Pride is good in small doses, but never something to depend on. With last nights’ varying adjustments in pride, attitude, and stripping away false senses of security, the bottom eight of both Conferences as well as that elusive shot at the Prize of the West, are anything but solid.

The firestorm from Calgary arrived in Charlotte, and an eager Canes band, newly re-united with Eric Cole proceeded to put them out like a dog soaking a lit cigarette in the street. Any boost the recent trade deadline produced, coupled with the win over Philadelphia was sufficiently damped.

I don’t think this was truly much more than a bad shift of the moon and just one of those nights that the best intentions go awry. Calgary was at least present during the game, but flat. They certainly owed their goaltender Curtis McElhinney more than they have delivered to him in his 13 NHL appearances.

On the flipside, it has been nice to see Sergei Samsonov in the similar form he was as an Edmonton Oiler, with the Moscow native netting 2 points, and the game winning goal.

While not an utterly critical game for the Flames, it was a necessary duece for the Hurricanes, who remain on the cusp of a Playoff hunt.

The Great One led his pack of canine-like creatures into the Herd to tangle in Buffalo. And now you know what it sounds like when a great crushing occurs.

Even with the best efforts of Ilya Bryzgalov and one of my favorite defencemen, Ken Klee, Maxim Afinegenov and the Slug pack pulled a win out of the hat. Even if watching Klee bank Afinegenov off of the boards like a five cent bouncy ball made me hold me breath for a moment.

With one point and one game separating the Sabres once again from the Stanley Cup Playoffs it was a do or die game delivered to throngs of blue and gold from familiar names like Jason Pominville and Tim Connolly. Having Patrick Lalime minding the net for Buffalo’s injured Miller Time hasn’t been a bad call on Lindy Ruff’s part, either.

A Sabres win tonight against Ottawa will bounce Pittsburgh out of the Top 8, and Buffalo into the golden block.

Nothing says retribution like playing against the team that traded you only two weeks before. But for Mathieu Schneider, it’s a full circle come to life as the current Habs defenceman plays on the roster of the very man who centered his 1993 Stanley Cup victory against the Los Angeles Kings, Guy Carbonneau. It would not only be the last time the Canadiens would hold the Cup, but the last time they would even see the Stanley Cup Finals since.

Unfortunately, with the way Les Habitats played in Philips Arena, minus the obvious work of Schneider and excellent goaltending of Cary Price, Playoff dreams could potentially slip away. The play was lackluster and uninspired at best.

Atlanta, however, actually brought a game to the arena to give the fans something other than the door prizes to take home. At the worst, it would have made a South Park caricature.

Carbo believes that the Habs brought some effort. I didn’t see it. Except for when young Zach Bogosian took a healthy beating with a smile on the assaulting Hab’s face. That was like warm cocoa on a cold winter night.

Skate ‘em, Carbo, for old time’s sake.

St. Louis met the Lightning at home in Tampa Bay’s St. Pete Times Forum, where they proceeded to sing a song of good ole hockey that gave the Bolts the blues. In typical fashion, Tampa responded to a 3 goal deficit in the third period with their own set of three to force overtime.

But there would be no tacos.

First, they were in Tampa. Second, in sudden death overtime, a forth goal was the night’s limit.

Since that made no sense to most hockey greenhorns, I’ll explain it. Before the infamous Hockey Lockout of 2004-2005, local Taco Bell restaurants in the St. Louis area offered thirty-five cent tacos the day following a Blues game when the Blues scored five goals or more. On the forth goal, the crowd would begin to chant, “We Want TACOS!”

And I’m going to miss Gary Roberts. It was an honor to have him grace the Bolts jersey.

In a must-win battle for the potential 8th seed in the West, the Dallas Stars and 10th ranked Anaheim Ducks met in a battle royale. The Stars, in an onslaught once again spearheaded by Ribiero and backended by Marty Turco, show us what the Dallas Stars do best on the ice, divide and conquer.

They continually kept Anaheim split on the forecheck, drove a triangle pattern to the net, and somehow it worked. I haven’t seen much of Anaheim this year, but it appears the Ducks are flying south, with the Stars rising into the eighth slot. With the matchup of Edmonton and Toronto, the future of that slot remains insecure.

The bottom ranks of the East and West are shifting day to day, so get ready for March’s Hairy Ride to the Finish.

And that, my friends, is hockey as we know it.

Kunitz has been tagged a “top six forward” by Penguins GM Ray Shero and he seems pretty pleased about the deal.  He did not specifically say that the deal was  to get someone to team up with Sid.

The deal net the Pens a solid Winger and Tangradi, a Philadelphia native, who is a highly touted prospect who has 87 points (38 goals, 49 assists) in 52 games with the Ontario Hockey League’s Belleville Bulls this season. Anaheim drafted him 42nd overall in 2007.

The Penguins have a great deal of depth currently at the blue line with the return of Sergi Gonchar.  Whitney has not played up to expectations this year.  With the emergence of Kris Letang and withand Alex Goligoski and his development this year, it gave The Pens one extra defense man to try to get a top forward like Chris Kunitz.  Kunitz, 29, scored 16 goals and recorded 19 assists to go with 55 penalty minutes in 62 games this season with the Ducks. He was part of their 2007 Stanley Cup winning team and this season was their leader with 148 hits.

Kunitz is expected to play tonight at Chicago.

Yes of course having a Vincent Lecavalier on the team would be great! Vinny would be the big scoring centre from Quebec that the Habs have needed since Jean Beliveau. Vinny would solidify the number one centre position for the next ten years, and the Canadiens would have their impact player they have been searching for. But what about the back end?

The Canadiens have showed that even with players like Andrei Markov, Mike Komisarek and Roman Hamrlik that they still need someone else to complete their four man scheme. Josh Gorges and Francis Bouillon are good, especially Gorges who has an impressive +18 this year, and Bouillon never ducks away from the rough play, unfortunately they are both small. Patrice Brisebois is playing well again this year, but is showing signs of fatigue as he is looked upon to be the number four guy.

The solution could be prying Pronger away from the Ducks. With Pronger’s size, mean streak and toughness, to go along with his defensive and offensive skill, he might be just what the Habs need. Think of playing the Boston Bruins or the Philadelphia Flyers in the play-offs this year. Both of those teams are big and like to pound the corners, and with Komisarek being the only one who really pounds back with any consistency, the Habs are lacking back-end size and toughness.

And what about at the forward position? Even with all the injuries the Canadiens have had this year they have still managed to score goals, so scoring doesn’t seem to be the problem. An aging Steve Begin is doing what he can to play a tough and hitting game but can’t do it every night. Tom Kostopoulos is doing what he can to defend players but seems to be more of a punching bag. Guillaume Latendresse is concentrating on scoring or passing and not finishing his checks.

Could the solution be getting Neil out of the Sens line-up? Think of Georges Laraque back in the line-up playing beside Neil. The Bruins and Flyers would have a hard time with the likes of Komisarek, Pronger, Laraque and Neil. The forwards for the Habs would be able to run free and play the way they can without worrying of retribution from the other teams. Carey Price would be a little less worried about peolpe crashing his net as he would know that there would finally be some pay back.

As I mentioned before, Lecavalier would definitely be great, but if it is impossible to get him, then Pronger and Neil would be a solution to some of the problems that the Habs have. The Canadiens would definitely be tougher team, and would surely be harder to push around.

Last year in the play-offs the Habs out hit the Bruins, but where so tired after that series that the Flyers were able to push them around, if the Canadiens acquired Neil and Pronger, that would be different, especially with Laraque in the line-up.

Hopefully Bob Gainey will make the right decision and help the Habs fill in the holes they have.

The Collective Bargaining Agreement was an utter nightmare for MLSE. No longer could they purchase the most expensive players in the off-season in an attempt to contend for the Stanley Cup like they had in previous years. They were forced to change their ways. In an effort to get a fresh start, they decided to part ways with long-serving GM Pat Quinn and introduced the relatively unknown John Ferguson Jr. However, MLSE was not going to let the former scout do as he pleased. Every trade, signing, waiver move and decision was to be passed to the board for review. CEO Richard Peddie was adamant that every decision go through him, in other words, it was difficult for JFJ to sneeze without Peddie feeling the mist. “Puppeteer” isn’t the right word, but it’s the first word that comes to mind. The situation certainly put the amateur GM in quite the quagmire. Perhaps if JFJ’s tenure were not so assessed, he may still be the boss. However, as we know, after three years of substandard and paltry decision making by the rookie GM, he was finally let go. The past few seasons have left Leaf supporters quite hopeless and disconsolate as John Ferguson Jr. led this team to post-lockout failure.

After the ineptitude of Ferguson was dealt with, it became abundantly clear to MLSE that a promise had to be made to the new GM. Richard Peddie and the rest of the board surely realized the error of their controlling ways, and assured that the new GM would have full autonomy over the club. This announcement came soon after the legendary Scotty Bowman was rumored to take over and demanded that this be a stipulation. Why they did not hire one of the most respected, most knowledgeable men in all of hockey is beyond me. “Mistake” isn’t the right word, but it’s the first word that comes to mind. But who am I to judge? There may have been many other factors contributing to the termination of this deal. Now that Mr. Bowman has joined his son on the revamped Chicago Blackhawks, this speculation is now over. The vacant spot was filled in by former GM Cliff Fletcher. He has taken the reigns for the remainder of the 2008-2009 season and has done an admirable job to date. He has previously stated that he is by no means a full-time replacement and is just ‘keeping it warm’. There have been numerous newspaper articles, press conferences, blogs and other forms of hockey writing that have speculated the future of the dormant General Manager position and the ambiguous state of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Watching past press releases and rifling through hockey articles, it became more and more obvious to me that Brian Burke would fulfill his contractual duties with the Anaheim Ducks and join the Maple Leafs at the inception of the 2009-2010 season. On paper, this seems like the most logical decision. He has long been rumored to want to manage the Maple Leafs, his wife is involved in the media and this hockey-crazed city would certainly bode well for her career, he would join long-time friend Ron Wilson and would undoubtedly be the highest paid figurehead in all of the NHL. Leaf fans should be excited at the prospect of this as Burke had constructed a solid foundation in Vancouver before joining the Anaheim Ducks and winning a Stanley Cup within a couple years of his appointment. Without sounding overly patriotic, my fondness for him stems from his penchant for signing and drafting hard-hitting Canadian born players. For me, this is unparalleled and it certainly doesn’t go unnoticed. His resume speaks for itself and is certainly shaping up to be the chosen one for many Leaf followers. While this very well may be case, it’s quite certain by the way MLSE has handled previous situations, that anything is possible.

However, everything in Leafland is not how it seems. This fairy tale is seemingly about to jump through some hurdles. With speculation running ramped, the idea of Burke being the knight in shining armor is slowly becoming less and less of a reality. MLSE may be beginning to explore other options should the long rumored assumption not come to fruition. Something we have all heard before. “Typical” isn’t the right word, but it’s the first word that comes to mind.

In a recent interview with co-owner Larry Tanenbaum, he ostensibly shut the door on recent speculation of long-time Detroit Red Wing Steve Yzerman taking the reigns after this season. I understand MLSE being hesitant to hire another rookie GM as the first experiment did not go as planned. They have stated in previous press releases that the new GM would have extensive experience and a proven track record. But I would not be so quick to dismiss the long time player. For sometime now, Yzerman has been working side by side with Ken Holland, Scotty Bowman and the other brilliant hockey minds that comprise the Detroit Red Wing staff. He has certainly been educated on the intricacies and the savvy of putting together a Stanley Cup squad. As a player, he has won on virtually every level he has played in. As a Peterborough Pete he was a star attraction, he won the championship in both the World Junior’s and the Olympics, if that is not enough, he captained the Detroit Red Wings to three Stanley Cups. I would concur that this Hall-of-Fame candidate unquestionably understands how to win. However, it is argued that these feats have come as a player and he has merely only begun to get his feet wet in a managerial role. Steve Yzerman is undoubtedly one of the greatest players to ever play the game, but that is by no means a reason to hand over an enormously demanding position, one that he has very little experience in.

Another option that hasn’t grabbed headlines as of yet is the idea of Joe Nieuwendyk becoming Cliff Fletcher’s successor. Considered one of the top minds in hockey today, Nieuwendyk was coveted for quite sometime. In the off-season, the Florida Panthers granted Toronto permission to talk to him and he was hired almost instantaneously. He was recently named special assistant to the GM where he will observe his surroundings and garner the aspects of running an organization. Perhaps Nieuwendyk will be given a long look as the replacement once Fletcher departs. However, much like Yzerman, he may be too inexperienced to assume the job. It’s difficult to speculate at this point what MLSE’s plans are with the former Toronto Maple Leaf, but it certainly seems as he is being groomed for the General Manager position at a later date.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have certainly benefited from the past years of Stanley Cup success dating back 40 years ago. The tradition of being an aficionado of the blue & white has been passed down from generation to generation. Will this trend of blind faith continue with a losing franchise? That question remains to be seen. As MLSE is seemingly putting the business aspect on the backburner in an effort to promote new winning ways, it seems logical that they hire someone competent and experienced enough; to usher in this new era. The new GM, whomever that may is, will be expected to make this losing team contend for a Stanley Cup almost immediately. This organization is on a downward spiral and is becoming less and less efficacious year after year. How long will it take for MLSE to realize that while they may have an extensive collection of faithful fans in the present, this may not be the case in the future if they continue their losing ways. “Panic” isn’t the right word, but it’s the first word that comes to mind. Let’s hope for Leaf fans everywhere, they make the right choice.

Last season the Minnesota Wild won their first ever Northwest Division title but were ousted in the first round of the playoffs by the Colorado Avalanche. The big question for the Minnesota Wild this season is the whether or not they picked up enough goal scorers to make up for the players they lost in free agency. Here’s a quick rundown off who came and went, along with their scoring numbers from last year.

Gone

F Brian Rolston
Dynamic slap-shot guy goes to the New Jersey Devils
31 G 28 A

F Pavol Demitra
Talented but underachieving buddy of Marian Gaborik, goes to the Vancouver Canucks
15 G 39 A

F Mark Parrish
Minnesota native and Jacques Lemaire whipping boy, bought out by the Wild, still unsigned
16 G 14 A

F Aaron Voros
Gritty grinder goes to the New York Rangers
7 G 7 A

F Todd Fedoruk
Hard-skating occasional line-mate of Gaborik and Demitra, goes to Phoenix Coyotes
6 G 7 A

F Branko Radivojevic
Gaborik and Demitra countryman goes to Russia to play hockey
7 G 10 A

F Wes Walz
Gritty epitome of coach Jacques Lemaire-style hockey went MIA after 11 games and retired midseason. He is now an assistant coach for Barry Melrose in Tampa Bay
1 G 3 A, but his intangebles held the Wild together

Added

F Andrew Brunette
He of the biggest goal in Wild history back in 2003, returns to the Wild from the Colorado Avalanche
19 G 40 A

D Marek Zidlicky
Offensive defenseman, signs with the Wild from the Nashville Predators
5 G 38 A

D Marc-Andre Bergeron
Powerplay specialist, traded to the Wild from the Anaheim Ducks
9 G 9 A

F Antti Miettinen
Player looking to capitalize on his potential, signs with the Wild from the Dallas Stars
15 G 19 A

F Owen Nolan
Aging ex-superstar, signs with the Wild from the Calgary Flames
16 G 16 A

F Craig Weller
Guy I’d never heard of, signs with the Wild from Phoenix
3 G 8 A

The departing players add up to 83 goals and 108 assists in lost offensive fire power, while the additions give the Wild 67 goals and 130 assists. A definite drop in goals and most likely a wash in assists given the lack of goal scorers for the Wild. The question is, where will the offense come from? Rolston and Demitra were huge factors in the Wild offense. Demitra actually underachieved last season and towards the end was a non-factor. He and Gaborik never were able to recreate the magic they had in the ’06-’07 season. Rolston will be missed to an extent. He obviously scored a lot of goals and teams had to play for his big slap shot. However, he is relatively one-dimensional with said slap shot.

In the long run, the Wild will need the new players to contribute at least what they contributed to their respective teams last season. They will need to see improvement in goal scoring from returning players such as Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Benoit Pouliot, and James Sheppard. They need Mikko Koivu to continue to blossom into a superstar. They need some rookies, like Colton Gillies, to contribute a smattering of goals. And they need Marian Gaborik to stay healthy, interested, and actually on the team.

What Up with Gabby?
Speaking of Marian Gaborik, that’s the other huge key to this season, and potentially the next few seasons in Minny. Gaborik is on the cusp of being a superstar in the NHL. Gaborik is also an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season. That translates into contract negotiations, or speculation. Rumors are that Wild GM Doug Reisbrough has offered Marian $8.5 M a year, but there are no indications that he is ready to sign. Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin make $9 M a year. Is Gabby worth Sid the Kid and Ovechkin money? Does Gabby even want to play in Minnesota in the defensive system that supposedly limits his offensive potential?

Depending on how the Gaborik situation works out, the Wild may have their first fan grumblings on their hands. The fan base has sold out every game in franchise history dating back to the ’00-’01 season and they eat up whatever the franchise serves. But if there’s no Gabby, and if the team is not competitive, fans will start to find better things to do with what little discretionary income they may have.

Goaltending
Niklas Backstrom is the Wild’s #1 goalie. Josh Harding is the young up and coming understudy. Backstrom has put up some very impressive numbers. 33 wins and a 2.31 goals against last season. Harding shows a lot of potential but he needs playing time. Backstrom and Harding are both in contract years, so both goalies should be at the top of their games. This will be good for the team given the most-likely drop in offense.

Prediction
Last season’s early playoff loss put a damper on a great regular season. This season, I believe the Wild will tighten up their defense this season, returning to more of the type of hockey that got them a surprise run to the Western Conference Finals in 2003. Play very sound defensive hockey and capitalize when the opposition makes a mistake. Following that trend, I expect the Wild to finish 2nd or 3rd in the NW Division, make the playoffs as the 7th or 8th seed. And since there’s always at least one surprise team to go deep to the Conference Finals or even the Stanley Cup Finals, why not the Wild?

One such potential super-star that is making newspaper articles and water-cooler office talk around the country is mega-prospect John Tavares. Unless you’ve never watched a hockey newscast, you would have to be living in a cave for the last two years, not to hear this 17 year-old sensation’s name. Tavares first started grabbing headlines in the summer of 2005 when he was the first player ever to be granted “exceptional player” status by the OHL, which allowed him to be drafted at the age of 14; months before his 15^th birthday. Already being dubbed by TSN experts as the next ‘Next One’ behind wunderkind Sidney Crosby, this exceptional player has amassed quite a resume thus far.

In three seasons, playing for the Oshawa Generals of the OHL, he has collected 157 goals and 329 points in only 191 games, and he started when he was 15! Perhaps one of his greatest and most notable achievements to add to his list of accolades is his record breaking 72 goal sophomore season as a 16 year-old which surpassed Wayne Gretzky in that department. He is certainly shaping up to be a super-star NHL player, although perhaps not in the same mold as Gretzky, Lemieux and Crosby, as one of his most glaring flaws is his skating. Although he had an amazing 06-07 campaign as a 16 year-old, last year in the 07-08 season his numbers dipped tremendously, for a player of his caliber.

Obviously, Tavares would prefer to go #1 in the draft this upcoming season, as last year he missed the cut by 5 days, he was then considered a boy amongst men. His spot will be contingent on how well he performs in his last season as an Oshawa General.

It’s hard to imagine this phenomenon of a player has any competition for the number 1 spot in this year’s draft, but alas, he does. Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman is making headway to the top of the 09 draft.

Often mentioned in the same breath as fellow country man and six-time Norris trophy winner Niklas Lidstrom, Hedman has quickly drawn favorable comparisons to the Anaheim Ducks’ Chris Pronger. Certainly, there will be doubters, especially with the recent trend of over hyped prospects emerging out of Europe. Including but not limited to: classic late-bloomer Fabian Brunnstrom, who has yet to step foot on NHL ice, but is already drawing comparisons to Henrik Zetterberg and Daniel Alfredsson, which mind you is very possible, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet. Lest we forget glorified Toronto Maple Leaf defenseman Anton Stralman, who by many accounts from over-zealous Maple Leaf followers is considered to be the next Bobby Orr.

However, while these players receive warranted attention, this particular 6’6, 220lbs defenseman is considered the complete player. He skates like the wind and plays a risky, bordering on dirty game, and completes that with sublime offensive skills. Last year at the age of 17, he was playing full-time for MoDo in Sweden’s Elite League (SEL). A paucity in a league deemed to be not that far removed from the caliber of the NHL. This upcoming season, he will be expected to be a staple on the parent squad. He has franchise defenseman written all over him and has proved time and time again, whether it be in the SEL or a circuit in the World Juniors, that he can play with the best of them.

Of course, there are a select few others that may take the ranks of the #1 spot this fall. 2006 1^st overall selection of the Spokane Chiefs; Jared Cowen is turning heads in the WHL, and is widely considered to be a lock in the top 5. Another standout comes from the WHL, his name is Brayden Schenn. Sibling to Toronto Maple Leaf’s first round selection Luke Schenn. Unlike his brother, he plays forward. In his inaugural season, he amassed 28 goals and 43 assists, for 71 points in 66 games. By all accounts, he is expected to improve on those numbers with aplomb. Rounding out the top 5 is Swedish prospect; Magnus Svensson-Pääjärvi. A name I still have trouble trying to pronounce, this slick Swede is being mentioned in the same breath as Ilya Kovalchuck. While these players have an amazing amount of skill, scouts across the globe believe that the number 1 pick belongs to one of John Tavares or Victor Hedman. This upcoming season will be the mitigating factor in which we see these potential franchise players end up.

Personally, I believe that these two players have an inordinate amount of talent. They are both masters at their craft and equally skilled in their own regard. That is why I imagine that when D-day arrives, it will be a choice of position rather than skill. For years, the philosophy amongst NHL GM’s is that they will always take the best player available. While that statement still rings true, I believe that these two franchise players are equal in talent and will ultimately be up to the specific teams needs.

For the purpose of simplicity, let’s analyze only the projected bottom five teams of this years’ NHL season. The Atlanta Thrashers, New York Islanders, Toronto Maple Leafs, Los Angeles Kings & St. Louis Blues all have a legitimate shot and receiving the 1^st overall pick this June.

With Ilya Kovalchuk’s contract coming to a completion at the conclusion of the 09-10 season, the Atlanta Thrashers will be desperate for offence.

Furthermore, with the inclusion of recently drafted Zach Bogosian, they already have a potential franchise defenseman. Could the addition of John Tavares entice Kovalchuck to stay? Next is the New York Islanders. Seemingly devoid of any top-line talent at forward or defense, they could go either way. A duo of John Tavares and Kyle Okposo could be very intriguing. However, they are severely lacking in defensive prospects as well. The Toronto Maple Leafs recent drafting of Luke Schenn pretty much eliminates them from choosing Hedman, as they are desperate for a scoring forward.

What better way to replace long-time captain Mats Sundin with home-grown native John Tavares, something that will certainly please Leaf nation. The Los Angeles Kings and St. Louis Blues are two teams that are stock-piled with defensive prospects. While the former has Drew Doughty, Thomas Hickey and Jack Johnson, the latter has Eric Johnson, Alex Pietrangelo and Steve Wagner. These two teams would almost certainly jump at the opportunity to bolster their lineup with some much needed offense.

At first glance, it almost seems that the glaring need for these five bottom-feeding teams is offense, in which John Tavares certainly fits the bill. But, in what may become one of the biggest debates throughout the NHL’s 08-09 season, it really comes down to choice. Who would you pick?

The Philadelphia Flyers locked Joffrey Lupul up with a four-year contract extension. Lupul is one of several players the Flyers are committing to for years to come as they believe only good things will come from these young talents.

The Phoenix Coyotes re-signed left wing Daniel Carcillo in which they feel this sparkplug brings great balance of speed and toughness to the team. Carcillo led the league in penalty minutes last season as a rookie and that seemed to be the type of player the Coyotes want as they deal is undisclosed but was a 2 year contract.

The New Jersey Devils signing center Fedor Fedorov, who is the brother of Sergei Fedorov and has been playing in Europe the past few seasons.

Other signings this week included the Anaheim Ducks agreeing to one year contracts with left win Josh Green and center Eric Boguniecki. The biggest signing of the week has come from the Vancouver Canucks, as they signed six players Wednesday. Those players include RW-Ryan Shannon, C-Rick Rypien, RW-Mike Brown, Defs-Nathan McIver, Zach FitzGerald, and James Sharrow. Make sure to check back to see all the NHL’s top news as this year the Stanley Cup will truly be up for grabs. All this action is getting fans excited for the 2008-2009 season and with opening day being less than three months away it will be interesting to see what other deals come our way.

The week started off with the signing of RFA forward Maxim Lapierre for a two-years contract awarding him 575 000$ in 2008-2009 and 800 000$ in 2009-2010. Was it a right move? Definitly, since Lapierre has been able to establish himself as a hard worker and a devoted player for the Montreal Canadiens and he just keeps getting better at what he does, and let’s not forget to mention how well he plays defensively when the Habs are on the penalty kill. Lapierre ended the 2007-2008 season playing 53 games and scoring 7 goals and 18 point.

That is a good news for the Habs, but what about Andrei Kostitsyn? How are things going with him and did Bob Gainey even start negotiations yet? Gainey told the press two week ago that they have contacted Andrei to talk about his future with the organization, but it appears that a team from Kazan in Russia has made an offer for next season that values 1.5 million. However, Don Meehan, Kostitsyn’s agent, commented the rumor stating that his client intends on sticking to his career in the NHL, but that he would prefer to get him more of a short-term contract, unlike the ones that have been given to other young players such as Mike Richards from the Philadelphia Flyers. He went on adding that he expects the negotiations with the Canadiens to be all but easy. If the rumor happens to be true, than I believe giving 1.5 million for 2 years should do the thing for him to stay in Montreal.

What about other players waiting to know what to do next season? Well it appears that Corey Locke, one of the Habs’ prospect playing in Hamilton, is currently being chased by the Kloten Flyers from Switzerland’s national League. The Flyers’ sports director commented the rumor simply by confirming it and saying his team did indeed make an offer for Locke to consider.

While some are probably going to look at every options, one has made it clear that he is leaving the organisation. Yann Danis, another Habs’ prospect and goaltender for the Hamilton Bulldogs, prefers to leave the Canadiens for good and test his UFA status starting July 1st. Danis was portrayed as one of Montreal’s future goaltender a couple of years ago, but simply lost his place with the team when Jaroslav Halak and Carey Price showed up and took over. I wish Yann all the best and hopefully he will end up with a good team that will use his undeniable talent to the fullest, maybe a team like the Ottawa Senators would do the thing.

Now there are some good UFAs on the market the the Habs are definitely going to pursue come July 1st. Let’s start with Mats Sundin. Sundin is beeing pursued by probably every team in the NHL seeing how good of a player he is and the price to get him probably isn’t going to be that high. Although any team would take Sundin, he wouldn’t take any team. Since he wants to stay in Canada, Montreal is certainly a strong option to consider. The Sundin case is surely and interesting one.

Then you have Teemu Selanne, one of Saku Koivu’s best friend. It appears Koivu has finally been able to convince Selanne to play his last NHL season with the Canadiens while spending time with him at the World Championships. This rumor has been going on for years, but Selanne has never accepted the offer to join the Habs. This time, things are looking a bit different because even the Anaheim Ducks’ GM Brian Burke believes this time might be the right time and that Selanne might finally accept Montreal’s offer. Two days ago, Anaheim’s defenseman Francois Beauchemin commented the rumor saying it was clearly impossible since Selanne has been living in Anaheim for over 10 years and has a house, a family and kids that attend school in Anaheim. He believes that if Selanne plans on playing for another season in the NHL, he’s going to play it in Anaheim and nowhere else and if he can’t come down to an agreement with the team, he is probably going to announce his retirement. One thing is for sure, we are going to have all the answers to our questions come July 1st, since that is the last day Selanne could give an answer to Burke.

Now on to the main event: Marian Hossa. Rumors have been all over the place with that guy and it’s not about to stop, at least not until he inks his name on a contract. Hossa is definitely going to be a target for Montreal this summer and I’m sure Gainey already has an offer planned specially for him. Is Hossa going to consider it? Maybe yes, maybe not. Earlier this week, Hossa said on a radio station in Pittsburgh that he enjoyed his stay with the Penguins and would definitely consider signing a contract for less money to be able to stay with a good and competitive team like the Penguins. But the thing is Montreal isn’t the team it was a year ago. Montreal has become a good and competitive team in the NHL and, if the right moves are pulled by Gainey, they are probably going to become a Stanley Cup contender for next season. Well now it appears that Pittsburgh really intends on keeping Hossa with them since rumors have been circulating as of yesterday that they have pitched a 7-years/50 millions$ contract at him. Is it going to be enough to persuade him to stay with the team? It could to the thing, but how big is Evgeni Malkin’s contract going to be? If they sign Hossa, they are probably going to have to give up on forward Ryan Malone and defenseman Brooks Orpik. If the Penguins do manage to keep Hossa, Malkin, Crosby and Stall all together, Ray Shero definitely deserves to have his name on the hall of fame.

Now enough with the stress and let’s talk about something else.

The NHL awards took place this week and Guy Carbonneau was nominated for best coach of the year. Unfortunately, the award finally went to the Washington Capitals’ Bruce Boudreau. Although I really wanted Carbonneau to win that award, I must say Boudreau deserved recognition for his work just as much as Carbo. He took the worst team in the NHL in November and led them to win their division’s championship and and believe me, nobody expected that to happen.

If Carbo didn’t get recognition for his hard work, Carey Price and Alex Kovalev did. Price was named on the All-Star rookie team and Kovalev had his place on the 2nd All-Star team of the NHL. Now that puts a smile on my face!

Just want to remind everyone that the NHL draft is coming up and the Habs are drafting 25th overall and I wouldn’t be surprised if some trades are made so that recruiting director Trevor Timmins could draft at a higher position. That is going to be very interesting to watch and who knows what Montreal is going to pull out from their sleeves. I would personally be pleased if they manage to draft Jared Stall, the youngest one of them that is expected to get drafted in the 30’s overall. I have learned one thing in the NHL, and it is that you can not go wrong with a Stall! They are like the hockey factory or something!

Enough for now. I will definitely come back soon for more.

In the article by RDS, it is also stated that Anaheim Duck’s General Manager Brian Burke also believes that Selanne could accept this time.

This is the confirmation to an article I wrote about this rumour. Selanne is the right player for Koivu to play with. They played together in Finland. Koivu tried to convince Selanne to come here a couple of years ago. Selanne decided to play for the Ducks, which won the cup, last year he gave the team another chance.

This year however, is Koivu’s last contract year. Why wouldn’t Selanne play one year with his best friend before retiring?

Considering what happened to Michael Ryder’s production this past year it would be a vast improvement. Selanne still has what it takes. And the chemistry between Koivu and Selanne would give the Canadiens a second scoring line which they need.

If the Habs manage to sign Selanne, at a modest salary, then I’m all for it. He would help the Habs.

If the Habs manage to sign Selanne, then it leaves a veteran goalie to get, and a centre, or winger.

Sportsnet  is reporting that former San Jose Sharks head coach Ron Wilson was hired by the Toronto Maple Leafs officially today. This after weeks of speculation. Wilson had this to say about his new endeavour,

“This is an unbelievable day for me. The last couple of weeks have been very exciting.”

Wilson also went on to say,

“I view the Leafs as a team in transition. It’s going to require a lot of work, and a lot of attention to detail.”

Wilson continued by adding,

“As a coach, you just want to put yourself in a position to knock on the door. And if we can be knocking on the door in two years, I think that will be a tremendous accomplishment. Then we’ve just got to knock the door down.”

Ron WIlson is a good coach. The Leafs have a person who could potentially turn the play of the team around. Unfortunately some people are crying tampering.

With the rumours still around that the Leafs are waiting for Brian Burke of the Anaheim Ducks to be their next General Manager, the hiring of one of Burke’s friends is sending flags up everywhere. Sure the Leafs can argue that they hired who they thought was the best candidate for them and leave it at that. If Burke somehow becomes the Leafs next GM however, there will be many people who will question the decision on WIlson.

For now congratulations to the Leafs. Wilson should put them in the right direction.

RDS is reporting that the L.A. Kings have fired coach Marc Crawford. Crawford still had one year left on his contract.

When questioned about his decision, Kings Gm Dean Lombardi had this to say,

“We appreciate what Marc has done here for the past two years. We believe however that a coaching change was the right decision to make.”

Too bad. The Kings young talent like Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown and Patrick O’Sullivan where starting to play well. Something to take note of however, the Kings have no starting goalie. Is that Crawford’s fault?

The Kings will be good in a couple of years. They also have the number two draft pick and should be able to pick someone of good abilities.

First off, RDS is reporting that the Montreal Canadiens are under negotiation with Andrei Kostitsyn. Kostitsyn who is slated to become a restricted free agent come July 1, is said to be general manager Bob Gainey’s top priority.

Bob Gainey said this about the RFA,

“We think in Andrei’s case considering the season he just had, that he is the most important RFA that we have to resign.”

When asked about Mark Streit Gainey had this to say,

“Mark brought the team a particular contribution this year. He had many points on the power-play. The question is if we will have enough room in our team salary structure.”

With the Streit statement, one could surmise that the Habs want to keep him but not at any price. Could there be something else going on for the Habs to possibly use their money?
RDS is also reporting that Habs affiliate team the Cincinnati Cyclones have won the Kelly trophy in the ECHL. A team which Bob Gainey has helped to build.

Now for the good stuff.

The Hockey News is reporting that soon to be unrestricted free agent Mats Sundin might not resign with the Toronto Maple Leafs. And that the Detroit Red Wings could be gunning for him. But Sundin is also rumoured to be asking for 2 years at $8 million per year. Montreal and Ottawa are also rumoured to be getting ready to make a pitch to Sundin.

Next we have un-confirmed reports that Saku Koivu could be trying to convince Teemu Selanne to play with the Habs, this being Koivu’s last contract year. Koivu would like his best friend to play at least one year with him before Selanne retires for good.

Another un-confirmed report states that the Canadiens could be interested in soon to be RFA Wade Redden of the Ottawa Senators. Although I do believe that Redden still has juice in the tank, is he the answer the Habs need at the blue-line? Redden is a puck mover, and is not physical, considering that when the Sens went to the final last season that the Anaheim Ducks pounded him like there was no tomorrow, I’m not sure that he is the answer. He is still good, depending on the price, and depending on who the Habs will have surrounding him to be the physical presence.

Next there is the fact that Pavol Demitra could be interested in the Vancouver Canucks and the Canadiens. Although this winger might still have a good season or two left in him under optimum conditions, he is not the answer for the Habs. He is good but why take a roster spot away from a youngster, I would rather see Selanne.

Lastly, something I mentioned in another article is that Olaf Kolzig could be in Montreal next season. With the New York Rangers so far being the only other team manifesting interest in him, the Habs could luck out. Kolzig is also part owner of the Tri-City Americans, a team which new number one Habs goalie Carey Price has played for.

Also there is mounting evidence that the Tampa Bay Lightning may be a little worried about Vincent Lecalvalier’s shoulder, and might be willing to trade him. Montreal is rumoured among other names to have thrown in Chris Higgins as part of a possible trade. Wouldn’t that be nice.

• Pavel Datsyuk: Definitely a hard working player for the wings. Does his best every time he steps on the ice. Never stops excelling offensively and defensively.Simply Pavel, as always. Unfortunately for Datsyuk, this year won’t be his.
• Johan Franzen: Franzen has been the surprise of the playoff for the wings, maybe even bigger than Osgood. Johan was extremely productive through out the whole playoff run. Will he win it? I don’t think this year’s the one, he hasn’t proved enough yet, besides the fact he’s getting better with the puck. Is he the MVP? No, since the team kept winning even when he wasn’t in the line-up.
• Nicklas Lidstrom: Lidstrom has been the same year after year. He is by far one of the Wings best players, but sometimes the best player doesn’t necessarily happen to be the MVP, especially in a team like the Red Wings that has so much in-depth talent and the possibility to play better and compensate when Lidstrom isn’t on the ice. They can do so in the playoffs due to the importance of every game, but if the Conn Smythe was awarded for the season’s MVP, I’d go with Lidstrom all the way since the Wings, the best team in the NHL, went through their worst period of the season when Lidstrom was out.
• Chris Osgood: Chris has been outstanding for the Red Wings ever since Mike Babcock pulled Dominik Hasek to throw him in and make him the starting goaltender for every game ever since. Some say he doesn’t deserve much recognition since he’s only shot at 20-25 times a game, but with a team like the Pittsburgh Penguins, any shot counts and any shot could go in. Is he going to win it? One thing’s for sure, he deserves it as much as the one I picked to win it. But unfortunately for Osgood, there is still doubt about his talent.
• Henrik Zetterberg: Who stands right next to Lidstrom in the best player category? Henrik Zetterberg. This guy may not be qualified as the next one, has not been drafted in the first round, doesn’t get as much attention as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but I truly believe that if the Red Wings are to win the cup, Zetterberg is the perfect pick to win the Conn Smythe. I’ve been thinking about him for a while, but only after game 4 did I really know he was the one. This guy is constantly giving his best and it shows by his plays on the ice how devoted he is to give his team the win. In game four, with his team up by one and less than a minute left in regulation, Henrik was all over the net blocking shot after shot helping his team maintain the lead and win the game. Let’s not forget the over a minute 5-on-3 the Penguins had with a little over 5 minutes left. To me, that was a defining moment in that series. Zetterberg, who was on the ice during the 5-on-3, did a great job by blocking shots, playing extremely well defensively, almost getting a breakaway, going on a 1-on-1 and spending almost half a minutes carrying the puck in the Penguins’ zone. A defining moment for a defining player.

So yeah. I picked Henrik Zetterberg to win the Conn Smythe. If the Wings win the cup but a player from the Penguins is to win the Conn Smythe, you guessed it: I’d give it to Sidney Crosby. Crosby has been the Penguins best offensive player, or even best player overall. If the Pens happen to come back and win the cup, well I’d still give it to Sidney Crosby. During the season, Evgeni Malkin was the Pens player in Crosby absence, but in the final, Malkin is nearly visible on the ice and to win the cup, the Penguins are going to need Crosby to be their most dominant player on the ice every night. Whatever happens, we can all agree that both teams are giving us a nice Stanley Cup final, although it’s as if the Penguins only started playing in game three.

More and more is Price beginning to look like the 20-year-old kid he is. The pressure in the Stanley Cup playoffs is immense and Philadelphia is a tough building to play in.

Here’s what I wrote back on April 3: “I think, and hope, the Canadiens end up regretting trading (Cristobal) Huet instead of keeping him as insurance for the playoffs.”

Dreams, my friends, can come true. With the Flyers now up two-to-one over Montreal, I can’t help but think of Happy Gilmore headbutting Bob Barker and telling him: “The price is wrong, bitch.” Best. Cameo. Appearance. Ever.

Still on the Flyers/Habs series, is Darian Hatcher not the biggest doofus in the NHL? His hit from behind on Francis Bouillon was bush-league and typical of the Philadelphia Flyers. But it takes a special type of moron to do it in the third period with his team up three-nothing. Hatcher single-handedly got the Canadiens back into the game and while I hate both teams equally, a part of me was hoping the Habs would tie it up, and even win it in overtime, so Hatcher could feel like even more of an idiot. What a douche bag. I hate Hatcher.

Here’s a video called “Hitler Loves the Flyers” courtesy of Slap Shot, the New York Times hockey blog. It was made after the Habs won game one of their series with Philadelphia so while the shots at Martin Biron are clearly unwarranted today, the numerous disses thrown at Danielle Briere are simply amazing. The video is golden. Enjoy!

Seriously, how does Detroit do it? Johan Franzen, aka “The Mule,” is tied for the NHL playoff goal-scoring lead with seven goals in only eight games.

So, uh, who the hell is this guy? Franzen scored 27 goals in the regular season to go along with only 11 assists. Eight of those goals were game-winners and 14 came on the power play. The guy’s a sniper. To close out the regular season, Franzen scored 15 goals in Detroit’s final 16 games. He’s picked up right where he left off in the playoffs.

I must admit that I knew Franzen was poised for a breakout season. I picked him in the last round of my keeper league fantasy hockey pool. Sure, I dropped him after he opened the season with only one goal in 17 games, but, well, that’s besides the point. I still knew.

Franzen is the next player on the long list of successful late Detroit Red Wings draft picks. He was chosen in the third round, 97th overall back in 2004.

The others? Pavel Datsyuk, drafted in the sixth round, 171st overall in 1998. Nicklas Lidstrom, drafted in the third round, 53rd overall way back in 1989. Dude’s had a pretty good career, hasn’t he? Valtteri Filppula, who scored 19 goals this season, was chosen in the third round, 95th overall in 2002. Look for him to have a Franzen-type breakout season next year. Tomas Holmstrom, drafted in the 10th round, 257th overall back in 1994, has forged a nice little career for himself. And, of course, Henrik Zetterberg, drafted in the 7th round, 210th overall in 1999, is only one of the NHLs best players.

Unbelievable, eh? Detroit’s scouting and drafting department is the best in the NHL, no contest. If the Toronto Maple Leafs are serious about winning a Stanley Cup they should buy the Detroit scouting staff and get Ken Holland over here asap.

Sean Avery has officially transcended hockey. Here’s a piece about him in The New Yorker.

Speaking of douche-baggery, here’s an article I’ve been wanting to share for a long time, courtesy of The New York Times, on the timeless art of the face wash.

Is it time to officially give the Dallas Stars some respect? First they shoot down the defending champion Anaheim Ducks in five games and then they go into San Jose and win games one and two on the road. Yeah, I think some respect is due.

Dan Myers over at Penalty Shots thinks the Leafs should be considering, get ready for this one, Bobby Clarke for the general manager position. Clarke’s career record as a GM is a sparkling 714-443-199. It’s tough to argue with that record, but it’s not tough to argue that Clarke is a serious douche who left one hell of a mess behind in Philadelphia. While we do have what Clarke never did in Philly – a goalie – I just don’t see it happening.

The Toronto Marlies are moving on to the second round of the AHL playoffs thanks to an ugly goal by Bates Battaglia with only a minute to go in game seven last night. While I’m still losing sleep over the fact that Justin Pogge is not in net for the Marlies, Scott Clemmensen was great yesterday, making 33 saves to ensure the victory. He’s keeping the hopes of a parade alive in the city of Toronto. Sad, I know, but it’s all we’ve got.

Speaking of Toronto, when did we become the “City of Champions”? I thought Edmonton held that title? Did I miss the memo or something, because I sure as hell haven’t missed any championships.

I ask because Damien Cox wrote a blog post entitled “A Tradition of, Um, Something” in which he took the city’s sports teams to task for, well, sucking. He took shots at the Leafs (of course), the Toronto Rock, some OHL teams no one gives a damn about, the Raptors, Marlies, Blue Jays, and Toronto FC. Basically, anything and everything MLSE related. It’s just Cox being Cox, you know, in his tradition of, um, bad sports writing.

In the Western Conference you will see the Dallas Stars against the San Jose Sharks, and the Detroit Red-Wings against the Colorado Avalanche.

Stars, Sharks: Evegeni Nabokov against Marty Turco. Nabokov is the better goalie this year by far, but Turco has played really well, and didn’t play as many games during the regular season as Nabokov, one would have to think that Nabokov will get tired eventually. Nabokov has the edge as long as he doesn’t get tired. The Stars still don’t have Sergei Zubov, which could hurt them in this series. If the Stars hope to defeat the Sharks they will have to do the same thing as they did against the Anaheim Ducks, as the Sharks are also a physical team, however they might be a little bruised after their last series against the Calgary Flames. Technically the Sharks should win, but then again, everyone had the Ducks winning too, as the Stars had a bad end of the season, and look what happened.

Avalanche, Red-Wings: As much as it pains me to say it, with the recent play of the almost extinct Dominik Hasek, Jose Theodore is the better goalie so far, Chris Osgood is a good goalie, unfortunately Theodore has been standing on his head in the play-offs, the edge to starting goalie goes to the Avalanche. Ian Laperriere, he has got a target on his back after smashing Niklas Lidstrom into cloud nine at the end of the season. The scorers for both teams are about even, the defence however goes to the Red-Wings. This series should go to the Red-Wings, but they didn’t impress too many people in their last series, are they too old? The Avalanche have some speed, but will it be enough to win? Colorado could upset.

In the Eastern Conference you will see the Pittsburgh Penguins against the New York Rangers, and the Montreal Canadiens against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Penguins, Rangers: Henrik Lundqvist, enough said. Lundqvist is superior to Ty Conklin, and Marc Andre Fleury, by far. Pittsburgh’s offence is better than the Rangers, but, Jaromir Jagr has come out of his shell, that could hurt the Pens. The Pens are all offence, and didn’t have much trouble sweeping the Ottawa Senators in their last series, but the Rangers are not the Sens. The Rangers have Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, to shut down either the Sidney Crosby line, or the Evgeni Malkin line. But will the Pens be able to defend against the re-appearance of Jagr the great, Brendan Shanahan, Brandon Dubinsky, and Martin Straka? Fleury, or Conklin will have their hands full in this series. The only factor that will not be one is Sean Avery, yes he can score some nice goals, which he just might, but his intimidation antics will not work in Pittsburgh with big George Laraque on the ice, Avery better hope that those two don’t meet, or else Avery can book his hospital room right now. Besides goal-tending which the Blue Shirts hold the advantage, the Pens have more explosive talent up front, question is, will they be able to explode on the Rangers, the Rangers aren’t the Sens. Keep the Pens in their own zone. I believe that the Rangers could win this one, if they are able to slow down the Pens, if not, the Pens take it.

Canadiens, Flyers: Where to start, well to keep it short, Carey Price is better than Martin Biron. The Flyers defence is slow, and Derian Hatcher has seen better days. These two teams were no.1, and no.2 in the regular season on the power-play, with the Habs being no.1. The Habs had a hard time against the Bruins on the p.p., but if they can manage to bring it back now that Saku Koivu is back then they will do well as the Flyers are an undisciplined team. Daniel Briere will be deaf when he leaves the Bell Centre, and may have to work on his confidence as well as the Montreal fans will let him have it big time. Montreal has the edge in coaching staff, and defence, as well as in between the pipes. With Mike Knuble, and Simon Gagne out, for sure the Habs have the edge in offence as well, question is, will Philly be able to contain it for seven games if necessary? Montreal should win this one, as the Flyers only impressed themselves by winning, but you never know, still the Habs should prevail if their power-play clicks, and they play their game, and don’t play the Flyers way, yes the Flyers have Steve Downie, but the Habs have Steve Begin, Tom Kostopoulos, Francis Bouillon, and Maxim Lapierre to a lesser extent. The Habs two best players in Alex Kovalev, and Carey Price, are better than the two best players of the Flyers in Mike Richards, and Daniel Briere. Should be a good one to watch.

Well, if you believe in the hype coming out of Toronto, Burke will be the new general manager of the Maple Leafs next season, of course all this hype is coming straight out of Toronto, and nowhere else. Hey I’m not saying that there is no possibility of Burke ending up in Toronto, but Burke likes to answer to one person, not a board of directors made up of 5-10 people. It could happen though, if Burke’s demands are met, meaning salary, and to have carte blanche, and be the only one to make decisions when it comes to player personnel, he might bite in Toronto. Burke is exactly what the Leafs need, he would get that franchise back in order.

There is still the possibility that he remains in Anaheim, however, the Ducks did lose in the first round this year, if the Anaheim owners decide that what Burke is asking for is too steep a price after getting knocked out so early, and decide to let him go, well let’s hope for them that they find someone else that is as good as Burke, there aren’t too many of those out there.

Then you have the Vancouver factor. The Vancouver Canucks fired Dave Nonis last week, could they be in the running for Burke too? Don’t forget, the only thing that the Canucks needed when they were good while Burke was there was a goalie, with Luongo there now, Burke would start with what he wasn’t able to obtain when he was in Vancouver. The Vancouver fans also loved what Burke was able to bring to the organization, and Burke in turn, loved being the man in Vancouver.

Ottawa could also be a pit stop for Burke. With the recent collapse of the Ottawa Senators, Brian Burke would put that team back in order in a hurry. Burke would only need a no.1 goalie again.

Those four teams are the front runners in the Burke sweepstakes, there are probably more that have yet to make it public. Toronto is willing to give just about anything to get Burke, and it may work. It doesn’t matter where Burke ends up, being a Harvard graduate, having a law degree, having worked for the NHL, and being a general manager, Burke has the experience in many fields, and will bring what ever city is lucky enough to get him, a good team. Of course, I do hope that he stays out west……

The was a lot of wonder if Pronger would get suspended, as there was no penalty given in the game, and immediate indications showed he would not get a suspension. Chris Simon got suspended for the same infraction not long ago, but his was a more severe one, why? Chris Pronger was suspended on 7 occasions before this latest one, why did he only receive 8 games? Don’t kid yourself, Pronger is one of the dirtiest players in the league, so why was his suspension not as severe as Simon’s? Perhaps the fact that Pronger plays for the defending champions has something to do with it.

Chris Pronger is a good defenseman with a blistering shot and he’s also a physical defenseman, anyone would take him on their team, but his talent and longevity in the league should not prevent the NHL from handing him a severe suspension for his act, so what nothing happened to Ryan Kesler of the Vancouver Canucks, which received the step from Pronger, the intent on Pronger’s part was there, and he should be penalized for the intent, not the result, or give Chris Simon back the money he forfeited and things will be even.

This NHL season has seen players get smashed into the boards head first from behind ( Patrice Bergeron), as well as flagrant elbows to the head, kicking, cross checking to the face, and two seen at least occasions of players using the knives on their feet to step on someone. Has everyone gone mad? Since the instigator rule has come into effect, the cheap shots in the NHL have risen to unacceptable levels, why, because players will be less penalized to hit someone with a stick, or send them head first in the boards, than they will be if they start a fight. Gary Bettman has said that the U.S. doesn’t like violence in their sports and trying to market a violent sport in the U.S. doesn’t work, o.k. so I guess that cheap shots, and intent to injure players is alright, but fighting isn’t. Wake up people, maybe unfounded fighting is useless for the game, but when your best player gets a high stick to the face, that player should have his lights punched out, not smashed into the boards head first, or stepped on!

There was always cheap shots in the NHL, but not at this pace or severity, perhaps the league should take a look at the record of exceeding cheap shots that has increased dramatically since the inception of the instigator rule. Look, I’m not saying to have a team of goons, but Wayne Gretzky had Dave Semenko, and Gretzky himself has said it would be better if the instigator was taken out, skilled players now have the room to move about with the new NHL rules, unfortunately they are also targets, it doesn’t matter if they are goalies, or regular players.

Pronger got a suspension, not enough in most people’s eyes, but at least he got something. The NHL will have many things to look at at seasons’ end, and one of them will hopefully be suspensions, and the instigator rule, just imagine what would have happened if Pronger or Simon would have stepped on Alex Ovechkin’s leg and severely cut it, the league may have been deprived of one of their most talented players because there is not fear of retribution amongst players, where as if there was no instigator, Pronger, or Simon even given their size might think twice before acting as there would certainly be some fists coming their way. Again, I do not wish for a team of goons like the Broad Street Bullies, but some protection for the players when the need arises, which right now is almost impossible, unless it’s tooth for tooth, you slash, I slash, put the sticks down and deal with it like a man!!!

When the Anaheim Ducks placed goalie Ilya Bryzgalov on waivers last November, Lombardi admits he wasn’t as aggressive in trying to land the Russian netminder. The Phoenix Coyotes picked up Bryzgalov, where he has won 23 of the last 34 games he played for them.

“Uh, yeah. That’s a good one,” Lombardi said. “I think the jury is still out. There were some issues, things you heard out of Anaheim in terms of him being a teammate… In retrospect, we should have been more aggressive. This is how a mistake can lead to another, a logjam of contracts there cut off our flexibility.”

Last summer, Lombardi passed up the opportunity of trading for then Nashville Predators goaltender Tomas Vokoun because he did not want to part with a first round draft pick and a second round draft pick as well as goalie prospect Jonathan Bernier. Vokoun ended up being dealt to the Florida Panthers.

Two summers ago Lombardi tried to acquire Chris Pronger of the Edmonton Oilers but did not want to include rising Star forward Anze Kopitar as part of a multi-player package. Pronger was later traded to the Ducks, where he helped lead them to their first Stanley Cup.

“Thank God we didn’t do that.”

The Habs held their own against the Ducks, the first goal the Ducks scored was a fluke goal, a couple of bounces and in. The Habs replied with a goal from Alex Kovalev, with assists from Mikhail Grabovski, and Andrei Kostitsyn. After the teams exchanged a goal each, the Habs fared nicely against one of the best teams in the NHL.

The Montreal Canadiens once again ran into the referee police who decided that they would call the Habs on 8 penalties, some of which were merited, but the ref police didn’t think to call all the picks that the Ducks were doing, or the elbows that the Ducks were landing, or all the holding, and interference that the Ducks also got away with.

The NHL must be telling the referees that the Habs have to lose, and that having the best power-play in the league for a Canadian team is unacceptable, so being that the Habs are near the basement in penalty killing, they call more penalties on the Habs nowadays.

Carey Price made 34 saves, and one goal he allowed was a fluke that he could not have stopped. Unfortunately for the Habs, the goalie being the best player for them did not make them win tonight. Tomas Plekanec did not play do to a virus he caught in Phoenix, Grabovski replaced him and played decent considering his little outburst earlier this week.

The Habs now return home to play the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, and the New York Islanders on Saturday. Let’s hope that the ref’s in the east, are ones that actually now how to do their jobs properly without being the center of attention. Perhaps Guy Carbonneau should put Ryan O’Byrne back into the lineup and sit Patrice Brisebois back in the press box, and maybe tell Maxime Lapierre to wake up and have better defensive zone coverage, Lapierre is the reason the Ducks scored their second goal as he didn’t cover his man properly.

Rough week on the road, now, a rough week at home. With the exception of the Devils, the Isles, and the St. Louis Blues, the Habs remaining opponents are division rivals, let’s hope they do well in the coming weeks.

“I left it in their hands,” Blake told the Sun yesterday. “It was up to them.”

A number of teams, including the Colorado Avalanche, Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks and Ottawa Senators, are said to have called the Kings to inquire about Blake’s availability.

And while it may have been tempting to go to a contender and try to win another Stanley Cup, Blake says that the club’s decision to hang on to him was received well. It was Blake’s desire to remain with the Kings all along.

“I’m happy it worked out the way it did. Yes, going to a contender with a chance to win the Cup was an exciting possibility, but when I signed here two years ago, it was to help this team to improve and make the playoffs. I just wanted them to do whatever they felt was right. It hasn’t quite worked out the way I wanted it to work when I signed here, but there’s a lot of young talent here, a lot of young skilled players and we’ve just got to get some pieces in around them to help them improve.”

Not only did Blake want to finish the season in Los Angeles, but the veteran blueliner is also hoping to sign a one-year contract extension with the Kings. Among his reasons is the fact that the Kings have a bright future ahead of them due to their slew of young and talented players.

“The young guys here just have to make the next step,” said Blake. “Guys like (Alexander) Frolov, (Anze) Kopitar, (Jack) Johnson and (Mike) Cammalleri, these are the guys who get the minutes and they just need to take it to the next step with the right people around them.”

Kings GM Dean Lombardi says that Blake’s return to the club will depend mostly on him.

“A lot of that is going to be up to (Blake),” said Lombardi.

Translation: Blake will have to take a significant pay cut if the Kings are to bring him back. Especially if they have any intentions of chasing other UFAs.

In an effort to reshape their blueline, Garrioch suggests that the Kings may make a play for Senators defenseman Wade Redden, who can hit the open market July 1st.

Now, more and more NHL teams are employing the hockey version of cheerleaders.

The Anaheim Ducks, Atlanta Thrashers, Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Philadelphia Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes, Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Tampa Bay Lightning all have them. That’s 16 teams.

Three Canadian teams have them, too, including the Calgary Flames, Ottawa Senators, and the Vancouver Canucks.

So, what exactly do Ice Girls do?

Well, according to PuckThatHit.com, this is what the job entails:

Ice Girls often (but not always) step onto the ice, clean away excess snow, wipe down the glass, and of course give away t-shirts. Any excuse to have them parade their increased chest sizes and minuscule waists is good enough for management and fans.

For those interested, there’s a poll over at PuckThatHit.com where you can vote for which team has the best ice girls. There’s pictures, too… pretty pictures… go check ‘em out. I threw in my vote for the Chicago Blackhawks’ Ice Crew.

Anyway, I’m wondering how soon will it be before ALL NHL teams has a crew of Ice Girls dancing in a seat near you? And which team will it be the next in line? Will it be the Buffalo Sabres, Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, San Jose Sharks, St. Louis Blues, Toronto Maple Leafs, or the Washington Capitals?

This is an unscientific poll, by the way.