The conversations surrounding Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vincent Lecavalier are likely to heat up as we get closer to July 1, when the no-trade clause on his contract kicks in.
The two teams mentioned most when Lecavalier's name comes up seem to be the Montreal Canadiens and Los Angeles Kings. With regards to the Kings, defenceman Jack Johnson is one of the players mentioned as possibly being involved in any deal with Tampa.
I had an interesting chat with Barry Smith, who is the head coach of SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL - and he said Johnson's father, Jack Johnson Sr., contacted St. Petersburg prior to the World Hockey Championship to see if the team would have interest in signing his son to a one-year contract.
Smith said he would have interest in Johnson, and believes he can make the defenceman a better player.
It is believed there is some unhappiness from Johnson's camp, as the young blueliner is a restricted free agent. While Smith has not heard back from Jack Johnson Sr., it is a possibility.
The speculation that continues to hover around Lecavalier and the Los Angeles Kings really began just prior to the NHL's trade deadline - there were some conversations between the Lightning and the Kings.
How serious were the conversations? If you talk to both sides, they'll say they weren't very serious - but they always say that anyway.