NHL Trade Rumors: How Tuomo Ruutu's Injury Affects Negotiations

As of this week, Tuomo Ruutu has a dislocated shoulder and is out for about a month. With the trade deadline coming up in 11 days, this shakes a lot of things up.

Tuomo Ruutu's contract is almost over with the Hurricanes, and he could've been a valuable rental for a team short on money. With his contract being significantly less than half of Rick Nash's, Ruutu was one of the power forwards that was being looked at.

Now Ruutu is injured, and as a consequence his stock not only went crashing down but, in my opinion, there are a lot of organizations that would be hesitant to add him for the remainder of the season and playoffs. 

With Tim Gleason being awarded a new contract fairly cheaper than what he might have gotten somewhere else, it is pretty clear that Jim Rutherford, the Hurricanes' GM, has a clear project and is signing players that are willing to stay within the budget he works with.

The market for Ruutu is practically nonexistent with this injury, but there are teams out there that are desperate to make the playoffs. With this injury, Ruutu's impact for the regular season is significantly reduced and, in my mind, all other GMs know this. 

Depending on the package that Jim Rutherford might want for Ruutu, I'm sure there are teams that, even with this injury, would take a gamble on Ruutu because of how expensive Rick Nash is.

Ruutu, in my opinon, is the second most talented power forward on the market, and he can have an impact in the playoffs. A perennial league-leading hitter with reliable offensive skills, Ruutu would fit in with a lot of Eastern Conference teams that hope to go deep into the playoffs.

In my opinion, he would greatly bolster a team like the New Jersey Devils. 

As for the effect his injury has on the market, it's a big reduction on an already thin offer of forwards on the market right now.

Let's wait and see...