Spring Cleaning Not Necessary

The March 23 trade deadline approaches and a calm has settled in over the Mighty Ducks’ dressing room.

A big change from last season.

“There was a big ‘For Sale’ sign on guys’ backs at this point last year,” goalie Guy Hebert said. “Things weren’t going well and no one knew what would happen.

“Teams will try to shake things up with a trade. Teams are looking to pick up the last piece to the puzzle. It’s hard to play without job security.”

Success has spared the Mighty Ducks such trade speculation. Whether they will go after one more piece to the puzzle is still to be seen.

Philadelphia and Colorado made key acquisitions in recent weeks and Phoenix is trying to plug holes almost daily.

“We have developed a lot of chemistry,” defenseman Jason Marshall said. “We’re playing well. I don’t know if you want to mess with that too much.”

Said Coach Craig Hartsburg: “Since I got here, all we talked about is stabilizing and building from within. All season we developed that way and I don’t think we’re going to change.”

Of course, General Manager Pierre Gauthier did his shopping early. He acquired left wing Marty McInnis from Calgary on Oct. 27. He has 17 goals and 28 assists since the trade.

There is little doubt who is at the top of the Phoenix Coyotes hit list. They have complained often about Mighty Duck defenseman Ruslan Salei. But Salei isn’t concerned.

“I can’t worry about what they are saying,” Salei said. “They can talk all they want. I try to forget things after every game.”