NHL Report: Heatley traded to San Jose (UPDATE)

It's about time.  All that ever has been said can finally be put to rest.  Heatley, according to a report, has been dealt to San Jose, in a 3 way deal, which involves Patrick Marleau going to the Kings and Alexander Frolov and Jarret Stoll going to the Senators.

The report can be found here.

All I can say is I'm glad this saga is over, and the NHL season could actually move into motion.  Heatley's destination doesn't really surprise me, because San Jose has been a favorite team of his to join according to numerous reports.  It is, a kick in the face to Oiler Nation, as I believe the Oilers offer, was, and always has been, the best offer from any team.

Does this deal strike you as interesting?  Did the Kings make the right move here?  My opinion is no.  Why the Kings feel Frolov and Stoll for Marleau improves their team is beyond me.  Frolov (27) and Stoll (27) are due to recieve 2.9 and 3.6 million respectively.  Frolov will become a UFA this summer, and Stoll is signed through 2011/12.  Who the Kings get in return is Marleau (29), who is due to recieve 6.3 million this season, and like Frolov, he will become a UFA this summer.  If the Kings don't sign Marleau, this deal might just be a waste, unless they planned on departing with Frolov, and his expected salary competition, to the market.

The Heatley situation has been a topic beaten up countless times here at the Banter, and all speculation could be put to rest, hopefully.

-UPDATE- the deal might not have gone down (what's new?), as Glen Murray GM of the Senators, GM Doug Wilson of the Sharks, and GM Dean Lombardi of the Kings deny any truth to the deal.  Taken from Yahoo:

Both Sharks GM Doug Wilson and Senators GM Bryan Murray denied the three-way trade when reached by ESPN.com. "It's simply not true," Murray told ESPN.com Thursday night. "I've had conversations with teams today but still I'm not close to a deal [involving Heatley]."

Well, there goes my above comments... damn.

 Bucci's last Twitter report read "Dany Heatley will probably be a Shark tonight or tomorrow." So that's where we are. If this is in fact the deal in place, it's exactly what Bruce Garrioch reported this morning in the Ottawa Sun. 

"Bucci" is John Buccigross over at ESPN, where the report originated.

Kings GM Dean Lombardi to Rich Hammond of Inside The Kings about the Heatley trade report: "Complete bull.''

I don't know what else to say at this point.  Let the drama continue, and look around the NHL, or here, for more updates.

-UPDATE- TSN's own Bob McKenzie had this to say about the now, rumored deal, from Twitter:

Sources tell TSN Ottawa isn't close to doing a two-team Heatley deal, never mind a three-team transaction.

I don't know if anyone has seen it, but ESPN and ESPNEWS have done short segments on the deal and continue to promote it.  They do say the GM's have denied the deal though.  Heatley was also announced to be on the Senators training camp roster, according to ESPN.

-UPDATE- Heatley has been traded to San Jose.  The Kings are not involved, nor is Patrick Marleau.  Please check here for the story written by KingHenrik, which includes a link directly to the main announcement on TSN, as I did not discover this new story first. (I wanted to follow up the main story, which has been going on for more than a day.)

My final word:  Thank God It's Over.