Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins, who capped one of the best playoff years in NHL history by defeating the Detroit Red Wings in perhaps the most thrilling Stanley Cup Final in fifteen years to become the 2009 champions. 
I'll have analysis of what this series and this year's playoffs meant for the NHL in an upcoming Foxsports.com column, but for now I'll simply say that this Cup Final was NHL hockey at its finest, and both clubs gave their best, providing hockey fans with an action-packed series that'll likely be remembered for years. 
Congratulations also to Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin, winner of the 2009 Conn Smythe trophy as playoff MVP, an honor well-deserved considering he likely beat out teammate Sidney Crosby and Detroit Red Wings Chris Osgood and Henrik Zetterberg.
Congrats goes also to Penguins forward Max Talbot, whose two goals in Game Seven made him the game star, and to goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who shook off a shelling in Game Five to backstop the Penguins to two straight victories to clinch the series and win the Cup.
Finally, congratulations to Crosby, who becomes the youngest captain in NHL history to hoist the Stanley Cup, providing the NHL with an image they'll now use to sell their product in the all-important US sports market for next season. 

Earlier this week the Atlanta Thrashers announced the re-signing of center Marty Reasoner to a two-year contract extension.

This re-signing wasn't unexpected as both sides indicated by season's end a willingness to discuss a new contract for Reasoner, who was eligible for unrestricted free agency on July 1st.

Reasoner's new contract breaks down as $1.1 million for the 2009-10 season and $1.2 million for the 2010-11 season, making it an average cap hit of $1.15 million per season.

The Anaheim Ducks meanwhile recently announced the re-signing of checking winger Mike Brown also to a two-year contract extension. Brown was slated to become a restricted free agent on July 1st.

His new contract will pay him $500K for next season, $575K for 2010-11, averaging $537.5K per season against the Ducks cap.

Affordable re-signings of depth players for both clubs. 

Surprising news out of Ottawa today as it was reported Dany Heatley, one of the stars of the Senators, has requested a trade.

The Ottawa Sun cited two league sources saying Heatley had informed general manager Bryan Murray of his decision, apparently based on a rocky relationship with head coach Cory Clouston.

Expect this news to bump the seemingly never-ending Vincent Lecavalier trade rumors to the sidelines leading up to the NHL's June Entry Draft weekend in Montreal. 

The Sun reported Murray hasn't conducted any formal trade talks yet but he's bound to get considerable interest in the 28-year-old Heatley, who is unquestionably one of the top wingers in the NHL.

A quick look at Heatley's NHL stats certainly highlights that fact. He's had four seasons with 80+ points, two of those with over 100 points, and four seasons of 40+ goals, two of those with 50-plus. 

His stats were down a bit last season (39 goals, 72 points in 82 games) but that can be attributed to the Senators struggles last season as the bulk of their offense was carried by Heatley and linemates Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson.

Still in his playing prime, Heatley would be a significant contributor to any team seeking to bolster their offense.

Speaking of Spezza, this will now put to rest once and for all any talk of the Senators shopping him prior to his "no-trade" clause kicking in on July 1st, 2010. There had been speculation the Senators would try to move him in order to free up cap space to bolster their roster but with Heatley now wanting out there's no reason to move Spezza. 

And speaking of no-trade clauses, Heatley has one which means he'll have input into where he'll ultimately be dealt, but as TSN.ca recently suggested he'll have to be willing to be less selective in order to facilitate a trade.

The reason for that is Heatley's contract, which currently pays him an average of $7.5 million per season over the next five seasons against the salary cap, which won't make him an easy fit for most NHL teams heading into next season with the salary cap expected to remain at $56 million.

While this is stunning news for the Senators and their fans it could prove to be a blessing in disguise.

The Senators most pressing problem last season was a lack of offensive depth beyond their first line, plus GM Murray is also believed in the market for more defensive depth.  The problem was Murray currently has over $50 million committed to next season's payroll, giving him very little room to bolster his depth.

With Heatley now seeking a trade he's given Murray a significant bargaining chip, something to either bring in two offensive players or perhaps a scoring forward and a defenseman for within the price of Heatley's $7.5 million salary.

The problem of course is finding a trade partner willing to take on $7.5 million per season and willing to part with the kind of assets Murray could be seeking in return.

That being said, don't be surprised if Heatley ends up with a different NHL team during the NHL Entry Draft weekend. 

If Calgary Flames fans were hoping for GM Darryl Sutter to bring in a veteran backup goalie to spell off starter Miikka Kiprusoff next season they were in for a surprise last week, as Sutter re-signed Curtis McElhinney to a two-year, one-way contract extension which according to the Calgary Sun is believed worth just over $1 million.

McElhinney, 26, was the Flames sixth round pick (176th overall) in the 2002 entry draft, and has seen very limited action in the past two seasons as the Flames rode Kiprusoff perhaps too much during that time. McElhinney played in only five games in 2007-08 and while he saw action in 14 games last season he finished with a 1-6-1 record, a 3.59 goals-against average and an .889 save percentage.

Those aren't exactly inspiring numbers but one cannot fault McElhinney, since Kiprusoff started 76 games last season. It's difficult for a young goalie to make a good impression when you're only starting in maybe six games and seeing actionin parts of 8 others.

Sutter reportedly hopes to scale back Kiprusoff's playing time next season by 10-15 games, which again doesn't seem like much but it would make a world of difference for McElhinney if he knows he'll get a chance to spell off Kiprusoff more than once in a blue moon or on the rare occasions he gets pulled midway through a game.

McElhinney can also thank the Flames cap situation for this opportunity.

With nearly $45 million committed to payroll for next season, the cap expected to remain around $56 million and with Sutter facing the prospect of re-signing or replacing UFAs Mike Cammalleri, Todd Bertuzzi, Adrian Aucoin and Jordan Leopold, shelling out more than $1 million per season for a veteran backup puts too much of a crimp into that valuable cap space. 

Recent reports out of Philadelphia this week claimed the Flyers could be close to signing former Ottawa Senators goaltender Ray Emery.

As Emery is a former NHL player if the two sides agree to a contract it won't be finalized until July 1st, the opening day of this year's NHL unrestricted free agent period.

The Camden Courier-Post reported the deal could be a one-year contract worth $2.5 million, which would make him an easier fit under the Flyers tight salary cap space than re-signing Martin Biron, himself a UFA in July.

Biron hasn't stated what his salary demands are but the speculation by the Courier-Post is three years at $5 million per season, a significant raise from the $3.5 million per he earned on his previous contract with the Flyers.

If the Flyers are signing Emery that'll mean Biron won't be returning as they simply cannot fit the latter under their cap.

GM Paul Holmgren is currently sitting with just under $50 million in available space, and with the cap for next season expected to remain around $56 million that'll leave him precious little room to sign two goalies and either consider re-upping Andrew Alberts and/or Mike Knuble or finding suitable replacements and still try to find room to add more depth.

For Emery this could be a great opportunity to prove himself after his horrific 2007-08 campaign with the Senators, where he went within a year from playoff hero to regular season zero by clashing with his coach and members of the media, struggling with injuries and pouting when he didn't get enough playing time.

He had a good season in Russia's Kontinental Hockey League but obviously saw that as a springboard to return to the NHL.

As for Biron,should he hit the UFA market he won't go unsigned for very long as teams like Edmonton, Colorado and possibly the LA Kings could have interest in his services.