The comment section in yesterday’s post was abuzz (I may be stretching the term “abuzz”) with the news that Dany Heatley has requested a trade out of Ottawa.

E.J Hradek of ESPN had this to say:

Is Senators winger Dany Heatley seeking his ticket out of Ottawa? Sources tell me that is the case.

According to those sources, Ottawa GM Bryan Murray has been notified of Heatley’s desire for a change of scenery and is mulling his options. On the record, though, Murray said Heatley is still a Senator.

“We signed him to a long-term deal and we expect him to honor it,” Murray told ESPN.com’s Pierre LeBrun on Tuesday morning. “At this point in time, he’s a Senator.”

Murray could retool the Senators’ roster by moving Heatley. Of course, any trading partner would have to have the budget room necessary to accommodate the remaining five years of Heatley’s deal, which counts for $7.5 million against the cap. Heatley is thought to be interested in a move to the Western Conference.

The last two seasons have been relatively difficult for Heatley, who has seen a dip in his scoring. Of course, he’s still a point per game player:

• 2005-06: 82GP – 50G – 53A – 103PTS, +29
• 2006-07: 82GP – 50G – 55A – 105PTS, +31
• 2007-08: 71GP – 41G – 41A – 82PTS, +33
• 2008-09: 82GP – 39G – 33A – 72PTS, -11

I don’t think Heatley’s quite the two-way player that his +/- from 2005-08 would seem to indicate; but frankly, I don’t care. He doesn’t need to be entirely sheltered, and he’s among the best players in the entire league at scoring goals and racking up points against the secondary toughs.

This is also a case of buying while the price is right; Heatley’s numbers were artificially deflated last season by the percentages – something that’s unlikely to happen again. As one example, his on-ice even-strength save percentage was .899 – .910 was the team average, and as Vic Ferrari has shown that’s almost certainly not his fault. His on-ice even-strength shooting percentage was 6.3% – the Senators averaged 7.6%, and that’s another number that almost certainly isn’t Heatley’s fault. Heatley also posted his worst personal shooting percentage since his rookie season (15.1%) – he typically converts 16%+ of shots that he makes. His +/- was further damaged by a number of empty-net goals against.

I’ll grant that Heatley generally gets run out in the offensive zone, something that inflates his numbers and that despite that he doesn’t drive possession like he really should, but he’s so lethal from the blueline in that it almost doesn’t matter; he’s one of the few players talented enough that they can get outchanced and still outscore almost any opposition.

People talk about Vincent Lecavalier, but I’m not sure why Heatley doesn’t rate higher on most lists. He has two 100-point seasons to Lecavalier’s one, two 50-goal seasons to Lecavalier’s one, four seasons with at least 40 goals to Lecavalier’s two, and he’s done most of it in a much tougher division to boot.

Heatley’s cheaper than Lecavalier and his contract expires sooner; he’s still a bit overpriced given the fact that he’s not really a guy who can be leaned on in all three zones but guys do get paid for offense and even in a bad year Heatley’s going to score more than 35 goals.  The other consideration is his position; there are far more centres near the point-per-game mark than there are left wingers.

As for what Ottawa would want in exchange, I’d guess that it is a lot. Fortunately for the Oilers, the Senators’ position of greatest need is on the back end, not up front; so a defenseman could be the centre-piece of the deal. I’d guess that Ottawa would ask for Gilbert, and the Oilers would need to toss in more. Could Gilbert, Cogliano and Eberle get that trade done? Perhaps, although it wouldn’t surprise me if the pot needed to be richer still – possibly by inserting a player like Patrick O’Sullivan in place of Eberle. I’d be on the fence about making that latter trade. Ideally of course the Senators would be willing to take Dustin Penner back in any trade, but somehow I don’t see that happening.

One thing is for certain – the Oilers should not be willing to send Ales Hemsky the other way. Hemsky would seem to be a perfect complement for Heatley; the ideal passer to setup a triggerman of his ability. There’s also the salary cap to consider; Heatley is not inexpensive (7.5 million a season until 2013-14) and Ales Hemsky is a bargain given his skill level. If he were dealt, the Oilers would face a hole at RW; a hole that would not be nearly so cheap to fill.