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Frenzy or flop? Lombardi talks about the trade market

2012 Stanley Cup Final - Media Day

NEWARK, NJ - MAY 29: President/General Manager Dean Lombardi of the Los Angeles Kings speaks during Media Day for the 2012 Stanley Cup Final at Prudential Center on May 29, 2012 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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Will it be a busy NHL trade deadline? Or, like the past couple of hyped-up affairs, will it fall flat?

Granted, there’s still almost a month before April 3, and a lot of stuff can happen in that time (like trades!), but Kings general manager Dean Lombardi doesn’t provide a ton of hope for fans (and blogs) who love the wheeling and dealing.

According to Lombardi, non-playoff teams have become loathe to trade away pending unrestricted free agents.

“Even mid-range players, many teams are now deciding to keep them and try to sign them versus giving them away for a second- or third-round pick,” Lombardi ESPN.com recently. “That’s something that’s changed in this business since I got in it; very different. Some teams are looking at that No. 4 or No. 5 defenseman and saying, ‘I’m not replacing him this summer, I need to keep him and sign him.’”

We saw this last year with players like Tim Gleason re-signing in Carolina and Francois Beauchemin re-upping with the Ducks.

Add to the equation the tight standings as a result of the shortened season and there may be fewer teams in full-on selling mode than is typical at the deadline.

But don’t worry, we’ll still hype it up.