I know, I know, you guys have been hitting the refresh button on more than one occassion in the past three hours wondering where in the heck all the news has gone (Hey, I do work for a daily newspaper, at least for the time being). You’re looking for something, anything, to latch onto at this late hour. This blog has felt like an addiction to you guys for the better part of the past 72 hours. And believe me, I know. Other than sleep, I haven’t had my hands away from the keyboard and mouse for more than a little over an hour (and that was for my late afternoon meeting) since I ended my trip to Busch Gardens early on Saturday!!!!!

Well, I’m back for the last time tonight to feed your addiction, but I am no kind of a pusher. I’m simply here to feel a need and try to give you some Anton Ego perspective (who gets the reference?) following a maddening few days. And it may not be over yet.

First of all, it appears that the team truly is done making any moves for the rest of the night. I last checked in at 10 p.m. and all is quiet. But it certainly hasn’t been that way today. I can’t even count the number of blog posts I put up for consumption. The one signing the flew under the radar somewhat was 6-foot-6 forward David Koci to a one-year, two-way deal. The enforcer has been a fan favorite in Norfolk, which is probably his eventual destination. Also, found out that Evgeny Artyukhin’s contract is being held up until the NHL gets documented proff that he is no longer under contract with is team in Russia. This stems from the whole lack of a transfer agreement with the IIHF and the NHL not wanting to raid players from Russia who are under contract.

Now, onto some of the meat of what won’t be in the paper.

The more I keep hearing about Dan Boyle, I’m convinced that the rumors are indeed true and he is being actively being shopped around the league. I asked around about it tonight and didn’t get any kind of a hard denial at this point. It makes sense to me since the new ownership wanted to deal him at the trade deadline before compromising and allowing Jay Feaster to sign him to a six-year extension. The team is on the lookout for a “mid-level’’ defenseman, which means they are lookng to move at least one if not two or three bodies off the blue line before the season starts. And with all the payroll added over the weekend, maybe they feel they need to pare it back some by trading Boyle and bring back a player or two who is cheaper.

But I don’t agree with trading him. I know there are plenty of Boyle haters out there and I’m not saying Boyle isn’t without his faults. But his strengths are a valuable asset in the game today. He can carry the puck up the ice and lead the rush, he makes a strong first pass out of the zone and he is going to chip in on offense. Let’s not forget he scored 20 goals two seasons ago. And just because he’s not Chris Pronger in his own end doesn’t mean he’s a liability in his own end. I can live with whatever deficiencies Boyle may have in the defensive zone because he competes and battles. After seeing what Campbell received from Chicago ($7.1 million per season), Boyle’s contract seems like a good deal for what he brings. I just get a strong feeling he’s going to be moved.

Secondly, the team appears to have a glut of forwards, how do you find room for them all?

I think you can pretty much get the idea that Chris Gratton won’t be back. (Wonder who Stamkos will room with now? Gary Roberts maybe?) Jason Ward, I think, is all but a goner. I think that Michel Ouellet might also be a target if they are looking to move somebody off the bottom two lines, and possibly even Jussi Jokinen only because of his $1.875 million salary this season.

But, having said that, I think I like the way the lines are shaping up at this point.
How does this look?
Vinny Prospal-Vinny Lecavalier-Marty St. Louis
Radim Vrbata-Steven Stamkos-Ryan Malone
Adam Hall-Jeff Halpern (when healthy)-Gary Roberts
Nick Tarnasky-Ryan Craig-Evgeny Artyukhin

And that doesn’t even include Jokinen or Ouellet!!!!

Really, that’s not a bad four lines, although I would have to think that maybe you could swap Hall down to the fourth line in place of Tarnasky and slot Jokinen on the third line Jokinen.

Defense is muddled, as well, hence the Boyle rumors. I would also think that Filip Kuba may not fit the mold of a Barry Melrose type of player, so he might be a candidate to move as well.

I really like the signing of Olie Kolzig (although a $2.5 million cap hit is kind of high) because of what he can bring on the ice and in the locker room, as well. I don’t think he’s capable of playing 55-plus games at the age of 38, but he can play 30 and have a good chance of winning half of them playing behind Mike Smith.

Speaking of Smith, the team is looking to talk contract extension with him. In addition, in regards to the rumors that he’s being shopped, well, he’s not. That’s not to say teams aren’t calling, maybe they are thinking Tampa Bay signed Kolzig to be a No. 1, to see if they could pry Smith away. But the thing is, it’s Koules and Barrie’s group that traded for Smith. They were the ones driving that bus on the Brad Richards trade. To me, it doesn’t make sense that they would even consider moving him. He was brought in to be a No. 1, why trade him before he is even given that chance?

Here’s a couple of other things to expect in the coming days:

* Artyukhin, as mentioned above, will be announced.

* Ryan Craig should sign a two-year contract that is supposed to be announced Wednesday.

* The team is talking to acquired defenseman Janne Niskala and expect him to be signed in the near future.

* The front office staff was still working on some things late Tuesday night, mostly some trade talk, but nothing is imminent on that front.

And for those of you still looking to hit refresh on the page, please, put down the lap top, take your hand off the mouse and please, just go to bed. Nothing more is going to happen tonight. (I think)