NHL Buzz: Wednesday, August 18

According to Andy Strickland, the St. Louis Blues are interested in UFA forward Bill Sweatt. The two sides will meet sometime next week.

Will DePaoli of Inside Pittsburgh Sports is reporting that the Penguins have not contacted Bill Sweatt as of yet.

Alexander Shapiro of SportsExpress (Russian website) is reporting that the Devils are close to a contract extension with Ilya Kovalchuk. I am not sure if this report is true or not due to the fact that this site has been wrong about things like this on several occasions.

The Panthers, Capitals, and Sharks continue to show interest in Antti Niemi. My best bet is that the Sharks will end up with Niemi; however, the Capitals and Panthers are definitely options.

The hockey world is still waiting for the Capitals to make their roster move so they can sign Eric Belanger. I am still hearing it is Tomas Fleischmann who will be moved.

Dan Murphy of Sportsnet is reporting that Willie Mitchell has done workouts for the Kings, Sharks, and Canucks. He also notes that he will workout with the Capitals next. I have also heard whispers that he will workout with the Lightning, but I can't confirm this.

The Rangers are still looking for a physical defenseman and a center. If they were to acquire any of them via trade they would have to move some salary.

Brian Burke and the Maple Leafs are still looking for a top-six forward. They appear to be willing to moving one of their defenseman for one if the right offer comes along.

Sticking with the Maple Leafs, Brian Burke wants to add more depth to the bottom six. I have heard that he is interested in both Raffi Torres and Adam Mair.

This concludes today's edition of NHL Buzz, enjoy.

If you have any questions or comments feel free to email me at [e-mail] anytime, thanks.

This article can also be found at MTRMedia.com and Sportshaze.com

Follow me on twitter for the latest news and rumors @ToddNHL