It's been a rough couple of months for the Tampa Bay Lightning, as they're already on their second head coach of the season, the stud rookie is looking like somewhat of a dud, and the team is currently sitting with the fourth-worst record in the league. About the only way things could possibly get worse for the Lightning is if management did something completely crazy, off-the-wall and relatively insane, such as, oh, I don't know, trading team captain and franchise player Vincent Lecavalier. Sounds crazy, sure, but earlier this week rumors began to surface that the Lightning may be shopping their captain before his new contract -- and no-trade clause -- kicks in this offseason.
Good news, however, as Bob McKenzie of TSN reports the Lightning have told Lecavalier the rumors are just that, and they have no intentions of trading him.
Here's what Lecavalier's agent, Kent Hughes, had to say on the matter:
"I've been hearing a lot of the (trade) talk out there, but I was assured by (Lightning owner) Oren Koules within the last hour that it's nothing more than speculation and rumors and there's absolutely nothing to it," agent Kent Hughes said. "Vinny Lecavalier fully expects to be a Tampa Bay Lightning for life and no one from ownership or management in Tampa Bay has given us any reason to believe otherwise.Of course, it's worth pointing out Lightning management had a similar message for defenseman Dan Boyle this offseason, just months after he signed a six-year extension to remain in Tampa Bay. Boyle was eventually shipped to San Jose for Matt Carle, Ty Wishart, a first-round pick, and a fourth-round pick, just days after ownership denied the defenseman was on the block.
The trade, to this point, has been a disaster for Tampa Bay, as Carle has already been shipped to Philadelphia for Steve Downie and Steve Eminger, while the first-round pick was sent to Ottawa as part of a package for defenseman Andrej Meszaros.
Lecavalier signed an 11-year, $86.5 million extension this past summer. He's currently second on the team with 36 points (16 goals, 20 assists) in 41 games.
