• 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.

 

No. 1 star: Dwayne Roloson(notes), New York Islanders

Usually, goalies who give up three goals aren't going to be the No. 1 star. But those goalies usually don't face 61 shots. In fact, Roloson's 58 saves in the Islanders' 4-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs are the most since Ron Tugnutt's 70-save game in March 1991, according to the AP. (Phil Kessel(notes) had 12 on his own.) Not bad for a 40-year-old. Josh Bailey(notes) had the game-winner in overtime, after the Leafs rallied from a 3-0 hole. 

No. 2 Star: Marian Gaborik(notes), New York Rangers

After the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets took a 2-0 lead, the Rangers used a John Tortorella timeout "just relax" chat and exploded for seven straight goals in a 7-4 victory. Gaborik had two goals (18 on the season) and two assists, including a beautiful helper on Sean Avery's(notes) second of the night. Also beautiful: Michael Del Zotto's(notes) Leetch-like solo effort for goal No. 3.

No. 3 Star: Patrice Bergeron(notes), Boston Bruins

Four goals for the Bruins, four assists for Bergeron, including two primary helpers on power-play goals by Mark Recchi(notes) and Blake Wheeler(notes). The Bruins won their third in a row, 4-2, at the St. Louis Blues.

Honorable mention: On another night, Jeff Deslauriers's shutout for the Edmonton Oilers (36 saves) makes the cut for the top three. Oilers win, 4-0, over the visiting Phoenix Coyotes. ... Mike Fisher's(notes) deflection of Chris Phillips'(notes) pass gave him his 10th goal of the season and the Ottawa Senators a 4-3 overtime win over the Washington Capitals. The Sens have won four in a row, rallying from a 3-1 deficit. ... Nathan Horton's(notes) errant stick earned him a minor penalty in overtime for the Florida Panthers, and Sidney Crosby(notes) cashed in a rebound off Evgeni Malkin's(notes) shot for 3-2 win for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Thomas Vokoun had 42 saves for the Panthers in their fancy new uniforms. ... Martin Erat(notes) scored two goals, including the game-winner, as the Nashville Predators won their sixth in a row with a 3-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings. Pekka Rinne(notes) turned away 16 shots in the third. ... Jamie Benn(notes) and Brad Richards(notes) scored power-play goals and Marty Turco(notes) turned back 22 shots for a 2-0 Dallas Stars win over the Carolina Hurricanes. ... David Jones(notes) had two goals and Craig Anderson(notes) needed to make 17 saves in the third to preserve a 5-4 Colorado Avalanche victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. Danny Briere(notes) had a four-point (2 goals, 2 assists) night for the Flyers. ... Jarome Iginla's(notes) goal with 18 seconds left tied the game, but the Anaheim Ducks won in the shootout on a Teemu Selanne(notes) goal, 3-2. Jean-Sebastien Giguere(notes) made 41 saves for his first win of the season. ... Finally, Brian McGrattan(notes) overcame his awful hair with a giant punch that knocked down George Parros(notes).

Did you know?: Corey Perry(notes) extended his point-scoring streak to 15 games with an assist against the Flames.

Dishonorable mention: Pascal Leclaire's(notes) tremendous good luck continued, as the injured Senators goalie was hit in the jaw by a deflected puck on the Ottawa bench, forcing him to the locker room. ... Rick Nash(notes) was a minus-4 with zero points for Columbus. ... After Steve Mason(notes) was pulled following four goals on 18 shots, the Rangers scored on their first two shots against Mathieu Garon(notes). ... Ray Emery(notes) was yanked by the Flyers after yielding four goals on 17 shots ... Finally, an odd scene in which Vesa Toskala(notes) appeared to ask out of the Leafs' game after giving up three goals on 15 shots turned out to be a groin injury that forced him out in favor of Jonas Gustavsson(notes). Who knew deafening boos could injure one's groin?

Unless Colin Campbell and Co. needed nearly a full business day after Laraque's morning hearing to deliver a verdict, it's your classic end-of-day dump for news that's bound to be vetted, debated and decried by a great numbers of fans and pundits.

EJ Hradek of ESPN wrote that "if the league wants to clean up these types of plays, they can send a message by tagging Laraque with a double-digit suspension." Adam Proteau of The Hockey News wanted an example made of Laraque:

Time has taught us to expect the NHL will abdicate its responsibilities in providing a reasonably safe workplace through the application of supplementary discipline. But if the league ever did decide to grow a pair and use Laraque as the cautionary tale that makes players think twice before reacting knee-first, fist-first, head-first, skate-first or butt-end-of-the-stick-first, I'd break out a line in all seriousness that I don't normally use unless there's extreme sarcasm involved: Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

The outrage from Red Wings fans on this is justified, because they saw some fourth-line goon take out a guy who's fourth in average ice time (21:18)  for Detroit and an essential part of their blue line. I'm not one who believes in the eye-for-an-eye Wheel of Discipline, so the duration of Kronwall's injury is immaterial to me. The intent of Laraque to injure him isn't; neither are Laraque's previous offenses. Based solely on that, Laraque deserved more than five games.

But not because the NHL needed to make "an example" of Laraque.

Intentional knee-on-knee hits aren't the epidemic hits to the head are. They're illegal and injurious. They'll always be illegal and injurious. And they'll always be suspendable. Whatever Laraque was given here, it wasn't going to deter someone from doing it again.

Hits to the head, open-ice blindside hits ... if you want them out of the NHL, then legislation and/or supplemental discipline can actually make a difference at this point in history. But a suspension for a knee-on-knee hit isn't a deterrent against the actions of other players; it's keeping a cheap-shot artist off the ice, if only for a few nights.

• Fancy pants! George Richards gives us a teaser of what the new Florida Panthers third jerseys will look like by showing us their spiffy new bottoms. The new duds are set to debut this evening. [On Frozen Pond]

• Georges Laraque(notes) had his hearing with the NHL this morning for his knee-on-knee hit with Niklas Kronwall(notes) that'll sideline the Detroit Red Wings defenseman for at least a month. According to TSN: "Because the meeting was still considered an in-person hearing by the NHL, the league can suspend Laraque five or more games if it so chooses." [TSN]

• Brian Burke appears willing to take veteran defenseman Brent Sopel's(notes) contract from the Chicago Blackhawks, provided the 'Hawks kick in a draft pick in the salary dump. Spector has more on Fadoo. [Globe & Mail and Toronto Sun]

• San Jose Sharks center Joe Thornton(notes), Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price(notes) and Ottawa Senators center Mike Fisher(notes) have been named the NHL 'Three Stars' for the week ending Nov. 22. [NHL]

• Speaking of Fisher, he had an interesting chat with the Sun about his celebrity relationship with Carrie Underwood, ranging from marriage plans to Regis Philbin calling him a "good-looking brute." Which has to be somewhat life-fulfilling. [Sun Media]

• Making excuses for the Ottawa Senators' attendance issues this season. [Cornwall Standard]

• NHL Fan Association co-founder Jim Boone has asked Gary Bettman to resign in an open letter to The Hockey News, and for some reason it's getting some play today. It's sarcastic "go out on top" tone clashes with its occasional indictments of his tenure as commissioner, making it ineffective as a call to action. The logic behind the NHL becoming as chaotic at the top as the NHLPA for the sake of labor peace is lost on us. But hey, give it read; maybe you think it's the rhetorical right hook to the jaw that could be delivered three dozen ways based on Gary's fumbles. [THN]

• Preparing for the glories of "Uwe Krupp Night" at the Pepsi Center for the Colorado Avalanche. He played three seasons with that Avs; or nearly two more than that No. 77 hanging from the rafters. [All Things Avs]

• Mike Rathje(notes) and the humungous salary cap loophole Puck Stops Here believes the Philadelphia Flyers continue to exploit. [TPSH]

• Looking at Daniel Carcillo's(notes) first 40 games with the Flyers. After a rocky start, he's starting to come along. And no, we didn't go with "Rocky start" because of Philly. [The 700 Level]

• Markus Naslund(notes) on returning from retirement to help "save" Modo in Sweden: "They were in dead last place and they were struggling financially. It's just one of those things where both me and Peter felt that it was a good thing to do." [CP]

• Fun with stats: "Because of the vagaries of the NHL's OT/SO system, even though Montreal has played just as badly as Toronto, they're tied for 8th in the East with 23 points, while Toronto's in last place with 14 points." [Behind The Net]

• The Edmonton Oilers are falling into bad habits, and Pat Quinn is not a happy man: "You don't have to be a giant to play hard in this game and we had some guys that didn't work very hard. It's evident, they can all see it ... If we learned from that and say 'I'm going to make some changes,' then we have a chance. But we abandoned the game plan, we lay a game plan out and we go where they want. 'Breakouts?' We're too skilled to worry about getting in the right spots, 'I'll just take the puck around myself, and oops, by the way I turned it over.' It was an awful easy game for them (Blackhawks) to play tonight." [Sun Media]

• Jay Feaster gets p'wned. [Five Hole Fanatics]

• From the Images We Found While Searching for All-Decade Art Dept: "PHILADELPHIA - MAY 02: A fan of the take a ride on the Zamboni during the game between the Philadelphia Flyers and Buffalo Sabres in game six of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2006 NHL playoffs on May 2, 2006 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Sabres defeated the Flyers 7-1 and advance to the Semifinals." A.K.A. the most outstanding duo for the Flyers since Lindros and LeClair. [Len Redkoles/Getty Images]

• Phoenix Coyotes Assistant General Manager Brad Treliving announced today that the Club has relieved Greg Ireland of his head coaching duties with the San Antonio Rampage, the Coyotes' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, effective immediately. [Coyotes]

• Should the Carolina Hurricanes move Eric Staal(notes) to the wing when he returns? And if so, will he call Jordan in Pittsburgh to learn about the effectiveness of guys named Staal playing out an unnatural position? [Canes Country]

• Bruce Boudreau isn't looking to use injuries as a crutch for the Washington Capitals' recent struggles. [Capitals Insider]

• Steve Begin(notes) of the Boston Bruins recalls the "freaking cold" that was the Heritage Classic in preparation for the 2010 Winter Classic at Fenway. [NHL]

• As he does so well, George Malik collects your NHLPA news and views from the weekend. [Snapshots]

• Crap-tastic news for Minnesota Wild fans: Brent Burns(notes) has another concussion. [Russo]

• Finally, a goal controversy from the NCAA ranks, as North Dakota's Brad Malone appeared to tie the game against Denver but the goal was waived off. Well not so much a controversy as a reminder that for all the "intent to blow" stuff from last weel, replay still serves a purpose. [WCHB]

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.

 

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.

Here's the hit, which came after Laraque had already been whistled for a high stick on Darren Helm(notes) that got him a double-minor:

The three penalties Laraque earned resulted in two power-play goals for the Red Wings, so there was some measure of revenge (to go along with winning the game in the shootout, 3-2). The question is now whether there will be something more coming Laraque's way, as everyone from the Detroit media to Don Cherry called it dirty. Laraque, however, was defiant after the game, according to the AP:

"There were four refs on the ice and they didn't call anything," Laraque said. "If they called a match penalty it would be different. There was no intent. There was no reason why I would try to go and hurt him. It was a pure accident, that's why they called it tripping, so I'm not worried at all."

George Malik has more. As he points out, it's a significant player for the Wings with a previous history of knee injuries; factor in that Laraque has a suspension history, and it's likely we'll see something more from the NHL.

But beyond the mandatory criteria for the NHL Wheel of Discipline: It's a dirty hit that deserves further sanction, and that's the case whether Kronwall was injured or not. Laraque's got a reason to worry here.

 

(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.

Not just because they were one game under .500 and near the bottom of the conference standings, but because their positive momentum was again anchored by bad injury news, as his linemate Brian Gionta's(notes) broken foot shelved him indefinitely.

"Much didn't have to be said tonight. It was a real good team, on the road," said Cammalleri, whose power-play goal in the third period gave the Habs a 3-2 win in D.C.

"Usually, it's the team that's the most banged up that sacrifices the most. The bumps and bruises feel good when you get a win."

There wasn't a chance to ask Cammalleri's linemates Scott Gomez(notes) and Travis Moen(notes) about that theory after the game; both were injured in the win, and are questionable for tonight's game against the Detroit Red Wings back in Montreal. So for a team that's shown signs of consistency recently, the roster shuffle could be on once again.

"I got used to it," said center Tomas Plekanec(notes), whose line with Andrei Kostitsyn(notes) and Max Pacioretty(notes) produced a goal and was arguably the best in the game. "For most of the season, I played with almost every single winger on our team. But obviously it would be better for us to have constant lines."

Especially when the top line looked as promising as it did for Montreal, albeit briefly.

The chatter had been that Glen Metropolit(notes), the feisty checking forward, was going to get an audition with Gomez and Cammalleri after Gionta's injury. But it was Moen who got the start with the top-liners, scoring a second-period goal to tie the game at 1-1 on an assist from Cammalleri.

"I thought Travis really helped the other two," said Coach Jacques Martin. "He gave them a good presence at the net. He's been having an excellent start for our team. Played well on every line I've put him on."

At 6-2 and 215 pounds, he's a more physical presence than Gionta, which gave the Montreal first line a different dynamic.

"Tonight what you saw right away was Travis get in on the forecheck and really create some turnovers for us," said Cammalleri. "It helps a lot for us, because our mentality is that we don't have to make a great play coming into the zone; we just have to get it in and let him do his thing. Create our chances from inside the zone, which is a much more consistent way to play hockey."

But again: Consistency can live or die on injuries, and the Canadiens have battled through a few, significant ones, especially on the blue line. Yet as much adversity as injuries create, they also create a sense of desperation and altered expectations, even when you're wearing a Montreal Canadiens sweater.

"It seems to me we're kind of scared ... well, scared isn't the right word. We respect other teams when they have a superstar like Ovechkin and score the most goals in the league so far," said Plekanec.

Carey Price(notes) (32 saves), who was outstanding late in the game while playing a stretch without his goalie stick, said being a wounded team against a first-place opponent changed their focus. "The thing about being an underdog is that expectations aren't as high," he said. "I guess it kind of takes the pressure off."

So like so many other teams in this injurious season of NHL hockey, the Canadiens will lick their wounds, count the bruises and see who shows up in the lineup for their next game.

Even if it means Cammalleri skates with some new faces.

"Who knows? It's part of hockey that lines change from practice to practice, game to game."

Period to period?

"Shift to shift," he said with a laugh. "So, you never know."

No. 1 Star: Dany Heatley(notes), San Jose Sharks

Coach Todd McLellan stacked his best players on the same line against the Philadelphia Flyers: Heatley, Joe Thornton(notes) and Patrick Marleau(notes). The result? A 6-3 win over the Flyers and a hat-trick for Heatley. His first goal was on a patient 2-in-1 with Thornton; so was his second goal, set up by Jumbo Joe (4 assists on the night) while shorthanded. He completed the hat trick with a power-play goal in the third. Heatley now has 17 goals on the season, best in the NHL.

No. 2 Star: Owen Nolan(notes), Minnesota Wild

Nolan scored the game-winning goal with just 67 seconds remaining on a quick shot in front of Marty Biron (26 saves) after an Eric Belanger(notes) pass. It was his second of the night, having opened the scoring in the first on another feed from Belanger. Good win for the Wild, rallying with two goals in the third for the 3-2 win over the visiting New York Islanders. 

No. 3 star: Scott Clemmensen(notes), Florida Panthers

The Panthers keeper stopped 39 of 40 shots, more than a few of them above average, in Florida's 2-1 overtime victory at the Detroit Red Wings. Bryan McCabe's(notes) second of the season 40 seconds into overtime was the difference, but it was Clemmensen that kept the Panthers in the game for only their second win ever at the Joe.

Honorable mention: Tomas Plekanec(notes) had a goal and an assist, and Carey Price(notes) (32 saves) was both lucky and good in the final few minutes, as the Montreal Canadiens scored a big road win, 3-2, over the Washington Capitals. ... Patrice Bergeron's(notes) seventh of the season, a redirection of a Zdeno Chara(notes) shot, gave the Boston Bruins a 2-1 victory in overtime at the Buffalo Sabres. Milan Lucic(notes) scored his first of the season earlier in the game. ... Christian Ehrhoff(notes) had two goals and Henrik Sedin's(notes) 13th was the eventual game-winner in the Vancouver Canucks' 5-2 win over the slumping Colorado Avalanche, who are now in a 1-4-1 slide. 

Did you know?: The Flyers are winless in San Jose since Nov. 15, 1999. (AP)

Dishonorable mention: Among the injuries this evening were Montreal's Scott Gomez(notes) and Travis Moen(notes); Washington's Tom Poti(notes); Buffalo's Drew Stafford(notes) (a lower-body injury that will keep him out against Ottawa on Saturday) and Cory Stillman(notes) of Florida, who was crunched by Brad Stuart(notes) and was helped off the ice. Said Coach Peter DeBoer: "Stillman's got a knee injury and is going to be out a while." ... Kent Huskins(notes) still found a way to be a minus-3 despite the Sharks scoring six goals. ... Finally, Shane Hnidy(notes) earned 17 minutes in penalties for this fight against Tim Jackman(notes) of the Islanders. It probably wasn't worth it:

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?

Leafs blog Pension Plan Puppets saw:

- Hagman getting tackled and no penalty being called despite the ref standing two feet away
- The ref watching the puck trickle into the net
- The ref checking his watch
- The ref looking at the dueling banjos in the crowd
- The ref blowing the whistle

This one obviously isn't as egregious an officiating error as the one in the Wings/Dallas Stars game, but it's just as farcical. The whistle blows with the puck well over the goal line, and the referee Ian Walsh is looking at the pile instead of the goal when he blows it (or intends to in his mind). Pretty easy to lose sight of the puck when you're not looking for it in the back of the net, right? 

So this is twice in two nights, and according to NHL VP Mike Murphy it's about a half-dozen of these "Intent To Blow" incidents since the start of the season. Murphy said the NHL will look into the "procedures" for correcting an ill-advised stoppage of play by a referee, and let's hope they do.

If the teams play to the whistle, this is a goal for the Leafs. If the War Room was allowed to overturn the ref's call on the ice in this situation, it might have been a goal, too. (And not just because the War Room is in Toronto. Although it'd probably help. Now, where did I put my tin-foil hat again?)

Preview: Boston Bruins at Atlanta Thrashers, 7 p.m. EST. The Thrashers have won four in a row, and Johan Hedberg(notes) started three of them. But with the Moose scheduled for a Saturday start against the Penguins, it's Ondrej Pavelec(notes) tonight against the visiting Bruins. As for the B's, Milan Lucic(notes) is expected back but Tim Thomas sits with an injury. Marc Savard(notes), by the way, is inching forever closer to that contract extension. Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Chicago Blackhawks at Calgary Flames, 9:30 p.m. EST. It's circus-trip time for the Blackhawks, with six road games in 10 days. The Flames have dropped five in a row to the 'Hawks, including that NHL record comeback in October. Oh, and it's Patrick Kane's(notes) 21st birthday, even though he's in a place where he could have legally gotten 'faced at 18. Sigh ... what to get for the man who has everything? Ah, yes: That's it. -- Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Toronto Maple Leafs at Carolina Hurricanes, 7 p.m. EST: The two Eastern Conference power outages meet for the second time in less than two weeks. Know what would make this game a hell of a lot more interesting? The threat of relegation. 

Check out previews and updated scores for all of today's games on the Y! Sports NHL scores and scheds page.

Evening Reading

• Oh the Ducks, they are a-changin': 15 NHL scouts were given credentials for the Anaheim Ducks game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. [LA Times]

• Center Erik Christensen(notes) has been loaned to the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League for conditioning purposes. [Ducks]

• Lil' Herb Brooks update. [Sportress]

• More about the Detroit Red Wings and "intent to blow" rule: "LaRue -- with an opportunity to see or be told that no save occurred in the first place -- overrules everything by claiming that what he imagined to have happened initially holds greater power than what actually happened." [Triple Deke]

• Mike Chen has a bit of a different take on the rule and the controversy. [Chen]

• Ottawa Senators winger Alexei Kovalev will play against the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight before "heading to Russia on Friday because of the death of his wife's mother." [TSN]

• Should the Los Angeles Kings be concerned with Jonathan Quick? [BoC]

• Chris Drury(notes) is slowly coming back for the New York Rangers, while Ales Kotalik(notes) is taking over Enver Lisin's(notes) spot on the Marian Gaborik(notes) line. [Daily News]

• Great piece on Olli Jokinen(notes), the "No. 1 centre" who has "count 'em up: that's 4 goals in the past 38 games." Wow. [Battle of Alberta]

• NOT HOCKEY: Roger Ebert reviews "New Moon." As in, "sitting through this experience is like driving a pickup in low gear though a sullen sea of Brylcreem." [Ebert]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: We're not going to do a specific comment today; just read all of the folks who took the time to mention their own favorite games of the last decade; we're kicking ourselves for not finding a place for the 5-OT game between Albany and Philadelphia in the AHL.

Bold Prediction: We will receive at least three more pieces of hate mail for that Tin Foil Hat Society comment last night before midnight EST.

That's the beauty of fantasy hockey --  throwing darts can often bring you better results than hours of studying statistics and depth charts.

Of course, I speak to last week's recommendation of considering Andrew Ebbett(notes) (since scratched) and dropping Matt Stajan(notes) (now back on Phil Kessel's(notes) line and doing just fine, thank you) and Radim Vrbata(notes) (let's not go there either). It's enough to drive a man to drink.  As Homer found out (to his dismay) in an early Simpsons episode spoofing fantasy sports -- "when you're right 52 percent of the time, you're wrong 48 percent of the time."

I strive for that 52 percent. With everything in life.

Injury replacement of the week: Andrei Kostitsyn(notes), Montreal Canadiens

Brian Gionta(notes) has a fractured bone in his left foot and the slumping A.K. has already scored a goal in his absence. Kostitsyn has had a hell of a time with things since early spring and fantasy owners have been jumping ship faster than figureheads at the NHLPA.

Are you drunk?

It's Thursday. You know the answer to that already. If there is ever a moment that you should show interest this season in the elder Kostitsyn, it is right now. Granted, six points in 21 games is as impressive as a Gary Bettman press conference, but he's a talented kid who will now get another chance to be a go-to guy.

The Keepers who are on fire...

Niklas Kronwall(notes), Detroit Red Wings: Kronwall's been improving his statistics every year and he has also proven (last season) that he can stay healthy for the full slate of games. He has seven points in his last four contests and has shown in the past that his hot streaks can go for as long as 25 games.

Brad Boyes(notes), St. Louis Blues: He'd been about as effective in the first six weeks as the Coyotes' PR department was back in July. Nothing gets fantasy owners back on a player's bandwagon faster than a four-point game, which Boyes had on the 10th. Sure, he may take a step back this year, but that step won't take him below the 60-point mark. The Blues' offense won't remain this horrible forever.

Steve Sullivan(notes), Nashville Predators:  Something clicks with Sully. You don't know when it will happen, but when it does it's pretty sweet. He has scored three goals in his last two games, which tops his total from the first 17 games. That sound you heard was "click". Now watch him go.

Bobby Ryan(notes), Anaheim Ducks:  There were a lot of poolies panicking over this guy. They couldn't understand how he could post nearly a point-per-game as a rookie and then stumble out of the gates with two points in nine games. Relax. He's not going to finish with a point-per-game as a sophomore and that thought should never have teased you in the first place. He's also not going to get 20 points - no "jinx" is that bad (unless he gets hurt, but I won't go there -- it may curse him). He'll finish in that 62-67 range. His 11 points in the last 10 games are just one of several hot runs he will have in 2009-10.

The Sleepers who are on the wire...

Frans Nielsen(notes), New York Islanders: The 25-year-old Dane has given the Isles some more secondary scoring. You'll never mistake him for Bryan Trottier, but Nielsen does have a bit of upside. He should set a career high of 40 or 45 points come April. Seeing as he has eight of his points (and plus-6) in the last 10 games, he's a good short-term option in a lot of fantasy formats

Anton Stralman(notes), Columbus Blue Jackets: Tons of potential, he just needs to be used properly.  And Ken Hitchcock is world renowned for using his young players properly, right Nikita? Actually, in Stralman's case, Hitch is doing a good job. He has 11 points in his last 15 games and eight of those points have come on the power play. Unless Stralman shows up at the rink wearing a Filatov mask, he'll continue to get the ice time and as such should be a lock for 42-plus points.

Brian Pothier(notes), Washington Capitals:  This is just a short-term suggestion, as Pothier has teased us before. Following up a 35-point season in Ottawa to go to a budding offensive powerhouse in Washington back when they didn't have another option for a quarterback ... and then stumbling to 28 points was as big a letdown as "Transformers 2." But he does have six points in his last six games and they came on the heels of a healthy scratch - which sometimes gives a player the kick in the ass they need.

Jimmy Howard(notes), Detroit Red Wings: Chris Osgood(notes) is hurt and Howard is getting all of the starts. More importantly - he's winning them. He is 3-1 in his last four and sports a 0.903 SP in that span. Not the greatest, but good enough to earn Mike Babcock's confidence. Goalies are always hard to get via the wire in roto leagues, so from that standpoint Howard is a great short-term option.

In a slump, these boys are mired...

Jason Spezza(notes), Ottawa Senators:  It's amazing how many clowns there are out there. The dummies who will jump on anyone for still having faith that Spezza can be a 100-point player, and they believe that without Dany Heatley(notes) he'll be lucky to get even 80 again. Both the peanut butter and the jam can be very good on their own, folks. He's only 26 and we haven't seen anywhere near the season that will be his career best yet. It won't be this year, obviously, but just remember that Vincent Lecavalier(notes) had a disappointing 75 points at the age of 26 - before exploding for 108 the next year. Ride it out.

Mikhail Grabovski(notes), Toronto Maple Leafs: It's another one of Grabby's cold streaks and when the Phil Kessel line is the only line scoring, it will probably be a couple of weeks before he gets back into the swing of things. Frustrating to own. Bench him.

Sergei Samsonov(notes), Carolina Hurricanes: The talent is there -- just watch him with the puck. But for whatever reason (perhaps his wrist never fully healed from back in 2003), he's not beating the goaltender and neither are the players that he dishes to. His ice time is dropping faster than your jaw did when I said Spezza will be a 100-point player. Drop him.

Joffrey Lupul(notes), Anaheim Ducks: One point in eight games makes a great-looking season look very bad in an awful hurry. Teemu Selanne(notes) gets in his last gasp of mediocre-to-decent numbers while Lupul, the understudy, waits in the wings. The two are often linemates, but they don't mesh at all - six of his nine points have come while playing on the top line with Corey Perry(notes) and Ryan Getzlaf(notes) even though he played twice as many shifts on the Selanne line. Next year he'll hit his prime and I still think he'll be a 70-point player.  Bench 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.

Mike Murphy(notes), the NHL's Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations, appeared on the NHL Live! radio program today to explain referee how the League let stand Dennis LaRue's epically awful call that robbed the Detroit Red Wings of a goal last night.

From NHL.com write Dan Rosen's transcript of the interview:

"In this particular case what happened is we (in the League's video replay room in Toronto) see the puck in the net and call the video goal judge and say, 'Blow the horn and get the referee over here. We see a puck in the net that hasn't been ruled a goal,' " Murphy said. "At that point the referee comes over and we have a discussion. They came to us and said, 'My intent to blow the whistle was there, I have this play dead before the puck crosses the goal line,' No more needs to be said. Once we hear that, video review is out of the process. It's a call made on the ice and it's a non-reviewable call. It's a whistle blown by the referee and it was blown or the intent to blow it was before the puck crossed the goal line."

Murphy's defending the indefensible here, which is why he gently placed LaRue under the bus today when he later said, "In all cases we want to get the right call. In this case it appears we didn't."

But the more the NHL explains it, the less this is LaRue's fiasco; the League's own ineffective fail-safes against these sorts of blown calls are the reason it looks like a second-rate operation in this debacle.

It's the NHL's fault for removing human beings from in back of the net in favor of technology. Had there been a goal judge in back of the Dallas goal, that red light is flashing before LaRue intends to blow anything. But the NHL felt it didn't need an old man in a blazer to do what cameras could do "better," and the owners felt those extra dollars in lower-bowl tickets were worth ending the decades-old tradition.

But it's also the NHL's fault for not trusting its technology more than human beings -- in this case, their referees.

The play again:

Why do we have video reviews? Because human error happens, whether it's due to speed or poor positioning or an error in judgment. All three of these things occurred on LaRue's folly, yet the NHL considers "intent to blow" a non-reviewable call. Why? Murphy attempted to explain it today on the radio, via Rosen:

"In some cases when you have video review people expect perfection and that's never the case. There are times when we don't want video review to intercede. We don't want video review refereeing a game."

Murphy later did one of those "if we review this, when what about that!" arguments, wondering if video reviews for hooking or slashing are next, which is a preposterous straw-man argument. No one wants that; this mess is different. 

This review is really no different than one that determines if a puck crossed the line on a bang-bang play. It doesn't matter that Dennis LaRue intended the play to be whistled dead because the puck was already over the goal-line when he intended the play to be over.

(Murphy said "the feeling was the save was made and then the puck trickled in"; did LaRue even know it went in? It's something, you know, kind of mandatory for professional referees. There's no scramble in front, no need to protect Dallas Stars goalie Alex Auld(notes) -- even it's a ridiculously quick whistle, there's no way the play "ended" before the puck crossed the line.)

The good news is that the NHL understands this. As Murphy said, this is now three or four times this kind of thing has happened this season, and he wonders if there's going to be a "procedure change" at some point to address it.

Does that mean a chip in the puck to indicate that it crosses the goal line? Maybe one day.

For now, let's just make the logical, palpable change: Allow the War Room in Toronto to overturn obvious blown calls like this; or get rid of the "intent to blow" miscarriages of justice and simply play to the sound of the whistle, rather than the thought of it.

Which is, you know, what they do in pee-wee hockey.

• Why Team Russia should be considered the favorite heading into the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver. On a somewhat related note, the Kurtenbloggers said during our radio interview last night that they would trade Team Canada's goaltending for Team USA's. We're in negotiations with the Obama administration and the Canadian consulate to make that happen (suckers!). [THN]

• Close to 14,000 fans overwhelmed security and police as Sidney Crosby(notes) carried the Olympic torch last night in Halifax. No word if Crosby got so caught up in the euphoria of the moment that he forgot to accept the torch being passed by another competitor, as is his tradition. [Halifax News Net]

• Update on ye olde Marc Savard(notes) contract negotiations: Contrary to "an Internet report," the signing isn't imminent and the total payout may not hit $39 million. That said, Dupont doesn't dispute the seven-year term. [Boston Globe]

• An anonymous NHL executive tells the Ottawa Sun that the less-than-capacity crowd for the Battle of Ontario against the Toronto Maple Leafs has "got to be most disturbing for ownership" of the Ottawa Senators. Still averaging 18,151 fans a game in a building that seats 19,153; in other words, around half the teams in the U.S. wish they had these problems. [Sun Media]

• Speaking of the Leafs, the big news today was that they've been unable "to lease an unspecified number of the facility's 152 luxury suites" at Air Canada Centre this season, leaving some to wonder if fans have grown weary of the pitiful product. Again, to clarify: The inability to sell out 152 luxury suites and having average attendance at 1,102 fans less than 19,000 capacity are what passes for attendance problems in Canada during this economy. [Globe & Mail]

• Elisha Cuthbert will be the grand marshal of the Grey Cup parade in Calgary. Wonder who the first choice was ... [Sportress of Blogitude]

• Another quarter-pole look at the Hart Trophy candidates, another complete whiff on including any goaltenders. Not to hate on a much-hated guy 'round here, but can someone please tell me what Chris Pronger(notes) has done in bringing the Philadelphia Flyers to 25 points in 18 games that Ryan Miller(notes) hasn't done in bringing the Buffalo Sabres to 25 points in 18 games, from an impact and leadership perspective? [NHL]

• Not exactly happy times for the Minnesota Wild, via Michael Russo: "Lectures from Richards, smashing sticks against glass, Brodziak chopped stick in half, Koivu threw stick four rows deep." Meanwhile, in New Jersey, the Devils just purchased Jacques Lemaire new slipper socks and sang "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow!" [@russostrib]

• Looking that the NHL teams gaining or losing steam since the opening 10 of the season. That Buffalo Sabres number is an interesting one. [Hockey or Die!]

• Setting the odds for the Chicago Blackhawks' trade bait in order to fit everyone under the cap upon re-signing Kane, Toews and Keith. Dustin Byfuglien's(notes) odds might be a little long; ditto Cam Barker(notes). And are we to assume Kris Versteeg(notes) is off the table? [FanHouse]

• Having finished reenacting the Jeff Daniels bathroom scene from "Dumb and Dumber," Milan Lucic(notes) is en route to Atlanta for the Boston Bruins game against the Thrashers. [Bruins Blog]

• Max Talbot(notes) and Sergei Gonchar(notes) are expected back for the Pittsburgh Penguins, which should offset the 10 other injuries they'll suffer before faceoff tonight. It's been that sort of week. [Post Gazette]

• A Peter Budaj(notes) backer admits that he needs to be better for the Colorado Avalanche, even as a backup. [Jibblescribbits]

• Vince Vaughn waits for someone to make someone else's head bleed during the Flyers/Kings game last night. [NHL]

• The Dallas Stars place left wing Fabian Brunnstrom(notes) on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, retroactive to Nov. 7. [Stars]

• The Washington Capitals recall 19-year-old blue-chip defenseman John Carlson(notes) from the AHL. [Capitals]

• The graphic on this Hurricanes/Leafs preview makes us laugh and gives us vertigo. [Sportsnet]

• Good stuff from Dirk Hoag about a potentially pivotal moment in international hockey: Russia's Kontinental Hockey League getting ready to admit its first Swedish club, Stockholm's AIK. As one blogger points out, Stockholm may be a more appealing destination for NHL players who wish to play in the KHL than some of the other locales. [On The Forecheck]

• DetroitHockey.net with a good look at the Wings getting jobbed last night by the ref; it declares: "This is the kind of play that gives credence to conspiracy theories." [DetroitHockey.net]

• In case you haven't see it, The Chief at Abel To Yzerman has decided that calling a segment of the Detroit Red Wings fan base "the tin-foil hat society" is, in fact, having a deeply-held bias against the Detroit Red Wings themselves. Which is, naturally, what the readership he's built on a foundation of indignation wants to hear. [A2Y]

• And because of this unpleasantness with outraged Wings fans, we're now providing fodder for the Hatfields against the McCoys. [Mile High Hockey]

• We wish Second City Hockey would tell us how they really feel about press coverage of Chicago Blackhawks President John McDonough in local media.. [SCH]

• Bettman bashers: Bloge Salming has a video for you. Some people just like to watch the world burn. Very strong language warning. [Bloge Salming]

Finally, Puck Buddy Evan M. sent over the note:

Saturday you wrote an article about a no goal called in the Leafs game, where the puck crossed the line but the goal was called off because the video wasn't conclusive. Pretty funny because the exact same thing happened to the Sharks in their game Sunday vs. the Blackhawks. Puck crossed, goal called off. And, they both happened vs. Chicago.

Take a gander; it's not clear cut, but it speaks to the need of something more than the instant replay we have no to clearly determine whether the puck was in or out. Last night's debacle in Detroit being the most egregious case.

 

(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.

Thursday night's no-goal against the Dallas Stars makes that nonsense look like a sterling example of proficient officiating. Watch the full video on YouTube; we cut right to the embarrassment here:

Here's a fun parlor game: See how many Red Wings you can name in the time between seeing the puck cross the line and the whistle blowing. Our record is four, and one of them was "Henrik Zetterberg." From Puck Buddy Dustin:

Possibly the worst. Call. Ever. In tonight's Stars-Wings game, midway through the third, Brad May(notes) got a clear goal called back on the old "intent to blow the whistle" rule... only problem is the puck was never in any position where the whistle should have been blown and the sound of the whistle happened about four seconds after the puck crossed the line. Cost the Wings what would have been the game tying goal at the time.

Detroit lost the game to Dallas, 3-1. Wings Coach Mike Babcock on the no-goal, to the Windsor Star: "The guy never meant to blow the whistle ... It was a shot. It was in on the shot. It's as dumb as I've ever seen."

Last postseason, the NHL defended the Watson call and offered an official on-the-record explanation to the media; one hopes they attempt to do the same here, although it would be defending the indefensible. Again, the "intent to blow" rule is one of the most asinine in professional hockey; the notion of "playing to the whistle" is undercut by referees ending plays in their minds before actually blowing them dead. This Detroit farce is, perhaps, the most rancid example of its folly.

Beyond Detroit losing a goal, the worst thing about this situation is that it'll provide further fodder for the tin foil hat society among Wings fans, who are convinced that Gary Bettman and the NHL and the Illuminati and the Stonecutters are all conspiring in some secret cabal to undermine their franchise. Because what business would want one of its most popular, ratings-driving, star-studded franchises to, you know, succeed?

Preview: Dallas Stars at Detroit Red Wings, 7:30 p.m. EST. Jimmy Howard(notes) gets the start for the Wings, as Chris Osgood(notes) wants you to know that he did not, repeat did not, have the flu. But the big goaltending news is that Marty Turco(notes) is sitting in favor of Alex Auld for Dallas ... OK, not exactly big news, considering Turco hasn't exactly played his best hockey in Detroit historically. The Wings don't have a regulation loss at the Joe (7-0-1) and are looking for their fifth win in a row.

Preview: Phoenix Coyotes at Minnesota Wild, 8 p.m. EST. The Coyotes are trying to snap a seven-game road losing streak against Minnesota. The Wild, meanwhile, are trying to preserve their sellout streak by any means necessary, according to Michael Russo. Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

Preview: Philadelphia Flyers at Los Angeles Kings, 10:30 p.m. EST. All eyes on Alex Frolov tonight, as we mentioned earlier. Broad Street Hockey has everything you need to know about this long distance rivalry. Watch The Game Live Via Hockey Night on Y!

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

Evening Reading

• Sidney Crosby(notes) runs the Olympic torch. [Metro Canada]

• The St. Louis Blues allow fans to narc on rowdy people in their section via text messaging. [Blues]

• Check out former New York Rangers winger Darren Turcotte on Blueshirt Radio this evening. [Blueshirt Banter]

• Good back and forth on the Anaheim Ducks' top line, and whether they're being asked to do too much. [Anaheim Calling]

• It's early in the process, but Theo Fleury(notes) says he wants to pursue charges against Graham James. [Sportsnet]

• Why wasn't Cam Ward(notes) already on long-term injured reserve? [Canes Country]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: On the Barry Trotz vs. the arena clock story, here's GT --

"Trotz should know by now that everything moves slower in the south. This ain't fancy like and fast paced Manitoba down in these here parts!"

Bold Prediction: Feelin' a Nathan Horton(notes) goal against Buffalo.

We all know it's been a goofed-up, topsy-turvy season. Star players have been injured. Good teams have gone bad, and teams that were previously thought to be bad have skated out of Calgary with a three-point lead in the Northwest Division last night.

That unpredictability has spilled over in the scoring race, as we take a check of the leaderboard just over a month-and-a-half into the season. How many of last year's Top 20 scorers are currently in the Top 20 this season?

Eight. Which is to say that there are 12 players defying expectations this season, like Mr. Kopitar.

First, a comparison between the leading scorers at the end of last regular season and the ones in the Top 20 as of this morning, with the brighter names on the left also hitting the list this season:

Some of the missing in action from one year to the next are understandable due to injury: Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) of the Atlanta Thrashers (11 games played), Marc Savard(notes) of the Boston Bruins (7 games), Daniel Sedin(notes) (4 games) and, of course, Evgeni Malkin(notes) of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who missed a few games but has 17 points in 14 appearances this season.

That accounts for most of the wounded; what about the rest?

Pavel Datsyuk(notes), Detroit Red Wings (16 points): A snail's-paced start (2 points in 5 games) has finally been shaken off, as Datsyuk now has 12 points in his last nine games. His goal-scoring (4 goals on the season) still needs to pick up, but he's gaining steam with 16 points.

Jarome Iginla(notes), Calgary Flames (17 points): See Datsyuk, Pavel. Four points in the opening eight games caused concern; he quieted them with 11 points in 8 games and now has 12 goals on the season, tying him for fourth in the NHL. Whether he returns to the leader board at the end of the season pretty much depends on Olli Jokinen's(notes) success; but then again, what in Calgary doesn't this season?

Jeff Carter(notes), Philadelphia Flyers (19 points): His 19 points in 17 games puts him right outside the Top 20. By this time last season, Carter had 11 goals on the way to a stunning 46 overall. He has seven right now. One change worth watching: Carter played with a lot with Joffrey Lupul(notes) last season, who left in the Pronger trade; this season, his primary winger man has been Danny Briere(notes).

Michael Cammalleri(notes), Montreal Canadiens (16 points): Again, not a bad start for him, with 16 points in 21 games for what's been a pretty underwhelming Habs team. In fact, he only had 15 points at this time last season. On a line with Scott Gomez(notes) and Brian Gionta(notes), it's not hard to imagine he's going to hit the leaderboard again.

Mike Richards(notes), Philadelphia Flyers (17 points): He has 17 points in 17 games, which puts him right around the 80-point pace he had last season. Now, it's fair to ask why he isn't putting up better numbers with the talent the Flyers have up front and with the best power play (27 percent conversion rate) in the NHL. But it's also fair to say that Simon Gagne's(notes) injury caused a little reshuffling of the forwards that left Richards playing with a few different combos so far. He's done enough offensively to keep the Flyers and Pierre McGuire smiling, though.

Martin St. Louis(notes), Tampa Bay Lightning (19 points): He's got 19 points in 18 games, and helped turn Steven Stamkos(notes) into a Top 20 scorer. He'll be fine.

Alexander Semin(notes), Washington Capitals (17 points): He has 17 points in 18 games, and has shown flashes of the offensive brilliance that landed him on the leaderboard last season. But he's been battling a wrist injury for the better part of two weeks, and it kept him out of the lineup against the New York Rangers last night. Something to watch.

Mike Ribiero, Dallas Stars (15 points): With 15 points in 19 games, Ribiero might not appear to be struggling; but seven of those points game in his first five games. He had 18 points at this juncture last season for a Dallas team that was sinking into the toilet. It's not panic time -- he's a streaky scorer. But with the Brad Richards(notes) line playing well, the Stars need a little more out of Jamie Benn(notes), Brenden Morrow(notes) and Ribeiro.

• • •

The bottom line: Nearly all of these guys are in the hunt again, even as some of their conditions have changed. Clearly, a healthy Kovalchuk or Malkin will get back into the Top 20 in no time. What'll be interesting is if some of the surprises this season -- Rich Peverely, Ryan Smyth(notes) and Dustin Penner(notes), for example -- can keep up their early-season paces.

As well as if we'll be talking about Marian Gaborik's(notes) actual points and goals in April, or what he would have scored had it not been for his injuries. So far, so good for him; the Rangers have to be pleased.

During his time with the New Jersey Devils (twice), St. Louis Blues, Hartford Whalers, Detroit Red Wings and New York Rangers, there were always bigger stars than Shanahan -- but few were embraced by die-hard puckheads like he was.

He had that blend of skill, smarts and brute force that made him a prototypical power forward in the NHL as his career progressed. As of last April, he led all active players in Gordie Howe Hat Tricks -- a goal, an assist and a fight in the same night -- with 17 in his career. Rare is the NHL player with 656 career goals and close to 100 entries on HockeyFights.com. But that's why we appreciated him.

Shanahan wasn't infallible off the ice. There was his chasing of the money as a young player that resulted in Scott Stevens arriving in New Jersey from St. Louis; there were trade demands, like the one that caused his departure from Hartford; there was the unpleasantness at that Florida bar back in 1995; and his abrupt divorce from the Devils this preseason.

Some of the good and the bad of NHL 2.0/post-lockout rules changes can be traced back to Shanahan's leadership and his 2004 "summit," where the shootout was arguably born. His vision for the game was sometimes too radical; 4-on-4 hockey in playoff overtime was nearly pushed through based on his strong support. 

But his charisma, especially as one of the NHL's better quotes, would always win us over in the end, because we understood he was a bit of a rogue. His respect for what makes hockey fundamentally appealing for fans and players alike had some touting him for NHLPA boss and others hoping he'd take over for Gary Bettman.

With his stats, a gold medal and three Stanley Cups, he's a prime candidate for the Hall of Fame; but Brendan Shanahan's contributions to the NHL were more intangible than any stat or trophy. After the jump, a full bio, tribute from the NHL and words from the man himself.

From the NHL:

NEW YORK (November 17, 2009) -- One of the National Hockey League's all-time greatest snipers and one of its fiercest competitors, Brendan Shanahan, announced his retirement today, bringing an end to his 21-year career.

"I would like to thank my family and all of the friends who have helped me achieve and maintain my childhood dream of playing in the National Hockey League", said Shanahan. "I am enormously grateful to all of my coaches and teammates I've had the privilege of learning from and playing along side of, throughout my career. While I always dreamed of playing in the NHL, I can't honestly say that I would have ever imagined that I'd be this fortunate and blessed. I would like to sincerely thank everyone who has helped me fulfill this dream."

Shanahan finishes his career in 11th place on the NHL's all-time goal scoring list with 656 goals. He stands 11th in games played with 1,524, 22nd in penalty minutes with 2,489, 23rd in points with 1,354 and 49th in assists with 698. He is the only player in NHL history to amass more than 2,000 penalty minutes and 600 goals and leads all NHL players with 17 "Gordie Howe" hat tricks. One of the game's all-time clutch performers, Shanahan ranks fifth all-time with 109 game-winning goals. He tallied 237 goals on the power play, also fifth in NHL history, including a League-leading and career-best 20 in 1996-97.

The eight-time NHL All-Star recorded at least 40 goals in six of his 21 seasons and is one of only 11 players in NHL history to have 12 seasons of at least 30 goals. Shanahan's 19 consecutive 20-goal seasons rank second to only Gordie Howe's 21. He eclipsed the 50-goal mark on two occasions, tallying 51 in 71 games with St. Louis in 1992-93 and then reached a career high with 52 in 1993-94, when he also led the League with seven shorthanded tallies. Shanahan was voted to the NHL First All-Star Team twice (1994, 2000) and the NHL Second All-Star Team once (2002). Throughout his career, Shanahan was always one of the League's top ambassadors. He was awarded the King Clancy Trophy in 2003 for his exemplary work in the community. Shanahan enjoyed his finest offensive season in 1993-94, when he established career-highs in goals (52), assists (50), points (102), penalty minutes (211) and shots (397).

 

Appearing in the post-season in 19 of his 21 seasons, Shanahan ranks 35th on the NHL's playoff scoring list with 134 points in 184 games. He ranks seventh with a plus 31 rating, tied for 19th with 12 game-winning goals and is tied for 27th with 60 goals. In 1997, Shanahan placed second on the Red Wings in playoff scoring with 9 goals and 8 assists for 17 points, while helping lead Detroit to their first Stanley Cup in 42 years. In 2002, he ranked second on the team and tied for third in the NHL with 19 points in 23 games, helping lead the Red Wings to their third Stanley Cup in six seasons.

Shanahan began his National Hockey League career with New Jersey, helping a young Devils team reach the post-season for the first time in team history in 1988. He signed with St. Louis prior to the 1991-92 season, led the Blues in scoring in 1993-94 with 102 points and still holds the franchise records for goals and points by a left winger in a single season. After a one-year stint with the Hartford Whalers, Shanahan was traded to the Detroit Red Wings early in the 1996-97 season. He was a key member of the leadership core that guided the Red Wings to three Stanley Cup championships. Shanahan led the Wings in goals or points in seven of his nine seasons in Detroit. He registered his 600th career NHL goal on October 5, 2006, as a member of the New York Rangers and spent two seasons on Broadway after signing with the team on July 9, 2006. He concluded his NHL career with the team that originally drafted him, the New Jersey Devils, during the 2008-09 season.

Internationally, Shanahan has represented Canada in several tournaments. He is one of only 22 players -- one of only four Canadians -- in the exclusive "triple gold" club, which includes those who have won the Stanley Cup and captured gold at the Olympics and IIHF World Championships. Shanahan led Team Canada to its first World Championship in 33 years in 1994, placing second on the team in scoring with seven points in six games. He was a member of the 1991 Canada Cup Championship team, Canada's fifth and final Canada Cup title team. The two-time Olympian represented Canada in 1998 in Nagano, Japan, and then helped Canada capture its first Olympic gold medal in 50 years in 2002 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Shanahan then became only the third player in NHL history to win an Olympic gold medal and Stanley Cup championship in the same year when the Red Wings captured the Stanley Cup in June of 2002. Additionally, Shanahan represented Canada in the inaugural World Cup of Hockey in 1996.

The native of Mimico, Ontario was originally New Jersey's first round selection, second overall, in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft. He amassed 656 goals, 698 assists for 1,354 points in 1,524 NHL matches with New Jersey, St. Louis, Hartford, Detroit, and New York.

Finally, the wit of Shanahan, from an ESPN broadcast in the 1990s:

Best of luck to a fan favorite.

• 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]

 

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.

The Immaculate Reception. The Shot Heard 'Round the World. The Catch. The Hand of God. The Miracle on Ice.

All these pale in comparison with what must now be recognized as the greatest achievement in the history of human athletic competition: the Carolina Hurricanes actually winning a game.

Some might scoff. They might say the Hurricanes blew two separate three-goal leads to a team that is, in many ways, almost as bad as them (so bad that AHLer Robbie Earl(notes) was on the top line), played like garbage for the majority of the second half of the game and didn't do anything of note in OT except not lose, which, technically, isn't a bad strategy.

To those doubters -- nay, haters! -- I say pish-posh.

(Coming Up: Henrik Zetterberg(notes) dominates for the Red Wings; Thrashers' top line is better than yours; Sacco doesn't realize Avs have hit the wall; Maple Leafs humor; over-praising Stamkos; and Montreal somehow gives up 55 shots to Nashville, who somehow scores only two goals.)

That 14-game losing streak was merely a bump in the road for the Hurricanes, surely one of the five best teams in their division. Look at the stats for this unfortunate stretch: they forced overtime in four different games. Think bad teams like the Leafs can do something like that? They were only shut out twice.

Yeah, they allowed 54 goals in those 14 games, but you have to remember they were without Conn Smythe-winning goalie Cam Ward(notes) for two of those, so that number was bound to be inflated. And while you'd like to see the offense score more than 26 goals in the 14 games it took to snap this streak, you can't blame the Hurricanes too much. Eric Staal(notes), one of the best offensive players in the world, has missed the entire season with a case of the gout (at least I assume that's what happened, I haven't seen him in any games I've watched this season).

Anyway that's all behind us now. With this ultra-inspiring win over a high-quality opponent like the Minnesota Wild, the Carolina Hurricanes are on the fast-track to not only climbing up out of last place in the league and a lottery pick, but they're so close to getting it together and threatening for a playoff spot, since they're built for the long haul and not just the first quarter or so of the season. We've seen them go on that kind of season-defining, odds-defying run before.

Remember last year? They immediately went from being average to slightly-better-than-average when they hired Paul Maurice. They can do it again no problem once they fire him.

All they need is a little luck, a schedule full of nothing but games against lousy teams for the rest of the season, several huge free agent signings, a couple players to magically turn into superstars and for all their stars to get healthy for once.

Then the NHL will officially be on notice.

What We Learned

Anaheim Ducks: The Ducks trailed by just one goal through two periods, which is pretty good for them considering they played Detroit (their recent record against the Wings is fairly bad, you see). But then they gave up five goals in the third period, on just 12 shots, which is not so good.

Atlanta Thrashers: That Thrashers top line of Ilya Kovalchuk(notes) and Max Afinogenov centered by Nik Antropov(notes) is having a decent go of things. They've been together for three games and scored a combined 7-8-15, helping the Thrashers to two wins with five or more goals and three overall.

Boston Bruins: Great news for the Bruins that Savard is going to re-sign, but where do they think they're getting all this money against the cap? They're going to have to triple shift everybody because they're going to have nine players under contract, all of them making at least $4 million. Assuming Savard signs for the low-end of $6 million, the B's have something like $9 million in cap space (assuming the cap doesn't go down) with just 14 players under contract, with Blake Wheeler(notes), Mark Stuart(notes) and Vladimir Sobotka(notes) still RFAs. Good luck with that, Chiarelli.

Buffalo Sabres: Congrats to tiny little Tyler Ennis(notes), who scored a goal in his first ever NHL game, which his Sabres won over Philly.

Calgary Flames: The Calgary Herald's John Down on the Flames pasting the Leafs 5-2 Saturday night: "Where's the killer instinct?" Since when is 5-2, especially when you play like garbage, not an acceptably big scoring line for the second game of an all-road back-to-back? Did I have a stroke or something?

Carolina Hurricanes: It's cute that the Hurricanes thought Manny Legace's(notes) not being around the team for the breadth of this sad-sack streak was a positive. He got the go Friday night and promptly gave up four to the Islanders. Good work Manny!

Chicago Blackhawks: Just because the Blackhawks put Jeremy Roenick(notes) into their Hall of Fame doesn't mean they have to retire his number. That would just be silly. Ha ha ha ha. Wait, what?

Colorado Avalanche: Actual Joe Sacco quote after Saturday's ugly 8-2 loss to Vancouver: "No, I don't think we're hitting a wall. We've played a lot of good hockey up until that game. We've had some strong games, and tonight we just didn't have any energy and made mistakes, and it just ended up in the back of our net." Isn't that, like, the textbook definition of hitting a wall?

Columbus Blue Jackets: The good news is Mike Commodore's(notes) fatigue isn't due to anything wrong with his blood, the tests on which came back "pristine." The bad news is he's probably just out of shape after having the swine flu.

Dallas Stars: Mike Heika doesn't seem enamored of the Stars' play of late due to what he calls their lack of consistency. "Win one, lose one, win one, lose one," he says. Yeah, that sounds absolutely consistent. They consistently play well then play poorly. What's not to get?

Detroit Red Wings: Nice to see Ville Leino(notes) getting some credit despite having no points and being asked to do alarmingly little alongside Henrik Zetterberg and Danny Cleary(notes). "I just tell him, you know where I'm going to be and you know Z is going to have the puck," Cleary said, "so you've just got to find another spot on the ice where you can support Z and be in a position to shoot." Don't get in our way? Anyone could do that.

Edmonton Oilers: Fernando Pisani(notes) can't catch a break. He's been sent home again with ulcerative colitis, just days after he returned from a back injury.

Florida Panthers: David Booth(notes) still isn't ready to go, and in fact hasn't even begun skating yet, but Pete DeBoer did offer to let him go with the team to his hometown of Detroit.

Los Angeles Kings: Rob Scuderi(notes) will miss tonight's game at Florida with a lower body injury. 

Minnesota Wild: While we're congratulating people for their first NHL goals (boy there's been a lot of that going around lately), kudos are in order for John Scott(notes) and Robbie Earl, who scored their first goals: for Earl it was his first two: in the Wild's... loss to the Hurricanes. That's still weird to say.

Montreal Canadiens: All you need to know about Saturday's loss to Nashville -- final shots were 55-20 Preds. You can imagine how the rest played out.

Nashville Predators: Interesting bit of trivia -- the only Predator without a shot on goal in that game was Ryan Suter(notes) (in fact he didn't even attempt one). Steve Sullivan(notes), by contrast, had 11.

New Jersey Devils: Matt Halischuk(notes) and Tim Sestito(notes) each had an NHL first on the former's goal Saturday night. It was Halischuk's first goal and Sestito's first point. Halischuk, obviously, got to keep the puck.

New York Islanders: The Islanders have gone to overtime 10 times in 20 games this season. It's very likely that they'll shatter the 2006-07 Penguins' league record of 27. If they keep up the current pace, they will play about three full games' worth of OT.

New York Rangers: How PA Parenteau(notes), who scored the shootout winner against Ottawa, got a chance to try his hand at the NHL level: "Torts asked me if I was doing well in the minors in the shootout and I said, ‘I do pretty well, decent,' so he gave me a shot." So there ya go.

Ottawa Senators: It's okay that Alex Kovalev(notes) hasn't even begun to earn his two-year, $10 million contract because they don't get enough power plays to keep him motivated give him a chance to work his magic.

Philadelphia Flyers: Scapegoat for snapping the Flyers' six-game win streak -- Danny Briere(notes). Down a goal in the third period and on a power play, Briere retaliated to a crosscheck by high-sticking Chris Butler(notes) and getting a double minor. "It was just a reaction . . . but it's definitely not a penalty you want to take at that point," Briere said. New plan would be don't do it next time.

Phoenix Coyotes: Taking bets here, but does John McCain actually know anything about hockey or did he get these lines fed to him? He has a lot of very specific memories about the Coyotes. Hell, I barely remember Roenick's broken jaw myself.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Kind of a hollow overtime win, I'd think, when your team's No. 1 star is Patrice Bergeron's(notes) broken stick. Either that or Dennis Wideman(notes) and Matt Hunwick(notes) shouldn't have just stared at the puck Tim Thomas(notes) left for them behind the net.

Nice to come back and win, one supposes, but I'm not so sure you can count on wins like this presenting themselves on a nightly basis.

San Jose Sharks: Here's a weird stat for the Sharks prior to last night's game with Chicago -- the power play was fourth-best in the league at 24 percent, running at 32 percent on the road but just 10.3 percent at home.

St. Louis Blues: The reason the Blues aren't playing well is because Andy Murray is their coach hasn't gotten big stars like Keith Tkachuk(notes), Paul Kariya(notes) and David Backes(notes) playing the way they're capable of playing, which is to say not-terribly. Murray also gave David Perron(notes) a talking-to after a game earlier this week because he took a high-sticking penalty. That game was also the one in which Perron had a hat trick. Murray told him he was being selfish. True story.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Sentences like this are happens when general sports columnists write about a team they never cover and don't care about -- "He's still a teenager, but Steven Stamkos(notes) has already shown he could be a legend for the Lightning." Christ, let's let him get in a half-season of success before we start naming him the team's greatest player ever.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Okay I need to lie down.

Vancouver Canucks: Vancouver's best player lately has been ... wait for it ... Mason Raymond(notes). He had three points in the Canucks' 8-2 win over Colorado, bumping his total in the last eight games to 5-5-10. Where did that come from?

Washington Capitals: A look at the Caps' high-risk/high-reward style of hockey. Their 3.65 goals per game is the best in the league, and their 3.05 goals against per game is sixth-worst.

Play of the Weekend

Okay so this is by far the worst play of the weekend, but I had to put it somewhere: What in the hell was Olli Jokinen(notes) thinking picking a fight with anyone ever, let alone Francois freakin' Beauchemin.

Best part is Iginla skating over like, "What, uhh.. what's going on here Olli?"

Gold Star Award

Hank Zetterberg is on a little bit of a hot streak lately. His five-point game Saturday gives him 4-5-9 in his last three games. That'll play.

Minus of the Weekend

Okay I was pretty sure the Canadiens were bad this year. But how does anyone give up 55 shots to the Predators? The fact that they only scored two goals on 55 shots says a whole lot more about the quality of the Nashville attack than it does the Habs defense, which is embarrassingly bad.

Perfect HFBoards trade proposal of the week

User elicw10 has the perfect solution to "fix" the Senators' defense and give the Blackhawks some much-needed cap room.

Jack Skille(notes), Brian Campbell(notes) (7.1), Cam Barker(notes) (3.1 ish),1st

for

Anton Volchenkov(notes) (UFA), Alexei Kovalev (cheap buyou after season), Chris Kelly(notes) (cheap buyout)

Remember, he is fixing the Senators' D with Brian Campbell.

Signoff

I was once voted the worst audience participant Cirque Du Soleil ever had.

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.

The 29-year old Swede recorded his fourth career NHL hat trick and added two assists as the Red Wings rolled to an 7-4 win over the Anaheim Ducks. Zetterberg scored four points in the third period, including all three goals and the game-winner. It was his first multi-goal game of the season as the Red Wings won for the sixth time in seven games. 

No. 2 star, Henrik Sedin(notes), Vancouver Canucks

Another Swede, another hat-trick. Sedin's first NHL hat trick helped Vancouver rout Colorado in Denver 8-2. After cutting the Canucks lead in half mid-way through the third period, the Avalanche couldn't withstand the Vancouver attack and allowed four goals in the final eight minutes. The Canucks win ended a three game losing streak for the team and extended Colorado's current losing streak to three games. 

No. 3 star, Steve Sullivan(notes), Nashville Predators

Sullivan matched his season goal total in a 2-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens as he dad watched from the stands. His two goals were enough for the Predators to win for the sixth time in their last eight games. It was Nashville's second shutout of the season. Last season's Masterton Trophy winner also led both teams in shots with 11.

Honorable mention: Henrik Lundqvist's(notes) 35 saves paced the New York Rangers in a shootout victory over Ottawa ... Florida came back on the New York Islanders and improved their shootout record this season to 4-1 ... Congratulations in order to Tyler Ennis(notes) of the Buffalo Sabres, David Schlemko(notes) of the Phoenix Coyotes and Matt Halischuk(notes) of the New Jersey Devils for scoring their first NHL goals tonight. Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Ben Lovejoy(notes) and New Jersey's Tim Sesito both recorded their first NHL points ... In their 1,000th win since they've been known as the "Devils", New Jersey extended their winning streak to eight games in a 5-2 win over Washington after the Capitals blew an early 2-0 lead ... Washington captain Chris Clark(notes) played in his 500th NHL game ... Capitals forward Thomas Fleischmann extended his personal best point streak to eight games ... Miikka Kiprusoff(notes) fought off the Leafs making 38 stops en route to Calgary's 5-2 win while Ryan Miller(notes) outdueled Ray Emery(notes) with 29 saves as the Buffalo got the best of Philadelphia 3-2 ... Jarome Iginla(notes) led the way for the Flames scoring twice including 1:21 into the game ... The Detroit Red Wings put a hurting on Anaheim 7-4 in a game that saw eight third period goals between the teams. Detroit was 3-6 on the power-play and despite the loss, Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf(notes) potted a goal and three assists ... Antero Niittymaki(notes) (29 saves) and Jon Quick(notes) (28 saves) had an old-fashioned goaltenders duel with the Los Angeles Kings eventually squeaking by the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in a shootout thanks to Anze Kopitar's(notes) winner ... Evgeni Malkin(notes) returned to the Pittsburgh Penguins and made an immediate impact with three assists, including one on Bill Guerin's(notes) game-tying goal with 0.4 seconds left to send it to overtime. Pascal Dupuis(notes) scored twice, including the overtime winner as the Penguins won for the first time in five games. Energized by Malkin's return was Sidney Crosby(notes) who added a goal and two assists ... Boston was impressive shorthanded and have now killed off 34 or their 35 penalties ... A day after being called out by their owner, the St. Louis Blues outshot the San Jose Sharks 39-16, but could only beat Evgeni Nabokov(notes) once in a 3-1 defeat. Nabokov's 38 saves improved the Sharks NHL-best record to 14-4-3. Two goals by Dany Heatley(notes) and Jed Ortmeyer(notes) 16 seconds apart in the second period were enough for San Jose  ... Marty Turco(notes) denied Shane Doan(notes) on a penalty shot to give opposing shooters a 1-14 record against the Dallas netminder ... Nashville threw the house at Montreal with 24 shots in the first period and a franchise record 55 on Carey Price(notes) in the game. Predators goalie Pekke Rinne made 20 saves and posted the shutout ... Steve Bernier's(notes) two goals along with three assists from Ryan Johnson(notes) and Mason Raymond(notes) helped Vancouver's rout of Colorado. Roberto Luongo(notes) made 32 saves for his first win since October 25th.

Did you know?: After recording two goals and two assists while opening the season in Stockholm, Paul Kariya(notes) has cooled off and has not scored a point in his last ten games.

Dishonorable mention: Jose Theodore(notes) failed to rebound from being pulled against the Islanders on Wednesday night and allowed five goals on 23 shots against the Devils ... Jonas Gustavsson(notes) let in two goals within the first 1:37 against Calgary, both in a 16-second span, and had an early night after getting yanked before the ten minute mark of the firs period ... Another Jonas who had a rough night was Jonas Hiller(notes) of the Anaheim Ducks who trailed Detroit 2-1 heading into the third period before the seams burst. The Red Wings scored five times in the final frame, including three in the final four and a half minutes ... Tampa Bay and St. Louis both had rough nights on the power-play going 0-for-6 with the extra skater ... The Colorado goaltending tandem of Craig Anderson(notes) and Petr Budaj had a rough night in front of the home crowd. Both allowed four goals as the Canucks romped to an 8-2 win ... Finally, you can be sure Patrice Bergeron(notes) will be looking for a batch of reliable sticks after the breaking of his twig led to the Penguins tying goal:

(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.)

As we continue our rankings of the best in the last decade, it's time to look back at the best single-season performances from players in the 2000s.

We're going for the total stats picture, and not just one facet (goals, for example). Looking back at the last 10 years, there have been some awesome performances, but only a few that cracked the NHL record book in a significant way.

Some criteria to keep in mind: This is a regular-season list. History matters, as far as records and awards. So does context, when considering where that particular season falls in with a players' career. The differences between the NHL before and after the lockout should be kept in mind in a grain-of-salt way, although they're not a primary consideration here. Oh, and if your favorite forward isn't here, it's because we tried to make room for defensemen and goalies.

With that, the 10 best individual statistical seasons of the last decade are ...

10. Jaromir Jagr(notes), New York Rangers, 2005-06

When a player has 62 goals and 149 points in a season to his credit, Jagr's 2005-06 campaign probably won't get the credit it deserves. But 54 goals and 123 points on a defense-oriented Rangers team was remarkable. The problem: He didn't lead the League in any major offensive category, and only won the Pearson as the players' MVP. You'll find out why later.

9. Jarome Iginla(notes), Calgary Flames, 2001-02

Iggy's 52 goals are still a career-best, and he led the league in goals and points (96) in a season that also saw him win the Pearson. (Jose Theodore(notes) won the Hart for the Montreal Canadiens.) Iginla led the NHL in goals per game (0.63), goals created per game (0.49) and even-strength goals (35) in 82 games. Terrific season for a true star.

8. Peter Forsberg(notes), Colorado Avalanche, 2002-03

An absolutely dominant season from the Hart Trophy winner, as Forsberg led the NHL in points (106) and assists (77) while helping Milan Hejduk(notes) to the NHL lead in goals (50). Forsberg would finish with 29 goals on the season. The two money stats: Both Forsberg and Hejduk were an incredible plus-52 on the season, and Forsberg's 106 points in 75 games gave him a higher points-per-game average (1.41) than Mario Lemieux's (1.36), despite Mario's 91 points in 67 games.

7. Pavel Bure, Florida Panthers, 1999-2000

We mentioned Iginla's even-strength goals, and that's one of the most mind-blowing numbers in Bure's masterful 58-goal, 98-point season for the Panthers: He scored 45 goals playing 5-on-5 hockey, the highest total of the decade and 17th all-time in the NHL. Bure led the NHL in game-winning goals (14, and fourth all-time) as well as shots (360). He actually scored more goals (59) the following season, but his plus/minus fell from plus-25 to minus-2.

6. Nicklas Lidstrom(notes), Detroit Red Wings, 2005-06

At 35 years old, one of the best defensemen in NHL history posted 80 points in 80 games. He was a plus-25 and won the Norris Trophy (you know, as usual). In the context of his career, it'll likely be Lidstrom's greatest offensive season.

5. Mike Green(notes), Washington Capitals, 2008-09

Lidstrom has the context, but Green has the history. Green's NHL record for defensemen with goals in eight consecutive games grabbed headlines, but it's his 31 goals overall that was the outstanding achievement. He was the first NHL D-man to break 30 since Kevin Hatcher in 1993, scored 73 points in 68 games and was a plus-24. James Mirtle ran the numbers and calculated that Green had the second-best goal-scoring season for a defenseman in NHL history. Yet in true hockey fan fashion, all anyone remembers are his invisibility in the playoffs later that year and losing the Norris to Zdeno Chara(notes) ...

4. Joe Thornton(notes), Boston Bruins/San Jose Sharks, 2005-06

There's only one reason why Jagr's 2005-06 season isn't ranked higher, and his name is Joe Thornton. Splitting his season between the Boston Bruins and the San Jose Sharks thanks to that infamous trade, Thornton posted the highest point total of the decade (125) with a 96-assist season that ranks 16th in NHL history and 3rd for players not named Gretzky or Lemieux. He won the Art Ross and the Hart. Only downside: He helped Jonathan Cheechoo(notes) score 56 goals, a number that would eventually drive fantasy hockey owners into madness as the decade progressed.

3. Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins, 2000-01

The comeback year for Mario, and one of the most impressive offensive seasons in recent NHL history -- given the sample. Lemieux's 35 goals and 41 assists in 43 games gave him the NHL lead in goals per game (0.81), assists per game (0.95), points per game (1.77) and goals created per game (0.68). His points-per-game average was the highest of the decade and the best in the League since Jagr in1996.

If you want to project what this total might have been had he played 82 games, Mario's no doubt higher on your list. But we're going to deal with the real numbers here, and they landed him a Hart Trophy nomination in 2001 and at No. 3 on this list.

2. Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals, 2007-08

The highest NHL goal total since Mario's 69 in '96, Ovechkin's 65 goals and 112 points earned him the League lead in both categories and the Hart Trophy for MVP. He led the league in even-strength goals 43 AND power-play goals (22). In total, Ovechkin led the NHL in 11 different offensive categories in 2007-08. One assumes he's got a better offensive season still in him; but so far, his achievement as a 22-year-old (!) player is his masterpiece. 

In fact, it's the best performance of the decade. For a forward. Which brings us to ...

1. Martin Brodeur(notes), New Jersey Devils, 2006-07

Again, we have to consider context here. His goals-against average (2.18, third) didn't lead the League and wasn't among the best of the decade. But in the context of Brodeur's career, he posted the second-best save percentage (.922, third in NHL) while facing the most shots in his career (2,011 in 78 games, second in NHL).

In the context of NHL history, his 48 wins is the highest total for a goalie ever. His 12 shutouts led the NHL; and if you strip away all the names from the 1920s, it's third-highest total in League history behind Tony Esposito (15) and Dominik Hasek(notes) (13) for a single-season. He won the Vezina, though Sidney Crosby's(notes) 120-point season earned him the Hart.

Honestly, Brodeur and Ovechkin are neck and neck at the top of this list. If the argument is that Brodeur can't lead this list if he didn't lead the League in GAA and save percentage, that's a fair argument. But so is the fact that one of the best goalies in NHL history posted his most impressive statistic season at 34 years old, post-lockout and seeing more rubber than an interstate. And ask Roberto Luongo(notes) and Evgeni Nabokov(notes) how tough it is to reach 48 wins.

(Cue Devils homer accusations in 3...2...)

 

No. 1 Star: Tomas Vokoun(notes), Florida Panthers

"He deserved the two points. It was nice to get them for him," said Panthers Coach Peter DeBoer of Vokoun, who stopped 40 shots in three periods and the overtime plus four more in the shootout to give Florida a 1-0 victory in Boston. Cory Stillman(notes) had the lone goal in the shootout. Vokoun was at his best in the second period, when the Boston Bruins outshot the Panthers 19-1.

No. 2 Star: Ilya Kovalchuk(notes), Atlanta Thrashers

Welcome back, captain. Out since Oct. 24 with a broken bone in his foot, Kovalchuk had a three-point night to lead the Thrashers to a 5-3 victory at the New York Rangers. His blast from the point set up Rich Peverley's(notes) power-play goal in the second, and Kovalchuk struck just over two minutes later with a sniper-shot that beat Henrik Lundqvist(notes) (22 saves). He had the primary assist on Maxim Afinogenov's(notes) empty-netter to clinch the victory. Kovalchuk had six shots in 22:22 of ice time.

No. 3 star: Henrik Zetterberg(notes), Detroit Red Wings

The game-winner for the Wings came from a special player on a special shot: Zetterberg's forehand/backhand move that beat Roberto Luongo(notes) from inside the circle and helped Detroit win, 3-1. "Not a lot of guys can do that, only a few around the league," said Luongo. Jimmy Howard(notes) had 31 saves for the Wings.

Honorable mention: Steven Stamkos(notes) just missed the cut for the top three after scoring his 13th of the season on a shorthanded goal, setting up Ryan Malone's(notes) game-tying goal with 14.7 seconds left in the third and then tallying the only goal in the shootout to give the Tampa Bay Lightning a 4-3 shootout win over the Minnesota Wild. Hey, at least Owen Nolan earned the Wild some style points. ... The New Jersey Devils moved to within a game of tying the Buffalo Sabres' 2006-07 record for consecutive road wins to start a season, going 9-0-0 with a 4-1 victory at the Pittsburgh Penguins. Zach Parise(notes) had a goal and an assist; Marty Brodeur had 25 saves. The good news for the Pens: Sidney Crosby(notes) snapped his five-game scoreless streak with a first-period assist. ... The Nashville Predators won a gritty, at times brutal game at the St. Louis Blues, 3-1. Jordin Tootoo's(notes) first of the season late in the third period was the game-winner. ... Tomas Plekanec(notes) had three assists and the Montreal Canadiens power play went from 1-for-16 to 2-for-2 in the Habs' 4-2 win over the Phoenix Coyotes. ... Stephane Robidas(notes) was the surprising shootout hero and Marty Turco(notes) made 30 saves in the Dallas Stars' 3-2 win at the San Jose Sharks. Mike Modano(notes) scored his first of the year; Dany Heatley(notes) had his 12th for the Sharks. ... Finally, Danny Briere(notes) had two goals and Ray Emery(notes) made 22 saves in his first game back in Ottawa against the Senators to lead the Philadelphia Flyers over the Senators, 5-1. Said Emery: "As long as you win, you're satisfied. You can't look too much into things. Just do what you normally do." Sure.

Did you know?: Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom(notes) is now 11-1-2 lifetime against Southeast Division teams.

Dishonorable mention: Another night, another questionable hit: St. Louis winger David Backes(notes) was given a major penalty and game misconduct for boarding J.P. Dumont(notes) of the Predators. Later, Ryan Suter(notes) leveled Paul Kariya(notes) into the end boards on a borderline hit. ... The good news? The Coyotes had their fourth-highest attendance of the season. The bad news: It was 10,064 paid. ... Finally, Tim Thomas(notes) gets credit for a shutout; the Bruins get no credit for failing to give him even one goal in support.

• Remember: Rumors Chat today at 1 p.m. Hee-ya!

• Forbes released its list of NHL franchise values with the usual shock and awe. The Toronto Maple Leafs ($470 million), New York Rangers ($416 mil.), Montreal Canadiens ($339 mil.) and Detroit Red Wings ($337 mil.) top the list; the Florida Panthers ($159 mil.), Nashville Predators ($156 mil.), New York Islanders ($149 mil.), Atlanta Thrashers ($143 mil.) and Phoenix Coyotes ($138 mil.) are the least valuable. [Y Sports and Forbes and CBC Sports]

• Just as interesting: Forbes's percentage change from year-to-year for NHL franchise values. Of the 14 teams that lost value since the last list, 13 of them missed the playoffs and eight of them are worth less than $200 million. Oh, and the Islanders brought in $62 million in revenue last season, which is either an argument for a new arena or that the New York market is too oversaturated. [Forbes]

• Steve Ovadia's take on the Forbes list: Contraction. [Puck Update]

• William Houston on the Mike Danton interview that's the talk of the hockey world in Canada today. In the U.S.? We get a former beauty queen going nuts on Larry King. Life is unfair. [Truth & Rumours and more from the Toronto Star]

• Brian Burke promised "testosterone." The media wonders if the Leafs have gone soft. Is Toronto's 2009-10 season DVD going to be sponsored by Levitra? [Sun Media]

• The plight of the California hockey fan. Not nearly as sad as the plight of the Wyoming surfer. [Fools and Sages, and worth your time]

• Ray Emery(notes) makes his triumphant return to Ottawa, and his former teammates have his back and blame "outside forces" for trying to run Ray out of town as a Sens goalie. [Sun Media]

• Hey, guess who doesn't suck anymore? Cristobal Huet(notes). [Between The Circles]

• Nice job by Lindsay Kramer on an underreported story: Brad Lukowich(notes), property of the Vancouver Canucks, playing with the Dallas Stars' AHL affiliate. [NHL]

• Milan Lucic(notes) is back skating with the Boston Bruins for the first time since breaking his finger. Wait, why couldn't he skate with a broken finger? Wuss. [Bruins Blog]

• Adam Proteau's column on depression among hockey players is a reminder that these guys aren't superhuman. [THN]

• More from Scott Niedermayer(notes) on his potential retirement after this season and potential return to the Devils this season. [Fire & Ice]

• Dreger: "Marty Turco, Tim Thomas(notes), Dominic Moore(notes) and Steve Montador(notes) appointed to study and rewrite PA constitution." Crayons optional. [TSN]

• It's official: Peter Forsberg(notes) is Swedish for "Favre-like tease." [Courier Post]

• Reactions on Clarke MacArthur's(notes) hit on Liam Reddox(notes) from FanHouse and Die By The Blade, which comes to the Buffalo Sabres player's defense.

• Jim Kelley is pretty darn happy the NHL GMs have decided to take action against hits to the head: "Protecting people is something civilized people have tried to do dating back to a time before even the National Hockey League was born." [Sportsnet]

• Kudos to our buddy Hex for having the comedic courage to make this obvious and hilarious head shots joke. [Melt Your Face Off]

• The GMs heard about goalie equipment restrictions this week, too: "The ability to have unified measurements of various body parts for every goalie in the NHL is what finally moved the much-discussed plan of height-specific leg pads from the discussion stage to the action stage. In fact, the plan will be in place for the start of next season." [NHL]

• The Columbus Blue Jackets attempt to make sense of the worst home loss in franchise history to the Detroit Red Wings last night. Hitch on Steve Mason(notes): "He's our guy and he's going to have to bury this, and fight, with the rest of us." [Puck-rakers]

• Remembering John Tortorella's Freddy Mercury 'stache. [YouTube, via Puck Buddy Eric]

• Maurice Richard and the Myth of 50 in 50. [On Goal Analysis]

• Finally, it would appear that Victoria's Secret has nominated Patrick Sharp(notes) as "Sexiest Chicago Athlete" against Derrick Rose and Brian Urlacher. Kris Versteeg(notes) continues to be one of the best NHL players in video comedy, somehow turning a "How sexy is Patrick Sharp?" interview into a diss on Patrick Kane(notes). (Thanks to Kris V. for the tip. No, not Versteeg.)

(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.)

Our final end of decade rankings list will be of the best goals of the past decade, so stay tuned for that.

This list remembers those goals that had meaning and weren't just pretty to look at. There are hundreds of thousands of goals scored in all levels of hockey annually, but there are few that hold much importance to a fan base or a league or the game itself.

Here are the Top 10 most significant goals of the last decade ...

10. Andrew Brunette's(notes) overtime winner in Game 7 of the 2003 Western Conference Quarterfinals

No one gave the Minnesota Wild a chance against the two-time Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the 2003 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was the first playoff appearance in franchise history for the Wild, and they were expected to play the "happy to be here" part and go away quickly.

Things didn't go quite as the script planned, as Minnesota clawed back from a 3-1 series deficit and Brunette's overtime goal in Game 7 ended the series in dramatic fashion. The series winner would also be the last that was allowed by Patrick Roy who would retire in the off-season. The goal started a postseason run all the way to the Western Conference finals before the Wild ran out of gas against the Anaheim Ducks.

9. Petr Sykora's(notes) goal in the third overtime of Game 5 of the 2008 Stanley Cup finals

Sykora's goal did two things for the '08 Finals: It prolonged a series that had much hype heading into it, avoiding disappointment; and it turned into something that quickly put more eyes on to it. Even casual puck fans know that playoff hockey is great hockey, but overtime playoff hockey is gold. Two nights later, Game 6 quickly became must-watch TV, not only because Detroit had a second shot at winning the Stanley Cup, but how Sykora's goal gave the Pittsburgh Penguins a thought of hope heading into what would be the final game of the series. 

8. Brett Hull's 700th goal in 2003

Only five other players had hit the 700-goal total in NHL history before Hull slapped home his milestone tally against the San Jose Sharks. Only Wayne Gretzky reached the mark faster. Currently sitting third all-time in the goals scored category in NHL history with 741, Hull enjoyed a 37-goal season in 2002-03, his next to last full season in the NHL. While the feat of reaching 500 goals is a celebrated achievement in the NHL, hitting 700 is something that requires a special player.

7. Maria Rooth's shootout goal at 2006 Olympics stuns women's hockey world

Women's hockey was best (and really only) known for the Canada/USA rivalry, which culminated at the 1998 and 2002 Olympic gold medal games. Rooth's goal giving Sweden the upset over Team USA in Torino was monumental because it showed that women's hockey was more than just the American and Canadian rivalry. It also saved the Swedish women's hockey program, which was on the verge of going extinct in the years between the Salt Lake and Torino Games.

6. Tyler McGregor ends the 2006 NCAA West Regional Semis in shocking fashion

The 2006 West Regional Finals was supposed to feature the mighty Minnesota Golden Gophers against either college hockey powerhouses Michigan or North Dakota. A funny thing happened on the way to the final in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Little Holy Cross crashed the party and upset the Golden Gophers after Tyler McGregor's overtime goal. This truly was a ‘Miracle on Ice' moment for college hockey. Heading into the game, the Crusaders had never won a NCAA tournament game and Minnesota's roster featured 14 NHL draft picks compared to 0 for Holy Cross.

5. The 'Professor' swings the tide of 2002 Cup Finals

The 2001-02 Detroit Red Wings were no doubt the best team of this decade. When they entered the Stanley Cup Finals that year, they were facing a red hot Carolina Hurricanes teams. After splitting the first two games at home, the Red Wings found themselves down 2-1 late in the third period of Game 3 before Brett Hull deflected the tying goal past Arturs Irbe, sending the game into overtime. With no goals through the first two extra periods, it wasn't until 14:47 of the third overtime before the game was decided. Igor Larionov, 42-years young at the time, dangled his way around Bates Battaglia(notes) and a sprawling Irbe before backhanding the winner top-shelf.

Detroit did not lose again in the series and later claimed their 10th Stanley Cup in five games.

4. Jason Arnott's(notes) Cup-winning goal in 2000

How lucky were we, as hockey fans, that two years in a row the Stanley Cup finals ended with an overtime goal?

A member of the New Jersey's "A" line along with Patrick Elias and Petr Sykora, Arnott's goal 8:20 into the second overtime in Game 6 gave the Devils their second Stanley Cup title in five seasons. It was the 15th time in NHL history that the Stanley Cup was won in overtime and the only time this decade it's happened. 

3. Ilya Kovalchuk's(notes) golden goal at the 2008 World Championships

After to having watched the Canadians win gold on Russian soil a year earlier as they managed only a bronze medal, Team Russia returned the favor a year later when the World Championships were played in Canada for the first time in the tournaments history. Ilya Kovalchuk sent the final against Canada into overtime and then sniped home the winner to give Russia their first gold medal since 1993. The Atlanta Thrashers captain picked the right time to score his only two goals of the tournament as Rick Nash(notes) sat in the box after a controversial delay of game penalty.

2. Marc-Andre Fleury's(notes) blunder gives Team USA gold at the '04 World Juniors

The United States had only medaled three times since the World Junior Hockey Championships became an official tournament in 1977 with two bronze medals and a silver. The 2004 tournament in Finland saw an upstart US squad with future NHL'ers like David Booth(notes), Ryan Kesler(notes), Zach Parise(notes) (tournament MVP), and Ryan Suter(notes).

Down 3-1 in the second period of the gold medal game against Canada, Team USA battled back with goals from Kesler and Patrick O'Sullivan(notes) to tie things up heading into the final frame. With less than five minutes remaining, Marc-Andre Fleury tried to clear a puck from the defensive zone, but it ended up hitting off Braydon Coburn(notes) and into the Canadian net.

Team USA would win 4-3, but Canada would not have to wait long to relish a gold medal. Since the 2004 tournament, Team Canada has not lost a gold medal game and will look to win their sixth consecutive World Junior title next month.

1. Joe Sakic(notes) ends Canada's 50-year wait for gold

The last time Canada had won gold before their triumph in Salt Lake, they had beaten the United States. How fitting it was that they reclaimed gold against their biggest rival. Jarome Iginla(notes) and Joe Sakic each scored twice, with the now-retired Colorado Avalanche captain sealing things with just over a minute remaining in the third period.

After Sakic's goal, a giant monkey was seen crawling off the shoulders of Team Canada executive director Wayne Gretzky's back, and the world hockey power was finally back on top of the international scene.

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]

No sweeping changes are expected to come from this debate; just the usual chatter from across the usual battle lines. But the Toronto Sun reports that Rutherford and another prominent team executive have a specific provision they want discussed today:

Jim Rutherford of the Hurricanes and Ken Holland of the Detroit Red Wings are intrigued by the concept of "line of vision," meaning blindside hits -- even those considered legal under today's rules -- would be no-nos.

"Is a player in a vulnerable position or is he not?" Rutherford said. "The referees and the league make those determinations. But clearly some of these are blindsided hits where a player doesn't have a chance to protect himself. ... Maybe the criteria needs to be altered."

This incremental tweaking of the rulebook, rather than a wholesale "ban" on head shots, may end up being more palatable for the League's suits.

Pierre LeBrun of ESPN has more on the GM meetings, but one item in his notebook really caught our attention: The suggestion by Nashville Predators GM David Poile that the use of "UFC-style" tactics in NHL fights needs to be discussed on a League-wide level, and will be on the agenda.

Somewhere, Riley Cote silently weeps.

From LeBrun:

One agenda item that will be brought up Wednesday, time permitting, is the issue of NHL fighters using UFC-style tactics. The Nashville Predators were upset last season when they felt San Jose Sharks winger Brad Staubitz(notes) used his forearms to punch Jordan Tootoo in a fight. Sharks GM Doug Wilson was upset the Predators complained to the league about it.

"We brought it up with the league that we thought he was hitting him with his forearm," Predators GM David Poile said Tuesday. "Doug doesn't see that, but that's what I saw on the film. I asked the league, is this something we should talk about? I haven't heard a thing about it until now."

Poile's ire stems from this fight back in March:

It sparked some interesting conversation at the time, as Lance Hornby wrote:

The Tennessean newspaper looked closely at the rule book, checked with Colin Campbell and found no specific rule that addresses or forbids Staubitz's tactics. Campbell said if a glove can be kept on in a fight, so can an elbow pad.

Preds general manager David Poile said he expects the unorthodox fighting style to be reviewed by both his peers and the league's competition committee.

"We're all aware of the latest rage, which is the (Ultimate Fighting Championship)," Poile said. "In my limited viewing of that, it's all elbows and knees. There's no question that there are players that are probably training under a UFC-type of regimen. ... What's worse: A punch or an elbow? I tend to think based on UFC and what they're doing, and the fact that it's a padded protection area, an elbow can be a whole lot worse."

Poile has a point: This should at least be discussed by the NHL, even if it was an isolated incident.

As the GM said, plenty of hockey fighters are training in MMA during the offseason, and MMA culture is prevalent in NHL locker rooms. This isn't to say a guy Staubitz is going to start using his knees or a chokehold in a fight because he watches UFC; but if there's nothing in the rulebook about it now, there won't be when it actually happens, either.

MMA fan and occasional hockey ruffian Tim Thomas(notes) of the Boston Bruins sees no place for UFC in hockey fights, via MMAFighting.com:

Last year I saw a fight, somebody was called up for San Jose [ed. note: Brad Staubitz] against Jordin Tootoo(notes), and he was purposely missing with his fist and kept hitting Jordin with his elbow pad on. So that was the closest I have seen to MMA-type striking in the NHL, and it's not good. There's a place for fighting in hockey, but to be throwing elbows, it's just wrong. And Tootoo didn't really know what was going on either, because he was dodging the fist but he was still getting hit. He couldn't figure it out.

It's always a little comical to see Marquess of Queensberry rules applied to hockey fights, where two guys beat the hell of each other in frequently-staged combat to entertain the paying customers. Fists, elbows, forearms ... there's a part of you that thinks "hey, it's a fight, anything goes" as long as lead pipes and Mr. Fuji's magic dust are kept out of the scrap.

That's the problem for the NHL: Changing the rules for something that is already against the rules.

The League loves to toe the line between "fighting is a part of our game" and "fighting is penalized in our game." To start addressing the rules of engagement in a legislative way is to offer a tacit endorsement of its place in the game. That's why any rule regarding fighting, even mandatory helmet use, gets anchored down in discussions.

Here are your

Preview: Calgary Flames at Montreal Canadiens, 7:30 p.m. EST. NHL player of the week Jarome Iginla(notes) leads the Flames to face an old friend for the first time this season: Michael Cammalleri(notes), who left for the Habs as a free agent and has come up big with 14 points on the season. (OK, as big as Michael Cammalleri can come up.) Solid preview from Matchsticks and Gasoline.

Preview: Nashville Predators at San Jose Sharks, 10:30 p.m. EST. Battle between two teams playing good hockey, as the Sharks attempt to remain unbeaten at HP Pavilion (5-0-1). The Preds have won four of their last five. Fear The Fin points out that Marcel Goc(notes) will play his first game against San Jose, while Scott Nichol(notes) and Jed Ortmeyer(notes) playing against the Predators for the first time as Sharks. This probably means more to them than it does you. Watch The Game Via Hockey Night on Y!

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

Evening Reading

• If you only read one thing tonight, make it Down Goes Brown's NHL suspension justification flow chart. You'll thank us. [DGB]

• Chicago Blackhawks center Dave Bolland(notes) has back surgery and will miss 3-4 months. The Blackhawks' salary cap, however, will not miss him. [TSN]

• According to the Post Standard, "the Syracuse Crunch will play the Binghamton Senators on Feb. 20 at the State Fairgrounds, in what will be the first outdoor game in AHL history." Sen. Chuck Schumer must now decide whether to drop the first puck, sing the national anthem or play goal in order to hog the spotlight. [Post Standard]

• A K.H.L. Town Worse Off Than Detroit. [Slap Shot]

• Adam Mair(notes) clears waivers, and the Buffalo Sabres decide to keep him in the NHL. No hard feelings huh, champ? [Sabres]

• The GMs have decided to keep the trapezoid. Now comes the main event: 30 guys with 30 different opinions on head shots. [NHL]

• Matthew Barry gets some really solid stuff on head shots from Los Angeles Kings veteran players. [HockeyBuzz, beware hideously annoying auto-play video]

• Kyle Okposo(notes) has been diagnosed with H1N1. They visit DC on Wednesday. We'll interview Tavares in one of those government-issued spacesuits from "E.T." [Lighthouse Hockey]

• Darren McCarty(notes) will be the guest enforcer analyst on Versus for the Detroit Red Wings/Predators game later this month. Fair and balanced! [Freep]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: Hans Gruber on the post about ads inside the nets in the IHL:

In Raleigh they give away homes if the team wins. Needless to say, there are a lot of homeless in Raleigh.

Oh yeah, well Manny Legace's(notes) like Habitat For Humanity up in here!

Bold Prediction: Raycroft gives up at least three goals to St. Louis, thus avoiding goalie controversy when Luongo returns later this week.

 

(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.)

These "end of decade" rankings aren't all necessarily going to be confined to the National Hockey League. In some cases, other levels of competitive hockey are going to creep into the countdowns; and there's simply no way to recall the most significant upsets of the last 10 years without discussing at least three that occurred outside of NHL rinks.

That isn't to say that some miraculous (or heartbreaking, depending on which side of history your team was on) upsets didn't also occur in the Stanley Cup playoffs, because they certainly did. In fact, Detroit Red Wings fans might want to skip this list, unless the championships have balanced out the embarrassing defeats at the hands of underdogs.

Here are the Top 10 biggest upsets in the last decade ...

10. Calgary Flames (No. 6 seed) upset Detroit Red Wings (1), 2004 Western Conference semifinals

The Red Wings were a President's Trophy-winning 109-point team that had overcome the pesky Nashville Predators in the first round. The Flames had outlasted the Vancouver Canucks in an exhausting seven-game upset. Detroit was, to put it mildly, a heavy favorite here.

That was before Miikka Kiprusoff(notes) outplayed Curtis Joseph(notes), the Flames won back-to-back 1-0 games and bookended their 4-2 Western Conference semifinal win with overtime victories -- the second clinching the upset via a Martin Gelinas(notes) goal. From blogger Jamie Fitzpatrick:

An upset? To be sure. But the Flames had the NHL's 3rd-best defensive team this season, and are now reaping the rewards. In terms of sticking to your game plan, Calgary is this year's most consistent playoff team. Iginla and Kiprusoff get the headlines, but you could argue that this series was won by Calgary's young defense, painstakingly assembled through years of drafting and trading.

This was also the series where Steve Yzerman took a puck to the eye in Game 5, which you may recall as No. 9 on our Most Brutal Injuries of the Last Decade list. The Flames went on to lose to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Stanley Cup finals, in a series vaguely remembered for Ruslan Fedotenko's(notes) heroics and the Vinny/Iggy fight.

9. Bemidji State upsets Notre Dame, 2009 NCAA men's hockey tournament

In 2009, we finally were given the answer to an annual scholastic hockey mystery: The hell's a Bemidji State anyway?

Turns out it's a small liberal arts college in Minnesota that was ready to shock the NCAA.

The Beavers were technically a No. 4 seed in the Div. I tournament, but were actually the lowest seed in the 16-team field. Which made their emphatic 5-1 stunner against No. 2 Notre Dame all the more unbelievably -- along with the facts that it was Bemidji State's first D-I tournament win in school history and just the second tourney victory in CHA conference history.

Because of the university's size and budget, the Wall Street Journal ranked the upset as the third most-shocking in recent NCAA sports history.

The Beavers would qualify for the Frozen Four, losing to Miami (Ohio) in the semifinals. But the win over the Irish sparked a Cinderella run that, for a moment, captivated the hockey world.

8. Montreal Canadiens (8) upset Boston Bruins (1), 2002 Eastern Conference quarterfinals

The emotions in this series were off the charts. Saku Koivu(notes) had returned from Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma with a few games left in the regular season, helping the Habs to the eighth seed. Anthems where disrespected, to the point where Bill Guerin(notes) and Doug Gilmour had to cut promos urging fans not to boo. It was as vicious a rivalry series as you'd expect from these old adversaries, crystallized by this Kyle McLaren(notes) hit on Richard Zednik(notes) that earned him a two-game suspension:

In the end, the Canadiens (87 points) stunned the first-place Bruins (101 points) in six games, backstopped by superb goaltending by Jose Theodore(notes). They lost to eventual conference champ Carolina in Round 2.

7. Minnesota Wild (6) upsets Colorado Avalanche (3), 2003 Western Conference quarterfinals

Sometimes, pictures are worth 1,000 words. The one above is worth five: Wild stun Avalanche in seven.

It was Minnesota's first playoff berth, and they were a defense-first team with Cliff Ronning as their third-leading scorer. Colorado? Uh, yeah, it had a little talent on the roster.

Things started out well for the Wild, with a 4-2 road win. Then came three straight Avalanche victories, and Coach Jacques Lemaire actually said his team had no shot to win the series after going down 3-1. But the Avs took their foot off of Minnesota's neck in Game 5, and the Wild rallied with back-to-back overtime wins to take the series in seven -- becoming, at the time, only the eighth team in NHL history to rally from a 3-1 hole with two road wins.

The Wild would eventually lose to the Ducks in the conference finals. Marian Gaborik(notes) would finish with 17 points in 18 playoff games.

6. Los Angeles Kings (7) upset Detroit Red Wings (2), 2001 Western Conference quarterfinals

The Wings were a 111-point team taking on a 92-point Kings squad, and the difference in the standings was evident in the first two Detroit victories in the series. But Los Angeles won Game 3 before the series was turned on its head in Game 4: The Kings rallied for three goals in the final 6:07 to send the game to overtime, where rookie Eric Belanger(notes) scored to knot it at two games apiece. LA would win four consecutive games to eliminate the Wings, including Adam Deadmarsh's series-clinching tally in overtime of Game 6.

Here's a look back at Game 6, and what playoff hockey sounds like in Hollywood (it's been a while).

The Kings would push the eventual Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche to seven games in the following round.

5. Denmark upsets U.S., 2003 Ice Hockey World Championships

Trust us: If you lived in Denmark, you'd know this game like gospel.

The IIHF world championship tournament was held in Tampere, Finland in 2003. The U.S. had a roster of 12 NHL players, including Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller(notes). Denmark, meanwhile, was making its first appearance in the tournament's elite pool since 1949; yes, their time between tournament appearances was the same duration as the Rangers' Stanley Cups between 1940 and Mark Messier.

In the opening game for both nations, Denmark chased Miller and shocked the U.S. with a 5-2 victory, considered one of the biggest upsets in the tourney's history. The loss sent the Americans to a 0-3 death spiral that had them last in their pool, and propelled Demark to another classic hockey moment: a 2-2 tie against eventual champ Canada.

4. San Jose Sharks (8) upset St. Louis Blues (1), 2000 Western Conference quarterfinals

Then-Blues Coach Joel Quenneville said it best: "I've never seen as many crazy goals as I have in this series ... That's not an excuse, it's a fact."

We'll, it's sort of an excuse, too. The Blues were a 113-point juggernaut in the regular season, finishing first overall in the NHL; all it got them was the ignominious honor of being just the second President's Trophy winner (at the time) to get bounced in the opening round.

They looked flat and played underwhelming hockey against a dangerous Sharks team, losing three games in a row for the first time all season in the middle of the series. The Blues attempted a comeback, pushed it to a Game 7, but were eliminated in a 3-1 San Jose victory. It was a game that featured this Owen Nolan(notes) goal/Roman Turek whiff that personified Coach Q's weird-crap-o-meter reading on this series:

The difference between the teams was 27 points; yet doesn't the Sharks' upset in 1994 against the Red Wings (a difference of 18 points) still loom larger?

3. Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (7) over Detroit Red Wings (2), 2003 Western Conference quarterfinals

Had this been an 8-vs.-1 series, it may have hopped into the No. 2 slot on the countdown. Instead, it was a 110-point division champion getting absolutely stunned in a sweep by the No. 7 seeded Mighty Ducks and their untested goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere(notes), who quickly became "tested" in stopping 165 of 171 shots he faced in the four games.

Giggy faced 64 of those shots in a classic triple-OT Game 1 that was ended with a Paul Kariya(notes) goal. The Ducks would win each game by a 1-goal margin, including Game 4's overtime victory to eliminate the defending Stanley Cup champions and a squad that still had many of the names from its "team of the decade" run in 2002. Well, outside of Scotty Bowman and Dominik Hasek(notes), that is.

The Ducks would lose to the Devils in a seven-game Stanley Cup final that saw Giguere win Marty Brodeur's Conn Smythe.

2. Edmonton Oilers (8) upset Detroit Red Wings (1), 2006 Western Conference quarterfinals

The Oilers snuck into the playoffs, for the first time since 2003, in the final week of the season, with 95 points. The Red Wings were the Red Wings: 124 points and the President's Trophy in a dominating season.

It looked like business as usual for the Winged Wheel when they won Game 1 in double OT. But the Oilers and goalie Dwayne Roloson(notes) won Game 2, and Edmonton would win three one-goal games to stun the Wings and Manny Legace(notes) in six. Here's how the clinching game went down in what was an unbelievably atmosphere in Alberta:

The Oil would advance all the way to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes. These would be Steve Yzerman's last games in the NHL. As Mike Babcock said: "I am shocked we're in this situation."

It's something this next juggernaut can relate to ...

1. Belarus upsets Sweden, 2002 Winter Olympic quarterfinals in Salt Lake City

"For sure, it is a miracle for us ... But sometimes a gun without bullets can shoot, and that was us. We've made our place in history."

That was Belarus goalie Andrei Mezin, and we're still not entirely sure what that metaphor meant, although it's vaguely sexual. Here's what we did know: Belarus had been outscored 16-2 in its earlier two games. It was a 10 million-to-1 shot to win the gold. A guy named Andrei Mezin was their goalie. Ruslan Salei(notes) was their only NHL player.

Despite all of this, Belarus found a way to slow down the Swedes' attack and play even with the international powerhouse until one of the single most stunning moments in recent Olympic history, courtesy of Vladimir Kopat and soon-to-be-hockey-punchline Tommy Salo:

Belarus won, 4-3, advancing to the semifinals where they lost to Canada, 7-1. In the immortal words of former Toronto Maple Leafs star Mats Sundin(notes): "I don't understand how we could lose against this team."

--

Puck Daddy's Best & Worst of the Decade lists will run on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday through the end of 2009. (Yes, that includes holidays; cynical appraisal never sleeps.)

Leahy and I thought about adding a "Best Hall of Fame Class of the last decade" list to our end-of-2000s project, but opted to leave it out.

Few would argue that the Class of 2002 was the weakest: Bernie Federko, Clark Gillies, Rod Langway and the late Roger Neilson. The only point of debate would be the strongest of the decade, which comes down to two classes. (All due respect to the Ray Bourque/Paul Coffey/Larry Murphy/Cliff Fletcher class of 2004.)

2007: Mark Messier, Al MacInnis, Scott Stevens, Ron Francis, Jim Gregory.

2009: Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille, Brian Leetch, Lou Lamoriello

You've have to give the nod to this year's class as the best of the decade, no?

Coming up, some thoughts on a remarkable class of hockey legends, entering immortality this evening in Toronto. (With Wayne Gretzky in the hizzle!)

Brett Hull

It was that shot.

The one that produced 741 career goals. The puck would leave the stick in a blur and find its target with incredible accuracy no matter where Hull uncorked it. He was a Howitzer on the ice; the kind of guy who would fire a wrister from 10 feet out on a breakaway because it was going to be more lethal than some silly deke.

I'll remember him most as a St. Louis Blues sniper because of that wonderful time when a hockey fan could answer an NBA fan's "Stockton to Malone" with "Oates to Hull" without a second thought. It's still one of the greatest center/winger combos I've ever seen.

Hull won two Stanley Cups; with the Detroit Red Wings in 2002 and with the Dallas Stars in 1999. (Sure, his foot was in the crease against the Buffalo Sabres, but have you heard there was a super-secret memo that made it OK?) That's on the ice; off the ice, he was an outspoken quote machine, an ambassador for the game and a player whose outsized personality is still sorely missed among the elite stars in the NHL.

Examples aplenty from the Blues in this number retirement video:

Steve Yzerman

It was that jersey:

For whatever reason, the Steve Yzerman Detroit Red Wings sweater was as iconic as any during his playing days. Like Mario's or Gretzky's, it was something more than a team jersey; it implied a vibe of cool, a feeling of dignified stature that transcended the usual gear.

Yzerman has Hall of Fame stats, a Hall of Fame résumé and a Hall of Fame trophy case. But there's something greater than his point totals going on here, and The Chief at the aptly named Abel To Yzerman attempted to capture it today:

There are players who've been voted in who probably felt it was owed to them.  There are "captains" who stayed too long, wore out their welcome in at least three different cities, loved the attention, begged for it, thrived on it, then missed it so much created ways to keep their name out there....like inventing a "leadership award" and finding a hygiene product to sponsor it.  There are others who's spectacular play earned their admission to the Hall, but their lack of character made you cringe to consider their place among the greats like Howe and Beliveau.

Steve Yzerman? He's never felt like hockey owed him jack squat.  And his character is spotless.  He is the icon of our age.  A hero in a time when defining one is nearly impossible.

Ted Lindsay called Stevie Y "everything a great athlete should be." End of conversation.

Luc Robitaille

It was the perseverance.

Of the inductees, Robitaille's prime is the one I'm least familiar with as an East Coast, Wales Conference hockey fan. But over the years, you learn that "Lucky" doesn't just apply to the teams honored to have one of the best left wingers in NHL history on their rosters; it defines the career of a also-ran draft choice who became a Hall of Famer.

Think about it: He was taken 171st overall by the Los Angeles Kings in 1984. (Ahead of Gary Suter, no less; nice scouting back then.) The next five players taken at No. 171 in the ensuing NHL Entry Drafts: Jamie Huscroft, Scott McCormack, Craig Daly, Dan Wiebe, Jeff St. Laurent.

Then again, some schlub named Pavel Datsyuk(notes) was taken there in 1998. But Dats didn't have the bum rap that Luc had coming up, according to the LA Times:

A Canadian reporter who had written about him years ago recalled hearing of scouting reports that seriously doubted whether Robitaille would succeed in the NHL despite his high-scoring exploits with the Hull Olympiques of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

"Apparently there was someone that wrote that on the report. ‘This kid will never make it because he's slower than a Zamboni," Robitaille said, laughing.

Like Luc said at the HOF: "It was a really fast one. It was a turbo Zamboni."

Here's a schmaltzy remembrance of Luc Robitaille, he of the 668 goals and 1,394 points in the NHL:

Brian Leetch

It was the consistency.

What Leetch represented while playing with the New York Rangers was a constant amidst a franchise that went from a 54-year curse to an era-defining Cup win to a high-priced Titanic that sunk out of the playoffs for several seasons. He was a Conn Smythe winner in 1994 with Mark Messier and the team's leading scorer in 2001 with Mark Messier Part Deux.

He also spanned eras as a defenseman, as he recalled with the National Post:

"I remember coaches saying, 'If Leetchy is up on the play, you have to back him up,' " he said. "And then it went to, 'Leetchy, don't get up in the play,' because we had to do the trap or something. I found sitting back difficult. My strength is not standing still and reading the play. It went back and forth."

What I wrote when Leetch was announced for the Hall still stands:

With apologies to Joe Mullen, Chris Chelios(notes) and Pat LaFontaine, Leetch is the greatest American-born player in NHL history; and the first U.S. player to ever win the Conn Smythe when the Rangers won the Cup in 1994. Known for his offense (247 goals, 781 assists, 1,028 points) but he won two Norris Trophies as a total-package defenseman. I hated him as a Devils fan. That's the best compliment I can give.

Of course, it turns out he might have been a Devil at the end of his career, but that's neither here nor there. Speaking of which ...

Lou Lamoriello

It's the debt of gratitude.

There wouldn't be a lot of things had it not been for Lou Lamoriello. The Prudential Center. The New Jersey Devils' name on the Stanley Cup three times. Or, for that matter, the New Jersey Devils here in 2009.

But as Tom Gulitti wrote, his contributions go beyond turning a Mickey Mouse franchise into a perennial winner:

How important to you were your contributions to USA Hockey?

"I'm proud of our country. I went through the era where U.S. college players were not looked upon (to play in the NHL) and rightly so. It wasn't until 1980 when we won the Olympics that they really were given the opportunity to have success and recognition and really Herbie and that 80 Olympic team opened the door for college players because I was coaching at that time. So, I saw that opportunity come. I saw it coming, but that gave it a chance.

"I was fortunate to be part of that era and be a part of sports festivals for USA Hockey. I can still think of the players that were with me. Ed Olczyk, I had at 16 in the sports festival. The Tommy Barrassos that were coming to Providence (as recruits) and Bobby Carpenter, even Brian Lawton, who ended up going pro. Then, working with them on USA team. Even Monday is special with you've got Brian Leetch and Brett Hull from the '96 World Cup Team. The World Cup team was one of the bigger days for USA Hockey."

Like most Devils fans, I've had a love/hate relationship with Lamoriello. Loved the success, hated the non-marketing. Loved the genius moves like Kurvers-for-what-would-be-Niedermayer and the Scott Stevens arbitration win; hated some of the baffling post-lockout transactions. Loved the painstaking detail and care Lamoriello took in micro-managing this team; hated when that micro-managing would manifest itself in an itchy coaching trigger finger.

But that's Lamoriello. You swallow your doubts, push aside your trepidation and then stare at the standings as you try and figure out how, once again, the New Jersey Devils look like a playoff team. As the name of the blog says: In Lou We Trust.

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:

It's a lengthy, grab-the-coffee-and-settle-in read, but worth your time if you're into the politics of hockey or if your lockout scars still ache. The single biggest issue dividing the players is escrow, and according to Friedman the players are going to have to sacrifice something significant in the next CBA negotiation (long-term contracts?) to rectify it.

Among Friedman's suggestions, in what he said is "the NHLPA's last chance to get it right":

Chelios must go. The former Detroit Red Wings defenseman has scorched the earth under association management, and Friedman suggests that he's too tied to old fights and is too divisive to remain a leader in a reconstructed NHLPA.

Get younger. Friedman writes that there's a generational shift in the association, helped along by the influx of younger, cheaper and faster players after the lockout. He's right, but good luck convincing players that have never had to fight for financial equality -- and have no respect for labor movements of the past -- to step up and lead. If you thought the lockout revealed how quickly the players would fold, they'll be spineless in a strike.

Find a leadership structure that works. As Friedman writes:

Right now, the constitution is crippling. The executive director reports to the 30 player reps. There is also an ombudsman, an advisory board and one retired player liaison for each of the six NHL divisions. I understand checks and balances, not wanting anyone to get too drunk with power, but this is too much.

[...]

There are so many possible structures. Maybe a hockey guy surrounded by lawyers. Maybe a labour lawyer surrounded by businessmen (that was the Goodenow model). Maybe a businessman surrounded by lawyers or hockey people.

So are agents "lawyers" or "hockey people"? Friedman's section on the influence of agents on the NHLPA is eye-opening, given word that they're very much involved in its resurrection.

One gets the feeling Friedman doesn't see them as a positive influence on the players' association, but their influence will be difficult to diminish; how many players are simply advocates on behalf of their representation, as was suspected when Sidney Crosby spoke out?

(Speaking of agents: Evidently they're not allowed to be public advocates for their clients or have freedom of expression in the eyes of the media. This Allan Walsh/Montreal media flap screams "new media jitters." We love it.)

So the NHLPA is given good advice that it will no doubt ignore. As Red Fisher wrote in the Gazette today:

The NHLPA has disintegrated into an embarrassing and scary case of fratricidal warfare. Embarrassing, because what you have now is one union brother against another. Laughable, because the players have made it abundantly clear their only strength is on the ice. Off it, they can't make a decent, three-foot pass. When a union is split into factions, it's little more than putty in the owners' hands.

And the clock is ticking.

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:

Preview: Detroit Red Wings at Toronto Maple Leafs, 7 p.m. EST. Looking for their fourth straight win, the Red Wings head into tonight's Hall of Fame Game. Three former Red Wings, Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull and Luc Robitaille will be in attendance along with Brian Leetch and Lou Lamoriello for the pre-game ceremony. It'll be game No. 3 in the Phil Kessel(notes)-era for the Leafs who may see Jonas Gustavsson(notes) in goal for a third straight game.

Preview: New York Rangers at Calgary Flames, 10 p.m. EST. No Henrik Lundqvist tonight for the Rangers as Sean Avery(notes) and Dion Phaneuf(notes) meet on the ice for the first time since "those" comments. Avery even admitted that he called Elisha Cuthbert after the comments to apologize for them. Calgary looks for their first home win in three games before an east coast trip next week.

Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins at San Jose Sharks, 10:30 p.m. EST. Despite losing their undefeated road record after falling to Los Angeles on Thursday night, the Penguins enter HP Pavilion tonight wanting to end their west coast trip by taking four out of six points. Joe Pavelski(notes) is expected to return for the Sharks tonigh, who are undefeated against the defending Stanley Cup champions at home over their past eight match-ups.

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

Evening Reading

-Scotty Wazz on defending those Montreal Canadiens barber pole jerseys: "If you want to talk about the whole retro movement when it comes to the culture of sports-- fact of the matter is that nothing says more retro than the barber-pole jersey when it comes to hockey." [Wazz]

-Islanders defenseman Radek Martinek(notes) is done for the year after tearing an ACL. [Point Blank]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: The half dozen commenters who were unaware that the Clint Malarchuk injury didn't take place in the years between 2000 and 2009.

Bold Prediction: Nothing happens between Sean Avery and Dion Phaneuf. Also, Detroit slays the "Monster" in a rout.

(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.)

Some of these all-decade lists are lighthearted, nostalgic compilations of the last 10 years of NHL hockey; and some of them are what you're about to read.

The NHL has seen some truly gruesome moments since 2000. Lives were threatened. Careers were shortened. Reputations were ruined. We wish something a little more whimsical like Matt Walker's mangled finger could have made this list. But it didn't. 

Keep in mind that some of these injuries are ranked based not only on their severity but their impact culturally on hockey. Also keep in mind that the last 10 years have featured so many grisly incidents that the injury commemorated in the photo above is not, in fact, No. 1 overall.

These video highlights have been everywhere for the last 10 years, but please keep in mind that many are distrubing and not for all audiences. Here are the Top 10 Most Brutal NHL Injuries of the Last Decade ...

10. Patrick Thoresen's(notes) Groin, 2008

"Potentially ruptured testicle" is going to earn a player a spot on this list in any decade, as the then-Philadelphia Flyers winger attempted to block a shot by Washington Capitals defenseman Mike Green(notes) in the 2008 Eastern Conference quarterfinals and ... well, he took one for the team.

As you can see, it was insult to injury: In a controversial moment, the refs allowed play to continue on the Capitals' third-period power play, and Green scored the game-tying goal in a contest the Caps would eventually win (though they'd lose the series in seven).

Thoresen? Tests later showed that the worst fears wouldn't be realized. He was released from the hospital, returned to the series in Game 3 and would play 14 total games in the postseason. That's testicular fortitude.

(Honorable Mention: Nicklas Lidstrom's(notes) "nearly catastrophic" testicle injury in 2009.)

• • •

9. Steve Yzerman's Eye, 2004 

In Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals in 2004, the Detroit Red Wings Hall of Famer took a puck off the eye when teammate Mathieu Schneider's(notes) shot deflected off of Calgary Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff(notes). To see a star player go down like this was nothing short of horrific.

Yzerman required 4-and-a-half hours of surgery at a Detroit hospital "to repair a scratched cornea and broken bone just below his left eye." He missed the rest of the postseason and returned after the lockout wearing a face shield, which was absent when the injury occurred. Images of Stevie Y's crimson eye became propaganda for those who wanted visors mandatory in the NHL.

(Honorable Mention: Braydon Coburn's(notes) mangled face after taking a puck to the mug in the 2008 playoffs.)

• • •

8. Chris Clark's(notes) Mouth, 2006

The Washington Capitals captain had kept all his teeth intact through 373 NHL games until a puck struck his face in a Nov. 2006 game against Boston. (Being a hockey player, he naturally finished his shift.) The aftermath, from the Washington Post:

Two of his top teeth are gone. Braces hold three others in place. His palate, meantime, was repaired with the aid of cadaver bone and a screw, inserted during three hours of surgery Thursday morning.

Other than attempting to eat Matt Pettinger's(notes) brains after practice one day, Clark didn't suffer any strange side effects from the cadaver bone implant.

• • •

7. Kurtis Foster's(notes) Broken Leg, 2008

In March 2008, the Minnesota Wild defenseman was chasing down an icing in a race with San Jose Sharks' winger Torrey Mitchell(notes). Contact between the two was made, and in a flash Foster's season was over.

Foster's femur snapped in half and his patella cracked. Doctors worked to repair it for 10 hours. As Foster recalled in a harrowing interview with the Star Tribune:

Trying to beat out an icing, Foster was pushed from behind by Mitchell. "All I remember is my kneecap taking everything," Foster said. "Once I realized my head, neck and back were OK, I tried to move my leg and in my mind it was moving, but when I looked at my leg, it wasn't moving. So I knew something was really wrong."

He returned to the Wild on March 7, 2009, and signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning that summer. Like Yzerman's, the injury sparked intense debate about rules changes, this time for players racing to ice the puck.

• • •

6. Kevin Bieksa's(notes) Calf Muscle, 2007

The Vancouver Canucks defenseman missed 47 games after the skate of then-Nashville Predators forward Vernon Fiddler(notes) sliced into his leg and lacerated his calf muscles during a Nov. 2007 game.

Blood filled Bieska's sock in a gruesome scene, and his career was feared to be over. But he worked through a long, experimental rehab process to get back on the ice and be a productive player for the franchise.

(Honorable Mention: Teemu Selanne(notes) slicing his own leg with his skate and missing over a month in 2008; and Jamie Heward(notes) getting sliced on the face by Mike Modano's(notes) skate in 2006.)

• • •

5. Patrice Bergeron's(notes) Concussion, 2007 

Any number of concussions in the last 10 years could make this list (Eric Lindros's in 2000 at the hands of Scott Stevens, for example), but few combine the brutal nature of the injury and the controversy about the legality of hitting in the game better than Bergeron's. The bright young star for the Boston Bruins was driven into the end boards from behind by Randy Jones(notes) of the Philadelphia Flyers in Oct. 2007, suffering a broken nose and Grade III concussion.

Bergeron would miss the remainder of the season and make a long journey back from post-concussion syndrome. Jones, meanwhile, only received a two-game suspension from the NHL, as discipline czar Colin Campbell said that Jones delivered "a hard check to a player who was in a vulnerable position" but didn't intend to injure him.

The Bruins' faithful disagreed with the brevity of that suspension, which manifested itself in March 2009 when announcer Jack Edwards cackled manically about a borderline check on Jones during a Flyers/Bruins game.

• • •

4. Bryan Berard's(notes) Eye, 2000

One of the most career-altering injuries on the list. In March 2000, while a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Berard's right eye was clipped by the stick of then-Ottawa Senators winger Marian Hossa(notes). (Apologies for the poor video quality.)

The eye was slit on sclera, and there was fear he'd lose it along with this career. After several surgeries (and a tidy $6.5 million insurance settlement), Berard had 20/600 vision in his eye which was elevated to an NHL-required 20/400 with the use of a contact lens. He missed a full season, rehabbed for a comeback, and played the rest of the decade through back injuries and an embarrassing drug test failure.

• • •

3. Richard Zednik's(notes) Neck, 2008

The fact that this all-time ghastly scene isn't at No. 1 is a testament to the all-time ghastly scenes that ranked ahead of it. Because few hockey fans will forget the first time they witnessed the Florida Panthers' winger getting his throat slashed by the skate of teammate Olli Jokinen(notes) in Feb. 2008:

This video capture that flew around the Web said it all. The official diagnosis was a slashed carotid artery, and Zednik lost five pints of blood.

He was eventually discharged from the hospital, missed the rest of the 2007-08 season and returned the following year for the Panthers. Over 20,000 fans sent get-well messages to the Panthers' Web site for Zednik. Like other incidents on this list, it sparked a League-wide debate, this time regarding neck guards for NHL players.

• • •

2. Steve Moore's Neck, 2004

We're running our all-decade lists through the end of December. Sadly, this will not be the last time you see this tragic moment in NHL history mentioned as a low-point for the League.

It was March 8, 2004. The Vancouver Canucks were looking for vengeance after Colorado Avalanche forward Steve Moore checked captain Markus Naslund(notes) near the head in a previous game. One game had already passed between the teams, but this contest would find Todd Bertuzzi(notes) viciously attacking Moore from behind because ... well, the courts haven't determined that yet:

You know the aftermath: The sucker-punch fractured Moore's vertebrae, cut his face and gave him a concussion; his NHL career was finished. Bertuzzi, after tearfully apologizing, was suspended indefinitely by the NHL as the incident received coverage from ESPN to The Today Show. Bertuzzi ended up missing 20 games along with the locked-out NHL season. Visit CBC Sports for complete coverage of this landmark incident that's still being litigated in the courts.

• • •

1. Trent McCleary's Tracheotomy, 2000

Yes, it takes an emergency, life-saving tracheotomy to top this horrific list.

Trent McCleary was a center for the Montreal Canadiens. In Jan. 2000 against the Philadelphia Flyers, he went down to block a Chris Therien shot and took a puck to the throat.

According to Web MD:

McCleary very quickly got to his feet and skated toward the trainer. Because the puck had collapsed his windpipe he could not breathe. He was carried off the ice, and lost consciousness while in the tunnel. He easily could have died that night, but he was rushed to a hospital, and had an emergency tracheostomy within 10 minutes of leaving the arena. He remained in critical condition before being upgraded to stable condition on Feb. 1.

The injury cost McCleary his hockey career, after his air passage was 15 percent narrower than before.

Let's hope we don't see any of these reoccur in the next 10 years.

Puck Daddy's Best & Worst of the Decade lists will run on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday through the end of 2009. (Yes, that includes holidays; cynical appraisal never sleeps.)

Preview: San Jose Sharks at Detroit Red Wings, 7:30 p.m. EST.

A slow start has turned into the Red Wings grabbing a point in each of their last eight games and putting up a 5-1-3 record in that span. Defenseman Brian Rafalski(notes) is expected to return after battling swine flu while Jonathan Ericsson(notes) is still questionable. San Jose, winners of six in a row and the NHL's highest scoring team, will have to best Chris Osgood(notes) who's won his last two starts and stopped 49 of 50 shots.

Preview: Chicago Blackhawks at Phoenix Coyotes, 9 p.m. EST.

‘Hawks captain Jonathan Toews(notes) will miss his fifth game in a row after a concussion at the hands of Vancouver's Willie Mitchell(notes). With their dads in tow, the Blackhawks will be looking for their seventh straight win over the Coyotes and to pad the attendance numbers at Jobing.com Arena.

Preview: New York Rangers at Edmonton Oilers, 9:30 p.m. EST.

Oilers assistant coach Tom Renney on facing his former team: "It's not quite the same unit, but I'm going to have a hard time looking at the logo and not identifying with it. I'm going to see faces, familiar faces, and be happy to see them again and all that kind of stuff. And I want to beat them."

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

Evening Reading

-Bob Hartley has told RDS that Peter Forsberg(notes) has agreed with Ak Bars Kazan of the KHL. That's a quick turnaround after what Ak Bars Kazan VP Ravil Shavaleev said about Russian reports yesterday that Forsberg was signed: “I read that we have supposedly agreed with Forsberg. However, we have conducted no negotiations with him, and I’ll tell you more: We haven’t even thought about inviting him.” [Slap Shots]

-Whoa. "The Columbus Blue Jackets could leave central Ohio if the team can't fix an economic model that is causing losses of $12 million a year, according to a report issued today by the Columbus Chamber. But a deal to keep the hockey team here and the Arena District alive -- the team and the district generated $30 million in taxes last year -- probably will include asking for public dollars, and soon." [Dispatch]

-David Krejci(notes) is the latest player to be affected by swine flu. And thus another member of my fantasy team, "The Best Bellows!" finds themself out of action.[Boston Globe]

-Not long after calling out Nashville Predators fans for low attendance numbers, Denver Post columnist calls out his constituency about their failure to fill the Pepsi Center last night against Phoenix. [All Things Avs]

-Will Wayne Gretzky make an appearance in Toronto this weekend during the Hall of Fame inductions? [Globe & Mail]

Puck Buddy Comment of the Day: From Tom who is being sarcastic or has questionable taste in hockey jersey designs:

"The Oilers "Spawn" jersey is hands down the best third jersey ever created!!!!" 

Bold Prediction: Phoenix will break 7,500 in attendance tonight, but lose to Chicago.

Remember Kevin Dallman