Snapshots: Maple Leafs, Dowd, Harris, Broberg

The Maple Leafs have shown interest in Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro and forward Luke Kunin, reports The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta.  It’s believed that Toronto doesn’t want to part with a first-round pick for a rental but Ferraro has two years left on his contract at a $3.25MM cap charge while Kunin is controllable for one more year if he’s tendered a $3MM qualifying offer.  Ferraro is logging nearly 23 minutes a night on San Jose’s back end and would certainly give Toronto a boost in their top four while Kunin has struggled offensively, scoring just eight times in 50 games so far.  With Toronto’s interest, it’s worth noting that cap space is quite tight at the moment and as things stand, they can’t afford the full contract of one of those players let alone both.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

• The Capitals announced (Twitter link) that center Nic Dowd suffered an upper-body injury in tonight’s game against New Jersey. The 33-year-old has become a reliable bottom-six middleman in recent years and has 16 points through 45 games while taking the second-most faceoffs on the team.  Signed for another year at a $1.3MM price tag, Dowd has been a speculative trade candidate in a center market that is quite thin now.
• Canadiens defenseman Jordan Harris has been cleared to return, notes RDS’ Luc Gelinas (Twitter link). The blueliner also confirmed that the upper-body injury he was dealing with was a concussion, the second of his career.  Harris has played in 31 games so far this season, picking up a goal and five assists while averaging a little over 17 minutes a night.
• One of Edmonton’s possible trade chips is defenseman Philip Broberg. However, the blueliner hasn’t played in the last ten days and it appears as if he’ll be out for a little while longer as Ryan Holt, the broadcaster for their AHL affiliate, relays (Twitter link) that Broberg’s injury appears to be more of a week-to-week case.  The 22-year-old is in the final year of his entry-level deal and has 19 points in 29 games with the Condors but has been held off the scoresheet in ten games with the Oilers this season.