Another twist in the Roberto Luongo story has been added as coach John Tortorella confirmed that Luongo would be starting tonight just a couple of hours before he was dealt. Full details of the trade are available here.

Further, Luongo commented on his return to the starter’s role: underlining the importance of tonight’s game against the Phoenix Coyotes. Both of these teams are fighting for one of the final playoff berths in the incredibly tight Western Conference. The Canucks are currently in 10th position in the West, while the Coyotes are 11th.

It was not to be, as two hours later it was confirmed that Luongo had been traded along with Steve Anthony, for Jacob Markstrom and Shawn Matthias plus the Canucks would retain 15 percent of his salary and cap hit going forward.

However, it is somewhat surprising how little the coach knew about the developing deal. It is unlikely that he would have named Luongo his starter if he had even the slightest suspicion that a trade was occurring. Further, Luongo’s statements would probably have been a little different he knew he was this close to heading to Florida.

With the way things have been in Vancouver, the question must be asked as to how much communication is actually going on between management, the coaches, and the players in that organization right now. This could be another sign of dysfunction beneath the surface of the Mike Gillis regime.

At this time, it is unclear who will start tonight’s game for the Canucks. However, most educated guesses would say it will be Eddie Lack.

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