Blake moves to Sharks
Rob Blake is heading up the California coast, hoping to end his stellar NHL career with a shot at another Stanley Cup title in San Jose.
The 38-year-old veteran defenseman signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Sharks, leaving Pacific Division rival Los Angeles for a more immediate chance at playoff success.
Blake is the longtime face and soul of the Kings, spending 13z o 1/4 his 18 NHL seasons with Los Angeles, including the past two campaigns.
Longtime Vancouver Canucks captain Markus Naslund agreed to terms with the New York Rangers on a two-year deal worth $8 million and former Buffalo Sabres defenseman Dmitri Kalinin got a one-year deal with the Blue Shirts. Rangers General Manager Glen Sather also told free agent Jaromir Jagr he couldn’t wait any longer for Jagr to make up his mind on what it would take to keep him in New York, so he went in a different direction.
The Pittsburgh Penguins signed goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury toa seven-year, $35 million contract.
Forward Georges Laraque, who accumulated 141 penalty minutes in 71 games last season with Pittsburgh, signed a three-year, $4.5-million contract with the Montreal Canadiens, who also made a rare trade with the rival Toronto Maple Leafs. Montreal sent forward Mikhail Grabovski to Toronto for prospect Greg Pateryn and a second- round draft pick in 2010.
