Nearly all of the Marian Hossa conversation this morning centers around the Edmonton Oilers. GM Kevin Lowe told the Edmonton Sun that the numbers on the rumored $9 million, nine-year deal for the Pittsburgh Penguins UFA are "a little bit inflated," but he also said that owner Daryl Katz will "do whatever it takes and spend to the cap." Hey, remember when the Oilers were bleeding big-money stars and were the poster children for "small market" woes in the NHL? Yeah, neither do we.

The economic moves that would allow the Oilers to afford Hossa with their current roster are rather interesting, and Lowetide has its take on their validity. In summary: It was nice knowing you, Dwayne Roloson.

Meanwhile, New York Rangers writer Sam Weinman believes that Jaromir Jagr will get Hossa's sloppy seconds in the NHL, and that Hossa's decision in regards to the Rangers will decide Jagr's future with the Blueshirts.

But forget the Oilers for a second: Can the Rangers afford Hossa after breaking the bank for Wade Redden during yesterday's free-agent frenzy? Mudcrutch over on MC79hockey.com believes that they're facing the same kind of economic lineup decisions as Edmonton:

Looking at the Rangers roster with the signings of Michal Roszival and Wade Redden. If they went minimum wage for their fourth line and two press box forwards, their seventh defenceman and backup goalie, they'd have $8.6MM for Hossa. I can't see how that gets it done unless he really wants to be there; the Rangers would end up being very shallow up front and I don't really see who they can move to fix things. If TSN is to be believed, that leaves the Oilers, Canadiens and Penguins. Montreal would be risking the creation of a cap nightmare long-term or the loss of a bunch of guys already on their roster, given the presence of Carey Price, Tomas Plekanec and Mike Komisarek and the Penguins are already in a position where they can't do it. If TSN is right about who's in it, I'd think that the Oilers are better positioned than anyone, provided that they can find somewhere to get rid of the excess salary.

What about the Penguins and Hossa? They're still in the hunt. But should they drop out, Post-Gazette columnist Bob Smizik believes Jagr would be an awful replacement. We disagree, as we're rather eager to see what a Jagr/Michel Therrien feud looks like. 

Related: Rumors, scuttlebutt, innuendo