TRADE RUMORS CONTINUE TO FLY

By Bert Richardson
Station Nation Staff

Several new trade rumors have popped up over the past 24 hours with the window set to open this Friday at 9:00 am ADT. The exchange period ends just prior to the QMJHL Draft in Drummondville, Que. on Saturday at 11:00 am.

If you missed it yesterday, our friend Rick Springhetti of McKeen’s Hockey left us several juicy tidbits to examine.

Montreal will trade the two first round picks they got for Jake Allen back to Drummondville for Philippe Lefebvre and Charles Landry.

Nicholas Deslauriers is rumored to be headed to Gatineau.

Francis Meuilleur is probably headed to Montreal to complete the Pier-Antoine Dion trade.

Lefebvre finished fourth in team scoring with the high octane Drummondville Voltigeurs last season, registering 26 goals and 29 assists in 66 games played. Charles Landry, a defenseman, scored six goals and added 24 helpers while playing in all 68 games.

The Volts acquired Jake Allen from the Montreal Junior during the holiday trading period for a first round pick in 2010 and 2011.

The squad, which featured former Sea Dog Chris DiDomenico, was ousted in five games against Moncton in the league semi-final.

Deslauriers has spent his entire career with the Rouyn-Noranda, recording 22 goals and 62 assists over three seasons with the Huskies. The defenseman was drafted by the Florida Panthers in the third round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

Finally, Meuilleur is rumored to be heading to the Montreal Junior to complete a deal that saw Pier-Luc Dion arrive in Cape Breton.

The Chronicle Herald’s Willy Palov reported several trade rumors on Twitter as well.

Players supposedly on the move: Nestrasil/McIsaac (to PEI), Malka (Lewiston), Lambke (Gatineau), Houde-Caron (Lewiston)

The Nestrasil/McIsaac deal was discussed by Station Nation yesterday.

Bathurst defenseman Olivier-Dame Malka scored nine goals and added 21 assists in 64 games with the Titan. Taylor Lambke played in 67 games with the Titan last year, getting 22 goals and 29 assists while adding three goals in five playoff games. Antoine Houde-Caron played 65 regular season games with the Shawinigan Cataractes last season, recording 20 goals and 11 assists.

The Screaming Eagles mystery man in goal also appears to have been solved. A report by Palov and L’Hebdo de St. Maurice in Shawinigan say that Bathurst net minder Francois Lacerte will be moved to Cape Breton in exchange for a 2011 fifth round pick.

Lacerte went 11-13 last year while splitting the season between the Cataractes and Titan. He had a goals against average of 3.92 and save percentage of 0.884. It will be Lacerte’s fifth Q team in the past three years.

One trade that has been tossed around since Christmas is about Wildcats defenseman Simon Jodoin. Jodoin will likely be heading to Chicoutimi to complete the Nicolas Deschamps trade that took place over the holiday's. In return, Moncton will receive their first round draft pick back.

Although not a trade, one of the post dramatic rumors going around the past week has been about Montreal Canadiens 2009 first round pick Louis Leblanc. Reports say that Leblanc may not attend Havard University next season, possibly opting to go to the American Hockey League or QMJHL.

Reports say that Leblanc has been in contact with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, the team that owns his junior rights.

"As of now, I'm signed to go to Harvard and that's what I'm getting ready for and I'm excited," Leblanc said to the Montreal Gazette. "But if I find something better, then I'll do it. Harvard's the better fit right now. I get to do my schooling at the best university in the world. My coach (Ted Donato, Harvard Class of 1991) played 13 years in the NHL and I think it's the best combination."

Editors Note: Bert Richardson is Station Nation’s QMJHL Draft reporter. He will be reporting on the league’s happenings over the next week.