NHL Tradeline Media Coverage

The NHL's trade deadline was this past Wednesday, March 4th at 3PM. Aside from the upcoming playoffs in April, and the free agent signing period in July, this past week has probably been the most hectic and lively in terms of media coverage. As contenders looked to better their teams heading into the playoffs, and sellers dumped whatever talent they had for picks and prospects, beat writers and bloggers were busy speculating who was going where, and reporting the big deals as they came through. While most would agree that this year's deadline was a little bit anti-climatic, it still drew just as much attention as any other.

In today's world in which people seek up to the minute information, covering the trade deadline of any sport could be quite demanding for news organizations and bloggers. They need to work extremely hard to keep users and information seekers posted with up to the minute news and details regarding their favorite teams and players. While in years past, many would have had to wait for the following day to find out how their team faired at the deadline, today, many websites make it their goal to provide up to the minute information regarding deadline deals. As soon as news leaks of a deal, it is posted, analyzed and commented on almost instantaneously. This year, sites like NHL.com and TSN.ca head "Trade Deadline 2009" sub sites which showed all the trades made by NHL teams as they were announced. By clicking into a trade, those interest could read up on an analysis of the trade provided by NHL analysts and color commentators. However, for those die hard NHL fans who could not wait for the mainstream media to announce trades, their were other sites, many of which were inaccessible due to high traffic on March 3rd and 4th.

These other sites are ran by amateur hockey insiders, who because of their more unknown and annonymous nature, could break news and rumors prior to any official announcement by teams and leagues. While sometimes unreliable, they provide an excellent source of information for fans who are truly craving the latest information. Many sites thrust the fan right into the trade negotiations, providing specific details about the trade hours before it is made public on sites like NHL.com and TSN.ca. These sites include hockeybuzz.com, hockeytraderumors.com, thefourthperiod.com, and hfboards.com. Sites such as these rely on both bloggers, many of them have a blogger reporting on each NHL team, and user supplied information. Many of the bloggers on these sites also have access and connections with NHL and team officials, and some even have press credentials allowing them to get very close to the team.

Perhaps one of the most popular and controversial hockey insiders is a blogger simply known as "Eklund." For years he has made a living simply known as "Eklund, the Anonymous Hockey Blogger" on his site hockeybuzz.com. While he maintains an anonymous identity, he openly states that he has access to many NHL teams and general managers, and has a great deal of access with the Philadelphia Flyers. Many question his legitimacy, as he has often reported deals and brought about speculation and rumors that have never panned out, however, in many instances he has reported accurately. As a long time visitor to many of these sites, I would say that they are an excellent source for general information, and getting a feel for what teams are thinking and planning on doing, but ultimately, no one knows whats going to happen until it really happens. In this day in age, teams are very careful to keep their intentions buttoned up, mainly because of the growth of the digital media and the rapidity of information sharing.

At the deadline, the New York Rangers acquired right wing Nik Antropov from the Toronto Maple Leafs for their second overall pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, and a conditional pick, which can be anything from a 4th rounder to a 2nd rounder, depending on the performance of the Rangers this year. The Rangers also acquired defenceman Derek Morris from the Phoenix Coyotes, for forwards Petr Prucha, Nigel Dawes, and defenceman Dmitri Kalinin. Antropov and Morris join the recently re-acquired Sean Avery as they attempt to help the Rangers secure a playoff spot with less then twenty games remaining. Both deals were fairly well received by fans, as they addressed the teams need for size and scoring upfront with the addition of the 6'6", 240lb Nik Antropov. Morris also provides depth on defense, and with his shot from the point, should help the struggling Ranger powerplay. Their next game will be this Sunday at 12:30PM against the Eastern Conference leading Boston Bruins.