When word of Dany Heatley's trade request broke this week, speculation has run wild over possible destinations the Senators might ship the star sniper.
According to several reports, the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild and New York Rangers could all be in the mix.
While Heatley has indeed asked for a trade, he isn't demanding one be completed immediately.
"The timeline is entirely up to the team," Stacey McAlpine, Heatley's agent, told TFP's David Pagnotta yesterday. "All we wanted to do was communicate our thoughts and feelings to [Senators GM] Bryan Murray."
McAlpine confirmed that Heatley's request isn't "something that just turned up over the last couple week" and the matter has been going on "for several months."
Murray has been exploring his options, but nothing is imminent.
Heatley isn't picky in terms of which conference he'd prefer to play it, he's simply looking for a change of scenery. McAlpine said Heatley and his representatives are willing to "help find an amicable solution so both sides can benefit."
Two teams believed to be very interested in Heatley are the Oilers and Kings. Both clubs have a pool of young tradable talent.
It's believed the Kings are willing to put together a package that could include such assets as defenseman Jack Johnson, forward Alexander Frolov and the fifth-overall pick in this year's NHL Entry Draft.
