March 20th

FOSTER LEAVES ON STRETCHER IN WILD LOSS

Minnesota Wild defenceman Kurtis Foster was taken off the ice on a stretcher Wednesday following a collision with San Jose Sharks rookie forward Torrey Mitchell.

The 26-year-old suffered a broken leg.

"He was playing his best hockey," Wild head coach Jacques Lemaire said.  It is a big loss."

Foster was racing Mitchell to the puck behind the Wild net when he was bumped, lost his balance and smacked hard into the end boards. He remained prone for 12 minutes as medical personnel fitted him with a leg splint and strapped him to a backboard, and at one point screamed as his leg was treated.

Foster moved his head and talked to paramedics as they removed him from the ice 5:18 into the second period of the Wild's 4-3 shootout loss at HP Pavilion. He was later treated for a displaced fracture of his left femur at San Jose's O'Connor Hospital.

Mitchell received a tripping penalty on the play.

"It wasn't one of the best games refereed this year," Lemaire said.

Foster has seven goals and 18 points in 55 games this season. In 175 career NHL games over five seasons with the Atlanta Thrashers and Wild, Foster has 20 goals and 70 points.


LEAFS SIGN PROSPECT REIMER

The Toronto Maple Leafs signed 20-year-old goaltender James Reimer to a three-year contract. Financial terms were not disclosed.

"James has steadily progressed during his three seasons with the Rebels and has established himself as one of the top goaltenders in the Western Hockey League,'' said Maple Leafs General Manager Cliff Fletcher.  ''We are excited to have him in the organization and we look forward to his continued development beginning next season.''

Reimer was the Maple Leafs' third choice, 99th overall, in the 2006 National Hockey League Entry Draft.

He has been a member of the Red Deer Rebels of the Western Hockey League for the past three seasons. Reimer's save percentage (.916) improved for the third consecutive season despite battling a high ankle sprain in 2007-08 which limited him to only 30 games played. 


NUMMINEN CLEARED TO PLAY

Buffalo Sabres defenceman Teppo Numminen has been cleared to rejoin the team six months after having open heart surgery.

Numminen will practice with the Sabres on Thursday after completing a two-day evaluation, the team announced during the first intermission of their game against Tampa Bay on Wednesday night.

He hasn't been cleared to play in a game. Buffalo has eight regular-season games remaining.

"We'll have a better sense of where his fitness level is and we'll go from there," Sabres general manager Darcy Regier said.

For Numminen, it will be his first time back since he practised with the team in early January. However, he was informed by team doctors at that time that he wouldn't be cleared to play until mid-March, at the earliest, to allow his sternum additional time to heal.


FORMER NHLerGIVEN SUSPENDED SENTENCE

Former NHLer Jere Karalahti was given a 20-month suspended sentence on Thursday for being an accessory in a drug smuggling operation.

The Espoo District Court found Karalahti, 32, guilty of helping finance the smuggling of amphetamines and cocaine from Estonia into Finland last year, in a case involving 18 others. He was also fined $15,800.

Prosecturos had demanded a prison sentence of four to six years and said they will appeal, claiming the Finn was directly involved in the smuggling operation.

Karalahti, who was found guilty of providing $31,600 for smuggling operations, denied all charges and said he had simply paid back an old debt.

The drug ring was involved in smuggling about 20 kilograms of amphetamines and hundreds of grams of cocaine, the court said.

The case opened in Espoo in January, two months after Karalahti was taken off the ice during practice with his team Karpat for police questioning. He was then arrested on suspicion of committing a serious drug offence.

The Finnish hockey league banned him in December.

Karalahti left the NHL in 2002 after being suspended for six months for his third violation of the league's substance abuse policy. He played 121 games in 2000-02 for the Los Angeles Kings and Nashville Predators.

He joined Karpat last year after agreeing to follow the club's strict rules on alcohol and drugs, putting him in contention for a return to Finland's national team for the upcoming world championships in Canada. Karalahti was voted an all-star defenceman at the 1998 and '99 worlds.


CROSBY TO RESUME SKATING THIS WEEK

According to TSN, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby is expected to resume skating this week, possibly as early as Thursday. However he won't play against the Lightning Thursday night or dress for the weekend game against the Devils.

Crosby has had soreness in his right ankle since originally suffering the injury in a January 18 game against the Lightning. He returned to the lineup on March 4 after missing 21 games, but after playing in just three games, he began experiencing soreness and has sat out the last three games.

In 49 games this season, he defending Hart and Art Ross trophy winner has 22 goals and 45 assists.