Friday, December 14, 2007

Today in NHL History, Dec 15th

1917: The first exhibition game in NHL history was played (four days before the league officially began) when the Montreal Canadiens and Montreal Wanderers played in a benefit game for victims of the Halifax Fire (which had occurred 10 days earlier).

1924: Cy Denneny scored four goals as Ottawa won 10-2, at Boston.

1927: Chicago Black Hawks obtained Duke Keats, along with $5,000 from Detroit, in exchange for Gordon Fraser.

1928: Maroons' Clint Benedict became the second goalie in NHL history to record 50 career shutouts, and Canadiens' George Hainsworth picked up his 31st career shutout, when the rival teams dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in Montreal.....Pittsburgh Pirates' goalie Joe Miller and Senators' Alex Connell dueled to a 0-0 scoreless tie, in a game played at Ottawa. It was the 54th career shutout for Connell and the 9th for Miller.

1938: Boston's Frankie Brimsek recorded the shutout in a 1-0 Bruins' win over the Canadiens, at the Forum in Montreal. It was the fourth shutout in five games for the rookie goalie, and his third straight on the road.

1940: Toronto Maple Leafs became the first team in NHL history to win each of their first seven road games of the season, with a 4-1 victory over the Black Hawks, at Chicago.

1957: Montreal's Dollard St. Laurent scored a goal and added an assist, and Jacques Plante recorded his 30th career shutout, as the Canadiens won 2-0 at Chicago.

1962: Boston goalie Eddie Johnston made his NHL debut (replacing Bob Perreault in an 8-2 loss at Toronto), and proceeded to play in the next 160 consecutive games for Boston.....Rangers' Andy Bathgate began a team-record 10 game goal scoring streak as New York won 4-2 over the Canadiens, at Montreal.

1967: Cesare Maniago was in goal as the Minnesota North Stars won 3-0 at Los Angeles to become the first modern expansion team to get back-to-back shutouts. Two days earlier Maniago had defeated the Kings 4-0 in Minnesota.

1968: Rookie Garry Unger scored his 1st NHL career hat trick as the Red Wings beat the Minnesota North Stars 5-2, at the Olympia in Detroit.

1970: St. Louis goalie Glenn Hall became the second goaltender in NHL history to record 400 career victories in the Blues 2-1 victory over the visiting Minnesota North Stars. Bill Sutherland scored both St. Louis goals.

1971: Montreal rookie goalie Ken Dryden picked up his third assist of the season, to tie the mark for assists by a goaltender as the Canadiens won 3-1 at Los Angeles.

1979: Willy Lindstrom scored his first career hat trick to become the first member of the Winnipeg Jets to get a hat trick in the NHL, during a 6-2 win over Montreal. Also in that game, Winnipeg's Peter Sullivan set a Jets' team record with three assists in one period (the third). Sullivan had a total of five points in the game - a goal and four assists.

1980: Dan Maloney scored his third (and final) career hat trick (and his only one with Toronto) in the Maple Leafs' 6-3 win against the North Stars, at Minnesota.

1983: Philadelphia Flyers set an NHL record with three shorthanded goals in one period, as they won at Washington, 9-4.

1984: New Jersey's Aaron Broten began a team-record 12 game point scoring streak in the Devils' 8-3 win over the visiting Quebec Nordiques.....Marcel Dionne became the fourth player in NHL history to score 600 career goals, as the Kings beat the Flames 6-5.

1985: Lindy Ruff scored four goals (including his second and final career hat trick) as the Sabres beat the Quebec Nordiques 6-2. Ruff's four goals tied a team record set by Richard Martin.

1987: Mark Howe became the first defenseman in Philadelphia Flyers history to score 100 NHL goals; the milestone came in a 5-2 win over the Penguins, in Pittsburgh.

1988: Mario Lemieux had a goal and four assists in Pittsburgh's 8-2 win over the Islanders to become the Penguins' all-time leader in career assists, breaking the old mark of 349 set by Syl Apps. It came in Lemieux's 321st NHL game.

1992: Scotty Bowman became the first coach in NHL history to get 800 career wins, when the Penguins beat the Flyers 6-2 at the Civic Arena.

1993: Mike Richter extended his unbeaten streak to 19 games during a 5-2 Rangers victory over the visiting Hartford Whalers. Richter tied the NY Rangers goaltending record set by Davey Kerr (14-0-5) in the 1939-40 season.

1995: Winnipeg's 19-year-old rookie defenseman Deron Quint scored two goals in four seconds in the second period to tie a 64-year-old NHL record set by Nels Stewart of the Montreal Maroons in 1931. Jets won 9-4 against the visiting Oilers.

1996: Dallas goalie Andy Moog recorded his 25th career shutout in the Stars' 4-0 win at Ottawa. Early in the second period Modano & Matvichuk scored shorthanded goals :26 apart during a penalty to rookie Jamie Langenbrunner.

1999: Jaromir Jagr scored twice and added three assists in the Penguins 6-3 win against the Hurricanes, at North Carolina.

2001: Mark Messier scored a goal and added an assist to reach 1,800 career points, only the third NHL player to reach the milestone (after Howe and Gretzky) in the Rangers 4-2 win over the visiting Buffalo Sabres.

December 14th

Richards's Extended Thru 2020


Fifteen months after New York Islanders goalie Rick DiPietro wowed the hockey world with a 15-year contract, Philadelphia forward Mike Richards secured his own 12-year extension.

The Flyers centre will earn $69 million over the life of the deal, earning an average of $5.75 million annually, and will be 35 at the end of the 2019-20 season when the contract expires.

Richards, 22, is currently in the final year of an entry-level deal that is paying him more than $940,000. He is off to the best start of his career, leading the Flyers with 14 goals and 34 points in 28 games, and in 166 career NHL games has scored 35 goals and registered 100 points.

DiPietro's 15-year pact worth $67.5 million is believed to be the longest in NHL history.


Billionaire Bids on Oilers, Again

Daryl Katz, owner of a pharmacy chain that sponsors the Edmonton Oilers' arena, has made a $190-million offer to buy the NHL team. The offer, amounting to $20,000 per share or about $190 million, was delivered Thursday to shareholders of the Edmonton Investors Group, the team's current owner.

In August, the consortium of 34 local businessmen rejected Katz's offer of reportedly more than $170 million. The billionaire's previous bids of $145 million and $150 million were also turned down. At the time, the EIG, which bought the Oilers in 1998, reiterated that the team was not for sale.

In a press release Thursday, Katz said he's making his fourth bid for the franchise because several EIG shareholders have encouraged him in the last six months to try again. Cal Nichols, who revealed he stepped down as chairmain of the EIG this week, said he's accepted the offer but is waiting to see what each of the other shareholders decide. Katz said if this offer is accepted, he will commit an additional $100 million towards a new building.

The offer requires approval of EIG shareholders and the National Hockey League.

Katz, who was born and raised in Edmonton, founded the Rexall chain of pharmacies, which now boasts 1,800 stores across Canada and the U.S.

Today in NHL History, Dec 14th

1926: Ottawa's David Gill extended his NHL record for best start by a rookie coach to 9-0-1, when the Senators beat the Americans 2-0 in New York. The record ended with a loss two days later in Ottawa. Alex Connell recorded his 24th career shutout.

1929: Montreal's Pit Lepine scored five goals (including his second career hat trick), and added an assist, to lead the Canadiens to a 6-4 win against Ottawa.....Toronto's Harold "Baldy" Cotton scored two goals in overtime as the Leafs won 7-6 over the visiting New York Rangers, who had become the first team in NHL history to travel by air (via a charter flight) to face an opponent.

1933: Lorne Chabot recorded his 59th career shutout as the Canadiens beat Toronto 2-0 in a penalty-free game played in Montreal. Also in that game, Montreal's Howie Morenz became the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer, when the 247th of his career moved him ahead of Cy Denneny. The milestone came in a 2-0 Canadiens' win over the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs.

1934: New York Rangers purchased goaltender Davey Kerr from the Montreal Maroons.....Boston Bruins traded Hap Emms and Orville Heximer to the New York Americans, in exchange for Walter "Red" Jackson.

1952: Red Wings extended their team-record undefeated streak to 9 straight games (6-0-3) with a 0-0 tie against the visiting Montreal Canadiens. It was the 28th career shutout for Wings' Terry Sawchuk and the second shutout in two days for Gerry McNeil.

1966: Toronto's Eddie Shack scored his 100th career NHL goal as the Maple Leafs beat Boston 2-1.

1967: Doug Mohns scored twice as the Black Hawks improved their team-record road unbeaten streak to 11 games (6-0-5), with a 3-1 win over the Red Wings at Detroit.

1968: Montreal rookie goaltender Tony Esposito recorded his first career NHL shutout to lead the Canadiens to a 1-0 win over the Flyers in Montreal.....Boston's Bobby Orr recorded his first career NHL hat trick and added two assists in a 10-5 win over Chicago, at Boston Garden.

1969: Rookie Cliff Koroll scored his first NHL hat trick, and Stan Mikita added three assists to lead the Black Hawks to a 4-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers, at Chicago Stadium.

1974: New York Rangers' Greg Polis set a team record with 33 penalty minutes in one game as the Rangers lost to the Blues, 6-2. The two teams totaled 256 penalty minutes, including 196 in the final period.....Houston's Gordie Howe scored two goals for the 900th and 901st of his pro career, as the Aeros won 5-3 over the Winnipeg Jets. The 901 goals included 70 goals in the playoffs with the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL and the Aeros of the WHA.

1975: Larry Romanchych set an Atlanta Flames team record with three straight goals in the third period of a 7-4 Flames' win at Buffalo. It was Romanchych's first career hat trick.

1976: Sabres' Rick Martin became the first player in franchise history to score 250 goals. The milestone goal (along with an assist) came as Buffalo won 6-3 at Vancouver.

1978: Defenseman Jim Schoenfeld set up two goals in two minutes midway through the third period to lead the Sabres to a 3-2 win against the Black Hawks, at the Aud.

1980: Philadelphia's Rick MacLeish became the second player in franchise history to score 300 goals as a member of the Flyers. The milestone came in a 5-4 win against the visiting St. Louis Blues.

1982: Marcel Dionne scored twice to become the 9th player in NHL history to score 500 career NHL goals, as the Kings lost at Washington 7-2.

1983: Winnipeg's Dale Hawerchuk tied a team record for most points in a game, with three goals and three assists, for six points in an 8-4 Jets' win at Toronto. It was the 6th career hat trick for Hawerchuk.

1984: Minnesota North Stars traded Brent Ashton along with Brad Maxwell to the Quebec Nordiques, in exchange for Tony McKegney and Bo Berglund.

1985: Ron Wicks officiated his 1,034th regular season game, in Minnesota, to pass Bruce Hood as the all time leader in NHL games officiated by a referee. North Stars tied 6-6 with Toronto.....Quebec's Michel Goulet scored 4 goals (including his 8th career hat trick) and added an assist, Peter Stastny had a goal and 4 assists and Brent Ashton collected his third career hat trick as the Nordiques won 9-3 against the visiting NJ Devils.

1986: Stan Smyl scored his 6th career hat trick to lead Vancouver to a 7-3 win in Chicago. Smyl's third goal was the 551st point of his NHL career and moved him past Thomas Gradin as the Canucks' all-time leading scorer.

1988: John Ogrodnick and Brian Mullen scored goals :32 seconds apart in the second period as the Rangers won 2-1 over the Islanders.

1991: Chicago's John Tonelli played in his 1,000th career NHL game as the Blackhawks tied 1-1 with the Flyers at Philadelphia.

1995: Boston's Adam Oates scored four goals for his 6th career hat trick and added an assist as the Bruins won 6-4 over the Panthers, at the FleetCenter.

1996: Philadelphia goalie Garth Snow recorded his first NHL career shutout as the Flyers won 4-0 against the Whalers, at Hartford. It was the first of four straight shutouts for the Flyers.

1997: Teppo Numminen became the Coyotes' franchise all-time leader in assists by a defenseman, when he picked up the 250th of his career in a 3-3 tie against the Red Wings, in Phoenix. Numminen broke the mark of 249 set by Fredrik Olausson. Also in that game, Phoenix' Mike Gartner scored twice to become the 5th player in NHL history to get 700 career goals.

1998: Calgary's Theoren Fleury became the first player in franchise history to score 350 goals as a member of the Flames. The milestone came in a 5-2 loss to the Rangers,at New York.

2000: Claude Lemieux scored two goals and added an assist for his 700th career point as Phoenix won 3-2 against the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning. The milestone came in Lemieux's third game as a Coyote.....Mighty Ducks of Anaheim fired head coach Craig Hartsburg, and named assistant coach Guy Charron to replace him. Charron became the fourth head coach in franchise history.

2001: Evgeni Nabokov set a franchise record for career shutouts with his 11th as a Shark, breaking the record he shared with Steve Shields (10). The record came in a 3-0 win over the Avalanche at Colorado.

2002: Minnesota's Andrew Brunette scored the 100th goal of his NHL career in a 3-1 loss at Nashville.


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Thursday, December 13, 2007

December 13th

Girls Hockey on THESTITCH

Be sure to log onto WWW.THESTITCH.US the next two mornings, as we'll have a few girls hockey games from the night before posted for your listening pleasure.

I'll be at the Rec Center tonight to broadcast the Kennedy vs St. Louis Park girls, which will be available by 10am Friday morning to listen to.

On Friday night I'll be back at the Rec Center to broadcast the battle of SLP when Benilde St. Margarets takes on St. Louis Park, and that game will be available Saturday morning at about 10am (possibly late Friday night).

I'm also penciled in to broadcast the Stillwater @ Edina game on Sat Dec 22nd.

Be sure to stay tuned as THESTITCH will have girls hockey games throughout the season.



Manny Done for the Season

Boston Bruins goaltender Manny Fernandez will be sidelined the rest of the season following knee surgery on Wednesday. He hasn't played since hurting his left knee at practice on Oct. 30. It is the same knee he injured last Jan. 25, ending that season with the Minnesota Wild.

The 33-year-old posted a 2-2 record with a 3.93 goals-against average in four starts for the Bruins, who acquired him from the Wild for Petr Kalus and a fourth-round draft pick on July 1.

Fernandez, a two-time winner of the William Jennings Trophy as stingiest netminder, is 127-115 overall with a 2.49 GAA and 14 shutouts in 297 games over 12 NHL seasons with the Dallas Stars, Wild and Bruins. He was selected in the third round (52nd overall) of the 1992 NHL draft by the Quebec Nordiques, who dealt him to the Dallas Stars for Tommy Sjodin and a third-round pick on Feb 13, 1994.


Fleury Out 6-8 Weeks

Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, unbeaten the last three weeks, has a sprained ankle that will keep him out of the Penguins lineup for up to two months. Forward Maxime Talbot has a similar injury and may be out a month. Both were examined Wednesday by a team doctor after Pittsburgh returned from an eight-day road trip.

Fleury and Talbot have a severe sprain that occurs in the ligaments of the upper ankle and takes longer to heal. The team said the minimum Fleury will be out is six weeks, or until late January. Losing both Fleury and Talbot for an extended stretch is a major setback for the Penguins, who made the playoffs for the first time in six years last season but have hovered around the .500 mark this season. They take a 15-13-2 record into Thursday night's home game against Ottawa. Head Coach Michel Therrien says he'll go with Dany Sabourin as their starter, and Ty Conklin, recalled last week from the AHL, will be the backup.

The injuries occurred during one of the busiest stretches of the season, with Thursday's game being the Penguins' sixth in 11 days. Even if Fleury can return in late January, he would miss 19 games - or nearly one-quarter of the schedule.


Hannigan Passes Away

Pat Hannigan, who played his first NHL game for the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1959-60 season and then went onto a second career broadcasting Buffalo Sabres games died at the age of 71 Wednesday night. Hannigan is probably better known for his social justice efforts in Fort Erie for helping refugees new to Canada through Casa el Norte, a safe house for newcomers. He and his wife, Lynn, were one of five core families instrumental in helping to start Case el Norte.


Stanley Cup featured in Rose Parade

The Stanley Cup will hitch a ride on the city of Anaheim's float in the 2008 Rose Parade, on January 1st. It's the first time the trophy will appear in the parade's 119-year history, coinciding with the Anaheim Ducks becoming the first California hockey team to win the Cup.

The float, which will be adorned with flowers, will also include several cars and buses with moving wheels and a helicopter with spinning rotors to depict its theme of all roads lead to Anaheim. Also depicted will be Honda Center, home of the Ducks, and Disneyland.

Last year's Anaheim entry won the mayor's trophy for best city entry.


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Today in NHL History, Dec 13th

1931: Cecil "Tiny" Thompson became the first goaltender in Boston Bruins history to get 20 career shutouts; the milestone came in a 3-0 win at Chicago.

1933: Former NHL defenseman Doug Mohns born in Capreol, Ont. Mohns played in the NHL 1953-54 through 1974-75 with Boston, Chicago, Minnesota, Atlanta and Washington.

1934: Cooney Weiland scored his only hat trick with Detroit as the Red Wings beat the Eagles, 11-2 at St. Louis.

1942: Montreal's Toe Blake scored his third career hat trick and added an assist in the Canadiens' 7-3 win against the Rangers, at New York.

1953: Hall of Famer Bob Gainey born in Peterborough, Ont. Gainey played in the NHL 1973-74 through 1988-89 with Montreal.

1956: Montreal's Jean Beliveau scored his 4th career hat trick and added an assist in the Canadiens' 6-2 win against the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs.

1958: Detroit's Gordie Howe beat Montreal netminder Jacques Plante for his 400th career NHL goal, to give the Red Wings a 2-2 tie at the Forum. Howe became the first player in franchise history (and the second player in the NHL) to reach the 400 mark.

1964: Jean Beliveau became just the second player in Montreal Canadiens history to score 800 points, when he picked up an assist in his 710th game, a 5-4 win at Boston.

1970: Goaltender Bruce Gamble recorded his 20th career shutout, and Norm Ullman scored two goals and added an assist as the Toronto Maple Leafs won 4-0, at Buffalo.

1972: Atlanta's rookie goaltender Daniel Bouchard recorded his 1st NHL career shutout and Curt Bennett scored twice in the Flames' 2-0 win over Detroit.

1973: Red Berenson scored a goal and added three assists to lead the Red Wings to a 7-3 win over the Blues at the Olympia.

1978: Rookie goaltender Greg Millen recorded his first NHL career shutout to lead the Penguins to a 3-0 win over St. Louis at the Civic Arena. The win extended the Pens' unbeaten streak to 8 straight games (5-0-3).

1980: Pittsburgh's Rick Kehoe became the second player in franchise history to score 200 goals as a member of the Penguins. The milestone came in a 6-5 loss against the visiting Philadelphia Flyers. Also in that game, Paul Gardner became the first Penguins player to score four goals in a game, It was Gardner's third career hat trick - his first with Pittsburgh.

1981: Quebec Nordiques' Real Cloutier, Jacques Richard and Marc Tardif combined for three goals within a span of 1:03, during a 4-4 tie against the Sabres, at Buffalo.

1983: Islanders' Butch Goring scored four goals (for his 14th and final career hat trick) in the New York Islanders' 8-5 win against the visiting Edmonton Oilers.

1985: Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky scored twice and added two assists to give him 1,200 career points in career game #504, as the Oilers won 6-3 against the Jets, at Winnipeg.

1986: Quebec's Brent Ashton scored his 5th career hat trick and added two assists in the Nordiques' 7-0 win over the visiting Buffalo Sabres. Clint Malarchuk recorded his 5th career shutout.

1987: Calgary's Joe Nieuwendyk became the first NHL rookie since Cully Wilson (Toronto 1919-20) to score four goals twice in his first season, in a 7-1 Flames in at Buffalo.

1989: Los Angeles' Wayne Gretzky extended his team-record consecutive game assist streak to 17 straight, in the Kings' 5-2 win over the Whalers at Hartford. Gretzky scored 35 assists during the 17 game streak.

1990: Pittsburgh's Bryan Trottier recorded three assists as the Penguins started a 6 game winning streak with a 9-5 win over New Jersey.

1991: Mario Lemieux had three assists in a 4-3 Penguins' win at New Jersey.

1992: Manon Rheaume became the first woman to appear in a pro hockey game when the Salt Lake Golden Eagles beat the Atlanta Knights 4-1 in an IHL game in Atlanta. Rheaume stopped three of four shots in her 5:49 stint in the second period....After 67 years and 535 games against Montreal, the New York Rangers finally hit double figures, in a 10-5 win over the visiting Montreal Canadiens. New York rookie Alexei Kovalev scored a goal and added three assists to lead the scoring.

1993: Ottawa Senators ended their team-record 11 game home losing streak with a 5-2 win over the visiting Los Angeles Kings.

1995: Detroit's Paul Coffey became the first NHL defenseman to get 1,000 career assists as the Red Wings won 3-1 over the visiting Chicago Blackhawks. Coffey joined Gretzky, Gordie Howe and Marcel Dionne as the only NHL players with 1,000 assists.....Second year player Paul Kariya scored twice to become the Mighty Ducks' all-time leading goal scorer, in a 6-3 win over the Penguins, in Anaheim. Kariya's 41st career goal broke the team record of 40 set by Bob Corkum. Kariya also had 2 assists.

1997: Vancouver's Gino Odjick became the 5th NHL player to accumulate 2,000 career penalty minutes with one team, in the Canucks 5-2 loss to Colorado. Odjick joined Boston's Terry O'Reilly, Mtl's Chris Nilan, NJ's Ken Daneyko and Buffalo's Rob Ray.....Mike Keenan coached in his 900th NHL game as the Canucks lost 5-2 against the visiting Colorado Avalanche.

2001: Patrick Lalime became the Ottawa Senators all-time leader in career shutouts, with his 14th as a member of the team, a 6-0 win against Phoenix. Lalime broke the mark of 13 held by Ron Tugnutt. Martin Havlat a hat trick for the Sens.

2002: Sergei Gonchar became the 5th defenseman in Washington Capitals history to get 200 career assists; the milestone came in a 4-3 win over the Coyotes at Phoenix.

2003: Mats Sundin became the 5th player to get 400 assists as a member of the Maple Leafs, and Mikael Renberg scored two goals and an assist in a 3-1 win against the visiting New York Rangers.


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Wednesday, December 12, 2007

December 12th

Shamu Injured

The Vancouver Canucks have listed goaltender Roberto Luongo as day-to-day with a rib contusion while forward Brendan Morrison's NHL iron man streak is in jeopardy due to a wrist injury. The Canucks will probably also be without forward Brad Isbister when they play the Anaheim (LA) Ducks on Wednesday night at Honda Center as Isbister strained his hamstring in Mondays 4-2 loss to the KIngs.

Luongo suffered his rib injury when he was hit by a shot in a loss against the Wild on Dec. 2, but played three nights later in Chicago and also on Sunday against the Penguins. He took the warmup against the Kings Monday but decided he was too sore to play. Curtis Sanford is expected to start in goal Wednesday against the Ducks.

Morrison has been playing most of the season with a sore wrist and returned to Vancouver for an MRI Tuesday and the results should be known late Wednesday morning. The 32-year-old forward has eight goals and 12 assists in 30 games this season, and has played 542 consecutive NHL games, the longest current streak in the NHL. The all-time record is 946 held by the Montreal Canadiens Doug Jarvis.


Poile named Preds Pres of Ops

The new owners of the Nashville Predators wasted little time showing who's in charge, promoting current general manager David Poile to president of hockey operations on Tuesday. Lead owner David Freeman, who took over operation of the team and management of the team's arena on Friday, the same day teh team's $193 million purchase of the team was finalized, also moved Ed Lang to president of business operations.

Freeman said the new owners wanted to send the message the Predators are ready to go.

Poile said the moves signals the start of a new day, after six months of uncertainty and limbo because of original owner Craig Leipold's decision to sell the franchise.


Four NHLers Skating on Heated Blades

Heated skate blades that are supposed to enhance performance are being used by four anonymous NHL players. The four teams they play for asked that their names be kept secret so the Thermablades on their feet didn't draw media attention and their use become a distraction, says Kris King, the NHL's Toronto-based senior manager of hockey operations.

The product is manufactured by the Quebec, Ca. company Therma Blade Inc., and both the NHL and the NHL Players' Association are assessing the experiment of using them in NHL games. King says he's found no problems after conducting follow-ups with the four players who have been skating on them for several weeks now and their equipment managers. He's waiting for the players' association to complete its evaluation. The two groups will then huddle and decide whether to conduct further tests in conjunction with the company.

Thermablades use a rechargeable battery and microprocessor to maintain a blade temperature of 37 F (5 C). The slight heat is enough to increase the thickness of the water layer between the blade and the ice surface, and the company says its tests have shown this reduces gliding friction and starting resistance for skaters. Therma Blade Inc. president Patrick Francey said during an Oct. 16 news conference at the Hockey Hall of Fame that he believes use of the heated blades will have a significant impact on performance. The batteries last for about two games. Fingers placed on sensors on either side of the rear of the plastic blade holder for three seconds activates the battery to signal the sensor to warm the blade. The system turns off automatically when a player is idle on the bench, and the energy of returning to the ice reactivates the system.

The blades are available in adult sizes in specialty stores at $399.99 retail. Buyers have to get them installed on their skate boots.


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Today in NHL History, Dec 12th

1925: Montreal Maroons forward Harry "Punch" Broadbent scored the 100th goal of his NHL career, in a 5-2 win over the visiting Ottawa Senators.

1943: New York Rangers beat the Bruins, 4-3 in New York, to end their NHL-record 15 game winless streak (0-14-1) from the start of the season.

1952: Former NHL defenseman Lars Lindgren born in Pitea, Sweden. Lindgren played in the NHL 1978-79 through 1983-84 with Vancouver and Minnesota.

1953: Maurice Richard became the NHL's all-time scoring leader, when his goal and two assists in a 7-2 win over the Rangers gave him 611 career NHL points, one more than injured teammate Elmer Lach, who had held the record since February 1952.....Harry Lumley recorded his 46th career shutout, and Harry Watson scored twice as the Toronto Maple Leafs extended their team-record home winning streak to 7 straight games, with a 2-0 win over the Chicago Black Hawks.

1963: Montreal beat the Rangers 6-4 in a game that set an NHL record for fastest 3 goals by 2 teams. Montreal's Dave Balon and Gilles Tremblay, and Rangers' Camille Henry scored within a span of 18 seconds early in the first period to set the record.

1968: Toronto edged the Flyers in a 1-0 game at the Spectrum. Ron Ellis scored the game's only goal against Bernie Parent, while Johnny Bower recorded his 37th (and final) career shutout for the Maple Leafs.

1970: Orland Kurtenbach became the first player in Vancouver Canucks history to score a hat trick. He scored his only career hat trick and added an assist in a 5-2 win over the Oakland Seals, three months into the team's first NHL season.

1971: Boston's Phil Esposito scored his 300th career NHL goal, in a 4-2 loss to the Seals, in Oakland. Esposito became the 16th player in NHL history to score 300 goals, and the second fastest (behind Maurice Richard).....Chicago's Bobby Hull became the fifth player in NHL history to score 1,000 career points. His milestone point was an assist in his 909th game, a 5-3 Black Hawks' win over the Minnesota North Stars.

1976: Rangers' Rod Gilbert picked up three assists playing in his 1,000th NHL game as New York won 5-2 over Montreal, at MSG. Gilbert became just the second player to appear in 1,000 games in a Rangers' uniform.

1977: Atlanta Flames traded goalie Phil Myre, Curt Bennett and Barry Gibbs to the St. Louis Blues, in exchange for goalie Yves Belanger plus Dick Redmond and Bob MacMillan.

1979: Marcel Dionne picked up his 350th career goal and his 500th NHL assist in a 7-4 Kings' win over the Hartford Whalers, at the Forum.

1981: Harold Snepsts was assessed 12 penalty minutes to become the first Canucks' player to accumulate 1,000 career PIM, when Vancouver lost 7-5 at Los Angeles.

1982: Darryl Sutter scored four goals (including his second career hat trick) and Tom Lysiak added five assists to lead the Black Hawks to a 7-3 win against the visiting Quebec Nordiques.

1986: Wayne Gretzky picked up his 900th, 901st and 902nd career assists (in his 584th NHL game) as the Oilers beat the Winnipeg Jets, 6-1.....Mario Lemieux scored four goals (including three in one period) and added two assists, to tie a Penguins' record for most points in a game as the Penguins beat Toronto 8-3 at the Civic Arena. It was the third hat trick of Lemieux's NHL career.

1987: Montreal's Bobby Smith picked up three assists, including the 500th of his NHL career, as the Canadiens won 5-3 against the Red Wings, at the Forum. Teammate Stephane Richer added two goals and an assist.

1989: New Jersey Devils won for only the second time ever at Nassau Coliseum by beating the NY Islanders 7-2. The victory snapped a 15-game winless streak for the Devils on Long Island.

1991: Detroit Red Wings beat the Quebec Nordiques 4-1, for their ninth consecutive victory at home.....Jyrki Lumme scored a goal and picked up three assists to lead the Canucks to a 7-5 win over the visiting Minnesota North Stars.

1992: Mike Ricci scored a goal and added four assists to lead the Quebec Nordiques to an 8-7 win at San Jose. Scott Young added his first career hat trick for the Nordiques, and rookie Rob Gaudreau got his second career hat trick for the Sharks.....Goaltender Ed Belfour recorded his 12th career shutout to lead the Blackhawks to a 3-0 win over the North Stars at Minnesota.

1996: Pat LaFontaine, former Buffalo Sabres owner Seymour Knox, and Bill Cleary of Harvard University were named recipients of the Lester Patrick Award, for service to hockey in the United States.

1997: Paul Kariya scored two goals and added two assists in his first game of the season and Dmitri Mironov had a team-record five assists in the Mighty Ducks' 6-4 win over the Capitals, at the Arrowhead Pond.....Canadiens' Mark Recchi scored his 300th NHL goal as Montreal lost 5-2 at New Jersey.

1999: Patrick Roy won his 424th game to pass Tony Esposito for third place on the all-time victory list and Milan Hejduk scored the winning goal at 1:36 of overtime as Colorado won 3-2 at Vancouver.

2001: Nashville's Cliff Ronning picked up his 500th career NHL assist in the Predators 4-2 win over the Rangers at New York.....Tampa Bay defenseman Grant Ledyard became only the 12th undrafted player (since 1969) to appear in 1,000 NHL games, when he played for the Lightning in a 3-1 win over the Flames, in Calgary.

2003: Vyacheslav Kozlov tied an Atlanta franchise record with a goal in his fifth straight game, a 6-3 win over the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins.


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