Just heard an interesting rumor that the New Jersey Devils are close to signing unrestricted free agent Brendan Shanahan.
Shanahan who had been waiting patiently to re-sign with the New York Rangers finally announced yesterday that he would entertain offers from other teams, having given up hope that he would be playing with the club he'd spent the last two seasons with.
The New Jersey Devils are looking to fill a void left by injured forwards (and off season free agent pick-ups) Brian Rolston, and Bobby Holik who will be out of the lineup for the next 4-6 weeks. Shanahan who was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in 1987, would be able to continue his NHL career, fill the hole left by Rolston and Holik, and remain close to his family which now resides full time in New York City. Look for a deal to be finalized by the weekend.
Daniel Alfredsson won't be retiring anytime soon afterall.
Alfredsson has re-upped with the only club he's ever played for, the Ottawa Senators for another 4 years... presumably the remainder of his career.
The new deal will pay Alredsson $21.6 million over the next 4 seasons, and also includes a no-movement clause. In his 861games with the Senators, Alfredsson has 856 points (334 goals, 522 assists).
Quick Shave: I'd like to send an apology out to Martin Brodeur who is the latest recipient of the infamous Curse of Bosh. Since declaring his greatness last week, Brodeur has been unable to capture a win, point in fact, the then winless Philadelphia Flyers were able to put up a pair of back to back wins over the weekend (which included a smoke grenade - well done Philly fans) and last night was torched for 5 goals on 48 shots (way to show up D) by the Toronto Maple Leafs last night... who went on to beat the New Jersey Devils 6-5 by way of shootout.
Brendan Shanahan has apparently decided to explore other options outside of the New York Rangers who have left him in unrestricted free-agent limbo. Shanahan was only interested in playing for New York, but has changed his mind due to the lack of progress. Anyone need a Hall of Fame winger?
New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur continues to approach NHL greatness... as if he hasn't already achieved that.
What we are witnessing in New Jersey right now is the career of the greatest goaltender in NHL history, and perhaps one of the greatest players that has ever put on skates.
Last night Martin Brodeur made 21 saves to help the Devils to a 5-0 shutout win over the visiting Dallas Stars. The shutout was his second of the season and 98th of his career. He is now 5 shutouts away from tying Terry Sawchuk's record that stands at 103. He is also 8 wins short of Patrick Roy's record of 551... a mark Brodeur will clearly smash, and perhaps own forever.
Anaheim Ducks forward, enforcer and owner of the finest facial hair in the NHL scored in his club's 3-2 shootout win over the Toronto Maple Leafs last night.
To say the Ducks are having a rough start is the understatement of the year. The Ducks were unable to register a shot in the third period of the game last night but somehow managed to squeak out a victory over a Toronto Maple Leafs roster that is peppered with 3rd line players at best. George Parros for the record, is now second on the team in goal scoring after potting his second of the year last night.
Anaheim's young gun stars of Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry have both been blanked on the score sheet this season, neither registering a goal. Teemu Selanne has just 1 goal in 7 games and is a -4 rating. Free agent pickup Brendan Morrison has two points and is a -3. What does all this mean? Last place in the Western Conference.
Quick Shave: The Marian Gaborik trade watch is officially on now that rumors broke yesterday that the Minnesota Wild have already offered him up as a potential trade. An 'unnamed' NHL exec reported that Wild GM Doug Risebrough had been actively shopping their star forward.
Is this really a surprise? This is the same scenario as last year, when the Atlanta Thrashers were unable to re-sign Marian Hossa. Thrashers deal Hossa to the Pens for a package of picks and players, Hossa is a Penguin for a few months, and then leaves Pittsburgh high and dry for Detroit.
Gaborik never had any intention of re-signing with the Wild. He plans to test the market. Any team considering trading for him, should be well aware of that as well, and look closely to what happened to Pittsburgh. You may get him for the rest of the year, but there will be no guarantees he will be wearing your club's jersey come July 1st... which really is when team's should bid on his services.
Sidney Crosby recorded his 100th goal, his 200th point, and his 300th point last night as helped lift the Pittsburgh Penguins over the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1. Crosby was on a line with Evgeni Malkin for the first time this season and the combination paid immediate dividends as Crosby had a goal and 3 assists, and Malkin assisted on all 4 of the Penguins tallies. Malkin now has 201 points in 166 games.
Crosby's former teammate, Marian Hossa set a milestone last night as well recording his first goal as a Detroit Red Wing. The goal was an OT winner that killed a remarkable New York Rangers comeback last night and gave the Red Wings the 5-4 win. The score was also Hossa's 300th career score.
This game was great for the record. The Red Wings scored less than 30 seconds into the game and then again minutes later to take a quick 2-0 lead. It looked like the Rangers were going to fail this bench test outright, but managed to turn the game around and even take the lead late. The Red Wings however, are still the Red Wings, and are the Stanley Cup Champions for a reason. Detroit was able to tie the match, force OT, and close the game out quickly on Hossa's goal.
Quick Shave:
What is up with the Philadelphia Flyers? The Flyers have yet to record a victory this season, after reaching the Eastern Conference Finals last year, and surrendered their 5th straight loss last night to the San Jose Sharks.... a game that they had they carried the lead throughout. Perhaps allowing 44 shots on net is the first reason why. Was last year an abomination? Did they over-achieve, or are they under-achieving now? Questions like these are going to start being raised and Coach Steven's will soon be on the chopping block if this club doesn't begin to turn it around. Remember, Denis Savard was just fired a few days ago for losing three (a he won a game too), and Atlanta axed Bob Hartley after he dropped 6 straight last season.
The Chicago Blackhawks shocked the NHL yesterday by dropping the hammer on their coach Denis Savard after just four games.
Savard who had just led the Hawks to their first win of the season over the Phoenix Coyotes was dismissed in favor of former Avs and Blues head coach Joel Quenneville.
Savard, like most was shocked by the firing, but rumors were circling that it was because he had favored playing goaltender Nikkolai Khabibulin over newly acquired keeper Cristobal Huet. Khabibulin had been in net for the Blackhawks first win, and has been the better of the pair thus far.
Quenneville lands in a choice position of leading a Chicago roster that is stacked with young talent. The Blackhawks have been annointed by just about everyone to make a trip to the post season this year.
If the Columbus Blue Jacket want to make their franchise's first ever playoff appearance this year, they will need efforts like last night's win over the Dallas Stars.
The Blue Jackets twice gave up the lead to Dallas, including a two goal advantage which the Stars quickly erased in the final moments of the third. Rather than rollover, the Blue Jackets continued to battle and Nash deposited the game winner with 20 seconds left in the extra period.
Recent free agent acquisitions to the Blue Jackets made early contributions to their new club as well. Forward Kristian Huselius scored for Columbus and defenceman Mike Commodore welcomed Sean Avery back to the Western Conference by leveling him during the game.
Quick Shave: How many of you in Washington are cringing after goaltender Jose Theodore performance last night? Theodore was chased during the Atlanta Thrashers 7-4 drubbing of the Washington Capitals. Theodore allowed 4 goals on 17 shots and backup Brent Johnson surrendered three more to complete the route. Caps defenceman Mike Green picked up right where he left off last season depositing a pair of power play goals, but Alexander Ovechkin was held off the scoresheet. Former Caps goaltender Cristobal Huet who left to sign with the Chicago Blackhawks didn't do much better as he allowed 4 goals. The New York Rangers defeated the Blackhawks in their home opener 4-2. Rangers forward Brandon Dubinsky scored a goal and added two assists, and free agent defenceman acquisition Wade Redden potted his second goal in two games for the Blueshirts. Goaltender Martin Brodeur got one win closer to Patrick Roy's record (which he will eclipse easliy this season barring injury) as he made 25 saves and helped lift the New Jersey Devils to a 2-1 win over the New York Islanders. Keith Tkachuk deposited a pair of goals to help the the St. Louis Blues easily defeat the Nashville Predators 5-2 in their home opener last night.
Ottawa Senators forward Daniel Alfredsson underwent arthroscopic surgery yesterday to remove bone chips in his right knee. Alftreddson was apparently injured during the second game against the Pittsburgh Penguins and he is expected to miss a few weeks of action.
Game of the Night: NY Rangers at Philadelphia 7:00 PM
There are a ton of great games going on tonight... I'm so glad to have Saturday night hockey back! I'm going homer on this one mostly because I'm curious to see how the Rangers fare against the Eastern Conference semi finalist Philadelphia Flyers this evening... and I'm only interested in the game... not the political nonsense that has everyone and the mother in an uproar! I will definitely be looking at the Red Wings and Senators game, where I expect Detroit to bounce back hard after their home opening loss to the Leafs and I'm curious to see how the retooled Phoenix Coyotes will do this evening against the Blue Jackets.
I think Def Leppard should consider following Hasek and Drakes lead...
The Toronto Maple Leafs go into this season with nothing to lose, having bought out, traded, and basically sent packing every under performing high priced veteran (Sundin not included) and replaced them will a roster full of role players and grinders. That however was more than enough to spoil the Red Wings home opener (although Def Leppard definitely got an assist) in which Detroit raised it's Stanley Cup Championship banner.
The Leafs defeated the Red Wings 3-2. Defenceman Pavel Kubina, forwards Dominic Moore and Nikolai Kulemin (his first career NHL goal and game winner) scored and Vesa Toskala made 35 saves to complete the win.
No blueline in Tampa? Goaltending controversy in Ottawa?
Thus far, the New York Rangers free agent signings are already paying dividends.
UFA defenceman pickup Wade Redden opened the scoring for the Rangers, and Scott Gomez potted the game winner to complete the 2 game sweep against the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 yesterday afternoon, drawing a close to their European road trip.
The Tampa Bay Lighntning, who were extremely active during the off-season neglected to focus on improving their defense, and most critics pointed out that as a major concern. In their first two matches of the season, the Lightning have allowed nearly 80 shots on net. On the positive side, Tampa has upgraded their goaltending with the tandem of Mike Smith and Olaf Kolzig. The pair allowed only 4 goals over the weekend, however, continuing to face 40 shots an evening will require a Luongian effort...
Speaking of goaltending.... have the Ottawa Senators found a keeper in backup Alex Auld? Auld made 30 saves yesterday to help the Senators to a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins and return from their European trip with a split. Auld's performance may give coach Craig Hartsburg something to think about as he clearly provided better support in net than Martin Gerber did a night earlier. Keep an eye on this one... and you may want to pickup Auld for your fantasy roster. Sens forward Dany Heatley had a great weekend collecting three goals against the Penguins, all on the powerplay.
Markus Naslund scored in his debut as a New York Ranger yesterday, to help lift his new club to a 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Ligntning. The game which marked the beginning of the NHL season was played in Prague, Czech Republic.
The Rangers badly outshot the Lightning throughout the game, but were stoned by Tampa Bay netminder Mike Smith (the featured acquisition for the Lightning in the Brad Richards trade last February) who made 39 saves on the game. Rangers forward Brandon Dubinsky scored a power play goal with roughly 5 minutes remaining in the game to seal the victory. The second part of the 2 game set will be played today at noon EST.
While goaltending was the strength for the Tampa Bay Lightning it is still a question mark in Ottawa. The Senators fell 4-3 in overtime to the Pittsburgh Penguins who were playing their opener up North in Stockholm, Sweden. Ottawa goaltender Martin Gerber failed to provide the confidence in net that his club was looking for and let in several soft goals including the overtime winner that was deposited by Penguins forward Tyler Kennedy (worth a fantasy look, as he's riding shotgun to Malkin for the time being... he scored two including the game winner yesterday). The Penguins and Senators will meet again later this afternoon to conclude their two game matchup.
The NHL kicks off the 2008-2009 season this year by continuing it's European experiment with a pair of games today and tomorrow.
In an effort to showcase it's product, the NHL takes it's stars overseas to a European audience which thus far this pre-season has be very receptive.
The New York Rangers will play the Tampa Bay Lightning will open a two game series this afternoon in Prague, followed by the Ottawa Senators taking on the Eastern Conference Champion Pittsburgh Penguins in Stockholm.
Just heard an interesting rumor that the New Jersey Devils are close to signing unrestricted free agent Brendan Shanahan.
Daniel Alfredsson won't be retiring anytime soon afterall.
New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur continues to approach NHL greatness... as if he hasn't already achieved that.
Anaheim Ducks forward, enforcer and owner of the finest facial hair in the NHL scored in his club's 3-2 shootout win over the Toronto Maple Leafs last night.
The Marian Gaborik trade watch is officially on now that rumors broke yesterday that the Minnesota Wild have already offered him up as a potential trade. An 'unnamed' NHL exec reported that Wild GM Doug Risebrough had been actively shopping their star forward. 
The sleeping giant has finally woken.
This game was great for the record. The Red Wings scored less than 30 seconds into the game and then again minutes later to take a quick 2-0 lead. It looked like the Rangers were going to fail this bench test outright, but managed to turn the game around and even take the lead late. The Red Wings however, are still the Red Wings, and are the Stanley Cup Champions for a reason. Detroit was able to tie the match, force OT, and close the game out quickly on Hossa's goal.
If the Columbus Blue Jacket want to make their franchise's first ever playoff appearance this year, they will need efforts like last night's win over the Dallas Stars.
How many of you in Washington are cringing after goaltender Jose Theodore performance last night? Theodore was chased during the Atlanta Thrashers 7-4 drubbing of the Washington Capitals. Theodore allowed 4 goals on 17 shots and backup Brent Johnson surrendered three more to complete the route. Caps defenceman Mike Green picked up right where he left off last season depositing a pair of power play goals, but Alexander Ovechkin was held off the scoresheet. Former Caps goaltender Cristobal Huet who left to sign with the Chicago Blackhawks didn't do much better as he allowed 4 goals. The New York Rangers defeated the Blackhawks in their home opener 4-2. Rangers forward Brandon Dubinsky scored a goal and added two assists, and free agent defenceman acquisition Wade Redden potted his second goal in two games for the Blueshirts. Goaltender Martin Brodeur got one win closer to Patrick Roy's record (which he will eclipse easliy this season barring injury) as he made 25 saves and helped lift the New Jersey Devils to a 2-1 win over the New York Islanders. Keith Tkachuk deposited a pair of goals to help the the St. Louis Blues easily defeat the Nashville Predators 5-2 in their home opener last night. 
Thus far, the New York Rangers free agent signings are already paying dividends.
Markus Naslund scored in his debut as a New York Ranger yesterday, to help lift his new club to a 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Ligntning. The game which marked the beginning of the NHL season was played in Prague, Czech Republic.
