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Could Mike Modano be on the move before Wednesday's trade deadline?

Q: If the San Jose Sharks don’t at least make it to the Western Conference finals, do you think Doug Wilson will return as general manager?
— Bryan Chopp from Saratoga, Calif.
A: I think Wilson is safe, Bryan, short of the Sharks blowing it again in the first round.

Had you asked me the same question last spring, just after the Ducks rubbed out the Sharks in Round 1, I might have given you a different answer. But Wilson, who took control of the Sharks
starting with the 2003-'04 season, made a brilliant move with the acquisition of high-scoring Dany Heatley, adding to one of the game's most proficient and potent offenses.

The Sharks have been around the top of the Western Conference all season. All of which guarantees nothing come playoff time, as the Sharks know all too well. However, it's a solid franchise, built to compete well in the post-lockout era, and it's positioned well to have a very strong postseason. I'm not sure what else a GM can do (a question I am sure Wilson has asked himself repeatedly during his tenure).

Q: It’ll be good to see Peter Forsberg and Jaromir Jagr back in North America for the Olympics. Which player is more likely to make a return to the NHL?
— John from Toronto
A: Frankly, John, I have my doubts that we'll see either Forsberg or Jagr back in the NHL. They are two exceptional athletes, sure Hockey Hall of Famers, but contrary to how we remember them in their NHL days, they are getting old. Jagr just turned 38. Forsberg will be 37 in July.

OK, what's age but a number, right? Well, I just don't see a real incentive for either player to come back to the Original 30. Jagr is in Russia, finishing up year No. 2 of a very lucrative deal with Omsk Avangard. Last I looked, he was averaging less than a point per game in the KHL. So it's not like he's lighting it up every night and enticing an NHL club to woo him back to North America when his Russian deal comes to an end.

Forsberg, hindered for years now with foot and ankle injuries, is back playing with Modo, his former Swedish club and he has been productive thus far. The more he scores, the more rumors will heat up about a possible return here. But with that history of injuries, and the fact that he hasn't played regularly over here since 2006-'07, I don't get the sense that NHL clubs are eager to bring back Foppa.

Q: With the Capitals running away with the Southeast Division, I was wondering what the biggest margin ever for a division winner over the second-place team?
— Matthew from Clarksville, Tenn.
A: You're right, Matthew, the Caps are running away in a very weak (impotent?) Southeast Division. They have a nearly a 30-point advantage over the second-placed Tampa Bay.

However, the Caps still have to make a lot of hay to break the standing record for a divisional ''win''. The 1977-78 Canadiens, then in the Norris Division, finished with a 59-10-11 record, good for 129 points. The Red Wings that season finished second in the Norris with 78 points. Net difference: 51 points.

The Habs capped that great season with yet another Stanley Cup, their third in a string of four they collected, 1976-'79.

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