• OMG Jersey Fouls on Wednesday. Should be a chat 1 p.m. EST as well.

• When is Marian Hossa(notes) going to learn to stop answering questions about the teams he used to play for? To the Chicago Tribune, about the differences between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings: "The difference is this is one of the youngest groups of guys I've ever played with. It's lots of fun in the dressing room. It's a different crowd than it was in Detroit. It might be a little bit more mature there, but it's fun in the (Hawks') room." [Snapshots]

• The many questions about Marian Hossa finally joining the Blackhawks' lineup this week. [Paint It Blackhawks]

• Buccigross with a column on Brian Burke's son, who is gay. Very interesting, insightful stuff, though we might have structured it a bit differently. (The "imagine you are" device makes is a little clunky.) [ESPN]

• The New York Posts lists the most overrated teams in sports. There's one hockey entry. [NY Post]

• Ottawa Senators goalie Pascal Leclaire(notes) will be out for a month after an errant puck struck his cheekbone last night as he sat on the bench nursing another injury. That's, like, the stuff of gypsy curses right there. [Sportsnet]

• Terrific satirical post by View From My Seats on John Tavares's(notes) visit to Toronto last night: "The Globe and Mail piece waited until the 1st sentence of the 2nd paragraph before mentioning the name Wayne Gretzky. Don't feel special, they do this to every hotshot prospect that is a native of Ontario." [VFMS]

• Also recommended, as always: Down Goes Brown's reasons why Alex Ovechkin(notes) won't light up the Leafs this weekend: "Had heard a rumor that if the game went to a shootout, entire Leafs roster would embarrass themselves with a ridiculously demeaning attempt at rally caps." [DGB]

• Goaltender Vesa Toskala(notes) and center John Mitchell(notes) head to the IR. [CBC Sports]

• Mike Chen presents Fun With Google Image Search, including some sort of Cheechoo-related Care Bears photo we can't figure out. [Chen]

• The Detroit Red Wings talk about Georges Laraque's(notes) five-game suspension handed down yesterday, but aren't exactly asking for more than he received. [Freep]

• Good piece by Paul Kukla on the reality of Detroit Red Wings fans surroundings this season: "These are not the Detroit Red Wings of the recent past. These are not the Red Wings who could win a game on talent alone. These are not the Wings who, on an off night, could still pull out a victory." [NHL.com]

• Brian Burke has his shovel ready to bury Toronto Maple Leafs problem contracts in the minor leagues, and his temper might be getting shorter: "When we're struggling, the first casualty for me is sleep. I don't sleep when we're losing." Poor guy's got, what, seven weeks of insomnia at this point? [Toronto Sun]

• After months weeks a few hours, Denver Post Adrian Dater has decided to come back to Twitter. Fliiiip-fllllllop ... [All Things Avs]

• Check out Rich Hammond's coverage of  Brandon Segal(notes), a player that's bounced around like a pinball in his young NHL career. [Kings Insider]

• In praise of Don Waddell's glorious reclamation projects with the Atlanta Thrashers, like Rich Peverley(notes) Maxim Afinogenov(notes). [Hockey Writers]

• Razor has your hockey terminology refresher: "Chute puller - guy who feigns being injured when he's only hurt." [Razor With An Edge]

• In praise of everyone's favorite cheap shot artist, Matt Cooke(notes) of the Pittsburgh Penguins. [Pensbugh]

• A kinder, gentler Marc Crawford. [Puck Update]

• Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin(notes), Mike Knuble(notes), Tom Poti(notes) and Boyd Gordon(notes) were all missing from Washington Capitals practice today. [Capitals Insider]

• An interview with the lovely and talented and lovely Alyonka Larionov. Did we mention lovely? [Pens Universe]

• Finally, from YouTube: "Missouri State Ice Bears Hockey team buzz marketing event. Missouri State students walk the campus with a hockey stick over ten feet long."

 

(No, the first decade of the 21st century doesn't technically end until 2011. Save your bellyaching. But we've had nine NHL seasons and one stolen from us since 1999-2000, and Yahoo! Sports has decided it's time to rank the best and worst of the last "decade." Enjoy, and snark freely in the comments.)

How you choose to define, or quantify, the "best" player in the NHL over the last decade will determine your level of agreement with this ranking, which is sure to be one of our most controversial End of Decade lists.

Do you judge greatness based on flashy stats? Championship rings and playoff performance? Individual awards? Do you factor in intangibles like leadership or reputation?

We took everything into account for our Player of the Decade countdown, which focuses on NHL achievement rather than bringing international hockey into the equation. Every spot on the list is up for debate, but we feel as though these 10 players defined the 2000s for professional hockey. Keep in mind that the 2000s meant one set of rules, a work-stoppage, and then another set of rules.

Here are the 10 best players of the last decade ...

10. Jaromir Jagr(notes)

Before he left for the KHL in 2008, Jagr amassed 737 points in the decade, leading the NHL in assists (69) in 2000-01 and points in two seasons (1999-2001). He was the player-voted MVP in 2000 and 2006, and made four all-star teams.

The problem for Jagr is that his masterpiece came in the last season of the 1990s: That 127-point MVP campaign with the Pittsburgh Penguins. In the 2000s, he spent two fantastic years with the Pens before losing his smile with the Washington Capitals for two-and-a-half average seasons. He found his game again with the New York Rangers, posting stellar numbers despite playing in a defensive system.

But the previous decade was more memorable for Jagr. And not just because of the mullet.

9. Joe Thornton(notes)

With 794 points in the decade playing for the Boston Bruins and San Jose Sharks, Thornton was a six-time all-star and the winner of both the Art Ross and Hart trophies in the 2005-06 season.

No, his 44 points in 59 playoff games wasn't impressive, and neither was the constantly underwhelming performance from his teams in the postseason. But Thornton was arguably the best assist man of the decade, leading the League three times in that category; and his 96-assist, 125-point MVP season remains of the decade's truly remarkable personal achievements.

8. Joe Sakic(notes)

Sakic only played 59 games in his last two seasons (curse you, demonic snow blower!) before retiring last summer for the Colorado Avalanche, which dragged down his stats significantly. He ended up with 650 points for the 2000s, although he never led the NHL in any major offensive category during the decade -- outside of plus/minus in 2000-01 (plus-45).

That 2000-01 season the best of Sakic's career: 54 goals, 118 points and both the Hart and the Pearson (and the Lady Byng ... can't forget about sportsmanship).

Why does he rank above Jagr and Thornton, who outscored him? Because neither of them played in a Stanley Cup final in the last decade, let alone led all playoff scorers 13 goals and 26 points as Sakic did in 2001. More importantly, neither of them earned the right to have their name on the Stanley Cup as Sakic did for the second time.

He was a star player and a formidable leader. Intangibles count ... as they do for this next dude, too.

7. Jarome Iginla(notes)

The Calgary Flames captain was a five-time all-star, a two-time NHL leader in goals (2001-02, 2003-04) and the Pearson winner for his 52-goal season of 2001-02. (He was famously jobbed out of the Hart in a controversy that forced a change in vote tabulation.) Overall, Iggy had 718 points in the 2000s.

He led all playoff scorers with 13 goals in the Flames' 2004 runner-up campaign for the Cup. He then captained the team to four consecutive playoff appearances after that loss. Inconsistency and questionable managerial decisions have undermined the Flames since that pre-lockout Cup run; but no one dare say any of that is Iginla's fault.

6. Scott Niedermayer(notes)

Niedermayer solidified his credentials as an all-time great defenseman with two Stanley Cups, one with the New Jersey Devils and the other with the Anaheim Ducks; and his clutch offense and shutdown defense earned him the Conn Smythe in 2007. He won his first and only Norris Trophy in 2003-04.

Niedermayer began the decade with many wondering what he could accomplish offensively if freed from the Devils' systematic defense. He sufficiently answered the question by scoring 216 points in four seasons with the Ducks after signing with Anaheim as a free agent in 2005. He had 415 points overall in the decade.

Also the unofficial winner of the best salt-and-pepper playoff beard award, for what that's worth.

5. Chris Pronger(notes)

Pronger ahead of Niedermayer? Absolutely.

He tallied 420 points despite being limited to five regular season games in 2002-03 due to an arthritic left wrist and a torn right ACL. Two of Pronger's achievements in the last decade are unmatched by Niedermayer or any other defenseman.

The first was his 1999-2000 season that saw Pronger finished with a career-best 62 points and a plus-52 to lead the NHL, winning both the Hart and the Norris trophies as a member of the St. Louis Blues.

The second was that Herculean effort in the 2006 postseason, as Pronger carried the Edmonton Oilers to within one victory of the Stanley Cup with an effort that had some calling for him to win the Conn Smythe in a losing effort. It was, without question, one of the most dominant postseason runs for any athlete in the NHL over the last decade, perhaps even two decades.

Should Pronger fall a few notches because of the weight of his baggage? Because he and his wife broke the hearts of Edmonton fans before claiming those fans burned his kid's crib? Because of the suspension history, including the Stampy the Elephant moment with Ryan Kesler(notes)?

It's legacy-tarnishing stuff, but not enough to overpower Pronger's unparalleled accomplishments on the ice.

4. Sidney Crosby(notes)

Yeah, we've arrived at this point in the countdown. And if Sidney's here, you know who's ranked ahead of him, sample size be damned for both of them.

Ignoring the Beatles/Stones, Luke/Han, Tastes Great/Less Filling dynamic between Crosby and Ovechkin is ignoring one of the great debates of the decade. Their placement on this list is a de facto "Player of NHL 2.0" contest, as they're the most dominant players of the post-lockout era.

The case for Sidney: 132 goals and 265 assists for 397 points in 290 games. He led the League in points in 2006-07 with 120 as a 19 year old, the year he won the Hart and the Pearson. He had 63 points in 49 playoff games, including that masterful 15-goal performance to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Stanley Cup last season; and while Ovechkin won the individual stats battle in their classic semifinal confrontation, Crosby has the series win and the Cup.

That means something, for sure; but it's not enough to overtake Ovechkin on the Player of the Decade countdown. Had Crosby remained healthy in 2007-08, when he was limited to 53 games, perhaps he overtakes Ovechkin's points lead and/or wins some more hardware to rival the Russian's trophy case. But that's projection and conjecture, when the reality is that Ovechkin's had the better decade and, thus, career so far.

3. Alex Ovechkin(notes)

The Washington Capitals winger entered this season with 219 goals, 201 assists and 420 points in 324 games.  No, he doesn't have a Stanley Cup; or even a conference title, of which Crosby has two. But he has nearly everything else.

Check out the Hockey-Reference.com honors and awards sections for Crosby and Ovechkin. Statistically, Ovi's accomplishments dwarf those of Sidney -- leading the League in goals twice and points once, while also leading the NHL in categories like power-play goals. His 2007-08 seasons was, in our estimation, the best of the decade for an individual player (non-goalie). 

It's also no contest when it comes to hardware: Ovechkin has doubled up Crosby in Hart trophies and Pearson awards, while famously winning the Calder in a rookie season that seemed predestined to be Crosby's time to shine.

There are other factors to consider: Crosby's defense, Ovechkin's physical game, the talent both players did or did not skate with at various times in their decade of dominance. But, overall, Ovechkin gets the nod; though this stats vs. prestige debate could very well define their rivalry by the end of their respective careers.

2. Martin Brodeur(notes)

At some point in the last decade, Brodeur began to receive proper credit for his historic numbers between the pipes for the New Jersey Devils. After coaching changes, system changes, rules changes and changes in the personnel in front of him, the fact remained that Brodeur posted some of the best stats of his career during the 2000s to go along with some incredible personal accolades.

His Devils captured two Stanley Cups in the decade, with Brodeur in consideration for the Conn Smythe in 2003 that eventually went to J.S. Giguere. He entered this season with 356 wins, although that total was aided by the advent of the shootout, where Marty excelled. Four of his five best save-percentage seasons occurred in the last 10 years; three of his five best seasons for goals-against average occurred in the same duration. He posted 65 shutouts in the last decade.

He won the Jennings Trophy twice and four Vezina Trophies, validating his status as one of the elite goalies of the last quarter century. Not bad for a fatso.

But not the Player of the Decade, either.

1. Nicklas Lidstrom(notes)

When asked for our all-decade team during the summer, we wrote the following about the Detroit Red Wings defenseman:

"When you've won so many Norris Trophies than you can play a game of Jenga with them, I'd say that warrants inclusion on this list."

Lidstrom's six Norris Trophies for best defenseman aren't an NHL record: Doug Harvey has seven and Bobby Orr has eight. But those players competed in a slightly smaller League, and Lidstrom's remained king of the mountain despite challenges from some stellar, Hall of Fame-potential defenseman, two of whom are on this list.

Simply put, he was the total package. An offensive player who tallied 574 points, his four best point-scoring seasons all coming in the 2000s. A defensive player who was a plus-232 for the decade, frequently logging more than 28 minutes a night for the Wings. A leader who won the Conn Smythe for the Wings' 2001-02 Stanley Cup champions, and who then captained a second Detroit team to the Cup in 2007-08. And he made it look frequently effortless.

We previously broke down the Lidstrom/Brodeur dynamic when The Sporting News named the defenseman as its player of the decade, a decision we obviously endorse. Looking back at our ranking here, what we said then still stands in the final analysis:

The best two players of the last 10 years were a defenseman and a goaltender, and that speaks volumes about which positions are underappreciated in the NHL, as well as the marketing challenges the League's faced in selling guys who keep pucks out of, rather than put them into, the net.

Brodeur and Lidstrom never received the marketing push of a Crosby or an Ovechkin; they'll have to just settle on being legendary performers at their given positions in the NHL.

Hello, this is a feature that will run through the entire season and aims to recap the weekend's events and boils those events down to one admittedly superficial fact or stupid opinion about each team. Feel free to complain about it.

Prior to the start of the season, everyone was just brimming with optimism. Hockey was, after what felt like a painfully long summer, almost back. The glee was palpable.

As so many pundits do, I made what I called 20 bold predictions (where "bold" usually either meant "sarcastic" or "painfully obvious" but occasionally bordered on "somewhat daring").

Now that every team in the league has played at least 20 games and we're more than a quarter of the way through the season, I figure it's as good a time as any to see how those predictions are coming along.

My guess: Not well. Feel free to hold me accountable.

[Coming up: Your ol' pal Lambert looks at his miserable failures, Anaheim needs to hire new doctors, Kyle Okposo(notes) loves him some mediocre AHL players, the best ever fight between two French Canadians, St. Louis will keep but maybe not keep Alex Pietrangelo(notes) (I swear), Rick Nash(notes) goes on a European Vacation, the top 10 reasons it hurts to watch the Avs, and Evgeni Nabokov(notes) doesn't like your line of questioning.]

1. John Tavares(notes) will be a big disappointment and only score 40 points.

I got chirped on Twitter for this prediction a week or so ago. The kid is by far the Isles' best player and has 19 points from 23 games. Great call, stupid.

2. The Coyotes will make the playoffs but the Ducks won't.

The Ducks are 15th in the West, the Coyotes are tied for sixth, and just two points out of third. Lookin' good on this one.

3. Someone actually challenges Alex Ovechkin(notes) for the Rocket Richard.

Granted Ovie's missed some time, but Dany Heatley(notes) leads him by two (18 to 16), Marian Gaborik(notes), Jarome Iginla(notes) and like five other guys are within three of him

4. Vesa Toskala(notes) gets his job taken from him before November. Possibly by a koala.

His line is 3.82/.869. Enough said.

5. Alex Kovalev's(notes) stay in Ottawa is an unmitigated disaster.

He has the same number of goals and one more point than Jarkko Ruutu(notes). You figure it out.       

6. Brent Sutter will strangle Dion Phaneuf(notes) to death, or at least decrease his minutes significantly.

They got in a shouting match last week, so it counts!

7. The Lightning will still be really bad.

If the season ended today, they'd have a playoff spot, and that's with Vinny Lecavalier being genuinely bad for most of the season. D'oh.

8. Mike Green(notes) will win the Norris despite his haircut getting progressively worse throughout the season.

He leads defensemen in points and he's not a minus-12 or something. Chris Pronger(notes) has probably been the best defenseman in the league (18 points, plus-13, dragging Matt Carle(notes) kicking and screaming along with him), so count this as a loss, I guess? You tell me.

9. Marian Gaborik will miss at least half the season (I didn't say it had to be a shocking prediction).

He's only missed two of 22. That's not half, but I still have time here. Too early to tell but a loss for now.

10. Patrick Kane(notes) will beat up an airline pilot, a train conductor and ship captain and help the Blackhawks win the division. Meanwhile Jonathan Toews(notes) will make a series of hilarious faces.

Patty's been on his best behavior, but I present this in defense of my Toews predication:

Also the Blackhawks are killing it. Good call by me.

11. The Flyers will set a franchise low in match penalties (with 128).

I looked at all their box scores and I didn't see any yet this year. Crazy!

12. Cal Clutterbuck(notes) will finally dump the visor to earn Don Cherry's respect.

Looks like this isn't going to happen. Sissy.

13. Dany Heatley will lead the league in power play goals and make the Sharks power play hum along at 26 percent.

He's got a two-goal lead over Gaborik (9 to 7) to pace the NHL, and the Sharks' power play is currently at 25.5 percent. I'm very proud of myself for this ultra-specific guess.

14. Regardless of how well the season finishes, Red Wings fans will be aggrieved by some perceived slight.

Ask a certain G. Wyshynski about this one.

15. Bob Gainey will get the ol' heave-ho.

Hasn't happened yet but it's looking possible. I feel good about this one certainly, but it's a push for now.

16. Mike Comrie(notes) will have a pretty good year, like 60 points or something.

Comrie had eight points in 16 games (so on pace for 41 then), but now he has mono and will probably miss significant time as a result. Oops.

17. Buffalo will miss the playoffs and both Lindy Ruff and Darcy Regier will be fired. No, I'm kidding, of course they won't be fired.

Buffalo doesn't look especially likely to miss the playoffs, no.

18. Evgeni Malkin(notes) will walk away with the league lead in points. Sid Crosby will barely crack 90 like the lay-about that he is.

Geno's not exactly swimming in points (19 in 16 games), but Crosby's on pace for less than 80. Push.

19. Marty Turco(notes) will cost an otherwise good Dallas team a playoff spot, and will keep his starting job regardless.

Dallas isn't bad or anything (though they are currently out of the playoffs on a tiebreaker), and Turco's only playing so-so hockey. Wanna call this one a push?

20.  The Central will be the best division in hockey.

The Atlantic, Northeast, Pacific and Central all have three teams in the playoffs, so I guess not. And the Atlantic is the only one without a team in the bottom five. Make of that what you will.

Anyway, I counted it all up and I'm considering myself 8-8-4. I'll take .500.

What We Learned

Anaheim Ducks: So Ryan Carter(notes) missed four games with a bruised foot and didn't seem to be getting better. They ran a second x-ray and found out the foot was broken. He's out another month. But it begs the question: How the hell did the first x-ray miss a fracture?

Atlanta Thrashers: After Matt Cooke(notes) clearly slew-footed (sleeeeeeeew) Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) on Saturday, the two fought, but Kovalchuk was given the instigator penalty and the gate. He picked up 19 penalty minutes on the play. The Thrashers got a late goal, but they ended up losing 3-2.

Boston Bruins: Great news for the Bruins -- Marc Savard(notes) should be back tonight after missing five weeks with a broken bone in his foot. And that extension should be signed this week.

Buffalo Sabres: The Sabres got pretty well trounced by the Senators on Saturday, sure. But things aren't so bad, at least not now. This is the first time they've had a three-game losing streak this season, and one of those was in OT. It's not all doom and gloom just yet is my point.

Calgary Flames: I'm not sure what's more amazing. That Jarome Iginla has 12 goals in his last nine games and is two off the league lead after a sluggish, ineffectual start, or that the Flames are 7-1-2 on the road despite being utter dross at home.

Carolina Hurricanes: What'd I tell you last week? The Canes have either won or gotten a loser point in four straight. Oh yeah, it's all turning around.

Chicago Blackhawks: I'm saying it right now -- This is the best team in the league. They've won their last seven games, scoring 27 goals and allowing just 11. Their wins over both Calgary and Edmonton Thursday and Saturday were effortless. Effortless I say!

Colorado Avalanche: This list of the top 10 reasons the Avs game was brutal to watch made me laugh. "7. Chris Stewart(notes): 0 shots in the last 4 games. That's an average of roughly zero per game." Perfect.

Columbus Blue Jackets: It's been confirmed that the Blue Jackets have been offered one of the slots to play in Europe at the start of next season.

Dallas Stars: Stephane Robidas(notes) had some kinda night Saturday. Two goals, two assists. That's a career high for points in a game. He also had eight hits(!) and two blocked shots. Brad Richards(notes), meanwhile, only had four assists. What a bum.

Detroit Red Wings: Remember how people thought Pavel Datsyuk(notes) was having a bit of an off season and had a slow start and all that? Yeah, he has 16 points in his last 14 games, including a goal and a shootout winner on Saturday.

Edmonton Oilers: Here's how bad it got in Edmonton Saturday night -- Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers gave up three goals on the first six shots he faced, and some were actually wondering if he'd get the hook. Why that's strange: The Oilers were without Nikolai Khabibulin(notes) and had to call up Torrie Jung, a goalie from the WHL's Edmonton Oil Kings. Jung's stats? He's 5-11 with a 3.29 GAA and a .903 save percentage.

Florida Panthers: How's this for a turnaround? Florida won two of its first 10 games, and is now on a hot streak, winning eight of 11, including beating the Red Wings, Sabres and Rangers to get above .500.

Los Angeles Kings: Speaking of turnarounds, the Kings went from pretty damn good to losing five of eight in a hurry. Terry Murray's solution to this problem is a long, hard practice. No days off if you're playing like garbage, I guess.

Minnesota Wild: It's very strange that Andrew Ebbett(notes) gets put on waivers so often. Granted he has jut one point this season, but the Wild are Ebbett's third team this season already. He scored 32 in 48 with Anaheim last year, he's defensively responsible and he's a center. What's not to like about the guy?

Montreal Canadiens: This is a very Georges Laraque(notes)-type shift right here. High-stick a guy in the mouth? Check. Knee-on-knee hit? Check. He's getting suspended for sure.

Nashville Predators: David Legwand(notes) had a good Saturday. Goal, assist, shootout winner, and a son. Aces.

New Jersey Devils: So decimated by injuries are the Devs (I can think of five off the top of my head) that defenseman Matt Corrente got his first game in the NHL on Saturday, but not on defense. The Devils dressed seven defensemen in the game, which is why Corrente got a go at right wing.

New York Islanders: It's not every day that a sensational young forward like Kyle Okposo goes far out of his way to praise a 36-year-old career AHL journeyman, but the kid falls all over himself to praise Mark Wotton of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Sounds like the guy made a hell of an impact on Okposo in just half a season. Great to have guys like that in the organization.

New York Rangers: It says here that the Rangers lose all the time because they lack passion. If true, that's on John Tortorella, who should be able to pump the boys up more than, say, a Tom Renney did.

Ottawa Senators: Gotta wonder how long Pascal Leclaire(notes) will be out after getting hurt in the second period on Saturday. They say he's "sore" but they said that about Alex Ovechkin too, so who knows? If he misses even a week, that's not going to be very helpful to the Sens.

Philadelphia Flyers: What a heavyweight tilt on Friday night. Briere. Vlasic. Should've headlined UFC106.

Phoenix Coyotes: Dave Tippett likes rewarding good play with additional ice time. This is apparently some sort of novel approach to hockey.

Pittsburgh Penguins: The Pens' new arena is coming along swimmingly.

San Jose Sharks: Someone was dumb enough to ask Evgeni Nabokov if beating the Ducks on Saturday made it any easier to swallow losing to them in the first round after winning the Presidents Trophy. "Thanks for the reminder. So what does it mean?" Nabokov said. "Honestly, I don't like those questions." Noooooo kidding.

St. Louis Blues: "Alex Pietrangelo is here to stay, but it's not guaranteed he will stay." That is one confusing lede that basically means the Blues will keep him around so that his rookie clock starts after he plays his 10th game. But they might send him back to juniors at any point. Or something. I dunno.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Said Rick Tocchet of Zenon Konopka(notes), who hasn't score a goal in three seasons and is without a point this season but has apparently been positioning himself well and just not finding the net: "I don't think he's a natural goal scorer." That's why he gets big money.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Some Leafs fans are wondering just when, exactly, Brian Burke is going to start calling up some kids to get them time in the NHL. Y'know, since they're not going to make the playoffs anyway.

Vancouver Canucks: Hooray, Daniel Sedin(notes) is back!

Washington Capitals: Bruce Boudreau admitted Alex Ovechkin came back from his shoulder injury too early, and said Ovie would play better come the Ottawa game tonight. Well, I'd hope so.

Play of the Weekend

You saw it yesterday. You'll see it again at the end of the season. So why not watch it once more before then?

David Perron(notes) what is up? (By the way, Stamkos' was better.)

Gold Star Award

Dany Heatley and Joe Thornton(notes) combined for five goals and six assists this weekend. The Sharks won twice. That'll work, eh?

Minus of the Weekend

What's going on with the Caps? Losses to Montreal and freaking Toronto? Only three goals in those games? That's not how you win a division. I wouldn't have guessed playing without Alex Semin would hurt that badly.

Perfect HFBoards trade proposal of the week

User coolbean04 really wants to pry Eric Staal(notes) from the Hurricanes so he can.. ahem, help the Rangers.

Dubinsky, Sanguinetti, a 1st round pick (say it's around 10th overall)

This is contingent on the Rangers finding someone to take Michal Roszival off their hands. Good luck with that.

Start with the misdemeanors and then we're gonna push right on through to the lighter treasons.

Ryan Lambert publishes hockey awesomeness pretty much every day over at The Two-Line Pass. Check it out, why don't you? Or you can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter if you so desire.

If you read the Puck Headlines every weekday, you've no doubt seen Ryan Kennedy's name before. He's a writer and editor at The Hockey News, and one of those columnists that will generally provide a take on the League's big issues and players that hasn't already been regurgitated throughout the rest of the media. Which is a good thing.

He's also a gear-obsessed, hockey culture guy; his latest venture at THN is a special lifestyle magazine called Fully Loaded, which features the best in hockey streetwear, NHL gear and hockey equipment.

Good writer, good dude. Here are five reasons why Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News loves hockey:

1. Fighting

We have a very tight-knit crew in the offices of THN, but nothing sets off the screaming like the fighting debate. As one of the resident hawks (it's not hard to figure out who the doves are), I maintain that fighting is part of the fabric of the game. Sure, maybe the sport can survive without it, but we all grew up watching fights and that's how we fell in love with the sport. It would be like taking the cheating and dullness out of soccer.

Plus, I just like it.

I love watching fights, and I YouTube them almost every morning. In the us-against-them current that runs through sports, only hockey really comes through in terms of avenging perceived evils against your favorite squad. The instant justice of Wendel Clark destroying Marty McSorley in the 1993 Western Conference final after McSorley's elbow on Doug Gilmour is one of the highlights of my hockey-watching youth.

2. The World of Hockey

Researching Europe for various projects leads to a never-ending source of unintentional comedy, generally provided by Google translator. Alex Ovechkin(notes) had 13 washers in his final year with Moscow Dynamo. Kitchener's Gabriel Landeskog is listed on native Swedish websites as "Gabriel County Forest." Karpat Oulu's cheerleaders are known as the 'Baby Beasts," while KHL St. Petersburg fans are entertained by the "Soul Sisters." Also, there's a team in Latvia called ASK Ogre. Not even a Google translator on that one; that's just what they're called (Ogre is a city).

3. Jerseys

As the resident 'Jersey Hound' at THN, I give a shout-out to a different team sweater every issue and the research for that is very fun. The hockey sweater provides the best canvas of any pro uniform and now that we're out of the pastels from the end of the 20th century, teams are generally looking good.

In my searches, I've found a Chicago Black Hawks sweater so old it doesn't even have red in it, the first-ever Boston Bruins jersey (it's brown, not black) and a picture of Martin Brodeur(notes) rocking a Utica Devils (AHL) uni.

Also, as I point out every time I get the chance, I tracked down a picture of the Springfield Indians jersey Snoop Dogg wore in the "Gin and Juice" video -- a jersey so rare because the Indians were only affiliated with the Hartford Whalers for a short time, and the Whalers only went to darker colors (which influenced the Springfield jersey) for a shorter time.

The fact Snoop Dogg wore that particular sweater practically bends the cosmos in terms of probability.

4. Maple Leaf Gardens

It really was something to experience. Even as a child my knees went flush against the railing in front of my seat and the trough bathrooms were an intimidating prospect. But what I'll never forget (besides a lot of losses and moustaches) is that brief time in history when smoking was banned, but not in the stairwells between floors. That meant that as soon as you turned the corner, an almost literal wall of cigarette smoke would confront you as you made your way up or down. Since I was still a kid, I'm glad smoke rises. I also bootleg recorded a Nine Inch Nails concert there in Grade 10.

5. Working at The Hockey News

At this point, I've literally interviewed hundreds of NHLers. Lil Jon called my house. Don Cherry left a message. I've talked metal with Jere Lehtinen(notes) and Drew Stafford(notes). I've been to every rink in the Northeast Division, plus Detroit and Pittsburgh, where I covered Game 6 of the final last year. I've seen games in the WHL, OHL and AHL. I saw Steven Stamkos(notes) and John Tavares(notes) face off in junior and watched Drew Doughty(notes) single-handedly end a game in Guelph on an end-to-end solo rush with six seconds left.

I know I have one of the best jobs in the world, which is why I push copy every day, just livin' the dream.

 

No. 1 star: Stephane Robidas(notes), Dallas Stars

After Brian Rolston(notes) opened the scoring for the New Jersey Devils, it became the Robidas Show for the rest of the first period: Primary assists on goals by Warren Peters(notes) and Mike Ribeiro, and then a power-play goal of this own. Tom Wandell's(notes) goal in the third gave the Stars the lead again after a Devils' rally, and it was Robidas that finished off the scoring with his fifth of the season for a 5-3 Dallas victory. It was the defenseman's second career two-goal game and first four-point night.

No. 2 Star: Jarome Iginla(notes), Calgary Flames

Iggy now has 15 goals on the season, 11 coming in November, as his hat trick helped the Flames to a 5-2 victory at the Los Angeles Kings. As usual, Iginla's contributions to the win went beyond the score sheet, as Coach Brent Sutter said he was "just rock solid in a lot of areas."

No. 3 Star: David Perron(notes), St. Louis Blues

Perron's two third-period goals finished off the visiting New York Islanders, giving the Blues a 4-1 victory. But St. Louis's leading goal-scorer (9 goals) merits a star because of this stellar, between the legs move that's one of the best highlights of the season:

Honorable mention: Pavel Datsyuk(notes) had a goal, and he and Henrik Zetterberg(notes) scored in the shootout to give the Detroit Red Wings a 3-2 win at the Montreal Canadiens, spoiling a two-goal night from Michael Cammalleri(notes). ... Hell of a road trip for the Florida Panthers: Wins at Buffalo, Detroit and then Madison Square Garden on Saturday night with a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers. Tomas Vokoun(notes) made 32 saves; Marian Gaborik(notes) netted his 16th for the Rangers. ... Not sure what's the stranger sight: The Carolina Hurricanes nearly playing 60 minutes of good hockey in their 3-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, or Chad LaRose finally scoring his first of the season. ... Filip Kuba(notes) had a four-point night and the Ottawa Senators scored five consecutive goals in their 5-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres; one that came after starting goalie Pascal Leclaire(notes) left with a lower body injury after a second-period collision with Jochen Hecht(notes). ... After the Phoenix Coyotes may have gotten away with an off-sides call, defenseman Keith Yandle(notes) scored the game-winner in a 3-1 victory over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers. ... A 45-save effort from Steve Mason(notes) still couldn't earn the Columbus Blue Jackets two points against the Nashville Predators, as Mike Santorelli(notes) and David Legwand(notes) scored in the shootout for a 4-3 win in a divisional showdown. ... Jonathan Toews(notes) scored twice, Patrick Kane(notes) once in the Chicago Blackhawks' 5-2 win at the Edmonton Oilers. Dustin Penner(notes) scored his 13th in the loss. ... Joe Thornton(notes) followed his brilliant four-assist night on Friday with another assist and the game-winning goal past Jonas Hiller(notes) (33 saves) to give the San Jose Sharks a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks. Dany Heatley(notes) scored his 18th. ... Niklas Hagman(notes) scored in regulation and in the shootout, as Vesa Toskala(notes) stopped 31 shots in the Toronto Maple Leafs' 2-1 victory over the visiting Washington Capitals (despite Alex Ovechkin's(notes) 16th of the season). Must have been the rally caps:

Did you know?: Chicago coach Joel Quenneville moved past former Oilers coach Glen Sather into 14th place on the NHL's career wins list with 497 victories. (AP)

Dishonorable mention: Martin Skoula(notes) (2 goals) and the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to hold off an Atlanta Thrashers rally for a 3-2 win, but it was made easier when Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) was ejected for instigating a fight while wearing a visor at 6:52 of the third. It's either a dishonorable mention for Kovalchuck, for his ill-advised fight; or, as Coach John Anderson claims, it's a dishonorable mention to the officials for giving him the instigator when Matt Cooke(notes) was accused of sparking the incident. ... Yann Danis(notes) was yanked for the Devils in favor of Marty Brodeur. ... Georges Laraque's knee-on-knee hit was as dishonorable as they come. ... Blair Betts(notes) dislocated his shoulder again and will miss a month for the Flyers. ... Finally, no video yet, but Wade Belak's(notes) two-handed spear to Jared Boll's(notes) most sensitive of areas wasn't pretty.

 

(No, the first decade of the 21st century doesn't technically end until 2011. Save your bellyaching. But we've had nine NHL seasons and one stolen from us since 1999-2000, and Yahoo! Sports has decided it's time to rank the best and worst of the last "decade." Enjoy, and snark freely in the comments.)

Let's get this out of the way right off the top: This isn't a list of the best individual teams that didn't win a Stanley Cup.

This isn't a list that will feature the 2000-01 New Jersey Devils, 2001-02 Carolina Hurricanes, 2002-03 Anaheim Ducks, 2007-08 Pittsburgh Penguins or 2008-09 Detroit Red Wings -- those four teams (or franchises) got their rings this decade.

This list is about the franchises that have excelled this past decade, but for one reason or another came up short in their quest for a title. Listed here are President Trophy winners, conference champions and annual Cup contenders that couldn't finish the job. They hold the fan bases that had their high expectations dashed by a less than fruitful spring.

With that, our 10 best teams to never win a Stanley Cup this decade are ...

10. St. Louis Blues

It seems so long ago, but the Blues were one of the NHL's best teams at the turn of the century. A President's Trophy winning season in '99-00 ended in shock as the San Jose Sharks knocked out the Blues in seven games during the opening round. The Blues would make the playoffs the following four seasons before three years of hardships and major overhaul occurred which ended a playoff streak that had lasted since 1980. Playing in the Central Division alongside the Detroit Red Wings is never easy, which explains the four straight second-place finishes.

Now under new ownership and with John Davidson as team president, the Blues are stable in the front office and developing an on-ice product around youth.

9. Washington Capitals

While the basement days during the middle of this decade might be remembered more by fans, earlier in the decade the Caps were playoff guests two out of the three seasons after their Stanley Cup appearance in 1998. The Jaromir Jagr(notes) acquisition from Pittsburgh should have been a boost for the franchise (especially after the back of pucks sent to the Penguins in exchange), but the Czech native's poor attitude derailed the Caps after just one playoff appearance in his Washington tenure.

Like the lean years seen in Pittsburgh, Washington's tough times paid off in the long run as they were able to draft Alex Ovechkin(notes) and Mike Green(notes) among the rest of the current supporting cast that has brought the franchise back to "contender" status.

Four Southeast Division titles, five playoff appearances, but just once have they advanced past the first round (last season). With a solid core and budding young goaltender, there's good reason to believe that the dark days that haunted the franchise post-Jagr will not return for a long while.

8. Buffalo Sabres

Light in the playoff appearances (three), Buffalo was among the NHL elite for a two-season span in 2006 and 2007. President's Trophy winners in 2007, the Sabres have survived new ownership and the combination of Darcy Regier and Lindy Ruff running things in a market that isn't known to be one of the "haves" when talking about economics in sports.

7. Calgary Flames

Times were tough for the Flames until Darryl Sutter was hired during the 2002-03 season as head coach and took over the GM responsibilities the following year. Sutter's big move was acquiring goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff(notes) from San Jose, which helped carry the team into the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals against Tampa Bay. Calgary eliminated three division champions en route to the Cup final that season.

The Flames haven't been able to get out of the second round since 2004 and are on their third coach since the 2006-07 season. Just one division title banner hands from the Pengrowth Saddledome rafters, but Sutter has transformed the team who had missed the playoffs seven years in a row up until the 2004 Cup.

6. Vancouver Canucks

It took the hiring of Marc Crawford to being the turnaround of a Canucks team that missed the playoffs three straight seasons heading into the 1999-00 season. The Stanley Cup winning coach with the 1996 Colorado Avalanche molded the franchise, along with Brian Burke's help, into annual contenders and playoff qualifiers. Gone was Pavel Bure, the team's star player and taking up the reigns in the scoring department were Markus Naslund(notes), Brendan Morrison(notes) and an emerging Todd Bertuzzi(notes) - before, you know, this happened.

The decade saw six playoff appearances for Vancouver with the Canucks only advancing out of the first round three times. Vancouver finished with five 100-point seasons, three Northwest Division titles and former GM Dave Nonis and current man-in-charge Mike Gillis have brought in Roberto Luongo(notes), signed the Sedin twins to long-term deals, drafted wisely and set the franchise up to be contenders in the future.

5. Dallas Stars

A year after winning the first Stanley Cup in franchise history, the Stars found themselves on the losing end of a heartbreaking series-winning goal by Jason Arnott(notes) as the New Jersey Devils won in 2000. Dallas followed up the loss with five more wins and four more points before getting knocked out by the St. Louis Blues in the Western Conference semifinals.

Transition came during the 2001-02 season with Ken Hitchcock being replaced by Ron Wilson for the final 32 games of the season. It would be the first season since '95-96 that the Stars didn't win the division title or make the playoffs. Dave Tippett would take over behind the bench for the 2002-03 season and lead them to the playoffs over the next five seasons. 

4. Boston Bruins

Most notable about the Bruins regular-season success early in the decade was that it was followed by a first-round exit in the playoffs -- twice by the Montreal Canadiens. Boston was one of those NHL teams that failed to recognize how the "new" NHL was going to play in the post-lockout era. Youth was ignored and old, veteran players were relied upon to carry the Bruins.

Two months into the post-lockout NHL also spelt the end for the Joe Thornton(notes)-era in Boston as he was shipped to San Jose. The struggles Boston went through immediately after the trade paved the way for Tim Thomas(notes) to grab the No. 1 goaltending job. After two seasons at the bottom of the Northeast Division, Boston made their way back to the playoffs in 2008 and followed that up with a 116-point season, third best in franchise history. Even with obstacles in front of him, Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli has managed to work around the salary cap and pull off shrewd moves to keep Boston competitive for the long-term.

3. Ottawa Senators

Filing for bankruptcy in the middle of the 2002-03 season didn't hamper the Senators from claiming the President's Trophy, but the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference Finals would deny their run to the Stanley Cup. With the exception of last season, Ottawa has made the playoffs every season and won three division titles.

The Senators were well on their way to a possible Cup in 2006, but Dominik Hasek's(notes) injury at the Winter Olympics in Turin dashed any hopes as the Buffalo Sabres eliminated them in the second round. 

2. Philadelphia Flyers

Aside from one aberration of a season (2006-07), the Flyers have been in the "contender" category for almost the past two decades. Eight playoff appearances in nine seasons, two-time Eastern Conference finalists, three division titles, and five 100-point seasons. Safe to say, Philadelphia has been able to maintain their success this decade, but have yet to find their way back to the Stanley Cup Finals.

The torch that Eric Lindros(notes) carried into this decade was given to Simon Gagne(notes) for a brief period before Jeff Carter(notes) and captain Mike Richards(notes) ran with it. The "Broad Street Bullies" moniker hasn't left Philadelphia as evidence by the nightly physical play (and numerous suspensions over the years) inside Wachovia Center.

1. San Jose Sharks

Year after the year, the Sharks have been a popular pick to win the Cup. Having been loaded with talent throughout their roster, their shortcomings in April have undermined a decade of regular season success. Four division titles, a President's Trophy, four 100-point seasons and nine playoff appearances make the Sharks the best team to never win this decade.

Months after a disappointing first-round exit at the hands of the Anaheim Ducks, Sharks GM Doug Wilson went out and traded for Dany Heatley(notes) to add to the already dangerous arsenal.

That's been the consistent thing for San Jose, just when you think they're ready to take a step back, they reload and force their way into contender talk whenever predictions are being thrown around.

If were to make an all-injured player all-star team, it's probably Daniel Sedin(notes), Eric Staal(notes) and Marian Hossa(notes) up front; Andrei Markov(notes) and Rob Blake(notes) on the blue line; and Cam Ward(notes) between the pipes. Which is to say that there are some pretty damn good players watching the game form the press box right now (though Hossa and Sedin are nearly back).

This infirmary-on-skates was a topic for both the Globe & Mail and the Sun this morning, as the NHL reaches the quarter pole; with Mike Zeisberger of the latter publication writing that the injuries have a devastating effect on the League's marketing:

For a league thirsting for star power, the assembly line of sidelined marquee performers truly is a punch right in the NHL's P.R. gut. That's especially true south of the border, where, in the absence of a true national television contract (sorry, Versus, but you are no ESPN), big names are crucial in the wooing of fans.

There's no question that the NHL's marketing focus has been star-centric ever since Gary Bettman came over from the NBA, where the name on the back of the uniform might as well be on the front, too.

That's why the NHL flopped and flailed in its promotion of the game during the trap years: How does one market stars when their talent is literally being held back? That's why the NHL has found its stride after the lockout, as the new rules have opened up the offense; players like Sidney Crosby(notes), Evgeni Malkin(notes) and Alex Ovechkin(notes) have become marketable stars; and the shootout provides SportsCenter-ready highlights in games that would otherwise end in a tie. (Though as Puck Buddy Walt wrote over email today: Take the helmets off already.)

So Zeisberger is correct that big names are "crucial in the wooing of fans" because the NHL has set it its marketing up to be that way. But it's that "especially true south of the border" part that we're wondering about: Do star players make a difference in the NHL's popularity in the U.S.? Or is it still about the logo on the front?

One of the reasons Zeisberger's line raised our interest was that it harkened back to something Stu Siegel, new majority co-owner of the Florida Panthers, told us in an interview this week when asked about the impact of star players in "non-traditional" U.S. markets. In this case, we were talking specifically about Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) with the Atlanta Thrashers:

That one superstar, arguably one of the top 10 players in the League. And the market doesn't know who he is, or they're not marketing him properly.

There are few extremely marketable players in the League: Crosby, Ovechkin ... there aren't that many. People look at us and say we don't have any stars on our team. I would argue, "What makes a star?"

Siegel went on to say that David Booth(notes), the injured forward for the Panthers, "is a star or pretty close to that" on a local level for the team. That said: Will the fans who do attend Panthers games not go, or not watch on television, if Booth is out?

Like Siegel said: The players that can have that affect on gate in the U.S. are rare. Crosby is one. Ovechkin is another. On a local level, the absence of Martin Brodeur(notes) from a particular Devils game probably affects the walk-up gate. Are there others locally that do the same?

For television, U.S. fans will make time for Ovechkin or Crosby or Malkin; the Versus ratings back that up. But is, say, Rick Nash's(notes) participation in the Blue Jackets game going to determine whether you watch it or not, as a fan inside or outside of Columbus?

If there aren't a great number of players that swing attendance and/or viewership one way or another, what does? We'd argue that the franchise brands carry more weight with fans than anything else. The Detroit Red Wings coming to town, for example, is a big deal in a U.S. market, and not for any particular player.

Where these theories collide is for teams like the San Jose Sharks and the Chicago Blackhawks, who are winning and entertaining teams with more than a few "name" players. Are we paying, and paying attention, as U.S. fans because of their place in the standings or because of names like Thornton, Heatley, Kane and Toews (and soon, Hossa)?

If Zeisberger is correct, then the NHL does need to work harder to make this generation of stars viable. It needs to be "Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning" coming to down, or "Rick Nash and the Columbus Blue Jackets"; we're not sure the marketing is there yet for casual hockey fans in the U.S.

If Zeisberger is off-base about what "star power" means in U.S. markets, then is the NHL better off marketing teams rather than players?

 

(No, the first decade of the 21st century doesn't technically end until 2011. Save your bellyaching. But we've had nine NHL seasons and one stolen from us since 1999-2000, and Yahoo! Sports has decided it's time to rank the best and worst of the last "decade." Enjoy, and snark freely in the comments.)

You're going to disagree with this list.

It's not a prediction; it's a fact. Think about how many regular season, playoff, international, college, minor league and junior league games have been played in the last 10 years. Think about how many times you walked out of an arena during some random battle between two teams thinking, "That's the best hockey game I've ever seen." Think about the build-up, the storylines, the hype before now-classic (or, at the very least, near-classic) games, and how those contests lived up to them.

The 10 games we've selected here came from editorial debates, chats with fellow fans, some polling of the Twitter puckheads and our own recollections of classic games. We're confident they're all among the best for various reasons: Sometimes because of their context or legacy, and sometimes because they were just fantastically entertaining hockey games.

We imagine the comments will be filled with additions and suggestions, and that's how it should be with this list. Other rankings can be solidified statistically or through other analytical means; this one is a bit more subjective. We all have different frames of reference and criteria for great games; try telling a Team Canada fan that the Swedish gold medal above was a more rewarding game than the Canadians' in 2002.

With that, our 10 best games of the last decade are ...

10. Lightning thwart Calgary's Cup clincher (Stanley Cup Final; June 5, 2004)

Before 2004, the last time a team rallied from a 3-2 deficit in the Stanley Cup Finals was the Colorado Avalanche in 2001, when they finally gave Ray Bourque a ring and defeated the New Jersey Devils.

Before Game 6 in 2004, Bourque famously reached out to the Tampa Bay Lightning with advice on how to extend their series with the Calgary Flames, who held a 3-2 lead and had a chance to win the Cup on Canadian soil in Game 6.

Whatever he said, it worked, as the Bolts won on a Marty St. Louis goal in double overtime, 3-2, and eventually won the Cup in Game 7 at home. The teams traded scores in a four-goal second period; in the third, Martin Gelinas's "phantom goal" will forever live in playoff infamy. That controversy aside, it was a physical and entertaining game symbolic of the rest of this underrated series.

9. Toews nets shootout hat-trick in world juniors (World Junior Championships, Jan. 3, 2007)

A close game that eventually reached an unbelievable overtime followed by one of the most memorable shootouts in world junior hockey championship history.

The U.S. and Canada battled to a 1-1 tie in the 2007 tournament semifinals in Leksand, Sweden, with the late Luc Bourdon(notes) knotting the score at 12:09 of the third. In the 10-minute, 4-on-4 overtime, Carey Price(notes) stopped 12 American shots and the Canadians thwarted a 4-on-3 power play to force a shootout.

International rules allowed players to appear multiple times in the shootout, which ended up going 14 players deep between the rivals. Thus, Jonathan Toews(notes) and Peter Mueller(notes) had a fantastic duel, with Toews scoring on all three of his attempts and Price stopping Mueller to end the heart-pounding game. We're going to look back at this one fondly when some of these players are NHL superstars well into the next decade.

8. Chicago's historic comeback vs. Calgary (NHL Regular Season; Oct. 13, 2009)

How many fans left their seats to beat the traffic as the Chicago Blackhawks surrendered five goals in the first 11:43 of their game against the Calgary Flames this season? All they ended up missing was a six-goal comeback by the home team that tied an NHL record and set a Blackhawks' franchise record. Brent Seabrook(notes) won the game just 26 seconds into overtime, giving Chicago a 6-5 victory in perhaps the wildest regular season game in the decade. At least played indoors.

7. Double hat-tricks for Ovechkin, Crosby (Eastern Conference semifinals; May 4, 2009)

"Sick game. Sick goals by me and him."

That was Alex Ovechkin(notes) after the Washington Capitals' 4-3 win in Game 3 Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, which featured hat tricks from both Ovechkin and rival Sidney Crosby(notes) of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The notion that this showdown between the League's two greatest stars would meet expectations was hard to believe; that they'd blow them away with this mano-a-mano offensive duel was unfathomable. Ovechkin would break the game open by completing his hat trick in the third period; Crosby got his with a defiant goal late in the period.

It was like watching two ballers playing H-O-R-S-E on the playground, and one of the greatest superstar battles in recent memory -- even if the lingering memory is still Sidney complaining about there being too many hats on the ice.

6. Heritage Classic (NHL Regular Season; Nov. 22, 2003)

Obviously, the first regular season outdoor game in NHL history makes this list for the sheer spectacle of it all: The minus-22 degrees Fahrenheit temps with the wind chill; the legends game between Edmonton Oilers and Montreal Canadiens greats that looked like "Field of Dreams" if it had been filmed on an Alberta pond; and, of course, the aesthetics of 57,000 fans freezing their behinds off while Jose Theodore(notes) wore a toque over his mask.

Oh, and it was a pretty tight game, too. Richard Zednik(notes) scored the Habs' first and final goals, as Montreal won in the blustery elements by the score of 4-3. His second goal came 1:02 after Jarret Stoll(notes) cut the lead to 3-2.

The Cold War between Michigan State and Michigan in 2001 might have inspired this game; but its success was certainly a harbinger of the Winter Classic juggernaut we currently have on New Year's Day. As a total experience, the Heritage game was a classic.

5. Bruins, Canadiens trade leads in underdog upset (Eastern Conference quarterfinals; April 19, 2008)

The Montreal Canadiens were a 104-point regular season conference champion who entered this series with an 11-game winning streak against the Boston Bruins. The B's were a No. 8 seed that stumbled into the playoffs. The Habs held a 3-1 series lead until the Bruins smacked them, 5-1, at Bell Centre. Expectations were high that the Canadiens would dispatch their pesky rivals in Game 6; they were wrong.

In one of the most brutal, unpredictable playoff games of the decade, the Bruins erased four Montreal leads and scored four goals in the third period for a stunning 5-4 win in Boston. Marco Sturm(notes) scored the game-winner with 2:37 left in regulation. Montreal would go on to win the series, but this game remains an instant classic.

4. Canada defeats US women for gold (Winter Olympics; Feb. 21, 2002)

Yes, love for the ladies.

The context: It was a gold medal game in Salt Lake City, with the Canadian women seeking their first Olympic title (and the first for a Canadian hockey team in 50 years). The stakes, via CTV:

The Canadians had watched the U.S. skate off with gold in Nagano in 1998. Then after eight straight losses to the Americans leading up to the 2002 Games, the taunting was ripe at the Games.

Some U.S. women had scribbled on photos of Canadian players in the athletes' village, and the Canadians heard reports of insulting comments. Rumours fueled the Canadian fire - although they were later proven to be untrue - that the Americans were disrespecting the Canadian flag in the U.S. dressing room.

So yeah, there was some passion heading into this one. Truth be told, it was a fugly game: A penalty-laden affair that lacked flow thanks to a whistle-happy referee (an American, which only fueled Canadian ire). It was a slugfest, if the term can be applied to a fight-less form of puck.

That said, the Canadian women played through 12 penalties and gutted out what was a thrilling 3-2 victory over their bitter rivals. What this one lacked in artistry it made up for in contentious drama.

3. BU's dramatic comeback wins NCAA title (Frozen Four, April 12, 2009)

Any game that legendary Boston University hockey coach Jack Parker calls "the greatest comeback I've been involved in" merits consideration on the list, right?

Down two goals to Miami University with less than a minute left in the NCAA hockey championship game in Washington, D.C., Nick Bonino assisted on one goal and then scored the game-tying goal with 17 clicks left. The title-clinching goal came at 11:47 of overtime, and it was a soul-crusher for Miami: Colby Cohen's shot deflected off a sprawling Kevin Roeder on defense and then floated over the glove of goalie Cody Reichard.

BU won the game, 4-3, in overtime for an instant Frozen Four classic. It was a championship game, so that plays into it being here; which is to say that we offer no disrespect to Holy Cross's "miracle" against Minnesota in 2006, which is a strong honorable mention.

2. Sweden keeps gold from Fins (Winter Olympics; Feb. 25, 2006)

The 2002 gold medal game between Canada and the U.S. will no doubt be remembered more fondly, what with the buried loonie on American ice and the 50-year Canadian gold medal wait finally ending. But the 2006 gold medal game in Turin was simply a better hockey game, and played at the highest level by a galaxy of star players on Sweden and Finland.

The all-Nordic final wasn't exactly what fans had anticipated, but Russia took out Canada and Finland eliminated Russia, while Sweden knocked off Czech Republic. Finland was seeking its first Olympic gold; Sweden was looking to avenge the enormous upset to Belarus in 2002.

The classic battle had a combined 36 NHL players involved, and the game-winning goal was a Hall of Fame effort: Peter Forsberg(notes) won the faceoff, passed to Mats Sundin(notes), who then passed to Nicklas Lidstrom(notes) for the tally early in the third:

Henrik Lundqvist(notes) of the New York Rangers made the lead stand up with some stellar play in the third. No overtime, no last-second heroics. Just two incredible hockey teams playing on an elite level on the biggest stage.

1. Sykora calls his shot against Detroit (Stanley Cup Final; June 2, 2008)

There were longer overtime games. There were more meaningful victories. There were better individual efforts. But as a total package of entertainment, star power and clutch performances, no game better symbolized the post-lockout NHL than this 4-3 triple overtime victory by the Pittsburgh Penguins over eventual Stanley Cup champions the Detroit Red Wings in Game 5 at the Joe.

Goals by Pavel Datsyuk(notes) and Marian Hossa(notes). Moments of great defense, great offense and brutal physical play. Maxime Talbot's improbable goal with 34.3 seconds left in regulation that tied the game at 3-3. Marc-Andre Fleury(notes) stopping 24 Detroit shots in three overtime periods and 55 for the game. And then, at 9:57 of the third OT, Petr Sykora(notes) happened:

Helping to elevate this game to elite status? The fact that Sykora called his shot between periods.

If nothing else, this game helped turn the 2008 finals into thriller, which created plenty of buzz for the 2009 rematch that saw the Penguins take the Cup. But no matter who won this game, the drama and dynamics made it the best of the decade.

Bradley got the worst of it when trading wild right hands with New York Rangers forward Aaron Voros(notes) in a first-period fight. As he skated off the ice he appeared to ask a linesman, "is this mine?" while pointing at the blood cascading from above his left eye. The answer came in the affirmative, which didn't seem to faze the Washington right wing. That was his last act of the period, but after a little time in makeup he returned to make an impact, scoring the game-winner (video) in an eventual 4-2 win over the Blueshirts. Nice skill play by Bradley, who won a battle with Wade Redden(notes), then used his body to shield the puck from pursuing defenseman Matt Gilroy(notes) before snapping it past Henrik Lundqvist(notes) at 15:09 of the third.

No. 2 star: Carey Price(notes), Montreal Canadiens

Price actually bit on Matt Cullen's(notes) fake in the sixth round of the shootout, but a desperation pad save stopped the puck just short of the goal line, preserving a 3-2 Montreal victory. The knock on the Canadiens' third-year goalie has been that he plays just well enough to lose close games, but Tuesday he was at his best in pressure situations. Price made 13 third-period saves to allow Montreal to tie the score, survived a 7-1 Carolina advantage in shots in the overtime and then turned aside three do-or-die shots in the scoreless shootout before a Maxim Lapierre(notes) goal set the stage for the stop on Cullen.

No. 3 star: Mike Fisher(notes), Ottawa Senators

This one was a battle royale early, with six players earning fighting majors in the opening 11 ½ minutes. But the decisive blows were landed by Fisher. He snapped off a team-high four shots, beating Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Vesa Toskala(notes) for the game's first goal and supplying the game-winner late in the second period of a 3-2 Senators victory.

Honorable Mention: Alex Ovechkin's(notes) return after a five-week absence couple weeks off was no joke. He scored his 15th goal of the season on a second-period power-play. … No shortage of star power at the Garden on Tuesday. Marian Gaborik(notes) scored twice for the Rangers to keep pace with AO atop the league's scoring list with 15 goals. … Caps coach Bruce Boudreau notched his 100th career victory. … Toronto's Phil Kessel(notes) scored his fifth goal to extend his points streak to six games. … First NHL points: Washington's Jay Beagle(notes) (assist) and Toronto's Carl Gunnarsson(notes) (ditto). … Colorado's Ryan Wilson(notes) scored his first NHL goal, fittingly burning a Calgary team that traded him in March. … Joel Ward(notes) and David Legwand(notes) combined for six points (goal, two assists each) as the Predators beat San Jose.

Did You Know?: With man-advantage goals by Steve Sullivan(notes) and Joel Ward in a 4-3 victory, the Predators became the first team to score multiple power-play goals in a game against the Sharks this season.

Dishonorable Mention: The Rangers faced an early 21-11 shots deficit and finished with a season-low 20 pucks on net. … No knock on Michael Leighton(notes), but another injury to a goalie was the last thing Carolina needed. He left with a lower-body injury in the second period as the Hurricanes failed to register their first road win on their 10th try. … Speaking of winless streaks, Vesa Toskala (18 saves) dropped to 0-4-2 on the season.

We've not, however, seen a version of the glass jump that Henrik Andersen came up with. The 18-year old winger was celebrating his first goal of the season for Swedish Tier 2 team Leksand when he attempted to channel his inner Ovechkin and things went terribly wrong:

(The Bobby McFerrin soundtrack is a nice touch.)

Andersen, who wasn't selected in last June's NHL Entry Draft, was not injured and Leksand defeated Bjorkloven 4-0 to put themselves atop the standings in Allsvenska. Despite his unlikely future playing in the NHL, Andersen has now made himself a YouTube superstar and guaranteed his addtion to blooper reels around the world. 

stick tap to DayWalk3r for the tip

Popular stories across Yahoo! Sports:
• Video: A-Rod photo upsets Kate Hudson
• Video: Kobe's shot draws Jordan comparisons
• Mystery illness threatens UFC's biggest star

• The blockbuster news of the morning is that the Chicago Blackhawks are close to signing Jonathan Toews(notes), Patrick Kane(notes) AND Duncan Keith(notes) to new deals, well ahead of restricted free agency for all three amigos. We covered the potential signings yesterday, and the mysteries remain: What will Kane and Toews be paid, and how long will Keith sign for when he could be unrestricted in 2011 with a one-year deal. [Tribune, Sun Times, and a witty Photoshop from Windy City Hockey]

• Kane. Toews. Hossa. On the same line. SICK. [ESPN Chicago, via Twitter]

• "Unless he's run over by a Zamboni or something goes awry at the Hair Cuttery, Alex Ovechkin(notes) returns to the ice tonight, when the Caps take on the New York Blueshirts." [NBC Washington]

• JP writes the book on Washington Capitals goalie Seymon Varlamov, and it's called "From Russia Without Glove(side.)" In other Caps goaltending news, Jose Theodore(notes) took leave from the team for personal reasons but Washington Post writer Tarik El-Bashir reports it should only be for one game. [Japers Rink]

• On Carey Price(notes): "At this time a year ago, Canadiens fans were firmly behind their franchise goalie - now they're on the cusp of eating him alive." [Canes Country]

• Math makes our brains hurt, but this piece by Behind The Net on the Toronto Maple Leafs' "percentage odds" of making the playoffs is a brilliant needle for the Toronto Star's hot-air balloon about the Leafs missing the cut. [Behind The Net]

• Attention Canes and Leafs Bruins fans: Top draft prospect Taylor Hall is now ranked No. 2 by Central Scouting for the OHL, behind Plymouth Whalers forward Tyler Seguin. [Hockey or Die]

• "Battle of the Blades" will have a second season on CBC with a new group of ex-hockey players; we demand more Proberts, less Richers. Interesting note that 40 percent of the audience for this show was male. Because no matter how many deny it, men love the idea that some meathead is going to drop a good-looking broad on her face. They don't watch NASCAR for the pit stops and they don't read lad mags for the articles. These are eternal truths. [Truth & Rumours]

• The National Hockey League (NHL) and the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) together raised more than $650,000 in support of Hockey Fights Cancer and other cancer-related organizations during October's Awareness Month. [NHL]

• Buddha uses our interview with the Florida Panthers' new co-managing partner as a jumping-off point for an interesting blog about "non-traditional" hockey markets and attracting fans. [Hockey Wilderness]

• The Colorado Avalanche recall forward Chris Durno(notes) from the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League. He led the Monsters with seven goals. [Avs]

• Hey, remember when Matt Duchene(notes) was kicking ass and looking like a Calder candidate? Yeah, not so much. [Frei]

• Peter Forsberg(notes) and Markus Naslund(notes) intend to play together on Modo for free. Ken Holland just spit out his coffee. [Nucks Misconduct]

• The Battle of Ontario is still the Battle of Ontario. [Sportsnet]

• CHICKEN WINGS UPDATE: There's an app for that. [Rovell]

• Weird Crap One Finds When Searching for All-Decade Photos, Vol. 1: Kelly Buchberger and a Los Angeles Kings fan, 2000. [Getty]

• Have the Anaheim Ducks tuned out Coach Randy Carlyle? Todd Marchant(notes): "Are people not listening to the coach? I don't see that at all. I've never seen that at all. I've never seen where players don't listen to the coach. ... For whatever reason, things just don't work out the way you want them to. They don't work out the way you draw them up." [Ducks Blog]

• The New Jersey Devils Travis Zajac(notes) on losing at the Philadelphia Flyers last night: "We knew we weren't going to win 41 on the road." No one likes a pessimist, sir. [Star-Ledger]

• Lowetide on a top Edmonton Oilers prospect: "I think Jordan Eberle(notes) may be approaching a level where we can begin to talk about him skipping Triple A and making the big club." [Lowetide]

• It's not our fight, but it is an interesting debate in Chicago whether or not to retire Jeremy Roenick's(notes) number with the Blackhawks. Didn't play long enough, never won a Cup vs. beloved player status. [Between The Circles]

• The ESPN doc on Gretzky will be shown on Wed. night on TSN. [TSN]

• Malik with a diagnosis for the current state of the Detroit Red Wings: "The blueprint thus far seems to emphasize a renewed commitment in terms of attention to detail, especially on defense, buying into the concept that, unlike last season, the team cannot simply float for forty or fifty minutes before exploding offensively, and that the supporting cast cannot assume that the now-absent point producers will get the scoring job (or preventing goals job) done for them, regardless of their age or experience." [Snapshots]

• We're big fans of Brandon Worley, and he's now the hockey blog overlord at SB Nation, taking over for Mirtle, who will soon be the best writer on the Leafs beat. And no doubt the tallest. Congrats to all. [Defending Big D]

• Tapeleg presents some easy ways to read copious amounts of hockey blogs. Speaking of which: Do any of you use mobile devices to read Puck Daddy? If so, does it display Ok? [Jerseys and Hockey Love]

• Finally, the Pittsburgh Penguins continue to lead the league in positive PR within their community. [The Confluence]

• Puck Buddy Bart sent in this photo from the Toronto Maple Lefas Leafs game at Chicago. "I thought you might enjoy this picture of Leafs fans having spelling issues. Mr. 'F' threw up in his cup in third period and the whole crew was kicked out. Stay classy!" Obviously, it's hard to verify that last statement but, uh, yuck.

• Alex Goligoski(notes) is out 2-3 weeks with a lower body injury, joining Sergei Gonchar(notes), Kris Letang(notes) and Brooks Orpik(notes) in street clothes as the Pittsburgh Penguins take on the Anaheim Ducks. Sewickley, PA's own Nate Guenin(notes) is called up for reinforcement. No word if Ray Shero asked the Ducks about renting Ryan Whitney(notes) for the night. [Tribune-Review]

• Joe Sacco called Saturday's game against the Canucks a "must win," and they lost. For a 12-5-3 team that's second in the conference. Coaches make rookie mistakes, too. [All Things Avs]

• There's been a bit of an ownership switcheroo with the Florida Panthers; meet the former minority-now-majority owners at their 1:30 p.m. presser on the Panthers' Web site. [Panthers]

• Interesting Larry Brooks column on Sean Avery(notes) of the New York Rangers, or what Brooks calls A.I.N.O. (Avery In Name Only). "Avery has been playing on tiptoes, as if walking a tightrope. He has largely been a cipher, reluctant to engage opponents. Fact is, Avery has been playing as if afraid that one mistake would consign him to the bench." [NY Post]

• Detroit Red Wings left wing Henrik Zetterberg(notes), Atlanta Thrashers left wing Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) and Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller(notes) have been named the NHL 'Three Stars' for the week ending Nov. 15. [NHL]

• Alex Ovechkin(notes) is fully practicing with the Washington Capitals in anticipation of the team's national television game against the New York Rangers on Tuesday. Even more interesting: He's practicing on the power play in front of the net rather than on the point, with Mike Knuble(notes) out of the lineup. Must be a whole new world seeing slap shots whizzing by his head instead of being the whizzer. [Capitals Insider]

• In defense of the trap. Yes, the New Jersey Devils' soul-crushing, excitement-draining, popularity-dampening defensive system. From a Pittsburgh writer, no less. [Tribune-Review]

• The 12 reasons why The Pensblog dislikes Chris Bourque(notes). Until we see proper documentation, we're considering this 11 reasons and baseless speculation about Creed. [Pensblog]

• Dave "The Hammer" Schultz will enter the Philadelphia Flyers Hall of Fame this evening, and Broad Street Hockey pays him homage: "Dave Schultz may have only been a Flyer for four seasons, but those were four years that defined his career, his life, and an era of Philadelphia hockey." [Broad Street Hockey, and check out our own two-part interview with The Hammer from last year]

• Bobby Clarke believes Eric Lindros(notes) should be a Hall of Famer, which is either a sympathy vote or an attempt to justify trading Peter Forsberg(notes) and a Colorado Stanley Cup for him. [Philly.com]

• George James Malik with his usual sobering, insightful coverage of the latest NHLPA infighting. [Snapshots]

• Interesting column that argues for only one outdoor game in the NHL each season and only on Jan. 1, which misses the Canadian elephant in the room: When, exactly, will the NHL allow a team from north of the border into a television event in which Canadian ratings will not count towards U.S. Nielsen numbers? [Sportsnet]

• This Planet Hockey jersey has to be one of the most horrific things we've ever seen. It's like the lizard aliens from 'V' took over the Blue Jackets' logo. [eBay, thanks to Puck Buddy Jason]

• Lepore presents "Hockey in the Zeitgeist," a feature that seeks to explore hockey references in popular culture. Looking at his list, we're not sure where WWF's  The Goon fits in; all we know is that it better fit in. [Puck The Media]

• Andy Murray gives the St. Louis Blues some nap times. OK, technically it's time off, but we'll assume it was used to cuddling up with their wubbies. [Dispatch]

• Interesting perspective on the Allan Walsh/Montreal Canadiens Twitter flap from Jay Feaster, in the sense that it's a former GM examining the agent's outspoken online actions. [THN]

• Matt Cullen(notes) to the Blackhawks? [Canes Country]

• Spector has mucho trade talk on THN, including his take on the Cullen scuttlebutt. [THN]

• The Tampa Bay Lightning send down Ryan Craig(notes) and defenseman Matt Smaby(notes) to AHL Norfolk. [Lightning Strikes]

• Brent Burns(notes) has probably played himself off the Canadian Olympic team by being rather awful for the Minnesota Wild this season. What, exactly, happened to this guy? [Pucks Gone Wild]

• First-person essays on hockey road trips are money. Here's a New York Rangers fan's adventures in Ottawa. (In Kanata, to be accurate.) We're sure the noose went over well. [Blueshirt Banter]

• Finally, this ice-level fight between Tony Turgeon and Nate Baumbick from the Waterloo Black Hawks at Lincoln Stars game on Saturday offered an interesting view. [Hockey Fights]

Preview: Minnesota Wild at Washington Capitals, 7 p.m. EST. The Caps are 3-1-0 without Alex Ovechkin(notes), and they'll be without him against the Wild, who are on a little 4-1-1 streak. With Josh Harding(notes) starting, we are deprived of the Battle of the Backstroms. Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Toronto Maple Leafs at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m. EST. Vesa Toskala(notes) gets a start tonight, with Ron Wilson declaring: "He's not our backup goalie, he's the starting goalie tonight." But honestly: Why would you care about anything but Miss Illinois USA 2009 hitting her first hockey puck tonight?

Check out the Y! Sports scores and schedule page for previews of the other three games tonight.

Evening Reading

(Ed. Note: Some of you may have seen a post earlier on the Bernie Madoff auction and some hockey stuff. Turns out contrary to other reports, the hockey stuff falls outside of his auction lots. We've taken the post down. Apologies for the confusion.)

• Sad news: Mike Murphy(notes), the NHL's vice-president of operations and a former coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, is battling Hodgkin's lymphoma. [Sportsnet]

• Hey, go figure: A Russian team isn't keen on Michael Nylander(notes) leaving in the middle of the season for yet another team. [Capitals Insider]

• T.J Oshie's father is blogging on St. Louis Game Time. Cool. [SLGT]

• Luc Robitaille's appearance on Jay Leno's show that no one watches. [Kings Insider]

• Remember: All-Decade fun continues this weekend.

• Custance on the deepest front offices in the NHL. [Sporting News]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: On the awful "Beanpot Trot" rap video, it's Andrew --

"Apparently white, catholic hockey players have no rhythm?"

Who knew?

Bold Prediction: Kovalchuk outscores Kopitar in Atlanta.

• Thanks to everyone who helped carry over the "Unpublished NHL Books" jokes from the Puck Daddy Rumors Chat to Twitter yesterday afternoon with hilarious results. Check out Jeff Marek of Hockey Night in Canada Radio and Jibblescribbits for some of the comedy gold. "Thinking Inside the Box" by Dale Hunter and "If I Did It" by Todd Bertuzzi(notes) are two of the best. 

• If Randy Carlyle needed a vote of confidence as the Anaheim Ducks struggle, GM Bob Murray emphatically gave him one: "There's going to be a lot of players going through the turnstiles going out the door before coaches go out the door here. And our players better get that through their thick skulls." [LA Times, halfway down]

• Peter Forsberg(notes) may skip the NHL and stay with Modo. [All Things Avs]

• That said, the Vancouver Canucks are happy to wait for the Return of Foppa. [Province]

• What's happened to Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Steve Mason(notes)? It would appear the  defense in front of him (or lack thereof) is as much to blame as any sophomore slump. [FanHouse]

• Jarome Iginla(notes) doesn't exactly back down from a brawl, which is one of the reasons he's Jarome Iginla. So it's interesting to see the Calgary Flames captain deny "the red-hot rumour making the rounds on the Internet, and amongst the Montreal media" that he challenged the Canadiens' bench to a fight. [Sun Media]

• If the NHL decides to end participation in the Winter Olympics, it'll be because of powerful voices like that of Lou Lamoriello: "Those are prime dates. The United States is coming off football (following the Super Bowl). We have an opportunity to keep the fans. That's when teams are really starting to go up or go down." [Fire & Ice]

• The Hockey News names Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger(notes) as the "nastiest and most intimidating" D-man in the League. More importantly: "He will be featured in an upcoming Pepsi Max advertisement with Mike Richards(notes) in Maxim magazine." Otherwise known as "the issue of Maxim Pierre McGuire has already pre-ordered." [Philly.com]

• Japers' Michael Nylander(notes) timeline shows two things: That this story has dragged on for what feels like a century and that the Washington Capitals will never sign another free agent to a contract like this again on George McPhee's watch. [Japers Rink]

• As if the Carolina Hurricanes didn't have enough problems this season, Bob from Canes Country writes that they're financially handcuffed thanks to the money being spent on management and players: "Looking at the grand scheme of things and the results so far this season, this might be one of the most over-paid, under-performing group of players in the league since the inception of the salary cap." [Canes Country]

• Your guide to picking at the Hurricanes' carcass this season. [Silver Sevens]

• THN editor Jason Kay sings the praises of Martin Brodeur(notes), and when you compare his consistency with that of other NHL peers it's difficult not to. [Hockey News]

• Gary Bettman and Bill Daly will meet with City of Glendale officials on Monday as the slow process of altering the Phoenix Coyotes' lease and finding a buyer gains steam. [CP]

• "No, seriously, what's it like? Does the air smell differently? Can you, like, see over mountains and stuff?" [Getty]

• It would appear that Semyon Varlamov(notes) will get the start for the Washington Capitals against the Minnesota Wild tonight, after winning in relief of Jose Theodore(notes) earlier in the week. Alex Ovechkin(notes), however, appears out again. [Capitals Insider]

• The Pittsburgh Penguins will be without Brooks Orpik(notes) for about two weeks. [TSN]

• BREAKING: The Toronto Maple Leafs don't get recognized in Chicago. [Cox]

• Do the constant line-change mind games on home ice wear down players, making it easier to play in the road instead? [Puck Update]

• How do you spell Vezina Trophy?  Josh spells it V-o-k-o-u-n. [Josh Q. Public]

• Totally agree with this: It's damn impressive Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) bounced back from injury that quickly. It's what leaders do. [Sports Climax]

• Part Two of OGA's "Maurice Richard and the Myth of 50 in 50," for you stat-heads. [OGA]

• Finally, Jack Edwards has no idea how underwhelming this fight was. Because he's Jack Edwards:

It's not strange to witness political summits in Washington, D.C., and there was another one on Wednesday night when NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and KHL President Alexander Medvedev discussed the complicated and often bitter relationship between the two professional leagues.

The duo and NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly also watched the Washington Capitals' game against the New York Islanders together.

I spoke with Bettman before and after the meeting, and with Medvedev after the meeting, which he had requested. The topics ranged from player transfer agreements to potential superstar defections to whether Alex Ovechkin(notes) and the Capitals will play in Russia against KHL clubs. Plus, an interesting conversation about Russians owning NHL teams.

First, here's Bettman prior to their meeting:

Q. How would you characterize the relationship between the KHL and the NHL?

BETTMAN: I think on a personal and professional level it's open and cordial. But we, for a variety of reasons, haven't been able to come to common ground on some fundamental issues.

How important is it to come to an agreement in light of player contract issues?

I think it starts with player contract issues. I think that if we're going to look forward and look for ways to cooperate, the KHL and the Russian Hockey Federation, from our standpoint, are going to need to respect our valid contracts. That's something to date hasn't happened, starting back to the Radulov contract.

Alexander Medvedev said it's a two way street, and there have been some contract [issues with] their players.

The KHL has alleged that repeatedly. In no instances the IIHF or the courts have found that to be the case. The fact is that we do respect contracts, and have done so consistently. And the KHL has not.

Mr. Medvedev also discussed owning an NHL team. Have you discussed it with him? He said he had expressed that interest to you, but he hasn't had a response from you.

He's never expressed that interest to me. I'd be interested to hear it directly.

How would you view a Russian [owning a team]?

I don't think a person's nationality, who seeks to be a perspective owner, is the issue. It's whether or not the person, when you do all the due diligence, see the financial resources, and the owners, because it's the owners' decision, determine whether or not the person would be a suitable partner. But it has nothing to do with country of origin.

KHL hasn't landed yet a superstar player. They obviously have their sight set on one. Do you see them as a competition for certain players, certainly Russian?

I think the best players in the world play and will continue to seek playing in the National Hockey League. We wish the KHL good luck. And I know they are going to work very hard to try and establish their league and bring it to the highest level that it can achieve. But the final analysis is that the best players will continue to play in the NHL.

You have mentioned that the IIHF hasn't found any wrongdoing when it comes to players with KHL contracts coming to the NHL, but the NHL is not part of the IIHF, and the KHL is. You can understand the Russians when they say that the IIHF's decisions are only binding on them and not the NHL. Do you see the transfer agreement being the issue just between the NHL and the KHL and maybe leave the IIHF out of it altogether?

I think it's an issue that goes to the respect of contracts. The KHL has acknowledged to us, for example, that the Radulov contract was valid. But nevertheless they allowed him to play. That's not something that we would do.

Now, here is what Medvedev had to say about his meeting with Bettman:

Q. You asked for the meeting with Gary Bettman yourself. How did it go?

MEDVEDEV: We already had a trip planned to North America on business. We decided to use this opportunity. I am very happy that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and his assistant Bill Daly accepted our proposal for a meeting. We had a very constructive meeting. Its main result, if you use political terms, is that we decided to, as they say in English, reset and upgrade our relationships and to try and bring them to a new level.

There will be a compact working group created for this purpose. It will analyze all of the problems that have been accumulated, and will try to identify possible solutions to the key questions. That includes transfer of players of different categories between the leagues. We also talked about tournaments involving national teams and clubs. I think that a certain progress in our relationships is now visible. There signs pointing to that, although I don't want to be overly optimistic.

When is the next round of these talks scheduled?

Let the experts work for a while and create a menu for us. And from it we will pick what will turn out to be acceptable for everyone.

Is it a reality now that the Washington Capitals, for example, will travel to Russia now and will have a series of games against KHL clubs?

We talked about this topic as well. This is because the owner of the Capitals Ted Leonsis is interested in such a trip. And Bettman's position is that if this progress in our relationships remains, nothing will be an obstacle for games between KHL and NHL clubs. I hope we will overcome our differences.

Salavat Yulaef's GM Oleg Gross in his interview to Sovetsky Sport said that his club had an opportunity to invite Sergei Kostitsyn(notes), but the club decided to decline it as it would harm the relationship between the NHL and the IIHF. Is this the result of a new policy by the KHL targeting friendship with the NHL?

We haven't changed out position. Our mutual opinion is that we should talk more and reach a compromise. As I mentioned, we should reset our relationship and take it to a new level.

I know that the day before the game against the Islanders, you met with the Russian Capitals...

Yes, we had a meeting and spoke with Ovechkin, Semin and Varlamov. And this is the result that you see [Varlamov was in goal playing well and Semin scored the fastest goal of his career]. I really liked the game. It was very lively.

Finally, here is Gary Bettman once again, with his reactions to the meeting:

Q. Could you tell me about your meeting with Mr. Medvedev - how it went and if you accomplished anything?

BETTMAN: It was good to see Mr. Medvedev again. We had a cordial, constructive meeting. And we're going to look to see if we can sort of re-set the dial and look for the ways to work together on matters of common interest.

Is there a timeline?

We didn't set a specific timeline.

After you find some common ground, would it be possible to see an NHL team, like the Capitals for example, in Russia?

Well, when people and organizations work together, I suppose anything is possible.

You asked earlier about Mr. Medvedev owning an NHL franchise. I misunderstood the question. There was a general expression of interest. But I thought you were referring to a specific franchise. There was never a discussion of a specific franchise. Their questioning and their expression of interest was a general one.

There's never been a better time to make a pitch for one of the Big 3 in your keeper league. Alex Ovechkin(notes) and Evgeni Malkin(notes) are on the shelf for the first lengthy time of their careers and Sidney Crosby(notes) has gone five games without a point -- also a first. The last time their value was this low, Puck Daddy was just a twinkle in Greg Wyshynski's eye.

Injury replacement of the week: Andrew Ebbett(notes), Chicago

It's extremely hard to get into the top six in Chicago if you're a bubble player. Even getting onto the third line, which is fairly productive for this team compared to other teams, is no easy task. With Dave Bolland(notes) now on the shelf for what should be months, the Blackhawks are doing some shuffling around. Right now, this includes putting Kris Versteeg(notes) at center and moving Ebbett up to Patrick Kane's(notes) line. Cha-ching!

Are you drunk?

Nope, I'm serious. Well, 10 beers. But I'm still serious. Last season when Teemu Selanne(notes) went down, Ebbett came in and posted nearly a point per game for several weeks. Here is a second "Selanne" opportunity.

The Keepers

Paul Stastny(notes), Colorado Avalanche: Although it seems as though he is on every Colorado goal these days, statistically it is only about one in three. It's hard to believe that Stastny is still only 23, given the fact that his last two seasons have been virtual write-offs due to injury. Let's hope that the bad luck is behind him and he tops 80 points for the first time.

Loui Eriksson(notes), Dallas Stars: He'll be a regular in the 70-point club. It may not happen this year, (although it certainly looks promising at the moment), but the 24-year-old Swede will get there. He's making Stars fans forget all about that other 24-year-old Swede on the team who received a hell of a lot more hype 18 months ago.

Ryan Miller(notes), Buffalo Sabres:  Coming off of what was his best season statistically, Miller is topping those numbers. Health permitting, he'll get in 70 games and with Buffalo actually winning some now, he'll garner 42 Ws. Looking at the numbers of Buffalo's No.2 and No.3 guys, you can bet they pulled all the strings they could to ensure that Miller got his H1N1 shot.

Drew Doughty(notes), Los Angeles Kings: He's arrived early. Doughty didn't take his time getting to be a solid point producer, like Chris Pronger(notes) did. No, at 20 he'll get at least 49 points, like Dion Phaneuf(notes) did. The key lies in the team around him. Los Angeles, as a club, has come into their own and Doughty is picking up an assist on everything they do. In fact, NHL statisticians just awarded him with an assist because "Los Angeles" was mentioned three times in a Doughty-related paragraph.

The Sleepers

David Clarkson(notes), New Jersey Devils: It was an interesting offseason for David. The trade from St. Louis to New Jersey was underreported, as was his name change from "Backes" to "Clarkson". In all seriousness, Clarkson's 65-point, 150-PIM pace is where we all expected Backes, who is just 31 days younger, to be at. He's being used on the power play and, while he should slow down a bit, his production is for real - think 50 points for this season.

Tomas Fleischmann(notes), Washington Capitals: My favorite dark horse from the summer is back in the lineup and is lighting it up to the tune of more than a point per game. If he can steer clear of the weird injuries/ailments (blood clot?), we're golden.

Alex Tanguay(notes), Tampa Bay Lightning: Poolies have stopped bailing on this guy, although they may still have a low opinion of him. After he posted just two points in nine games, most of which were played on a line with Vincent Lecavalier(notes), fantasy owners were giving up on him faster than Ken Hitchcock can sit Nikita Filatov(notes). With seven points in his last six, Tanguay is back on track and is now rewarding the fantasy owners who were patient. Both of them.

Jarret Stoll(notes), Los Angeles Kings: Stoll has eight points in his last eight contests and is on pace for 63, the second highest of his career. Looking at this kind of production, I think he should have sent Rachel Hunter that email sooner...

Bench 'em or Drop 'em

Paul Kariya(notes), St. Louis Blues: I have a lot of difficulty wrapping my head around Paul Kariya being washed up at 35. Especially when he had 15 points in 11 games a year ago and kicked off this campaign with seven in his first eight. But Coach Andy Murray is struggling to generate offense and taking a two-time 100-point player off the power play is the obvious way to go. Wouldn't you do the same? It is what it is, though -- Kariya is not on the PP and he is pointless in eight. Bench him.

Michael Ryder(notes), Boston Bruins: Montreal's favorite son proved to Habs fans last year that he's not done. This year, it's another story and it's clear that he struggles without an elite set-up man as his centerman. With Marc Savard(notes) on the shelf for a couple of weeks yet, don't expect any hat tricks from Mr. Ryder. Bench him.

Radim Vrbata(notes), Phoenix Coyotes: After he tallied four points in his first two games I was thrilled. It's one of those situations where you have a hunch on a player and you steal him late in a draft and he pays off big. I was so proud that you could have mistaken me for the Staal parents. After all - I took him in not one, but two drafts very late. With his three points in 15 games since... I feel as deflated as Pavel Brendl's parents. Needless to say, he's off my team now. Drop him.

Matt Stajan(notes), Toronto Maple Leafs: Stajan followed up a breakout season with a strong exhibition run and then seven points in eight games to start 2009-10. Now he's playing with Wayne Primeau(notes) and Colton Orr(notes) and has just one point in eight. If he were any more physical, he'd be playing with Phil Kessel(notes). But he plays about as tough as Sean Avery(notes) does when Phaneuf is around. A change of scenery would be best. Drop him.

Darryl Dobbs is the founder of dobberhockey.com, a fantasy hockey community with over a dozen columnists, a daily blog and in-depth fantasy player rankings. His always accurate opinions can also be found over at The Hockey News in their fantasy section.

He'll have that plus news on Peter Forsberg(notes), Michael Nylander(notes), the mess that is the Carolina Hurricanes and other points of scuttlebutt and innuendo in our rumors chat.

Please do join us along with Lyle "Spector" Richardson of Fox Sports and hopefully David "Dave" Pagnotta of The Fourth Period for a special Thursday edition of our live chat at 1 p.m. EST. Bring your questions, bring your speculation and, above all, bring the funny. We'll supply the cynical answers and abrupt shifts in tone.

The Russian sniper didn't wait long to open the scoring at Verizon Center by scoring eight seconds into Washington's game against the New York Islanders.  Semin would later tie the game at three in the second period and then scored Washington's first goal in the shootout en route to the 5-4 win. Semin also led all players with 11 shots on goal.

No. 2 Star: Ryan Miller(notes), Buffalo Sabres

The possible No. 1 goaltender for the United States heading into the Vancouver Olympics stopped 28 Edmonton shots in a 3-1 win for the NHL's second-ranked defense. After Clarke MacArthur's(notes) game-misconduct for his hit on Liam Reddox(notes) of the Oilers, the Sabres managed to kill off a five-minute power play, allowing just two shots and blocking two others to preserve the victory. Miller recorded his 10th win of the season and lowered his league-leading goals-against average to 1.82.

No. 3 Star: Niklas Kronwall(notes), Detroit Red Wings

Kronwall made Columbus pay twice on the power play as the Red Wings rolled to a 9-1 win over the Blue Jackets. Making the most of its power-play opportunities, Detroit romped thanks to a pair from Kronwall to improve to 5-1-1 in its past seven games. The win was a measure of revenge against Columbus, which embarrassed the Red Wings 8-2 last season before Detroit swept the Blue Jackets in the opening round of the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Honorable Mention: Tuomo Ruutu(notes) supplied all the offense for Carolina with two goals in its 5-2 loss to Los Angeles ... Anze Kopitar's(notes) two assists increased his league-leading point total to 30, seven ahead of Alex Ovechkin(notes) ... Semyon Varlamov(notes) was fantastic in relief of Jose Theodore(notes), stopping 24 of 25 shots he faced in regulation and overtime and then 10 of 11 in the shootout ... Despite the shootout loss, Dwayne Roloson(notes) did his best to keep the Islanders in the game with Washington, ending up with 37 saves for the second straight game at Verizon Center ... Tim Connolly(notes) had a hand in two of Buffalo's three goals, including Steve Montador's(notes) game-winner in the second period ... Also netting two goals for the Red Wings was the "Afrogator" himself, Justin  Abdelkader. Detroit's rout also saw every skater end the game as a plus and Jimmy Howard(notes) record his second win of the season ... Ken Hitchcock would have liked to have seen a better performance out of his team as he coached his 1,000th game in the NHL ... Martin Brodeur(notes) allowed just one goal and made 31 saves in New Jersey's 3-1 win over the visiting Anaheim Ducks ... Jamie Langenbrunner(notes) played his 900th game in the win ... Colorado's Craig Anderson(notes) made 37 saves, including four in overtime, but couldn't stop Chicago's Patrick Sharp(notes) in the shootout as the Blackhawks prevailed 3-2. 

Did You Know?: The Oilers are now 1-7 when they fail to score first.

Dishonorable Mention: Columbus' Steve Mason(notes) had a forgettable night, letting in three goals in the game's first 7:32 before being pulled for Mathieu Garon(notes). Hitchcock decided to put the reigning Calder Trophy winner back in goal at the start of the second period and watched him allow five more goals ... Manny Legace(notes) made 26 saves in his debut for Carolina, but also allowed five goals to extend the Hurricanes' winless streak to 13 games ... Carolina's offense went missing during an 18-minute span when the 'Canes went without a shot on goal ... Jose Theodore was chased early by the Islanders, allowing three goals on five shots in the opening 6:54 of the first period ... When it comes to power plays, Anaheim (0-for-6) and Edmonton (1-for-7) wish they could have cashed in on some valuable time with the extra skater ... The Avalanche had no luck in the face-off dot, winning just 19 of 54 draws.

• Remember: Rumors Chat Thursday.

• Big news from the GM meetings today: There will be some sort of new NHL rule regarding hits to the head. A committee will be formed, a report will be given in March and the consensus is that there will be some sort of penalty for things like blindside hits to the head. Again, the vibe isn't that there will be the kind of outright "ban" that we've seen at other levels, although that's on the table. But there's going to be something added to the rulebooks. [Globe & Mail]

• Rich Chere of the Star Ledger talks with Anaheim Ducks defenseman Scott Niedermayer(notes) who tells him that a trade from Anaheim this season is "a possibility" and that he doesn't have a no-movement clause. Wonder where Nieds would be headed if the Ducks are still struggling in 2010. Say, where is his brother playing these days? [Newark Star Ledger]

• Elliotte Friedman has the latest on agent Allan Walsh's Twitter-promotion of client Jaroslav Halak(notes) and ruffling of Montreal feathers. Montreal Canadiens GM Bob Gainey thought Walsh's actions were a 'My dad is bigger than your dad,' kind of thing." Paging Dr. Freud. [CBC Sports]

• The city of Pittsburgh has its own cereal. Clearly, there's only one man worthy enough to grace the cover of the box: Max Talbot(notes), superstar. [Pensburgh]

• Neate Sager probably isn't going to make any friends with the Ottawa Senators (or in the Ottawa media) for this blistering dose of reality about the franchise's attendance issues and fan support this season: "Ottawa is like a city composed of insecure teenage girls. The analogy fits Toronto, too, except in T.O. the creature has sharper claws. If Toronto is the character Rachel McAdams played in Mean Girls, Ottawa is the one played by Lacey Chabert. Fitting in and doing whatever is popular at that moment is everything, because they know they can be cast out and won't be missed." It's a must-read. [Out Of Left Field, via On The Forecheck]

• It's Remembrance Day and Veteran's Day today, and Chemmy had an outstanding post on Pension Plan Puppets about Don Cherry's consistent commitment to the troops. Thank a vet today, will ya? [PPP]

• Darcy Tucker(notes) is due back for the Colorado Avalanche against the Chicago Blackhawks tonight. [CBC Sports]

• Michael Farber's annual list of underappreciated hockey people is always an interesting, random assortment. Among the folks making the cut this year: Pittsburgh Penguins broadcasters Paul Steigerwald and Bob Errey. [SI]

• Peter Forsberg(notes) and Chris Chelios(notes) were hot topics of conversation at the GM meetings, with the Phoenix Coyotes interested in bringing Cheli to the desert, where he will actually bring the average age of Arizona residents down we imagine. [Sun Media]

• Did you know the dude who played Rangers mascot Bobby Granger on MSG Network was a pro wrestler? [Indy Wrestling News]

• There's no surprising Lou Lamoriello. He knows all. [NorthJersey.com]

• Fabian Brunnstrom(notes) is out for a game after injuring his shoulder in practice. [ESPN Dallas]

• Mike Danton's father talks about what he expects from tonight's "untold story" interview on Sportsnet. [Sun Media]

• The Colorado Avalanche's third jersey will be officially unveiled on Thursday, and ... well, we'll reserve judgment on these until they're official. What you see above is a screen grab from Chris Creamer's logos site (via UniWatch) that leaks the Florida Panthers' third jersey logo and color. So ... Wild third jersey, take three? Chris from Icethetics wonders where the whiskers went. [Icethetics]

• Ken Campbell on a meeting between Gary Bettman and the KHL's president, and how relations between the leagues probably aren't getting any better in the near future. [THN]

• The Washington Capitals report that TMZ has discovered Alex Ovechkin(notes). We're about one tabloid click away from Perez Hilton drawing white dots on Ovi's face, aren't we? [Capitals]

• Every blog needs to do this: Stanley Cup of Chowder presents hidden gems from the Boston Bruins media guide. "Andrew Bodnarchuk's biggest fear/phobia is the "the feel of cotton balls." [SCOC]

• Mike Komisarek(notes) is still missing from Leafs practice. [Leafs]

• The Detroit Red Wings add a Spartan, claim Drew Miller(notes) off of waivers from the Tampa Bay Lightning. [Lightning Strikes]

• Steve McIntyre was placed on entry waivers, with the aim of sending him to Rochester for the Florida Panthers. [On Frozen Pond]

• Finally, it was a four-fight card last night between the Vancouver Canucks and the St. Louis Blues. Here's Tanner Glass(notes) and Cam Janssen(notes) in a spirited affair. [Hockey Fights]

Puck Buddy Peter W. sent over this inexcusable Boston Bruins Foul:

Saw this guy outside TD Garden after the Bruins-Oilers game on Halloween. It's certainly in the spirit of the "Broduer" jersey from the last installment, but there is one important thing that you can't see in the photo: IT'S SIGNED BY CAM NEELY!

My friend wondered if Cam autographed it correctly, or just went with the way the jersey had his name. Someone needs to have and intervention with this guy.

Well, an intervention or a slight reeducation courtesy of Sea Bass.

Let's assume this isn't an egregious misspelling but rather some cutesy play on words. ("Hey, my name is Neil and I love Cam Neely, so ...") Even then, it's still a Foul, because it opens the kind of Pandora's Box that eventually leads to the guy from the Black-Eyed Peas wearing a Ted Will.I.Ams Red Sox jersey.

Meanwhile in the capital of both the United States and hockey sweater fouls, 'Yoshietree' captured one of the most exceptional hockey fashion statements we've seen since the infamous Florida Panthers gown: It's the Alex Ovechkin(notes) sport jacket jersey.

Yoshietree rhetorically asked if this was a Foul, and answered: "I don't think so ... this takes 'class' to a new level."

We agree. In fact, we'd have a lot less angst towards the suits in the lower bowl if they were all wearing suits like these to their respective arenas. 

(Coming Up: Swine Flu Fouls; Mocking and/or honoring the Maple Leafs; the Devils remember Scott Gomez(notes); the Kings have Cup Fever; worshiping at the altar of Patrick Kane(notes); and a Bobby Orr Foul that might be a Hall of Fame candidate.)

And here ... we ... go.

TOO SOON!

There's actually been some debate around Puck Daddy HQ (thanks to Japers) as to whether an old Iowa Chops (R.I.P.) jersey with "H1" as the name and "N1" as the number would have been a Foul.

This is probably as close as we'll get, courtesy of Puck Buddy Steve Z., who snapped the image at a Rockford Icehogs (AHL affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks) game.

Incidentally, No. 13 on the Hogs is defenseman David Phillips, and looking at the dude we think "Aiken" might be more appropriate on the nameplate.

The Vincent Lecavalier(notes) Montreal Canadiens jersey isn't anything too out of the ordinary, as merchants were selling them during the Trade Vinny fervor of last season. But Nerrissa B.'s breakdown of the Foul is an important one to remember, going forward:

A Montreal Canadiens Lecavalier jersey. Maybe he was hoping for the trade? Even so, Lecavalier wouldn't be able to wear the number 4 in a Habs jersey considering it's a retired number.

Is the "04" a weak attempt to get around the fact that Jean Beliveau is wearing future Habs captain Vincent Lecavalier's number?

No.

Dear god, no.

Puck Buddy Mike Geiler explains:

I was watching Sharks at Islanders tonight on GameCenter Live, and this had me so fuming mad that I had to take a picture, even if its of my computer screen.  During the stoppage of play with about 4 minutes left in the 2nd period, the glass needed fixing.  The camera caught all of 2 seconds of what appeared to be maybe the saddest jersey foul I've ever seen or heard of. An Islanders No. 4 jersey with the name Orr. This is a disgrace to the best player to ever lace up skates. Even if the wearer is named Orr, no deal.  What if someone named Lemieux was a fan of the Kings and decided that he just had to have a personalized No. 66?  Uncool. Your thoughts?

We'll get back to you when we're finished questioning our faith in humanity.

Gregg M. decided to have some fun when the Toronto Maple Leafs made their rare appearance in Vancouver last month:

So.... being a good Canucks fan I decided to dress up as a "typical" Leafs fan for the game against the Canucks here in Vancouver on Saturday.

Ran into these guys (right) and thought they were doing the same thing (making fun of the Leafs) but they were ACTUAL LEAF FANS. They're smiling because they haven't yet realized I'm laughing AT them and not WITH them.

Indeed. He also said that some "Maple Leafs-loving losers" insisted on "trying to tell the Canucks fans leaving the building how great Doug Gilmour was" after the game.

No word if Canucks fans hit back by talking about how many Cups they've won since 1967. Or if they just hit back with a bottle.

Speaking of the Leafs, we can't quite figure out if this image from 'RunningLucky' is a Protest Jersey or a sweater mocking the Leafs or some weird combination of a Brian Burke fan and a self-loathing Leafs fan (we know: redundant).

He explains:

Check out this jersey foul I spotted at the Buffalo-Toronto game on Friday night. It felt good being one of the nearly 50 percent Leaf fans at HSBC until seeing this garbage. Hopefully it's not to tough to read, but it says "Burke 67" in duct tape.

So his call is that it mocked Toronto, which it probably did. Still, why wear a Leafs jersey to a Sabres home game in which Buffalo needs as many of its own sweaters in the crowd as it can muster?

Puck Buddy Kyle E's note attached to the following Los Angeles Kings Foul:

"This says cup fever."

For a franchise that's barely had Cup sniffles.

Puck Buddy 'jprock' caught this at a New Jersey Devils home game:

You raised the question "What do you do with a player's jersey once he is no longer with a team?". Here's one persons response that I viewed at a game at The Rock.

Maybe when Scott Gomez was on the Rangers after leaving the Devils, this Protest Jersey has some validity. Now, after the contract was a bust and he's with the Habs? Not so much.

This Blackhawks Foul is a little tough to see, so we turn the mic over to Jessie D.:

"It's a Blackhawks 88 white jersey, the name bar says 'Lord'. Even if his last name is Lord, everyone is going to think he's calling 20 Cents Jesus."

Good to see 'Hawks are still keeping things in perspective.

And finally ...

Puck Buddy Scott M. wonders: "Sharks fan 'jersey' response to everyone's opinion on their early playoff exits?"

Or, perhaps, the first glimpse of the best-selling Russian player jersey in the history of mankind ...

Remember: Jersey Fouls Wednesday. Rumors Chat Thursday. Rinse, repeat.

• Tantalizing Tweets from Bob McKenzie of TSN: The Panthers claim Steve MacIntyre(notes) from Edmonton on waivers; Drew Miller(notes) of the Tampa Bay Lightning is on waivers; Adam Mair(notes) inexplicably clears waivers; and Michael Nylander(notes) of the Washington Capitals appears closer than ever to bolting for Russia and helping to end the misery for both he and the Caps. [@TSNBobMcKenzie; update via Corey Masisak from the Washington Times: Caps don't expect anything certain today.]

• No slap shots, no wrist shots, but Alex Ovechkin(notes) reports he's practicing without pain. Unless, of course, he's joking. One can never be too sure, going forward. [Capitals Insider]

• Also on the injured Russian superstar front: Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) is practicing with the Atlanta Thrashers. [AJC, via Puck Buddy Stefan]

• The Minnesota Wild have their share of problems, and surprisingly one of them is named Martin Havlat(notes). From Hockey Wilderness: "Factored over an 80 game schedule (since that's the maximum number of games Havlat can play this year) Havlat is set to score almost six goals this year (5.71 and change). Points-wise, he's due to score 40 points. How does 5 goals and 35 assists sit with you when you're paying $5 million dollars for it?" Be sure to check a certain Twitter account for potential rebuttal. [Hockey Wilderness]

• It's official: Soon-to-be-former MLBPA executive Donald Fehr will advise the NHLPA on selecting new leadership. Thank goodness he never presided over a devastating strike in baseball. Wait, what? [THN]

• Nobody puts Giggy in a corner. Of the bench. [LA Daily News]

• Fun project from Daily Faceoff: Assembling teams of current players from each region of Canada, and deciding which all-star team is the best. Sidney Crosby(notes) would probably request a trade from the Maritimes if he saw this roster. [Daily Faceoff]

• Speaking of the Pittsburgh Penguins captain, our friends at The Pensblog have decided the best way to battle those who mock Crosby as being immature and unsportsmanlike is with a Photoshop expo of images featuring Sidney urinating on various people, places and things. (We naturally encourage the Puck Daddy artistic community to take part in this endeavor. It's already a fun one, based on the banner.) [Pensblog]

• William Houston on how Nick Kypreos landed one of the biggest interview "gets" in recent hockey journalism history: Mike Danton. [Truth & Rumours]

• Ville Koistinen(notes), Scott Clemmensen(notes) ... Florida Panthers Coach Pete DeBoer has the ill communication. [Litter Box Cats]

• Nice piece on Jacques Lemaire's quiet success with the New Jersey Devils this season ... but "abundance of talent?" Have they looked at the defense and the lines below No. 2 on this team? [Pioneer Press]

• The winds of change are starting to blow for the St. Louis Blues, as Andy Murray enters what one columnist feels could be a job-saving stretch. [Dispatch]

• The Rick Tocchet/Vincent Lecavalier(notes) philosophical showdown with the Tampa Bay Lightning: "I think that Tocchet is trying to force a round peg thru a square hole. That is, he's trying to force Lecavalier to become the player Tocchet wants him to be in order to fit into Tocchet's idealized style of hockey." [Raw Charge]

• Eric Duhatschek catches up with Wayne Gretzky at the Hall of Fame and The Great One is his usual gracious, respectful, non-controversial self; although he does say hockey isn't a part of his life right now, which is sad. [Globe & Mail]

• On Veterans Day, the Chicago Blackhawks join the ranks of NHL teams wearing special camouflage jerseys during warm-ups in order to later auction them off. Exempt from wearing camouflage: Tomas Kopecky(notes), who's already been invisible all season. [Blackhawks, via UniWatch]

• Roberto Luongo(notes) could be back tonight against the St. Louis Blues; Daniel Sedin(notes) is likely a game away from his return after a broken foot. Everything is progressing exactly as we have foreseen it. Our Stanley Cup prediction is mere months from coming to pass. MWAHAHAHAH! [Sun Media]

• Mirtle takes a gander at the number of European goalies that are playing prominent roles on their teams this season, and whether The Monster's journey to the NHL for the Toronto Maple Leafs will become the norm. [From The Rink]

• More about The Monster. [Sports and the City]

• "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" is coming to the Carolina Hurricanes game on Nov. 13. No word if General Grievous might be available in goal. [Hurricanes]

• Penner envy ... tee-hee. [CBC Sports]

• The Hartford Wolf Pack have suspended forward Tyler Arnason(notes) and put him on waivers after he signed a contract with Dinamo Riga overseas. Impossible as it may sound, flags in Denver as actually flying above full staff in remembrance. [Wolf Pack]

• Things the Kurtenbloggers thought they knew about Olympic hockey. [KB]

• Finally, the top 10 moments from last night's Hall of Fame inductees, via TSN and DayWalk3r:

No. 1 star: Troy Brouwer(notes), Chicago Blackhawks

Only one game on the NHL docket, so the top star was an easy choice: Brouwer had the primary helper on goals by John Madden(notes) and a returning Jonathan Toews(notes), sandwiched around a perfect tip-in goal on the power play past Jon Quick(notes) (check the highlights here) in Chicago's 4-1 win over the visiting Los Angeles Kings. It was Brouwer's first multi-point game of the season and first three-point night since Dec. 16, 2008.

No. 2 star: Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

The captain returns after missing six games with a concussion, and a power play that was on a 3-for-33 skid comes to life with 2-for-3 effort. Toews had a power-play goal and was on the ice for Brouwer's as well.

No. 3 star: Anze Kopitar(notes), Los Angeles Kings

Kopitar's goal was his 14th of the season, tying him with Alex Ovechkin(notes) for the NHL lead. He collected a rebound in front of Cristobal Huet(notes) (17 saves).

Honorable mention: Andrew Ebbett's(notes) funky first goal off the face not withstanding, the honor goes to the men who achieved immortality at the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday night. Here are the acceptance speeches for Steve Yzerman, Luc Robitaille, Brian Leetch, Lou Lamoriello and especially Brett Hull, in a wonderful moment presented here:

Did you know? The Blackhawks now have a 73-72-21 lead in the all-time series against the Kings. (AP)

Dishonorable mention: The Kings were outshot 10-2 in the third period. ... Jon Quick let a softy in for Madden's opening goal; never a good thing for a road team.

Three quick notes: Our End of Decade series continues Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. If you missed last weekend's 10 Most Brutal Injuries, check out it. Also: Jersey Fouls on Wednesday and our rumors chat will be held on Thursday this week.

• Bob McKenzie of TSN with waivers news: "Edmonton puts Steve MacIntyre(notes) on waivers. Buffalo puts Adam Mair(notes) on waivers. Washington's Michael Nylander(notes) clears" waivers. MacIntyre has played five minutes in four games. Mair's been a model citizen but a healthy scratch this season. He can help someone. Nylander ... sheesh, what a mess. [@TSNBobMcKenzie]

• Video of Alex Ovechkin(notes) skating, shooting, not telling the media he'll be out a month and forcing his team to correct their own player's statement. Russia's leading comedian now says he'll miss a week. [Capitals Insider]

• Your Three Stars for last week in the NHL: Jarome Iginla(notes) of the Calgary Flames; Evgeni Nabokov(notes) of the San Jose Sharks; Chris Pronger(notes) of the Philadelphia Flyers. [NHL]

• Center Jonathan Toews(notes) and left wing Ben Eager(notes) are expected back for the Chicago Blackhawks tonight against the Los Angeles Kings. Toews missed six games with a concussion, during which he got dumber. Getting the captain back on the 3-for-35 power play will certainly be a welcome development for the Hawks. [Daily Herald]

• It's Hall of Fame induction day in Toronto, as Steve Yzerman, Luc Robitaille, Brian Leetch, Brett Hull and Lou Lamoriello get their rings. More on the HOF later today. [Y! Sports]

• With the 2009 class ready for induction, attention naturally turns to the Hall of Fame Class of 2010, featuring Joe Nieuwendyk(notes) (shoo-in), John LeClair(notes), Peter Bondra(notes), Pierre Turgeon(notes) and Theo Fleury(notes), as well as holdovers like Dave Andreychuk, Dino Ciccarelli, Doug Gilmour and Pavel Bure. Oh, and some gentleman named Eric Lindros(notes), who Mike Zeisberger writes will be the most hotly debated candidate in recent memory. [Sun Media]

• Scott Clemmensen(notes) decides the best thing to do when the Florida Panthers are struggling is to throw his teammates under the bus. Coach Peter DeBoer: "I understand where a goaltender who has let in [12] goals in his last two starts would be frustrated, but it's misdirected." [Sun Sentinel]

• With Cam Ward(notes) out at least a month with that lacerated leg, the Carolina Hurricanes turn to veteran goalie Manny Legace(notes) with a one-year contract. Smart move for the Canes, especially considering that Sarah Palin isn't scheduled to visit North Carolina for quite some time. [CP]

• David Krejci(notes) could be back for the Boston Bruins against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday after suffering through H1N1. [Bruins Blog]

• Why does Penguins co-owner Ron Burkle need a $56 million loan? [LA Weekly]

• Wait, so you're telling us that Phil Kessel(notes) hasn't walked on water or cured any lepers yet? Curious. [Toronto Sports Media Blog]

• Should Ottawa fans feel shame for not supporting a minor league game in their arena over the weekend? [Off the Posts]

• Martin Biron(notes) vs. Dwayne Roloson(notes)! May the best goalie whose trade value hopefully rises to the point where the New York Islanders turn them into another asset win! [Lighthouse Hockey]

• BD Gallof with sad news about the end of Radek Martinek's(notes) season and some Lighthouse Project tidbits. [Islanders Independent]

• Stormtroopers ... Darth Vader ... Chewbacca ... Milan Lucic(notes) ... this thing is a pepperoni pizza, a glass of scotch and a Scarlett Johansson away from our wildest dreams being fulfilled. [Bruins, via Puck Buddy Jeff Israel]

• We Hate It When Friends Fight, Part One: David Staples going after Adrian Dater's Twitter claim that Edmonton is a "dog team" by saying that Denver is "America's version of Calgary." [Avs Talk]

• We Hate It When Friends Fight, Part Two: George James Malik got sarcastic and bitter after his Detroit Red Wings lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Pension Plan Puppets said "right back atcha" with a scathing response. [PPP]

• Giggy to the Leafs? The OC Register hears things. [OC Register]

• Roberto Luongo(notes) will be out a wee bit longer thanks to the flu. [Sun]

• UConn has a third jersey that's spiffy. [UConn]

• Interesting piece on contraction by Mike Chen: "The only reasonable argument for contraction is because the economics of the league can't support 30 teams, not because of talent. However, history has shown us time and again that teams can be successful in non-traditional locations if they've got strong ownership, they're managed well, they're coached well, and they draft well." [Chen]

• Elliotte Friedman on the Allan Walsh/Canadiens goaltending Twitter flap. [CBC Sports]

• Speaking of Twitter, the big news from the weekend. [@wyshynski]

• Finally, via FanHouse, the Max Talbot(notes) Superstar commercial series continues to amuse and bewilder:

Injured Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin(notes) was watching Saturday's game against the Florida Panthers with Mike Green(notes) (also injured) in one of the rooms of the Verizon Center the press box.

He later met with some young fans outside of the locker room to sign some autographs. That's when I got the chance to ask him a few questions about his "upper body injury" and his journey back from it.

Keep in mind Ovechkin didn't indicate if the following "diagnosis" was from team doctors or his own evaluation.

Q. You're in good mood. Are you getting better?

OVECHKIN: I am better. But I will miss 4-5 weeks.

Are you serious?

I actually plan on starting practice on the ice next week.

I know that you did skate already.

Yes, but after I did that the doctors told me not to do that yet. And not to have a stick in my hands.

How do you feel about this all?

I think that it shouldn't be rushed. November has just begun. I need to heal up 100 percent and then play. There is no need to risk right now.

What's it like to watch the Capitals from the sidelines?

Of course it's tough. I want to be in the game. But there is nothing I can do.

Not long ago the Russian National team coach called you. To wish you well?

Yes, Vyacheslav Bykov called to ask how things were. But actually our conversation was right before the game against Columbus when I got injured...

Really? Maybe Bykov shouldn't call you anymore?

It's just a coincidence. Let him call me more often! It's great to know that national team coaches follow you. Once again, I was included in the list of 50 candidates for the Olympics, and a big thanks for that.

I met your friends outside who came over from Moscow to visit you...

They thought they'd see me play. And they see me amongst the injured. So they will have no hockey, but just a vacation in America. It's not that bad too, don't you agree?

This interview also ran on SovSport.ru this afternoon.

The Sharks netminder was solid against the defending champions making 27 saves for his 49th career NHL shutout during a 5-0 San Jose victory. After facing just three shots in the first period, the Penguins tested Nabokov with 24 shots in the final two periods. Having taken a 4-0 lead early in the second period, Nabokov fought off a desperate Penguins team trying to break the shutout.

No. 2 star: Antero Niittymaki(notes), Tampa Bay Lightning

Another game, another solid effort by Niittymaki. His 36 saves silenced the Montreal crowd as the Lightning ended a four-game road trip with a 3-1 win. Niittymaki has now won two of his last three starts and lowered his goals-against average to 1.90 and improved his league-best save-percentage to .940.

No. 3 star: Mike Knuble(notes), Washington Capitals

No Alex Ovechkin(notes) or Mike Green(notes) didn't stop the Capitals offense from exploding for seven goals in a victory over the Florida Panthers with the 37-year old Knuble popping in two goals and adding two assists. Knuble's multi-goal game was the seventh time a Washington player has reached the feat so far this season. 

Honorable mention: Behind Dan Ellis'(notes) 27 saves and Cody Franson's(notes) second goal in the NHL, Nashville downed Los Angeles 3-1 ... Flyers rookie Mika Pyorala(notes) may not have scored his first goal of his young NHL career, but his tally in the shootout was enough to give Philadelphia a 2-1 win over St. Louis ... Jonas Gustavsson(notes) came up big in his third straight start by stopping 35 shots while Phil Kessel(notes) added his first goal in a Toronto jersey along with an assist as the Maple Leafs routed the Detroit Red Wings ... Along with Knuble's pair, Tomas Fleischmann(notes) fourth and fifth goals of the season ... Nigel Dawes(notes) had a hand in all three Calgary goals as the Flames upended the Rangers 3-1 ... In his first game since early October, Joe Pavelski(notes) potted his first goal of the season during San Jose's win over Pittsburgh ... Miikka Kiprusoff's(notes) 32 saves paced Calgary pasted the Rangers ... Despite two goals by Loui Eriksson(notes), Marek Zidlicky's(notes) goal near the end of the second period was the eventual game-winner as Minnesota got by Dallas 3-2 ... New Jersey extended their league-best road record to 8-0-0 ... Milestones on the night: Tim Connolly(notes) and Francois Bouillon playing in their 500th NHL games while Henrik Tallinder(notes) appeared in his 400th. Capitals rookie Mathieu Perreault(notes) scored his first career NHL goal. 

Did you know?: Craig Conroy(notes) is the only Calgary Flames forward without a goal through the team's first 15 games. (AP)

Dishonorable mention: Buffalo Sabres goaltender Jhonas Enroth(notes) didn't have a memory NHL debut allowing a goal on the first shot he saw and losing to Boston 4-2 ... Powerless power-play's tonight included Buffalo (0-for-7) and Detroit (0-for-5) ... Carolina extended their power-play drought to 0-for-30, while the Penguins are now 0-for-21 in their last four games ... Ottawa penalty-kill could have used an extra hand allowing all three goals on the in a 3-2 loss to New Jersey ... Finally, the struggling Carolina Hurricanes took another blow tonight when they lost goaltender Cam Ward(notes) after his thigh was lacerated by Rick Nash's(notes) skate:

• Really interesting analysis being done by the MSM and the blogs on the Colorado Avalanche's attendance woes, as the first-place team had a record-low crowd earlier this week. Adrian Dater asked for, and received, a ton of feedback from fans about why they do or do not attend games. [All Things Avs]

• Jibblescribbits, meanwhile, has two posts on the issue that put the blame squarely on the Avalanche's poor marketing, both of their players and of their ticket affordability: "The casual Denver sports fan right now has no clue how good the Avs are, and they have no idea that there are some great ticket specials." [Jibblescribbits]

• Twenty-one-year-old Robert Hughes, a center for the AHL Bridgeport Sound Tigers, was arrested on charges of a first-degree criminal sexual act and a third-degree criminal sexual act after a game in Bridgeport. [AP]

• Patrick Kane(notes), Patrick Sharp(notes) and Dustin Byfuglien(notes) are called out as the Chicago Blackhawks struggle offensively. Toews and Hossa will probably help. You know, a little. [Between the Circles]

• The Vancouver Canucks are seriously looking at Peter Forsberg(notes). Because after October, consistent injuries are sort of the norm over there. [Globe & Mail]

• Bringing Jaromir Jagr(notes) to the Edmonton Oilers remains something on associate coach Tom Renney's mind, but is that a good thing? [Illegal Curve]

• Josh Sacco, a.k.a. Lil' Herb Brooks, will do the "Let's Play Hockey" intro at the Minnesota Wild's game against the New York Islanders on Nov. 20. Better yet: He's going to Vancouver for the Winter Olympics. That. Is. Awesome. [Tennessean]

• Craig Anderson(notes) is doing his best to ignore chatter about being a goalie for Team USA in 2010. Leahy silently weeps at the idea that his Puck Daddy post from Thursday sadly went unread in the Colorado locker room. [NHL]

• The New York Islanders release details of their game-worn jersey sell-through program, as "prices for the jerseys will be set on market value for each individual player." Which is a polite way of saying that Jon Sim's(notes) sweater might be a shade more affordable than John Tavares's.(notes) [Islanders]

• Is Rich Peverley(notes) the new Mike Richards(notes)? And if Mike Richards was the new Bobby Clarke for the Philadelphia Flyers, does that make Rich Peverley the new Bobby Clarke or the old Mike Richards? A post that threatens the space-time continuum. [Bird Watchers Anonymous]

• Sidney Crosby(notes) has gone from pedestrian in the shootout to 4-for-4 this season for the Pittsburgh Penguins. [NHL]

• Pensburgh does some detective work into whether Crosby is playing through an injury while Evgeni Malkin(notes) is on the shelf. [Pensburgh]

• Zach Bogosian(notes) of the Atlanta Thrashers is one of a few dozen hockey players participating in Movember, the world-wide initiative in which men grow their 'staches to create awareness for men's health issues like prostate cancer. We'll have more on this later, but seriously: Isn't there something a wee bit Gillooly-ish about Bogo's facial hair? [From The Rink]

• Even if you despise these teams, the following sentence wouldn't have been believed back in late September: "The two worst teams in the NHL will square off on Friday night in Carolina when the Hurricanes host the Toronto Maple Leafs." [CBC Sports]

• Nailed it: "Paul Maurice is the Willy Loman of the NHL. Great with words, not so great at delivering results." [Bitter Leaf Fan]

• Thanks to the flu and injuries, the Edmonton Oilers are a team in big, big trouble writes Terry Jones. [Edmonton Sun]

• Nothing like a cramped airplane to really get those flu germs circulating, as they did for the Philadelphia Flyers. Yuck. [Philly.com]

• Tough talk for Minnesota Wild management, currently and formerly, about the team's pathetic start to the 2009-10 season. [Star Tribune]

• Making the case for Doug Gilmour to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame. [Simmons]

• Alex Ovechkin(notes) will miss both games against the Florida Panthers for the Capitals this weekend. He felt "the same" after Caps practice today. [WaPo]

• Patrik Elias(notes) will be in the lineup for the New Jersey Devils tonight, in a story completely overshadowed by the much anticipated showdown former Islanders backup goalie Yann Danis(notes) and his former team. [Fire & Ice]

• Follow-up on the blown call that may have cost the Dallas Stars a victory earlier this week. [Dallas Stars Blog]

• Finally, good little scrap between the San Antonio Rampage's Ryan Donally(notes) and the Peoria Rivermen's Anthony Peluso(notes), who rallied for the tie. [HockeyFights.com]

Preview: Phoenix Coyotes at Colorado Avalanche, 9 p.m. EST. In September, claiming that this matchup would be the game of the night on Nov. 4 may have been grounds for institutionalization. Yet here we are, with the Yotes fifth in the West at 18 points and the Avalanche still first in the conference with 22. Colorado is 4-0-0 at home. Peter Budaj(notes) gets the start after the battle with swine flu. Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Washington Capitals at New Jersey Devils, 7 p.m. EST. The Capitals play their first game since Alex Ovechkin's(notes) "week-to-week" injury, facing a Devils team that would probably much rather be playing in Washington tonight because they're undefeated on the road and because everyone in North Jersey will be watching the Yankees anyway. Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Calgary Flames at Dallas Stars, 8:30 p.m. EST. Dallas has activated center Mike Modano(notes) and right wing Jere Lehtinen(notes) from injured reserve. Meanwhile, an Alberta Health Services staff member has been canned for giving the Flames preferential treatment for H1N1 vaccinations. "The decision to allow preferential access to the Flames and their families was a serious error in judgment on the part of the staff involved," said Stephen Duckett, president and CEO of the AHS board. No kidding?

Check out the Y! Sports scores and schedule page for previews of the other three games tonight.

Evening Reading

• The twisted mind of Rudy Kelly presents scenes from the Los Angles Kings' father/son dinner. Had no idea Raitis Ivanans's(notes) father is actually a bear, but it makes sense.[Battle of California]

• "Internet reports" have the Chicago Blackhawks interested in Leafs defenseman Tomas Kaberle(notes). The gist of the story is on-point: Marian Hossa(notes) is inching back, and the cap issues are on the front burner. [Kuc, via Second City Hockey]

• Good news for the Hawks: Jonathan "Lloyd Christmas" Toews is practicing again. [ESPN Chicago]

• Round 545,192 in the "Is Chris Osgood(notes) overrated or underrated?" debate. [Snapshots]

• How much are the Olympics playing on the mind of Vincent Lecavalier(notes) during his horrendous start? [LeBrun]

• Eric Duhatschek takes a look inside the Dany Heatley(notes) bonus grievance filed by the Ottawa Senators, and how the timing of it is interesting with regard to the NHLPA. [Globe & Mail]

• New York Rangers forward Dane Byers(notes) was handed a one-game suspension by the NHL on Wednesday while Coach John Tortorella was fined $10,000 for that weird non-brawl against the Vancouver Canucks last night. [CP]

• Meanwhile, Vancouver's Shane O'Brien(notes) will have a disciplinary hearing for using his stick to make contact with Ranger Sean Avery(notes). [TSN]

• Shawn Horcoff(notes) is out about a week. [Sportsnet]

• The Boston Bruins have been shut out two games in a row. "According to Bob Waterman at the Elias Sports Bureau, the Bruins only once have been blanked in three straight games, which happened in 1929 (the same year the Bruins won their first Cup)." Wait, so should Bruins fans be rooting for or against a shutout against the Habs on Thursday? [Bruins Blog]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: From Mr. Corey Atkinson on Twitter, regarding Team Canada's goalie for the Olympics:

"Honestly, I would think even Joey MacDonald(notes) could beat Cam Ward(notes) right now."

Bold Prediction: You want bold? We'll give you bold: Brodeur ties the shutout record tonight.

Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins at Anaheim Ducks, 10 p.m. EST. Former Mighty Duck of Anaheim Dan Bylsma and former Anaheim Duck Chris Kunitz(notes) go back to Cali as Stanley Cup champions. Good news for Anaheim? Pittsburgh is 1-11-3 with a tie since Jan. 16, 1999 in the Golden State, via the AP. The bad news? The Ducks are on a 1-4-1 skid. Rules the Sports Judge: "This is a fragile and confused team right now, trying to steer themselves out of a wet paper bag." Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Boston Bruins at Detroit Red Wings, 7 p.m. EST. Your Versus game of the night. The Wings are starting to turn the corner a little bit, even as they lose Brian Rafalski(notes) and Jonathan Ericsson(notes) tonight with flu-like symptoms. Hub Hockey wonders if the Bruins pattern of .500 hockey will continue. James Murphy is live-bloggin' it on NESN.com, if that's what you're into.

• Check out the Y! Sports scores and schedule page for previews of the other three games tonight.

Evening Reading

• James Wisniewski(notes)? Not a happy scrappy puppy about this two-game suspension: "I made a hockey play. There's a lot of opinions out there that say that's a clean hit. And then to hear all four referees tell me it was a clean hit. They had a pretty good view of it too." [Ducks Blog]

• Last week, we linked to a story about a Swedish team getting in trouble for "hopping the line" for H1N1 vaccine. Clearly, the Calgary Flames did not read that story. [AP]

• Wait ...Phiiiiil? Phil Kessel(notes)? Thought that was you! It's Ned... Ned Ryerson! "Needlenose Ned"? "Ned the Head"? C'mon, buddy! (This has nothing to do with the Pension Plan Puppets post on the Leafs tonight. We have Bill Murray on the brain for some reason.) [PPP]

• The D.C. City Council passed a resolution that declared that November 3, 2009, is "Washington Capitals Day" in the District. Now, how are they going to fit an entire council table on the bandwagon? [Capitals]

• Michael Del Zotto(notes) of the New York Rangers is your rookie of the month. [CP]

• After some accusations from Bruce Boudreau, Columbus Blue Jackets Coach Ken Hitchcock confirms that (gasp!) his team was looking to hit Alex Ovechkin(notes) early and often: "That's the name of the game. Why, is that against the rules now?" [Puck-rakers]

• Stan Fischler would like you to rank goalie masks. [MSG]

• John Grigg's story on the Philadelphia Flyers' happy cap accident via injuries is a good read. [THN]

• Guy Lafleur will speak about his new criminal record on a DVD. Hope there are bloopers. We love'em. [CBC Sports]

• Carey Price(notes) wins the Cup. No, not that one. [Canadiens]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: From Mike in the comments on the top teams of the 2000s post, this could be a comment of the year contender --

"It would be more interesting to know the top 10 'worst' teams to win a Cup in the last decade."

Think about it.

Bold Prediction: Another shootout for the Canadiens, but a win for the Thrashers.

• Phil Kessel(notes) prepares to make his debut tonight for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Glad to see Tomas Kaberle(notes) is keeping expectations in check by saying Kessel's proven he can be a 50-goal scorer in the NHL. [Globe & Mail]

• In praise of Kessel's ability to handle the pressures of being a "savior" and the intensity of the Toronto media spotlight before Phil Kessel actually feels the pressures of being a "savior" and the intensity of the Toronto media spotlight. [Toronto Sun]

• Admittedly, we haven't spent much time thinking about Jacob Jake Voracek of the Columbus Blue Jackets. That might have to change now that we know he's grown his hair to vintage Jagr proportions and bugs the hell out of his teammates by singing "Bette Davis Eyes." [Disptach, via Puck Update]

• Damien Cox still believes Phoenix Coyotes fans were buying tickets to watch Wayne Gretzky make angry faces. [The Spin]

• From Dead Man Walking to Future Colour Guy, the Kurtenblog's hilarious guide to backup goalies. [KB]

• Alex Ovechkin(notes) speaks to a massive media gathering in DC after the Washington Capitals announced he was "week to week" with an upper body injury. On traveling with the team: "Get some nachos, coke and enjoy the game." Here's video of AO's presser. [Capitals Insider] 

• Ted Leonsis on life without Alex Ovechkin for the Washington Capitals: "The players will all rally around the coach and the jerseys that they wear. This is a team. They play for each other and for our passionate fans. The players will want to thank Alex for his MVP talents and we hope to NOT miss a beat. We will test our mettle now." [Ted's Take]

• Pavel Bure either has the worst or sexiest hockey card ever. One of the two. Or both. [Rock The Red]

• Patrik Elias(notes) will most likely return for the New Jersey Devils over the weekend, as he's back in practice and completely out of shape. [NY Post]

• "Vancouver has already lost 75 man games to injuries, a number that is on pace to dwarf last year's total of about 209 games." [Sun Media]

• Lowetide on the Edmonton Oilers turning into the wrecked car from "Planes, Trains and Automobiles." [Lowetide]

• We highly recommend George James Malik's blogging on the NHLPA mess, including whether or not Paul Kelly should return to the players association. [Snapshots]

• Interesting conversation with former New York Rangers Coach Tom Renney upon his return to NYC. [NY Daily News]

• Leafs Coach Ron Wilson doesn't blame Colin Campbell for following the rules on dangerous hits by guys like Andrew Ladd(notes) and Mike Richards(notes). He blames the rules. [Toronto Sun]

• Are the Toronto Raptors dissing the Leafs? From Puck Buddy Heather F.: "The Maple Leafs marketing team has taken to spray painting Leafs Logos with the words ‘Spirit is Everything' all over the city. It looks like someone has decided to vent their frustrations with the so far pretty dismal season with spray paint of their own. I'm pretty sure this isn't a marketing ploy by the Raptors, as they're owned by the same company and I've only seen this on one street corner so far."

• Lepore has a Puck The Media mailbag that includes interesting chatter about hockey ratings. [Puck The Media]

• William Houston on why CBC's "Battle of the Blades" is an overwhelming success. If they can keep only this thing going long enough to get Brashear involved .... [Truth & Rumours]

• Nashville Predators minor leaguer Ben Eaves(notes) suddenly retires. [Short Shifts, via On The Forecheck]

• How insane was fantasy hockey in the first month of the season? "Unheralded Phoenix goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov(notes) posted more shutouts (3) than Vincent Lecavalier(notes), Jason Spezza(notes), Jonathan Cheechoo(notes), Chris Higgins, Zdeno Chara(notes), Daniel Sedin(notes), Milan Lucic(notes), Nik Antropov(notes), Derek Roy(notes), and Ryan Getzlaf(notes) had goals ... combined." [NHL.com]

• The Philadelphia Flyers could be without Simon Gagne(notes) for two months. So, situation: normal then ... [Philly.com]

• No Brian Rafalski(notes) nor Jonathan Ericsson(notes) for the Detroit Red Wings against the Boston Bruins tonight. Flu-like symptons. Uh-oh. [Bruins Blog]

• Finally, via DayWalk3r, here are the top plays of last week via TSN:

Preview: Los Angeles Kings at Phoenix Coyotes, 9 p.m. EST. Second place in the Pacific Division is up for grabs between two of the League's most surprising teams. The Kings' special teams have been aces in two previous meetings (1-1) against the Yotes. Of course, none of that matters now that the NHL owns Phoenix and will fix all its games and stuff.

Preview: Edmonton Oilers at New York Islanders, 7 p.m. EST. If this were 1983, we'd watch this instead of watching the World Series. Aw, who are we kidding: We're still watching this instead of watching the World Series. The Isles are 4-1-2 in their last seven. Wonder if the Tambellini's have a friendly father/son wager.

Evening Reading

• Elliotte Friedman offers more analysis on that brutal hit on Ben Fanelli. [CBC Sports, and the hit is here.]

• From the Washington Capitals: "Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin(notes) suffered an upper-body strain in Sunday evening's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets and his status is week-to-week, the team determined Monday. ... He was examined and treated by the team's medical staff and underwent an MRI exam on Monday. The two-time reigning most valuable player will travel with the Capitals this week to continue to receive medical treatment." Week-to-week is a very strange term. Is that a gentleman's way of saying "month"?

• Wolverine Lloyd Christmas Jonathan Toews(notes) is still out with a concussion. [Sun Times]

• The Chicago Blackhawks' TV ratings are bizonkers. [NHL]

• Mirtle checks in on the U.S. Olympic team's prospects. Has Craig Anderson(notes) moved ahead of Jon Quick(notes) on the goalie depth chart? [From The Rink]

• The NHL gives ye olde official statement on buying the Phoenix Coyotes. [NHL]

• Defenseman Shea Weber(notes) could miss two weeks with a foot injury for the Nashville Predators. [Preds]

• David Booth(notes) of the Florida Panthers is also making slow progress back to the rink after that Mike Richards(notes) hit. [Sun Sentinel]

• From the NHL: "Anaheim Ducks defenseman James Wisniewski(notes) has been suspended for two games, without pay, for delivering a forearm blow to the head of Phoenix Coyotes forward Shane Doan(notes) in NHL game #189, October 31, the National Hockey League announced today. The incident occurred at 7:12 of the first period. No penalty was assessed on the play. Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and based on his average annual salary, Wisniewski will forfeit $28,497.40.  The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund." The play in question ... Tito Santana would be proud:

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: Max Powers isn't exactly optimistic about Alex Ovechkin's career:

"He's the Dan Marino of hockey. Lotsa numbers, just not the one that counts. I could see his whole career going that way, lol."

Hey, if it means Ovie on the CBS NFL studio show, we'll take it.

Bold Prediction: Tony Gonzalez gets the five points we need to win the week in fantasy football.

IMG Worldwide, one of the most powerful sports and entertainment marketing agencies on the planet, believes its newest client Alex Ovechkin's(notes) celebrity has transcended the sport of hockey.

"Correct," said David Abrutyn, IMG's senior vice president and managing director of global consulting. "We believe that given the performance on the ice, and given his personality and general demeanor, that he's really broken through. There are going to be some significant opportunities from a marketing standpoint to raise his profile to that of other superstars in other sports."

So if there's a commercial with Kobe and Tiger promoting a car or an energy drink or an iPod, does Alex Ovechkin get to join them on the Mount Rushmore of sports celebrity?

"That's a great aspirational standpoint," said Abrutyn.

"We'd like to see him in more national advertising campaigns and national promotion -- from Canadian perspective because of the passion for hockey in that country; from a U.S. perspective, because of his ability to [break] through; and when you get into the global hockey markets, we'd like to see Alex marketed in the same way that other global superstars are."

To some, the news that Ovechkin has signed with IMG will be a blip on the radar, a brief note in the business section. To hockey fans, it should mean something much, much more significant: It's a premier marketing company indicating that the NHL has potentially produced its first global crossover superstar since former IMG client Wayne Gretzky.

IMG Hockey was a division of the company that used to have a presence in both marketing and player representation, including Gretzky. The hockey division is now CAA's hockey division, and Ovechkin is the first hockey client for IMG in the last three years.

"This is really about signing a major global superstar as much as it is about hockey, but clearly Alex is a hockey player, so it's a return to hockey in some respects," said Abrutyn.

Why Ovechkin? His success on the ice, insofar as records and scoring titles, has made him a star. The MVP trophies and other hardware have made him a star. His highlight-reel moments have made him star, according to IMG.

"Alex is without question the most exciting player in the game today. The frequency with which he appears not only on SportsCenter but on YouTube and other media distribution points for his spectacular goals and hits has established him," said Abrutyn.

But there are other NHL players that have won awards and posted significant stats -- Sidney Crosby(notes) and Evgeni Malkin(notes) of the Pittsburgh Penguins, forever in this conversation with Ovechkin, are the two most prominent.

The difference, at least in part to IMG? Ovechkin is a bigger goofball.

"I think the personality is a great asset that he brings to the equation from a brand-building standpoint," said Abrutyn. "You're touching on something that not only hockey fans but other people recognize as something unique about Alex -- that natural personality that he brings helps him break through that other hockey players haven't."

Who knew this was a harbinger of things to come?

From a "global superstar" perspective, Ovechkin is positioned uniquely as an athlete whose celebrity in Eastern Europe and North America is growing by the season.

"If you look at other sports ... if you look at Yao Ming and where he's from, and what other NBA players from other countries have accomplished as well as golfers and tennis players, Alex is positioned to have success in North America and in other hockey countries," said Abrutyn.

Ovechkin's current sponsorship deals are with CCM, his own apparel company, Energizer Canada and a hockey memorabilia deal. The Energizer sponsorship was through the NHL, and IMG intends to both develop deals independent from the League for Alex and to work with League sponsors for opportunities.

"Alex has an ability to do things on his, but one of the starting points is going to be 'what are the companies that are invested in hockey as a sport?' Whether that's at a team level in Washington or at a League level," said Abrutyn.

Terms of Ovechkin's IMG deal weren't disclosed, but Abrutyn said the Ovechkin camp liked "the fact that some IMG clients like Tiger and Arnold Palmer have been with us a long time." (So when Ovechkin hits the hockey senior tour ...)

How big can Ovechkin's celebrity grow globally? Put it this way: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning, Derek Jeter ... these athletes are icons, but have done something Ovechkin has not yet accomplished.

"Everyone knows his one remaining goal, at least as it relates to an NHL perspective, is to bring the Stanley Cup to Washington," said Abrutyn.

"That would create even more opportunities for him."

So now Ovechkin isn't just pushing to make the Washington Capitals Stanley Cup champions for the first time; he's trying to go from local Hair Cuttery spokesman to being inside a Happy Meal in China.

No pressure.

• Our End of Decade series begins on Tuesday. You've been warned.

• After nearly six months of court battles, PR nightmares and angry Canadian fans, the NHL officially purchased the Phoenix Coyotes for discounted rate of $140 million after the court signed off on the deal. Now comes the fun part: Finding an owner willing to keep a team drawing fewer people than "Amelia" in Glendale. [The Arizona Republic]

• Rick Tocchet sends a message to Vinny Lecavalier, dropping him to a line with Drew Miller(notes) and Stephane Veilleux(notes) against the Philadelphia Flyers today, and saying that the star's defensive game and hustle have fallen as his offense has. Can you remember the last time a star of that magnitude was dropped to a what's basically a checking line? [Lightning Strikes, stick tap to The Skating Penguin.]

• As Sean Avery(notes) prepares to return to Calgary for the first time since the "sloppy seconds" affair, Sun Media columnist Eric Francis wants an apology from the New York Rangers winger: "If the classless New York Rangers mouthpiece has a shred of decency in him, he'll publicly apologize to Dion Phaneuf(notes) and girlfriend Elisha Cuthbert for his stunningly offside comments of a year ago." [Sun Media]

• The update on Alex Ovechkin's(notes) injury: He arrived at the Washington Capitals practice facility on an off day, presumably for treatment on his day-to-day "upper body" issue. [Capitals Insider]

• Guess who's back? Back again? Foppa's back. Tell a friend (that the Flyers are scouting him). [TFP]

• Fantastic take by Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News on Michael Liambas' hit on Ben Fanelli that left the Kitchener Rangers defenseman in critical condition with skull and facial fractures. Writes Kennedy: "No matter what any of our thoughts are on head shots, fighting in hockey, hard plastic elbow pads, etc., the only person who can truly do anything to prevent an injury in this case is Liambas." [THN]

• Second City Hockey takes a critical look at the first month of the Chicago Blackhawks. Pearl of wisdom: "Tomas Kopecky doesn't do anything.  I mean at all." [SCH]

• Gunaxin's "20 Hockey Teams w/ Bizarre Names" is recommended. The Thetford Mines Isothermic? For realz? [Gunaxin]

• The Ottawa Sun: "No sign of Jason Spezza(notes) on the ice today at the Bell Sensplex. No timetablee (sic) for his return." [Sun]

• Jay Feaster takes a gander at the state of Team Canada one month into the season, and wonders if dark horses Brad Richards(notes) and Dustin Penner(notes) have a shot. [THN]

• How did Markus Naslund(notes) end up with No. 19? "It was given to me. I had no choice." Oh. [The Puck Report]

• Patrik Elias(notes) is back and practicing with the New Jersey Devils, and could be back this weekend. The Devils with two scoring lines teams have to worry about? What a concept. [In Lou We Trust]

• Erik Johnson(notes) and Alex Pietrangelo(notes), the St. Louis Blues' struggles are not your fault, sirs. [Post Dispatch]

Via Patrick Hoffman, is the schedule to blame for the glut of hockey injuries? [KK]

• Move over Craig "Leering at Ice Girls" Anderson: Jonathan Quick picks a perfect time for a stretch. [H/T Jason H.]

• Jonathan Willis takes on the latest NHLPA "body count." Ron Pink, who finished ahead of us on the Hockey News list of power and influence, is out on the advisory board. No. 99, here we come! [Hockey or Die]

• BD Gallof also has a great NHLPA take, Coen Bros. style. [Hockey Independent]

• Your 3 Stars for the month of October in the NHL: No. 1 Craig Anderson(notes) of the Colorado Avalanche; No. 2 Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals; No. 3 Ilya Bryzgalov(notes) of the Phoenix Coyotes. Look, Anderson has been a game-changer for Colorado and Bryzgalov has been great for what is a great story. But Ryan Miller(notes) is 8-1-1 with a 1.86 GAA and a .936 GAA. Maybe the field was just too crowded. [NHL]

• The NHL 3 Stars for last week: Tomas Kaberle(notes) of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Pekka Rinne(notes) of the Nashville Predators and Evgeni Nabokov(notes) of the San Jose Sharks. [NHL]

• The resurgence of Pavel Datsyuk(notes) is a welcome development for the Puck Daddy fantasy team. [Snapshots]

• Could the underachieving Carolina Hurricanes trade the underachieving Chad LaRose(notes) to one of the Western Conference teams scouting him?  [Canes Country]

• Finally, in honor of "This Is It," it's a goalie and the "Thriller" dance. You've not lived to you've seen a moonwalk on ice in full pads. [H/T Curl]

 

Hello, this is a feature that will run through the entire season and aims to recap the weekend's events and boils those events down to one admittedly superficial fact or stupid opinion about each team. Feel free to complain about it.

I woke up on Sunday morning (we'll call it morning anyway, it was pretty close to noon) and started going through the inter-nettery I'd slept through. Most of my regular sites were quiet, it being Sunday morning and all. Same with Twitter.

Then I stumbled across this tweet by USA Today's Kevin Allen: "This morning I count 110 NHL regulars injured or ill and there are more I don't know about. That's roughly 18% of NHL players sidelined."

Eighteen percent? I knew my fantasy teams had taken a beating over the last week or two but the scope of that is just crazy. One out of just about every five players is so hurt or sick that they can't play. Let that sink in. Your favorite NHL team probably has four guys missing games right now.

And the names on these guys, too: Evgeni Malkin(notes). Ilya Kovalchuk(notes). Marian Hossa(notes). Marc Savard(notes). Jonathan Toews(notes). Valtteri Filppula(notes). Jason Spezza(notes). Dany Briere. Simon Gagne(notes). Sergei Gonchar(notes). TJ Oshie(notes). Andy McDonald(notes). Phil Kessel(notes). Johan Franzen(notes). David Booth(notes). Andrei Markov(notes). Daniel Sedin(notes). Patrik Elias(notes). Roberto Luongo(notes). Marian Gaborik(notes) just came back from injury for Sunday's game. Mike Green(notes) was questionable. And then Alex Ovechkin(notes) went and got himself hurt against Columbus.

Those, by the way, were off the top of my head, and that doesn't count guys who have, had, or will get the freaking swine flu. So what gives?

(Coming Up: Sidney Crosby(notes), hockey goon, pummels another foe; Sabres souring on Myers; Brad May's(notes) bench injury; mocking Habs fans; praising Pavelec; the mess that is Carolina; and when bloggers admit their teams' vulnerabilities.)

Well lucky me, I found my answer nice and quick when, in the course of my preparation for this column over a nice cup of tea, I was provided an answer by Bryan Murray who, for once, seemed like he was actually on the ball for, like, half a second.

His theory that this is all predicated on the incredible speed of the game is probably true. They had a feature on Hockey Night in Canada's After Hours (or maybe one of the intermission breaks, I'm not sure) showing a number of guys crashing headlong into the end-boards over the last two days. They were all going at phenomenal rates of speed when they lost their footing. The footage was legitimately scary.

"It's the game," Murray said Friday, when asked about why so many top NHL players have been hit by injuries early this season. "Without the red line (allowing two-line passes), with the stretch passes, it's a faster pace. Some guys are getting blindsided, guys are looking back for passes and other guys are coming at them from the side. We've built so much speed into the game, but as a result, there's now more contact at different spots on the ice."

Yes, Bryan Murray is, in a roundabout way, advocating for the game to be slowed down, even going so far as to mention the stupidest rule in NHL history: the two-line pass (no relation). His hypothesis was intriguing, his solution, as usual, was idiotic.

The problem is that there's nothing the League can do to cut down on player injuries that wouldn't slow the game down and make it quote-unquote "less exciting." And the League, being so phobic of doing anything that might alienate the casual sports fan (the hardcore fan not so much), wouldn't do anything like that, right?

With all those superstars out now, it is at least in an interesting situation: Somehow slow the game down -- and I'm not making any proposals on how to do that -- to make things slightly safer, or keep it the way it is and endanger players' health and careers. As Dany Alfredsson says in that article, the game is only going to get faster over the next few years. Close to 20 percent of the league is hurt already, and again, a lot of those players are legitimate superstars.

The fact is the league has painted itself into a corner. Can't slow the game down, can't keep guys safe. The answer here is that there is no answer.

Kinda sad, isn't it?

What We Learned

Anaheim Ducks: Anaheim Calling said early Saturday that the Ducks' success is predicated upon the play of its bottom six, with almost all their most important points over the last few games coming from the third and fourth lines. That night the Ducks lost in OT to Phoenix with only Corey Perry(notes) and Teemu Selanne(notes) getting goals. Coincidence?! ... Probably, yeah.

Atlanta Thrashers: The Thrashers did a pretty cool thing last week, inviting a number of bloggers to come talk to some team representatives like Chris Thorburn(notes), Coach John Anderson, GM Don Waddell and a pair of broadcasters. The most shocking revelation is that John Anderson isn't necessarily against Ilya Kovalchuk taking four-minute shifts.

Boston Bruins: One big reason the Bruins barely escaped October above .500 (a loss to the Oilers on Saturday would've left them 5-6-1) was that Zdeno Chara(notes) actually had an impressive game for probably the first time this season.

Buffalo Sabres: The honeymoon is over for Tyler Myers(notes) and Sabre fans, who were literally begging the team to keep him up for the remainder of the season like a week and a half ago. "He has made some suspect plays the past two nights and he single handily gave away the Islanders first goal. He hung is goalie Ryan Miller(notes) out to dry and put the Sabres behind the eight ball," says Die by the Blade. When you lose 5-0 to the Islanders, it's usually the 19-year-old's fault.

Calgary Flames: The Flames had maybe the most drawn-out homestand of the entire season and did more or less nothing with it. They went 3-2-0, with losses in two straight, and now have to play 10 of 14 in November away from home. Not the way to set a tone.

Carolina Hurricanes: Michael Leighton(notes) missed practice Friday because his wife gave birth to their daughter that morning. Fair enough. So why did Paul Maurice give him a start the next day on the road, against a very good team in Philly? Who knows, but Maurice sticks by his decision for some insane reason. Leighton gave up a six-spot on just 28 shots. The ‘Canes are still winless on the road, and losers of nine straight.

Chicago Blackhawks: A reasoned statement from a blog that a player from the team the blogger supports should be suspended for his borderline-legal hit? I've gotta get Ripley's on the phone. Kudos to Jim Neveau here.

Colorado Avalanche: More reasonable posting comes from Jibblescribbits, who says that yeah, the Avs really have been incredibly lucky to this point.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Nikita Filatov(notes) left practice with a bruised back on Saturday and didn't play yesterday against the Penguins, though Ken Hitchcock said he probably wouldn't have even if he was healthy.

Dallas Stars: Looking for someone to blame for the Stars' 4-2 loss to the Predators on Halloween? How ‘bout Mike Ribeiro(notes). Didn't do anything constructive and, in one instance, did something outwardly terrible. The Stars had a 5-on-3 power play and Jerred Smithson(notes) broke his stick, and Ribeiro just couldn't do anything with all the extra space. Said Marc Crawford: "That was probably the turning point of the game. Mike Ribeiro had probably three or four chances to make the play, and he didn't make them." Not good.

Detroit Red Wings: Brad May got hit in the eye with a teammates' stick while sitting on the bench Saturday and remained in Calgary for observation because the eye filled with blood. Now they're going to make him wear a visor. Don Cherry and I say, "WHAT A WIMP!"

Edmonton Oilers: The Oilers' shutout to Boston on Saturday makes that nine periods in a row without a goal. Good work, guys!

Florida Panthers: It's been a long road for Victor Oreskovich(notes). After two years of junior A hockey before two years of college and then two years of major junior, he quit the sport for two years because he was understandably burnt out. Then he went to a tryout this summer with the Panthers (for Pete DeBoer, his coach in Kitchener), caught on with their AHL team and earned a call-up on Saturday.

Los Angeles Kings: Justin Williams(notes) will be back tonight on the top line alongside Anze Kopitar(notes) and Ryan Smyth(notes). Meanwhile Randy Jones(notes) won't be added to the lineup for awhile.

Minnesota Wild: How you know Marek Zidlicky(notes) had a night he'd like to forget? He got his lunch handed to him by Sid Crosby.

Any time you come away from a fight with Crosby knowing you bit off more than you could chew, you probably should not be allowed to fight any more.

Montreal Canadiens: Q: Will I ever, ever get sick of this?

A: No, I will not.

Nashville Predators: I don't know if it's a good thing that the guy leading your team in hits is 5-foot-8.

New Jersey Devils: Congratulations, I guess, to Jacques Lemaire, who threw David Clarkson(notes) out there in the fourth round of a shootout and actually saw what looked to be an odd plan work out.

New York Islanders: Granted, the Isles have taken three straight, with two good wins against the Rangers and Capitals before destroying Buffalo, 5-0, behind a Jeff Tambellini(notes) hat trick; but it might be a bit early to start comparing them to Godzilla since they're still last in the division.

New York Rangers: Yesterday's 1-0 result was the fifth game between the Bruins and Rangers to end with that scoreline out of the last nine. You get the feeling that the whole "Marian Gaborik provides all the offense while Henrik Lundqvist(notes) stands on his head" thing is going to be a recurring theme on Broadway this year.

Ottawa Senators: It's not often you see someone praising a team for scoring once, and losing, while putting 51 shots on net. And yet here we are. True fact: If you put 35 shots on net and score once, you ran into a hot goalie. If you put 51 shots on net and score once, your offense isn't working.

Philadelphia Flyers: I love articles in which the headline tells you everything you ever wanted to know about the subject.

Phoenix Coyotes: Paola Boivin argues that because of who Wayne Gretzky is, he should be able to come out of this whole Phoenix fiasco just as deified as he was when he entered into it. Yeah, that makes sense.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Another Green Man sighting.

San Jose Sharks: Goalscorers for the Sharks in their 5-1 win over Carolina: Patrick Marleau(notes), Marc-Edouard Vlasic(notes), Kent Huskins(notes), Brad Staubitz(notes) and Douglas Murray(notes). A real murderer's row of Rocket Richard candidates there.

St. Louis Blues: Andy Murray came up another reason for the Blues' possible underachievement: shift length. "When our shifts are long, that's not our identity," Murray said. What does that even mean (apart from a 4-0 loss to Florida)?

Tampa Bay Lightning: Vinny Lecavalier was on the receiving end of a serious message-sending by Rick Tocchet yesterday. Demoted to a line with Drew Miller(notes) and Stephane Veilleux(notes)? Yikes.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Vesa Toskala's(notes) career with the Maple Leafs summed up in one shootout attempt --

Even I could have looked that bad.

Vancouver Canucks: In "really surprising news" news, Daniel Sedin will not meet his own very ambitious timetable for return from a broken ankle. But hey, the cast is off and he doesn't have to scratch his foot with a fork any more.

Washington Capitals: Alex Ovechkin is day-to-day with what the Caps are calling an "upper-body injury" but is more likely a "left shoulder injury." More troubling is that he wasn't even trying to lift a bottle of Gatorade to his mouth with the left arm.

Play of the Weekend

There wasn't really a sparkling individual effort on one play in particular this weekend, so what the hell, here's Steve Reinprecht's natural hat trick in the first period on Friday night.

Gold Star Award

Ondrej Pavelec(notes) made 50 saves in one game. That'll do it.

Minus of the Weekend

Paul Maurice's Carolina Hurricanes are officially the worst team in the NHL that isn't the Maple Leafs. And at least the Leafs have looked like they were getting it together over the last week or so. The 'Canes haven't won since Oct. 9 and have given up 28 goals in the last six games, including 11 in back-to-backs this weekend, and Maurice has no answers whatsoever.

Perfect HFBoards trade proposal of the week

User "Lindy4Prez" would like to get rid of Derek Roy(notes). Why? "He doesn't fit in Lindy's new system but is still scoring at nearly a PPG clip." This is sound reasoning. So he made these TWO proposals in just over an hour here and here.

To NJD: Derek Roy

TO BUF: Travis Zajac(notes)

And...

To NYR: Roy(4.0), Sekera(1.0)

To BUF: Dubinksy(1.85), Girardi(1.55)

These are both great.

Signoff

There's only one man I've ever called a coward, and that's Brian Doyle Murray.

Ryan Lambert publishes hockey awesomeness pretty much every day over at The Two-Line Pass. Check it out, why don't you? Or you can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter if you so desire.

No. 1 Star: Henrik Lundqvist(notes), New York Rangers

King Henrik earned his 150th NHL victory and 21st career shutout in the Rangers' 1-0 victory over the Boston Bruins, stopping 29 shots. He turned aside 14 shots in the third period, including solid work during a four-minute penalty kill for the Rangers.

No. 2 star: Raffi Torres(notes), Columbus Blue Jackets

There were a few heroes for the Jackets in their wild 5-4 OT win at the Washington Capitals, but it was Torres's two third-period goals that earned Columbus the regulation tie. His wraparound at 13:36 beat a stick-less Jose Theodore(notes) (27 saves); after Quintin Laing's(notes) goal gave the Caps the lead again, Torres tapped in a Derick Brassard(notes) feed at 19:37 with Steve Mason(notes) (32 saves) pulled. Oh, and he may have inadvertently knocked Alex Ovechkin(notes) out of the game with an upper body injury, too.

No. 3 star: Mason Raymond(notes), Vancouver Canucks

Getting the first goal against the Colorado Avalanche and Craig Anderson(notes) was important for Vancouver, and Raymond provided it with a rebound tally in the first. In the second, he started the play that led to Ryan Kesler's(notes) fifth of the season. Vancouver won, 3-0, sending Colorado to their first consecutive regulation loses this season.

Honorable mention: The San Jose Sharks prolonged the Carolina Hurricanes' misery, winning 5-1 on five consecutive goals after Brandon Sutter(notes) opened the scoring. Kent Huskins(notes), Brad Staubitz(notes), Douglas Murray(notes), Marc-Edouard Vlasic(notes) and Patrick Marleau(notes) had the tallies. Evgeni Nabokov(notes) had 25 saves. ... Andrew Raycroft(notes) played behind a stout Vancouver defense and was helped by a couple of posts, but earned his first shutout since 2007 with 18 saves. ... Marian Gaborik(notes) scored his 11th for the Rangers' lone goal, returning from injury. ... Nicklas Backstrom(notes) scored for the Capitals on a sick passing play. Teammate Brooks Laich(notes) stepped up with a pair of goals after Ovechkin's injury. ... R.J. Umberger(notes) had two goals, including the OT winner for Columbus.

Did you know?: The Rangers are now 9-3-1 when Gaborik plays, and 6-2-1 when he scores a goal.

Dishonorable mention: "We're all taken aback," said Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice after his team dropped to 2-8-3 on the season. No kidding. ... Boston was 0-for-5 on the power play, and hasn't scored with the man advantage since Oct. 22. ... Finally, Mike Green's(notes) detractors are going to be replaying this Rick Nash(notes) undressing on a continuous loop.

(Monday Update: The Capitals said late Monday afternoon that Ovechkin was "examined and treated by the team’s medical staff and underwent an MRI exam," and is currently listed as "week-to-week.")

In the second period of the Washington Capitals 5-4 overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, Alex Ovechkin(notes) fell to the ice awkwardly after getting twisted up with Raffi Torres(notes). He got up, favoring his left side, and immediately skated to the Capitals bench before heading to the locker room.

The Capitals are calling it an "upper body" injury, and at one point during the game GM George McPhee was saying Ovechkin could return. But he missed most of the second period and all of the third, remaining in the trainer's room. He's officially "day-to-day"; the team has an off day on Monday so the next bit of news should come on Tuesday morning.

Abram Fox of DC Sports Box reported that "Ovechkin was dressed in a suit, not showing any signs of a sling" and wasn't in pain. He also had a transcript of Ovechkin's presser on District Puckhouse, beginning with a reference to a dust-up with Jason Chimera(notes) and Jared Boll(notes) that earned all three minors for roughing:

Q. What happened there along the boards? It seemed to me that Chimera was angry from the hit in the first period and he kind of bumped you.
AO: Yeah, it was just a moment in the game, so nothing happened, he hit me and I hit him. It was a battle there, but nothing happened.
Q. Did someone grab you? How did you get hurt?
AO: I can't tell you how I get hurt. But it's day-to-day, but you know just in case I can go back on the ice.
Q. So you don't think it's very serious?
AO: I don't know.
Q. What is it?
AO: [laughing] You think I'm going to tell you?

Capitals Outsider posted video of Ovie's postgame session with the press:

The scuttlebutt from those at the game is left shoulder, but nothing's official yet. Keep in mind that Ovechkin's missed a grand total of four games in his four previous NHL seasons.

If the Red Wings cruise into April atop the Central Division, we may well look back at Tuesday's early hook of Chris Osgood(notes) as rock bottom, and the third-period comeback sparked by Datsyuk as the first step toward restoring normalcy. With Detroit trailing 3-2 early in the third, Datsyuk deked Christian Ehrhoff(notes) and beat Vancouver goalie Roberto Luongo(notes) through a screen to tie it up. He'd score on a power play three minutes later and though the Canucks would briefly tie things on a 5-on-3, Datsyuk's three-point night resulted in a 5-4 victory for the Wings' first road win of the season. Speaking of firsts – and here's further evidence that nobody is immune from blame in Motown – the two goals snapped a 21-game goalless streak for Datsyuk that included last season's Stanley Cup playoffs.

No. 2 star: Jose Theodore(notes), Washington Capitals

A strong case can be made here for the usual suspects. Alex Ovechkin(notes) scored two goals, Alexander Semin(notes) netted the game-winner and had two helpers and Nicklas Backstrom(notes) snapped out of a scoring slump (one point in six) in style with a four-point night (goal, three assists), but we'll give the curtain call to Theodore, who spent the better part of the third period making degree-of-difficulty saves in a one-goal game. Theodore stopped 41 shots in all – 20 in the third period alone – including a Darroll Powe(notes) penalty shot with just over 13 minutes remaining. Caps coach Bruce Boudreau called Theodore's performance in the 4-2 victory perhaps his best as a member of the Caps.

No. 3 star: Craig Anderson(notes), Colorado Avalanche

As if their infirmary woes weren't enough to deal with, the Oilers now have a seven-period scoreless streak hanging around their necks, thanks to Anderson's 25-save effort Tuesday in Colorado's 3-0 win in Edmonton. Raise your hand if you predicted Anderson would set franchise records for wins in October (nine) and consecutive starts at the onset of a season (12) in his first year with Colorado. Double credit if you applied those predictions in your rotisserie drafts.

Honorable Mention: Boudreau reunited Washington's No. 1 line and Ovechkin-Backstrom-Semin combined for nine points and was a plus-9. … Mike Richards(notes) picked up an assist in his 300th career game. … Avs forward Wojtek Wolski(notes) scored one of the prettiest goals of the night, then was awarded his seventh of the year when he was dragged down from behind in an empty-net situation. … Jimmy Howard(notes) was solid in relief of Osgood, allowing only two power-play goals on 22 shots. … Tomas Holmstrom's(notes) backside was a pain in Luongo's you-know-what all evening.

Did You Know?: Ovechkin now has 18 goals in 18 career games against the Flyers, his best goals-per-game pace against any team he's faced a minimum of 10 times.

Dishonorable Mention: Kimmo Timonen(notes) was a minus-3 in Washington and Semin's game-winner appeared to deflect off the Flyers defenseman. "Every time bad breaks happen," Timonen said, "I’m on the ice." … Osgood got a good look at the Ehrhoff shot that gave Vancouver a 2-0 lead. It would be the last he saw of the ice after just seven minutes.

 

Stunning Numbers is an occasional look at stats and figures from around the NHL.

Anze Kopitar(notes) and Marian Gaborik(notes) are leading the NHL in goals right now with 10 apiece. Just as important: Who isn't in the mix for the League lead after being in the Top 10 last season ...

3

The number of goal scorers from last season's Top 10 who are currently in the Top 10 for this season: Alex Ovechkin(notes), Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) and Dany Heatley(notes). Among the M.I.A. snipers: Jeff Carter(notes) (4 goals in nine games), Rick Nash(notes) (6 goals in 10 games), the injured Marian Hossa(notes) and Thomas Vanek(notes), and Eric Staal(notes), who continues his early season struggle with 3 goals and 1 assist in 10 games.

Zero

The number of assists for Ryan Malone(notes) of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Stunning in the sense that the guy has seven points on the season -- all of them goals. Bugsy's never exactly been Adam Oates in the helper department, but the ratio between goals and assists has been a tad closer than it is this season.

7

The number of goals for Lightning sophomore Steven Stamkos(notes), to tie Malone for the team lead. The linemates have propelled the Bolts' offense while Vincent Lecavalier(notes) has started slowly and Alex Tanguay(notes) (0-2-2, minus-3) has become one of the most prominent busts early this season. For all the grief we've given Stamkos here, three cheers for him becoming the pro many felt he could become.

10,699

The average attendance for the Phoenix Coyotes (via ESPN's imperfect count) in five home games, despite the 17,532 padded gate for the bargain basement home opener. Does that change with the ownership situation settling and the team playing well?

12,065

The average attendance for the New York Islanders in five home games, after finishing last in the NHL in reported average draws (13,773) last season. They averaged 13,349 in their first five home games last season. Lighthouse Effect > John Tavares(notes) Effect?

55

The number of times the Anaheim Ducks have been shorthanded in 10 games this season, third in the League behind the New York Rangers (59 in 12 games) and the Carolina Hurricanes (58 in 10 games). The difference between the three teams? The Rangers have drawn 51 power plays; the Hurricanes have drawn 45; but the Ducks have a paltry 34 man advantages, which is third fewest in the NHL. So the answer is no: The undisciplined and embarrassing display against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night wasn't an aberration.

10

The number of penalties Mason Raymond(notes) of the Vancouver Canucks has drawn in 11 games, via Behind the Net. That leads the NHL, and is especially impressive when you consider he's only taken one penalty in that span.

3.69

The goals-against average (with an .816 save percentage) for Ilya Bryzgalov(notes) of the Phoenix Coyotes in his three losses this season, compared with a 1.30 GAA and a .949 save percentage in his six victories. Talk about feast or famine.

15

The number of shootout attempts faced by Colorado Avalanche goalie Craig Anderson(notes) this season, allowing six shootout goals (.600 save percentage). He's 1-2 in shootouts; all 15 attempts came in road games.

69.2

The winning percentage for Paul Gaustad(notes) of the Buffalo Sabres in 120 faceoffs, leading the NHL for players with 100 attempts or more. That includes 14 wins and 4 losses in shorthanded faceoff attempts.

2.9

The shooting percentage for Brent Burns(notes) of the Minnesota Wild, which is last in the NHL for players with at least one goal. He has one tally this season against 34 shots on goal. Leading the NHL? Michal Handzus(notes) of the Los Angeles Kings, with 5 goals on 14 shots for a 35.7 shooting percentage. Zeus!

1

The number of games this season in which the Chicago Blackhawks have been outshot. They lead the League in shots on goal (376), right ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins (373) and Alexander Ovechkin (3...just kidding).