INSIDE HOCKEY

Two weeks ago, the Philadelphia Flyers sent shockwaves throughout the NHL following their dismal 1-6-1 start, firing head coach Ken Hitchcock. At the same time, longtime General Manager Bobby Clarke stepped down from his post after nearly 20 years on the job. While these maneuvers definitely stemmed from previous free agent signings by Clarke that didn’t pan out, it was shocking that owner Ed Snider gave up on Hitchcock only eight games into the season.

But while the moves were surprising, they are also quickly becoming commonplace in the NHL, largely due to the salary cap and the resulting parity. With the exception of maybe three different teams each season, every club has a chance to reach the playoffs. Therefore, whether it’s October, November or March, teams will always be looking to improve and do it fast.

As we start the second full month of the season, there are more coaches and GMs on the hot seat, and the trade chatter has been rampant. In Boston for instance, new General Manager Peter Chiarelli has denied one rumor but has not gone out of his way to hush the trade talk surrounding his team. In fact, he openly admitted that he is “listening to offers” and soon “may have no choice but to look around for help” if his team fails to string together some wins.

Chiarelli is not about to wait until it’s too late, panic, and pull the trigger on a blockbuster deal, like former GM Mike O’Connell did when he traded the team’s captain and franchise player in Joe Thornton. When asked recently whether there was any truth to the rumor of the Bruins sending forward and leading goal scorer Glen Murray to San Jose in exchange for goaltender Evengi Nabokov, he quickly denied it. But he has still expressed concern about the goaltending and every area of the team.

That concern obviously stems from the team being hit by the injury bug recently, but also the fact that the healthy players are underachieving. That may be why word is circulating around the league that Chiarelli has already gone from “listening” to “looking.”

According to two sources, the Bruins have been in talks with the Chicago Blackhawks and Phoenix Coyotes about possible deals that could bring help up front and on defense. Phoenix defenseman Derek Morris, who has struggled for the Coyotes and not lived up to his $2 million-plus salary, could benefit from a change of scenery. Mike Comrie’s name was supposedly brought up as well, but he just broke his foot, and will be out for four weeks. Ladislav Nagy has struggled out of the gate and been injury prone himself, but prying him from the Desert Dogs would require top-notch prospects as well as a top six forward and top 1 or 2 defenseman.

In Chicago, the Blackhawks need forward depth after losing second leading scorer Michael Handzus for the season and top scorer Martin Havlat for an extended period of time. The Hawks have plenty of blue line depth and could be willing to part with the likes of Jason Cullimore for a small price and young stud defenseman Brent Seabrook for a much bigger ransom.

There may also be a partner for the Bruins in the Calgary Flames, who desperately need scoring help and are reportedly willing to listen to offers for defensemen Robyn Regehr and Roman Hamrlik. Most likely, Murray would be the asking price there as well; and with the way Murray has played lately, trading him would leave the Bruins desperate for scoring, themselves.

In the Eastern Conference, Philadelphia is reportedly looking to shake things up even more once they have a full-time GM in place. Simon Gagne and Peter Forsberg have popped up in trade rumors recently. The Flyers denied they’re shopping Forsberg, but sources say his recent tirade on officiating and behind-the-scenes criticism of the Flyers may change that soon.

Finally, keep an eye on the Tampa Bay Lightning. They would love to move one of their “Big Three” - Vincent LeCavalier, Brad Richards, or Martin St. Louis - but their salaries are going to make that very difficult. Tony Marinaro of the Team 990 AM in Montreal recently told the Inside Hockey Show that the Canadiens are one team that may be willing to help the Lightning unload LeCavalier’s $7.2 million per year.

With $12.5 million already tied up in Zdeno Chara and Marc Savard for the next four seasons, don’t expect the Bruins to be players in any trade talks for LeCavalier, Richards ($7.8 million) or St. Louis ($6 million). But there are other players on the Bolts who could help, such as forwards Ruslan Fedotenko, Vaclav Prospal and defenseman Dan Boyle, all of whom are apparently on the market.

Needless to say, there is help out there and Chiarelli knows this. So just don’t be shocked like Philly fans and the rest of the NHL were two weeks ago, if Chiarelli shakes things up soon, because in this league there’s no waiting around. These changes may not be on the scale of the Flyers’ moves, but no player - except maybe Patrice Bergeron, Chara and Savard - is safe in Beantown right now.