Puck Wire: Top Hockey News Of The Day: January 15th

Good morning friends! We’ve reached the middle of January, and although temperatures are freezing outside the playoff races heating up inside the NHL. The trade chatter is also starting to heat up as we inch towards the deadline, with desperate buyers and motivated sellers stepping to the front of the line.

Here’s Tuesday’s edition of puck wire.

• Josh Gorges was a solid NHL’er for a long time, a tough and rugged defender respected by his peers. On Monday, Gorges officially retired from professional hockey. More from CBC.ca.
• He’s not an All-Star (he should be), but Calgary Flames defender Mark Giordano is the NHL’s first star of the week.
• Seattle doesn’t yet have an NHL team on the ice, and won’t until October of 2021, but the outdoor hockey is already the topic of conversation in the city. Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times discusses the buzz surrounding the potential event heading to the Pacific Northwest.
• The Edmonton Oilers are putting the full court press on in an effort to add to their forward ranks in hopes of making the playoffs in April. Some in Edmonton don’t feel like a rental is a good idea, however. More from Oilersnation.
• Are the Senators willing to move defender Cody Ceci? Sure seems like it according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie. He spoke on the matter, among other things, on TSN 1200.
• What could be next in Philadelphia? Late last week, the Flyers dealt Jordan Weal to Arizona, and now more depth players could be on the move from the struggling Flyers. Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia has the details.
• In the college world, not many people gave Arizona State’s hockey program much of a chance. Now? ASU has slowly built up a powerhouse program.

Photo Credit: Santeri Viinamäki [CC BY-SA 4.0], from Wikimedia Commons