The forecast on Deadline Day? Plenty of hot air mixed in with a storm of activity.

Welcome to NHL Trade Deadline '08, otherwise known as, "Unemployed General Managers on Parade."

The Score: Craig Button.

TSN: Mike Milbury and John Ferguson Jr.

The "Always Mighty Sportsnet": Doug MacLean.

So, with apologies to the Oscars, let's hand out the "Sammie's" in honor of the greatest GM of them all, Sam Pollock.

The "First scoop of the day" Sammie:

The Score reports that Kyle Wellwood has asked the Leafs to trade him. However, this just in: With only six goals this year, Wellwood should really be asking if there's anybody out there who wants him. And as it turns out, Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher immediately shoots down the report, saying Wellwood made no such request. It turns out to be The Score's first, and last, scoop of the day.

The "It sounded like a great idea at the time" Sammie:

After staging a massive pizza party on D-Day last year, the home office here at Sportsnet decided to go back to the basics with a more traditional brand of trade coverage. True, some of the male audience may have been disappointed that the "Deal or No Deal" girls were scratched from this year's program. However, our female viewers are absolutely thrilled when they discover that former Leafs assistant GM Bill Watters has decided to model his tight fittin' jeans on the show.

And ladies and gentlemen, the Sammie for "The ex-GM with the most unmitigated gall" goes to John Ferguson Jr.!

After handing out no-trade contracts like Goofy tosses candy to sugared-up kiddies at Disneyland, JFJ should have been huddled in the dark somewhere, kicking himself for deciding against giving Wade Belak a no-trade deal. You need a hefty ego to royally mess up the Maple Leafs and then pass yourself off as an expert on national television.

Then again, this is a guy who still refuses to admit that carrying more no-trade agreements than the Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks really isn't such a brilliant idea. Fergie has a nice eye for finding diamonds in the rough, such as Boyd Deveraux and Dominic Moore, but if he hasn't learned anything about negotiating with the high-priced help, his chances of landing another GM gig are slim and none.

Speaking of slim, with his hands tied by the Ferguson fiasco, there wasn't much Cliff Fletcher could do on D-Day, although he did manage to find a Florida retirement home willing to accept Belak. True, the media will miss his sense of humour, but at $625,000 a year, Belak was the highest paid comedian in hockey. After all, the Leafs still have Carleton the Bear to entertain the troops.

Still, you have to feel a little sorry for Belak; despite fighting being up in the NHL this year, Belak spent most of his time battling for elbow room in the press box. When he did suit up, Belak only threw down the gloves six times in 30 games and he admitted it's tough to take a punch for an organization that doesn't have your back.

"I was confused by my role this year," Belak said. "I remember having a good fight against Anaheim's George Parros and then all of a sudden, I didn't dress for the next six games."

So, will he dress Wednesday night when his new club, the Florida Panthers, host the Leafs Wednesday night?

"I sure hope so," said Belak, who also joked that his old roommate, Ian White, better keep his head up.

By the way, that conversation with Belak took place on The Fan 590's Trade Deadline show on Toronto radio with myself and Mike Hogan. Hoagie was all over the various rumours, including reports that the Leafs were about to acquire Yanic Perreault for the fourth time. After all, if the Leafs can't perform a face lift on the club, they might as well try and win a few faceoffs, right? Of course, Hoagie was just messing with people's minds and as one e-mailer told us, "If you guys are serious about the Leafs bringing Perreault back, I'm gonna hunt you down like dogs!"

Meanwhile, it's time to let the big dogs eat, as we take a quick peak at a few of the biggest winners of the day:

Pittsburgh Penguins: No, not because they stole Hal Gill from Toronto. Instead, it was their ability to grab Marian Hossa away from the Habs and Senators. Yes, the Pens paid a price, but can you imagine facing a team that can throw Hossa, Malkin and Sid the Kid at you? Playing in a weak Eastern Conference, the March of the Penguins could be pointed towards the Stanley Cup.

Carey Price: The Canadiens shocked everybody by dealing away Cristobal Huet to Washington, leaving rookie netminder Price to carry the mail in Montreal. Everybody knew the Capitals were looking for help between the pipes now that Ollie the Goalie has become Oldie the Goalie. But it comes as a huge surprise that the Habs are willing to gamble on the 20-year-old Price this soon. Still, Montreal GM Bob Gainey absolutely loves this guy. In fact, he had to over-rule the coaching staff at training camp when they wanted to ship Price back to the minors.

Also, don't forget that Gainey is quite familiar with a pair of puckstoppers who just happened to lead the Habs to Stanley Cups during their rookie campaigns. So, if he can follow in the footsteps of Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy, the Price might be right for another magical playoff run in Montreal.

Brad Richards: At minus-25, Brad Richards' plus/minus sounds more like Tiger Woods' golf score and his 18 goals aren't much to brag about either. But don't forget that while Vincent Lecavalier gets to run and gun with Martin St. Louis in Tampa Bay, Richards has been stuck with the likes of Jan Hlavac and Michel Ouellet. The fact is Richards has been living in Vinny's shadow since their junior days with Rimouski and his star should shine a lot brighter in Dallas. Besides, good on Mike Ribeiro for having a career year, but it still seems strange to see his name on top of the scoring stats with the Stars.

And with that, my fellow frenzied deadline fanatics, it's time to bid another D-Day a fond farewell. That means packing up all the rumours, Blackberries and half-eaten soggy sandwiches here at the Sportsnet campus.

But what about Bill Watters' blue jeans?

Don't worry, ladies. We promise to have them freshly pressed in time for Deadline '09.