Olli Jokinen to the Wild?

Here is a rumor that is gaining some traction on the Internet. All I can say if Mark Parish it has been nice knowing you. The Wild GM can not continue to flounder around and he has to make some decent moves to keep the Wild in the hunt. I can only dream of the possibilities or Gabby and Oli on the same line.

Jokinen talks may be heating up
By Brian Biggane
(read the whole article right here)
With the league holding its General Managers meetings in Detroit today, there are reports that several teams are lining up to talk to Jacques Martin about Panthers captain Olli Jokinen.

Eklund reports on hockeybuzz.com that Calgary, Minnesota and Vancouver could be among the frontrunners in offering what he terms “MAJOR packages to get Olli to move north.”

We wrote back in early April about the Calgary and Vancouver rumors. Of course, Mike Keenan and Jokinen still have a fondness for one another and the Flames are likely to lose their top center if Daymond Langkow becomes an unrestricted free agent July 1. Jokinen would certainly be considered an upgrade on Langkow and finally give Jarome Iginla a top center to play alongside.

Vancouver is only a few weeks into the regime of new GM Mike Gillis, but major moves are anticipated. And remember, Scott Mellanby just became a consultant to Gillis. Mellanby and Jokinen played together and the two have a mutual admiration.

Minnesota is a newcomer to the mix but after a couple of playoff disappointments there’s a sense the Wild want to make changes. Brian Rolston is headed for UFA status and GM Doug Risebrough may want to make a statement to convince him to stick around.

So what might be coming the other way? Calgary has an excellent blueline and might be willing to offer a high-end guy who could play alongside Jay Bouwmeester, thus perhaps enticing Bouw to sign that long-term deal Martin has been dangling for months. Vancouver may have soured on the Sedin twins; there were rumors Martin tried to get both for Jokinen at the trade deadline. Minnesota? Start with Mark Parrish, throw in a first-round draft pick and you’re in the ballpark.