinny Lecavalier trade rumors, this time courtesy of the Ottawa Sun who suggested the Rangers are hot on the trail for Lecavalier, who has 10 years left on his contract after this season, by the way. Here is what will show up in your morning newspaper, a few hours ahead of that:

Just in time for Tampa Bay’s first trip to the Big Apple this season come rumors that Lightning captain Vinny Lecavalier is being courted by Rangers GM Glen Sather in the hopes of reuniting Lecavalier with former Bolts coach John Tortorella.

A report in Sunday’s Ottawa Sun suggested that Sather reached out to Tampa Bay counterpart Brian Lawton to inquire about a potential deal. The Sun reported the Rangers would send D Matt Gilroy, D Wade Redden and either C Brandon Dubinsky or LW Ryan Callahan for the Lightning’s all-time leading scorer.

The report, however, was dismissed by Lawton on Monday.

“It’s complete B.S. and nobody ever calls me or even asks me,’’ Lawton said. “I haven’t talked to Glen Sather in weeks, so that is completely false that he contacted me to inquire about that. It absolutely did not happen.’‘

Trade rumors involving Lecavalier tend to pop up every year, but the thought was with Lecavalier’s no-trade/no-movement clause in his contract, those rumors would die down. But with 12 goals on the season, Lecavalier is on pace for 20, which would be his lowest output since 2001-02, when he finished with 20.

Though Lecavalier entered Monday ranked 22nd in scoring with 45 points and 13th with 34 assists, more goal scoring is expected from the 2006-07 Rocket Richard Trophy winner.

“The fact of the matter is he hasn’t scored as much as he would like to from a goal standpoint,’’ Lawton said. “But I still think it’s going to happen for him. I still think he gets 30-plus goals. It will take a big push for him to get that, but I still think he is capable of that. He’s that type of a player. He’s that dynamic and he has that skill level. He just has to get it out of himself.’‘