NHL Morning Papers (Thursday Edition)

Here are the morning papers for Thursday the 31st of July:

• The Valtteri Filppula signing was a good one for the Red Wings, but it will force the team to make a move to remain under the cap, writes Ted Kuflan of the Detroit News.
• As Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News explains, it is not that Craig Rivet has a problem with Buffalo, it is that he was just so comfortable with his living arrangements in San Jose that his trade back east really threw him off.
• The deal may have taken a while to get done, but Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson was always confident he’d re-sign Pascal Leclaire, writes Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch.
• With Alexander Radulov attempting to bolt for Russia and Steve Sullivan’s questionable back, the Predators are one of a number of teams that have already expressed interest in Mark Parrish.
• After reading the second part of Brad Schrade’s interesting piece on the secret loans that helped complete the Predators sale, you begin to understand just how badly Craig Leipold wanted out of Nashville.
• The Hurricanes still have not decided who they want to be Cam Ward’s backup next season, writes Luke Decock of the News Observer.
• You can scratch Joel Quenville’s name off the Islanders head coaching candidates list because the former Avs coach is taking the year off.
• With his arbitration hearing scheduled for today, Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun believes this is the last we’ve seen of Antoine Vermette in a Senators uniform.
• Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun examines the possibility that much-talked about John Tavares is no longer the consensus number one draft pick for 2009.

For Illegal Curve, I’m Richard Pollock.