From Tim Sassone's column today in the Daily Herald:

It should be known that Tallon is trying to make the Hawks better right now. A lot better. In fact, he has been one of the general managers in hot pursuit of free-agent center Peter Forsberg.

That's right. Tallon recently traveled to Finland to speak with Forsberg and watch him play for Sweden in the Karjala Cup -- an annual event between Sweden, Finland, Russia and the Czech Republic.

Unfortunately, Forsberg hurt his ankle again in a practice and pulled out of the tourney, putting his career in jeopardy. Ankle problems have nagged Forsberg to the point that he has needed surgery on both feet.

A number of teams would love to add Forsberg for the second half, Stanley Cup contenders Detroit and Ottawa among them.

While it's unlikely the former MVP would sign with the Hawks, a team source confirmed that Forsberg had been receptive to hearing about where the Hawks were as a team and where they might be going.

It's a nice thought, but Forsberg keeps having problems with his ankle and he's been thinking about retirement lately, so I doubt he plays another game in the NHL. However, it's nice to see Tallon is making the effort to check out some talented players and see if they are a fit on this team. Hopefully he is exploring other options as well.