Chris Nichols

­Chris Nichols is Sportsnet.ca's fantasy hockey writer.

The Orange County Register writes that no one is saying it on the record, but the Anaheim Ducks still want to add another defenceman of some significance and their prime target as of now would be Vancouver's Kevin Bieksa. He has one year left on his current deal at $3.5M. Anaheim currently has Lubomir Visnovsky, Toni Lydman, Sheldon Brookbank, Danny Syvret and Brett Festerling under contract on the back end. RFA James Wisniewski has a date with the arbitrator in early August.

The word is Vancouver GM Mike Gillis is fielding inquiries from not only the Ducks but the Kings, San Jose, Columbus and Montreal and doesn't want to just give Bieksa away; even though his team is currently over the salary cap and still needs to re-sign wingers Mason Raymond and Jannik Hansen.

On that latter front, agent J.P. Barry told The Vancouver Sun he has had no discussions this week with Canucks' assistant GM Laurence Gilman regarding Raymond, an RFA, whose arbitration hearing is set for Monday in Toronto.

"We're preparing for arbitration on Monday and we'll see what happens," Barry said. "Sometimes after you exchange your briefs there's a discussion about settlement. The brief exchange would not be until Saturday morning."

Gilman also said he does not anticipate a settlement before Monday's hearing.

"As it stands today, we are preparing for arbitration," Gilman said.

A decision on Hansen's (also an RFA) arbitration case, which was heard Tuesday, is expected today. It hasn't been announced as of this writing.

FOLIGNO SHOOTS FOR 20-30-50
The Ottawa Citizen reports that Senators GM Bryan Murray got part of his summer work done on Wednesday when he signed one of his three restricted free agents, Nick Foligno, to a two-year contract. Now Murray has to turn his attention to Peter Regin and Chris Campoli. They've each filed for arbitration. Foligno, who made $785,000 last season, will make $2.4 million over the next two seasons.

"I'm very happy," he said in an interview from his offseason home in Sudbury. "Obviously, this is where I want to be. I love playing here."

The 22-year old finished 10th in team points last season (9-17-26), but he was impacted by a right knee injury and then a break in his right leg. The Citizen notes that in training camp, he'll face tough competition to earn his desired spot among the team's top six forwards.

"It was a tough year," he said. "I was inconsistent because of injuries and the way I was playing, and I want to be a consistent player.

"I know I can do it - I believe I can do it - but it's a matter of going out and doing the things I know I can do."

The article points out that Foligno has been training harder this summer, focusing on improving his quickness and overall conditioning. If he plays the way he believes he can play -- as a power forward who uses his size and strength to get to the net -- he doesn't see why he can't have a 20-goal, 50-point season.

At this point Foligno will likely go undrafted in most fantasy formats, but if he plays himself into a top six role then he could become a depth addition as an in-season pick-up. Jason Spezza, Daniel Alfredsson, Milan Michalek, Alex Kovalev and Mike Fisher should generally occupy five of the top six slots for the Sens, so poolies will be keeping an eye on who succeeds with the open slot.

Also of note from The Sun is that Mike Hoffman, a fifth round pick of the Sens in 2009, has been inked to his entry level deal. He earned MVP honours in the Q after posting 46-39-85 in 56 GP, while also becoming a finalist for the CHL player-of-the-year award. He had 52-42-94 with 86 PIM in 62 GP in his draft year too.

PAVELEC'S DEAL
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that RFA goaltender Ondrej Pavelec has agreed to terms on a two-year contract with the Thrashers worth a total of $2.3M. That's the same time frame as UFA goaltender Chris Mason's deal with the team, although his pact pays $3.7M in all. Mason was on track to re-up in St. Louis until the Blues landed RFA prize Jaroslav Halak via trade with the Montreal Canadiens.

Mason should have the inside track to receiving more starts than Pavelec for '10-11 and the veteran's presence should ease any pressure on the 22-year old Czech, who saw his first big chunk of NHL action last year. Pavelec went 14-18-7 with a lofty 3.29 GAA and .906 SV%, including a pair of shutouts. He still has a decent chance to play himself into a tandem role with Mason next season, but the youngster will need to demonstrate more consistency. But hey... he's still just getting his feet wet in the NHL. He'll get there.

PERRON FOR TWO; JOHNSON DEAL SOUGHT
RFA David Perron signed a two-year, $4.3M extension with the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch indicates that when he first walked into the Blues' locker room at age 19, he was a raw talent and didn't know the first thing about how to carry himself around NHL veterans. His relationship with former Blues coach Andy Murray and a few teammates left much to be desired. At the least, Perron could have been characterized as misunderstood.

Three years later, at age 22, he's one of the most skilled and well-liked players in the locker room.

"It's crazy thinking three years ago I was trying to make the team and now I have three years in the NHL," Perron said. "It's fun to see that it worked out good for me. But at the same time, I've still got a lot of work to do."

Perron's 20-27-47 totals earned him a fourth-place tie with Alexander Steen in team points last season and just one point back of both David Backes and T.J. Oshie for second and third place.

"David, coming from where he was drafted and making the NHL his first year, he's earned everything he's gotten as a Blue," GM Doug Armstrong said. "He wasn't expected to make it the first year. He had very good players playing in front of him and he had to earn the power-play time and the ice time given to him. I think he's progressed on and off the ice very well. Now he's gotten that experience and he's going to be more prepared to be a consistent factor offensively."

Perron told The Post-Dispatch that that he's looking forward to having more responsibility now that Keith Tkachuk has retired and Paul Kariya doesn't appear to be coming back.

"I guess we're not going to be in the shadows anymore," he said. "That's what you want as a hockey player, given the chance to succeed. We have to take it."

Armstrong had an interesting quote on how the team is approaching contracts with its youngsters.

"Our young players, when they're coming out of entry level, they've all progressed but they haven't been defined. We hope to have the highest-paid players in the game because that means they are the most talented and most recognizable and they've earned that right. By taking contracts at shorter term, you allow them to grow and make a fair-market value moving forward."

Key components T.J. Oshie and Patrik Berglund will be RFAs next summer, while blue chipper Erik Johnson and the team still need to come to terms on a new deal this summer since his entry level deal has run out. He's actually not in a position to receive an offer sheet from another team since he only has two years of service under his belt after missing all of '08-9 with a torn knee ligament.

"Being the first pick, you still have to prove yourself," said Pat Brisson, Johnson's agent. "Unfortunately he got hurt, but you can see his progression. Normally after two years, whether he has offer-sheet rights or not, the trend is to explore a longer-term deal and lock up your core players. That doesn't seem to be the case with the Blues. So the course of the conversation has changed a bit. This is perhaps a direction we weren't intending to go down, but the Blues are looking for a shorter-term (extension). Whether it gets done now or a month from now, I don't know. We're progressing, but it's not there yet."

Assuming the rest of the team rebounds offensively, there's every reason to think that Johnson is set to jump into the 40-50 point range this coming season. If he can keep a healthy PIM/ GP ratio going (he had 79 in 79 last year) and boost his SOG total past the 200+ plateau, his fantasy value should really begin to hit the territory expected with his pedigree of having been the first overall pick in 2006.

LIGHTNING INTERESTED IN ASHAM
According to The St. Petersburg Times, the Tampa Bay Lightning has inquired about UFA winger Arron Asham. Agent Jarrett Bousquet said he has spoken to GM Steve Yzerman, though he added he hasn't talked with Yzerman in about a week and characterized Tampa Bay's interest only as "mild."

Both Yzerman and coach Guy Boucher have recently mentioned only wanting tough guys on the roster who can actually play a regular shift. Asham fits that role. He posted 10-14-24 with 126 PIM in 72 GP; all while skating an average of 10:05 per game. He's even the sort of player that can fill in for a top six winger in a pinch because of an injury since he can actually play the game. He'd obviously mostly be used for an L3/L4 role in TB though, as he was in Philly.

The Flyers signed Jody Shelley to a three-year deal once free agency opened. They also have Riley Cote under contract for one more season and RFA Daniel Carcillo recently signed a one-year deal.