'Absolutely no truth' to rumors of Blackhawks shopping Patrick Sharp, says agent

The name of star scoring winger and Canadian Olympian Patrick Sharp has been surprisingly bandied about in rumors this week ahead of the opening of the free agent market and the NHL Entry Draft. Those rumors should be taken with all of the salt in the shaker that hit Bruins president Cam Neely in Dumb and Dumber, at least to hear Sharp's agent Rick Curran tell it.

"There’s absolutely no truth to it," Currant told ESPN Chicago's Scott Powers on Wednesday. "They’re not trading him. He’s the last guy on the list who they would trade. He’s not available.

"Believe me, I’ve spoken to Stan a couple times, as recently as a few days ago. There’s absolutely no truth to it."

The Blackhawks have a need at second-line center, and Sharp is an All-Star quality winger who could presumably help net an impact pivot on the trade market. Despite Sharp's bulletproof resume and impressive production - he managed 34 goals and 78 points this season - his age (32) makes it a bit tough to imagine him as a centerpiece in a deal for one of the top centerman available on the trade market, most of whom play for teams looking to get younger.