Canadiens acquire Dominic Moore from Panthers

The Florida Panthers traded forward Dominic Moore to the Montreal Canadiens for a second-round pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. Moore has 8 goals and 9 assists for 17 points in 48 games for Florida. He signed with the Panthers as a free agent just before the start of the season.

The Canadiens will be Moore's seventh NHL team, which marks the third year in a row. He was claimed off waivers from Wild by Maple Leafs in 2007-08, and was traded from Toronto to Buffalo at last season's trade deadline. Moore was originally drafted by the New York Rangers in the third round in 2000. Hope he can play well in the canadiens jersey.

Rangers ink with Jorge Alfaro

According to industry sources, the Rangers have signed Jorge Alfaro, a highly regarded 16-year-old catcher from Colombia. He is a right-handed hitter known for his raw power and strong arm. He is currently batting .250 with two RBIs in six games for Los Montaneros Del Sur in the Dominican Prospect League. The Phillies, Mariners, Indians, Giants and Yankees also expressed interest in this outfielder.

The Rangers, under the guidance of A.J. Preller, have been among the most aggressive teams in Latin America over the past few years, concentrating much efforts on premium players. Among the organization's top prospects are Tomas Tellis, an 18-year-old catcher from Venezuela who hit .322 in the Arizona Rookie League last summer and catcher Leonel De Los Santos, who hit .272 in 65 games at Class A Hickory last season. Hope Alfaro will put on the rangers jersey and play for the club.

Capitals assigned Nylander to AHL

Caps General Manager George McPhee announced last weekend that the Washington Capitals have sent center Michael Nylander to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League.

Nylander has played 920 career NHL games for the Capitals, New York Rangers, Boston, Chicago, Tampa Bay, Calgary and Hartford. He has not played an NHL game in the nhl jersey this season.

Ilya Kovalchuk could return a few days later

According to Atlanta General Manager Don Waddell, Thrashers star Ilya Kovalchuk will not play on Thursday night against the New York Rangers. "He's not going to play tomorrow, but hopefully for Friday," Waddell said at the NHL General Manager Meetings.

After Thursday's game against the Rangers, Thrashers hosts the Los Angeles Kings on Friday. Kovalchuk has been practicing for the past few days, but left Wednesday's practice early. He was expected to miss several weeks after suffering a broken foot on Oct. 24, but has recovered faster than ever expected. Kovalchuk had 9 goals in eight games before the injury and he still leads the Thrashers in goals except for missing the past six games. It is good to hear that he will come back to the ice in his thrashers jersey soon.

Nationals add two men to their front office

Nationals' Kasey McKeon was named director of player procurement and Jay Robertson was named special assistant to the general manager, according to the reports. McKeon spent the previous seven seasons with the Rockies, serving as an assistant to executive vice president and General Manager Dan O'Dowd. During that time, Colorado reached the World Series in 2007.

McKeon, who is an ex-catcher and the son of former big league manager Jack McKeon, also worked for the Reds, Indians and Padres in various scouting capacities. Robertson spent the previous eight seasons as special assistant with the Rangers, working under John Hart and Jon Daniels. Before that, the former pitcher spent 11 seasons with the Indians.

Since the end of the regular season, the Nationals have added a special assistant to the General Manager, Minor League field coordinator, vice president of player personnel, director of Latin American operations, director of player development, director of scouting and assistant GM.