Trade

Everywhere he stops on the long, icy NHL trail these days, Flyers captain Rick Tocchet hears the same question: Do you think you're going to be traded? Hear that question often enough, and you start getting ready for the day a trade might happen, right? "It's tough to say if I'm mentally prepared for it if it does happen," Tocchet said yesterday. "But let's put it this way - I won't be devastated. I mean, we're not winning, and I'm not playing well, so I can't possibly be happy right now. " Tocchet was just back from a weekend of snowmobiling near his family's home in Toronto, where he spent the all-star break trying to forget the poor season he's had so far, trying to clear his mind of the distraction he said the ever- swirling trade rumors have become.

The NHL trading deadline is Tuesday at 3 p.m., so little time remains for teams looking to alter their rosters in preparation for the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs on April 5. Although Flyers general manager Bob Clarke said yesterday that he is not trying to do anything major, there are indications that the team could be seeking goaltending help. There has been concern expressed in the organization that solid insurance is needed behind goalie Ron Hextall. Entering last night's game here against the Kings, Hextall had started 18 straight games, while backup Mark Laforest, who has played only two periods in the past six weeks, grows rusty.

In Clearwater this spring, Mickey Morandini responded to a trade rumor sending him to Cleveland this way: "You're not going to make me mad, are you?" Yesterday, Morandini responded to a trade-rumor question this way: "If I get traded, I hope it's a National League team. " Familiarity means a lot to the 31-year-old second baseman, one of the rare homegrown talents on the Phillies. That's why when the Yankees expressed interest in him two springs ago, he expressed nothing short of dread.

Christian Laettner, who almost went to the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers in a proposed four-team deal, instead was traded yesterday by the Detroit Pistons to Dallas. Laettner and Terry Mills, another veteran forward, are going from Detroit to the Mavericks in exchange for forwards Cedric Ceballos and John Wallace, guard Eric Murdock and cash. Wallace and Murdock never played a game for Dallas, having been acquired by the Mavs in separate trades on draft night in June. Laettner averaged 12.2 points and 6.7 rebounds as he started all 82 games last season for Detroit.

Don't look for the Flyers to do anything drastic before Friday's NHL trading deadline. Specifically, don't look for them to trade for a goalie. "There's no chance of that happening," Flyers president and general manager Bob Clarke said yesterday when asked about the possibility of a trade for John Vanbiesbrouck, or some other dominant goaltender. Vanbiesbrouck has been mentioned in a lot in trade rumors because he plays for an expansion team, the Florida Panthers, and they might be better off converting a soon-to-be-32-year-old goalie into a couple of younger players.

The Chicago Bulls traded their top 1990 draft pick and two future second- round selections to the New Jersey Nets yesterday for guard Dennis Hopson. The Nets received the 22d pick in tonight's NBA draft, the Bulls' second- round pick in 1991 and the best of Chicago's three 1992 second-round choices. The Bulls are left with a second-round pick, the 29th overall, in this year's draft. Hopson, the third player taken in the 1987 draft, was a major disappointment for the Nets.

The winless Buffalo Sabres, saying they were embarking on a youth movement, shook up their roster yesterday by making a five-player trade with the Winnipeg Jets and demoting four players. The trade with Winnipeg was Buffalo's first major deal since John Muckler, the former Edmonton Oilers coach, was brought aboard as hockey operations director to bolster the team's front office this past summer. The Sabres sent left wingers Mike Hartman and Darrin Shannon and defenseman Dean Kennedy to the Jets for right winger Dave McLlwaine, defenseman Gord Donnelly and future considerations.

THE LOS ANGELES Angels traded power hitter Kendrys Morales to the Seattle Mariners for lefthander Jason Vargas. The 29-year-old Morales became expendable after the Angels agreed to a deal last week with free-agent slugger Josh Hamilton. The Angels had been looking for a pitcher after losing Zack Greinke and Dan Haren to free agency and trading Ervin Santana. Morales hit .273 with 22 home runs and 73 RBI last season. Vargas led Seattle in wins last season, going 14-11 with a 3.85 ERA.   Noteworthy *  The New York Yankees and Ichiro Suzuki finalized a $13 million, 2-year contract that keeps the 10-time All-Star in the Bronx.

It's the same old story. There are contending teams out there that would like grab a player or two from the Phillies roster. But no one wants to ante up the talent to get a deal done. "There's been a lot of calls," general manager Lee Thomas said yesterday. "I talked to six or seven clubs today. But trying to get something out of them is tough. I expect it to be that way until a couple days before the deadline. " The deadline for making deals without first asking waivers on a player is midnight July 31. In an indication that the Phils could be very busy as the deadline approaches, Thomas and assistant GM Ed Wade will join the coming West Coast trip so manager Terry Francona can be included in the proceedings.

The struggling Boston Bruins traded captain Joe Thornton to the San Jose Sharks last night in exchange for three players. The Bruins get forwards Marco Sturm, Wayne Primeau and defenseman Brad Stuart for Thornton, who signed a $20 million, 3-year contract with Boston in August and was once thought to be the future of the franchise. Noteworthy Detroit defenseman Jiri Fischer had another abnormal heartbeat this week and returned to the hospital for treatment. He was released yesterday and is to undergo further testing, the team said.