SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEFNHL 7/14/2013

Boston Bruins714290 Bruins prospect Malcolm Subban looks to make jump714291 Measuring up to size

Buffalo Sabres714292 Sabres have a long line at goaltender

Calgary Flames714293 Linden Penner — making most of opportunity714294 Calgary Flames goaltender Jon Gillies knows encore of

dream season will be tough714295 Calgary Flames scrimmage pays dividends for undrafted

Linden Penner

Dallas Stars714296 Boston Bruins coach Claude Julien 'never any issues' with

Dallas Stars' Tyler Seguin714297 Mike Modano to help sponsor fund-raiser that features local

bands and benefits DFW Rescue Me

Detroit Red Wings714298 Waiting game continues for Detroit Red Wings, Darren

Helm's creaky back714299 Michigan State's Dean Chelios healthy, ready for final

college season714300 Even with decreased playoff odds, Wings should feel at

home in the East714301 New Jersey Devils reportedly interested in signing Detroit

Red Wings free agent Damien Brunner714302 Gustav Nyquist and Joakim Andersson will be back with

Detroit Red Wings, says G.M. Ken Holland714303 Frk is ahead of the curve with Red Wings

Edmonton Oilers714304 Ex-Toronto Maple Leafs executive says the Edmonton Oilers

may be interested in Dion Phaneuf

Los Angeles Kings714305 I Was There #4: Williams in seven

Minnesota Wild714306 Reusse: Cretin-Derham Hall likes to keep it within the family714307 Brent Flahr on the Wild's weeklong development camp714308 Minnesota Wild: How the player moves match up714309 Minnesota Wild: After a busy offseason, did they get better?714310 Tom Powers: Wild's best offseason acquisition was attitude

Montreal Canadiens714311 New London Knights addition Mike McCarron officially

introduced at press conference 6

Nashville Predators714312 Nashville Predators' Seth Jones plays well in 'intense'

scrimmage714313 Nashville Predators' Austin Watson a leader among

prospects

New Jersey Devils714314 Ilya Kovalchuk's flight from NHL prompts questions of KHL

influence714315 Blame lockout for Kovalchuk bolting Devs

Ottawa Senators714316 Shawn Simpson enjoying time as a hockey commentator on

Team 1200 after experiencing his share of ups and downs714317 Ottawa Senators winger Bobby Ryan will wear No. 6 with

new team

Philadelphia Flyers714318 Inside the Flyers: Emery seems more mature as he begins

new stint with Flyers

Phoenix Coyotes714319 Mike Ribeiro counted on to fill void for Phoenix Coyotes

Tampa Bay Lightning714320 Andreychuk unfairly not in Hockey Hall

Toronto Maple Leafs714321 Two weeks later: The Toronto Maple Leafs

Vancouver Canucks714324 New Canucks forward Mike Santorelli hopes homecoming is

also a fresh start

Washington Capitals714322 Adam Oates: Caps want Tom Wilson to avoid bad habits714323 Garrett Haar leaving Western Michigan

Websites714325 FOXSports.com / Q&A with Anaheim Ducks captain Ryan

Getzlaf714326 NBCSports.com / Flyers goalie Boucher signs in Switzerland714327 NBCSports.com / Agent: Kovalchuk’s departure won’t lead to

Russian exodus714328 NBCSports.com / Cherry says Kovalchuk is ‘just laughing all

the way to the bank’SPORT-SCAN, INC. 941-284-4129

714290 Boston Bruins

Bruins prospect Malcolm Subban looks to make jump

By Amalie Benjamin

| Globe staff

July 14, 2013

WILMINGTON — It was dark in the backyard, as the brothers played yet another game of hockey. Malcolm Subban stood in front of the goal, a 10-year-old at the mercy of the 14-year-old P.K., a future NHL star and Norris Trophy winner.

P.K. sent a shot hurtling toward Malcolm, who at that time had yet to make the full-time move to goalie. He knew the puck was coming toward him, but couldn’t see it, couldn’t see much of anything.

He stuck his glove over his face. The puck went into it.

Perhaps this goaltending business wasn’t so bad.

Back in suburban Toronto, they played for fun. They didn’t think about the NHL, not in any real way, not yet. They certainly didn’t imagine playing on opposite sides of an epic hockey rivalry (which, when questioned about all the questions this week, prompted Malcolm to complain good-naturedly that “it’s kind of annoying”), with P.K. a member of the Montreal Canadiens.

About two years after that lucky save, Malcolm made the switch to goaltending from defense, the position that both of his brothers — Jordan was a 2013 draft pick of the Canucks — play. And that position, moving to goalie, landed him with the Bruins, a first-round choice in 2012, though one with a long road to the net in Boston.

It was after the draft that he saw something he thought he’d never see: His father, Karl, wearing a Bruins hat, one of Malcolm’s. Karl, whose older son already played for his favorite team, was as unlikely a person as there was to don the Spoked-B.

Asked if he ever imagined his father wearing a Bruins hat, Malcolm said, “No, not really. But it was pretty cool to see him wearing it.”

He’s even worn it a few times since.

Subban, though, is unlikely to wear Bruins gear any time soon — at least as a member of the NHL squad. Not only do the Bruins like to be patient with goalies, but the team last week signed starter Tuukka Rask to an eight-year extension worth $56 million.

“Obviously, I’m not that level yet,” said Subban, who is participating in his second development camp with the Bruins this weekend. “He’s at his prime. He’s one of the elite goaltenders in the league, top three for sure. His contract tells that, obviously.

“So, that’s not my focus right now. It’s great for him. He deserves it. He’s played well in the playoffs and had a great year. My focus right now is just to try to hopefully get myself up to the AHL level, and the NHL level will come.”

That’s the plan for Subban, for him to move up from junior hockey to the pros next season, likely putting him alongside Niklas Svedberg in Providence.

“There’s no roadblocks in anybody’s way here,” assistant general manager Don Sweeney said. “You look at Tuukka as he’s been patient at times to be sort of the understudy and understand it, and he’s had some ebbs and flows as well. Some successes and all of a sudden some stepbacks.

“That’s all healthy in a person’s development . . . I don’t think [Subban’s] in a rush, nor should he be, and he should just sort of embrace what’s in front of him and that moment. I think he does a good job of that. He’s a really competitive guy. So, he’s going to want the net, and you love that in a goaltender.”

Subban spent the 2012-13 season with the Belleville Bulls of the Ontario Hockey League, amassing a 29-11-4 record with a 2.14 goals-against average and .934 save percentage, both tops in the league. In the postseason, he was 11-4-2 with a 2.00 GAA and .933 save percentage, as the Bulls were upset by the Barrie Colts.

“The experience that he went through being challenged, having a little bit of disappointment, I think really sets him up well for that next phase of his career because he’s going to go in against much better shooters than what he’s been facing on a regular basis,” Sweeney said.

“He’s such an athletic goaltender that has so much promise.”

Because Subban didn’t become a full-time goaltender until he was 12 — and he’s just 19 now — that leaves more room for improvement than it might with other goalies of the same age.

As Subban said, “I feel like I’m still young. I’ve still got a lot to learn. I feel like I still can improve in the gym and off the ice . . . making me feel more confidence on the ice. That’ll go a long way for me.”

And spending time as a defenseman changed his development in another way, too, making him a better skater than some other goaltenders. That, he said, helps in his ability to go side to side, to clear the puck.

He had played goalie before, mostly in his basement, mostly against his brothers, in those younger years. But with his father as his coach, he was able to make the change. And that has landed him in Boston, with still a long way to go before he might ever stand in front of the net at TD Garden.

“I just really loved the position,” he said. “I really had a passion for it. I just loved goaltending.”

But would he have made it had he not? Would he have joined his brothers in being drafted as a defenseman?

“I have no clue,” Subban said. “I heard I was a pretty good defenseman.”

Amalie Benjamin

Boston Globe LOADED: 07.14.2013

714291 Boston Bruins

Measuring up to size

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Author(s):

Stephen Harris

WILMINGTON — The unexpected contributions Torey Krug made during the Bruins’ march to the Stanley Cup finals this year gave new hope to undersized, but talented, defensemen everywhere.

That certainly included Matt Grzelcyk, the Bruins’ 2012 third-round draft pick (85th overall), who took part in his second team development camp at Ristuccia Arena last week.

There are an awful lot of similarities between Krug (5-foot-9, 180 pounds) and Grzelcyk (5-9, 175), part of the new breed of smallish, smooth-skating, puck-moving offensive defensemen every NHL team covets. The doors that once would have been slammed shut on them are now wide open.

“It was nice to see,” Grzelcyk said after one of the B’s hopefuls’ lengthy on-ice sessions. “(People) kind of always knock the smaller guys. It was nice to see the success (Krug) had and what he brought to the table for the team. It was great.”

Grzelcyk likely won’t be in the Bruins’ picture for two-three years. He had a fine freshman year at Boston University last season (38 games; three goals, 20 assists, plus-12), displaying at the NCAA level a lot of the same attributes Krug showed in the NHL postseason: skating pucks up ice through traffic, seeing the ice, passing well, creating offense.

“He’s a guy that just separates himself with his footspeed,” said Providence Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy, who ran the practices along with B’s assistant general manager Don Sweeney. “He gets up the ice and makes plays. You’re going to have to do that when you’re a smaller defenseman; that has to be part of your job description. He can do it. And the more he does it on a regular basis, the better off he’ll be in the end.”

Grzelcyk isn’t even thinking too much about his long-term future, only about the areas in which he needs to improve now.

“I haven’t given (pro hockey) much thought,” he said. “I’m just going to continue to try and become as physically developed as I can. Being in college definitely helps that, playing less games and getting into the weight room as much as I can.”

Ex-Bruins forward Tom Fitzgerald, now a Pittsburgh Penguins player development official but on hand as a dad with his son, Ryan, a B’s draftee taking part in camp, understands why critics talk about Grzelcyk’s size.

But he chooses to talk about the 18-year-old’s impressive skill-set.

“There’s an old saying that I think is totally true,” said Fitzgerald. “Bigger guys have to prove that they can’t play; smaller guys have to prove that they can. Grizzie probably has his doubters.

“But you know what? You can look at his size, or lack of size, or you can look at him as a good hockey player. He skates well with the puck, he’s smart, he’s a high hockey-sense kind of guy. He’s a player forwards want to play with, because he’s going to get the puck out of your end and get it up the ice with speed. He’s a really good transitional defenseman.”

The Fitzgerald and Grzelcyk familes have been close for many years, and Matt and Ryan were teammates on Charlestown teams starting out as Squirts. Tom Fitzgerald has watched Grzelcyk prove critics wrong again and again.

“It’s always a challenge for smaller guys,” Fitzgerald said. “Will he make the U.S. national development team? Probably not. Well, he made it and did really well. Will he make the world junior team? Probably not. Well, he was the last player cut last year and he’ll probably make it this year. Will he be drafted? Nah. Well, he got drafted pretty high.

“He’s always going to have challenges, he’s always going to have doubters. But as long as the player is confident in his own ability, and I know Matt is,

he’s got a chance. He’s a hockey player. He just goes out and plays. It doesn’t matter at what level, he’s always going to rise to the occasion.”

Matt Grzelcyk’s dad, John, is a longtime member of the Garden bullgang. He was a regular at BU games last season, and says then-Terriers coach Jack Parker told Matt not to be afraid to try and make plays.

“The coaches told him, ‘Don’t be afraid to make a mistake,’ ” said John Grzelcyk. “Hockey is a game of mistakes; play your game. Don’t be running around trying to knock 210-pound kids over. Your game is speed and moving the puck.

“I think his first couple of weeks were a learning experience. But they had a lot of real good juniors and seniors there. They sort of taught him. He knew he had to learn and earn his stripes there, but I thought he did a pretty good job.

“He knows what he has to do to improve: Get bigger, get stronger, get a better shot. He knows what his limitations are and that’s what he has to work on.”

Don’t bet against Grzelcyk, like Krug, figuring out how to make his skill-set work at the next level.

Boston Herald LOADED: 07.14.2013

714292 Buffalo Sabres

Sabres have a long line at goaltender

BY: John Vogl

Published: July 13, 2013, 11:44 PM

Updated: July 13, 2013, 11:44 PM

The Sabres’ goaltending prospects are eagerly anticipating the opportunities that await next season. They feel they’ve put themselves in position to take advantage of any chance they get.

The problem is it’s unclear where those opportunities will come.

Buffalo’s goalie situation, which features six players on pro contracts, remains fuzzy with Ryan Miller on the roster. If the Sabres don’t trade him, they’ll have Miller and Jhonas Enroth in Buffalo, Matt Hackett carrying the workload in Rochester and one of their three prospects – Connor Knapp, Nathan Lieuwen or Andrey Makarov – as the Amerks’ backup. The Sabres would have to find spots for the other two in the ECHL or another low minor league.

If the Sabres ship out Miller, then Enroth and Hackett would share the duties in Buffalo while two prospects split the crease in Rochester. The Sabres would need to find a team for only one youngster.

The prospects are aware of the Miller saga and crowded depth chart, but they insist they are focusing on themselves and the chance to play at the highest level they can.

“If Ryan Miller’s not here, there’s going to be another guy,” Lieuwen said. “There’s always another guy that’s going to come and try and take that spot. That’s why when you get that opportunity, you’ve got to prove that you’re the best guy.

“Everybody’s going to get their opportunity to play, whether it’ll be in the American League or wherever it is this year with this organization. When I get my opportunity, I’m going to take it, and I have full confidence that I can do that.”

Lieuwen, 21, will be playing his second pro season. As a rookie, he appeared in 27 games for Greenville of the ECHL (14-10-2 record, 2.93 goals-against average, .903 save percentage) and another four games with Rochester (1-2, 2.65, .919). The Sabres selected the 6-foot-5, 192-pounder in the sixth round of the 2011 NHL Draft.

“Obviously, you’re always striving to improve, and I’d like to see myself do well,” he said. “I really am prepared and preparing for those opportunities when they do come, and that’s what this game’s about. You get your opportunities, you’ve got to prove yourself. I feel like I’m getting ready to prove myself this year, and hopefully I’ll get the shot.”

Knapp also split last season between Rochester and Greenville as a first-year pro. The 23-year-old went 1-6 in Rochester with a 3.34 GAA and .893 save percentage. His numbers were a little better in the ECHL (5-7, 3.05, .909).

“I want to play more,” said Knapp, who watched recently departed David Leggio control the Amerks’ net. “I didn’t play a lot. David was playing great. That was a role for me that I wasn’t used to.

“It was disappointing in one sense but a great learning experience in another. I got a taste of the AHL, then played quite a bit when I went down to Greenville. It was good. It was a great learning experience, and next year I’m a guy that’s been there, so I want to take on a role of a guy that’s more experienced and play more games.”

Knapp, picked in the sixth round of the 2009 draft, will start the second season of a two-year deal. He may feel the most pressure to perform and earn another contract.

“It’s going to be like that my whole career with questions about depth charts,” said the 6-5, 215-pounder. “I know when guys sign. I know David signed with Washington. It just pushes me. When spots start opening up or guys get drafted, it pushes you. You want to be that guy, and it just makes you work harder.”

Makarov is leaving behind a busy year at the junior level to become a pro. The 20-year-old played 65 games for Saskatoon of the Western Hockey League and skated to the crease three times for host Russia at the world junior tournament.

Makarov, signed as an undrafted free agent last fall, went 37-17-5 with a 2.62 GAA and .919 save percentage with Saskatoon. He was 2-1 with numbers of 2.99 and .933 at the world juniors.

“It was a great experience in world juniors, and it was the best experience to play in the Memorial Cup versus the best teams in the league,” said the 6-1, 193-pounder, who is ready for the next challenge. “Buffalo has good goalies on the roster. It’s hard to take a spot because there’s only two goalies on a team.

“I’ll just try to play as hard as I can. I’m trying my best in camp and working as hard as I can to prepare for the next level. It’ll show in training camp who’s supposed to play” at which level.

The Sabres have two more prospects further down the pipeline. Linus Ullmark, drafted in the sixth round in 2012, and Cal Petersen, picked in the fifth round last month, also participated in the team’s development camp last week.

Ullmark, 19, figures he’ll head to North America as soon as 2014-15, but he may wait up to three years depending on his confidence level. He rose quickly through the ranks in Sweden last year, playing at the junior and second-division levels before finishing in the elite league. Ullmark plays for Modo, a well-known organization that has turned out Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Peter Forsberg and Markus Naslund. The latter two are still involved with the club.

“It’s great to have those people around so you can maybe get a hint or something if you want to improve,” said the 6-3, 198-pound Ullmark, who knows a test awaits when he joins the Sabres’ organization. “I love it when it’s a lot of competition around the spots. It keeps me motivated to improve my game and everything around it.”

Buffalo News LOADED: 07.14.2013

714293 Calgary Flames

Linden Penner — making most of opportunity

July 13, 2013. 3:45 pm

Posted by:

Scott Cruickshank

While he gets full marks for his hockey-ish name, RW Linden Penner’s favourite sport provided its share of ups and downs this past season.

* Down, getting released right off the bat by the Saskatoon Blades. (“Kind of disheartened.”)

* Up, enjoying a bountiful winter with the Whitecourt Wolverines of the Alberta Junior Hockey League. (“Good experience.”)

* Down, not being drafted by a National Hockey League team.

* Up, being invited the morning after the draft to the Calgary Flames’ development camp. (“Pretty surprising. I was so stoked.”)

* Up, scoring twice in Saturday’s scrimmage at WinSport’s Ice Complex, which had been crammed with adoring fans.

“It was pretty cool to score those goals and have everyone cheering,” said Penner, an unheralded 18-year-old. “I’ve never skated at this level before, so it was definitely a big jump for me. But I enjoyed it. It was pretty fun out there.”

Keen to get the hat trick, though?

“No,” he chuckled. “Two was enough.”

Also scoring were C Sean Monahan, RW Coda Gordon, C Markus Granlund.

But in a game that featured the NHL-groomed likes of C Sven Baertschi and C Roman Horak, it was Penner who stole the show.

Taking a swell feed from C Josh Jooris, Penner opened the scoring by ably picking the top glove-hand corner on goalie Jon Gillies. Later in the session, sniffing around the net, he crammed home a garbage goal.

“That first goal? I don’t score skill goals very often — I score greasy ones like the second one,” said the Sherwood Park native, who collected 34 points, including 14 goals, in 40 appearances for Whitecourt. “I mean, that was pretty cool. I was pretty impressed.”

The wide-bodied winger — six foot three, 215 pounds — is bound this upcoming winter for the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League.

A productive scrimmage won’t hurt his self-esteem.

“Definitely my confidence will be higher than if I wasn’t here,” said Penner. “But I’ve just got to keep my head down, keep focusing and training hard. I’m excited to go out there. Hopefully, it will be a good opportunity for me.

“I’m going to try out. No guarantees. But I’m going to work really hard to crack a spot on that roster. I’ve heard Kevin Constantine is the coach that’ll put you in The Show if you have it. So I’m pretty excited.”

In the post-game shootout — featuring 10 attempts — Granlund and LW Morgan Klimchuk converted.

Klimchuk, a Calgary kid, had been drafted in the first round, 28th overall, last month in New Jersey.

“I’ve skated with guys of this calibre before, but not in a real-game setting like this,” said Klimchuk, who is rooming with Monahan this week. “It was pretty fast. Decisions happen pretty quickly, but, overall, I thought I did pretty well for my first time skating in a game scenario.”

Klimchuk is life-long fan of the Flames, so the camp packs an extra punch for him.

“It’s great to be wearing this jersey and get this experience going, and kind of get my feet wet about what to expect to play for the Flames,” he said.

“You do see pretty quick what you need to work on, and that’s what I was hoping to get out of this week.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, there had been a few heavy hits, too — James Martin on Kenny Agostino, Austin Carroll on Patrick Sieloff, Bryce Van Brabant on David Eddy, Ben Hanowski on Mark Jankowski.

Honourable mention, too, goes to Sieloff, who was feuding with nearly everyone in his vicinity.

C-NOTES: Not participating in the session were C Max Reinhart and C Noel Acciari. No injury updates were provided . . . The Flames’ rookie groups practise twice Sunday — 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. — before scrimmaging again Monday, at 10 a.m.

Calgary Herald: LOADED: 07.14.2013

714294 Calgary Flames

Calgary Flames goaltender Jon Gillies knows encore of dream season will be tough

By RANDY SPORTAK,Calgary Sun

First posted: Saturday, July 13, 2013 04:51 PM MDT | Updated: Saturday, July 13, 2013 05:14 PM MDT

Jon Gillies has quite the act to follow this coming season.

His own.

The Calgary Flames goalie prospect, a third-round pick — 75th overall — in 2012, had a dream hockey season in his freshman year at Providence College.

Gillies stepped right into the No. 1 job at the NCAA school a few months after being joining the Flames organization and posted a 17-12-6 record to go with a 2.08 goals-against average, five shutouts and .931 save percentage, which earned him NCAA rookie-of-the-year and second-team all-American honours.

On top of that, he was part of the U.S. club which won gold at the world juniors, serving as backup netminder.

It’s a good bet nobody told him things would go so well in 2012-13.

“If you told me that’s how my season would go, I would probably look at you and say, ‘Thanks for having that much faith in me.’ I would have tried my best to make that happen,” Gillies said. “But it was a year I never could have dreamed about.

“If you look at it as needing to have an encore, and try to have better results compared to last year, it’s not going to go well. I’m just focusing on off-ice getting stronger and hoping that will translate on ice.”

The towering 19-year-old product of South Portland, Me., is heading back to Providence in the fall, but the 6-foot-5, 215-lb., netminder is doing all he can to stake his claim as a future Flames netminder during this week’s prospects camp at WinSport Canada’s Markin MacPhail Centre.

Plus he wants to prepare his shot to potentially be the starting goalie for Team USA when it tries to defend the gold medal in Malmo, Sweden.

The good news is Gillies is fully recovered from the knee surgery required at the end of the season, which dealt with an ailment that affected him through the second half.

“It the only other surgery I’d have before was for my wisdom teeth,” Gillies said of the injury suffered during his stint at the world juniors. “I’m back to 100%. Everything’s good in the weight room and on the ice.”

It’s quite a task to juggle the here and now and those NHL aspirations, but Gillies has a unique way to see it all.

“(Being in the NHL) is a goal to look forward to and a goal to work towards,” Gillies said. “It’s one of those things that when you have to get up for an early workout, it pops into your head and you can jump out of bed. Or when there’s that second on-ice session of the day and you may not want to go down on a shot, that dream pops in your head — the one that you had since you were five or six years old, it gives you extra energy.”

Rest assured, he’ll push to eventually be a NHLer, whether it’s after he plays all four years at Providence or even a little sooner.

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about it at all,” Gillies added of leaving school early. “The only thing I can control on that is how well I play. I want to go with the mindset to give them a reason to take me (to the NHL) before my four years are done. Until then, I’ll be working as hard as I can at Providence.

“I’ve got a great situation there and couldn’t ask for a better one.”

Calgary Sun: LOADED: 07.14.2013

714295 Calgary Flames

Calgary Flames scrimmage pays dividends for undrafted Linden Penner

By RANDY SPORTAK ,Calgary Sun

First posted: Saturday, July 13, 2013 04:30 PM MDT | Updated: Saturday, July 13, 2013 05:46 PM MDT

Sven Baertschi dished out some sublime passes and set up a pair of goals.

Johnny Gaudreau made some slick plays, too.

Sean Monahan scored a top-shelf goal, Patrick Sieloff was an in-your-face defenceman, and the goaltenders all stood tall.

Pretty much all the Calgary Flames prospects you would expect to draw your eyes provided at least some reasons to take note in Saturday morning’s scrimmage at Winsport Canada’s Markin MacPhail Centre.

And then, there was Linden Penner, an undrafted attendee to the camp, who scored twice to pace Team Black to a 4-1 victory.

“I definitely didn’t think I was going to come in here and score two bingos in the first scrimmage,” said Penner, who hails from Sherwood Park and skated for the AJHL’s Whitecourt Wolverines last season. “Josh (Jooris) and Turner (Elson), they have ridiculous talent, so my job is to create space. They fed me twice at the back door. It was pretty cool.

“That first goal? I don’t score skill-goals that often. I score the greasy ones like the second one.”

Coda Gordon and Markus Granlund also scored for the Black squad. Goalie Laurent Brossoit stopped a trio of penalty shots, besting Gaudreau, Ben Hanowski, and Roman Horak.

Penner, 18, a 6-foot-4, 215-lb. right winger who was cut by the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades and went on to net 14 goals and 34 points in 40 AJHL games last season, wasn’t expecting to be claimed in the June 30 NHL Draft. But he received a happy surprise the next morning when Flames player development coach Ron Sutter phoned with an invitation to the camp.

“It wasn’t something I expected. I was so stoked to get to come here,” said Penner, who’ll attend camp of the WHL’s Everett Silvertips in the fall. “I wasn’t expecting to get drafted, so it was something that went off my shoulder. But that was a good day when I got the call.

“My confidence going into camp will be higher than if I wasn’t here, but I’ll keep focused and training hard.”

ICE CHIPS

C Max Reinhart didn’t partake in the scrimmage and wasn’t part of the regular on-ice sessions the past couple of days. But he did do some extra work with the goalies. Reinhart said he expects to be part of the action as soon as Sunday.

Calgary Sun: LOADED: 07.14.2013

714296 Dallas Stars

Boston Bruins coach Claude Julien 'never any issues' with Dallas Stars' Tyler Seguin

Staff reports

Published: 13 July 2013 11:46 PM

Updated: 14 July 2013 12:55 AM

For all the questions surrounding Tyler Seguin's sudden exit from Boston, Bruins head coach Claude Julien says he certainly didn't request it.

“There was no issue between Tyler and I, and I’m not afraid to say it,” Julien told the Boston Globe. “You guys can ask him at some point. There were no issues there. I worked with him as a hockey player, I dealt with him as a person. There were never any issues that I knew about, anyway. I thought we had a good relationship.”

Julien didn't directly refute reports of Seguin's off-ice activities, but he did downplay reports of his former player's immaturity.

“Everybody as a 21-year-old doesn’t always have the maturity to be a professional, whether it’s in the gym, here or there,” Julien said. “You work with all of those young guys the same way. Do different players have difference challenges? Absolutely.”

Julien coached Seguin for all three of his seasons with the Bruins, including a terrific second season in which Seguin posted 67 points and finished plus-34. And despite a statistical step back in 2012, Julien defended Seguin's talents.

“I’m going to tell you right now, Tyler Seguin is a good hockey player,” Julien said. “He’s got an opportunity to be a great hockey player, too.”

Dallas Morning News LOADED: 07.14.2013

714297 Dallas Stars

Mike Modano to help sponsor fund-raiser that features local bands and benefits DFW Rescue Me

By Mike Heika / Reporter

mheika@dallasnews.com

10:23 am on July 11, 2013

Here is the press release:

Mike Modano Foundation and Epochal Artists Records Announce Inaugural Rock the Foundation Benefit Concert at Trees for DFW Rescue Me

Mike Modano is combining his love of animals and music for an effort to raise money through his foundation.

The inaugural “Rock the Foundation with Mike Modano” is a benefit concert from Epochal Artists Records and the Mike Modano Foundation, scheduled for Saturday, July 27, 2013, at Trees in the Deep Ellum area of Dallas. Bands featured at the concert include:

· Bulletboys

· Burn Halo

· Emphatic

· Brand New Machine

The concert will benefit DFW Rescue Me, an all volunteer, 501(c)(3) non profit organization whose goal is to reduce the number of animals euthanized in Dallas. DFW Rescue Me focuses on spaying & neutering, adoption programs and educating about responsible pet ownership.

“I’m very excited about the concert,” Modano said. “These are some great bands and it should be a fantastic evening at Trees. Brand New Machine’s new album is being released that week and we’ll get to hear some of their newest stuff live. Emphatic is another great band that will be fun to see live, as will Burn Halo and Bulletboys. It should be a great jam.

“As many people know, one of my passions is animals and pets, and DFW Rescue Me does a lot of work to help save hundreds of dogs each year. I’m proud to be able to help raise money for their efforts. It is a great organization.”

Tickets for Rock the Foundation are on sale now, with general admission tickets only $15 on-line ($20 at the door). VIP tickets are also available for $100, with exclusive access to the balcony to hang with Modano and watch the show, as well as an Epochal Records swag bag. Trees’ doors will open at 5:00 pm for the first band.

“On behalf of the Mike Modano Foundation, we’d like to thank Epochal Artists Records, Trees, and all of the bands for coming together to help DFW Rescue Me,” Modano said. “Come join us; it will be a great night.”

Dallas Morning News LOADED: 07.14.2013

714298 Detroit Red Wings

Waiting game continues for Detroit Red Wings, Darren Helm's creaky back

July 14, 2013 |

By Helene St. James

Detroit Free Press Sports Writer

Forward Darren Helm has spent the past few days skating again, hinting that maybe he’ll be up and running when the Red Wings start training camp in September.

There’s a yellow flag hanging over the event, though, because the Wings have seen this scenario before. After suffering an injured back days before camp began in January, Helm played just one game last season because of recurring pain. Throughout that time, he would start skating, feel good — and then nothing would come of it.

So here the Wings go again, wondering whether this time it’ll be different. Helm hadn’t skated for two months before taking the ice this past week during development camp in Traverse City, and after he got off the ice the first day, he said he felt good, that he was taking it slow, and that he hoped to keep progressing. Those replies could be squares on a “Darren Helm Bingo” matrix, because they were heard throughout February, March and April.

It’s aggravating for Helm, 26, to basically have his career on standby just as he had entered his prime, rewarded one year ago with a four-year, $8.5-million contract. And it’s hindering for the Wings, who are handcuffed to an extent regarding their roster because they have no idea whether Helm will be a contributor next season.

If Helm recovers from his injury — which numerous specialists have said is not structural — then the depth chart down the middle is easy enough to pen. It’ll be Pavel Datsyuk, Stephen Weiss, Helm and Joakim Andersson.

If Helm doesn’t recover — and given that there was no tangible improvement from January to April, why believe May to September will be any different? — then the Wings have to approach things differently. Andersson, a restricted free agent who will get re-signed at some point, would move up into the third spot, where he played much of last season. The person more affected is Cory Emmerton. The Wings basically need to keep him in case Helm can’t play. Otherwise, Emmerton would be an easy trim to a roster that, once Andersson and Gustav Nyquist are signed, will swell to 16 forwards.

The Wings will look to shake up the roster under any circumstance, because they want Daniel Cleary back, and will need to move someone, such as underused Jordin Tootoo, to make room. As for Helm, he might be skating, but the Wings can’t bank on having him available.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 07.14.2013

714299 Detroit Red Wings

Michigan State's Dean Chelios healthy, ready for final college season

July 14, 2013 |

By George Sipple

Detroit Free Press Sports Writer

TRAVERSE CITY — Michigan State senior forward Dean Chelios was so amped to be on the ice on the first day of the Red Wings’ development camp that he took a shot at the wrong goaltender in a drill Wednesday.

“The first thing I did was shoot on my own goalie in a 2-on-2 drill,” Chelios said. “It was so dumb.”

Chris Chelios, Dean’s father, is a camp instructor and just shook his head when they left the ice.

Dean Chelios, one of several camp invitees, was back on the ice after missing last season with a torn left labrum. The injury occurred in one of the first practices last year.

“Someone just lifted my stick and my labrum ripped in four places,” Chelios said. “I had surgery around Halloween and then just slowly recovered the whole year.”

He received a medical redshirt to play in the upcoming season. He said he is fully healed and looking forward to his final season at MSU.

“I feel really good,” he said. “Coming back, it feels good again to play at that fast pace.”

Chelios is trying to view what he went through last season as a positive. He said he had a year to work on his skating and get stronger.

Chelios said Rhett Holland, a freshman defenseman, had the same injury, so they worked out together for about three months.

Instead of playing in the final season of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, Chelios will be part of the inaugural Big Ten season.

He was looking forward to playing in the outdoor Great Lakes Invitational scheduled last season for Comerica Park. That was rescheduled for this year after the NHL lockout canceled the Winter Classic and the associated Hockeytown Winter Festival.

“It’s like a redo,” Chelios said. “I have a ton of buddies that are in town. They’ll probably come. It’ll be a really neat experience.”

He’ll again play with his younger brother, Jake, who will be a senior defenseman.

Dean Chelios (6-feet-2, 185 pounds) scored eight goals as a sophomore and eight goals as a junior. He said he thinks he could score more this season.

“We’re going to have a lot of competition up front,” Chelios said. “I feel like I can help the team a lot. I was slated to play last year a good amount, and I hope I can do that and be effective and help the team win again next year.”

Contact George Sipple: 313-223-4796

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 07.14.2013

714300 Detroit Red Wings

Even with decreased playoff odds, Wings should feel at home in the East

John Niyo

July 13, 2013 at 7:55 pm

The Red Wings and coach Mike Babcock will be doing a lot less traveling in 2013-14, as new members of the Eastern Conference.

Detroit — Statistically speaking, the Red Wings’ playoff chances took a hit when the NHL finally approved a realignment plan that’ll move Detroit back to the Eastern Conference. With 16 teams in the East, compared to 14 in the West, it’s no better than a 50-50 proposition to make the postseason anymore.

But while everyone points to the Detroit’s new division as arguably the toughest of the bunch, stacked with four Original Six franchises, including the defending Eastern Conference champs in Boston, I’d argue it’s more than just a comfortable fit geographically. Numbers aside, I think it’s also tailor-made for the Wings’ competitive success, at least in the short term.

This isn’t quite like the old Central Division, where the Wings’ consolation prize for all that Western Conference travel was a virtual guarantee of 100-point regular seasons and home-ice advantage in the playoffs, thanks largely to the presence of a pair of expansion teams in Columbus and Nashville.

But if you take a closer look at the new division rivals — the 2013-14 schedule should be released next week, by the way — you’ll see something similar, notwithstanding the parity of today’s NHL. The two worst teams in the East last season, at least according to the standings, were the two Florida teams — the Panthers and Lightning. Buffalo wasn’t any better, finishing dead last in the Northeast and firing its coach, who wasn’t the problem, while keeping the general manager, who is.

Of those three, only Tampa Bay has done anything this offseason to suggest it’s headed in the right direction, though even that required a buyout of captain Vincent Lecavalier. Maybe not expansion teams there, but close.

Oh, Canada

Meanwhile, of the four playoff teams in the group, the two from Ontario both had their respective fan bases wailing at the start of free agency.

That’s status quo for Toronto, of course, and hardly surprising after their first playoff trip in nearly a decade ended with an epic first-round collapse. But while the free-agent addition of David Clarkson should help, the price tag for him — and for re-signing Tyler Bozak — led to some significant losses elsewhere.

In Ottawa, meanwhile, they’re still mourning the loss of their heart-and-soul leader, ripped away by the Wings, of all teams. Daniel Alfredsson balked at another hometown discount and decided his last, best chance to win a Stanley Cup was in Detroit not Ottawa, where he’d spent the first 17 seasons of his NHL career.

Both teams finished with 56 points in the lockout-shortened regular season, and each got bounced in the second round of the playoffs. Yet while the Wings are back to spending up to the salary cap again, the Senators are about $15 million behind, hovering just above the salary floor in the league’s bottom five. And that’s where they’ll stay, most likely, as owner Eugene Melnyk, whose bid to build a casino at his arena was soundly defeated last week, claims his annual operating deficit is “staggering” and insists he’s out of options.

So while Mike Babcock’s second line now features Weiss, Alfredsson and, say, Johan Franzen, his former assistant, Paul MacLean, has a projected No. 2 group of Mika Zibanejad, Bobby Butler and Nick Foligno. And MacLean’s owner isn’t offering much hope that’ll improve, unlike in Detroit, where Mike Ilitch just announced plans to for his new downtown arena.

Toronto and Ottawa remain playoff contenders — it’s hard not to be in this league anymore — but I still see a big three fighting for division supremacy here.

No big adjustment

Boston suffered some significant losses — inevitable for a team that’s been to two Cup Finals in the last three years — but they’re still among the NHL elite. Montreal hardly fits the supposed East prototype of a bruising club, but adding Danny Briere this summer only makes the Canadiens more dangerous. The Wings fit right in there with the veterans they’ve got and the young talent they’ve groomed, though as I keep saying, they need to trade some of those kids for a top-four defenseman if at all possible.

No one’s saying it’s going to be easy — certainly not the way it was for Detroit in the late 1990s and early 2000s. But all this talk of the big, bad East is a bit misleading. The West won five of the last seven Stanley Cups, losing the other two on Game 7 overtime goals, and it wasn’t by accident. Whatever the old West lacked in fighting spirit, it more than made up for in skill. As GM Ken Holland puts it, “If you have a good team, it’s a good team.”

Detroit does, and though it’s not a great team, it should feel right at home in the East.

“We’ll be excited for short trips and good sleeps,” Babcock said.

And probably for another playoff berth, too.

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130713/SPORTS0103/307130052#ixzz2Z0SidBKL

Detroit News LOADED: 07.14.2013

714301 Detroit Red Wings

New Jersey Devils reportedly interested in signing Detroit Red Wings free agent Damien Brunner

By Brendan Savage | bsavage@mlive.com

on July 13, 2013 at 11:09 AM, updated July 13, 2013 at 6:39 PM

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – Ilya Kovalchuk's retirement this week might have opened the door for Damien Brunner to join the New Jersey Devils.

Kovalchuk surprised many people around the NHL when he announced his retirement Thursday at age 30 with 12 years and $77 million remaining on his contract.

To help offset the offensive void created by his departure, the Devils could very well be targeting Brunner, according to Nicola Berger of the Swiss newspaper Neue Luzerner Zeitung. Brunner is an unrestricted free agent after spending his first NHL season with the Red Wings.

Berger covers EV Zug of the Swiss League, where Brunner played for five seasons. Before the NHL lockout ended this year, Brunner was leading the Swiss League in scoring and one of his EZ Zug teammates was Red Wings' captain Henrik Zetterberg.

"Also, @damienbrunner appears to be headed to the #NJDevils," Berger Tweeted today. "They're doing a lot of background work on him right now."

The Red Wings made Brunner contract offers of two and three years before free agency opened last week but he turned both down and general manager Ken Holland told MLive.com Friday that it appears as if Brunner's days in Detroit are done. Brunner was seeking a deal for $3.5 million a season, more than the Red Wings were prepared to give to a player who does not have a proven track record in the NHL, barely a half season.

In 44 games with the Red Wings last season, Brunner had 12 goals and 14 assists. He was their leading goal scorer in the playoffs with five in 14 games while adding four assists to finished tied on the team's scoring chart with Pavel Datsyuk.

Michigan Live LOADED: 07.14.2013

714302 Detroit Red Wings

Gustav Nyquist and Joakim Andersson will be back with Detroit Red Wings, says G.M. Ken Holland

By Brendan Savage | bsavage@mlive.com

on July 13, 2013 at 7:00 AM, updated July 13, 2013 at 9:58 AM

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – Expect forwards Gustav Nyquist and Joakim Andersson to be back with the Detroit Red Wings next season.

Both are restricted free agents and although the Red Wings haven't started serious negotiations with agents for either player, general manager Ken Holland said he plans on signing both after they nearly helped Detroit knock off eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago in the Western Conference semifinals.

"I haven't really begun" negotiating, Holland said Friday night after the Development Camp scrimmage at Centre Ice Arena. "I talked with Nyguist's agent Monday or Tuesday. We haven't talked since. I played telephone tag with Andersson's agent.

"If somebody puts in an offer sheet, we'll match."

Nyquist and Andersson teamed with Damien Brunner to give the Red Wings a formidable third line down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs, when Detroit eliminated No. 2 seed Anaheim in seven games during the first round of the Western Conference playoffs before losing in overtime of Game 7 against the Blackhawks.

Nyquist had three goals and three assists in 22 regular-season games while Andersson had three goals and five assists in 38 games.

During the playoffs, Nyquist had two goals and three assists in 14 games while Andersson had a goal and four assists.

As for Brunner, an unrestricted free agent, he turned down two- and three-year contract offers from the Red Wings before free agency began and his career in Detroit is almost certainly over after one season.

"It appears so," Holland said. "Yeah."

Brunner, 27, was seeking $3.5 million per season, far more than the Red Wings want to give to a player with barely a half-season of NHL experience.

Like Brunner, Daniel Cleary is an unrestricted free agent. Cleary wants to return to Detroit for a ninth season but the Red Wings would have to clear some salary cap space to re-sign him.

Is his stay in Detroit done as well?

"I don't know that it's done," Holland said. "We were just talking about it. We'd love to have him on the team. We think he's a versatile player. I made him an offer prior to free agency. He didn't think it was enough.

"If we wake up in the next two days and he's signed (by another team), I'd certainly understand. If he stays out there and he's available and we're able to do some things, then we might have something for him."

Michigan Live LOADED: 07.14.2013

714303 Detroit Red Wings

Frk is ahead of the curve with Red Wings

By CHUCK PLEINESS

chuck.pleiness@macombdaily.com; @wingsfrontman

Posted: Saturday, 07/13/13 02:29 pm

Updated: Saturday, 07/13/13 04:03 pm

DETROIT – It’s all about completing the process when you’re in the Detroit Red Wings organization.

Martin Frk appears to be way ahead of the curve.

Frk had two goals and two assists in a scrimmage Friday at the Wings’ developmental camp in Traverse City.

“It’s a process,” Wings general manager Ken Holland said after the scrimmage. “It’s a long process. Some of the players we wanted to play good did play good, (Anthony) Mantha, (Xavier) Ouelett, (Ryan) Sproul and Frk. Then there’s other guys we didn’t think are as far as long. But in another year or two, they might be having good scrimmages.”

Frk flourished this season with the Halifax Moosehead, playing on the top line with Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin, recording 35 goals and 49 assists in 56 games. He also finished a plus-31, after back-to-back seasons ending with a minus.

MacKinnon was the first player taken in this year’s draft, while Drouin was the third overall pick.

“You look at the development of (Gustav) Nyquist and the development of (Joakim) Andersson,” Holland said. “These players have to do the same things. They have to come through junior, college and Europe. They’ve got to get in the American Hockey League and then start all over again. They do it in the American Hockey League then they come up and they have to do it all over again.”

Nyquist and Andersson are just a few examples another one his Jimmy Howard.

“The process to get Jimmy Howard to the National Hockey League, we went through the same process 10 years ago,” Holland said. “He used to be at these tournaments and then he went to Grand Rapids. He was in Grand Rapids four years. He was in Grand Rapids so long a lot of people didn’t think he was any good. I think he’s one of the seven, eight best goalies in the game.

“I know how hard it is to pay in the National Hockey League and how much work and where you’ve got to get these players,” Holland added. “A lot of these players are coming along in a nice progression. We need more progression. Part of it is patience, part of it is maturity and part of it is going to next level and performing at the next level.”

Frk, 19, was the Wings’ first pick in the 2012 draft, 49th overall in the second round.

He was expected to be a first-round pick in 2011, but a concussion caused him to miss four months and his stock plummeted.

“Frk is really crafty,” Chris Chelios said. “Great with the puck, can skate, finishes. Mantha, he’s a kid that got drafted pretty high. They’ve got great hands and skill. Those key guys, our first two picks, I was impressed by them.”

Frk recently signed a three-year contract with the Wings and is expected to play in Grand Rapids this season.

“I know I have to get in better shape,” Frk said. “I got on the ice and I was tired right away. I’m not as far (along) as I should be. I know I was tired after the first half. You have to work in the summer more and get better. I can feel my legs don’t go that fast. When we do something long, I get tired right away.”

Brunner heading to Devils; Cleary still out there

Damien Brunner looks like he may be signing with the New Jersey Devils, according to Nicola Berger of the Swiss newspaper Neue Luzerner Zeitung.

This looks like a good fit since the Devils learned on Thursday of Ilya Kovalchuk’s retirement.

Brunner, 27, priced himself out of returning to the Wings by seeking a contract of $3.5 million a season.

The Wings made him two- and three-year offers for what they felt his value after one season, but they were rejected.

He had his ups and downs last season, but finished with 12 goals and 14 assists in his first season in the league.

Brunner also had five goals and four assists in the playoffs.

Daniel Cleary remains out there and could still be back with the Wings, but only if they’re able to clear salary-cap space before signing him.

“I don’t know that it’s done,” Holland said. “We’d love to have him on the team. We think he’s a versatile player. I made him an offer prior to free agency. He didn’t think it was enough.”

Teams can go 10-percent over the salary cap during the offseason, but that’s something Detroit appears doesn’t want to do.

“If we wake up in the next two days and he’s signed (by another team), I’d certainly understand,” Holland said. “If he stays out there and he’s available and we’re able to do some things, then we might have something for him.”

Nyquist, Andersson won’t be leaving

If any NHL team wants to extend an offer sheet to either Nyquist or Andersson they go, but the Wings are going to match it.

“If a team puts in an offer sheet, we’ll match,” Holland said.

Nyquist and Andersson are both restricted free agents and talks have yet to begin on new deals, but will take place sometime in the near future.

Both played pivotal roles this postseason that saw the Wings force a Game 7 with the Stanley Cup champ Chicago Blackhawks. Nyquist had two goals and three assists, while Andersson had a goal and four assists.

Macomb Daily LOADED: 07.14.2013

714304 Edmonton Oilers

Ex-Toronto Maple Leafs executive says the Edmonton Oilers may be interested in Dion Phaneuf

July 13, 2013. 4:00 am

Posted by:

Jonathan Willis

Former Maple Leafs assistant general manager Bill Watters was interviewed on Oilers Now on Friday, and he had both an interesting rumour and some harsh words for Toronto captain Dion Phaneuf. In part, here’s what he had to say:

Dion Phaneuf should be dispatched as soon as they possibly can and the story I hear is that Edmonton’s interested and if they are tell [general manager Craig MacTavish] to take him and have fun with him. I find him to be the most overrated, undernourished hockey player in the history of the NHL and whoever made him the captain of the Maple Leafs should have been fired six years ago.

Watters further criticized Phaneuf over the course of the interview, with a particular emphasis on his character and leadership abilities, but the interesting thing from an Oilers perspective is his idea that Edmonton is interested in adding Phaneuf to their defence corps.

At first blush, it’s easy to make a case for the match between player and team. He is a legitimate top-pairing defenceman who adds size (6’3”, 214 pounds), scoring ability (scored at a 48 point pace this season), snarl and at the age of 28 is a pretty decent fit for the Oilers’ young cluster of talent.

Phaneuf has played some tough minutes in Toronto the last few years. He’s faced top-pairing opposition, seeing the other team’s best players every night, and generally he’s started a lot of shifts in his own end of the ice. Last season, he did that while carting around AHL’ers Korbinian Holzer and Mike Kostka more than half the time. It’s a great way to make any defenceman look bad: feed him to the wolves and shackle a ball and chain to his ankle.

One of the other areas Watters criticized was Phaneuf’s power play production, which is kind of an odd critique. Phaneuf tied for fifth in power play scoring among NHL defencemen last season and was sixth in 2011-12 – his numbers adjusted for ice-time have also been excellent of late in that situation. He had a couple of bad years before that but was brilliant on the power play in Calgary for the first four seasons of his career.

Phaneuf is a legitimate top-pairing defenceman (he averaged 25:10 per game last season and played extensively in all situations); at the very least a number two and the simple fact is that the Oilers don’t have anybody like him on the left-hand side. Moving Phaneuf into the top pairing in place of Ladislav Smid or Andrew Ference instantly makes the team better, even allowing for the departure of another left-side defender. He also seems a natural partner for Jeff Petry, and excellent puck-mover who lacks a high-end game but whose strengths would complement Phaneuf well.

It’s very difficult to get this caliber of player without a massive overpay; Phaneuf’s coming off a unique season that dramatically understated his actual value to an NHL team. The Oilers can afford his contract – he earns $6.5 million for one more season before becoming an unrestricted free agent – and if Craig MacTavish’s goal is to get Edmonton into the playoffs this season an addition like Phaneuf would go a long way.

For his part, host Bob Stauffer (extremely connected in his own right) said that he had “not heard of late, at all, that Phaneuf is on the Oilers’ radar screen” (a point he emphasized repeatedly) and elaborated a little bit:

I don’t sense that Dion Phaneuf’s – I could be wrong. Put it this way: I think the Leafs would move Phaneuf; I’m not sure the Oilers want to add on that extra money right now. They don’t have a defenceman making over three and a half million bucks and they would have to trade one back if they were to do something there. I think Ference is a really good addition to the group.

Stauffer’s right that Ference is a good addition, but the team needs more: they simply don’t have enough quality at the top end of the defensive depth chart.

Edmonton Journal: LOADED: 07.14.2013

714305 Los Angeles Kings

I Was There #4: Williams in seven

Posted by JonRosen on 13 July 2013, 11:33 am

Throughout the remainder of the month, LAKI will be reviewing the top 10 moments of the Los Angeles Kings season as a recurring feature entitled “I Was There.”

KingsCast recently finished a similar endeavor, complete with screen grabs, video highlights and commentary. Alex Kinkopf’s #TopTen list is recommended as a great account of the 2012-13 season.

I Was There #4: Williams in seven

Was there nervous energy where you were when you sat down to watch Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals? There certainly was in downtown Los Angeles when the Kings hosted their very first Game 7 at Staples Center and their first Game 7 at home since eliminating Edmonton at The Forum in 1989 after emerging from a 3-1 series deficit.

That energy was ratcheted up a notch following a first period that saw both the Kings and Sharks play to avoid the types of mistakes that could have major impacts in a tight series in which every game had been won by the team that had scored first.

Going into the game, the word on the street was that it would be a good thing to have Justin Williams on your side in a Game 7. He had won all three of his previous Game 7s, including the final game of the 2006-07 season in which he punctuated Carolina’s Stanley Cup-clinching game with an empty net goal. In those three games he had recorded three goals and four assists.

He scored twice on May 28. The first goal was greasy:

His second goal came on his very next shift, moments after Patrick Marleau’s Grade-A wraparound was denied by Jonathan Quick:

-courtesy KingsVision

Aesthetic beauty: The first goal “wasn’t a Picasso,” to quote Cory Schneider. For the second goal, it was very high. San Jose was in the middle of a line change that led to a Los Angeles four-on-two, allowing Slava Voynov to drop a pass between his legs to Anze Kopitar, who found Williams in the middle of the left circle. Williams controlled the puck and fired a low shot that threaded the needle between Antti Niemi’s right skate and the near post. How many inches did Niemi give Williams there? Four? Five? Stick found them.

Lasting impact: Extremely high. Los Angeles hadn’t won a Game 7 in 20 years. Jonathan Quick – continuing the trend of Kings playoff hockey – was called upon throughout the game to maintain the lead, and his save on Joe Pavelski late in the third period was also among the season’s highlights. But the impact left from this critical game was that Justin Williams supplied the margin of victory needed to defeat an in-state and divisional rival in reaching the Western Conference Final for the second consecutive season.

Previously on “I Was There”

#10: Toffoli’s first goal

#9: Quick passes Hrudey

#8: Kopitar’s goal versus Detroit

#7: Game 4 comeback over St. Louis

#6: Slava’s overtime game-winner

#5: Banner raising ceremony

KingsCast #4: St. Louis Stunner

KingsCast on Justin Williams’ Game 7 performance

LA Kings Insider: LOADED: 07.14.2013

714306 Minnesota Wild

Reusse: Cretin-Derham Hall likes to keep it within the family

Article by: PATRICK REUSSE , Star Tribune

Updated: July 13, 2013 - 11:50 PM

Coach Mal Scanlan was getting ready to send his Cretin-Derham Hall football team into the state large-school title game against Blaine on Thanksgiving weekend in 1988.

Scanlan was excited for the challenge (a controversial 25-24 loss for the Raiders), and for the future of Cretin-Derham Hall athletics.

“One of the McQuillan girls [Sheila] married Dennis Czech, who was a terrific running back for us,” Scanlan said. “… We’re [CDH athletics] hoping for a big family.”

The McQuillans had been providing students and athletes to Cretin (and then CDH) since 1891. The Czechs would have five children and remained loyal to the Raiders.

There’s a bond among families and faculty and students at this high school on St. Paul’s Hamline Avenue that has to be as strong as anywhere in Minnesota.

It would be an exaggeration to say that CDH graduates always wind up marrying other CDH graduates. Heck, I know personally at half-dozen where that’s not the case.

Twins catcher Joe Mauer seemed to be straying from his CDH roots in the middle of the previous decade. There were reports of dates with young ladies such as Chelsea Cooley, the 2005 Miss USA from North Carolina.

Of course, when it came time for true love, Joe found himself on a knee asking for the hand of Maddie Bisanz, a former captain of the CDH swimming team. They were married after last season and will soon be the parents of twins.

Whatever the combination of boys and girls, the twins will have varsity jerseys waiting for them at CDH for the fall of 2028.

Ryan McDonagh is another honored athlete from Cretin-Derham Hall. He was a star as a junior defenseman in 2006 for what remains CDH’s lone state hockey champion.

The hockey people with an eye toward McDonagh as a high draft choice lobbied for him to spend the winter of 2006-07 in junior hockey. He passed and stayed at Cretin-Derham Hall.

“It was a big family decision,” McDonagh said. “My two uncles had such great senior seasons at Cretin. It worked out well. I was able to be on a state champion baseball team as a senior.”

The uncles to whom McDonagh referred were Steve and Chris Walsh. His mother, Patricia, is an older sister to those quarterbacks of considerable note.

Staying in high school didn’t impact McDonagh’s NHL draft status: He taken No. 12 overall by Montreal in June 2007. He played three seasons at Wisconsin, finishing with the Badgers’ loss to Boston College in the 2010 NCAA title game.

By then, McDonagh’s rights belonged to the Rangers. He was a prime part of a 2009 trade that sent Scott Gomez to Montreal. McDonagh signed in July 2010 and was with the Rangers by January.

New York now has made him a big part of its future. It was announced Monday that the 24-year-old had agreed to a six-year, $28.2 million extension.

McDonagh’s name was visible in the Twin Cities for reasons other than the new contract last week.

The Wild signed forward Matt Cooke. His alleged reform from being a cheap-shot artist was traced to an elbow delivered to McDonagh’s head for Pittsburgh against the Rangers on March 20, 2011.

Cooke received a lengthy suspension. Two years later, the legend was McDonagh suffered a concussion.

“No, Cooke’s elbow got me more in the jaw than the head,” McDonagh said. “We were fighting for the playoffs, and I didn’t miss any games.

“He e-mailed me to apologize. That was it. We’ve played a lot of hockey against each other since then. He’s a good player. He’ll have a big role in Minnesota.”

We had a phone conversation last week as McDonagh was on his way to a Twin Cities rink for a morning skate. We talked about several issues and then I went to the trump card for a Cretin-Derham Hall alumnus:

Question: Do you have a fiancé or girlfriend?

McDonagh: Yes. In fact, we’re getting married next Friday.

Question: Cretin-Derham girl?

McDonagh: Yes.

Question: Athlete?

McDonagh: Yes. Kaylee Keys. She played hockey for Bemidji State for a year, then came back to St. Paul and played three years for St. Thomas.

OK, readers: I hate to say this, but I told you so.

Star Tribune LOADED: 07.14.2013

714307 Minnesota Wild

Brent Flahr on the Wild's weeklong development camp

Posted by: Michael Russo under Wild off-season news Updated: July 13, 2013 - 5:01 PM

The Wild’s annual summer development came to a close this afternoon with a scrimmage in front of 2,600 fans at the X.

Andrew Brunette, JB Spisso and Doug Schueller (St. John’s University) severely outcoached Brad Bombardir, Barry Karn, Andy Ness and injured prospect Louis Nanne.

Things will be slowly down for the Wild in the next little while. It’ll be filling out Iowa in the next little while with a few depth signings. Restricted free agent Kyle Medvec has re-signed, assistant to the GM Jim Mill said, and Justin Fontaine, Carson McMillan and Tyler Cuma shouldn’t be too far behind.

The Wild will look to stand firm, and with so many free agents still out there, maybe look for a bargain here or there (two-way contract and pro tryouts) as the summer goes on.

--The NHL looks like it will release the regular-season schedules for all 30 teams Wednesday. I’m hearing the Wild opens the season Oct. 3 at home against … Dustin Brown and the Los Angeles Kings. Brown’s final regular-season game last season was against the Wild at the X … for some reason.

--The Wild should also announce its new Iowa Wild coach within the next few weeks. Aeros coach John Torchetti is heading to the Kontinental Hockey League to coach Sergei Fedorov’s team in Moscow.

--Fun scrimmage to watch today. The biggest “ohhhh” moment came when Matt Dumba, as is his MO, laid up Erik Haula with a clean open-ice hit to the chest as Haula waltzed into the offensive zone. Haula popped right back up thankfully. Good to see Daniel Gunnarsson, a 2012 fifth-round draft pick, live and in person. He is returning for his final year in Lulea this year, but the 6-foot-5 defenseman has a lot of tools. Big shot, very smart. Should be a good player ultimately in the NHL.

Dumba and Haula had good weeks. So did Raphael Bussieres, a 2012 second-rounder, who didn’t take part in today’s scrimmage because assistant GM Brent Flahr said he sustained a minor injury Friday morning.

Speaking of Flahr, the assistant GM talked to me today about some of the prospects, their weeks and their future:

“The guys we expected to be good have been good. Haula’s an older guy (22) and he’s come in here highly motivated and he’s performed very well, as has been Dumba. You see guys like Gunnarsson show some of things he can do, and he’s made strides physically to get stronger. Still has work to do, but you just look at him, you can see some of the skill set in his 6-5 frame and some of his offensive dimensions.”

Will he be physical? “No, I don’t think that’s part of his game, but when you’re 6-5, you can’t teach that and his ability to skate and shoot. Really slides along the offensive blue line well.

“There’s a spectrum of age groups here, and when you’re looking at guys like [Adam] Gilmour and [Tyler] Graovac, these guys have skill. They’re going to take time to build their bodies and get stronger, but they’re making strides. Some of the young guys, like [Kurtis] Gabriel is a big, physical guy. [Gustav] Olofsson’s been good in the drills, but he’s not participating in the scrimmage because of wrist surgery.”

--On Gabriel, the Wild will make a decision in training camp whether to sign (they can actually sign him at any time) and send him to Iowa or have him return to OHL Owen Sound, where he could be the big fish on campus. It’ll have to do with his Traverse City tournament and training camp and what his role/ice time would be in Iowa as opposed to Owen South: “[Assistant coach Rick Wilson] said the first time he saw him, he skates like [Milan] Lucic almost. He’s a big dude. Just crushes you. He’s really worked hard, great shape. This has been great for him, the power skating and edge work and so forth. He wants to turn pro. But if he goes back to Owen Sound, he’ll probably be a captain and play big minutes. We’ll see.”

Brett Bulmer, a 2010 second-rounder, didn’t skate this week because of a lingering injury. He did off-ice work. After spending nine games with the Wild two seasons ago, Bulmer played in Houston last year and had a tough year. First, he struggled, maybe being an eye opener after hoping to be in Minnesota. Then he had a bunch of injuries. Flahr: “And then we had [Jason] Zucker, [Charlie] Coyle, [Mikael] Granlund here, and [Zack] Phillips, and all these guys he’s contending with. We had a deeper team than we did two years ago, so he didn’t get his chance and then he kept battling injuries, first with his knees, and then a concussion. So he could never quite get going, but he’s a very, very young guy. He’s only played a half year of pro hockey. He’s younger than a guy like Erik Haula even. He’s been around our organization a little bit, but he’s still a guy that we have huge plans for. He’s 6-3, he’s up to 218 pounds. He’s top-3 in fitness again. He probably needs more seasoning, but we really want this type of player going forward. Whether it’s the next year or the next year, we’re going to make sure he gets there.”

On Phillips, a 2011 first-round pick: “I think Phillips has taken strides physically. He looks stronger. Skating is coming, and you can’t teach what he can do with the puck with his hands and vision. But he’s worked hard here, he’s been a leader, taking care of a lot of the guys and getting places. When we drafted him, we knew it would be a few-, three-, four-year process before getting there. But with his hockey sense, vision and skill, his upside is there.”

Flahr talked highly of Johan Gustafsson, who backstopped Sweden to gold at world juniors two years ago with Jonas Brodin and Johan Larsson. He will play in Iowa (third year of pro hockey) this season as the No. 2 to Darcy Kuemper.

Grand Rapids High’s Avery Peterson, a 2013 draft pick, had his family and high school hockey team here today. They roared when he scored in the shootout. He’ll play at Sioux City (USHL) next year and is close to choosing his college. Cue Flahr: “I thought first day of camp he looked like a fish out of water. A lot of it’s due to his strength, and probably nerves. But he made significant strides each day. Like he’s really worked hard, and he’s coming out of high school, so to this level of hockey, it’s a huge jump. But he has offensive instincts and an ability to score in some of the 3-on-3’s. But he’ll have to put some time in and get stronger. He’ll be a good skater once he does, but you can tell he’s not as physically strong as some of the others.”

Flahr really likes Olofsson, too, the Green Bay (USHL) second-round defenseman who is tentatively going to Colorado College in the fall. Portland of the WHL owns his rights and they’re apparently putting pressure on him to go there instead. No chance the Wild gets involved in that decision Olofsson will have to make. At the draft, Olofsson said his heart was with CC, so we’ll see.

Flahr was happy with a lot of the invitees and said the ones that don’t have to report to college will likely be invited back for Traverse City tournament.

“Great week,” Flahr said. “We use this camp primarily has a development camp rather than evaluation with a lot of the power skating, stick-handling and putting them outside of their comfort level and trying to work on the skills that they don’t usually get to work on. This is more of a release for them. They’re exhausted right now with all the stuff we’ve put them through.”

Star Tribune LOADED: 07.14.2013

714308 Minnesota Wild

Minnesota Wild: How the player moves match up

By Chad Graff

cgraff@pioneerpress.com

Posted: 07/13/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated: 07/13/2013 10:19:22 PM CDT

MATT CULLEN VS. MIKAEL GRANLUND

ROLE: Second-line center

HE'S OUT: Cullen

Size: 6 feet 1, 200 pounds

Strengths: Experience, responsible on both ends, special teams

Weakness: Age (37)

Cap hit: $3.5 million (Nashville)

HE'S IN: Granlund

Size: 5-10, 180

Strengths: Skill, creative in offensive zone

Weaknesses: Size, inexperience, translating skill to NHL

Cap hit: $2.1 million

ADVANTAGE: Cullen is clearly the better player. Granlund, the Wild's first-round draft pick in 2010, hasn't put it all together yet. The spot was projected to be his a year ago, but he struggled in the NHL. Now, if he can't take the No. 2 center role, the Wild likely will have to move proven Charlie Coyle from the wing to center.

DEVIN SETOGUCHI VS. JASON ZUCKER

ROLE: Second-line scorer

HE'S OUT: Setoguchi

Size: 6-0, 205

Strengths: Goal scoring, creating chances in offensive zone

Weaknesses: Inconsistency, two-way game

Cap hit: $3 million (Winnipeg)

HE'S

IN: Zucker

Size: 5-11, 186

Strengths: Goal scoring, speed, creating chances in offensive zone

Weakness: Inconsistency

Cap hit: $833,333

ADVANTAGE: Setoguchi gets the nod here. The players are very similar and Zucker is a better value with the salary cap coming down, but Setoguchi is the proven player. If Zucker plays well this year, he can put up a season comparable to Setoguchi. Zucker is young and has the chance to put all his skills together. But for 2013-14, Setoguchi would have been the better choice.

CAL CLUTTERBUCK VS. MATT COOKE

ROLE: Third-line checking winger

HE'S OUT: Clutterbuck

Size: 5-11, 213

Strengths: Physical game, agitator

Weakness: Goal-scoring inconsistency

Cap hit: $2.75 million (New York Islanders)

HE'S IN: Cooke

Size: 5-11, 205

Strengths: Physical game, experience, goal scoring

Weakness: Reputation as a dirty player

Cap hit: $2.5 million

ADVANTAGE: They're similar, but Cooke is the better player, and he has shown that during his longer career. He's more of a proven scorer and agitator than Clutterbuck, though both play physical and are good on the penalty kill. Equally important to the Wild, Cooke's 2013 cap hit is less than Clutterbuck's.

PIERRE-MARC BOUCHARD VS. NINO NIEDERREITER

ROLE: Third-line winger

HE'S OUT: Bouchard

Size: 5-11, 171

Strengths: Power play, playmaking ability

Weaknesses: Injuries, inconsistency, physical play

Cap hit: $2 million (New York Islanders)

HE'S IN: Niederreiter

Size: 6-2, 208

Strengths: Size, shot, skill

Weakness: Translating skill to NHL level

Cap hit: $2.795 million

ADVANTAGE: Bouchard gets the tentative nod between the wingers who switched teams, solely on the fact that he's a proven commodity. He said he's healthy, and he'll likely put up improved numbers with the Islanders. Niederreiter has the potential to be a top-six forward, but until he puts it all together, Bouchard gets the advantage.

TOM GILBERT VS. MARCO SCANDELLA

ROLE: Second defensive pairing

HE'S OUT: Gilbert

Size: 6-2, 204

Strength: Experience

Weakness: Inconsistency

Cap hit: TBD

HE'S IN: Scandella

Size: 6-3, 210

Strengths: Physical play, two-way game

Weakness: Inexperience

Cap hit: $1.025 million

ADVANTAGE: This one is close, but Scandella slightly has the upper hand. He didn't play well last season, but he earned his contract by playing well in the first-round playoff series against the Blackhawks. Gilbert played well in his first season with the Wild but struggled in 2013, and the Wild used a compliance buyout to get rid of him.

JUSTIN FALK VS. KEITH BALLARD

ROLE: Third defensive pairing

HE'S OUT: Falk

Size: 6-5, 215

Strengths: Size, physical game

Weaknesses: Offense, ability to move the puck

Cap hit: TBD (New York Rangers)

HE'S IN: Ballard

Size: 5-11, 208

Strengths: Skating, two-way player, passing

Weaknesses: Inconsistency, building on early career success

Cap hit: $1.5 million

ADVANTAGE: Even. Falk was a healthy scratch at times, but provided physical play to the third defensive pairing that the Wild are now missing. Ballard was a talented two-way player, but after three disappointing seasons in Vancouver that ended with a buyout, he's in need of a change of scenery. If his game returns, the Wild will have gotten a bargain. If not, they'll find themselves yearning for Falk.

* All cap hits for 2013-14

Pioneer Press LOADED: 07.14.2013

714309 Minnesota Wild

Minnesota Wild: After a busy offseason, did they get better?

By Chad Graff

cgraff@pioneerpress.com

Posted: 07/13/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated: 07/13/2013 10:32:29 PM CDT

In the past three weeks, the Wild have made three trades, signed a controversial winger and an experienced defenseman, used a compliance buyout to get rid of a veteran and re-signed two key players to three-year deals, including their 35-year-old goalie.

And after adding free-agent defensemen Jonathon Blum and Jon Landry with two-way contracts Friday, the Wild's roster for the 2013-14 season is pretty much set. For the most part, what you see is what you get with the Wild.

And that begs a simple question, which yields a complex answer.

Did the Wild get better?

At face value, any improvement is minimal and difficult to quantify. Much of the team's success or failure next season will be based on the improvements of the Wild's young players.

But in an environment in which the Wild were forced to shed nearly $10 million in cap space to become compliant because of a shrinking salary cap, any improvement becomes magnified.

"You've got to take everything in context with the environment and the salary cap," general manager Chuck Fletcher said. "It was a much different type of summer than two summers ago or last summer. Probably a third of the teams in the league had to deal with the smaller cap. We knew we were not going to be able to bring the same team back."

With a plethora of young, skilled forwards already in the system, the goal became finding players who fit specific roles. That became more important after the Wild traded third-line checker Cal

Clutterbuck and a third-round draft pick to the New York Islanders for another young, skilled player -- Nino Niederreiter, a 20-year-old right-winger from Switzerland.

That deal was the catalyst for the Devin Setoguchi trade and subsequent Matt Cooke signing, a move that brought in a controversial player and was panned by many fans. But it was the type of move the team felt it had to make in this environment.

Cooke signed a three-year deal worth $7.5 million. Clutterbuck signed a contract with the Islanders that will pay him $11 million over four years. Moving from Clutterbuck to Cooke exemplified the type of summer the Wild had. With each move, they tried to save money and make small upgrades at each position.

Cooke brings more to the team than Clutterbuck, primarily because of his offensive skills and experience.

"Last year, I thought the pressure got to us a little, and I'm not sure we handled it as well as needed," Fletcher said. "We think that experience will make a lot of players better. And any time you add experience (like Cooke's), it's just going to help."

Statistically, the Wild forwards likely will improve. But that's largely because the team will have Jason Pominville, acquired in early April and injured for part of his first season here, for a full season. But whether they take a step forward largely will depend on if and by how much young players step up.

The biggest hole is at center on the second line. With the cap coming down, the Wild couldn't afford to keep Matt Cullen, who was the team's best forward for stretches last season.

His spot will be filled by a young player. Mikael Granlund probably will get a good look there, but he will have to prove he's improved enough to earn the spot. Charlie Coyle showed promise on the wing, and he'll get a look, too. Former Gopher Erik Haula might have a shot.

Young players likely will occupy the left wing on the second line and right wing on the third line, too.

On the blue line, big Justin Falk (traded) and experienced Tom Gilbert (bought out) are gone. Enter veteran Keith Ballard and, for the first time on a one-way contract, 23-year-old Marco Scandella.

Call that a wash with potential for improvement. Gilbert struggled last season, but Falk provided a physical component. Scandella will be integral in determining how the Wild defense progresses. He struggled at the beginning of last season but played well in the playoffs.

The defense will remain solid, though, if only because first-liners Ryan Suter and Jonas Brodin will spend so much time on the ice. Both had stellar seasons in 2013.

After signing Niklas Backstrom to a three-year deal, the first in the long list of transactions, the Wild will feature the same duo between the pipes as last season, with Josh Harding serving as the backup again. That should be a better situation than it was last season, if only because Harding has said several times since the season ended that he feels as good as he has since being diagnosed last fall with multiple sclerosis. He showed in the playoffs he still can play. If he can take more of the load off Backstrom than he was able to in 2013, they should figure an improvement in net compared with last season.

"There's no question we had to cut some salary," Fletcher said. "And yet I think we were able to make some moves to solidify holes."

It wasn't the free-spending offseason some fans wanted. Because of the cap decreasing, it had to be the opposite. The roster had to change to become cap compliant. And yet it looks awfully similar.

If it's the big acquisition fans want, they likely will have to wait one more year for when the Wild have about $20 million in cap space coming off the books. And the timing couldn't be better: The 2014 free-agency class should be strong.

"We're going to have the ability to make more additions then," Fletcher said. "And next year looks like a much better free-agent crop. This year wasn't particularly good. Next year looks better, and we'll have more space."

Pioneer Press LOADED: 07.14.2013

714310 Minnesota Wild

Tom Powers: Wild's best offseason acquisition was attitude

Pioneer Press

Posted: 07/13/2013 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated: 07/13/2013 10:32:22 PM CDT

Keith Ballard is a crusty, old, no-excuses defenseman. Matt Cooke has been a borderline psycho.

Together, they bring a much-needed dose of attitude to the local hockey team. As a result, the Wild might have improved this offseason, even though the front office's main goal has been to reduce payroll.

One of the Wild's great strengths last season was being appropriately sad after a loss. Well, that and shooting into the opposing goalie's chest protector.

"Obviously, we have to play better," captain Mikko Koivu droned night after night while the team was becoming unglued down the stretch.

Obviously.

In reality, the Wild should have done better, but they simply could not handle the pressure. With few exceptions, they were

wide-eyed and ineffective when it counted. The bigger the game, the more tentative they were. And after a $200 million infusion of talent, it took a deadline trade -- shipping off a No. 1 draft choice and a solid prospect for veteran Jason Pominville -- for them to crawl into the playoffs by the slimmest possible margin.

The Wild should not have had to face the Chicago Blackhawks in the opening round. There was enough talent there to finish several notches higher in the standings. But apparently many Minnesota hockey fans have bought into the spin that 2012-13 was wonderfully successful because the team finally made it back to the playoffs -- where their play was maddeningly inconsistent and their coaching was much worse.

I'm not saying

the Wild didn't make progress, but at that rate we'll all be dead, and probably broke, before they make a decent postseason run. For the most part, the team simply does not know how to win. Yet it is very polished at losing.

Koivu: "We have to find a way to play better ... "

The main goal this offseason has been to shed salary and get under the salary cap for 2013-14. Being unwilling or unable to offer Matt Cullen a contract hurts the most. By season's end, Cullen was the Wild's best forward -- a model of consistency amid a sea of players who often stood frozen in the spotlight.

Cal Clutterbuck will be missed, too, if for no other reason than he provided an entertaining break from all the back-and-forth skating, during which absolutely nothing was accomplished. The others who left or were sent packing were inconsistent to the point of being expendable.

Yet despite the budget-cutting moves, the Wild might actually have gotten better. It's not so much who they've added but what they've added: attitude. God, do the Wild ever need attitude. If their coach is going to enable lousy play by making excuses for and/or commiserating with his players during tough times, someone else needs to apply a foot to the backside.

Mike Yeo needed a shorter fuse -- and more tactical solutions -- as the season wound down to nothingness. Koivu might work hard on the ice, but apparently that doesn't translate into leadership. Zach Parise and Ryan Suter had outstanding seasons but maybe don't have the personalities to throttle a teammate or two -- especially in their first season on what really was a veteran team.

Enter Ballard and Cooke. With luck, they'll growl and prod and, as a result, motivate. Not when things are going well. Not when the Wild have put together a nice streak. But when things are headed south. Because no team can turn a couple of bad bounces into a four-game losing streak as quickly as the mentally fragile Wild.

A couple of bad breaks and -- boom -- everybody comes apart. The players walk around looking dumbfounded while Yeo insists he still sees a lot of good things out there.

I'm hoping that Cooke still is nutty enough to have his own teammates looking over their shoulders, and that Ballard's scowl will engender some accountability. This is exactly what the Wild need.

So, yeah, I think the Wild have gotten better this offseason. I think their dressing room just became a little less comfortable.

Pioneer Press LOADED: 07.14.2013

714311 Montreal Canadiens

New London Knights addition Mike McCarron officially introduced at press conference 6

By Morris Dalla Costa, The London Free Press

Friday, July 12, 2013 9:34:16 EDT PM

You know a guy is big when Jarred Tinordi’s former sweater looks a little short on him.

Mike McCarron, the latest and much anticipated member of the London Knights, was introduced Friday. He stood at the podium wearing Tinordi’s No. 24. Tinordi was a big man but at 6-foot-5, 228 pounds or thereabouts, the Montreal Canadiens first-round draft pick looked as if the sweater could use another couple of inches added to it.

Coincidentally, Tinordi is also an American and a first-round pick of the Canadiens. Tinordi also picked the Knights over an American university.

If McCarron continues to follow Tinordi’s lead and turns out as good a player, the Knights have themselves a winner.

The official introduction ended a chase for the Knights that began two years ago when the Michigan native was drafted in the sixth round by the Belleville Bulls. McCarron didn’t report to the Bulls but instead opted to go to the United States national team development program. He also committed to Western Michigan Broncos.

Knights’ general manager Mark Hunter traded with the Bulls to get McCarron.

The Canadiens made him a first-round draft pick and then the question became whether he would fulfil his commitment or move to the Knights. The Canadiens signed him to a three-year entry level contract, the decision became obvious.

McCarron spent time talking to Tinordi before making a decision of where to play. First off, Tinordi eased McCarron’s mind about living conditions, saying the billets were “awesome.” Then he talked about how the OHL prepared a player for professional hockey.

“He said the 70 games really get you ready for the NHL,” McCarron said. “He said there’s no really difference of games from when he played in the NHL and here. He said that was a really easy transition. (Tinordi) said the off-ice was pretty good if you push yourself. He’s a pretty big guy, a good guy to follow. I took his word to heart. It definitely had an impact in my decision.”

McCarron also wanted to make sure his mother was satisfied with the schooling aspect of coming to London. Instead of being a Western Michigan Bronco, he’ll be a Western University Mustang.

Would he have chosen the Knights if he didn’t have that contract in his pocket?

“I haven’t really thought about that. I couldn’t say yes or no. I didn’t know,” he said. “I probably would have still come here because the Hunter’s move on so many players. It’s awesome to see all those players come in here and are now playing in the NHL. I want to be part of that.”

McCarron offers something the Knights lack. He’s a big man who can score and who can control play with his size. The Knights have a lot of skill but they also have a smallish lineup up front.

“It’s an ideal situation. It’s why the Montreal Canadiens drafted him in the first round,” said Knights head coach Dale Hunter. “He has a combination of skill and size. It’s hard to come by. We had some big (defencemen) but we didn’t have that big forward with size and with skill where you get to play in key situation.

“We’re looking forward to it. It just makes our team look bigger and adds skill also.”

McCarron admits to liking the physical and fighting aspect of the game although he doesn’t want fighting to “define” his game.

The sudden rise to prominence for McCarron is going to translate into big expectations on the ice. Hunter isn’t worried about McCarron’s adjustment considering the kind of the team the Knights will put on the ice.

“We’ve seen how guys like Tinordi came in, what he meant to our team and (McCarron) is going to mean the same thing,” Hunter said. “It’s not like we’re in a rebuilding year. He’s going to play with good players. He’s going to have experience. It’s our Memorial Cup year. If he had to do it by himself, it’s a tough league to do it but he’s going to play with good players and good things will happen.”

And that’s music to Knights fans’ ears.

Montreal Sun LOADED: 07.14.2013

714312 Nashville Predators

Nashville Predators' Seth Jones plays well in 'intense' scrimmage

Jul. 13, 2013 |

Written by

Josh Cooper and Tyler Whetstone

The crowd at Centennial Sportsplex was so large for Saturday’s scrimmage at Predators development camp that even Popeye Jones, father of defenseman Seth Jones, couldn’t get a good parking spot.

“I think I had to park like three blocks away,” Popeye said. “I was like ‘wow, what’s going on today?’ But it’s great to see the people come out and support the Preds and support my son. It’s awesome, I think it’s great.”

Fans filled the building and crowded around the boards to watch Nashville’s future on ice. It’s likely that most wanted to see Jones, this year’s first-round pick, in game-type action. Both teams played two periods of four-on-four hockey, which included shootouts at the end of each frame.

Even some members of the Predators organization had trouble finding spots along the glass.

“I made sure to have an early seat,” coach Barry Trotz said.

Jones, 18, had a few mishaps, but overall looked solid. Saturday’s scrimmage marked the end of the camp.

“It was definitely pretty intense today and it was definitely high paced,” Jones said. “Guys were hitting each other right from the start. You had to be on your toes and it was awesome to have the crowd there to support you and make it like a little scrimmage.”

Rinne off crutches: Goaltender Pekka Rinne, who underwent hip surgery earlier this offseason, was a spectator at development camp on Saturday and said he was recently cleared to walk without crutches.

He appeared to walk normally in the locker room after the scrimmage.

“Obviously the decision to go ahead and do the surgery was a tough one. I knew that it was going to be a long road to recovery, but now I’m feeling really good and I know in the long run that it’s going to help me,” Rinne said. “I’m confident that I’ll be ready for the season no problem.”

Geoffrion scores two: Sebastian Geoffrion, a Brentwood native and development camp invitee, scored two goals in the scrimmage.

“Sort of a hometown guy, it was good, he was excited,” Trotz said. “He plays with lots of energy.”

Sebastian is the brother of former Predators forward Blake Geoffrion.

Reach Josh Cooper at 615-726-8917

Tennessean LOADED: 07.14.2013

714313 Nashville Predators

Nashville Predators' Austin Watson a leader among prospects

Jul. 13, 2013 |

Written by

Josh Cooper

There’s a bit more polish in his voice and more of an adult tone. In Austin Watson’s third development camp with the Predators, the 2010 first-round pick is no longer the junior, but the senior.

“He’s leading on the ice and off the ice, he’s one of the captains here this week for development camp, and the kids who just got drafted this year are looking up to him,” director of player development Scott Nichol said of the 21-year-old forward. “That’s the process.”

Despite Watson’s older status among prospects, he finds himself in an odd situation. Two weeks ago, he was a candidate for Nashville’s opening night roster this fall. But after a flurry of forward signings when the NHL’s free agency period opened on July 5, Watson is in a tougher spot.

Though this would trouble most former first-round draft picks, Watson takes the situation in stride. He played six games for the Predators last season, scored one goal and was a minus-2. In 72 games with the American Hockey League’s Milwaukee Admirals last season, Watson scored 20 goals and added 17 assists.

“When the team picks up new players, I think it’s great for the organization,” he said. “Obviously there’s going to be tough competition. Whatever it is, everyone is going to be competing for spots, no matter who, it’s just about coming in here with the right attitude and working hard to earn your spot.”

Though Nashville’s signees — veterans Matt Cullen, Eric Nystrom, Viktor Stalberg and Matt Hendricks — add depth at forward, Predators coach Barry Trotz said there would be a spot for Watson if he “does a great job” in training camp.

“When you say, ‘You cut out the ability for young guys to play,’ you really don’t do that,” Trotz said. “What you do is you create competition and the ‘back pressure,’ … people like that make us a better team.”

The 6-foot-4 Watson said he came to development camp weighing 202 pounds and hopes to add about 8 more. The key for him is to go from being a boy playing a man’s game to a man playing with his peers.

According to the Predators, he’s on the right path.

“You can tell his body is starting to change,” Nichol said. “He’s starting to get out of the boyish body and be a little bit more stocky and become a little bit more of a man now.”

Tennessean LOADED: 07.14.2013

714314 New Jersey Devils

Ilya Kovalchuk's flight from NHL prompts questions of KHL influence

Saturday, July 13, 2013

BY ANDREW GROSS

STAFF WRITER

Ilya Kovalchuk’s surprise decision to "retire" from his lucrative NHL contract with the Devils to return home to Russia for, presumably, an even more lucrative KHL contract with SKA St. Petersburg could be seen as a deal-breaking precedent.

Or, just a unique confluence of factors, most importantly the Devils, with their ownership in transition, readily agreeing to void the final 12 seasons of his 15-year, $100 million deal.

Opinions are certainly mixed in the wake of the superstar’s choice.

"I don’t think [it will be a precedent], there are not many players like him," said NBC hockey analyst Pierre McGuire, a former NHL coach who was born in Englewood and raised in Montreal. "These people who say this is a template, how many Ilya Kovalchuks are there who are Russian born? It’s a unique situation. We’re not talking about a lot of opportunities."

Friday did not, as expected, bring official word the 30-year-old Russian will be rejoining St. Petersburg, Kovalchuk’s KHL team during the NHL lockout, for a contract reported to be between $15 million and $20 million annually and taxed at just 13 percent. But that announcement is expected shortly.

Even if other Russians or non-North Americans don’t follow Kovalchuk to the KHL, it certainly helps that league to lure the country’s top player, and likely captain of the Russian team at the Sochi Olympics next year, back home.

Mike "Doc" Emrick, NBC’s lead hockey announcer and the Devils’ former television play-by-play voice, said the KHL potentially luring away NHL players reminds him of the NHL-WHA bidding wars of the early-1970s.

"This is not going to roll off the backs of the NHL because it didn’t the last time," Emrick said. "I think it does send some shockwaves through the league as to what will become of this."

And, as one agent told The Sporting News on Thursday, "This sets Russian players back 50 years. How do you trust any now?"

But two league insiders insisted Friday the NHL was not worried about a precedent-setting situation, citing the unique circumstances surrounding Kovalchuk.

The Devils easily could have blocked the move by not voiding Kovalchuk’s contract once he signed his voluntary retirement papers. But, given Kovalchuk’s contract structure, the Devils gained salary cap maneuverability, albeit after the free agent market was raided, and incur only a cap penalty of $250,000 yearly through 2025. That cap recapture penalty rose dramatically if Kovalchuk retired later in the deal.

Plus, Kovalchuk, in the prime of his career, is returning to arguably the KHL’s premier team and one overseen by league president Alexander Medvedev and backed by billions.

The KHL is proactively working to expand its brand globally and will expand to Finland in 2014 with the inclusion of the Helsinki team, Jokerit.

"He is Russian, he is coming home and it is good," said Vladimir Shalaev, the KHL’s vice president of hockey operations, as reported via Twitter by Dmitry Chesnokov of Yahoo!’s Puck Daddy. "Everyone wins from Kovalchuk’s return: Ilya himself, who came home; the club that is getting such a class player; plus it is a great move for the KHL in terms of marketing opportunities."

McGuire, though, said the NHL is not in danger of being overtaken by the KHL as the top hockey league.

"I think the NHL has done a great job of trying to grow the game internationally," said McGuire, citing the league’s Olympic involvement, its relationships with other hockey federations and the season-opening games played in Europe.

"You’re talking apples and oranges," added McGuire, who has attended numerous games in the KHL arenas. "The KHL is arguably the second-best league in the world, though the people in Sweden might tell you differently. … Anything has the potential with enough money or will, but you’re talking down the road. I think most of the best players in the world still want to play in the NHL."

Bergen Record LOADED: 07.14.2013

714315 New Jersey Devils

Blame lockout for Kovalchuk bolting Devs

By LARRY BROOKS

Last Updated: 1:48 AM, July 14, 2013

Revenue increased on a per capita basis, TV ratings reached record levels and the NHL conducted business as usual once the Board of Governors unlocked the doors in January, but Owners’ Lockout III did indeed produce collateral damage, with Ilya Kovalchuk serving as Exhibit A.

The tidal wave of condemnation in bidding Kovalchuk good riddance is understandable in the wake of the 30-year-old winger’s betrayal of the Devils organization, his teammates and the New Jersey fan base in order to follow his heart home to continue his career in Russia.

But it was this latest lockout that unlocked the door to St. Petersburg and the KHL for Kovalchuk, a man of independence who was ultimately granted his by Lou Lamoriello as the least of all evils.

There may be owners on the NHL Board of Governors, but 15-year contract notwithstanding, Kovalchuk simply would not cede ownership of his life to these men who had prohibited him from playing under that very contract for more than the first scheduled three months of last season.

It is hypothetical, of course, but the chances are remote Kovalchuk would have left the Devils for Russia if not for the lockout, given the fact the winger endured a circumvention hearing, a nullified contract and the threat of yet another circumvention hearing during the summer of 2010 when the KHL beckoned, offering far more than the $100 million on the table in New Jersey.

On Jan. 4, the day before the marathon negotiating session commenced that would lead to settlement of the lockout in the wee hours of Jan. 6, the NHLPA dissuaded Kovalchuk, Alexander Ovechkin, Pavel Datsyuk and Evgeni Malkin from issuing a joint statement declaring their intent to remain in Russia for at least the remainder of the KHL season regardless of whether or when the NHL reopened.

The Post, which first reported that news, has been told the Players’ Association would have been prepared to support the rights of these players to play indefinitely in a different league under contracts signed during the NHL lockout if the timing had been different and would not have created a significant last-minute obstacle to settlement.

The notion Kovalchuk’s departure from the Devils represents a divorce of convenience that a) was prearranged; b) is mutually beneficial to both parties; c) both of the above, is patently absurd.

The Devils have lost their best player. Period. They have lost their most dynamic player. They have lost the player who played more minutes than any other forward in the NHL over the last three seasons. They have lost a singular weapon, the lone player on the team — other than Martin Brodeur — capable of both putting fans into and then bringing them out of their seats.

And they have lost their best player at the age of 30 at a more than reasonable cap hit of $6.67 million per, and for nothing in return except some perceived benefit five years down the road to the next ownership group and the comfort the club won’t have to face a daunting cap-recapture charge in a decade.

This is and was not a fair trade for the team, for management or for the fans: Kovalchuk in exchange for $6.67 million of cap space. Those saying it’s so will next be saying the Rangers would benefit from the additional $6.875 million in space they’d gain if Henrik Lundqvist were to “retire” to Frolunda of the SEL this summer.

Zach Parise’s departure to the Wild was all about going home and unrelated to Kovalchuk. David Clarkson going to the Leafs was all about a huge contract and unrelated to Kovalchuk. What, did Alexander Mogilny leave New Jersey for Toronto as a free agent in 2001 because of Kovalchuk, too?

Kovalchuk’s exit does not signal the beginning of a trend any more than Scott Niedermayer’s decision to sit out the first half of the 2007-08 season in Anaheim did, and remember the hysteria about that?

This was a singular decision made under a singular circumstance by a singular individual who walked through the locked door once it was opened for him by the NHL.

The Devils are not better for it. Not in the least.

New York Post LOADED: 07.14.2013

714316 Ottawa Senators

Shawn Simpson enjoying time as a hockey commentator on Team 1200 after experiencing his share of ups and downs

By Tim Baines,Ottawa Sun

First posted: Saturday, July 13, 2013 07:54 PM EDT | Updated: Saturday, July 13, 2013 08:04 PM EDT

Shawn Simpson’s life story reads like a soap opera.

It’s full of twists and turns. Triumph and tragedy.

It’s about a kid who has never known his birth parents, a kid who struggled to find stability.

It’s about a kid who had a passion for hockey, but also found he had a weakness for wine and women.

It’s about that kid growing into a man, along the way finding comfort in the arms of married women, one who got pregnant and later killed herself.

It’s about the devastation that comes with being rejected, with losing jobs and finding himself homeless, unsure of who and what he was.

It’s about coming full circle, finding himself back in Ottawa, with his heart and soul awakening, once again doing something he loves ... finally content, more trusting of others.

The co-host of The Drive and an NHL insider for The Team 1200, Simpson, or Simmer, is doing what he does best — talking hockey full-time.

But to understand the former OHL all-star goalie, the 60th overall draft pick of the Washington Capitals in 1986, you have to go back a long way.

Adopted in Vancouver, his family moved to Chatham, then to Rockcliffe air base when he was five. His parents Lyle and Shirley divorced when he was 10. His father remarried and two families were merged. Between the time he was 10-16, his mother moved and moved and moved, maybe a dozen times.

“It was a rollercoaster of instability and uncertainty,” says Simpson, who played hockey in Rockcliffe, East Ottawa, then Gloucester.

“I was devastated in peewee when I got cut from the Double-A team. I thought my hockey career was over. The other goaltender moved so in minor bantam I ended up playing. At that time, Gloucester and Nepean were the places to play.”

‘I was terrible’

He was drafted by the Soo Greyhounds in 1985, the first goalie taken in the OHL draft.

“My first year of junior I was terrible,” says Simpson. “It was an absolute struggle. To be away from home, 16 turning 17, it was so overwhelming.

“I remember one of my first games up there getting booed by the local fans. We went to Sudbury and people were throwing stuff. I remember thinking how serious everybody was. I was used to parents cheering for me, even after letting in a lot of goals and everybody telling me how good I was.

“Looking back, I was too young. It was a wonderful place to play hockey, but Algoma Steel was going through a tough time, they were laying off a lot of people. Ottawa is Utopia. When you go to these other places, it’s completely different.”

Washington drafted him on his potential. After being picked by the Capitals, something clicked in his second year of junior hockey. He had a huge year back in the Soo, picked as a league all-star and named to Canada’s 1987 world junior team (yep, the team that gained notoriety for its bench-clearing brawl with Russia).

Simpson got a $100,000 signing bonus from the Capitals, who already had Pete Peeters and Clint Malarchuk in goal. He bought himself a Jeep YJ, with one of those big honking stereo systems. He was a big shot.

“I got off track again,” he says. “Money, girls, drinking. I did whatever I wanted. I had no structure. You’re on your own. I never thought I was that

great, but I wanted people to think I was great. I had a reputation for being kind of wild. But I look back at it, and I was just immature.”

He wrecked a buddy’s car and got into a trouble at a Washington summer camp with girls in the room. He found out about the suicide of a pregnant former lover.

“I remember sitting down and my head was spinning,” says Simpson. “Even to this day, it’s a haunting and hurtful moment.”

He was sent to Washington’s Baltimore farm team. He was the second, then third-stringer.

“I didn’t have the ability to play hockey,” he says. “I didn’t have the confidence, I didn’t have the concentration. I had lost my spark. Growing up and bouncing around, I didn’t want to move anymore. I knew was I needed to get some stability in my life.”

He was doing some colour work on TV for the Capitals, also doing a little pro scouting.

He met Susan, eloped and got married. He was 25.

“I wasn’t in love, but I found stability,” he says. “Career-wise, things took off ... scouting, TV, management, running summer camps.”

At 29, he was named Washington’s assistant GM. Sons Shayne and Sloan came along. Life was good. At least it should have been.

“For someone who had so much instability growing up, you think you’d go into something that gave you more stability, but it’s almost like a drug where you enjoy the pressure,” says Simpson. “I don’t know if this is related to being adopted, but you’re searching for love. You want to be wanted. In 2002, I’m in New York City, I run into a girl doing some modelling. We ended up getting involved and it went from there. That went on from 2002-2007.

“That ultimately led to the breakdown of my marriage. I got caught. I wouldn’t say it was the only infidelity in my marriage, but this was the constant.

“When you enter the airport, it’s like you’ve entered a different world. The Shawn Simpson that when he’s home, he never looked at another girl. When you’re home, you’re stable, you’re with your family. When you go to the airport, it’s like a switch goes off, you become a different person.”

In 2004, he lost his job in Washington, a system he’d been with for 18 years. He was hired in Toronto that same week. In 2009, he was hired to be the GM in Dinamo Minsk in Russia. That went well. He once again felt important, until he was dumped in January of 2011.

He returned to Boston homeless, unsure of himself, what to do or where to go.

“I got my car (a Volkswagen) out of storage. For three months, I lived in that car,” says Simpson. “I’d drive around, maybe go for a run. I’d go to the local hotel, maybe shower, maybe use their pool. I look back and have no idea how I survived. I had a little money, not much, enough to buy some food.

“It was at such a low point in my life. I was desperate. I had no idea what I was going to do. I was embarrassed. My whole life I’d known hockey, but I didn’t want to reach out to anybody.”

Still searching for answers, he reached out to his father Easter Sunday of 2011.

He flew back to Ottawa and moved in with his dad, a man he says he has a lot of respect for, and stepmother.

He gradually got his feet back on the ground. He had listened to some sports radio in Boston. It was something he thought he could do so he approached The Team about doing guest spots. Little by little, he was regaining his confidence. More and more, he was asked to be on the radio.

“I didn’t have a sparkle in my eye right away,” says Simpson. “When I came into town as the assistant GM of Washington, I was the hero. Now I rolled back into town and I’d lost everything. I was at the very bottom. I had lost contact with everybody. I began to reconnect with friends.”

Two years later, he’s in a much better place, with himself and with those around him.

“Because of being adopted, I had never felt unconditional love,” he says. “I don’t mean that disrespectfully to my adopted parents. I love being a dad. I love my kids. That just adds to the guilt factor. What’s more incredible in the

whole process is that love is being returned by them. Initially it wasn’t. I remember when (the split from his wife) happened, they were young, but they were upset.”

He’s smiling again, more willing to trust others. He fell in love, for the first time.

“I’ve gotten physically and mentally more healthy,” he says. “I always have a glass half full. I’ve had some low points, but my nature is to be happy. I’m in a good place. I can mentally pretend like everything’s been solved, but that’s not the case. It’s a work in progress. But to be in my own place, to have a routine, to have a job I absolutely love, to be back in Ottawa. I don’t want to make it sound like a Utopia, I’m not perfect, but this is great.

“The radio show, I’ve never felt so natural about doing something. It’s eliminated travel. It’s stability. It’s a routine. It’s been a Godsend. When I walk into the station to do a show, that in itself is therapy for me. I’ll be down on Rideau St and see some of the homeless people. You have an appreciation for how quickly things can turn on a dime.”

Simpson’s story has plenty of chapters already written.

“It’s a story of trial and error, of trying it on your own, figuring it out,” he says.

“I’m 44 years old. I’ve been on an incredible journey. I regroup and it’s on to the next phase.”

Ottawa Sun LOADED: 07.14.2013

714317 Ottawa Senators

Ottawa Senators winger Bobby Ryan will wear No. 6 with new team

By Don Brennan,Ottawa Sun

First posted: Friday, July 12, 2013 07:14 PM EDT | Updated: Friday, July 12, 2013 07:25 PM EDT

Senators jersey No. 6 is about to become a hot commodity in Ottawa stores again.

The team announced Friday that newly acquired sniper Bobby Ryan will wear the digit once made popular by Wade Redden.

Ryan wore No. 9 in Anaheim, but veteran Milan Michalek has that number in Ottawa.

Meanwhile, rookie Mark Stone is giving up No. 16 so Clarke MacArthur can have the number he wore with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Stone will now wear 61.

And no, defenceman Joe Corvo will not fight Kyle Turris for No. 7. He'll take over Senators jersey No. 77, instead.

Why did Ryan pick 6? Likely because it's an upside-down 9.

The scuttlebutt is Ryan wanted 9 when he first joined the Ducks in 2007. However, management insists on young players taking higher numbers. There was also talk about the team retiring 9 to honour Paul Kariya.

So Ryan went with 54, because 5 and 4 equal 9.

Eventually, Ryan was able to get 9 in Anaheim.

Ryan becomes the fourth player in Senators history to wear 6. Redden had it from 1997-2008. Before him, it belonged to Chris Dahlquist (1995-96) and Gord Dineen (1993-94).

Ottawa Sun LOADED: 07.14.2013

714318 Philadelphia Flyers

Inside the Flyers: Emery seems more mature as he begins new stint with Flyers

Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer

Posted: Sunday, July 14, 2013, 1:09 AM

Some ice talk to cool your July day.

Ray Emery hasn't played in a majority of his team's games since 2006-07 with Ottawa, which was three years before he underwent massive hip surgery.

No matter. The Flyers got a bargain when they signed Emery - the goalie who has made one of the most remarkable recoveries in recent NHL history - to a cap-friendly, one-year deal for $1.65 million.

Emery, who was at a news conference that also introduced Vincent Lecavalier and Mark Streit on Tuesday, is not only a different goalie from the one who played 29 games for the Flyers in 2009-10. He also seems like a different person.

In his first stint here, he was suspicious of the media and never appeared comfortable. Now he seems at ease, at peace with himself. What changed him? Maybe it was his career-threatening injury, or maybe he has just matured. Whatever the reason, Emery seems much more grounded and confident.

The Flyers hope that carries onto the ice.

"I'm very fortunate I had that operation and it stopped the deterioration in my hip," he said, adding he had felt "invincible" before suffering the injury.

Even if Emery doesn't win the competition with Steve Mason for the No. 1 spot, he probably will make 25 or 30 starts and be a key player.

Asked if it would work if each goalie played 41 games, Emery was quick with a replay.

"One hundred percent," he said. ". . . It's more about the relationship. That's not to say one guy doesn't play tons and one guy plays fewer, but it's more about making it comfortable and that you get the most out of both guys."

Emery, owner of a 17-1 record and 1.94 goals-against average last season, says he wants to mentor Mason and be part of a positive locker room, like the one he experienced with the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks.

"It was a great working environment; how we wanted to do well for each other," he said. "I definitely take a lot from it, just how relationships went and the season went."

Emery, 30, tweaked his groin toward the end of the regular season or else it might have been him, not Corey Crawford, who steered Chicago to the Cup. He returned to health after the first series, but the Blackhawks stayed with the sizzling Crawford.

"There's a certain part of you that wants to be in there, but it's your team, and it was so exciting watching the team win," he said. "I really felt a part of it, even though I didn't play in the playoffs."

When he was younger, Emery admitted, he might have pouted.

That was long before his injury, long before he saw his career pass before his eyes . . . and found some inner strength.

When the 18-member Hall of Fame committee finally got it right and elected Flyers coaching great Fred Shero, Ed Snider - who is chairman of the team's parent company, Comcast-Spectacor - said it was time to forget about past snubs and to enjoy the moment.

Well, I hate to be a spoilsport, but . . .

It does matter that the committee bypassed Shero for about three decades. If it had done its due diligence, Shero and his wife would have still been alive to share the honor with their family, the organization, and fans.

Shero used innovative coaching methods, his teams won two straight Stanley Cups - and reached four Finals in a six-year span - and he has the

fourth-highest winning percentage in NHL history among coaches who have spent at least 10 years in the league.

It's laughable - and, at the same time, sad - he was ignored for so long.

With the Flyers spending four days of training camp in Lake Placid, N.Y., does that mean they are headed for a Miracle on Ice and will end their long Cup drought?

Probably not. But the team does look much improved from last season.

The Flyers haven't won a Cup since 1975. Put another way: Only one of the team's current players, defenseman Kimmo Timonen, had been born when the Flyers won their last title.

He was 2 months old.

If the Flyers dealt hard-luck Andrej Meszaros, it would solve their cap woes and loosen their crowded blue line. Meszaros, 27, suffered through an injury-ravaged 2013 season, but he is expected to be medically cleared in a couple of weeks.

If healthy, Meszaros can be a team's top-four (or higher) defenseman.

Eight teams have more than $10 million in cap space, topped by the New York Islanders at $20.2 million.

Only 59 more days until training camp starts. But who's counting?

Inside the Flyers: Emery's Career Statistics

Ray "Razor" Emery, signed by the Flyers as a free agent, has a 126-63-19 career record. "All he does is win," general manager Paul Holmgren said.

Here are his career statistics:

Year Team GP GS W L OTL GAA SV% SO

'02-'03 Ottawa 3 1 1 0 0 1.42 .923 0

'03-'04 Ottawa 3 1 2 0 0 2.38 .904 0

'05-'06 Ottawa 39 38 23 11 4 2.82 .902 3

'06-'07 Ottawa 58 56 33 16 6 2.47 .918 5

'07-'08 Ottawa 31 26 12 13 4 3.13 .890 0

'09-'10 Flyers 29 29 16 11 1 2.64 .905 3

'10-'11 Anaheim 10 9 7 2 0 2.28 .926 0

'11-'12 Chicago 34 27 15 9 4 2.81 .900 0

'12-'13 Chicago 21 19 17 1 0 1.94 .922 3

Career 228 206 126 63 19 2.63 .908 14

Philadelphia Inquirer / Daily News LOADED: 07.14.2013

714319 Phoenix Coyotes

Mike Ribeiro counted on to fill void for Phoenix Coyotes

By Sarah McLellan azcentral sports Sat Jul 13, 2013 7:46 PM

The Coyotes had been pursuing a consensus No. 1 center for two years before they pinpointed who they wanted that player to be: Mike Ribeiro.

When General Manager Don Maloney assumed his position with the organization in 2007, adding an elite centerman was regarded as a priority but it wasn’t until coach Dave Tippett was hired in 2009 after getting let go by the Dallas Stars that the Coyotes finally put a face to their search.

Ribeiro, who was with the Stars at the time, was a goal scorer. He was a playmaker. And he was a power-play producer — not to mention his defensive awareness and ability to kill penalties.

It took six years but the Coyotes finally acquired their long-coveted center July 5 when Ribeiro, a free agent, signed a four-year, $22 million contract, becoming a symbol of what the organization can accomplish with ownership in place.

“The new ownership is the changing of the era, and the fallout from that is kind of a new chapter in the franchise’s history,” Tippett said. “There’s some very good years with Jeremy Roenick and (Keith) Tkachuk and a few tough years and the instability years. Now hopefully we get to draw a new map of where the franchise is going and try and take it to higher level.”

The quest for a No. 1 center would probably still be on if the Glendale City Council didn’t pass a multimillion-dollar deal that keeps the Coyotes in the Valley for at least the next five years, which should enable ownership group IceArizona to complete its purchase of the club from the NHL.

“It was Phoenix or Seattle, and it would have made me change my plans if it would have been Seattle,” Ribeiro said.

Tippett reached out to Ribeiro after the vote passed, and this was the first real opportunity the Coyotes had to add the 33-year-old Montreal native.

Maloney did talk with then-Stars General Manager Joe Nieuwendyk at the 2012 draft when the Stars made it clear they would be shipping out Ribeiro before the last year of his contract kicked in, but the Stars didn’t want to trade within the division.

Once Maloney heard that Ribeiro had been moved to Washington, he congratulated Capitals General Manager George McPhee.

“George, you don’t know how good of a player you have there,” Maloney said. “You’re really going to like this player.”

And Ribeiro was a success for the Capitals. He scored 13 goals and 49 points in 48 games. He led the league in power-play assists with 21. But the Capitals couldn’t afford to keep Ribeiro, and he became a free agent despite having the expectation that he’d stay there.

“They weren’t able to sign me,” Ribeiro said. “From there on, right away our first thought was here and signing here.”

This wasn’t the first time Ribeiro had to reconcile ownership drama. The Stars were dropped into bankruptcy in 2011 before current owner Tom Gaglardi purchased the club through a court-approved auction.

“When you don’t have an owner of the team, you’re kind of stuck,” Ribeiro said. “You don’t do what you want to do. You can’t get players that you want or re-sign them. To know that you have that behind you, I think it’s easier for guys to come here and know that you’re going to stay here.”

Especially if Ribeiro performs as advertised and the Coyotes become a contender. Ribeiro likes to surround himself with right-handed shooters so it’s a given captain Shane Doan will get the first test run. Wing Mikkel Boedker, once he secures a new contract, could fill out that line.

“It’s really a matter of trying to create for those guys, trying to make my teammates better, and I think that’s one of my qualities — is to move the pucks to those guys,” Ribeiro said.

The Coyotes have been waiting six years to hear that.

“Ultimately, if you can create a few more chances,” Tippett said, “you have a better chance to win.”

Arizona Republic LOADED: 07.14.2013

714320 Tampa Bay Lightning

Andreychuk unfairly not in Hockey Hall

Tom Jones, Times Sports Columnist

Saturday, July 13, 2013 4:30am

Former Lightning captain Dave Andreychuk is getting a raw deal. For the fifth consecutive year, Andreychuk was snubbed for the Hockey Hall of Fame. That's bad enough. What's worse: You have to start wondering if he's ever going to get in. It's a mystery as to why he isn't in already. His 640 goals are 14th all time and most of any player not in the Hall.

Now check this out: Among the top 29 goal-scorers in NHL history, 24 are in the Hall. The five who aren't: Andreychuk and four who are not eligible. That includes Jaromir Jagr and Teemu Selanne, who are locks. Mike Modano seems assured, and Mark Recchi is iffy.

Andreychuk never was involved in any scandals. He has always gotten along with the media, and he captained a Stanley Cup team — the Lightning, in fact, in 2004. So what's keeping him out of the Hall?

One can only guess voters are not impressed with his goal total because he played so long. Andreychuk played until he was 42, having amassed 1,639 games (sixth all time) over 24 seasons.

Still, his 274 power-play goals remain first in league history. Hey, if there's a goal-scoring category and you're ahead of Wayne Gretzky, that's pretty good, right?

Andreychuk should be applauded for his amazing consistency over the length of his long career. He scored at least 20 goals an astonishing 19 times.

Instead, it feels like he is being punished for playing so long. That's absurd.

The only other thing I can think of is someone in that voting room has something against Andreychuk. There are 18 voters, and you need 14 votes to make the Hall. Is someone actively lobbying to keep Andreychuk out?

It's pure speculation to believe someone has a vendetta against Andreychuk, but it's hard to understand how wings such as Dino Ciccarelli, Pavel Bure and Joe Mullen are in and Andreychuk is not.

The Hall of Fame voters have some explaining to do on this one because it's a travesty that Andreychuk is not in the Hall. Come to think of it, his exclusion is starting to say less about Andreychuk's worthiness and more about the Hall's legitimacy.

TV Land

Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez spent last week on a rehab assignment with Class A Tampa. On one hand, he liked being here because it's New York's spring training home and he's familiar with the surroundings. But he did not like missing the big club on television.

"It's hard because sometimes you don't get the YES Network down here in Tampa," A-Rod said.

You mean he didn't think of swinging by Ferg's or the Press Box?

Great Scott

On the night of June 13, I wrote a column suggesting the Rays call up Wil Myers from the minors. And in order to make room, I also suggested the Rays release Luke Scott (above). Well, the Rays did call up Myers a few days later. Smart move

But they did not release Scott. Smart move, too.

In the 22 games since I called for his release, Scott has gone on a tear: a .386 average (27-for-70) with five home runs, eight doubles, a triple, eight walks, 10 runs and 13 RBIs.

"Yeah, I'm doing all right,'' Scott said after hitting his tape-measure home run Thursday. "I'm feeling pretty good at the plate.

"I'm getting to that point where I'm dialed in.''

Three things that popped into my head

1. Add the White Sox to the list of teams that have Tigers manager Jim Leyland (above) on the warpath. Every time you turn around, Leyland and his team have a beef with someone. Tell you what, Leyland better calm down or one of these days there's going to be a brawl and the Tigers' season is going to go down the tubes because Justin Verlander or Miguel Cabrera gets a separated shoulder or dislocated elbow at the bottom of a pile.

2. I know there has been a bit of a backlash the past week or so. But Dodgers rookie sensation Yasiel Puig is great for baseball, and it's disappointing he will not play in Tuesday's All-Star Game.

3. How long before Dwight Howard quits on the Rockets? Thanksgiving? Christmas?

Tom Jones' two cents

Tampa Bay Times LOADED: 07.14.2013

714321 Toronto Maple Leafs

Two weeks later: The Toronto Maple Leafs

Michael Traikos | 13/07/13 | Last Updated: 13/07/12 7:01 PM ET

The Leafs re-signed top-line centre Tyler Bozak to second-line money (five years, US$21-million).

On the flip side of our Two Weeks to Fix a Franchise series, we look at what each of Canada’s seven teams did during the National Hockey League draft and the beginning of the free agency period to see if the team’s needs have been filled. Next up: the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Two weeks to fix a franchise: Toronto Maple Leafs

What we said they needed:

• A No. 1 centre

• A top-four defenceman

• A winger that could score

• To buy out their bad contracts

• To acquire Randy Carlyle-type players

What they did at the draft: The Leafs selected 6-foot-5 Frederik Gauthier with the No. 21 pick, a safe, two-way centre who has the potential to be the next Keith Primeau, or the next Wayne Primeau. But the team’s big acquisition was poaching third-line centre David Bolland from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for a second- and fourth-round pick and another fourth-rounder in 2014.

What they did before free agency: The Leafs surprised no one by buying out Mike Komisarek. But with Bolland pencilled in as the No. 3 centre, the team used its second buyout on Mikhail Grabovski, an overpaid centre (US$5.5-million) who underperformed offensively and was underused in a shutdown role last season. Grabovski appeared to be a bad fit for coach Randy Carlyle’s system.

What they did when free agency opened: With the US$10-million they saved on Komisarek and Grabovski, the Leafs re-signed top-line centre Tyler Bozak to second-line money (five years, US$21-million) and then won the bidding war for winger David Clarkson (seven years, US$36.75-million). A seven-year contract for a 29-year-old who plays a physical game will likely be something that hurts the Leafs in the long run. But for now, the team gets a player who scored 15 goals for the Devils last season and had 30 in 2011-12. He has also averaged 128 penalty minutes in his career. With Clarkson, Bolland and the return of the so-called Winnipeg Blue Bombers (fourth-line enforcers Colton Orr and Frazer McLaren), Toronto should have no problems leading the league in fighting majors again.

What’s left? The Leafs, who traded for and re-signed restricted free agent Jonathan Bernier to a two-year deal worth US$5.8-million, have about US$10-million remaining to re-sign centre Nazem Kadri and defencemen Carl Gunnarsson, Cody Franson and Mark Fraser.

The wrap: The Leafs might not be as fast or as skilled as the team that finished the 2012-13 season, but they are closer to the team that Carlyle likes to coach. The only question mark now is whether a young and soft defence, which likely will include Jake Gardiner and 2012 first-rounder Morgan Rielly, can physically hold up for 82 games?

Grade: B

National Post LOADED: 07.14.2013

714322 Washington Capitals

Adam Oates: Caps want Tom Wilson to avoid bad habits

By Katie Carrera, Updated: July 13, 2013

Of the prospects who took part in all the scrimmages and drills in Arlington this week, Tom Wilson is the only one with a legitimate shot of being on the Capitals’ roster when the 2013-14 season opens in October.

Where he winds up next season will be one of the more intriguing subplots to watch play out during training camp in September, but Coach Adam Oates knows that this midsummer glimpse at Wilson isn’t a true indication of whether the young winger is ready. Washington did intentionally make development camp a little more challenging for him, though.

“For most of the scrimmages there’s been a couple big defensemen against him on the other side and I don’t think he’s quite used to that, being a big man,” Oates said. “It’s good for him. It’s kept him honest in the games and made him work.”

Oates wants to make sure Wilson continues to push himself forward and even if he ends up back in the Ontario Hockey League next season that he doesn’t take his size – 6-4, 217 pounds – for granted.

While Wilson was wearing a microphone during practice for a team-produced video it picked up an interesting conversation between Oates and the 19-year-old. Oates, well known for advising players to adapt to the dimensions, curvature and other aspects of their stick, suggested that Wilson alter his so that it allows him to be at his full height during play so he can make full use of his size.

“Where he plays he’s such a big man, the one thing that we don’t want is for him to get in lazy habits because he dwarfs everybody over there [in the OHL],” Oates said. “I mentioned Troy Brouwer’s stick – he’s a big man like him and he’s figured it out — so just experiment with it and try to maximize a little bit more.”

Ensuring he doesn’t use his size as a shortcut is the biggest challenge Oates sees for Wilson moving forward, especially if he returns to the Plymouth Whalers next year.

“It’s very difficult. Not trying to compare but a little bit like Eric Lindros, he was so much bigger than everybody in junior he was just cruising around out there,” Oates said. “Tom has that capability, although everyone’s getting a little bigger. We want to make sure he’s on track and any little habit that can help will be great.”

A few other quick notes from the final day of development camp:

>> General Manager George McPhee said he was pleased with their three top picks from the 2013 draft. Andre Burakovsky still needs to add size, which is the main reason why he will take time to develop. Second-round choice Madison Bowey “is what we were hoping for. A little nervous the first day or two but has really settled in and is playing well.”

>> As for Zach Sanford, the late-bloomer the Capitals traded up to take at the draft, there’s a possibility that he will play for Boston College next season rather than spend a year in the USHL before joining the Eagles.

“He’s a big, talented kid just needs time to develop. I think there are some decisions being made there whether he goes right to Boston College or to play in Waterloo.” McPhee said. “It doesn’t matter to us whatever’s best for the player’s development and I’m not sure what it is at this point.”

>> McPhee didn’t single out anyone as the surprise performer of camp, but did offer praise of Riley Barber. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the feature on Barber that runs in Sunday’s dead-tree edition.

“He seems to be better than last year and last year was better than before we drafted him. He’s heavier and he’s a real opportunist,” McPhee said. “He’s real smart away from the puck, and then smart when he gets the puck and can score goals. We like to have guys like that. He’s got a chance to be a national leaguer. He’ll be at Miami this year, we’ll watch him and see how it goes.”

Washington Post LOADED: 07.14.2013

714323 Washington Capitals

Garrett Haar leaving Western Michigan

By Katie Carrera, Updated: July 13, 2013

At the start of Capitals’ development camp this week, Garrett Haar said he was working to improve his grades and would make the most of his junior year at Western Michigan despite being declared academically ineligible for the fall semester.

But by the end of the week Haar had opted leave the Broncos and continue his development in the Western Hockey League, likely with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

“Honestly I just want to be able to play, didn’t want to sit out half the year and I wasn’t in a really good spot at Western,” Haar said Saturday. “I was working toward my degree and trying to get back on track. I just think for my hockey career, to go to the WHL was what I thought was best for me.”

Haar, 19, announced his decision on Twitter Friday, the same day that Western Michigan Coach Andy Murray said the team decided to release the defenseman.

Have decided to leave Western Michigan and go play in the WHL. Medicine Hat tigers seems to be my destination but still not sure. #fresh

— Garrett Haar (@HaarDaddy4) July 12, 2013

“I met with Garrett more in the two years that he was here than I’ve met with any player I’ve ever coached in my career in wanting to help him,” Murray told the Kalamazoo Gazette in Michigan. “We feel for Garrett and his family, but ultimately our team comes first.”

General Manager George McPhee said that the reversal shouldn’t negatively impact the defenseman’s development.

“He was really well coached at Western but it didn’t work out academically so he’s going to go play junior,” McPhee said Saturday. “That won’t hurt, that will be good for his development.”

Haar said it’s not completely certain that he will land with Medicine Hat, which holds his WHL rights. But regardless of the team he does end up with, the California native believes he will be better served where he can play the most games possible.

“I would be playing 20, maybe less games than that if I were to stay at Western,” Haar said. “Playing in the Western League I’m going to go play 72-plus games. Just for the experience and getting some ice time that’s what I thought was best for me.”

Haar, who was a 2011 seventh-round pick, pleasantly surprised the Capitals staff when he first skated at development camp just weeks after being drafted but McPhee said the CHL could boost his progress.

Haar is “not as far along as we had hoped but I think this is going to be really good for him, to play a lot of games at the junior level,” McPhee said. “If you’re not a great student and things aren’t going to go well in college it’s ok to go play junior. If that’s your dream to develop as best you can to try and be a national leaguer. I don’t really think you can go wrong in either place. They both have their pluses and minuses and you have to decide on a case-by-case basis what’s best for a player.”

Washington Post LOADED: 07.14.2013

714324 Vancouver Canucks

New Canucks forward Mike Santorelli hopes homecoming is also a fresh start

Just two seasons removed from a 20-goal campaign, B.C.-born player hopes to rejuvenate his career

By Ben Kuzma, The Province July 13, 2013

Mike Santorelli doesn’t have a go-to shootout move, not even the audacious and controversial spin-a-rama that’s on the endangered list.

What the Vancouver native does have is amazing accuracy in the skills show, with a career 10-for-20 NHL success rate. And it’s just one aspect the forward hopes to showcase in an attempt to rejuvenate his game with the Canucks after agreeing to a one-year, two-way contract July 6.

The right-shot centre can also play wing, and how he plays into Canuck plans will depend on how the mysterious riddle in the middle is solved.

Third-line centre candidates are Jordan Schroeder, Brad Richardson, Brendan Gaunce and even top 2013 draft pick Bo Horvat — or one arriving via a trade — but the versatility in Santorelli’s game could see him at least supplant the departed Andrew Ebbett as the 13th forward.

Then there’s the shootout.

The Canucks were 5-6 last season in shootout-game results and their best efforts came from former centre Maxim Lapierre and winger Chris Higgins, who went 2-for-3, while Alex Burrows was 1-for-7, Alex Edler 0-for-4 and Ryan Kesler 0-for-3.

Factor in re-alignment in a much tougher division with Los Angeles, San Jose, Anaheim and Phoenix and those shootout wins are going to be more crucial. So, what’s the secret to Santorelli’s success?

“Honestly, I’m not sure,” said Santorelli. “I just kind of pick a move and hopefully it works out. When I was in Florida and Winnipeg, the goalie coach would show us clips before the game of the starting goalie and I thought of what I would do and go from there — forehand or backhand but no spin-a-rama.”

At his best, the 27-year-old Santorelli looks like a roster player. He’s two seasons removed from 20 goals and 41 points with the Florida Panthers, where he lined up with David Booth and showed breakaway speed, a deft touch with the puck and a level of confidence that went missing last season.

After just two goals in 24 games, the 6-foot, 190-pound forward was claimed off waivers by the Jets and managed just one assist in 10 games, but won 61 per cent of his faceoffs.

It’s not a big gamble on the Canucks’ part to offer up a $550,000/$250,000 US split contract between the NHL and AHL after the unrestricted free agent earned $1.6 million in each of his previous two years. So, what did the Canucks say about expectations?

“We had a good brief talk and they said just come in and battle for a spot and see if things work out,” said Santorelli. “I’d like to come in and re-establish myself, and that’s the mindset for sure. I like to play a high-tempo game, use my speed and shoot the puck frequently, and I believe I see the ice well.”

Those aspects were there in the 20-goal season, and the video evidence was quite compelling because a confident Santorelli scored at even strength, on the power play and short-handed. There were bursts of speed and good finish.

Jason Garrison was his roommate and the Canucks defenceman believes a good player and even better person is coming this way. Booth and Garrison should ease the transition here, and Santorelli believes a new coach in John Tortorella and a clean slate may give him a leg up because of the way he can play the game. More push. More bite.

“I was getting to those hard areas where goals are scored now — in the crease by battling for position and rebounds,” said Santorelli, who has 33 goals and 59 points in 208 career NHL games.

“I got a lot of goals like that and that’s what you have to do in this type of game now. I feel like I took a step when I went to Winnipeg and re-established myself. I honestly felt like I started well and that my game was starting to turn around for the better, and a bounce here or there would have kick-started things.

“I had a great time there. The game of hockey changes every day — you never know what is going to happen.”

So, what happened in Florida? A good 20-goal season and 16 minutes a night with coach Peter DeBoer and then struggles with Kevin Dineen and down to a dozen minutes?

“I don’t really want to get into it,” he said. “It just wasn’t a good fit and a lot of players go through that. It’s just important to see how you come out of it. Things changed from my first to second year, and I just want to leave it at that.”

For the Burnaby Winter Club grad, who also played in the BCHL for Langley and Vernon, coming home means more than just another NHL shot. There’s family and friends and a renewed focus.

The 178th pick by Nashville in the 2004 draft played three seasons at Northern Michigan in the AHL and even in Sweden during the last lockout with his younger brother, Mark, who was drafted by the Predators in 2007.

“This means a lot,” stressed Santorelli. “As a kid, I always dreamed of having the opportunity to play for the Canucks, as many kids in Vancouver do. I’m very excited and very honoured. I grew up watching them, and it’s a no-brainer that everybody liked Pavel Bure, but another one of my favourites was Markus Naslund. He was so great with the puck and I always remember him on the power play, coming off the half wall and shooting it top corner and far side. A dynamic player to watch, and I enjoyed it.”

The Canucks hope to say the same about Santorelli.

Vancouver Sun: LOADED: 07.14.2013

714325 Websites

FOXSports.com / Q&A with Anaheim Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf

JONATHAN DAVIS

Scott Niedermayer becomes the first Anaheim Ducks player elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Left wing Matt Beleskey re-signs with Ducks

The Ducks on Sunday re-signed left wing Matt Beleskey to a two-year contract extension worth $2.7 million, a hockey official familiar with the deal reported.

Next to the Chicago Blackhawks, the Anaheim Ducks were arguably the biggest surprise during the regular season. Anaheim held down second place in the Western Conference from start to finish, largely in part to the play of their captain Ryan Getzlaf.

After a disappointing 2011 season that saw his numbers dip to 11 goals and 57 points, Getzlaf rebounded with 15 goals and 49 points, almost surpassing the previous season and doing so in 34 less games.

In May, Getzlaf, who makes Southern California his off-season home, made sure he will spend his winters here as well when he signed an 8-year, $66 million contract extension.

Recently, I had a chance to talk to Getzlaf about finishing his career in Anaheim as well as some of the lighter sides of hockey.

JD: Was there ever a thought to test free agency?

RG: "It's always been my goal to be here. I've always envisioned myself playing for one team. Especially this organization. It's been great to me. It's nice to be settled in and know that I'm going to be here for a long time."

JD: What do you remember most about your first game?

RG: "My first game, holy lick. I'm not that young anymore. I don't remember a lot, to tell you the truth. I remember the night before more than anything. I was nervous. Not a lot of sleep. Joffrey Lupul can attest to that."

JD: Last time you were on the wrong end of a bodycheck?

RG: "I got hammered by Bryan Bickell when we played Chicago. He got me good and then Brad Staubitz let Bickell know that hits like that won't be tolerated and they dropped the gloves."

JD: Best practical joke that you were a part of?

RG: "When we sewed the keys into one of my teammates' pockets ... I can't mention any names. Payback sucks!"

JD: One Eastern Conference city you missed playing in this season?

RG: (Laughs) No offense, I did not miss the fact that we did not have to make those East coast trips.

JD: Who is the one teammate that looks like he got dressed in the dark?

RG: Daniel Winnik!

JD: Best Bruce Boudreau tirade?

RG: When he got pissed at us, his ties would be all over the place, flipped around. It was just awesome.

JD: Last concert you went to?

RG: Eric Church or it may have been Jason Aldeen.

JD: If you're not "crashing" on the plane coming back from a road game……

RG: I am not usually sleeping. I'll be playing cards. Nick Bonino has taken me for some good money when we play. He'll be happy to see that in print.

FOXSports.com LOADED: 07.14.2013

714326 Websites

NBCSports.com / Flyers goalie Boucher signs in Switzerland

Joe Yerdon

Jul 13, 2013, 4:00 PM EDT

Nicola Berger of Neue Luzerner Zeitung in Switzerland reports the 36 year-old goalie has signed with EV Zug in the Swiss National League. Boucher reportedly got the nod over former Islanders goalie Rick DiPietro for the job.

Last season, Boucher played four games with the Philadelphia Flyers but also played 16 more with the AHL’s Adirondack Phantoms.

A 13-year NHL veteran, Boucher has had his share of ups and downs after starting his career in Philly back in the 1999-2000 season.

He saw his ability to play threatened two seasons ago with Carolina when he suffered a serious groin injury. Now he’ll join fellow Americans and former NHLers Rob Schremp and Andrew Hutchinson in Switzerland.

NBCSports.com / LOADED: 07.14.2013

714327 Websites

NBCSports.com / Agent: Kovalchuk’s departure won’t lead to Russian exodus

Joe Yerdon

Jul 13, 2013, 2:40 PM EDT

As Stephen Whyno of The Canadian Press shares, many insiders aren’t buying that. Agent Mark Gandler, whose client list includes Alexander Semin and Alex Burmistrov, says guys won’t start leaving in droves.

“I don’t think it’s an epidemic or anything like that,” he said. “I think each person makes his decision based on the circumstances that he’s in, based on his environment, his family, his upbringing.”

Kovalchuk’s choice was to head home and have his family join him there. That hasn’t stopped speculation that he was upset with how much money he lost thanks to taxes and escrow payments. In Russia he can make just as much money as he would in the NHL except it’ll be tax-free there.

As Gandler told Whyno, “The only incentive they can give you, in theory, is money.” That along with a less-busy schedule and thus more family time could just mean that much to him.

NBCSports.com / LOADED: 07.14.2013

714328 Websites

NBCSports.com / Cherry says Kovalchuk is ‘just laughing all the way to the bank’

Joe Yerdon

Jul 13, 2013, 12:46 PM EDT

Grapes’ thoughts in the past on players not from North America have always been lively, to say the least, and his take on Kovalchuk is no different as he told Bryan Angus of NextSportsStar.com. (h/t Puck Daddy)

“The Russians and the foreign people can have their cake and eat it, too,” he said. “They don’t like it here? ‘Hey, I’ll just…go back to the KHL and grab $77 million!’ And hey, why shouldn’t he? Hey, it’s tax free! So right off the top he’s saving 50 percent.

“So that’s why a lot of people are afraid to draft Russians. They do what they want to do and we cater to them. I’m the only guy that says the truth. You know, they have their cake and eat it, too, and Kovalchuk is just laughing all the way to the bank.”

For what you expect to hear from Cherry, this isn’t quite as over the top as it could’ve been. There’s more of the “Russian effect” talk and an “‘atta boy” for Kovalchuk getting paid.

There was one zinger though:

“You’re getting [millions] tax free over there … In a sense, if you don’t have any honor, it’s a pretty good deal.”

NBCSports.com / LOADED: 07.14.2013