Off Wing Opinion

In a possible preview of the Stanley Cup finals, Vancouver downed Ottawa 3-2 in OT on a Marcus Naslund goal with 46 seconds remaining. After jumping out to a 2-0 lead over Ottawa, the Senators stormed back late in the second period to tie the game on goals by Peter Schaefer and Jason Spezza. Dan Cloutier had 31 saves to earn his 100th NHL victory.

In Atlanta, Ilya Kovalchuck scored his league-leaing 17th goal, but it wasn't enough as the Thrashers fell to the Maple Leafs, 3-1. Owen Nolan scored twice, and Ed Belfour had 31 saves for the Leafs, who seem to be turning things around after a slow stretch.

Fans in Calgary got 11 goals, overtime, and fisticuffs. What more could you ask for?

In a barn burner that harkened back to the league's glory days of the 70s and early 80s, Colorado beat Calgary 6-5 on an OT goal from defenseman Derek Morris. The win snapped a two-game losing streak for the Avalanche.

And in Phoenix, Ladislav Nagy had the first hat trick of his career in a 6-4 Coyotes win over the Kings. While Nagy grabbed plenty of glory with his hat trick, the real hero for Phoenix was probably goalie Sean Burke, who stopped 39 shots -- inlcuding 19 in the third period. By comparison, L.A.'s Roman Cechmanek only had 17 all night long. In the second period, the Kings' Luc Robataille got his 700th assist on a goal by Mike Camalleri.

In other news, Caps owner Ted Leonsis told TSN there was no truth to the rumor that Jaromir Jagr was about to be traded to the New York Rangers. The Washington Post says Jagr has received treatment for the groin injury he suffered on Wednesday against Buffalo, and may play Friday night at home against Montreal.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 28th, 2003 at 12:56 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Miroslav Satan broke out of his scoring slump, notching two goals for the Sabres in a 5-2 win over Washington. Jaromir Jagr, again rumored to be headed to the Rangers in a trade, left the game in the first period due to a groin injury, and never returned. The Washington Post reports that Jagr isn't going anywhere:

Team sources are adamant that reports that the Caps are close to trading Jaromir Jagr to the New York Rangers are completely false. McPhee has not spoken with Rangers Coach-General Manager Glen Sather in three weeks, sources said, and owner Ted Leonsis is not open to absorbing $20 million of Jagr's salary, either.

New York remains the only team to express serious interest in Jagr, league sources said, and the sides held major trade talks in the offseason and will likely continue to discuss the possibility of completing the deal, but financial issues remain a significant hindrance.

Before the game, the Caps placed winger Bates Battaglia on injured reserve.

On Long Island, Kevin Weekes shut out his former teammates, leading the Hurricanes to a 2-0 win over the Islanders. Bret Hedican had a goal and an assist for Carolina.

Coming off a flat performance earlier in the week against the Caps, the Red Wings crushed the Oilers in Detroit, 7-1. The hard working Kris Draper had two goals for Detroit, giving him three in his last two games. Radek Dvorak scored the lone goal for Edmonton, extended his points streak to seven games. And Adam Oates, signed by Edmonton a week ago, still hasn't played a game for the Oilers.

Sebastien Caron was the hero in Pittsburgh, as his 38 saves -- including 14 in the third period and another 6 in OT -- helped the Penguins salvage a 1-1 tie against Philadelphia. Philadelphia's Robert Esche only had to face 20 shots. With the tie, Philadelphia's unbeaten streak was extended to 10 games.

Eric Lindros got a goal in his second game since his return from an eye injury, as the Rangers rallied to tie the Panthers 3-3 in Florida. Mike Dunham had 28 saves after returning from a 10 day absence from the lineup due to injury. He was thoroughly outplayed by Florida's Robert Luongo, who stopped 37 shots.

Bill Guerin scored twice, helping the Dallas Stars quiet a hostile crowd in Minnesota in a 3-1 win. Marty Turco had 18 saves for Dallas. Scott Walker ha two goals for Nashville in a 4-2 win over the Blue Jackets. Manny Malhotra scored again for Columbus, his second goal in as many games for his new club.

In other hockey news, Hailey Wickenheiser has returned to women's hockey, only a few weeks after leaving the men's professional team she played with for parts of two seasons in Finland.

I'll have the West Coast update later Thursday morning.

UPDATE: With the first NHL goal from Christian Erhoff, the Sharks beat the Blackhawks 3-1 in San Jose. The win was the third in a row for San Jose, while Chicago is winless in its last nine games.

Finally, in Anaheim, the Devils and the Ducks met for the first time since the Stanley Cup Finals and tied 3-3. With the start, Scott Stevens passed former teammate Larry Murphy to set the new record for NHL games by a defenseman with 1,616. Congratulations to Stevens, who should still be in a Washington Capitals uniform.

Steve Ovadia doesn't like the fact that Glen Sather and Mark Messier took part in the festivities in Edmonton last Saturday:

The outdoor MegaStar game was a very cool idea and it's easy to see why Sather and Messier wanted to participate, what with their strong Edmonton ties. But Sather and Messier are Rangers now. The time to repay debts to previous employers is retirement. Would Sather had given a player time off to go home for a reunion of former Dairy Queen employees? Of course not. Would it have sucked for either of them to have missed the game? Sure. But that's why it sucks to have a job.

Aw, come on Steve, don't be such a party pooper.

UPDATE: From reader D. Smith of Reston, Va., comes this note about Todd Fedoruk of the Flyers:

Coach Ken Hitchcock won't come right out and say so, but there is a very good chance left winger Todd Fedoruk will be back after missing five games with four fractures in his left orbital and cheekbone.

Fedoruk suffered the fractures in a fight with the Islanders' Eric Cairns and underwent surgery to have three titanium plates and 13 screws inserted to put everything back in place.

Fedoruk said he has been rubbing the area hard and punching himself to see whether he's ready.

"I think I'm ready to play," he said yesterday.

Since returning to the ice for practice, Fedoruk has been wearing a full-wire facemask and won't be able to do what he has made a reputation off in the league: fight.

"I won't be able to fight for about 4 weeks, but I won't play light. It'll probably just hiss people off more," he said.

Something tells me Eric Cairns will be marking the days off on his calendar.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 27th, 2003 at 12:27 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Atlanta, Wade Redden had two goals to lead the Senators past the Thrashers, 6-3. The previously listless Senators spotted Atlanta three goals before they woke up, with the back-breaker coming with the Thrashers still leading 3-2:

For Atlanta, all momentum was lost with Ottawa's game-tying shot, an unlikely goal by Todd White with 5:06 left in the second period. White launched the shot from just inside the red line, and the puck took a bad bounce to glance off Atlanta goalie Pasi Nurminen's stick and past his left skate.

"It counts," White said.

Added Ottawa's Jason Spezza: "That was a bounce from the hockey gods."

At the Bell Centre, the Canucks snapped a five-game road losing streak with a 5-2 win over the Canadiens. Marcus Naslund had two goals for Vancouver, and Todd Bertuzzi added another. Please remember that the Canucks were Off Wing's pre-season favorite to win the Cup.

New daddy Jussi Markkanen got his second shutout for the Rangers this season, as they beat Tampa Bay, 2-0. The ageless Mark Messier had another goal for the Rangers, as Markkanen recorded 36 saves. Tampa Bay has now gone 148 minutes and 32 seconds without a goal. In other Rangers news, after an eye injury, Eric Lindors is considering wearing a visor.

The Oilers, playing their first game indoors since Saturday's Heritage Classic, overcame deficits of 2-0 and 3-1 to rally for a 3-3 tie with Columbus. Manny Malhotra, picked up off waivers earlier this week from the Dallas Stars, scored his first goal for the Blue Jackets. With a goal, Radek Dvorak extended his point-scoring streak to six games.

In the game of the night, Doug Weight scored with only 19 seconds left in OT to give the Blues a 4-3 win over the Bruins. St. Louis is 7-1 at home this season. But Weight did more than just get the game winning goal it OT, he helped keep St. Louis alive in regulation:

The Blues pulled Osgood with 55 seconds remaining, and Weight stopped Samsonov from scoring into an empty net.

"It would be nice if I knew there was an empty net," Weight said. "I was able to get a really good hook -- a legal hook on him -- and kind of pin him between my body and stick and just took it out. I was fortunate. It saved the day."

The Blues subsequently scored to tie the game and send it into OT.

Finally, in Los Angeles, the Devils posted another workmanlike victory over the Kings, 4-0. Martin Brodeur got the shutout, the 68th of his career. The Kings played without leading scorer Ziggy Palffy, who lost a couple of teeth on Saturday night. Scott Stevens was in the lineup for the Devils, his 1,614 game of his career, tying him with Larry Murphy for fifth on the all-time list. Stevens will pass Murphy on Wednesday night when the Devils play Anaheim.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 26th, 2003 at 12:53 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Two days after owner Ted Leonsis unloaded publicly on his Washington Capitals, the team seemed to get the message, surprising the Red Wings 4-1 in Detroit.

The Caps scored three times in the first period on just nine shots, after which Detroit head coach Dave Lewis replaced Curtis Joseph with Manny Legace. Rastislav Stana had 38 saves for the Caps in his first NHL start -- something that ought to serve as a wakeup call for Washington's presumptive number one goalie, Olie Kolzig.

Yesterday, before the game, Matt at On The Wings had this to say about the matchup:

This should be a good opportunity for the Wings to get a win. Typically, lower-tier teams step it up to play the Wings but the Caps may be too messed up to do even that. Of course, I'll probably be wrong and the Caps will play their best game of the season,

Steve Ovadia noticed something else last night in Detroit too.

In Toronto, the Maple Leafs beat the Canucks 2-1, completing a two-game sweep of the team's home at home series. Ed Belfour got the win for the Maple Leafs, a victory that moved him into fifth place all-time with 408. Patrick Roy is first with 550.

Mathieu Biron became the first NHL player to score a goal against his brother since Phil Esposito, as the Panthers beat the Sabres, 2-1. The goal came in the second period, as Biron tipped the puck past his brother, Sabres goalie Martin. As it turned out, both of the brothers parents were at the game -- though not many other folks were as the game in Florida drew only 12,927 fans.

The Stars got a solid effort at home out of Marty Turco in a 5-2 win over the Phoenix Coyotes. Mike Modano, who's been playing better now that Jere Lehtinen is playing on his wing, had a goal and two assists. I got my first look at the new Coyote white uniforms, and I'm afraid that on television they don't look all that different than the Carolina Hurricanes. Not a good sign.

Out in Denver, the Predators withstood a furious third period charge from the Avalanche to hold on for a 3-2 win. Tomas Vokoun had 34 saves for Nashville. In other Avalanche news, center Andrei Nikolishin will be out of the lineup for three weeks with a sprained knee.

Thanks to Saturday's Heritage Classic, and the below photo of Jose Theodore, a new tuque craze is sweeping Quebec. As for the actual tuque that Theodore wore in Edmonton that night, it's already on its way to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

Now that J.S. Giguere is playing well again, folks are starting to complain about his equipment again.

The latest from John Buccigross has been posted at ESPN.com. Over at TSN, Bob McKenzie says that Ottawa GM John Muckler ought to think about calling up a minor league goalie to help light a fire under his listless and underachieving squad.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 25th, 2003 at 12:15 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Mike Knuble had a goal and an assist to lead Boston to a 3-2 win over hapless Washington. The Bruins have won four straight at home, while the Caps remain tied with Pittsburgh for the worst record in the NHL. The Caps have lost five of their last seven games. In other news, Robert Lang extended his 10 game points streak. Yawn.

In Tampa, the Lightning withstood a furious third period charge by the Islanders to hold on for a 3-2 win. Nikolai Khabibulin made 26 saves to improve to 8-2-1 for the Lightning.

In Kanata, the Senators took control early and cruised to a 6-1 win over Carolina. Vaclav Varada scored Ottawa's first even strength goal in four games with 9.6 seconds left in the first period to start the avalanche for Ottawa.

Mark Rechhi had two goal and an assist to lead Philly to a 3-1 win over Minnesota. Tony Amonte had a goal and an assist, while Jeremy Roenick had 2 assists as their line with Rechhi keeps clicking for the Flyers. The Flyers are 7-0-1 in their last eight games, and are unbeaten at home this year.

After getting crushed by the Red Wings in Detroit on Wednesday, the Blue Jackets turned the tables on Manny Legace and company grabbing a 3-0 shutout at home. Dan Fritsche became the first Ohio native to ever score a goal for Columbus, while Marc Denis had 25 saves for the second shutout of his career.

Jose Theodore had 30 saves, but it wasn't enough as visiting Montreal lost 2-1 at Calgary. Veteran Martin Gelinas had the game winning goal in the third period for the Flames. In Edmonton, the Mike Keenan watch continued as the Oilers beat the Maple Leafs 3-2. Ty Conklin, filling in ably for Tommy Salo, had 31 saves for Edmonton.

In Denver, Konwalcuk is fitting right in.

In Denver, Steve Konowalchuk had two goals to lead the Avalanche to 4-3 win over the Rangers. Since being acquired from the Capitals earlier this season, Konowalchuk has scored 8 goals in 14 games for Colorado. Minor league call-up Jason LaBarbera played respectably, grabbing 29 saves for New York.

And in Vancouver, the Canucks overcame a 2-0 deficit (easily the most dangerous lead in hockey) to beat the Blackhawks 3-2 in OT. Sami Salo got the game winner 2:49 into OT. Like the Flyers, the Canucks are unbeaten at home so far this season (9-0-1). Ed Jovanovski had another goal, his third in two games.

On Saturday, I'll be watching Ohio State play Michigan for a shot at another BCS bid. But know this: my heart will be in Edmonton. The TiVo has been programmed.

In the sweater he was meant to wear, just one last time.

UPDATE: The Ontario Hockey League has renamed its annual humanitarian award after Dan Snyder, the Atlanta Thrashers forward who died in a car accident before the start of the season. While he played for the Owen Sound Platers, Snyder won the award twice. Thanks to Ben Wright for the link.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 21st, 2003 at 6:48 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Detroit, the revival of the Red Wings continued, as they beat up the Blue Jackets, 5-1. Brett Hull had two goals, and Manny Legace, stepping in for the injured Dominik Hasek, got the win in net for the Red Wings. Columbus is 0-3-2 in their last five games.

In New Jersey, the Devils extended their unbeaten streak to 10 games with a 4-1 win over Buffalo. Scott Stevens had two assists, as Martin Brodeur recorded his 375th victory in goal to move into 10th place all-time. Despite New Jersey's hot streak of late, the game only drew a little more than 10,000 fans.

In Pittsburgh, the Minnesota Wild chased rookie goalie Marc-Andre Fleury with three goals in the first period on their way to a 6-2 victory. Antti Laaksonen scored twice for Minnesota, and Marian Gaborik added another on a penalty shot. The announced crowd in Pittsburgh was a little less than 11,000. The word is the cash-strapped Penguins will probably send Fleury back to his junior team in a cost-cutting move.

Fans got their money's worth in Atlanta last night.

In the game of the night, the Thrashers battled back from a 2-0 deficit in the first period to beat the Bruins 5-4 in OT. Ilya Kovalchuk one-timed a cross-ice pass from Frantisek Kaberle past Boston's Felix Potvin, off the left post and into the net on a rare OT power play.

In Sunrise, Florida, the Islanders took down the Panthers, 4-1. Rookie Trent Hunter continued his hot play of late, getting two goals and an assist. The win was only the second on the road for the Islanders this season. During the broadcast, I finally got a look at the video of Jordin Tootoo's freight train check on Isles defenseman, Radek Martinek, and it was pretty clear Tootoo left his feet before the hit. He deserved a suspension.

Across the Hudson, the Rangers have put Eric Lindros on IR, due to the eye injury he suffered recently against the Penguins.

In Dallas, the Stars squandered a two-goal lead, and had to settle for a 2-2 tie with the Ducks. Andy McDonald had two goals, and Martin Gerber 26 saves for the visitors. Jon Klemm, just acquired the other day from the Blackhawks, had his first goal with Dallas. In Phoenix, Shane Doan and Brian Savage both had two goals, as the Coyotes beat the visiting Blues, 5-4.

And at the Staples Center, Roman Cechmanek got the 100th win of his NHL career, stopping 30 shots for the LA Kings in a 3-0 win over the Predators. Despite a rash of injuries, the Kings sit atop the Pacific Division.

And back East in Philadelphia, journeyman Craig Berube has been signed to a contract with the minor league Philadelphia Phantoms. At the start of this season, Berube ranked seventh all-time in penalty minutes with 3,149 -- or about 3 weeks, if you prefer.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 20th, 2003 at 12:14 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Raleigh, the Carolina Hurricanes came back from a 2-0 deficit in the third period to tie the Philadelphia Flyers, 2-2. Defenseman Nic Wallin got the tying goal -- his third in two games with the Flyers this year -- with only 2:19 remaining in the game. But the real star for Carolina was goalie Kevin Weekes, who had 41 saves. The tie stopped Philly's win streak at six games.

Teemu Selanne got an OT game winning goal against the Mighty Ducks in Denver, giving the Avalanche a 2-1 victory. It was just a week ago that Selanne got a game winning goal against another ex-employer, the San Jose Sharks. Though the Ducks lost, don't blame goalie J.S. Giguere, who had 38 saves for Anaheim.

In Edmonton, Radek Dvorak had two goals and an assist to lead the Oilers to a 5-2 win over Chicago. Ty Conklin, who seems to have displaced Tommy Salo as the starter in goal for Edmonton, had 33 saves in the win. Raffi Torres had another goal for Edmonton, giving him four goals and an assist in his last five games. The recently signed Adam Oates did not suit up for the Oilers.

Toni Lydman slipped a puck past Ed Belfour 1:24 into OT to give the Flames a 3-2 win over the Maple Leafs. Jarome Iginla had three assists, as the Flames extended Toronto's winless streak to four games.

In San Jose, the Rangers blew another third period lead, yielding two third period goals to the Sharks in a 2-2 tie. The Sharks, who have eight ties already this season, remain winless in nine home games (0-3-5-1). Bobby Holik and Chris Simon scored for the Rangers, Alex Korolyuk and Marco Sturm for the Sharks.

Check out the retro duds on Trevor Linden.

And in Vancouver, the Canucks and Canadiens delivered the most exciting game of the evening in a 5-4 OT thriller. Ed Jovanovski had two goals and a crushing open ice hit on Richard Zednik to lead the Canucks to victory on a night that featured throwback jerseys for both teams. Mattias Ohlund got the OT game winning goal. Besides getting decked by "Jovocop," Zednik hadd two goals of his own for Montreal, sent Canucks defenseman Brent Sopel face first into the boards, and was also flattened by Canucks center Matt Cooke.

Tom Benjamin has some other thoughts on Jovanowski's performance last night.

In other news from around the league, Nashville rookie Jordin Tootoo won't be sanctioned for the hit he delivered to Islanders defenseman Radek Martinek on Saturday night in Nashville. As for Martinek, he's back practicing with the Islanders after suffering a concussion, and can't remember anything about the hit.

In the Washington Capitals locker room, things are looking pretty gloomy, at least according to this AP report. Meanwhile, panic is setting in up in Ottawa.

In an interview with Canada's TSN, Hall of Famer Guy LaFleur said the fun has gone out of the game.

And with all the Maple Leafs bashing going on, maybe we should thank the team for reviving their annual charity skating event with Easter Seals -- even if they only did it in response to a public outcry after initially cancelling the event.

UPDATE: On The Wings dissects LaFleur's comments on the state of the game.

In New York, it appears the Devils PR guy convinced both the NY Times and the NY Post to put together dueling profiles of Devils winger Jamie Langenbrunner. Congrats to the Devils flak.

Boston is on top of the NHL, and the Boston Globe thinks Sergei Samsonov's return is the reason why. In Denver, they love ex-Capital Steve Konowalchuck. In Detroit, vagabond Steve Thomas is feeling the love.

And in Dallas, everyone is breathing easier now that Jere Lehtinen is returning to the lineup.

OT UPDATE: The latest from John Buccigross is up on ESPN.com.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 19th, 2003 at 7:28 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Only one game in the league last night, and it was in Kanata, as the Sabres scored two goals in 14 seconds early in the third period to key a 2-1 win over the Senators. The victory snapped a three game winless streak for Buffalo.

After a start where they won five of their first seven, Ottawa is 2-5-2. After the game, reporters couldn't get into the locker room for a few minutes as the Senators held a closed door meeting.

In Edmonton, the Oilers announced that they had signed Adam Oates to a one-year contract. Oates had been without a team since Anaheim had declined to pick up his $3.5 million contract after last season. He'll make $1.5 million for the rest of the year in Edmonton.

When I see Oates going all the way to Edmonton to play, most likely to finish out his career, it's hard not to think about Doug Gilmour, and the way he ended his career -- bouncing from town to town (Chicago, Buffalo, New Jersey, Montreal, and back to Toronto) just trying to get one more shot at the Cup. That, and one more big paycheck before a potential lockout may end your career anyway.

There's more bad news out of Denver, as the Avalanche announced that Paul Kariya will now be out indefinitely due to a wrist injury. Kariya missed 10 games earlier this season with the injury, and then re-injured himself on Saturday night in a game against the Stars.

Peter Forsberg will also sit out a game with a groin injury, which prompted team captain Joe Sakic to say:

"Injuries happen in a game and you just have to deal with it," team captain Joe Sakic said. "As long as everybody's healthy in April, we're fine."

Which is sort of a backhanded way of saying the NHL regular season is way too long.

UPDATE:Over at the Hockey Pundits, Jeb Runquist thinks the Oates signing has put Mike Comrie in deep freeze.

Steve Ovadia has a bone to pick with the people running TSN's hockey coverage in Canada:

While I'm not Canadian, I do love Canada. I don't understand Canada's infatuation with inferior artists who happen to be Canadian, though.

Bryan Adams wrote and performed the theme to TSN's Wednesday Night Hockey. The song is called "We're Gonna Win." I think a better title would be "We're Gonna Win (Unless We Tie or Lose in Overtime)."

Hockeybird has some advice on treating Eric Lindros' latest injury:

Also, Lindros is still waiting for the blood to drain from his eye. Haven't the Rangers trainers ever heard of leaches? Just slap a leach on his eyeball for a day or two and he'll be good to go.

Sounds like a Rangers fan to me. Out in San Jose, ex-Maple Leaf Alyn McCauley has some things to say about Pat Quinn's coaching style -- or perhaps the lack thereof:

"I can tell you that there is really no comparison in the amount of instruction and advice that I've gotten... It's been much more positive here than it was in Toronto. The only real advice I got as a Leaf was to put up more points, offensively."

A backhand shot at Quinn, or a public mash note to Sharks head coach Ron Wilson? I report, you deride. Thanks to PJ at Sharkspage for the link.

And, for those of you who haven't noticed, the man behind Blogging The Leafs has given up. Expect the team to follow soon.

Not a lot has gone right in Washington so far this season, with the exception of the play of center Robert Lang.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 18th, 2003 at 6:57 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

On Friday night in Chicago, the Red Wings got an OT goal from Brendan Shanahan to win their third straight game, 4-3, over the Blackhawks. Kirk Maltby had two goals, and Dominik Hasek 28 saves for the Red Wings. On Saturday in Minnesota, the Wings needed a third-period goal from Steve Yzerman to earn a 1-1 tie with the Wild.

On Friday in Buffalo, Aleksy Morozov got an OT winner for the Penguins to give them a 2-1 win over the Sabres. Sebastien Caron had 21 saves to get the win for the Pens.

On Saturday in Denver, the Avalanche shut out the Stars 3-0. David Aebischer had 29 saves to get the win for Colorado, but Paul Kariya re-injured his wrist. Steve Konowalchuck had his fifth goal in six games for Colorado as well. Marty Turco, who is getting no help at all from his defense, had 38 saves for Dallas.

In New Jersey on Saturday, Martin Brodeur got his 67th career shutout as the Devils beat the Rangers, 5-0. Five different players scored for New Jersey in the win.

With a 4-0 over Columbus on Friday, and a 2-1 victory over Western Conference-leading Vancouver in OT, the Bruins now have the best record in the NHL. Brian Rolston got the game-winning goal on Saturday.

In San Jose on Saturday, the Maple Leafs blew a 2-0 lead, and had to settle for a tie with the Sharks, 2-2. Back in Ontario, in Kanata to be more specific, the Canadiens beat the Senators 3-2. Jan Bulis had two goals, including the game winner in the third period.

Finally, in Anaheim Sunday, the Ducks beat the Blues, 4-3. Steve Ruchhin had two goals, and J.S. Giguere had 27 saves for the Ducks. The Blues had won nine of their last 10 before dropping the game to Anaheim.

Quote of the day, from the Dallas Stars' Richard Matvichuck on head coach Dave Tippett's recent trip to the hospital:

"We put our coach in the hospital. He's been banging his head on his desk, which probably caused the neck injury."

Either that, or the injury was a lingering effect of dealing with Stars owner Tom Hicks in the offseason, after he announced he was cutting the team's payroll.

UPDATE: Steve Ovadia comments on the reports that the Devils are shopping Scott Gomez.

Hockeybird is wondering whether or not it's a good thing that Mark Messier is getting better than 20 minutes a game with the Rangers. As I recall, Messier got off to a hot start last year, then broke down as the season wore on. Something tells me his 40-something year old body could be used a bit more judiciously, but then again, maybe Glen Sather doesn't have many other options these days.

Then again, I think we should all excuse Messier for putting in some extra ice time this coming Saturday:

The NHL already is expecting its largest crowd ever when the Edmonton Oilers host the Montreal Canadiens in the league's first outdoor game Saturday in Edmonton. Now the fans may have one more historic moment to cheer.

Wayne Gretzky said Monday that former Oilers teammate Mark Messier will play for the Oilers' alumni against former Canadiens greats in the Heritage Classic, a legends game preceeding the Oilers-Canadiens matchup, according to a report on The Sports Network's Web site.

"I'm told that Mark's gonna play," Gretzky said in an interview on That's Hockey, a Canadian radio program. "Mark is gonna be there."

Tom Benjamin has some thoughts on the energy and excitement NHL rookie Jordin Tootoo is bringing to the ice in Nashville. Anytime a player can add the kind of spark Tootoo can deliver, it's great for the game. Just ask Radek Martinek of the New York Islanders, who's still shaking off the effects of a hit Tootoo delivered on Saturday night.

Looking to stregthen their blue line corps (Sergei Zubov, white courtesy phone), the Dallas Stars acquired veteran defenseman John Klemm from the Chicago Blackhawks. The Stars gave up Stephane Robidas and a second round pick in next year's draft in order to obtain Klemm and a fourth round pick.

With Roman Turek still injured, the Calgary Flames acquired goalie Mikka Kiprusoff from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a conditional fifth round draft pick in 2005.

Jeff Daniels of the Carolina Hurricanes is retiring after 12 years in the league. Daniels was a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins team that won the Stanley Cup in 1992.

OT UPDATE: Bad news in Pittsburgh: Mario Lemieux will miss at least another three games due to his latest hip injury.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 17th, 2003 at 12:00 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

On Long Island, the Islanders played the trap to near perfection, frustrating the Canadiens in a 3-1 win. Jason Blake had an empty-net goal to cap the win for New York to make up for two earlier shots that rang off the post. Garth Snow had 28 saves for the winners, but only a little less than 13,000 fans saw the Islanders improve to 7-2 at home this season.

Across the river in New Jersey, the Devils posted a workmanlike 3-1 win over the Florida Panthers.

In Raleigh, the Carolina Hurricanes scored three power play goals to beat Atlanta 5-1. Only 8,674 fans showed up for the game, the fourth time in ten games the Hurricanes have drawn less than 10,000 fans this season. In Ohio, the Senators throughly dominated the Blue Jackets, 5-2. Marian Hossa had two goals for the visitors, as Ottawa's Patrick Lalime only had to make 15 saves to get the win.

In Nashville, the Predators took advantage of the Blue Jackets loss, beating Calgary at home 4-1, and moving out of the Central Division basement. Tomas Vokoun had 29 saves for the Predators. Less than 10,000 fans showed up for the game.

Branko Radivojevic scored the game winner in OT, helping the Coyotes to a 3-2 win over Colorado in Phoenix. Paul Kariya returned to the lineup for Colorado without recording a point, but Peter Forsberg missed his second straight game. Sean Burke made 27 saves for Phoenix.

Ty Conklin recorded 22 saves and got his first shutout for Edmonton in a 2-0 win over Minnesota. Edmonton took a 2-0 lead in the first period off goals by Ethan Moreau and Mike York and never looked back. In LA, the Maple Leafs roared back from a 3-goal deficit in the third period to tie the Kings, 4-4. Alexander Frolov had two goals and an assist for LA.

In San Jose, the Blues blew a 3-0 lead with only ten minutes remaining, only to win in OT, 4-3 over the Sharks. Petr Cajanek got a breakaway goal with only 14.8 seconds remaining for the win.

And in news from Europe, Hailey Wickenheiser, the first woman to ever score a goal in a men's professional league, walked away from her team in Finland's second division to return home to Canada:

Head coach Matti Hagman said he was surprised to learn of Wickenheiser's decision, despite the fact she played sparingly this season.

Last week, Wickenheiser played with the Canadian national women's team in a tournament in Sweden, and announced her decision to leave after that, Hagman said.

"It seems she would not have been happy with her current role in the team and the time she could spend on the ice, playing on the fourth lineup," Hagman said.

Hagman said Wickenheiser played about 10 minutes in 10 of the team's 16 games this season.

"I don't want to be mealy-mouthed about it: the level of play in this league was very tough for Hayley," Hagman said. "It was an enormous step up from the previous season."

Whatever the reason, Wickenheiser has nothing to be ashamed of. Here's hoping she's happier back home.

UPDATE: In my early morning rush to post the update, I forgot the most exciting game of the night -- Philadelphia's 4-3 OT victory over the visiting Canucks. Simon Gagne had the game winner 1:47 into OT, keeping the Flyers unbeaten at home. Todd Bertuzzi sent the game into OT, putting the puck past Robert Esche with only 7.2 seconds left.

Despite the loss, the Canucks still lead the NHL with 23 points. Philly trails them with 22.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 14th, 2003 at 2:29 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Rochester, or "Sunny Roch," as the locals call it, the Devils and the Sabres skated to a 2-2 tie. Moving the game to Rochester, home of Buffalo's minor league affiliate, the Rochester Americans was the idea of new Sabres owner Thomas Golisano, and part of a campaign to >restore some regional pride to that part of Upstate New York. Maxim Afinogenov had the game-tying goal in the third period for Buffalo.

In Manhattan, Marc-Andre Fleury got hammered by the New York Rangers, giving up six goals on 42 shots in a 6-2 Rangers win. Mark Messier, off to another hot start, had the game winner for New York, his seventh of the season. Eric Lindros left the game in the first period with an eye injury, as did the Penguins Rico Fata, who injured a hamstring after colliding with Lindros.

Eric's return to the lineup was brief

In Chicago, Calgary jumped all over the Blackhawks, winning 6-2. Rookie Matthew Lombardi had a hat trick for Calgary, and goalie Jamie McLennan stopped 27 shots for Calgary.

In Dallas, the Red Wings won their second straight, blasting the Stars, 6-2. Steve Yzerman and Pavel Datsyuk had two goals a piece, and Dominik Hasek got his second straight victory in goal for Detroit. For more detail, check out On The Wings.

How much does Dallas miss Derian Hatcher? So much so, that puck moving defenseman Sergei Zubov is now -13 for the season. If only Stars owner Tom Hicks wasn't paying Alex Rodriguex all that money, he would have been able to afford to keep Hatcher in Dallas.

In Anaheim, the Ducks smacked the visiting Maple Leafs, 5-1. Sergei Fedorov had two goals, and J.S. Giguere 29 saves for the Ducks. Steve Ovadia thinks the Ducks may be turning it around.

Finally, here in Washington, the Capitals revived from their season long coma, and beat down the Hurricanes, 7-1. At one point in the third period, the Caps and the Hurricanes scored 4 goals in 1:16, a new NHL record. Robert Lang (who is finally playing up to his fat contract) had a hat trick, and Olie Kolzig 29 saves for the home team. But excuse Kolzig if he's refusing to get excited:

"I'm disappointed with where we're at, but I'm not going to get too excited about this win,'' Kolzig said. "We're in no position to be overconfident. We're a long way from where we want to be.''

In response to the team's woes, one of my readers says he's starting a new, "Save The Caps," campaign (scroll to the bottom of the box to find his entire post). In a comment to a post I left on October 31, Pat Malone had this to say:

With the NHL coming close to a possible lockout in September of 2004, a deep pall has been cast over the entire sport. Hockey is in trouble, but worst of all, once again, as a fan, my team is in trouble, yet once again.

I am going to officially propose that we, as Caps fans, do it again, and have a "Save the Caps II" campaign. Ted Leonsis has poured his money, heart and soul into this franchise. As fans of the sport it's the least we can do to support our team, through thick and thin.

If you're a Caps fan like I am, and you would like to support the effort to bring about a new version of the "Save the Caps" campaign, once again, please e-mail me at malonemarketing@aol.com.

Take care and "Let's go Caps!"

Good luck to Malone and anyone else who jumps on board.

UPDATE: Over at Hockey Pundits, John Campea doesn't think that increasing the size of the net would cure what ails the NHL:

Would scoring improve if the net size was increased? Yes, without a doubt it would. But the game would still be slow, boring and ground to a halt. The only difference is that 4 of the 20 shots per game would go in instead of the 2.5 per 20 shots that we see today.

As a matter of fact, if the nets were bigger, it would only encourage teams to lock down on their defense even more than it is today. If more shots are going in, then teams would focus on shutting down the shot total, and thus the "solution" only perpetuates the problems.

Does something need to be done about the state of the game? Yes, absolutely. But increasing the size of the nets will only leave us with an unsatisfying game with a final score of 5-3 instead of an unsatisfying game of 3-1, and all that ultimately accomplishes is decreasing the length of our nap times between goals. That's my two cents worth.

The Toronto Sun's Al Strachan has other ideas:

"...In today's NHL, there may be a half-dozen teams who are willing to get into a shootout. If two of those teams are facing each other, the result is usually entertaining. But there are 24 other teams whose primary aim is not to allow the first goal. They want to open the scoring and defend that precipitous lead...

So focused is their defensive approach that the half-dozen offensive teams can't open up against them and are forced to assume the same tactic. Should they fall behind against these defensively obsessed teams, they'll be checked into oblivion. Either way, the result is a borefest, with most coaches playing not to lose, rather than to win."

At USA Today, Ted Montgomery has published his annual list of overrated and underrated NHL players.

Thanks to Tom Benjamin for multiple links.

*CORRECTION: Originally, I had written that the Caps had scored 4 goals in 1:16.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 13th, 2003 at 7:04 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Boston, Joe Thornton had a goal and an assist to lead the Bruins over Edmonton, 4-3. Andrew Raycroft had 31 saves for Boston, as he helped the team withstand a third period Edmonton surge for the win. Raffi Torres had another goal for the Oilers.

In Montreal, Rick Nash's second period goal gave the Blue Jackets a 1-1 tie with the Canadiens. Columbus has yet to win a game on the road yet this season. After a strong start, Montreal has just two wins in their last nine games.

Godard and Brashear got re-acquainted in Philly last night.

Philadelphia won its fourth straight game, beating the Islanders 2-1. The game featured two fights, with Donald Brashear and Eric Godard throwing down in the first period, while Eric Cairns and Todd Fedoruk tangled in the third. Said Islanders head coach Steve Stirling:

"It's tough. They're big, they're strong, they're quick," Islanders coach Steve Stirling said of the Flyers. "They're a speed and power team."

The Senators stopped their five-game losing streak, beating the Thrashers in Atlanta, 5-3. Bryan Smolinski had a pair of goals for Ottawa.

In Florida, Rick Dudley's debut behind the bench for the Panthers was a success, as they shutout Tampa, 4-0. Roberto Luongo had 26 saves, while Valeri Bure had a goal and an assist. In St. Paul, the Wild briefly derailed the Vancouver Canucks express with a 1-0 victory. Sergei Zholtok had the game winner for the Wild. Minnesota goalie Dwayne Roloson has only yielded 4 goals in his last five games.

In his first game back in San Jose after leaving for Colorado as a free agent, Teemu Selanne had the game winning goal in a 4-3 win for the Avalanche. Joe Sakic added a goal and an assist for Colorado, unbeaten in their last five.

Finally, today's Washington Post takes a harder look at why the Washington Capitals have fallen so far this season, both on the ice and at the box office. Paired with the story is an online poll where readers can grade owner Ted Leonsis. To hear what Ted has to say, click here for the latest edition of his monthly column at the team's Web site.

Over in the Washington Times, anonymous club officials also gave a vote of confidence to Coach Bruce Cassidy, saying holding him accountable for a poor record under the current circumstances would be unfair -- something that was echoed in the Post article as well.

UPDATE: Steve Ovadia speaks out on Joe Thornton's retirement plans. Hope his 401k is fully funded.

Jeb Runquist on whether it was intolerance or just inconsistent play that led to Anson Carter's trade from Edmonton to New York.

Pete at Hockeybird is getting tired about all the talk concerning the Rangers' line combinations. And he's worried that ex-Ranger Rico Fata is probably going to score against his ex-teammates tonight, just like Radek Dvorak did earlier this week.

Pete, you have reason to be afraid. And speaking of Pittsburgh, Mario Lemieux is still sitting out with a hip injury, while the front office is tying itself in knots about whether or not to return goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to his junior team. If he plays tonight, that will make 11 games this season for Fleury, and a lucrative bonus package that Pittsburgh probably can't afford to pay, kicks in. Of course, the Pens are already paying big bucks to Sebastian Caron -- more bucks they can hardly afford considering his horrid play so far. Stay tuned.

Steve MacLaughlin, rapidly falling into denial now that Glasgow Rangers are plummeting in the Scottish Premier League, has his own thoughts on the future of the league. Needless to say, he isn't very sanguine.

ANOTHER UPDATE: TSN in Canada is reporting the Penguins will start Fleury tonight, triggering the guarantees in his contract.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 12th, 2003 at 7:20 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

If a record of 5-8-2 gets you fired in Florida, then why in the world hasn't a record of 3-11-1 gotten Washington Capitals head coach Bruce Cassidy fired in the nation's capital? The hockey misery continued at the MCI Center last night as the LA Kings beat the Caps, 3-2. The Caps have dropped 10 of their last 12 games, and the fans are staying away in droves. Trent Klatt had two goals for LA.

In Manhattan, the Rangers blew a 2-0 lead, then lost to Edmonton, 5-4. Raffi Torres, acquired from the Islanders along with Brad Isbister at the trading deadline from the Islanders last Spring, had two goals for the Oilers. Ex-Ranger Radek Dvorak also had a goal in his first game at Madison Square Garden against his former teammates. Rangers center Bobby Holik wasn't happy with the effort his teammates put out:

"We do think sometimes that we can beat someone on talent only. It just doesn't work that way," he said. "I don't know when we're going to learn."

For a roundup on all the Rangers coverage, check out today's post mortem on Hockeybird.

At the Joe Louis Arena, the Red Wings righted their ship for one night, dropping the Chicago Blackhawks, 3-0. Dominik Hasek had 21 saves to get the shutout for Detroit.

POSTSCRIPT: Liz from Breakfast of Losers wants to help Jaromir Jagr find a new girlfriend. I nominate Liz.

Attendance, which we've already noted is way down in Washington and on Long Island, is suffering in San Jose as well. Thanks to PJ Swenson at Sharkspage for the link.

Jim Kelley takes a look at the possible lineup for Team USA at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey -- and the Americans are looking a little old on the blueline.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 11th, 2003 at 12:47 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In St. Louis, Keith Tkachuk scored a third period goal to power the Blues to a 3-2 win over the Canucks. The win snapped Vancouver's nine-game unbeaten streak. Though Vancouver has started hot, it's important to note that all three of their losses this year have come on the road.

In Philadelphia, the Jeremy Roenick and Tony Amonte had a goal and an assist each as the Flyers beat the Capitals 4-2. Washington is 0-12-1 in its last 13 trips to Philadelphia, as head coach Bruce Cassidy marches ever closer to oblivion.

In Philly, Jeremy Roenick dumped Boyd Gordon and the Caps again.

In Manhattan, the Hurricanes doubled up the Rangers, 6-3. Craig Adams had two goals, and Kevin Weekes posted 29 saves for Carolina. The game was the third this season between the two teams. Each had a win, a loss and a tie.

A few miles West in the New York suburbs, the Islanders scored three times in the third period to beat the Stars, 4-1. Rookie Trent Hunter had his fifth goal, and goalie Rick DiPietro got the win for the Islanders.

In Tampa, Ziggy Palffy scored with 7.7 seconds left in OT to give the Kings a 1-0 win over the Lightning. It was LA's first win in Tampa since 1998. In Boston, it was Sergei Samsonov with the late heroics, as his third period goal gave Boston a 5-5 tie with San Jose.

In Ottawa, the Oilers came back from a 3-1 deficit in the second period to tie the Senators, 3-3. Ottawa is now 0-2-2 in its last four games, and panic may be setting in near Kanata.

Finally, in Denver, Milan Hejduk's third period power play goal snapped a tie to give the Avalanche a 2-1 win over Phoenix. Joe Sakic had the other goal for Colorado, the 512th of his career, tying him with Gil Perrault for 28th all-time. Phil Sauve had 27 saves for Colorado, and got his first NHL victory.

UPDATE: Steve Ovadia thinks NHL players need a break, and wonders if we might need to cut back on the Olympics, World Championships, and the World Cup. It's a common complaint, one that's heard often enough in international Soccer, where a combination of professional and national team committments keep many of the world's top flight players on the pitch continually for about 11 months a year.

ESPN.com has included total team payroll along with their weekly power rankings. The results are instructive. Credit an assist to Tom Benjamin.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 7th, 2003 at 6:37 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Buffalo, the Thrashers overcame a 3-1 first period deficit to beat the Sabres 7-4. Ilya Kovalchuck had a goal and two assists, as the win propelled Atlanta into first place in the Southeast Division ahead of idle Tampa Bay.

In South Florida, the Kings beat the Panthers 3-2, marking the first time the Kings had ever beaten Florida on the road in seven visits (0-4-3). Roman Cechmanek had 33 saves for the Kings. Jamie Langenbrunner scored the game winner in OT, as the Devils beat the Sharks in New Jersey, 3-2. Scott Stevens had two assists to reach the 900 point mark for his career. Maritn Brodeur made only 13 saves to get the win for New Jersey.

And in Nashville, the Canucks won their ninth straight game, 4-3 over the pesky Predators. Johan Hedburg had 23 saves, and Markus Naslund had three assists for the Canucks. Before the game, Canucks defenseman Bryan Allen was suspended for two games for slashing Red Wings forward Henrik Zetterberg -- a slash that broke Zetterberg's leg. The suspension will cost Allen a little more than $11,000.

In other news, things are looking up for Ziggy Palffy. Mario Lemieux will return to the ice on Friday. The Red Wings will have to increase their Medicare contributions after signing 40-year old Steve Thomas to a one-year deal.

UPDATE: Jason Scavone has a bone to pick with Buffalo head coach Lindy Ruff over last night's game with Atlanta. On The Wings weighs in on the Steve Thomas signing, while Steve Ovadia is musing over the situation in Detroit as well.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Derian Hatcher of the Red Wings had surgery to repair a right knee ligament today, and is expected to miss 4-6 months. The Wings hope to have him back in time for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That's if they make the playoffs.

And if you have the time, check out this profile of Penguins rookie goalie Marc Andre Fleury by the AP's Alan Robinson.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 6th, 2003 at 7:04 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

In Manhattan, the Rangers beat Dallas 3-0, but the night belonged to Mark Messier, as he passed Gordie Howe as the NHL's second highest leading scorer behind Wayne Gretzky.

Congratulations, Mark.

Messier got his 1,851st point on his second goal of the game, an empty-netter as time was running down in the third period. Congratulations to Messier. Check out Hockeybird for a great roundup of all things Messier.

In Tampa, the Washington Capitals stopped the Lightning's season-opening unbeaten streak at 8, winning 5-1. Dainius Zubrus had two goals, and Sergei Gonchar had three assists for the winners. And the Caps new $20 million line (Jaromir Jagr, Robert Lang, Peter Bondra) had two goals.

Marc-Andre Fleury had 38 saves (God help this kid playing in Pittsburgh), and Rico Fata had a goal and an assist, but it wasn't enough as the Penguins fell to the Maple Leafs in Toronto, 4-2. Over at Puck Update, Steve Ovadia has some thoughts on Leafs coach Pat Quinn's job security.

In Edmonton, the Oilers helped extend Montreal's current skid, beating the Canadiens 4-2. The Habs are 1-5 in their last six games after their quick start.

In St. Louis, Keith Tkachuk scored the game winner in OT, as the Blues beat the Ducks, 2-1. The loss was the third in the row for Anaheim, in the midst of a six-game roadtrip.

Minnesota welcomed back Marian Gaborik, but gave up two third period goals to Colorado, and had to settle for a 4-4 tie with the Avalanche. Joe Sakic had an assist, but was a -2, as his slow start to the season continued.

Finally, in Calgary, the Red Wings shutout the Flames, 3-0. Brendan Shanahan scored two goals, and Curtis Joseph had 21 saves for the crew from "Hockeytown."

One question for Red Wings GM Ken Holland: what happens if you discover that Curtis Joseph has more left in the tank than Dominik Hasek?

Over at TSN.ca (Canada's ESPN), they're celebrating Bobby Orr Week on the 25th anniversary of his departure from the game.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 5th, 2003 at 7:14 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Deep in the suburbs outside New York City, the New York Islanders surprised the Ottawa Senators, 6-3. The win broke an 8-year, 17-game home winless streak against Ottawa for the Islanders. Former number one draft pick Rick DiPietro got the win, as six different players scored for the Islanders -- including newly promoted winger Trent Hunter, who got his fourth goal of the season.

In a bad sign for the team, however, less than 11,000 fans showed up for the Monday night matchup.

In Vancouver, the Canucks strafed Detroit goalie Manny Legace and the Red Wings, 5-1. The Wings are now winless in their last five games (0-4-1), a stretch where they've yielded 23 goals. At this point, it's clear to see how critical the offseason acquisition of defenseman Derian Hatcher was to the Wings, and how much his injury-related absence is hurting the team now.

Over at ESPN.com, former Buffalo News reporter Jim Kelley seems to be out to turn himself into the Len Pasquarelli of the NHL; while John Buccigross gives us a tour of "hockey values."

Up in Toronto, the class of 2003 was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. And I don't care what anybody says, they all deserved to be inducted.

Finally, in Manhattan, New York Rangers winger Anson Carter is giving Derek Jeter a run for his money.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 4th, 2003 at 7:07 am by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.