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Howe improves; Stalberg waived; Koivu's night (Puck Headlines)

Here are your Puck Headlines: A glorious collection of news and views collected from the greatest blogosphere in sports and the few, the proud, the mainstream hockey media.

Photo credit from the website http://www.greatesthockeylegends.com/
Photo credit from the website http://www.greatesthockeylegends.com/

• Some amazing hockey Christmas village photos depicting the Battle of Alberta, which include the above described as, “Feeding Wayne Gretzky to a pack of wild lions and tigers at Peyto Lake, near Banff, Alberta.”  [Greatest Hockey Legends]

• Gordie Howe is doing much better. He’s doing some walking and has been getting stronger, says his son Mark. [MLive]

• The Nashville Predators put Viktor Stalberg on waivers. The forward has been a total bust for them. [Rinkside Report]

• Saku Koivu expects quite a return when he is honored Thursday night in Montreal. [Montreal Gazette]

• The Oilers have become a cautionary tale on how teams should handle themselves. Here is a list of lessons Edmonton has taught us. [Grantland]

• A stirring letter from the Beliveau family. Take out the tissues for this one. [Montreal Canadiens]

• The IIHF Hockey Hall of Fame announced its class for 2015. This includes Dominik Hasek, Robert Reichl, Scott Niedermayer, Fran Rider and Maria Rooth. [IIHF]

• How do analytics evaluate goaltenders? A look at how it has changed the netminding game. [NHL]

• A year in review of hockey’s biggest problems … and yes, the mumps are on this list, as are Stadium series jerseys. [The Royal Half]

• Roland McKeown says his favorite player growing up was Drew Doughty. An all-encompassing feature on the Kings prospect. [LA Kings]

• A closer look into Colorado’s puck possession numbers on an individual, player-by-player basis. [Mile High Hockey]

• This week’s look at hockey lines and defensive pairs. The Maple Leafs seem like a pretty good bet up front. [Dobber Hockey]

• A closer look at the Washington Capitals’ second line and how it has done this season and how it has played to the team's success. [Japers Rink]

• The Senators have loaned Curtis Lazar to Team Canada for the upcoming World Junior tournament. While this won’t do much to Ottawa, it certainly will bolster Canada’s chances. [Buzzing the Net]

• What will Islanders fans do next season when the team moves to Brooklyn? To go to games or not to go? [Islanders Insight]

• Gary Bettman lauds the work of Rocky Wirtz in rebuilding the Blackhawks image, and also says the NHL franchises are quite healthy. [CSN Chicago]

• Smith Falls rallies around Neil Doef, who suffered what the article calls a “devastating” injury Sunday. [Ottawa Citizen]

• Jimmy Howard puts a ‘Mega’ Santa on his Christmas themed mask. [In-Goal Magazine]

• Finally, Jarred Tinordi is 6-foot-6, and hits very hard: