1875: Hockey Hall of Famer Graham Drinkwater born in Montreal.
1928: Black Hawks' Duke Keats scored at 15:50 of the second period in a game against Ottawa, to end Senators' goalie Alex Connell's streak of six consecutive shutouts (460:49). Senators won the game, 3-2 at Chicago.
1934: Lionel Hitchman played his final NHL game in a 3-1 Bruins' loss to Ottawa, the team with which he started his career, at Boston Garden. Art Ross declared his jersey #3 retired at the conclusion of the game.
1938: Bruins won an NHL-record seventh straight game, as Tiny Thompson recorded his 73rd career shutout, a 2-0 win over Toronto, at Boston Garden.
1955: Former NHL center Tim Young born in Scarborough, Ont. Young played in the NHL 1975-76 through 1984-85 with Minnesota, Winnipeg and Philadelphia.
1956: Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Rangers 4-2, as Lou Fontinato set a new NHL penalty minute record; his 169 PIM for the season broke the old record of 167 set by Red Horner in 1935-36.
1958: Jack McIntyre scored a hat trick, and Gordie Howe had a goal and four assists as the Red Wings beat the visiting Boston Bruins, 6-1.
1964: In one of the NHL's biggest trades ever, Toronto sent Arnie Brown, Bill Collins, Dick Duff, Bob Nevin, and Rod Seiling to the New York Rangers, in exchange for Andy Bathgate and Don McKenny.
1968: Leon Rochefort scored his second (and final) career hat trick to lead the Flyers to a 7-3 win over the Minnesota North Stars, at a Flyers' "home game" in Quebec City. It was the Flyers' second hat trick ever -- both by Rochefort.....John Bucyk became the first player in Boston history to score a game winning goal at 19:59 of the third period, when his last-second goal gave the Bruins a 3-2 win over the Red Wings, in Detroit.
1972: Gerry Cheevers set an NHL record for goaltenders by extending his unbeaten streak to 24 straight games (18-0-6) in Boston's 4-3 win over the Canucks, at Vancouver. John McKenzie added his 200th career NHL goal.
1980: The U.S. Olympic hockey team upset the Russians 4-3 at Lake Placid in New York, to set off a national celebration.
1981: Rookies Peter and Anton Stastny of the Quebec Nordiques scored eight points apiece to set a new rookie record for points in one game. Peter posted a 4-4-8 mark, while Anton tallied a 3-5-8 total as Quebec beat the Capitals 11-7, at Washington.....Rick Kehoe scored twice and added three assists as the Penguins began a 6 game winning streak, with a 9-4 win against the Colorado Rockies, in Pittsburgh.....American-born coaches faced each other for the first time in NHL history.ÊHartford's Larry Pleau (from Massachusetts) squared off against the New York Rangers' Craig Patrick (from Michigan). Whalers beat the Rangers 6-5.
1982: Minnesota's Bobby Smith scored a goal and added three assists to lead the North Stars to an 8-7 win over the visiting Hartford Whalers.
1983: Marcel Dionne became the first player in NHL history to get 40+ goals in nine seasons, when he scored for the Kings in a 5-3 win over Boston.
1984: Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky scored four goals (and an assist) for his 10th hat trick of the season, tying his own NHL record set in 1981-82. Oilers won 9-2 over the Penguins at Pittsburgh. It was Gretzky's second four goal game in two days!
1989: Buffalo Sabres trailed 3-0 and 5-2, but came from behind to beat the Islanders 7-5 at the Aud. Darcy Wakaluk earned his first career NHL victory.....Los Angeles Kings traded Mark Fitzpatrick, Wayne McBean and future considerations (Doug Crossman) to the New York Islanders in exchange for Kelly Hrudey.
1990: Calgary's Dana Murzyn scored his first NHL hat trick, Doug Gilmour had two goals and two assists, and Al MacInnis picked up four assists in a Flames' 12-2 win vs Toronto.
1991: Winnipeg's Phil Housley scored his 20th goal of the season for the fifth straight year, in a 6-4 Jets' loss to the Kings. Housley became the second defenseman in Jets' history (after Dave Ellett) to score 20 goals in one season.
1992: Tim Cheveldae made 28 saves, and Sergei Fedorov had two assists to lead the Red Wings to a 2-1 win over Chicago -- the win put the Wings 16 games over .500 for the first time in 22 years.
1993: Thomas Steen scored his 4th career hat trick and added an assist and Phil Housley had four assists in the Jets' 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators, in Winnipeg.....Toronto's Glenn Anderson scored a goal and three assists to become the 36th player in NHL history to reach the 1,000 career point mark. The Maple Leafs won 8-1 over the in Vancouver
1997: Anaheim's Teemu Selanne became the first player in NHL history to score a goal against 24 teams in one season, when he connected for the Mighty Ducks in a 4-2 win over the visiting Phoenix Coyotes.
1998: The Czech Republic, led by the Sabres' goalie Dominik Hasek, captured the men's ice hockey Gold Medal at the Olympic Winter Games in Nagano with a 1-0 win over Russia.
2003: Toronto Maple Leafs tied a franchise record with their seventh straight road victory, a 5-3 win over the Canadiens in Montreal.
Friday, February 22, 2008
February 22th
CONGRESS CALLS NHL, OTHER SPORTS TO CAPITAL HILL
Congress will take yet another look at drugs in sports next week, with a hearing featuring top names from all four major professional leagues, including the NHL.
A house subcommittee, working separately from the committee that held last week's hearing featuring Roger Clemens, is holding a hearing Wednesday on "Drugs in Sports: Compromising the Health Athletes and Undermining the Integrity of Competition."
Baseball commissioner Bud Selig, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, NBA commissioner David Stern and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman are scheduled to testify in the session before the House subcommittee on commerce, trade and consumer protection. Also on the witness list are players' union executive directors:
--Donald Fehr (baseball)
--Gene Upshaw (NFL)
--William Hunter (NBA)
--Paul Kelly (NHL)
Other panel includes:
--USOC chief executive officer Jim Scherr
--Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S Anti-Doping Angency
--NCAA president Myles Brand
--Robert Kanaby, executive director of the National Federation of State High School Associations.
--Alexander Waldrop, CEO of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.
Former senator George Mitchell, who in December released a report on drug use in baseball, will not attend but is expected to submit written testimony.
No players are scheduled to appear, as was the case last week when Clemens appeared before the House committee on oversight and government reform.
The hearing, originally scheduled for Jan. 23, is similar to one the subcommittee held in May 2005, two months after the reform committee's hearing that featured Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Rafael Palmeiro.
The subcommittee also held a hearing that year on college football's Bowl Championship Series.
NIKE SELLING BAUER HOCKEY FOR $200-MILLION
Sporting goods giant Nike Inc. is skating away from hockey, announcing Thursday the sale of Bauer Hockey to a group led by Canadian businessman W. Graeme Roustan and U.S. investment firm Kohlberg & Co. for $200 million.
Nike said it's selling Bauer following a review of its subsidiaries, which also include Converse Inc., Cole Haan and Hurley International. The company has already sold the Starter brand and added U.K. soccer apparel company Umbro.
"Selling this great hockey company was a tough decision but one that was in the best interests of Nike and Bauer as we each look to maximize our respective growth opportunities," said Nike president and CEO Mark Parker.
Founded in 1927, Bauer makes skates, hockey sticks, gear and apparel. Nike bought the company in 1995.
Under the deal, Bauer will continue to use the Nike Bauer Hockey trademark on its existing products for up to two years.
Roustan is a dual Canada-U.S. citizen with business investments in North America, Europe and the Middle East
ISLES WIN 6TH STRAIGHT IN CHRIS SIMON'S RETURN
Miroslav Satan's goal early in the third period Thursday night held up as the New York Islanders defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 1-0.
Rick DiPietro made 32 saves to record his third shutout on the season.
Chris Simon played just over six minutes in his return to the lineup after serving a 30-game ban for stomping on the leg of Pittsburgh's Jarkko Ruutu in a December game.
After the game Simon said, "The most important thing is that we won, my teammates have been so supportive and have been great to me. I can't control what other people think and how they react. I respect that they have their opinion and I'm just going to keep working hard in gaining them back. I worked hard this time that I've had away from the game on myself. I feel much better now coming back. I just want to move forward and help the team."
Simon was also suspended last March for 25 games after cross-checking Ryan Hollweg of the New York Rangers.
CAMPBELL EXPECTED TO REJECT LATEST OFFER
The Buffalo Sabres and defenceman Brian Campbell are still ways apart on a new contract, as the veteran defenceman and his agent Larry Kelly are expected to turn down the team's latest offer.
According to TSN, the deal offered earlier this week is a three-year contract averaging less then $6 million a season
Campbell is scheduled to become an unresticted free agent on July 1, is making $1.75-million this year and is among several big names rumoured to be on the move going into Tuesday's trade deadline.
The eight-year NHL veteran is fourth on the team with 41 points (four goals, 37 assists) and ranks ninth among NHL defenceman in scoring. He's coming off a career season, when he had 48 points (six goals, 42 assists) in 82 games last year.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-22-5
3-MINNESOTA*--73--34-22-5
4-ANAHEIM--75--34-23-7
5-SAN JOSE--72--32-21-8
6-NASHVILLE--72--32-23-8
7-VANCOUVER--70--31-22-8
8-CALGARY--70--31-22-8
------------------------------------------------------
9-PHOENIX--66--31-26-4
10-COLORADO--66--30-25-6
11-ST LOUIS--65--28-23-9
12-COLUMBUS--65--28-26-9
13-CHICAGO--62--28-26-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-29-5
15-LOS ANGELES--55--26-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--76--35-20-6
2-NEW JERSEY*--75--35-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--67--31-28-5
4-PITTSBURGH--75--35-21-5
5-MONTREAL--75--33-20-9
6-BOSTON--68--31-23-6
7-BUFFALO--68--30-23-8
8-NY RANGERS--68--30-24-8
------------------------------------------------------
9-NY ISLANDERS--67--30-25-7
10-PHILADELPHIA--66--30-25-6
11-WASHINGTON--63--28-26-7
12-ATLANTA--62--29-29-4
13-FLORIDA--61--27-29-7
14-TORONTO--59--25-28-9
15-TAMPA BAY--57--25-29-7
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(14) EDMONTON @ (2) DALLAS 730pm
(1) RED WINGS @ (8) FLAMES 8pm
(10) AVALANCHE @ (9) COYOTES 8pm
(11) BLUES @ (4) DUCKS 9pm
Congress will take yet another look at drugs in sports next week, with a hearing featuring top names from all four major professional leagues, including the NHL.
A house subcommittee, working separately from the committee that held last week's hearing featuring Roger Clemens, is holding a hearing Wednesday on "Drugs in Sports: Compromising the Health Athletes and Undermining the Integrity of Competition."
Baseball commissioner Bud Selig, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, NBA commissioner David Stern and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman are scheduled to testify in the session before the House subcommittee on commerce, trade and consumer protection. Also on the witness list are players' union executive directors:
--Donald Fehr (baseball)
--Gene Upshaw (NFL)
--William Hunter (NBA)
--Paul Kelly (NHL)
Other panel includes:
--USOC chief executive officer Jim Scherr
--Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S Anti-Doping Angency
--NCAA president Myles Brand
--Robert Kanaby, executive director of the National Federation of State High School Associations.
--Alexander Waldrop, CEO of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.
Former senator George Mitchell, who in December released a report on drug use in baseball, will not attend but is expected to submit written testimony.
No players are scheduled to appear, as was the case last week when Clemens appeared before the House committee on oversight and government reform.
The hearing, originally scheduled for Jan. 23, is similar to one the subcommittee held in May 2005, two months after the reform committee's hearing that featured Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Rafael Palmeiro.
The subcommittee also held a hearing that year on college football's Bowl Championship Series.
NIKE SELLING BAUER HOCKEY FOR $200-MILLION
Sporting goods giant Nike Inc. is skating away from hockey, announcing Thursday the sale of Bauer Hockey to a group led by Canadian businessman W. Graeme Roustan and U.S. investment firm Kohlberg & Co. for $200 million.
Nike said it's selling Bauer following a review of its subsidiaries, which also include Converse Inc., Cole Haan and Hurley International. The company has already sold the Starter brand and added U.K. soccer apparel company Umbro.
"Selling this great hockey company was a tough decision but one that was in the best interests of Nike and Bauer as we each look to maximize our respective growth opportunities," said Nike president and CEO Mark Parker.
Founded in 1927, Bauer makes skates, hockey sticks, gear and apparel. Nike bought the company in 1995.
Under the deal, Bauer will continue to use the Nike Bauer Hockey trademark on its existing products for up to two years.
Roustan is a dual Canada-U.S. citizen with business investments in North America, Europe and the Middle East
ISLES WIN 6TH STRAIGHT IN CHRIS SIMON'S RETURN
Miroslav Satan's goal early in the third period Thursday night held up as the New York Islanders defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 1-0.
Rick DiPietro made 32 saves to record his third shutout on the season.
Chris Simon played just over six minutes in his return to the lineup after serving a 30-game ban for stomping on the leg of Pittsburgh's Jarkko Ruutu in a December game.
After the game Simon said, "The most important thing is that we won, my teammates have been so supportive and have been great to me. I can't control what other people think and how they react. I respect that they have their opinion and I'm just going to keep working hard in gaining them back. I worked hard this time that I've had away from the game on myself. I feel much better now coming back. I just want to move forward and help the team."
Simon was also suspended last March for 25 games after cross-checking Ryan Hollweg of the New York Rangers.
CAMPBELL EXPECTED TO REJECT LATEST OFFER
The Buffalo Sabres and defenceman Brian Campbell are still ways apart on a new contract, as the veteran defenceman and his agent Larry Kelly are expected to turn down the team's latest offer.
According to TSN, the deal offered earlier this week is a three-year contract averaging less then $6 million a season
Campbell is scheduled to become an unresticted free agent on July 1, is making $1.75-million this year and is among several big names rumoured to be on the move going into Tuesday's trade deadline.
The eight-year NHL veteran is fourth on the team with 41 points (four goals, 37 assists) and ranks ninth among NHL defenceman in scoring. He's coming off a career season, when he had 48 points (six goals, 42 assists) in 82 games last year.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-22-5
3-MINNESOTA*--73--34-22-5
4-ANAHEIM--75--34-23-7
5-SAN JOSE--72--32-21-8
6-NASHVILLE--72--32-23-8
7-VANCOUVER--70--31-22-8
8-CALGARY--70--31-22-8
------------------------------------------------------
9-PHOENIX--66--31-26-4
10-COLORADO--66--30-25-6
11-ST LOUIS--65--28-23-9
12-COLUMBUS--65--28-26-9
13-CHICAGO--62--28-26-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-29-5
15-LOS ANGELES--55--26-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--76--35-20-6
2-NEW JERSEY*--75--35-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--67--31-28-5
4-PITTSBURGH--75--35-21-5
5-MONTREAL--75--33-20-9
6-BOSTON--68--31-23-6
7-BUFFALO--68--30-23-8
8-NY RANGERS--68--30-24-8
------------------------------------------------------
9-NY ISLANDERS--67--30-25-7
10-PHILADELPHIA--66--30-25-6
11-WASHINGTON--63--28-26-7
12-ATLANTA--62--29-29-4
13-FLORIDA--61--27-29-7
14-TORONTO--59--25-28-9
15-TAMPA BAY--57--25-29-7
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(14) EDMONTON @ (2) DALLAS 730pm
(1) RED WINGS @ (8) FLAMES 8pm
(10) AVALANCHE @ (9) COYOTES 8pm
(11) BLUES @ (4) DUCKS 9pm
Thursday, February 21, 2008
February 21th
FLAMES TRADE FOR VANDERMEER
The Calgary Flames made a minor trade acquiring defenceman Jim Vandermeer from the Philadelphia Flyers for a third-round draft pick in 2009.
Vandermeer has three goals, 15 assists and 71 penalty minutes in 54 games this season with Chicago and Philadelphia, and in 246 career games has 17 goals and 49 assists.
The 27-year-old is making $1.225-million this season and is due to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
GAGNE ADVISED TO END SEASON
Simon Gagne might not play again this season because of lingering symptoms from the three concussions he sustained this season.
The injured Philadelphia Flyers forward was told Wednesday to sit out the rest of the year when he went to visit concussion specialist James Kelly in Denver.
Gagne suffered his first concussion on Oct. 24, sat out four games, then had another concussion on Nov. 7 and missed the next 26 games. He was injured again on his first shift in a Feb. 10 loss at Pittsburgh and hasn't played since.
The 27-year-old has seven goals and 18 points in 25 games and said his symptoms were worse after the last two concussions and hoped to play again this season. He hasn't played in fewer than 72 games each of the last three seasons, and now has to worry he doesn't follow the path of former Flyers Eric Lindros and Keith Primeau. Both had promising careers derailed in Philly because of too many brutal blows to the head.
The Flyers have been hit hard with injuries, as Joffrey Lupul, who has 18 goals could miss up to three weeks with a high ankle sprain. Defenceman Darian Hatcher might be out for three weeks with a knee injury, and forwards Steve Downie and Denis Tolpeko are out with concussions.
LIDSTROM OUT 3 WEEKS
Detroit Red Wings defenceman Nicklas Lidstrom will miss three weeks after an MRI exam Wednesday revealed a mild ligament strain in his right knee.
The five-time Norris Trophy winner as the leagues top defenceman has seven goals and 50 assists in 61 games this season, and since entering the NHL in 1989 has only missed 22 games.
In related news, the Red Wings have placed goaltender Dominik Hasek (hip flexor) and defenceman Brian Rafalski (groin) on injured reserve. The team is also without blue-liner Niklas Kronwall (clavicle) and forward Dan Cleary (broken jaw), and recalled defenceman Jonathan Ericsson and forward Mark Hartigan from Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League.
LIGHTNING LOSE LUKOWICH FOR A MONTH
Tampa Bay Lightning defenceman Brad Lukowich will have surgery Friday in Germany to repair a sports hernia, and is expected to miss four weeks.
Dr. Ulrike Muschaweck, who has operated on other NHL players, will perform the procedure in Munich. Her minimal repair technique cuts the recovery time from the operation in half.
Lukowich was hurt early in Tamps Bay's 2-1 overtime loss at Atlanta on Feb 9., and missed the Lightning's next three games before opting ti travel to Germany on Wednesday for the surgery.
The two-time Stanley Cup winner, with Tampa Bay in 2004 and Dallas in 1999, has one goal and seven points in 54 games this season.
CANUCKS SEND BIEKSA TO AHL FOR CONDITIONING
Vancouver Canucks injured defencemen Kevin Bieksa is closer to returning to the lineup.
The third-year NHLer is prepairing to join the team's American Hockey League affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, the next step in his recovery from a lacerated calf. If all goes well he'll return to the Canucks this weekend.
Bieksa, who topped Canucks defencemen with 42 points last season, resumed skating Feb 1, exactly three months after having surgery to repair damage to the calf and other muscles leading to his Achilles tendon.
Vancouver's backline has been decimated by injuries for most of the season, with Lukas Krajicek (season-ending shoulder surgery) and Aaron Miller (foot) remaining on the shelf.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-22-5
3-MINNESOTA*--73--34-22-5
4-ANAHEIM--75--34-23-7
5-NASHVILLE--71-32-23-7
6-SAN JOSE--70--31-21-8
7-CAGARY--70--31-22-8
8-VANCOUVER--68--30-22-8
-----------------------------------------------------------
9-PHOENIX--66--31-26-4
10-COLORADO--66--30-25-6
11-ST LOUIS--65--28-22-9
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-26-9
13-CHICAGO--62--28-26-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-29-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--75--35-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--75--35-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--65--30-28-5
4-MONTREAL--75--33-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--73--34-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--68--30-24-8
7-BOSTON--66--30-23-6
8-PHILADELPHIA--66--30-24-6
-----------------------------------------------------------
9-BUFFALO--66--29-23-8
10-NY ISLANDERS--65--29-25-7
11-WASHINGTON--63--28-26-7
12-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
13-FLORIDA--60--27-29-6
14-TORONTO--59--25-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--57--25-28-7
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(15) LIGHTNING @ (10) ISLANDERS 6pm
(6) SHARKS @ (8) FLYERS 6pm
(12) THRASHERS @ (3) HURRICANES 6pm
(9) SABRES @ (14) MAPLE LEAFS 630pm
(5) PENGUINS @ (4) CANADIENS 630pm
(12) BLUE JACKETS @ (1) SENATORS 630pm
(7) BRUINS @ (13) PANTHERS 630pm
(8) CANUCKS @ (5) PREDATORS 7pm
(11) BLUES @ (15) KINGS 930pm
The Calgary Flames made a minor trade acquiring defenceman Jim Vandermeer from the Philadelphia Flyers for a third-round draft pick in 2009.
Vandermeer has three goals, 15 assists and 71 penalty minutes in 54 games this season with Chicago and Philadelphia, and in 246 career games has 17 goals and 49 assists.
The 27-year-old is making $1.225-million this season and is due to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
GAGNE ADVISED TO END SEASON
Simon Gagne might not play again this season because of lingering symptoms from the three concussions he sustained this season.
The injured Philadelphia Flyers forward was told Wednesday to sit out the rest of the year when he went to visit concussion specialist James Kelly in Denver.
Gagne suffered his first concussion on Oct. 24, sat out four games, then had another concussion on Nov. 7 and missed the next 26 games. He was injured again on his first shift in a Feb. 10 loss at Pittsburgh and hasn't played since.
The 27-year-old has seven goals and 18 points in 25 games and said his symptoms were worse after the last two concussions and hoped to play again this season. He hasn't played in fewer than 72 games each of the last three seasons, and now has to worry he doesn't follow the path of former Flyers Eric Lindros and Keith Primeau. Both had promising careers derailed in Philly because of too many brutal blows to the head.
The Flyers have been hit hard with injuries, as Joffrey Lupul, who has 18 goals could miss up to three weeks with a high ankle sprain. Defenceman Darian Hatcher might be out for three weeks with a knee injury, and forwards Steve Downie and Denis Tolpeko are out with concussions.
LIDSTROM OUT 3 WEEKS
Detroit Red Wings defenceman Nicklas Lidstrom will miss three weeks after an MRI exam Wednesday revealed a mild ligament strain in his right knee.
The five-time Norris Trophy winner as the leagues top defenceman has seven goals and 50 assists in 61 games this season, and since entering the NHL in 1989 has only missed 22 games.
In related news, the Red Wings have placed goaltender Dominik Hasek (hip flexor) and defenceman Brian Rafalski (groin) on injured reserve. The team is also without blue-liner Niklas Kronwall (clavicle) and forward Dan Cleary (broken jaw), and recalled defenceman Jonathan Ericsson and forward Mark Hartigan from Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League.
LIGHTNING LOSE LUKOWICH FOR A MONTH
Tampa Bay Lightning defenceman Brad Lukowich will have surgery Friday in Germany to repair a sports hernia, and is expected to miss four weeks.
Dr. Ulrike Muschaweck, who has operated on other NHL players, will perform the procedure in Munich. Her minimal repair technique cuts the recovery time from the operation in half.
Lukowich was hurt early in Tamps Bay's 2-1 overtime loss at Atlanta on Feb 9., and missed the Lightning's next three games before opting ti travel to Germany on Wednesday for the surgery.
The two-time Stanley Cup winner, with Tampa Bay in 2004 and Dallas in 1999, has one goal and seven points in 54 games this season.
CANUCKS SEND BIEKSA TO AHL FOR CONDITIONING
Vancouver Canucks injured defencemen Kevin Bieksa is closer to returning to the lineup.
The third-year NHLer is prepairing to join the team's American Hockey League affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, the next step in his recovery from a lacerated calf. If all goes well he'll return to the Canucks this weekend.
Bieksa, who topped Canucks defencemen with 42 points last season, resumed skating Feb 1, exactly three months after having surgery to repair damage to the calf and other muscles leading to his Achilles tendon.
Vancouver's backline has been decimated by injuries for most of the season, with Lukas Krajicek (season-ending shoulder surgery) and Aaron Miller (foot) remaining on the shelf.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-22-5
3-MINNESOTA*--73--34-22-5
4-ANAHEIM--75--34-23-7
5-NASHVILLE--71-32-23-7
6-SAN JOSE--70--31-21-8
7-CAGARY--70--31-22-8
8-VANCOUVER--68--30-22-8
-----------------------------------------------------------
9-PHOENIX--66--31-26-4
10-COLORADO--66--30-25-6
11-ST LOUIS--65--28-22-9
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-26-9
13-CHICAGO--62--28-26-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-29-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--75--35-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--75--35-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--65--30-28-5
4-MONTREAL--75--33-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--73--34-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--68--30-24-8
7-BOSTON--66--30-23-6
8-PHILADELPHIA--66--30-24-6
-----------------------------------------------------------
9-BUFFALO--66--29-23-8
10-NY ISLANDERS--65--29-25-7
11-WASHINGTON--63--28-26-7
12-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
13-FLORIDA--60--27-29-6
14-TORONTO--59--25-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--57--25-28-7
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(15) LIGHTNING @ (10) ISLANDERS 6pm
(6) SHARKS @ (8) FLYERS 6pm
(12) THRASHERS @ (3) HURRICANES 6pm
(9) SABRES @ (14) MAPLE LEAFS 630pm
(5) PENGUINS @ (4) CANADIENS 630pm
(12) BLUE JACKETS @ (1) SENATORS 630pm
(7) BRUINS @ (13) PANTHERS 630pm
(8) CANUCKS @ (5) PREDATORS 7pm
(11) BLUES @ (15) KINGS 930pm
Today in NHL History, Feb 21th
1920: Ottawa Senators set a new NHL record for most wins by a team in one season, with their 14th of the year, a 5-3 victory at Toronto. The Senators broke the old record of 13 wins, set by Montreal and Toronto in 1917-18, the NHL's inaugural season.
1928: Toronto goalie John Roach and Canadiens' George Hainsworth dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Montreal. It was the 23rd career shutout for Hainsworth and the 13th for Roach.
1929: Detroit Cougars clinched their first ever playoff berth, as Clarence "Dolly" Dolson recorded the 8th shutout of his rookie season, in a 1-0 win over the Rangers, in New York. It was the first of three straight shutouts for Dolson.
1931: Montreal's Howie Morenz scored two goals and added two assists in the Canadiens' 6-4 win over the visiting New York Americans.
1933: Chicago's Tommy Cook scored twice in a 2-2 tie against the Rangers at New York. Cook's brothers Fred "Bun" Cook and Bill Cook (who played for the Rangers) scored New York's goals.....Marty Barry scored a hat trick and added two assists, Dit Clapper had two goals and two assists and Tiny Thompson made 23 saves for his 36th career shutout as the Bruins recorded a 10-0 win over the Canadiens, at Boston Garden.
1935: Montreal Maroons signed Hector "Toe" Blake.
1939: Bruins' rookie Roy Conacher scored four goals and Bill Cowley picked up four assists in an 8-2 win against Chicago, at Boston Garden.
1942: Toronto's Syl Apps scored his 100th NHL goal in the Maple Leafs' 4-3 win against the visiting Brooklyn Americans.
1946: A previously rumored dramatic announcement was made when Lester Patrick resigned as GM of the New York Rangers. He was succeeded by coach Frank Boucher. Patrick continued as a VP of Madison Square Garden.....Former NHL left winger Danny Grant born in Fredericton, N.B. Grant played in the NHL 1965-66 through 1978-79 with Montreal, Detroit, Minnesota and Los Angeles.
1948: Boston's Frank Brimsek became the second goaltender in franchise history (and the 7th in the NHL) to record 200 victories when the Bruins won 3-1 over the Canadiens at Montreal.
1960: Chicago's Bobby Hull scored four goals (his 4th career hat trick) and added an assist to lead the Black Hawks to a 7-5 win over Toronto. It was Hull's first four-goal game.
1968: Chicago's rookie goaltender Dave Dryden recorded his first NHL career shutout to lead the Black Hawks to a 1-0 win against the Seals at Oakland.
1970: Detroit's Gordie Howe picked up an assist to become the first player in NHL history to score 50 or more points in a season 21 times during his career; the milestone came in a 7-5 win at Toronto.....Chicago's Bobby Hull became the third player in NHL history (after Maurice Richard and Gordie Howe) to get 500 career goals, in a 4-2 Black Hawks' win over the NY Rangers.
1971: Bobby Hull scored three goals (plus two assists) to set an NHL record with his 27th career hat trick as the Black Hawks won 7-5 against the visiting Los Angeles Kings. Hull broke the record of 26 career three goal games set by Maurice Richard.....Michel Plasse became pro hockey's first goaltender to score a goal, during a Central Hockey League game at Kansas City.
1974: Defenseman Tim Horton of the Sabres died in an automobile accident in Ontario. Horton, a six time NHL All-Star, had played 22 seasons with the Maple Leafs, NY Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo.
1975: Craig Ramsay scored his second career hat trick and added an assist to lead the Sabres to a 9-4 win over the Capitals at Washington. The win increased the Sabres undefeated streak to 10 games (5-0-5).
1981: Rangers' Don Maloney scored his 4th career hat trick (a natural hat trick) within a span of 2:30 to lead the Rangers to a 6-4 win over Washington.....Playing in his 138th career game, Wayne Gretzky picked up an assist, to give him 250 career NHL points. The milestone came in a 5-1 Oilers win against the Jets at Winnipeg.
1982: Dennis Maruk scored twice (to give him 50 for the year) and added an assist to lead the Capitals to a 6-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets in Washington. It was Maruk's second straight 50 goal season.....Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the New York Islanders 4-3 to end the Islanders' NHL record 15 game winning streak. Rookie Mike Bullard scored two third period goals, though the Penguins were outshot 16-4 in the final period.
1984: Wayne Gretzky scored four goals for his 27th career hat trick and had an assist as the Oilers past St. Louis, 6-5. The next night Gretzky scored four more against Pittsburgh to give him eight goals in two nights.
1986: Calgary's rookie goalie Mike Vernon recorded his first NHL shutout as the Flames beat the Canucks 4-0 at Vancouver. Rookie Joel Otto led the scoring with two goals and an assist.
1987: Boston goalie Bill Ranford recorded the third shutout of his rookie season to lead the Bruins to a 1-0 win against the North Stars at Minnesota.....Canadiens' Bobby Smith scored three times to give him 250 career NHL goals, but Montreal lost 6-5 to the Islanders at New York. Smith also picked up an assist in the game along with his 6th (and final) career hat trick.
1988: Rick Tocchet scored his first career NHL hat trick and added an assist, as the Flyers beat Detroit, 5-3, at the Spectrum. The win was the 300th behind the Flyers' bench for Mike Keenan.....Quebec Nordiques' Michel Goulet scored his 400th career NHL goal in a 6-5 win at Buffalo. Goulet became the 26th player in the NHL to reach the 400 goal mark.
1989: Steve Yzerman scored two goals and added an assist to lead the Red Wings to a 6-5 win over the Islanders at New York. The points gave Yzerman 123 for the season, breaking the Red Wings' record of 121 set by Marcel Dionne in 1974-75.....Vancouver goalie Kirk McLean stopped 21 shots for his third career shutout, a 2-0 win over St. Louis, in what was the club-record sixth consecutive victory for the Canucks
1991: Brett Hull scored his 65th goal of the season and added four assists as the Blues won their 7th straight game a home, with a 7-2 win over the Islanders.
1993: Washington goaltender Don Beaupre set a franchise record for victories, with the 95th of his career (breaking Al Jensen's team record) as the Capitals won 5-2 against the visiting St. Louis Blues.
1994: Mike Modano scored his second career hat trick in the Stars' 6-3 win over the Sharks, at San Jose. The win extended the Stars' team-record road winning streak to 7 straight games.....Ron Hextall recorded his second shutout in three days (and the 7th of his NHL career) to lead the Islanders to a 4-0 win against the Washington Capitals, in New York.
1997: Dallas goaltender Andy Moog recorded his 350th career NHL win as the Stars won 4-2 over the visiting Calgary Flames. Moog became the 6th goalie in league history to win 350 games.
1999: Ray Sheppard became the first player in NHL history to score 20 or more goals in a season for six different teams, when he scored his 20th of the year for the Carolina Hurricanes, in a 4-1 win over the visiting New York Islanders.
2000: Buffalo's Dominik Hasek became the first European-trained goaltender in NHL history to record 200 career NHL victories, in a 3-2 Sabres' win over the visiting New Jersey Devils.
2001: Joe Nieuwendyk became the 73rd player in NHL history to score 900 career points, when he picked up two goals and an assist to lead the Dallas Stars to a 6-2 win over the visiting Minnesota Wild.....Jean-Sebastien Giguere recorded his first NHL career shutout and defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky scored the game's only goal in the Mighty Ducks 1-0 win against the visiting San Jose Sharks.....Martin Gelinas celebrated his 800th career NHL game with two assists for the Carolina Hurricanes in a 6-3 win over the visiting Atlanta Thrashers.....Colorado defenseman Ray Bourque played against the Boston Bruins for the first time in his 22 year NHL career, and picked up two assists in as the Avalanche won 8-2 against the visiting Bruins
2004: L.A.'s Luc Robitaille scored a power-play goal to become the first player to get 10 (or more) power-play goals 14 times in his NHL career; the milestone came in a 4-3 win over the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
1928: Toronto goalie John Roach and Canadiens' George Hainsworth dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Montreal. It was the 23rd career shutout for Hainsworth and the 13th for Roach.
1929: Detroit Cougars clinched their first ever playoff berth, as Clarence "Dolly" Dolson recorded the 8th shutout of his rookie season, in a 1-0 win over the Rangers, in New York. It was the first of three straight shutouts for Dolson.
1931: Montreal's Howie Morenz scored two goals and added two assists in the Canadiens' 6-4 win over the visiting New York Americans.
1933: Chicago's Tommy Cook scored twice in a 2-2 tie against the Rangers at New York. Cook's brothers Fred "Bun" Cook and Bill Cook (who played for the Rangers) scored New York's goals.....Marty Barry scored a hat trick and added two assists, Dit Clapper had two goals and two assists and Tiny Thompson made 23 saves for his 36th career shutout as the Bruins recorded a 10-0 win over the Canadiens, at Boston Garden.
1935: Montreal Maroons signed Hector "Toe" Blake.
1939: Bruins' rookie Roy Conacher scored four goals and Bill Cowley picked up four assists in an 8-2 win against Chicago, at Boston Garden.
1942: Toronto's Syl Apps scored his 100th NHL goal in the Maple Leafs' 4-3 win against the visiting Brooklyn Americans.
1946: A previously rumored dramatic announcement was made when Lester Patrick resigned as GM of the New York Rangers. He was succeeded by coach Frank Boucher. Patrick continued as a VP of Madison Square Garden.....Former NHL left winger Danny Grant born in Fredericton, N.B. Grant played in the NHL 1965-66 through 1978-79 with Montreal, Detroit, Minnesota and Los Angeles.
1948: Boston's Frank Brimsek became the second goaltender in franchise history (and the 7th in the NHL) to record 200 victories when the Bruins won 3-1 over the Canadiens at Montreal.
1960: Chicago's Bobby Hull scored four goals (his 4th career hat trick) and added an assist to lead the Black Hawks to a 7-5 win over Toronto. It was Hull's first four-goal game.
1968: Chicago's rookie goaltender Dave Dryden recorded his first NHL career shutout to lead the Black Hawks to a 1-0 win against the Seals at Oakland.
1970: Detroit's Gordie Howe picked up an assist to become the first player in NHL history to score 50 or more points in a season 21 times during his career; the milestone came in a 7-5 win at Toronto.....Chicago's Bobby Hull became the third player in NHL history (after Maurice Richard and Gordie Howe) to get 500 career goals, in a 4-2 Black Hawks' win over the NY Rangers.
1971: Bobby Hull scored three goals (plus two assists) to set an NHL record with his 27th career hat trick as the Black Hawks won 7-5 against the visiting Los Angeles Kings. Hull broke the record of 26 career three goal games set by Maurice Richard.....Michel Plasse became pro hockey's first goaltender to score a goal, during a Central Hockey League game at Kansas City.
1974: Defenseman Tim Horton of the Sabres died in an automobile accident in Ontario. Horton, a six time NHL All-Star, had played 22 seasons with the Maple Leafs, NY Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo.
1975: Craig Ramsay scored his second career hat trick and added an assist to lead the Sabres to a 9-4 win over the Capitals at Washington. The win increased the Sabres undefeated streak to 10 games (5-0-5).
1981: Rangers' Don Maloney scored his 4th career hat trick (a natural hat trick) within a span of 2:30 to lead the Rangers to a 6-4 win over Washington.....Playing in his 138th career game, Wayne Gretzky picked up an assist, to give him 250 career NHL points. The milestone came in a 5-1 Oilers win against the Jets at Winnipeg.
1982: Dennis Maruk scored twice (to give him 50 for the year) and added an assist to lead the Capitals to a 6-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets in Washington. It was Maruk's second straight 50 goal season.....Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the New York Islanders 4-3 to end the Islanders' NHL record 15 game winning streak. Rookie Mike Bullard scored two third period goals, though the Penguins were outshot 16-4 in the final period.
1984: Wayne Gretzky scored four goals for his 27th career hat trick and had an assist as the Oilers past St. Louis, 6-5. The next night Gretzky scored four more against Pittsburgh to give him eight goals in two nights.
1986: Calgary's rookie goalie Mike Vernon recorded his first NHL shutout as the Flames beat the Canucks 4-0 at Vancouver. Rookie Joel Otto led the scoring with two goals and an assist.
1987: Boston goalie Bill Ranford recorded the third shutout of his rookie season to lead the Bruins to a 1-0 win against the North Stars at Minnesota.....Canadiens' Bobby Smith scored three times to give him 250 career NHL goals, but Montreal lost 6-5 to the Islanders at New York. Smith also picked up an assist in the game along with his 6th (and final) career hat trick.
1988: Rick Tocchet scored his first career NHL hat trick and added an assist, as the Flyers beat Detroit, 5-3, at the Spectrum. The win was the 300th behind the Flyers' bench for Mike Keenan.....Quebec Nordiques' Michel Goulet scored his 400th career NHL goal in a 6-5 win at Buffalo. Goulet became the 26th player in the NHL to reach the 400 goal mark.
1989: Steve Yzerman scored two goals and added an assist to lead the Red Wings to a 6-5 win over the Islanders at New York. The points gave Yzerman 123 for the season, breaking the Red Wings' record of 121 set by Marcel Dionne in 1974-75.....Vancouver goalie Kirk McLean stopped 21 shots for his third career shutout, a 2-0 win over St. Louis, in what was the club-record sixth consecutive victory for the Canucks
1991: Brett Hull scored his 65th goal of the season and added four assists as the Blues won their 7th straight game a home, with a 7-2 win over the Islanders.
1993: Washington goaltender Don Beaupre set a franchise record for victories, with the 95th of his career (breaking Al Jensen's team record) as the Capitals won 5-2 against the visiting St. Louis Blues.
1994: Mike Modano scored his second career hat trick in the Stars' 6-3 win over the Sharks, at San Jose. The win extended the Stars' team-record road winning streak to 7 straight games.....Ron Hextall recorded his second shutout in three days (and the 7th of his NHL career) to lead the Islanders to a 4-0 win against the Washington Capitals, in New York.
1997: Dallas goaltender Andy Moog recorded his 350th career NHL win as the Stars won 4-2 over the visiting Calgary Flames. Moog became the 6th goalie in league history to win 350 games.
1999: Ray Sheppard became the first player in NHL history to score 20 or more goals in a season for six different teams, when he scored his 20th of the year for the Carolina Hurricanes, in a 4-1 win over the visiting New York Islanders.
2000: Buffalo's Dominik Hasek became the first European-trained goaltender in NHL history to record 200 career NHL victories, in a 3-2 Sabres' win over the visiting New Jersey Devils.
2001: Joe Nieuwendyk became the 73rd player in NHL history to score 900 career points, when he picked up two goals and an assist to lead the Dallas Stars to a 6-2 win over the visiting Minnesota Wild.....Jean-Sebastien Giguere recorded his first NHL career shutout and defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky scored the game's only goal in the Mighty Ducks 1-0 win against the visiting San Jose Sharks.....Martin Gelinas celebrated his 800th career NHL game with two assists for the Carolina Hurricanes in a 6-3 win over the visiting Atlanta Thrashers.....Colorado defenseman Ray Bourque played against the Boston Bruins for the first time in his 22 year NHL career, and picked up two assists in as the Avalanche won 8-2 against the visiting Bruins
2004: L.A.'s Luc Robitaille scored a power-play goal to become the first player to get 10 (or more) power-play goals 14 times in his NHL career; the milestone came in a 4-3 win over the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
February 20th
KINGS TRADE JAROSLAV TO FLYERS
Several possible trade rumors have been mentioned in the last few weeks with the trade deadline less then a week away on Tuesday Feb. 26, and finally there is one to speak of.
The Los Angeles Kings, last in the NHL and possibly looking to shed some salaries, traded defenceman Jaroslav Mordy to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a third-round pick in this years draft on Tuesday.
Modry, who turns 37 on Feb.27, is earning $1.2 million this season and will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer.
The Flyers, riddled by injury and depth problems, had been looking for help on the blue-line. Modry has six points in 61 games with the Kings this season.
NHL GMs CONSIDER POSSIBLE RULES CHANGES
NHL general managers discussed several possible rules changes at thier meetings in Naples, Fla., including the size of goaltender equipment, the shootout format, and no-touch icing.
Dallas Stars GM Brett Hull, the league's No. 3 all-time scorer has been very vocal about the bulky goalie equipment, "Something needs to be done and we need to put together something to get it done. It all goes back to Rule 21: Goalkeeper equipment is to protect the goalie not block the net."
The long-standing problem with reducing the size of goalie gear has been a lack of co-operation from the NHL players Players Association.
The GMs did make decisions on no-touch icing, rejecting the idea yet again, and on a proposed tweak to the shootout format, electing not to increase from three shooters to six. As well, a player who takes a penalty in overtime is still eligible to compete in the shootout if the penalty hasn't expired.
However, they're still deciding whether to scrape the ice before overtime, with 58 per cent of OT games having gone to shootouts this season.
Colin Campbell, the NHL's vice president and director of hockey operations, said there is also concern about the pace of games with too many forzen pucks and needless stoppages but the league dosn't want to change anything with 20 games left.
Some of the other ideas under consideration include:
--The league is discussing the concept of an 84-game schedule, which has the support of the NHLPA, but won't happen for next season. While the NHLPA has suggested a five-game exhibition season, the general managers would like at least six games.
--There is talk about moving the first day of free-agent shopping from July 1 to July 7 to avoid conflicts with Canada Day and the July 4th holiday in the US.
--Several cities, including Montreal, Chicago, Denver and New York (at Yankee Stadium) have expressed interest in playing an outdoor game. No decision has been made, but there will be an outdoor game next season.
LIDSTROM TO HAVE KNEE EXAMINED TODAY
Detroit Red Wings Defenceman Nicklas Lidstrom hobbled off the ice Monday night at Colorado after he was slammed into the boards by the Avs Ian Laperriere in the first period.
Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said Lidstrom will likely miss two weeks with a strained medial collateral ligament, but is scheduled to have his knee fully examined Wednesday.
The five-time Norris Trophy winner as top defenceman has missed just 22 games since entering the NHL in 1989 as the third round (53rd overall) pick Detroit, and has seven goals and 50 assists in 61 games for the Wings this season.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-21-5
3-MINNESOTA*--73--34-21-5
4-ANAHEIM--73--33-23-7
5-NASHVILLE--71--32-23-7
6-SAN JOSE--70--31-20-8
7-VANCOUVER--68--30-22-8
8-CALGARY--68--30-22-8
__________________________________
9-PHOENIX--66--31-26-4
10-ST LOUIS--65--28-22-9
11-COLORADO--65--30-25-5
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-26-9
13-CHICAGO--60--27-26-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-29-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--75--35-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--34-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--65--30-28-5
4-MONTREAL--75--33-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--73--34-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--68--30-24-8
7-BOSTON--66--30-23-6
8-PHILADELPHIA--66--30-24-6
____________________________________
9-BUFFALO--64--28-23-8
10-NY ISLANDERS--63--28-25-7
11-WASHINGTON--62--28-26-6
12-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
13-FLORIDA--60--27-29-6
14-TORONTO--59--25-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--56--25-28-6
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(15) LIGHTING @ (9) SABRES 6pm
(6) SHARKS @ (2) DEVILS 6pm
(10) ISLANDERS @ (11) CAPITALS 6pm
(3) WILD @ (13) BLACKHAWKS 730pm
(8) FLAMES @ (2) STARS 730pm
(11) AVALANCHE @ (4) DUCKS 9pm
Several possible trade rumors have been mentioned in the last few weeks with the trade deadline less then a week away on Tuesday Feb. 26, and finally there is one to speak of.
The Los Angeles Kings, last in the NHL and possibly looking to shed some salaries, traded defenceman Jaroslav Mordy to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a third-round pick in this years draft on Tuesday.
Modry, who turns 37 on Feb.27, is earning $1.2 million this season and will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer.
The Flyers, riddled by injury and depth problems, had been looking for help on the blue-line. Modry has six points in 61 games with the Kings this season.
NHL GMs CONSIDER POSSIBLE RULES CHANGES
NHL general managers discussed several possible rules changes at thier meetings in Naples, Fla., including the size of goaltender equipment, the shootout format, and no-touch icing.
Dallas Stars GM Brett Hull, the league's No. 3 all-time scorer has been very vocal about the bulky goalie equipment, "Something needs to be done and we need to put together something to get it done. It all goes back to Rule 21: Goalkeeper equipment is to protect the goalie not block the net."
The long-standing problem with reducing the size of goalie gear has been a lack of co-operation from the NHL players Players Association.
The GMs did make decisions on no-touch icing, rejecting the idea yet again, and on a proposed tweak to the shootout format, electing not to increase from three shooters to six. As well, a player who takes a penalty in overtime is still eligible to compete in the shootout if the penalty hasn't expired.
However, they're still deciding whether to scrape the ice before overtime, with 58 per cent of OT games having gone to shootouts this season.
Colin Campbell, the NHL's vice president and director of hockey operations, said there is also concern about the pace of games with too many forzen pucks and needless stoppages but the league dosn't want to change anything with 20 games left.
Some of the other ideas under consideration include:
--The league is discussing the concept of an 84-game schedule, which has the support of the NHLPA, but won't happen for next season. While the NHLPA has suggested a five-game exhibition season, the general managers would like at least six games.
--There is talk about moving the first day of free-agent shopping from July 1 to July 7 to avoid conflicts with Canada Day and the July 4th holiday in the US.
--Several cities, including Montreal, Chicago, Denver and New York (at Yankee Stadium) have expressed interest in playing an outdoor game. No decision has been made, but there will be an outdoor game next season.
LIDSTROM TO HAVE KNEE EXAMINED TODAY
Detroit Red Wings Defenceman Nicklas Lidstrom hobbled off the ice Monday night at Colorado after he was slammed into the boards by the Avs Ian Laperriere in the first period.
Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said Lidstrom will likely miss two weeks with a strained medial collateral ligament, but is scheduled to have his knee fully examined Wednesday.
The five-time Norris Trophy winner as top defenceman has missed just 22 games since entering the NHL in 1989 as the third round (53rd overall) pick Detroit, and has seven goals and 50 assists in 61 games for the Wings this season.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-21-5
3-MINNESOTA*--73--34-21-5
4-ANAHEIM--73--33-23-7
5-NASHVILLE--71--32-23-7
6-SAN JOSE--70--31-20-8
7-VANCOUVER--68--30-22-8
8-CALGARY--68--30-22-8
__________________________________
9-PHOENIX--66--31-26-4
10-ST LOUIS--65--28-22-9
11-COLORADO--65--30-25-5
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-26-9
13-CHICAGO--60--27-26-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-29-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--75--35-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--34-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--65--30-28-5
4-MONTREAL--75--33-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--73--34-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--68--30-24-8
7-BOSTON--66--30-23-6
8-PHILADELPHIA--66--30-24-6
____________________________________
9-BUFFALO--64--28-23-8
10-NY ISLANDERS--63--28-25-7
11-WASHINGTON--62--28-26-6
12-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
13-FLORIDA--60--27-29-6
14-TORONTO--59--25-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--56--25-28-6
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(15) LIGHTING @ (9) SABRES 6pm
(6) SHARKS @ (2) DEVILS 6pm
(10) ISLANDERS @ (11) CAPITALS 6pm
(3) WILD @ (13) BLACKHAWKS 730pm
(8) FLAMES @ (2) STARS 730pm
(11) AVALANCHE @ (4) DUCKS 9pm
Today in NHL History, Feb 20th
1919: Ottawa goalie Clint Benedict led the Senators to a 9-3 win over Toronto, to finish the season with a 2.94 GAA, the lowest in the NHL's two year history. One year earlier, Benedict had a 5.18 GAA, the worst in the league (among regular goalies).
1924: Canadiens' fans waited two hours in the Mount Royal Arena for the Senators to arrive for their game. But they never showed! The team was stranded on a snowbound train 50 miles from Ottawa. The game was played the next night (a 3-0 Habs' win).
1926: Montreal Maroons' goalie Clint Benedict and Alex Connell dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Ottawa. It was just the second scoreless tie in NHL history, the 27th career shutout for Benedict and the 19th for Connell.
1930: Montreal Maroons' goalie Clint Benedict became the first goalie to wear a mask in an NHL game, in a 3-3 tie against the New York Americans. Benedict wore the mask temporarily, during an injury.
1934: Only 1,500 fans appeared at a game in Boston as Detroit beat the Bruins 4-1. The poor attendance was due to a snowstorm that tied up traffic.
1936: Maroons' Reginald "Hooley" Smith scored a goal and added three assists (to give him 11 points in 3 games) as Montreal won 6-3 over the visiting Detroit Red Wings.
1954: Montreal Canadiens' rookie goalie Jacques Plante recorded the first shutout of his 18-year NHL career, beating the Detroit Red Wings 2-0 at the Forum. Plante went on to compile 82 career shutouts, fourth on the all-time list.
1955: Montreal purchased Paul Ronty from the New York Rangers for $15,000.
1963: Boston's Tommy Williams (a native of Minnesota) became just the second U.S. born player to score more than 20 goals in a season, when he connected for his 21st of the year as the Bruins tied 3-3 against the Rangers at New York.
1971: Montreal's Jean Beliveau became just the second player in NHL history to score 1,200 career points, when his three assists (including the 700th of his career) came in a 7-1 win over the visiting Chicago Blackhawks.....Gordie Howe scored a goal and added three assists, including his 1,800th career NHL point, in a 6-5 Red Wings' win over Buffalo in Detroit. It came in Howe's 1,670th game.....Phil Esposito scored his 50th goal of the season (on his 29th birthday), in a 5-4 Bruins' loss in Los Angeles. Esposito became just the fourth player in NHL history (and the first Boston Bruin) to get 50 goals in a season.....Bobby Orr picked up an assist for his 100th point of the season in a 5-4 Bruins' loss in Los Angeles. Orr became just the second player in NHL history to have two 100 point seasons -- Phil Esposito became the first to do so two weeks earlier.....Toronto goaltender Jacques Plante recorded his 400th NHL career victory to become the third NHL goaltender to do so when the Maple Leafs won 3-1 over the visiting St. Louis Blues. Dave Keon led the scoring with two goals.
1973: Bobby Clarke got four assists as the Flyers beat St. Louis, 5-3. The four points gave Clarke a season total of 83 -- the most ever (up to that time) by a player from a 1967 expansion club.
1975: Montreal Canadiens extended their NHL-record road undefeated streak to 20 straight games (12-0-8) with a 6-3 win over the Scouts, at Kansas City. Steve Shutt led the scoring with a goal and two assists.
1976: Gary Smith earned his 11th (and final) shutout as a Canuck (and the 25th of his NHL career) in a 7-0 win over Minnesota. Canucks outshot North Stars 50-16. Smith's 11 shutouts stood as the team record until '92-93 when Kirk McLean broke it.
1979: Terry O'Reilly scored a goal and added four assists to lead the Bruins to a 5-3 win against the Rockies, at Colorado.
1980: L.A. Kings' goalies Doug Keans and Mario Lessard combined to shut out Boston 3-0 in Los Angeles. Keans was injured with a minute to go in the first period, so Lessard came in as a relief goalie, and finished the game.
1981: Quebec rookies Peter Stastny and Anton Stastny each scored their first career hat tricks as the Nordiques won 9-3, at Vancouver. Peter also added three assists, and Anton picked up two assists.
1982: Defenseman Craig Hartsburg scored a goal and added three assists to lead the North Stars to a 7-3 win over the Washington Capitals in Minnesota.....Rick Kehoe had five assists to lead the Penguins to a 6-5 win over the Flyers in Pittsburgh. The victory ended a 9 game winless streak (0-7-2) for the Pens....NY Islanders set an NHL record (later broken) with their 15th consecutive victory, 3-2 over the Colorado Rockies. John Tonelli scored the winning goal with 47 seconds remaining in the game.
1983: Philadelphia Flyers' rookie goalie Bob Froese extended his record to 12-0-1 in his first 13 NHL games, with a 3-0 shutout over New Jersey. The win lowered Froese's GAA to 1.85. Froese's streak ended with a loss three days later
1985: Boston's Rick Middleton played in his 800th NHL game, and the Bruins won 3-2 over the North Stars at Minnesota.
1988: Clint Malarchuk picked up a shutout for the second night in a row (for the 8th of his career) as the Capitals won 3-0 over the North Stars at Minnesota. Larry Murphy led the scoring with a goal and two assists.
1990: Mark Messier scored his 100th point of the season for the 5th time in his career, when he picked up an assist for the Oilers, in a 4-2 win at Vancouver.
1993: Vancouver's Pat Quinn picked up his 300th career NHL coaching victory, with a 4-2 Canucks' win over the Winnipeg Jets.....NY Rangers' Eddie Olczyk picked up an assist in a game at San Jose to become the 10th U.S. born player to reach 600 points in his NHL career. Rangers won 6-4 over the Sharks.
1995: Detroit's Mike Ramsey became the 99th player in NHL history to appear in his 1,000th career regular season game as the Red Wings won 4-2, at Toronto.....Montreal goaltender Patrick Roy became the 31st goaltender in NHL history to appear in 500 games as the Canadiens won 3-2 in overtime over the Islanders.
1997: Boston's Adam Oates extended his consecutive point-scoring streak to 20 straight games in the Bruins 5-3 loss at Chicago. Oates had 7 goals and 21 assists for 28 points in the 20 game streak.....Devils' Martin Brodeur extended his team-record unbeaten streak to 14 straight games (8-0-6), when the Devils tied the Panthers 2-2 in Florida. The streak ended with a 3-1 loss in Tampa Bay two nights later.
1999: Steve Thomas scored at 3:48 of overtime and added an assist as Toronto won 3-2 against the visiting Montreal Canadiens, in the first game played at the Leafs' new home, the Air Canada Centre. It was Thomas 9th career regular season OT Goal.
2004: Dallas' Sergei Zubov had two assists to become the first Russian-born defenseman to get 600 career points (and the first Russian defenseman to have nine straight 30-assist seasons); the milestones came in a 5-1 win over the visiting Avalanche.....Florida's Roberto Luongo recorded his 20th career shutout as the Panthers handed the Penguins their 17th loss in a row, with a 2-0 victory at Pittsburgh.
1924: Canadiens' fans waited two hours in the Mount Royal Arena for the Senators to arrive for their game. But they never showed! The team was stranded on a snowbound train 50 miles from Ottawa. The game was played the next night (a 3-0 Habs' win).
1926: Montreal Maroons' goalie Clint Benedict and Alex Connell dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Ottawa. It was just the second scoreless tie in NHL history, the 27th career shutout for Benedict and the 19th for Connell.
1930: Montreal Maroons' goalie Clint Benedict became the first goalie to wear a mask in an NHL game, in a 3-3 tie against the New York Americans. Benedict wore the mask temporarily, during an injury.
1934: Only 1,500 fans appeared at a game in Boston as Detroit beat the Bruins 4-1. The poor attendance was due to a snowstorm that tied up traffic.
1936: Maroons' Reginald "Hooley" Smith scored a goal and added three assists (to give him 11 points in 3 games) as Montreal won 6-3 over the visiting Detroit Red Wings.
1954: Montreal Canadiens' rookie goalie Jacques Plante recorded the first shutout of his 18-year NHL career, beating the Detroit Red Wings 2-0 at the Forum. Plante went on to compile 82 career shutouts, fourth on the all-time list.
1955: Montreal purchased Paul Ronty from the New York Rangers for $15,000.
1963: Boston's Tommy Williams (a native of Minnesota) became just the second U.S. born player to score more than 20 goals in a season, when he connected for his 21st of the year as the Bruins tied 3-3 against the Rangers at New York.
1971: Montreal's Jean Beliveau became just the second player in NHL history to score 1,200 career points, when his three assists (including the 700th of his career) came in a 7-1 win over the visiting Chicago Blackhawks.....Gordie Howe scored a goal and added three assists, including his 1,800th career NHL point, in a 6-5 Red Wings' win over Buffalo in Detroit. It came in Howe's 1,670th game.....Phil Esposito scored his 50th goal of the season (on his 29th birthday), in a 5-4 Bruins' loss in Los Angeles. Esposito became just the fourth player in NHL history (and the first Boston Bruin) to get 50 goals in a season.....Bobby Orr picked up an assist for his 100th point of the season in a 5-4 Bruins' loss in Los Angeles. Orr became just the second player in NHL history to have two 100 point seasons -- Phil Esposito became the first to do so two weeks earlier.....Toronto goaltender Jacques Plante recorded his 400th NHL career victory to become the third NHL goaltender to do so when the Maple Leafs won 3-1 over the visiting St. Louis Blues. Dave Keon led the scoring with two goals.
1973: Bobby Clarke got four assists as the Flyers beat St. Louis, 5-3. The four points gave Clarke a season total of 83 -- the most ever (up to that time) by a player from a 1967 expansion club.
1975: Montreal Canadiens extended their NHL-record road undefeated streak to 20 straight games (12-0-8) with a 6-3 win over the Scouts, at Kansas City. Steve Shutt led the scoring with a goal and two assists.
1976: Gary Smith earned his 11th (and final) shutout as a Canuck (and the 25th of his NHL career) in a 7-0 win over Minnesota. Canucks outshot North Stars 50-16. Smith's 11 shutouts stood as the team record until '92-93 when Kirk McLean broke it.
1979: Terry O'Reilly scored a goal and added four assists to lead the Bruins to a 5-3 win against the Rockies, at Colorado.
1980: L.A. Kings' goalies Doug Keans and Mario Lessard combined to shut out Boston 3-0 in Los Angeles. Keans was injured with a minute to go in the first period, so Lessard came in as a relief goalie, and finished the game.
1981: Quebec rookies Peter Stastny and Anton Stastny each scored their first career hat tricks as the Nordiques won 9-3, at Vancouver. Peter also added three assists, and Anton picked up two assists.
1982: Defenseman Craig Hartsburg scored a goal and added three assists to lead the North Stars to a 7-3 win over the Washington Capitals in Minnesota.....Rick Kehoe had five assists to lead the Penguins to a 6-5 win over the Flyers in Pittsburgh. The victory ended a 9 game winless streak (0-7-2) for the Pens....NY Islanders set an NHL record (later broken) with their 15th consecutive victory, 3-2 over the Colorado Rockies. John Tonelli scored the winning goal with 47 seconds remaining in the game.
1983: Philadelphia Flyers' rookie goalie Bob Froese extended his record to 12-0-1 in his first 13 NHL games, with a 3-0 shutout over New Jersey. The win lowered Froese's GAA to 1.85. Froese's streak ended with a loss three days later
1985: Boston's Rick Middleton played in his 800th NHL game, and the Bruins won 3-2 over the North Stars at Minnesota.
1988: Clint Malarchuk picked up a shutout for the second night in a row (for the 8th of his career) as the Capitals won 3-0 over the North Stars at Minnesota. Larry Murphy led the scoring with a goal and two assists.
1990: Mark Messier scored his 100th point of the season for the 5th time in his career, when he picked up an assist for the Oilers, in a 4-2 win at Vancouver.
1993: Vancouver's Pat Quinn picked up his 300th career NHL coaching victory, with a 4-2 Canucks' win over the Winnipeg Jets.....NY Rangers' Eddie Olczyk picked up an assist in a game at San Jose to become the 10th U.S. born player to reach 600 points in his NHL career. Rangers won 6-4 over the Sharks.
1995: Detroit's Mike Ramsey became the 99th player in NHL history to appear in his 1,000th career regular season game as the Red Wings won 4-2, at Toronto.....Montreal goaltender Patrick Roy became the 31st goaltender in NHL history to appear in 500 games as the Canadiens won 3-2 in overtime over the Islanders.
1997: Boston's Adam Oates extended his consecutive point-scoring streak to 20 straight games in the Bruins 5-3 loss at Chicago. Oates had 7 goals and 21 assists for 28 points in the 20 game streak.....Devils' Martin Brodeur extended his team-record unbeaten streak to 14 straight games (8-0-6), when the Devils tied the Panthers 2-2 in Florida. The streak ended with a 3-1 loss in Tampa Bay two nights later.
1999: Steve Thomas scored at 3:48 of overtime and added an assist as Toronto won 3-2 against the visiting Montreal Canadiens, in the first game played at the Leafs' new home, the Air Canada Centre. It was Thomas 9th career regular season OT Goal.
2004: Dallas' Sergei Zubov had two assists to become the first Russian-born defenseman to get 600 career points (and the first Russian defenseman to have nine straight 30-assist seasons); the milestones came in a 5-1 win over the visiting Avalanche.....Florida's Roberto Luongo recorded his 20th career shutout as the Panthers handed the Penguins their 17th loss in a row, with a 2-0 victory at Pittsburgh.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
February 19th
LEGACE, FEDOTENKO, PRICE 'THREE STARS' OF THE WEEK
St. Louis Blues goaltender Manny Legace, New York Islanders left wing Ruslan Fedotenko and Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price have been named the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the week ending February 17.
First Star - Manny Legace, G, St. Louis Blues
Legace went 3-0-1 with a 1.49 goals-against average and .954 save percentage, stopping 124 of 130 shots. He made 25 saves in a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings Feb. 12, stopped 39 shots in a 4-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche Feb. 14 and turned aside 42 of 43 shots in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Nashville Predators, Feb. 16. He finished the week by making 18 saves in a 5-1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, Feb. 17. The Blues (27-22-9, 63 points) are three points out of a playoff berth in the Western Conference. Legace has appeared in 47 games, posting a record of 22-15-6, with a 2.26 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and four shutouts.
Second Star - Ruslan Fedotenko, LW, New York Islanders
Fedotenko tallied five points (four goals, one assist), including two game-winning goals, as the Islanders recorded three victories for the week. On Feb. 12, he notched the game-winner and added one assist in a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. On Feb. 14, he recorded two goals in a 5-4 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs and followed that up by tallying the game-winning goal in a 4-1 win over the Atlanta Thrashers Feb. 16.
Third Star - Carey Price, G, Montreal Canadiens
Price went 3-0-0 with a 1.32 goals-against average, .963 save percentage and one shutout, stopping 103 of 107 shots as the Canadiens won three of four games for the week. On Feb. 13, he made 35 saves in a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers. On Feb. 16, he recorded his first NHL shutout by making 34 saves in a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers and followed that up by making 34 saves in a 5-3 victory over the Flyers Feb. 17. Price has appeared in 24 games, posting a record of 12-8-3, with a 2.72 goals-against average, .913 save percentage and one shutout.
FORSBERG UNLIKELY TO PLAY IN NHL THIS SEASON
It appears Peter Forsberg will not be returning to the NHL this season.
Recovering from multiple surgeries on his foot, Forsberg's agent Daon Baizley told teams "it's unlikey Peter will return to the NHL this season."
Forsberg had to sign with a team by the Feb. 26 trade deadline to be eligible to play in the playoffs.
There is still the possibility, however, that Forsberg could return to the NHL next season, as he hasn't officially called it a career yet.
The Swedish forward has been out of action with a foot and ankle injury since finishing the 2006-07 NHL campaign with the Nashville Predators, and recently practiced with Modo of the Swedish Elite League, but didn't want to risk the same problems and decided to shut it down this season.
The winner of two Stanley Cups with the Colorado Avalanche, the Hart Trophy in 2003-03 as the leagues MVP, and two Olympic gold medals, Forsberg has been plagued with injuries and hasn't played more than 60 games in a season since suiting up for 75 games with Colorado in his MVP season.
'HAWKS LOCK UP SEABROOK
The Chicago Blackhawks signed marquee defenceman Brent Seabrook to a $10.5-million, three-year contract extension Monday.
Seabrook is in the final season of a three-year, entry-level contract that is paying his $942,000 for this season.
A member of the Canadian team that won silver in 2004 and gold in 2005 at the world junior hockey championship, Seabrook was the 14th overall pick by the Blackhawks in the 2003 entry draft has seven goals and 19 points to go along with a plus-12 in 58 games this season, and in 208 career NHL games has registered 16 goals and 75 points.
NHL PONDERS 1-MINUTE PENALTIES IN OT
One-minute penalties for overtime during the regular season?
That was one of the many issues discussed Monday as the NHL's 30 general managers broke out into four different groups to tackle a number of subjects.
The thinking is that 4-on-3 power plays in overtime take up 40 per cent of the entire five-minute period and more than often end the game.
That subject was tackled by the group of Anaheim Ducks GM Brian Burke, Jay feaster of the Tampa Bay Lightning, David Poile of the Nashville Predators, Larry Pleau of the St. Louis Blues, Jim Rutherford of the Carolina Hurricanes, Glen Sather of the New York Rangers, Garth Snow of the New York Islanders and Don Waddell of the Atlanta Thrashers.
They also discussed: carry-over suspension from prior season; high-sticking penalties and whether it should remain an automatic four-minute penalty for drawing blood; and the instigator rule.
Brian Burke has been pushing for retaining salary in trades for the last few years. The idea is to allow teams to pay part of a player's salary in trades, which would likely facilitate deals, especially eariler in the season.
The group discussing that subject was Peter Chiarelli of the Boston Bruins, Paul Holmgren of the Philadelphia Flyers, Scott Howson of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Lou Lamoriello of the New Jersey Devils, Dean Lombardi of the Los Angeles Kings, George McPhee of the Washington Capitals and Ray Shero of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
That group, which also had the presence of NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, also discussed: The growing trend of NCAA players leaving school early to sign with NHL teams; the status of the IIHF-NHL player transfer agreement; examining the NHL Players' Association's idea of an 84-game schedule; moving the start of free agency to July 6 or July 7, instead of July 1, when it's a national holiday in Canada; and the idea that players who are traded near the trade deadline cannot re-join his old team for a minimum of one year.
The Buffalo Sabres at the board of governors meeting last November proposed that the NHL establish a research and development arm and that was on the agenda for another GMs group Monday.
Sabres GM Darcy Regier was of course in the group, as was Cliff Fletcher of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Kevin Lowe of the Edmonton Oilers, Don Maloney of the Phoenix Coyotes, Jacques Martin of the Florida Panthers, Dave Nonis of the Vancouver Canucks, Darryl Sutter of the Calgary Flames and Doug Wilson of the San Jose Sharks.
That group also discussed: whether hand passes should be disallowed in the defensive zone; whether breaking a stick on a player should be an automatic slashing penalty; and ice conditions around the league.
The size of goalie equipment and bigger nets —two issues that have gone hand in hand in recent years — were the headliners in the final group which consisted of Bob Gainey of the Montreal Canadiens, Francois Giguere of the Colorado Avalanche, Ken Holland of the Detroit Red Wings, Brett Hull of the Dallas Stars, Bryan Murray of the Ottawa Senators, Doug Risebrough of the Minnesota Wild and Dale Tallon of the Chicago Blackhawks.
That group also re-examined the shootout and pondered whether to go to a five shooters instead of three and whether a player that was still in the penalty box at the end of overtime should be ineligible for the shootout.
The four GM groups were to bring their ideas and recommendations to the full group Tuesday for further debate.
HOCKEY PLAYERS SET WORLD RECORD FOR LONGEST GAME
A group of hockey players at an outdoor rink in Canada, just east of Edmonton, finished the world's longest game, breaking a record they set twice before.
To blaring rock music and the cheering of several hundred spectators, the two teams of 20 broke their former record just after 2pm central time Monday. They kept the game going for 241 straight hours - more than 10 days of continous hockey.
Their old record, set three years earlier, was 240 straight hours.
The project was spearheaded by optometrist Brent Saik and played on a regulation-size rink in his backyard in Sherwood Park. The teams say they've raised about $300,000 for pediatric cancer research so far and hope to have $500,000 in total.
The idea began when Saik's father died of cancer in 1991, which led to the first record setting game — 82 hours in 2003 — raising $130,000 for cancer research.
The 2005 edition was spurred both by the death of Saik's wife from cancer, and the fact that a team in Sudbury, Ont., Canada had beat their 2003 record.
While temperatures hovered around a balmy 32 F (0 C) for the final few days of the record-setting attempt, the weather was bone-chilling at the start of the 10-day marathon, with wind chills making it feel like about -5 F (–35 C).
The record-breaking effort involved a cast of hundreds, with volunteers working to provide medical treatment, massage therapy, food and hot drinks to keep the players going.
It's expected to take several months to have the record verified by Guinness World Records.
The final score, which organizers said was far from accurate — Team Cure had 2,250, while Team Hope had 2,223.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-21-5
3-MINNESOTA*--72--34-21-4
4-ANAHEIM--73--33-23-7
5-SAN JOSE--70--31-20-8
6-NASHVILLE--69--31-23-7
7-VANCOUVER--66--29-22-8
8-CALGARY--66--29-22-8
____________________________________
9-PHOENIX--66--31-25-4
10-COLORADO--65--30-25-5
11-ST LOUIS--63--27-22-9
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-25-9
13-CHICAGO--60--27-25-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-28-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--73--34-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--73--34-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--30-28-4
4-MONTREAL--73-32-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--71--33-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--67--30-24-7
7-PHILADELPIHA--65--30-24-5
8-BOSTON--64--29-23-6
___________________________________
9-BUFFALO--64--28-23-8
10-NY ISLANDERS--28-25-7
11-WASHINGTON--62--28-26-6
12-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
13-FLORIDA--60--27-28-6
14-TORONTO--57--24-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--56--25-28-6
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(8) BRUINS @ (3) HURRICANES 6pm
(12) BLUE JACKETS @ (14) MAPLE LEAFS 630pm
(6) RANGERS @ (4) CANADIENS 630pm
(7) FLYERS @ (1) SENATORS 630pm
(13) PANTHERS @ (5) PENGUINS 630pm
(14) OILERS @ (6) PREDATORS 7pm
(7) CANUCKS @ (3) WILD 7pm
(13) BLACKHAWKS @ (11) BLUES 7pm
(8) FLAMES @ (9) COYOTES 830pm
St. Louis Blues goaltender Manny Legace, New York Islanders left wing Ruslan Fedotenko and Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price have been named the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the week ending February 17.
First Star - Manny Legace, G, St. Louis Blues
Legace went 3-0-1 with a 1.49 goals-against average and .954 save percentage, stopping 124 of 130 shots. He made 25 saves in a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings Feb. 12, stopped 39 shots in a 4-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche Feb. 14 and turned aside 42 of 43 shots in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Nashville Predators, Feb. 16. He finished the week by making 18 saves in a 5-1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, Feb. 17. The Blues (27-22-9, 63 points) are three points out of a playoff berth in the Western Conference. Legace has appeared in 47 games, posting a record of 22-15-6, with a 2.26 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and four shutouts.
Second Star - Ruslan Fedotenko, LW, New York Islanders
Fedotenko tallied five points (four goals, one assist), including two game-winning goals, as the Islanders recorded three victories for the week. On Feb. 12, he notched the game-winner and added one assist in a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. On Feb. 14, he recorded two goals in a 5-4 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs and followed that up by tallying the game-winning goal in a 4-1 win over the Atlanta Thrashers Feb. 16.
Third Star - Carey Price, G, Montreal Canadiens
Price went 3-0-0 with a 1.32 goals-against average, .963 save percentage and one shutout, stopping 103 of 107 shots as the Canadiens won three of four games for the week. On Feb. 13, he made 35 saves in a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers. On Feb. 16, he recorded his first NHL shutout by making 34 saves in a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers and followed that up by making 34 saves in a 5-3 victory over the Flyers Feb. 17. Price has appeared in 24 games, posting a record of 12-8-3, with a 2.72 goals-against average, .913 save percentage and one shutout.
FORSBERG UNLIKELY TO PLAY IN NHL THIS SEASON
It appears Peter Forsberg will not be returning to the NHL this season.
Recovering from multiple surgeries on his foot, Forsberg's agent Daon Baizley told teams "it's unlikey Peter will return to the NHL this season."
Forsberg had to sign with a team by the Feb. 26 trade deadline to be eligible to play in the playoffs.
There is still the possibility, however, that Forsberg could return to the NHL next season, as he hasn't officially called it a career yet.
The Swedish forward has been out of action with a foot and ankle injury since finishing the 2006-07 NHL campaign with the Nashville Predators, and recently practiced with Modo of the Swedish Elite League, but didn't want to risk the same problems and decided to shut it down this season.
The winner of two Stanley Cups with the Colorado Avalanche, the Hart Trophy in 2003-03 as the leagues MVP, and two Olympic gold medals, Forsberg has been plagued with injuries and hasn't played more than 60 games in a season since suiting up for 75 games with Colorado in his MVP season.
'HAWKS LOCK UP SEABROOK
The Chicago Blackhawks signed marquee defenceman Brent Seabrook to a $10.5-million, three-year contract extension Monday.
Seabrook is in the final season of a three-year, entry-level contract that is paying his $942,000 for this season.
A member of the Canadian team that won silver in 2004 and gold in 2005 at the world junior hockey championship, Seabrook was the 14th overall pick by the Blackhawks in the 2003 entry draft has seven goals and 19 points to go along with a plus-12 in 58 games this season, and in 208 career NHL games has registered 16 goals and 75 points.
NHL PONDERS 1-MINUTE PENALTIES IN OT
One-minute penalties for overtime during the regular season?
That was one of the many issues discussed Monday as the NHL's 30 general managers broke out into four different groups to tackle a number of subjects.
The thinking is that 4-on-3 power plays in overtime take up 40 per cent of the entire five-minute period and more than often end the game.
That subject was tackled by the group of Anaheim Ducks GM Brian Burke, Jay feaster of the Tampa Bay Lightning, David Poile of the Nashville Predators, Larry Pleau of the St. Louis Blues, Jim Rutherford of the Carolina Hurricanes, Glen Sather of the New York Rangers, Garth Snow of the New York Islanders and Don Waddell of the Atlanta Thrashers.
They also discussed: carry-over suspension from prior season; high-sticking penalties and whether it should remain an automatic four-minute penalty for drawing blood; and the instigator rule.
Brian Burke has been pushing for retaining salary in trades for the last few years. The idea is to allow teams to pay part of a player's salary in trades, which would likely facilitate deals, especially eariler in the season.
The group discussing that subject was Peter Chiarelli of the Boston Bruins, Paul Holmgren of the Philadelphia Flyers, Scott Howson of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Lou Lamoriello of the New Jersey Devils, Dean Lombardi of the Los Angeles Kings, George McPhee of the Washington Capitals and Ray Shero of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
That group, which also had the presence of NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, also discussed: The growing trend of NCAA players leaving school early to sign with NHL teams; the status of the IIHF-NHL player transfer agreement; examining the NHL Players' Association's idea of an 84-game schedule; moving the start of free agency to July 6 or July 7, instead of July 1, when it's a national holiday in Canada; and the idea that players who are traded near the trade deadline cannot re-join his old team for a minimum of one year.
The Buffalo Sabres at the board of governors meeting last November proposed that the NHL establish a research and development arm and that was on the agenda for another GMs group Monday.
Sabres GM Darcy Regier was of course in the group, as was Cliff Fletcher of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Kevin Lowe of the Edmonton Oilers, Don Maloney of the Phoenix Coyotes, Jacques Martin of the Florida Panthers, Dave Nonis of the Vancouver Canucks, Darryl Sutter of the Calgary Flames and Doug Wilson of the San Jose Sharks.
That group also discussed: whether hand passes should be disallowed in the defensive zone; whether breaking a stick on a player should be an automatic slashing penalty; and ice conditions around the league.
The size of goalie equipment and bigger nets —two issues that have gone hand in hand in recent years — were the headliners in the final group which consisted of Bob Gainey of the Montreal Canadiens, Francois Giguere of the Colorado Avalanche, Ken Holland of the Detroit Red Wings, Brett Hull of the Dallas Stars, Bryan Murray of the Ottawa Senators, Doug Risebrough of the Minnesota Wild and Dale Tallon of the Chicago Blackhawks.
That group also re-examined the shootout and pondered whether to go to a five shooters instead of three and whether a player that was still in the penalty box at the end of overtime should be ineligible for the shootout.
The four GM groups were to bring their ideas and recommendations to the full group Tuesday for further debate.
HOCKEY PLAYERS SET WORLD RECORD FOR LONGEST GAME
A group of hockey players at an outdoor rink in Canada, just east of Edmonton, finished the world's longest game, breaking a record they set twice before.
To blaring rock music and the cheering of several hundred spectators, the two teams of 20 broke their former record just after 2pm central time Monday. They kept the game going for 241 straight hours - more than 10 days of continous hockey.
Their old record, set three years earlier, was 240 straight hours.
The project was spearheaded by optometrist Brent Saik and played on a regulation-size rink in his backyard in Sherwood Park. The teams say they've raised about $300,000 for pediatric cancer research so far and hope to have $500,000 in total.
The idea began when Saik's father died of cancer in 1991, which led to the first record setting game — 82 hours in 2003 — raising $130,000 for cancer research.
The 2005 edition was spurred both by the death of Saik's wife from cancer, and the fact that a team in Sudbury, Ont., Canada had beat their 2003 record.
While temperatures hovered around a balmy 32 F (0 C) for the final few days of the record-setting attempt, the weather was bone-chilling at the start of the 10-day marathon, with wind chills making it feel like about -5 F (–35 C).
The record-breaking effort involved a cast of hundreds, with volunteers working to provide medical treatment, massage therapy, food and hot drinks to keep the players going.
It's expected to take several months to have the record verified by Guinness World Records.
The final score, which organizers said was far from accurate — Team Cure had 2,250, while Team Hope had 2,223.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--89--42-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-21-5
3-MINNESOTA*--72--34-21-4
4-ANAHEIM--73--33-23-7
5-SAN JOSE--70--31-20-8
6-NASHVILLE--69--31-23-7
7-VANCOUVER--66--29-22-8
8-CALGARY--66--29-22-8
____________________________________
9-PHOENIX--66--31-25-4
10-COLORADO--65--30-25-5
11-ST LOUIS--63--27-22-9
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-25-9
13-CHICAGO--60--27-25-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-28-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-34-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--73--34-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--73--34-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--30-28-4
4-MONTREAL--73-32-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--71--33-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--67--30-24-7
7-PHILADELPIHA--65--30-24-5
8-BOSTON--64--29-23-6
___________________________________
9-BUFFALO--64--28-23-8
10-NY ISLANDERS--28-25-7
11-WASHINGTON--62--28-26-6
12-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
13-FLORIDA--60--27-28-6
14-TORONTO--57--24-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--56--25-28-6
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAYS NHL SCHEDULE (Central Time)
(8) BRUINS @ (3) HURRICANES 6pm
(12) BLUE JACKETS @ (14) MAPLE LEAFS 630pm
(6) RANGERS @ (4) CANADIENS 630pm
(7) FLYERS @ (1) SENATORS 630pm
(13) PANTHERS @ (5) PENGUINS 630pm
(14) OILERS @ (6) PREDATORS 7pm
(7) CANUCKS @ (3) WILD 7pm
(13) BLACKHAWKS @ (11) BLUES 7pm
(8) FLAMES @ (9) COYOTES 830pm
Today in NHL History, Feb 19th
1891: Hockey Hall of Famer Frank Foyston born in Minesing, Ontario.
1944: 'Bud' Poile scored four times for his first career hat trick and Jack Hamilton added his second (and final) career hat trick as the Maple Leafs beat Boston, 10-4. Babe Pratt added four assists in the game for Toronto.
1952: The Bruins' home game was moved to 4,000 seat Boston Arena when a section of roof over the North station track platform in Boston Garden collapsed. Gordie Howe scored twice to lead the visiting Red Wings to 4-3 win over the Bruins.
1953: Black Hawks' Gus Bodnar set a team record for the fastest goal from the start of a game, when he scored nine seconds into a 4-2 loss against the Rangers, at Chicago Stadium
1955: Montreal's Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion scored five goals (his fourth career hat trick) and an assist and defenseman Doug Harvey had five assists (a team record) as the Canadiens beat the NY Rangers, 10-2 at the Forum.
1969: Pittsburgh rookie Joe Daley recorded his first career shutout, as the Penguins beat Boston, 3-0, at the Civic Arena. Daley set a team record for most saves in a shutout (41) that lasted until 2004 when J-S Aubin had 45 in a 4-0 win over Dallas.....Eddie Joyal scored his second career hat trick and added an assist as the Kings lost 7-2 to the North Stars at Minnesota.
1972: Gerry Cheevers tied an NHL record by extending his unbeaten streak to 23 straight games (17-0-6) as the Bruins beat the North Stars 6-4, at Minnesota. Derek Sanderson had two goals and an assist for the Bruins.....Toronto's Darryl Sittler scored his first career hat trick, including two goals in ten seconds, Buffalo's Rick Martin broke Gil Perreault's NHL record (set the year before) for most goals by a rookie. Martin got #39 as the Maple Leafs beat the Buffalo Sabres, 4-1.
1977: Montreal's Yvan Cournoyer scored twice to become the third player in franchise history to score 400 goals and Jacques Lemaire became the 6th player in franchise history to score 300 goals as the Canadiens extended their team-record home undefeated streak to 23 straight games (18-0-5) with a 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers.....Rod Gilbert scored a goal and added an assist to become the first player in NY Rangers history (and the 11th in NHL history) to score 1,000 career points. It came in a 5-2 loss to the Islanders at Long Island, in his 1,027th NHL game.....Rogie Vachon recorded his 38th career shutout as the Kings beat Boston 2-0 at the Forum, in the first penalty-free game played in Los Angeles. Wally Harris was the referee.
1979: Mike Bossy scored his 100th career NHL goal (in an 8-3 Islanders' win at Los Angeles) in just his 129th career game, to break Maurice Richard's NHL record (134 games) for fastest 100 goals.
1980: Washington beat Montreal 3-1 to end the Canadiens' 34 game unbeaten streak against the Caps. Washington had been 0-32-2 against Montreal since entering the NHL in October 1974.....Colorado's Rene Robert scored twice and added three assists, Kevin Morrison had a goal and four assists and Lanny McDonald pitched in with two goals and two assists as the Rockies won 8-6 over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers.....Edmonton rookie Wayne Gretzky played against Hartford's Gordie Howe for the fourth (and final) time in their NHL careers, when the Whalers beat the Oilers 6-2 at Hartford. Both players went scoreless in the game.
1983: Edmonton defenseman Kevin Lowe scored a goal and added five assists in an Oilers' 10-7 victory at Pittsburgh and established a new club record for most points in a game by a defenseman.
1986: Brian Lawton scored his first NHL hat trick and added an assist, and Dennis Maruk had a goal and four assists to lead the Minnesota North Stars to a 6-5 win, at Chicago.....Chris Ruuttu scored the 6,000th goal in Sabres team history, in a 6-3 loss at Pittsburgh.....Paul Coffey scored two goals and added three asissts to give him 100 points in the season, in a 9-5 win over the Maple Leafs in Edmonton. It was Coffey's third straight 100 point season with the Oilers.
1988: Phil Housley set a new scoring record for Sabres defensemen, when he got his 25th goal of the season, in a 5-4 loss to the Flyers in Buffalo.
1989: Washington's Dale Hunter scored the 4,000th goal in Capitals' history, as Washington lost 3-2 at Vancouver.....Winnipeg Jets retired Bobby Hull's uniform #9 in a pre-game ceremony. Then the Jets came out and beat the Hartford Whalers 7-6 in overtime, with a hat trick (the 6th of his career including the winning goal) and an assist by Brent Ashton.
1991: Chris Ruuttu scored the 6,000th goal in Sabres team history, in a 6-3 loss at Pittsburgh.
1992: Calgary goalie Mike Vernon led the Flames to a 6-4 win over Boston to win his 20th game of the season for the sixth consecutive NHL year.....Los Angeles Kings acquired Paul Coffey from the Pittsburgh Penguins, in exchange for Brian Benning, Jeff Chychrun and a 1st round draft pick in 1992. The Penguins later traded the pick to Philadelphia (who used the pick to select Jason Bowen).
1995: Pittsburgh's Luc Robitaille scored twice to give him 400 goals in his NHL career as the Penguins tied 3-3 with the Sabres, at the Civic Arena. Robitaille became the 47th player in the NHL to reach the 400 goal mark.
1996: Colorado's Patrick Roy became the second youngest goaltender to reach 300 NHL victories, and Peter Forsberg scored his second career hat trick and added two assists as the Avalanche won 7-5 over the visiting Oilers.
1997: Chris Osgood recorded his 5th shutout of the season in the Red Wings' 4-0 win over the visiting Calgary Flames. Steve Yzerman picked up three assists in his 1,000th career NHL game. He became the 3rd to play 1,000 games with Detroit.....Devils' extended their team-record unbeaten streak to 12 straight games (6-0-6) and Martin Brodeur stretched his personal unbeaten streak to 13 straight games (8-0-5) as New Jersey tied 1-1 with the visiting New York Rangers.
1998: Calgary Flames signed free agent Martin St. Louis.
2000: Mark Messier picked up two assists for the 2,000th point of his NHL career (including the playoffs) as Vancouver won 3-1 at Ottawa.
2001: Patrick Roy became just the fourth goaltender in NHL history to record six consecutive 30 win seasons, when the Avalanche had a 5-1 win at Pittsburgh. Peter Forsberg led the scoring with two goals and two assists.
2003: Jean-Sebastien Giguere recorded his club-record 7th shutout of the season (breaking the team record set by Guy Hebert) in the Mighty Ducks 2-0 win against the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
2004: Philadelphia Flyers acquired center Alexei Zhamnov and a fourth-round draft pick in 2004 from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for defenseman Jim Vandermeer, center Colin Fraser and a second-round draft pick in 2004.
1944: 'Bud' Poile scored four times for his first career hat trick and Jack Hamilton added his second (and final) career hat trick as the Maple Leafs beat Boston, 10-4. Babe Pratt added four assists in the game for Toronto.
1952: The Bruins' home game was moved to 4,000 seat Boston Arena when a section of roof over the North station track platform in Boston Garden collapsed. Gordie Howe scored twice to lead the visiting Red Wings to 4-3 win over the Bruins.
1953: Black Hawks' Gus Bodnar set a team record for the fastest goal from the start of a game, when he scored nine seconds into a 4-2 loss against the Rangers, at Chicago Stadium
1955: Montreal's Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion scored five goals (his fourth career hat trick) and an assist and defenseman Doug Harvey had five assists (a team record) as the Canadiens beat the NY Rangers, 10-2 at the Forum.
1969: Pittsburgh rookie Joe Daley recorded his first career shutout, as the Penguins beat Boston, 3-0, at the Civic Arena. Daley set a team record for most saves in a shutout (41) that lasted until 2004 when J-S Aubin had 45 in a 4-0 win over Dallas.....Eddie Joyal scored his second career hat trick and added an assist as the Kings lost 7-2 to the North Stars at Minnesota.
1972: Gerry Cheevers tied an NHL record by extending his unbeaten streak to 23 straight games (17-0-6) as the Bruins beat the North Stars 6-4, at Minnesota. Derek Sanderson had two goals and an assist for the Bruins.....Toronto's Darryl Sittler scored his first career hat trick, including two goals in ten seconds, Buffalo's Rick Martin broke Gil Perreault's NHL record (set the year before) for most goals by a rookie. Martin got #39 as the Maple Leafs beat the Buffalo Sabres, 4-1.
1977: Montreal's Yvan Cournoyer scored twice to become the third player in franchise history to score 400 goals and Jacques Lemaire became the 6th player in franchise history to score 300 goals as the Canadiens extended their team-record home undefeated streak to 23 straight games (18-0-5) with a 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers.....Rod Gilbert scored a goal and added an assist to become the first player in NY Rangers history (and the 11th in NHL history) to score 1,000 career points. It came in a 5-2 loss to the Islanders at Long Island, in his 1,027th NHL game.....Rogie Vachon recorded his 38th career shutout as the Kings beat Boston 2-0 at the Forum, in the first penalty-free game played in Los Angeles. Wally Harris was the referee.
1979: Mike Bossy scored his 100th career NHL goal (in an 8-3 Islanders' win at Los Angeles) in just his 129th career game, to break Maurice Richard's NHL record (134 games) for fastest 100 goals.
1980: Washington beat Montreal 3-1 to end the Canadiens' 34 game unbeaten streak against the Caps. Washington had been 0-32-2 against Montreal since entering the NHL in October 1974.....Colorado's Rene Robert scored twice and added three assists, Kevin Morrison had a goal and four assists and Lanny McDonald pitched in with two goals and two assists as the Rockies won 8-6 over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers.....Edmonton rookie Wayne Gretzky played against Hartford's Gordie Howe for the fourth (and final) time in their NHL careers, when the Whalers beat the Oilers 6-2 at Hartford. Both players went scoreless in the game.
1983: Edmonton defenseman Kevin Lowe scored a goal and added five assists in an Oilers' 10-7 victory at Pittsburgh and established a new club record for most points in a game by a defenseman.
1986: Brian Lawton scored his first NHL hat trick and added an assist, and Dennis Maruk had a goal and four assists to lead the Minnesota North Stars to a 6-5 win, at Chicago.....Chris Ruuttu scored the 6,000th goal in Sabres team history, in a 6-3 loss at Pittsburgh.....Paul Coffey scored two goals and added three asissts to give him 100 points in the season, in a 9-5 win over the Maple Leafs in Edmonton. It was Coffey's third straight 100 point season with the Oilers.
1988: Phil Housley set a new scoring record for Sabres defensemen, when he got his 25th goal of the season, in a 5-4 loss to the Flyers in Buffalo.
1989: Washington's Dale Hunter scored the 4,000th goal in Capitals' history, as Washington lost 3-2 at Vancouver.....Winnipeg Jets retired Bobby Hull's uniform #9 in a pre-game ceremony. Then the Jets came out and beat the Hartford Whalers 7-6 in overtime, with a hat trick (the 6th of his career including the winning goal) and an assist by Brent Ashton.
1991: Chris Ruuttu scored the 6,000th goal in Sabres team history, in a 6-3 loss at Pittsburgh.
1992: Calgary goalie Mike Vernon led the Flames to a 6-4 win over Boston to win his 20th game of the season for the sixth consecutive NHL year.....Los Angeles Kings acquired Paul Coffey from the Pittsburgh Penguins, in exchange for Brian Benning, Jeff Chychrun and a 1st round draft pick in 1992. The Penguins later traded the pick to Philadelphia (who used the pick to select Jason Bowen).
1995: Pittsburgh's Luc Robitaille scored twice to give him 400 goals in his NHL career as the Penguins tied 3-3 with the Sabres, at the Civic Arena. Robitaille became the 47th player in the NHL to reach the 400 goal mark.
1996: Colorado's Patrick Roy became the second youngest goaltender to reach 300 NHL victories, and Peter Forsberg scored his second career hat trick and added two assists as the Avalanche won 7-5 over the visiting Oilers.
1997: Chris Osgood recorded his 5th shutout of the season in the Red Wings' 4-0 win over the visiting Calgary Flames. Steve Yzerman picked up three assists in his 1,000th career NHL game. He became the 3rd to play 1,000 games with Detroit.....Devils' extended their team-record unbeaten streak to 12 straight games (6-0-6) and Martin Brodeur stretched his personal unbeaten streak to 13 straight games (8-0-5) as New Jersey tied 1-1 with the visiting New York Rangers.
1998: Calgary Flames signed free agent Martin St. Louis.
2000: Mark Messier picked up two assists for the 2,000th point of his NHL career (including the playoffs) as Vancouver won 3-1 at Ottawa.
2001: Patrick Roy became just the fourth goaltender in NHL history to record six consecutive 30 win seasons, when the Avalanche had a 5-1 win at Pittsburgh. Peter Forsberg led the scoring with two goals and two assists.
2003: Jean-Sebastien Giguere recorded his club-record 7th shutout of the season (breaking the team record set by Guy Hebert) in the Mighty Ducks 2-0 win against the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets.
2004: Philadelphia Flyers acquired center Alexei Zhamnov and a fourth-round draft pick in 2004 from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for defenseman Jim Vandermeer, center Colin Fraser and a second-round draft pick in 2004.
Monday, February 18, 2008
February 18th
FORSBERG MAY MAKE DECISION BY TUESDAY
Paul Holmgren, general manager of the Philadelphia Flyers, said Sunday that Peter Forsberg could decide by Tuesday if he's healthy enough to return to the NHL.
If the former league MVP does choose to play, the next decision would be where? A number of teams have expressed interest including Vancouver as well as the Flyers.
Forsberg spent one-and-a-half seasons in Philly before being traded last year to the Nashville Predators, and has been struggling with foot and ankle injurys and has been working on his fitness in Sweden while he decides on retirement or a return to the NHL.
'CANES BRIND'AMOUR DONE FOR SEASON
Carolina Hurricanes captain Rod Brind'Amour underwent reconstructive surgery on a torn ligament in his left knee Friday, and is expected to be out for four to six months.
Brind'Amour suffered the injury during Thursday night's 4-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Hurricanes captain, who lead the team with 51 points (19 goals and 32 assists) is the second Carolina key offensice threat to suffer a serious knee injury.
Forward Justin Williams is expected to miss at least two more months after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament in December.
RANGERS RE-SIGN DEFENCEMAN TYUTIN
The New York Rangers and defenceman Fedor Tyutin signed a four-year contract extension on Sunday.
The contract will pay the 24-year-old $11.375 million over the length of the deal. $2.25-million in the first year, 2.7, 3.0 and 3.425 in year four.
In 60 games this season, the 24-year-old has four goals and 10 assists, and in 228 career games (all with the Rangers) has 14 goals and 46 assists.
'HAWKS SIGN SEABROOK TO 3-YEAR DEAL
The Chicago Blackhawks have secured a big piece of their blueline as they signed defenceman Brent Seabrook to a three-year, $10.5 million contract.
The 14th overall pick by the Blackhawks in 2003, Seabrook has scored a career high seven goals to go along with 12 assists this season and a plu/minus of +12, and in 207 career games has 16 goals and 59 assists.
'JACKETS ACTOVATE FEDOROV FROM IR
The Columbus Blue Jackes actovated center Sergei Fedorov from injured reserve Sunday and sent left wing Joakim Lindstrom to their American Hockey League affiliate in Syracuse.
Fedorov missed 13 games due to a concussion sustained January 17 at Phoenix. The 38-year-old has eight goals and 19 assists in 46 games this season, and ranks among the top 50 all-time in the NHL in goals, assists and points.
Lindstrom has appeared in 14 games with the Blue Jackets this season, scoring two goals with four assists. A second-round pick in 2002, he has three goals and four assists in 23 career NHL games.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--87--41-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-21-5
3-MINNESOTA*--72--34-21-4
4-ANAHEIM--73--33-23-7
5-SAN JOSE--70--31-19-8
6-NASHVILLE--69--31-23-7
7-VANCOUVER--66--29-22-8
8-CALGARY--66--29-22-8
__________________________________
9-COLORADO--65--30-24-5
10-PHOENIX--64--30-25-4
11-ST LOUIS--63--27-22-9
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-25-9
13-CHICAGO--60--27-25-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-28-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-33-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--73--34-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--71--33-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--64--30-27-4
4-MONTREAL--73--32-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--71--33-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--67--30-24-5
7-PHILADELPHIA--65--30-24-5
8-BOSTON--64--29-23-6
___________________________________
9-BUFFALO--64--28-23-8
10-WASHINGTON--62--28-26-6
11-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
12-NY ISLANDERS--61--27-25-7
13-FLORIDA--60--27-28-6
14-TORONTO--57--24-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--56--25-28-6
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAY'S NHL SCHEDULE (Central time)
(3) HURRICANES @ (2) DEVILS 12pm
(5) SHARKS @ (12) ISLANDERS 1pm
(1) RED WINGS @ (9) AVALANCHE 7pm
(10) COYOTES @ (15) KINGS 930pm
Paul Holmgren, general manager of the Philadelphia Flyers, said Sunday that Peter Forsberg could decide by Tuesday if he's healthy enough to return to the NHL.
If the former league MVP does choose to play, the next decision would be where? A number of teams have expressed interest including Vancouver as well as the Flyers.
Forsberg spent one-and-a-half seasons in Philly before being traded last year to the Nashville Predators, and has been struggling with foot and ankle injurys and has been working on his fitness in Sweden while he decides on retirement or a return to the NHL.
'CANES BRIND'AMOUR DONE FOR SEASON
Carolina Hurricanes captain Rod Brind'Amour underwent reconstructive surgery on a torn ligament in his left knee Friday, and is expected to be out for four to six months.
Brind'Amour suffered the injury during Thursday night's 4-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Hurricanes captain, who lead the team with 51 points (19 goals and 32 assists) is the second Carolina key offensice threat to suffer a serious knee injury.
Forward Justin Williams is expected to miss at least two more months after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament in December.
RANGERS RE-SIGN DEFENCEMAN TYUTIN
The New York Rangers and defenceman Fedor Tyutin signed a four-year contract extension on Sunday.
The contract will pay the 24-year-old $11.375 million over the length of the deal. $2.25-million in the first year, 2.7, 3.0 and 3.425 in year four.
In 60 games this season, the 24-year-old has four goals and 10 assists, and in 228 career games (all with the Rangers) has 14 goals and 46 assists.
'HAWKS SIGN SEABROOK TO 3-YEAR DEAL
The Chicago Blackhawks have secured a big piece of their blueline as they signed defenceman Brent Seabrook to a three-year, $10.5 million contract.
The 14th overall pick by the Blackhawks in 2003, Seabrook has scored a career high seven goals to go along with 12 assists this season and a plu/minus of +12, and in 207 career games has 16 goals and 59 assists.
'JACKETS ACTOVATE FEDOROV FROM IR
The Columbus Blue Jackes actovated center Sergei Fedorov from injured reserve Sunday and sent left wing Joakim Lindstrom to their American Hockey League affiliate in Syracuse.
Fedorov missed 13 games due to a concussion sustained January 17 at Phoenix. The 38-year-old has eight goals and 19 assists in 46 games this season, and ranks among the top 50 all-time in the NHL in goals, assists and points.
Lindstrom has appeared in 14 games with the Blue Jackets this season, scoring two goals with four assists. A second-round pick in 2002, he has three goals and four assists in 23 career NHL games.
PLAYOFF STANDINGS
(RANK-TEAM--PTS--RECORD)
WEST
1-DETROIT*--87--41-15-5
2-DALLAS*--79--37-21-5
3-MINNESOTA*--72--34-21-4
4-ANAHEIM--73--33-23-7
5-SAN JOSE--70--31-19-8
6-NASHVILLE--69--31-23-7
7-VANCOUVER--66--29-22-8
8-CALGARY--66--29-22-8
__________________________________
9-COLORADO--65--30-24-5
10-PHOENIX--64--30-25-4
11-ST LOUIS--63--27-22-9
12-COLUMBUS--63--27-25-9
13-CHICAGO--60--27-25-6
14-EDMONTON--59--27-28-5
15-LOS ANGELES--53--25-33-3
EAST
1-OTTAWA*--73--34-20-5
2-NEW JERSEY*--71--33-21-5
3-CAROLINA*--64--30-27-4
4-MONTREAL--73--32-19-9
5-PITTSBURGH--71--33-21-5
6-NY RANGERS--67--30-24-5
7-PHILADELPHIA--65--30-24-5
8-BOSTON--64--29-23-6
___________________________________
9-BUFFALO--64--28-23-8
10-WASHINGTON--62--28-26-6
11-ATLANTA--62--29-28-4
12-NY ISLANDERS--61--27-25-7
13-FLORIDA--60--27-28-6
14-TORONTO--57--24-27-9
15-TAMPA BAY--56--25-28-6
(* DIVISION LEADER)
TODAY'S NHL SCHEDULE (Central time)
(3) HURRICANES @ (2) DEVILS 12pm
(5) SHARKS @ (12) ISLANDERS 1pm
(1) RED WINGS @ (9) AVALANCHE 7pm
(10) COYOTES @ (15) KINGS 930pm
Today in NHL History, Feb 18th
1905: Fred Brophy of Westmount (of the CAHL) became the first goaltender to score a goal in Stanley Cup play. Brophy made a save, then skated the lengh of the ice to score past Quebec goalie Paddy Moran. But Quebec won the game 17-5.
1918: Montreal Canadiens' goalie Georges Vezina recorded the first shutout in NHL history, blanking Toronto 9-0. It came in the NHL's third month of play, in the league's first season.
1919: Ottawa's Cy Denneny scored his 52nd career goal (in a 4-3 win over the Toronto Arenas) to become the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. Denneny passed Joe Malone (who regained the lead a year later).
1926: Ottawa set a new NHL record for most wins in a season, with their 20th of the year, a 4-2 victory over the Canadiens. The Senators broke the record of 19 wins, set by 3 teams over the NHL's first 8 seasons. Cy Denneny scored a natural hat trick.
1928: Senators' Alex Connell recorded his sixth consecutive shutout, an NHL record, in a 1-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens, in Ottawa. It was Connell's 12th shutout of the season and the 47th of his career.
1930: Boston's Tiny Thompson set an NHL record for most wins in a season, when he picked up his 31st victory of the year, in a 3-2 Bruins win over the visiting Montreal Canadiens. Thompson broke the record of 30 wins set by Alex Connell in 1926-27. Boston also set a new NHL record for most wins in a season, with their 31st of the year (and their 16th straight at home), the Bruins broke the old record of 30 wins, set by Ottawa in 1926-27......Americans' Norman Himes scored a hat trick and added an assist (including a goal and an assist in overtime) as New York won 6-4 at Chicago.
1936: Americans' Nels Stewart scored a hat trick and added an assist and Sweeney Schriner had two goals and two assists as New York tied 8-8 with the visiting Maroons. Montreal's Reginald "Hooley" Smith scored two goals and three assists.
1940: Tiny Thompson recorded his 81st (and final) career shutout as the Red Wings scored twice in the final period to beat the Rangers 2-0 in Detroit.
1941: Art Jackson scored both Boston goals as the Bruins extended their unbeaten streak to 14-0-8 in a 2-2 tie against Toronto, at Boston Garden. Leafs' goaltender Turk Broda made 49 saves in the tie.
1945: Montreal Canadiens' goalie Bill Durnan and Black Hawks' Mike Karakas dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Chicago. It was the 26th career shutout for Karakas and the third for Durnan.
1954: Montreal beat Detroit 4-2, but during the game, Gordie Howe was advised that he had become the father of a baby boy, who he later named Marty.
1967: Montreal's rookie goalie Rogie Vachon played in his first NHL game. His first shot was a breakaway by Gordie Howe. Vachon made the save and the Canadiens went on to beat Detroit 3-2 at the Forum.
1968: The first NHL game was played at the fourth "Madison Square Garden" (home of the New York Rangers). Rangers won 3-1 over the Philadelphia Flyers.
1970: Boston's Bobby Orr beat L.A. goalie Wayne Rutledge for his 22nd goal of the season (during a 5-5 tie in Los Angeles) to break his own NHL season mark for goals by a defensemen, set one year earlier.
1971: Red Wings' Gordie Howe scored his 20th goal of the season in 5-3 win against the Minnesota North Stars, in Detroit. It was the 22nd straight season Howe reached the 20-goal mark, an NHL record.
1972: Jean Ratelle scored a goal and and assist, for his 100th point of the season, in the Rangers' 2-2 tie against the Golden Seals, in Oakland. Ratelle became the first player in Rangers' history to score 100 points in one season.
1975: Washington Capitals lost 6-1 to the L.A. Kings in Washington, the first of 17 straight games, the longest losing streak (at that time) in NHL history.
1976: Montreal's Guy Lafleur scored two goals and added three assists, and Steve Shutt had two goals and two assists in the Canadiens' 7-5 win, at Toronto.
1977: St. Louis Blues sold Derek Sanderson to Vancouver.
1978: Barclay Plager coached his first game for St. Louis, a 4-3 Blues win over the Canucks in St. Louis. Plager replaced Leo Boivin, and helped the Blues end their team-record 12 game winless streak (0-10-2).
1981: 20-year-old Wayne Gretzky became the first player in NHL history to score five career hat tricks before the age of 21, when he had five goals and two assists in a 9-2 Oilers' win against St. Louis. It was also Gretzky's first career 5-goal game.....Hartford Whalers retired Gordie Howe's uniform number 9. Whalers tied 3-3 with the visiting Winnipeg Jets.
1982: Los Angeles Kings called up Bernie Nicholls, who had been playing with New Haven of the AHL. Nicholls went on to score 14 goals and 18 assists in the final 21 games of the 1981-82 season for the Kings.
1983: Lanny McDonald became the first player in Calgary Flames history to score 50 goals in a season. The milestone came in a 5-1 loss at Buffalo. McDonald finished the season with a team-record 66 goals.
1984: Reed Larson picked up three assists, to become the highest scoring U.S. born player in NHL history, and goaltender Greg Stefan recorded his second career shutout, as the Red Wings won 6-0 over the Black Hawks in Detroit.
1985: Brad Marsh broke a 66 game goal-less streak, by scoring in the Flyers' 8-2 win against Pittsburgh at the Spectrum. The Flyers outshot the Penguins 43-18 in the game.
1987: Minnesota's Dino Ciccarelli scored twice to give him 250 career NHL goals as the North Stars won 7-3 over the visiting Vancouver Canucks. Ciccarelli also had an assist in the game.....Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky scored a goal and added four assists as the Oilers beat Toronto 9-2, to extend their home undefeated streak against the Maple Leafs to 12 games (9-0-3).
1989: Joe Nieuwendyk scored the 100th goal of his NHL career as the Flames lost 4-3 to the visiting Bruins. It took him 134 games to reach 100, tying him with Maurice Richard for second fastest 100 goals in history. Mike Bossy had 100 in 129 games.....Wayne Gretzky scored two goals and five assists in career game #754, to give him a career total of 1,800 NHL points. They came in an 11-3 Kings' win over the Quebec Nordiques at the Forum.
1990: Defenseman Ray Bourque had the biggest scoring night of his 22 year NHL career, when he scored a goal and added five assists to lead Boston to a 7-2 win at Vancouver. With five assists Bourque became the 7th NHL defenseman to score 600 assists.
1992: John Tanner recorded his first NHL shutout and Owen Nolan helped with a goal and two assists to lead the Nordiques to a 4-0 win against the Minnesota North Stars, in Quebec City.
1993: After 522 minor-league games, goalie Rick Knickle made his NHL debut, in a 7-2 Los Angeles Kings' loss at Chicago. His debut came a week before his 33rd birthday.
1999: Hurricanes Paul Coffey became the second player in NHL history (and the first defenseman) to record 1,100 career assists. The milestone came in a 2-2 tie against the Capitals, in Greensboro, North Carolina.....Eric Lindros scored a goal to give him points in 18 straight games (tying a team record held by Bobby Clarke) in the Flyers' 3-1 loss against the visiting Montreal Canadiens.
2003: Vancouver tied a team record by extending their unbeaten streak to 10 games (6-0-4) after coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the final 15 minutes of the game to beat the Wings 4-3 at Detroit. Marek Malik scored at 3:02 of overtime for the victory.
2004: Nashville defenseman Marek Zidlicky set a team record with five assists, and Scott Walker scored a power-play goal and three assists in the Predators' 7-3 win against the visiting San Jose Sharks.....Detroit's Brett Hull tied Dave Andreychuk's NHL record with his 263rd career power-play goal, when the Red Wings forward scored in a 5-2 win against Phoenix.
1918: Montreal Canadiens' goalie Georges Vezina recorded the first shutout in NHL history, blanking Toronto 9-0. It came in the NHL's third month of play, in the league's first season.
1919: Ottawa's Cy Denneny scored his 52nd career goal (in a 4-3 win over the Toronto Arenas) to become the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. Denneny passed Joe Malone (who regained the lead a year later).
1926: Ottawa set a new NHL record for most wins in a season, with their 20th of the year, a 4-2 victory over the Canadiens. The Senators broke the record of 19 wins, set by 3 teams over the NHL's first 8 seasons. Cy Denneny scored a natural hat trick.
1928: Senators' Alex Connell recorded his sixth consecutive shutout, an NHL record, in a 1-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens, in Ottawa. It was Connell's 12th shutout of the season and the 47th of his career.
1930: Boston's Tiny Thompson set an NHL record for most wins in a season, when he picked up his 31st victory of the year, in a 3-2 Bruins win over the visiting Montreal Canadiens. Thompson broke the record of 30 wins set by Alex Connell in 1926-27. Boston also set a new NHL record for most wins in a season, with their 31st of the year (and their 16th straight at home), the Bruins broke the old record of 30 wins, set by Ottawa in 1926-27......Americans' Norman Himes scored a hat trick and added an assist (including a goal and an assist in overtime) as New York won 6-4 at Chicago.
1936: Americans' Nels Stewart scored a hat trick and added an assist and Sweeney Schriner had two goals and two assists as New York tied 8-8 with the visiting Maroons. Montreal's Reginald "Hooley" Smith scored two goals and three assists.
1940: Tiny Thompson recorded his 81st (and final) career shutout as the Red Wings scored twice in the final period to beat the Rangers 2-0 in Detroit.
1941: Art Jackson scored both Boston goals as the Bruins extended their unbeaten streak to 14-0-8 in a 2-2 tie against Toronto, at Boston Garden. Leafs' goaltender Turk Broda made 49 saves in the tie.
1945: Montreal Canadiens' goalie Bill Durnan and Black Hawks' Mike Karakas dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Chicago. It was the 26th career shutout for Karakas and the third for Durnan.
1954: Montreal beat Detroit 4-2, but during the game, Gordie Howe was advised that he had become the father of a baby boy, who he later named Marty.
1967: Montreal's rookie goalie Rogie Vachon played in his first NHL game. His first shot was a breakaway by Gordie Howe. Vachon made the save and the Canadiens went on to beat Detroit 3-2 at the Forum.
1968: The first NHL game was played at the fourth "Madison Square Garden" (home of the New York Rangers). Rangers won 3-1 over the Philadelphia Flyers.
1970: Boston's Bobby Orr beat L.A. goalie Wayne Rutledge for his 22nd goal of the season (during a 5-5 tie in Los Angeles) to break his own NHL season mark for goals by a defensemen, set one year earlier.
1971: Red Wings' Gordie Howe scored his 20th goal of the season in 5-3 win against the Minnesota North Stars, in Detroit. It was the 22nd straight season Howe reached the 20-goal mark, an NHL record.
1972: Jean Ratelle scored a goal and and assist, for his 100th point of the season, in the Rangers' 2-2 tie against the Golden Seals, in Oakland. Ratelle became the first player in Rangers' history to score 100 points in one season.
1975: Washington Capitals lost 6-1 to the L.A. Kings in Washington, the first of 17 straight games, the longest losing streak (at that time) in NHL history.
1976: Montreal's Guy Lafleur scored two goals and added three assists, and Steve Shutt had two goals and two assists in the Canadiens' 7-5 win, at Toronto.
1977: St. Louis Blues sold Derek Sanderson to Vancouver.
1978: Barclay Plager coached his first game for St. Louis, a 4-3 Blues win over the Canucks in St. Louis. Plager replaced Leo Boivin, and helped the Blues end their team-record 12 game winless streak (0-10-2).
1981: 20-year-old Wayne Gretzky became the first player in NHL history to score five career hat tricks before the age of 21, when he had five goals and two assists in a 9-2 Oilers' win against St. Louis. It was also Gretzky's first career 5-goal game.....Hartford Whalers retired Gordie Howe's uniform number 9. Whalers tied 3-3 with the visiting Winnipeg Jets.
1982: Los Angeles Kings called up Bernie Nicholls, who had been playing with New Haven of the AHL. Nicholls went on to score 14 goals and 18 assists in the final 21 games of the 1981-82 season for the Kings.
1983: Lanny McDonald became the first player in Calgary Flames history to score 50 goals in a season. The milestone came in a 5-1 loss at Buffalo. McDonald finished the season with a team-record 66 goals.
1984: Reed Larson picked up three assists, to become the highest scoring U.S. born player in NHL history, and goaltender Greg Stefan recorded his second career shutout, as the Red Wings won 6-0 over the Black Hawks in Detroit.
1985: Brad Marsh broke a 66 game goal-less streak, by scoring in the Flyers' 8-2 win against Pittsburgh at the Spectrum. The Flyers outshot the Penguins 43-18 in the game.
1987: Minnesota's Dino Ciccarelli scored twice to give him 250 career NHL goals as the North Stars won 7-3 over the visiting Vancouver Canucks. Ciccarelli also had an assist in the game.....Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky scored a goal and added four assists as the Oilers beat Toronto 9-2, to extend their home undefeated streak against the Maple Leafs to 12 games (9-0-3).
1989: Joe Nieuwendyk scored the 100th goal of his NHL career as the Flames lost 4-3 to the visiting Bruins. It took him 134 games to reach 100, tying him with Maurice Richard for second fastest 100 goals in history. Mike Bossy had 100 in 129 games.....Wayne Gretzky scored two goals and five assists in career game #754, to give him a career total of 1,800 NHL points. They came in an 11-3 Kings' win over the Quebec Nordiques at the Forum.
1990: Defenseman Ray Bourque had the biggest scoring night of his 22 year NHL career, when he scored a goal and added five assists to lead Boston to a 7-2 win at Vancouver. With five assists Bourque became the 7th NHL defenseman to score 600 assists.
1992: John Tanner recorded his first NHL shutout and Owen Nolan helped with a goal and two assists to lead the Nordiques to a 4-0 win against the Minnesota North Stars, in Quebec City.
1993: After 522 minor-league games, goalie Rick Knickle made his NHL debut, in a 7-2 Los Angeles Kings' loss at Chicago. His debut came a week before his 33rd birthday.
1999: Hurricanes Paul Coffey became the second player in NHL history (and the first defenseman) to record 1,100 career assists. The milestone came in a 2-2 tie against the Capitals, in Greensboro, North Carolina.....Eric Lindros scored a goal to give him points in 18 straight games (tying a team record held by Bobby Clarke) in the Flyers' 3-1 loss against the visiting Montreal Canadiens.
2003: Vancouver tied a team record by extending their unbeaten streak to 10 games (6-0-4) after coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the final 15 minutes of the game to beat the Wings 4-3 at Detroit. Marek Malik scored at 3:02 of overtime for the victory.
2004: Nashville defenseman Marek Zidlicky set a team record with five assists, and Scott Walker scored a power-play goal and three assists in the Predators' 7-3 win against the visiting San Jose Sharks.....Detroit's Brett Hull tied Dave Andreychuk's NHL record with his 263rd career power-play goal, when the Red Wings forward scored in a 5-2 win against Phoenix.
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