FTS - 11/22/08

TOP STORY

BLACK HOLE

Brendan Morrow's season is over

The Dallas Stars announced today that the left wing Brenden Morrow is out indefinitely with a torn ACL in his right knee that will require surgery. He is expected to miss up to six months. The club also recalled right wing Landon Wilson from Grand Rapids (AHL). “We are obviously very disappointed to hear the news about Brenden’s knee,” said Co-General Manager Les Jackson. “As our captain, he will obviously be missed, but we have every assurance that he can and will come back from this injury at 100 percent. There is a lot of hockey left to be played this season, and we are confident our team will rally together and keep pushing.”

Morrow has skated in all 18 of the Stars’ games to date, recording five goals and 10 assists for 15 points with 49 penalty minutes. He placed tied for second on the club in assists and points, second in penalty minutes and tied for fourth in goals.

Just when you thought things couldn't get worse in Dallas, they lose their captain. I know we aren't even in December yet, but the way the Stars are playing this year, factoring in that they play in a competitive division in a tough conference, their season is probably over at this point. That's not to say that a turnaround is impossible, but everything has been going wrong for the Stars this season. It will be interesting to see if Mike Modano becomes the captain again and to see how Dallas responds without their leader.

LAST NIGHT'S RECAP

Boston Bruins (13-3-4) over the Florida Panthers (7-11-1) 4-2

TOP PERFORMER = Bruins G Tim Thomas - 30 saves
-Marc Savard (PPG) and Patrice Bergeron each had a goal and an assist for the Bruins. Phil Kessel scored his 10th goal of the season and David Krejci scored the game winner. David Booth and Ville Peltonen scored the two Florida goals. Panthers G Tomas Vokoun made 35 saves in the loss. Bruins left wing Marco Sturm missed his second straight game because of an upper-body injury and is day-to-day. Friday night marked the Bruins' first Friday night home game since Dec. 23, 1977.

Carolina Hurricanes (11-7-2) over the Phoenix Coyotes (8-9-1) 5-2

TOP PERFORMER = Hurricanes C Eric Staal - 3 goals

-The Coyotes would strike first thanks to a PPG from Kevin Porter. Staal would get the first of his 3 goals to tie things up. Shane Doan would score with just under three minutes remaining in the 1st period to give Phoenix the lead heading in to the intermission. Staal would score the next two goals to put the Hurricanes ahead for good. Ray Whitney would add two goals in the 3rd period (one of them an empty-netter) and Joni Pitkanen would chip in with three assists. Cam Ward made 26 saves in the win while Ilya Bryzgalov made 28 saves in the loss. A comforting stat for the Hurricanes is that they are 7-3-1 when their opponent scores first.

New Jersey Devils (10-7-2) over the New York Islanders (7-10-2) 5-2
TOP PERFORMER = Devils LW Zach Parise - 3 assists

-The Devils controlled this game from the beginning despite two short Islanders threats. David Clarkson (PPG), Travis Zajac, Bryce Salvador, Brian Gionta (SHG) and Paul Martin (PPG) would score the Devils goals while Andy Hilbert and Sean Bergenheim scored the 2 Islanders goals. Devils G Kevin Weekes made 25 saves to earn career victory #100. Brendan Witt returned for the Islanders after missing four weeks because of a sprained knee.Barry Tallackson made his season debut for the Devils following surgery to correct an irregular heartbeat, while John Madden sat out with a foot injury

Philadelphia Flyers (8-6-4) over the Buffalo Sabres (9-7-3) 3-0
TOP PERFORMER = Flyers G Martin Biron - 40 saves (shutout)

-Scott Hartnell, Jeff Carter (2 goals - 1 empty netter) would do the offensive damage for the Flyers in the win. Biron's shutout was his first of the season and his 24th in his career. The Flyers are 3-0-1 in their last four road games. After starting the season 6-0-2, the slumping Sabres (9-7-3) dropped their fourth straight to fall to 1-5-1 in their last seven games.

Tampa Bay Lightning (6-7-6) over the Nashville Predators (9-9-1) 4-1
TOP PERFORMER = Lightning C Vinny Lecavalier (2 goals - 1PPG)
-Lecavalier would score the first two goals for Tampa within a 2:30 span in the first period and that would be all the Lightning would need. Mark Recchi and Vinny Prospal would score the other goals for Tampa and Ryan Malone contributed three assists. G Mike Smith made 34 saves to earn the win. Jordin Tootoo scored the only Predators goal and Dan Ellis made 20 saves in the loss. Rick Tocchet got his first career victory in three tries as a head coach for the Lightning. Tampa Bay C Chris Gratton (lower body) and LW Gary Roberts (upper body) didn't play. D Lukas Krajicek left the game with a lower body injury

St. Louis Blues (7-8-2) over the Anaheim Ducks (10-8-3) 3-2 OT
TOP PERFORMER = Blues RW Lee Stempniak - 1 goal (GW)
-Blues RW David Backes would get St. Louis on the board with a PPG in the 1st period. Ducks winger Chris Kunitz would tie things up in the 3rd period, but Steve Regier would give St. Louis back the lead on the power play. Devils D Scott Niedermayer would scored on the power play with just :01 remaining to force OT. In the OT, Lee Stempniak broke in on Jean-Sebastian Giguere and used Ducks D Chris Pronger as a screen to light the lamp. Manny Legace made 26 saves in the win. Ducks D Bret Hedican became the 14th U.S.-born player to reach 1,000 games. Kariya missed his sixth game with a hip flexor injury and is also not expected to play Saturday at Minnesota.

RUMOR MILL

-We could be getting very close to Michael Nylander heading to Chicago. The Capitals would probably get back D Brent Sopel as well as some others. This could happen this weekend, so stay tuned.

AROUND THE BOARDS

- Mike Komisarek will be out for another four to five weeks. The blue-liner was injured during a fierce fight with the Bruins’ Milan Lucic on Nov. 13 in Boston. The injury is an "upper-body injury" according to the team

-After foot surgery in the summer, three months of rehab and a month of skating, Penguins D Ryan Whitney rejoined his teammates for practice for the first time since the Stanley Cup Final yesterday. He skated on his own and with strength and conditioning coach Mike Kadar for the past month, but is still only in the early stages of a complete return. his return to the lineup is still unknown.

-The Atlanta Thrashers on Friday placed goaltender Kari Lehtonen on the IR, retroactive to October 31. Lehtonen has been sidelined since a 3-2 setback to the Rangers on October 30, first because of illness, and then because of a back ailment. He has struggled this season, going 2-5-2 with a 3.44 goals-against average and .903 save percentage. Atlanta recalled forward Joey Crabb from Chicago (AHL) to take the roster spot.

GAME OF THE NIGHT
Boston Bruins (13-3-4) @ Montreal Canadiens (11-5-2) - 7:30PM

Talk about loads of storylines. First off, legendary goalie Patrick Roy will get his #33 raised to the rafters in Montreal before the game. Secondly, this will be a chance for the Canadiens to gain some ground in the Northeast Division on the Bruins, who currently have a 6 point edge. The Canadiens defeated Boston (13-3-4) for the 12th straight time in the regular season with a 4-3 shootout win on Oct. 15. The Bruins, though, snapped that skid on Nov. 13 by getting two goals each from Marco Sturm and Stephane Yelle in a 6-1 victory. The Bruins are coming off a 4-2 home win over the Panthers while the Canadiens are coming off a 3-2 SO win over Ottawa on Thursday night.

Other Action:
Vancouver (12-6-2) @ Pittsburgh (12-4-3) - 2PM

NY Rangers (14-6-2) @ Ottawa (6-9-4) - 3PM

NY Islanders (7-10-2) @ Buffalo (9-7-3) - 7PM

Phoenix (8-9-1) @ Philadelphia (8-6-4) - 7PM

Chicago (9-4-5) @ Toronto (7-8-4) - 7PM

Columbus (8-8-3) @ Atlanta (7-9-2) - 7PM

Anaheim (10-8-3) @ Dallas (6-9-3) - 8PM

St. Louis (7-8-2) @ Minnesota (11-5-1) - 8PM

Detroit (13-2-3) @ Calgary (11-8-1) - 10PM

Colorado (8-10-0) @ Los Angeles (8-8-2) - 10:30PM

Washington (11-5-3) @ San Jose (16-3-1) - 10:30PM (This is the other Game of the Night)

^ALL TIMES EASTERN

*My weekly power rankings, "PLUS/MINUS", comes out Monday evenings

~Dropping the Gloves with Andrew Bogusch comes our on Wednesday evenings

FEEL FREE TO COMMENT OR EMAIL ANYTIME HERE OR AT FROMTHESLOT@GMAIL.COM

FTS - 11/21/08

TOP STORY

THE SCRAMBLE FOR THE NORTWEST LEAD...

(Photo Credit: Jim Mone - AP)

...and Vancouver would give themselves a 3 point cushion for it.

Vancouver Canucks (12-6-2) over the Minnesota Wild (11-5-1) 3-2

When the Canucks and Wild get together, it's always a game I pay attention two. Just like the Wild's game against the Penguins on Tuesday, these two teams have very contrasting styles of play. Vancouver likes to move the puck a lot and take chances, knowing they have won of the best goalies in the world to protect any mistakes. Minnesota likes to pin team's down and wait for a mistake to come their way to capitalize off of. We had an exhibition in both last night.

The first period looked like Minnesota had made Vancouver play their style of hockey. In the 2nd period, the teams broke even, as Mikko Koivu would score both goals (one of them shorthanded) for the Wild. Steve Bernier and Pavol Demitra (PPG) would get both of Vancouver's goals. This was Demitra's first game back at the Xcel Energy Center (he also had an assist on the game winning goal). In the 3rd period, Daniel Sedin would score the winner halfway through the period and Curtis Sanford would make 28 saves to protect the win. Wild G Nicklas Backstrom made 24 saves in the loss. Henrik Sedin would add two assists for the Canucks.

This was a big win for Vancouver for many reasons. Roberto Luongo started the last 14 games in goal for Vancouver, so to get a solid win with Sanford in net gives the team confidence. Secondly, this was head coach Alain Vigneault's 100th win as Vancouver head coach (100-65-19). Thirdly (if that's a word), it was the 2nd win over Minnesota this season. The Canucks have been playing very good hockey after a rocky start and will close their four game road trip (2-0-1) on Saturday at Pittsburgh.

Minnesota had a three game winning streak snapped. Coincidentally, their last loss came against the Canucks. Minnesota lost for the first time in nine games that Koivu scored a point.The Wild will get a good chance to rebound when they host St. Louis on Saturday night.

RUMOR MILL

-It's no secret that the Senators could use help on the blueline. It looks like they are talking to Calgary to make a deal. Keep your eyes out for that.

LAST NIGHT'S RECAP

New Jersey Devils (9-7-2) over the Florida Panthers (7-10-1) 3-1

TOP PERFORMER = Devils G Scott Clemmensen - 23 saves

-Devils LW Patrick Elias and RW Brian Gionta both played well to earn a goal and an assist each in the win. Paul Martin would add the other Devils goal and Michael Frolik scored the lone Panthers goal on the power play. Panthers D Jassen Cullimore, re-signed about three weeks ago, had to be helped off the ice in the second period after hurting his right knee. He will be evaluated today.

Pittsburgh Penguins (12-4-3) over the Atlanta Trashers (7-9-2) 3-2
TOP PERFORMER = Penguins C Sidney Crosby - 1G 2A

-The Penguins would get the game winner on a Petr Syrkora deflection on the power play off the shot of Sidney Crosby. Miroslav Satan would get the other Penguins goal. Slava Kovlov (PP) and Jim Slater would score the two Atlanta goals. Dany Sabourin made 21 saves in his 2nd straight start while Ondrej Pavelec made 28 saves in the win. The Thrashers are 0-5-2 when scoring two or fewer goals.

Montreal Canadiens (11-5-2) over the Ottawa Senators (6-9-4) 3-2 (SO)

TOP PERFORMER = Carey Price - 23 Saves
-Dany Heatley and Saku Koivu (PPG) would get each of their teams on the board in the 1st period. The teams would remain scoreless in the 2nd period. In the 3rd, Nick Foligno (PPG) and Andrei Markov would trade goals again. In the shootout, Andrei Markov and Alex Tanguay would score in the shootout to get the win. Montreal won for just the third time in its last eight games (3-4-1) since getting off to an 8-1-1 start while Ottawa's losing streak is at six games. Senators center Cody Bass made his season debut on a line with Foligno and Ilya Zubov. Veteran defenseman Luke Richardson did not play for Ottawa.

Chicago Blackhawks (9-4-5) over the Dallas Stars (6-9-3) 6-3

TOP PERFORMER = Blackhawks RW Patrick Kane - 2 goals

-This was the definition of a see-saw game. Dallas would get on the board first in the 1st period thanks to Brendan Morrow. Patrick Kane would get his first goal of the game with a minute to go in the 1st period. In the 2nd period, Chicago and Dallas would alternate goals with the Blackhawks leading 4-3 at the intermission. In the 3rd period, Chicago would pull away with two more goals. Chicago rookie RW Kris Veerstag had a goal and two assists and Nikolai Khabibulin made 31 saves in the win. The Stars have yet to win consecutive games this season and have lost 6 of their past 8. By this date last season, they had done so three times already.

Detroit Red Wings (13-2-3) over the Edmonton Oilers (9-9-2) 4-3

TOP PERFORMER = Red Wings RW Jiri Hudler - 2 goals (one on the PP)

-Detroit would score three goals in the 1st period (Jiri Hudler, Pavel Datsyuk-PP, Tomas Kopecky-PP) and never look back. Andrew Cogliano (PP), Lubomir Visnovsky, and Sheldon Souray(PP) would score the three Edmonton goals. Brian Rafalski and Nicklas Lidstrom would chip in w/ 2 assists each. Chris Osgood would make 31 saves while Dwayne Roloson would be pulled from the game after giving up three goals midway through the 1st period. After winning four of their first six games in the month of November, the Oilers have won just once in their last five games. Shawn Horcoff played in his 500th game for the Oilers.

Calgary Flames (11-8-1) over the Colorado Avalanche (8-10-0) 1-0

TOP PERFORMER = Flames G Miika Kiprusoff - 18 Saves (Shutout)

-Daymond Langkow would get his 5th goal of the season on a set up from Mark Giordano and Jarome Iginla (400th career assist) for the game's lone goal midway through the 2nd period. Peter Budaj would make an impressive 32 saves in the loss. All four of Calgary's wins in the Northwest division have come against Colorado. Colorado lost a one-goal game for the first time since Oct. 14. Avs winger Marek Svatos sustained an abdominal injury in the 2nd period and didn't play in the third. Head Coach Tony Granato said he didn't know the severity of the injury. Avalanche C Joe Sakic missed his fourth straight game and fifth in the last six with a back injury. He could return to the lineup Saturday at Los Angeles.

Los Angeles Kings (8-8-2) over the Washington Capitals (11-5-3) 5-2

TOP PERFORMER = Kings RW Dustin Brown - 1 goal (PPG & GW goal) and 1 assist

-This game was a lot closer than the score indicates because the last two goals were empty-netters. Los Angeles keep the pressure on Caps G Brent Johnson all night long, firing 31 shots on net. Kings C Michael Handzus also had a goal and an assist in the win. New Kings G Erik Ersberg, has been impressive. He has made eight straight starts and has allowed an average of 2 goals a game during that stretch. Alexander Semin, the Capitals' leading scorer, missed his third consecutive game because of an undisclosed upper-body injury, and Sergei Fedorov missed his seventh straight with a sprained ankle. Alex Ovechkin still has yet to score a goal against the Los Angeles Kings in his career. The other teams he hasn't scored against are the San Jose Sharks and the Minnesota Wild, which happen to be Washington's next two opponents.

AROUND THE BOARDS

- Anaheim Ducks D Francois Beauchemin underwent surgery Thursday to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He is expected to be sidelined about six months. Beauchemin was injured during a 4-3 overtime loss to Nashville on Nov. 14. He will be placed on long-term IR. Beauchemin had four goals and one assist in 18 games this season and was tied for the second-most playing time on the team.

- St. Louis Blues D Erik Johnson, out for the season after injuring his knee during a pre-season team golf outing in September, had surgery to repair a damaged ligament. Johnson, the first overall pick of the 2006 draft, is expected to be ready for training camp next season. He tore two ligaments when his foot got stuck in a golf cart.

-Minnesota reassigned goalie Nolan Schaefer to Houston(AHL). He was recalled on an emergency basis after Josh Harding missed Tuesday's pre-game skate because of a lower-body injury.

-An excellent article in the Globe & Mail about the affect of the economy on the NHL Players Salaries: http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081119.wspt_shoalts20/GSStory/GlobeSportsHockey/home

-Top pospect John Tavares could be traded within the OHL:

http://fans.nhl.com/groups/NHLcoms_2009_NHL_Entry_Draft_Prospect_Blog/blogs/24264

GAME OF THE NIGHT

New York Islanders (7-9-2) @ New Jersey Devils (9-7-2) - 7PM

Lets face it, there are no real BIG match-ups tonight. However, Islanders-Devils is an intriguing one. Both teams are without their starting goaltenders (Rick DiPietro for the Islanders, Martin Brodeur for the Devils). Joey MacDonald has done very well for the Islanders in DiPietro's absence while the Devils replacements struggled in net (Kevin Weekes and Scott Clemmensen, but Clemmensen is beginning to come on). The Isles have surged a bit lately while the Devils have struggled. Oh, and they are division rivals, too. The Islanders will get their most physical defenseman back Friday as Brendan Witt returns after missing four weeks with a sprained knee. Witt will keep close watch on New Jersey's Zach Parise, who has four goals and three assists in his last six games against the Islanders. New York is 7-2-1 in the last 10 meetings, but both regulation losses have come at New Jersey. (See, now it's intriguing)

Other Action:

Florida (7-10-1) @ Boston (12-3-4) - 7PM
Phoenix (8-8-1) @ Carolina (10-7-2) - 7PM
Philadelphia (7-6-4) @ Buffalo (9-6-3) - 7:30PM
Nashville (9-8-1) @ Tampa Bay (5-7-6) - 7:30PM
Anaheim (10-8-2) @ St. Louis (6-8-2) - 8:30PM

^ALL TIMES EASTERN

*My weekly power rankings, "PLUS/MINUS", comes out Monday evenings

~Dropping the Gloves with Andrew Bogusch comes our on Wednesday evenings

FEEL FREE TO COMMENT OR EMAIL ANYTIME HERE OR AT FROMTHESLOT@GMAIL.COM

FTS - 11/20/08

TOP STORY

SABRES MAULED IN BEANTOWN

(Photo Credit: Boston Globe)

Bruins pull away late in their 2nd home win over Buffalo this season

Boston Bruins (12-3-4) over the Buffalo Sabres (9-6-3) 7-4

Going in to the 2008-09 season, the talk of the Northeast was the powerhouse Montreal Canadiens and the young and speedy Buffalo Sabres. Fans, experts, bloggers (including myself) forgot how well Boston played Montreal in the 7 game-1st round series last year, and we're getting a big reminder of it now. The Bruins have been making their case for being the best team in the division since the beginning of the season, and they are doing it well right now.

Buffalo played very well in the first period of this game. Jason Pominville, Derek Roy, and Thomas Vanek (2 goals - one on the PP) got on Manny Fernandez early in the game to give the Sabres a 4-3 lead after the 1st period. Chuck Kobasew, David Krejci and Marc Savard would all score to keep Boston in the game. Buffalo wouldn't score another goal for the rest of the game. Zdeno Chara scored two PP goals and Chuck Kobasew added his 2nd goal of the game to give Boston a 6-4 lead after the 2nd period. Phil Kessel would give the Bruins a three-goal cushion early in the 3rd period to give Boston a 2-0-1 record against the Sabres this season.

After a hot start, the Sabres have lost three in a row and five of their past six. They have allowed at least three goals in all of those games (their only win being a 4-3 home win over the lowly Blues) and Ryan Miller has allowed 22 goals in the last five games he has started (he's 1-3-1 during that stretch) after recording back-to-back shutouts in his previous two starts. The lone bright spot for Buffalo right now is that Jason Pominville is heating up with a goal scored in four straight games. The Sabres have a four game homestand coming up to right the ship. First up is the Philadelphia Flyers tomorrow night.

The Bruins have now won six straight at home and won for the seventh time in the past eight games. Their last regulation loss was Oct. 30 in Calgary and they'vescored 31 goals in their last eight games. C Marc Savard had a 1G 3A night and registered career point #600 in the process while Patrice Bergeron earned career point #200 with his first of two assists in the game. Up next for the Bruins is the Panthers at home tomorrow night. After that, they go on a two game road trip at Montreal and Buffalo. If they win those two games, they've officially taken the title of Northeast Division favorites. (BTW, I know I'm getting ahead of myself here, but how great would it be to have a Sharks-Bruins Stanley Cup Finals with Joe Thornton going against his old team?)

For more on this, NHL/AP Link: http://www.nhl.com/ice/recap.htm?id=2008020268

RUMOR MILL

-Mats Sundin could be back and playing as early as the first week in December. Toronto, the Rangers, Montreal and Washington appear to be the contenders for his services.

LAST NIGHT'S RECAP

Vancouver Canucks (11-6-2) over the New York Rangers (14-6-2) 6-3

TOP PERFORMER = Canucks LW Andrew Burrows - 2G (1 of them was shorthanded)

-The Rangers were never in this game from the start. Kyle Wellwood scored a sweet goal on Henrik Lundqvist early in the game, Andrew Burrows would score four minutes later, and Vancouver would never look back. Pavol Demitra would add a PPG, Mattias Ohlund added 3 assists, and Roberto Luongo made a season-high 39 saves in the road win. Ranger fans got a rare sight when Henrik Lundqvist was pulled from the game in the 2nd period. He gave up more than two goals in a start for the first time since Oct. 18 against Detroit. The Burrows SH goal was the 7th SH goal the Rangers have allowed this season. They allowed six all of last season.

Washington Capitals (11-4-3) over the Anaheim Ducks (10-8-2) 6-4

TOP PERFORMER = Capitals LW Alexander Ovechkin (1G, 3A)

-Washington would jump out to a 3-0 lead in the 1st period (Fleischmann & Green on the PP and Backstrom), but Anaheim would battle right back to cut it to a 3-2 lead by the end of the 1st period. Washington would add two more in the 2nd period and 1 more in the 3rd period. Ducks RW Bobby Ryan would score two goals and an assist in the loss. The Caps are 15-0-1 in the last 16 games in which Ovechkin has scored.

AROUND THE BOARDS

-The Columbus Blue Jackets placed D Rostislav Klesla on the IR yesterday. Klesla injured his wrist in last Friday's 6-1 win at Buffalo and is expected to be sidelined at least one week. Klesla has one goal and two assists with eight penalty minutes in 11 games with the Blue Jackets this season.

-The Ottawa Senators recalled Cody Bass from Binghamton (AHL). Bass, who began the 2008-09 season with Ottawa, has one goal and an assist in 16 games with Binghamton this season. He is in his second NHL season and third pro.

GAME OF THE NIGHT
Vancouver Canucks (11-6-2) @ Minnesota Wild (11-4-1) - 8PM

Tonight is the 2nd meeting between the two Northwest Division favorites. They met earlier this month in Vancouver and Roberto Luongo made 29 saves to earn the 2-0 shutout win. Luongo stopped a season-high 39 shots in a 6-3 victory over the New York Rangers. In the other net, Nicklas Backstrom has helped Minnesota to shootout wins in each of his last two starts. On Saturday, he stopped both shooters he faced to help the Wild notch a 3-2 victory over Columbus. Tonight will also be Pavol Demitra's first game against his former club. He played with Minnesota from 2006-08, totaling 40 goals and 78 assists, but also missed 25 games with various injuries. Demitra didn't play against the Wild earlier this month due to a rib contusion that sidelined him for 10 games.

Other Action:
Florida (7-9-1) @ New Jersey (8-7-2) - 7PM

Pittsburgh (11-4-3) @ Atlanta (7-8-2) - 7PM

Montreal (10-5-2) @ Ottawa (6-9-3) - 7:30PM

Chicago (8-4-5) @ Dallas (6-8-3) - 8:30PM

Detroit (12-2-3) @ Edmonton (9-8-2) - 9PM

Calgary (10-8-1) @ Colorado (8-9-0) - 9PM

Washington (11-4-3) @ Los Angeles (7-8-2) - 10:30PM

^ALL TIMES EASTERN

*My weekly power rankings, "PLUS/MINUS", comes out Monday evenings

~Dropping the Gloves with Andrew Bogusch comes out tonight!

FEEL FREE TO COMMENT OR EMAIL ANYTIME HERE OR AT FROMTHESLOT@GMAIL.COM

DROPPING THE GLOVES w/ ANDREW BOGUSCH - 11/19/08

Lightning co-owner Oren Koules knows a thing or two about movies, but even he wouldn’t green-light the comedy that’s being shot in Tampa Bay as we speak.

Willy-nilly offseason spending. Hiring a coach who hadn’t coached since the mid-90s, then firing him after less than two months. An owner possibly diagramming plays in the locker room. Unfairly making a teenaged rookie the new face of the franchise. It could be called “Dumb and Dumbererer”, but even those guys were smarter than this.

Last Friday, Barry Melrose was made the scapegoat for the team’s 5-7-4 start. And while he surely deserves some of the blame, this is mostly about Koules and partner Len Barrie, a former player who made his fortune in real estate. It was them who bought Melrose from ESPN in the first place – BEFORE hiring a general manager (Brian Lawton, who had no previous front office experience, did not come aboard until June 25th). It was them who wanted to move stud defensemen Dan Boyle because of his contract. It was them who OK’d big money deals for Ryan Malone and Radim Vrbata, plus the addition of Gary Roberts.

Those three have combined for six goals, four assists, a minus-7, and over $7.5 million dollars against the salary cap. It was Koules and Barrie who approved all of those free agent acquisitions while ignoring the team’s most glaring weakness, even before moving Boyle to San Jose – the blueline. Paul Ranger and Andrej Meszaros are quality, but there is little further down the depth chart. As any Ranger fan will tell you, Marek Malik is not the answer.

Many consider Matt Carle a future star, but he was inexplicably traded earlier this month (and has proceeded to play very strong hockey in Philadelphia). The Lightning have now essentially traded Boyle and a serviceable Brad Lukowich for the enigmatic Steve Eminger, the hot-headed Steve Downie, prospect Ty Wishart and two draft picks.

The offseason overhaul was meant to give Melrose a competitive roster. The in-season one has tried to address the summer mistakes. Neither is working – and that can’t be all on Melrose. Lawton told NHL Radio’s NHL Live Monday that playing style was the main issue with Melrose. The club wanted the Lightning to play more of an up-tempo game. Did Melrose’s philosophy not come up during his interview(s)? Shouldn’t Koules and/or Barrie have double-checked that Melrose’s on-ice product would match their hopes for their club?

It has been reported that Vinny Lecavalier went to management and asked for Melrose’s dismissal. It is believed some players never considered Melrose more than a TV guy taking a silly stab at coaching again. If that’s all true, in particular the clout Lecavalier has in the front office, why wasn’t he consulted on the head coaching search in the first place? The players certainly had their misgivings about Melrose long before his training camp practice.

In the end, Melrose is lucky to be out of this mess. It’s likely only to get worse as Lawton and his owners continue to haphazardly tweak a now mediocre roster. Good luck, Rick Tocchet. If only someone could yell cut...

* * *

The Shootout…The Rangers and Senators will play in Ottawa Saturday afternoon. Certain members of the Blueshirts will be out for blood from Jarkko Ruutu. He’s been on the franchise’s hit list since the last Olympics for a hit-from-behind on Jaromir Jagr. Most recently, Ruutu took runs at Brandon Dubinsky and Marc Staal Monday night at MSG. He also shot the puck at Henrik Lundqvist after missing during the shootout. The unfortunate thing is, Ruutu will not oblige Colton Orr, Aaron Voros or Paul Mara with a fight. He’s never felt the need to drop the gloves to validate his style of play. If you’re going to run around the rink recklessly, have the pucks to take a punch.

The Senators, meanwhile, need a change. We’ve been talking for too long about a lack of secondary scoring. Free agency and player development have yet to produce support for Spezza-Heatley-Alfredsson. It’s time to pull the trigger on a Jason Spezza trade. He’s the easiest of the Big 3 to move. Chicago, for instance, wants another center and has some attractive pieces up front. Sure, Spezza could explode playing with Patrick Kane or Patrick Sharp or whomever, but it is simply not working now in Ottawa. Management already made its coaching change, now it’s time for a roster overhaul.

FTS 11/19/08

TOP STORY

PENGUINS SLIP AT SIX

(Photo Credit: Gene J. Puskar - AP)

Nicklas Backstrom and the Wild end the Penguins winning streak at six games

Minnesota Wild (11-4-1) over the Pittsburgh Penguins (11-4-3) 2-1 (SO)

When I saw this game on the schedule, I knew this was a must-watch. Minnesota is arguably the best defensive team in the league (and wins a lot of games that way) and the Penguins are arguable the best offensive team in the league. It's not often someone can beat the Penguins by only scoring one regulation goal, but Minnesota managed to pull it off at Mellon Arena.

Mikko Koivu would open the scoring with his 3rd goal of the season about 8 minutes in to the 1st period. Matt Cooke tied the game up for Pittsburgh only 10 seconds later. That would be the end of the scoring for the night until the shootout. D Marek Zidlicky would score the lone shootout goal to get Minnesota the road win. Wild G Nicklas Backstrom and Penguins G Dany Sabourin each made 24 saves in the game (both faced some really tough shots). Backstrom is 3-0 in shootouts this season. Evgeni Malkin's 13-game assist streak ended when he was held without a point. Since 1998, the only NHL player to record an assist streak of more than 13 games was Jaromir Jagr, who had assists in each of 16 consecutive games for Pittsburgh in January/February 2001.

The Wild have now won 3 in a row and look to build on that winning streak tomorrow when they begin a 5-game homestand against Vancouver. The way the Northwest is looking, the Wild-Canucks games will probably decide the division champion. The Penguins will try and start a new winning streak when they travel to Atlanta to play the Thrashers tomorrow night.

For more on this, NHL/AP Link: http://www.nhl.com/ice/recap.htm?id=2008020262

OTHER HEADLINES

-Just when you thought things couldn't get worse in Ottawa, C Mike Fisher and forward Chris Neil are both nursing knee injuries suffered during a weekend road trip to New York. Head Coach Craig Hartsburg said it's "probably not realistic" that either will suit up against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night at Scotiabank Place. Both were awaiting medical reports later this afternoon.

RUMOR MILL

-Brian Burke becoming the GM of the Maple Leafs sounds like it's getting closer and closer. Keep in mind that Burke and Leafs HC Ron Wilson are pals and that will only help things. Staying with the Leafs, don't be shocked if Mats Sundin ends up back in the Air Canada Centre after his whole saga.

-Brendan Shanahan to the Flyers isn't the lock it was a couple of weeks ago (apparantly it's $ issues). Expect Shanny to sign somewhere soon though.

LAST NIGHT'S RECAP

Carolina Hurricanes (10-7-2) over the Montreal Canadiens (10-5-2) 2-1
TOP PERFORMER = Hurricanes LW Sergei Samsonov - 1G (GWG)

-The Canadiens scored in the 2nd period (Robert Lang on the PP) but couldn't hold on thanks to goals from Ray Whitney and Sergei Samsonov. Carey Price made 46 saves in the loss (career high) while Cam Ward made 28 saves for the Hurricanes, who have won two straight after dropping three in a row.

Edmonton Oilers (9-8-2) over the Columbus Blue Jackets (8-8-3) 7-2
TOP PERFORMER = Oilers G Dwayne Roloson - 37 saves

-The Oilers jumped out to a 3-0 lead midway through the 1st period and never looked back. Ales Hemsky had a goal and two assists for Montreal while Ales Hemsky chipped in with three assists. Rick Nash had a goal and an assist in the loss. Edmonton won despite Columbus outshooting them 39-19.

Florida Panthers (7-9-2) over the Tampa Bay Lightning (5-7-6) 4-3 (SO)

TOP PERFORMER = Panthers D Bryan McCabe - 2 Goals (1 on the PP)

-The Lightning would rally from a 3-0 deficit to lose in the shootout. Nathan Horton scored the lone shootout goal. Panthers G Tomas Vokoun made 49 saves for the win while Mike Smith stopped 33 pucks for the loss. Lightning D Steve Eminger had a goal and two assists.

Calgary Flames (10-8-1) over the Colorado Avalanche (8-9-0) 4-1
TOP PERFORMER = Avs G Peter Budaj - 49 Saves

-This game was a lot closer than the score would indicate as the Flames added an empty netter (Jarome Iginla) and a PPG (David Moss) within the last minute. Flames D Adrian Aucoin would have a goal and an assist in the win. Miikka Kiprusoff made 22 saves to improve Calgary to 2-0 against Colorado this season.

Chicago Blackhawks (8-4-5) over the Phoenix Coyotes (8-8-1) 3-2 (SO)

TOP PERFORMER = Blackhawks RW Patrick Sharp - 1G and the SO winning goal
-Chicago would score the first two goals (Kris Versteeg and Sharp) in the 1st period. Phoenix would rally back with PP goals from Zbynek Michalek and Shane Doan. Chicago G Nikoali Khabibulin made 36 saves in the win while Ilya Bryzgalov made 38 saves in the loss. Doan played in his 900th NHL career game, all with the Phoenix-Winnipeg franchise. Chicago improved to 2-5 in overtime.

AROUND THE BOARDS

-The Blues claimed forward B.J. Crombeen off waivers from the Dallas Stars on Tuesday. The 23-year-old Crombeen had a goal and four assists, along with 26 penalty minutes, in 15 games with Dallas this season.

-The Detroit Red Wings placed forward Darren McCarty on waivers on Tuesday. McCarty, 36, signed a one-year contract with the Wings in the offseason after re-joining the club last winter and helping lead the team to its fourth Stanley Cup in 11 years. He returned to Detroit after stints with the American Hockey League's Grand Rapids Griffins and the International Hockey League's Flint Generals. McCarty played for Detroit from 1993 to 2004, helping the team win Stanley Cups in 1997, 1998 and 2002. He scored one goal in 10 games this season.

-The Minnesota Wild waived defenceman Tomas Mojzis.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Buffalo Sabres (9-5-3) @ Boston Bruins (11-3-4) - 7PM

The Bruins have won 9 of their past 11 and are going for 6 straight tonight against their division rivals. One of those victories was a 3-1 home win over Buffalo on Nov. 8, as the Bruins peppered Sabres goalie Ryan Miller with 40 shots while Fernandez made 32 saves of his own. Buffalo has dropped four of its last five, allowing 22 goals over that span. Since earning back-to-back shutouts earlier this month against Washington and New Jersey to start November, Miller is 1-2-1 with a 3.75 GAA in his last four starts. He's typically played much better against Boston, going 12-4-4 with a 2.49 GAA in his career against the Bruins. This might surprise you when I say this, but Boston needs this game more than Buffalo does. Boston will only have one home game remaining against Buffalo the rest of the way and need to take advantage of it.

Other Action:

Vancouver (10-6-2) @ NY Rangers (14-5-2) - 7:30PM

Washington (10-4-3) @ Anaheim (10-7-2) - 10PM

^ALL TIMES EASTERN

*My weekly power rankings, "PLUS/MINUS", comes out Monday evenings

~Dropping the Gloves with Andrew Bogusch comes out tonight!

FEEL FREE TO COMMENT OR EMAIL ANYTIME HERE OR AT FROMTHESLOT@GMAIL.COM

PLUS/MINUS - 11/17/08

(Sorry for the delay in posting this. I had some plumbing issues in my apt last night)

PLUS/MINUS is my weekly Power Rankings Column. The + or – is based on the previous weeks rankings

PLUS/MINUS Brian Boucher is giving the Sharks all they need while Evgeni Nabokov is injured

1) San Jose Sharks {15-3-1} (EVEN)

2-0-1 week (OT loss vs. Nashville, win vs. Calgary, win @ Chicago)

For the 2nd week in a row, how can anyone say anyone is better than this team right now.

2) Detroit Red Wings {11-2-2} (EVEN)

2-0-1 week (OTL vs. PIT, wins @ Tampa and @ Florida)

They are playing strong hockey and beating the teams they should (which is almost all of them)

3) New York Rangers {13-5-2} (EVEN)

2-0 week (win @ NJ, shootout vs. Boston)

A very strong week, but they need to stop sleep-walking through the first 2 periods of games and then finding ways to win late. It's okay to do that from time to time, but sometimes you need to beat a team from beginning to end.

4) Boston Bruins {10-3-4} (+1)

2-1 week (won @ Chicago, vs. Montreal, SO loss @ NYR)

The Bruins had a 5 game win streak going before the Rangers game and have won 8 of their past 10. Easily the hottest team in the East.

5) Pittsburgh Penguins {11-4-2} (+3)

3-0 week (OTW @ Detroit, SO win vs. Philly, win vs. Buffalo)

Meet the 2nd hottest team in the East. The Penguins have won 6 in a row and are getting that same look and chemistry that they rode right through the playoffs.

6) Minnesota Wild {10-4-1} (+1)

2-0 week (Shutout win vs. Phoenix, Shoot out win vs. Columbus)

Minnesota is that really good team that's flying under the radar right now. They are a frustrating team to play against.

7) Montreal Canadiens {10-4-2} (-3)

2-2 week (won vs Ottawa, lost @ Boston, lost vs. Philly, shootout win @ St. Louis)

There's no doubt Montreal can be the best team in the league, but Carey Price needs to be more consitent in net and the offense needs to wake up a little.

8) Anaheim Ducks {10-7-2} (+1)

1-1-1 week (lost vs. Florida, OTL vs. Nashville, shutout win @ Los Angeles)

An average week for a team that is still playing solid hockey. Losing D Francois Beachuemin hurts them, but Bret Hedican will be able to contribute in his absence.

9) Washington Capitals {10-4-3} (+4)

2-0-1 week (won @ Carolina, vs. NJ, OTL @ NJ)

It's funny what happens to a team when they get Alexander Ovechkin back in the lineup. With Carolina slumping, Washington is taking full advantage of it. If Jose Theodore can find his game, look out.

10) Vancouver Canucks {10-6-1} (+1)

1-0-1 week (shootout loss vs. Colorado, win vs. Toronto)

The Canucks are getting a solid balance of offense, defense, and goaltending right now. They have a four game road trip coming up to prove their merit on the road.

11) Buffalo Sabres {9-5-3} (-5)

1-2 week (won vs. St. Louis, lost vs. Columbus, lost @ Pittsburgh)

The former hottest team in East has cooled off.They have a huge game in Boston on Wednesday night to right the ship before a four game homestand.

12) Carolina Hurricanes {9-7-2} (EVEN)

1-2 week (lost vs. Washington, lost @ Atlanta, shootout win vs. Tampa Bay)

It was not a great week for Carolina, but their two losses were to teams that were on a roll. Once Eric Staal gets back to form, the Hurricanes will be fine.

13) Nashville Predators {9-7-1} (+8)

3-0 week (OT wins @ San Jose & Anaheim, win @ LA)

Talk about an up and down team. They went 0-3 and were badly outplayed in the first half of their road trip and rebounded with 3 strong wins. This is a team that will probably hang around the 5-8 spots in the West all year long.

14) Chicago Blackhawks {7-4-5} (-5)

0-1-2 week (shootout loss vs. Boston, OT loss vs St. Louis, lost vs. San Jose)

A very tough week for a team who is playing solid hockey. All of their losses this week were decided by one goal. We haven't seen the best of this team yet.

15) Columbus Blue Jackets {8-7-3} (+1)

1-1-1 week (lost vs. Phoenix, won @ Buffalo, shootout loss @ Minnesota)

Columbus is playing smart, fundamental hockey right now. If they can step it up just a bit, they will be in the hunt for a playoff spot in the stretch run.

16) Calgary Flames {9-8-1} (-2)

1-1-0 week (won vs. Toronto, lost @ San Jose)

Calgary looked really bad against San Jose and has lost 3 of their past 4. I have a feeling this team will cycle between hot and bad all year long.

17) Toronto Maple Leafs {7-7-4} (+1)

1-2-0 week (lost @ Calgary, won @ Edmonton, lost @ Vancouver)

Their western Canada road swing went as you would expect from the Leafs right now. It looks like they will be that team that is the best of the non-playoff contenders.

18) Edmonton Oilers {8-7-1} (-1)

0-1-1 week (lost vs. Toronto, OT loss vs. Colorado)

The Oilers are still trying to find their way. In their last 8 games, they've won 2, lost 2, won 2, lost 2.

19) New Jersey Devils {8-7-2} (-5)

1-2 week (lost vs. NYR, lost @ Washington, shootout win vs. Washington)

I like Kevin Weekes as a backup, but this team desperately needs to make a run at Nikolai Khabibulin or Dwayne Roloson

20) Philadelphia Flyers {7-6-4} (+8)

3-1 week (won @ NYI, shootout loss @ Pittsburgh, won @ Montreal, won vs. Atlanta)

This is another team that has really hot and really cold streaks. Their upcoming schedule will provide them a chance to higher above the .500 waterlevel.

21) Phoenix Coyotes {8-8-0} (-1)

1-2 week (won @ Columbus, shutout loss @ Minnesota, loss vs. Dallas)

A 3 game win streak ended for this team against two teams that match-up well against Phoenix. They get a good home test against Chicago before setting out for a 4 game road trip.

22) Atlanta Thrashers {7-8-2} (+1)

1-1 week (won vs. Carolina, lost @ Philly)

The Thrashers righted the ship with a 5 game winning streak before ending in Philly. They are still a game under .500 but are playing solid hockey. If their goaltending stays consistent, they can move up the standings a little bit.

23) Los Angeles Kings {7-8-2} (EVEN)

2-2 week (shootout win vs. Dallas, win @ Dallas, lost vs. Nashville, shutout loss @ Anaheim)

The Kings are playing better hockey and it's showing in their record. Erik Ersberg is playing really well in net for LA and should officially be the starter in the Staples Center.

24) New York Islanders {6-9-2} (+2)

2-1 week (lost vs. Philly, won @ Ottawa, won vs. Ottawa)

After a very rough start to the season, the Isles are finally getting some consistent offensive play. Joey MacDonald has been really good between the pipes while the Isles decide if it's worth making a movie for a goalie this year or not. The home and home sweep of the Senators was only their 2nd set of back to back wins this year.

25) Ottawa Senators {6-9-2} (-6)

0-3 week (lost @ Montreal, lost vs. NYI, lost @ NYI)

Ottawa's season got off to a rough start. Then they went on a steak of winning 4 of 5 and looked like the Senators teams of the past few years. Now it has crashed and they are in the midst of a 4 game losing streak. Look for some trades to happen here soon.

26) Colorado Avalanche {8-8-0} (+1)

2-0 week (2-1 shoout win @ Vancouver, 3-2 shootout win @ Edmonton)

I need to see more consistent winning from this team before I move them back up too high. They've won three in a row and are beginning to get the same momentum we saw when they got their 5 game winning streak going. Peter Budaj has continued to improve, but needs to do it at a quicker pace.

27) Dallas Stars {6-8-3} (-2)

1-1-1 week (shootout loss @ LA, lost vs. LA, won @ Phoenix)

I think it would be tough to make a case for anyone else being more disappointing than the Stars this season. Their offense hasn't been great, but the problems start with Marty Turco. Dallas made a minor deal by acquiring Darryl Sydor for Phillipe Boucher, but they will need to do a lot more than that to jolt this team back in the upper-echelon of the Western Conference.

28) St. Louis Blues {6-8-2} (+1)

1-1-1 week (lost @ Buffalo, won @ Chicago in OT, shootout loss to Montreal)

A pretty ho hum week for St. Louis. They have some decent talent on this team but it's taking time for them to develop. Losing Andy McDonald for 8 weeks will keep this team hurting more than they already are. Manny Legace is slowly improving with each start since returning from injury.

29) Florida Panthers {5-8-1} (EVEN)

1-1 week (won vs. Tampa Bay, lost vs. Detroit)

They took care of business against their cross-state rivals and played Detroit very tough. Florida improved their league worst PP to 2nd worst (12.7%) but need to continue the trend at a quicker pace. How soon will it be until Jay Bouwmeester is out the door in Sunrise?

30) Tampa Bay Lightning {5-7-5} (-8)

0-3-1 week (lost @ Washington, lost @ Florida, lost vs. Detroit, shootout loss @ Carolina)

The Lightning aren't the worst team in the NHL, but right now they are certainly playing the part. If firing the head coach (Barry Melrose) doesn't shake things up, it can be a long, hard road out of the basement for a team with so much talent. Rick Tocchet wanting to open up their playing style should help this team once everyone gets on the same page.

BIGGEST GAINER = Nashville Predators and Philadelphia Flyers (+8)

BIGGEST LOSER = Tampa Bay Lightning (-8)

-15 Teams Moved Up

-9 Teams Moved Down

-6 Teams Remained Even

FTS 11/18/08

TOP STORY

SENATORS SLIDE CONTINUES
(Photo Credit: Thomas A. Ferrara - Newsday)

Henrik Lundqvist stones Antoine Vermette in another close win

New York Rangers (14-5-2) over the Ottawa Senators (6-9-3) 2-1 (SO)

Things are getting real bad in Ottawa real fast. They have now lost five in a row and with their upcoming schedule, it's not going to get any easier. Ottawa has scored two goals or less in 12 of 18 games this season and had their five game winning streak @ MSG snapped.

Daniel Alfredsson would get the Senators on the board first in the 2nd period on a set up from Dany Heatley and Alexandre Picard. In the 3rd period, Frederik Sjostrom would things up to force OT. Nikolai Zherdev would score the only goal in the shootout and Henrik Lundqvist to give the Rangers their 2nd straight shootout win and 3rd win in a row. This was Rangers D Wade Redden's first game against his old team.

Henrik Lundqvist improved to a league best 12 wins and has clearly been the Rangers MVP this season. The Rangers are winning a lot of close games, and he has been the difference every time. Lundqvist has allowed two goals or less in 12 straight games. The Rangers have allowed two or fewer goals in 16 of their 21 games this season (13-2-1). It's only the second time in the NHL's modern era (since 1943-44, when the center red line was introduced) that they allowed no more than two goals in at least 15 of their first 20 games of a season. They did that 15 times in 1957-58.

If there was ever a case of team's going in opposite directions, last night's game was a textbook example of it. It's still early in the season, but it looks like the Rangers will be a top 3 team in the East throughout the season. For Ottawa, they need a shake up quick before they fall further in to the abyss. The Rangers next game is Wednesday night when they host Vancouver while the Senators are off until Thursday when they host the Canadiens.

For more on this, NHL/AP Link: http://www.nhl.com/ice/recap.htm?id=2008020258

OTHER HEADLINES

-The NHL named it's 3 Stars of the Week

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=392914

-The NHL is cracking down on hits to the head even more:

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=256270&lid=sublink06&lpos=headlines_nhl

-St. Louis center Andy McDonald is expected to be sidelined eight weeks after breaking his left leg during a 3-2 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday. Blues coach Andy Murray said Monday that McDonald was hurt when he crashed into the corner boards late in the first period. MRI results revealed no further damage and surgery is not required. He isn't expected back until at least mid-January. "I was kind of right there. I just heard him screaming and you could tell," said winger Brad Boyes, who has played regularly on the top line with McDonald. "He was in agonizing pain. You could tell right away something was wrong." McDonald, who leads the Blues with 18 points, had scored five goals in five games prior to Sunday. He appeared to be avoiding taking a stick to the face when he suddenly buckled awkwardly into the corner and went down immediately. He had to be helped off the ice and did not put any weight on his left leg.

RUMOR MILL

-It's sounding like the Brian Burke-Toronto Maple Leafs relationship is beginning to develop. Nothing official yet, but expect both parties to begin talking about the GM spot soon.

LAST NIGHT'S RECAP

New York Islanders (7-9-2) over the Vancouver Canucks (10-6-2) 2-1

-Pavol Demitra would get the Canucks on the board less than a minute in to the game, but that would be the end of the Canucks offensive day. Doug Weight would tie things up for the Isles on the power play in the 2nd period and Frans Nielsen would score the shootout winner. G Joey MacDonald made 31 saves for the win while Roberto Luongo stopped 34 shots against his former team. The Isles have now won three in a row. Islanders D Andy Sutton played in his 500th NHL game. Canucks D Alex Edler, who missed Saturday's game against Toronto because of the flu, sat out again.

Detroit Red Wings (12-2-3) over the Edmonton Oilers (8-8-2) 4-0

-Talk about an exciting time for Red Wings G Ty Conklin. He wins a game, then his wife gives birth to their 3rd child, and then makes 20 saves to his 5th career shutout last night. Niklas Kronwall (PP_, Mikael Samuelsson, Jiri Hudler and Johan Franzen scored the four Red Wings goals. Dwayne Roloson stopped 37 shots in the loss for Edmonton. Edmonton fell to 4-8-2 in its last 14 games after starting the season 4-0-0 and have scored just eight goals in their last five games. Oilers center Fernando Pisani broke his ankle as he slid into the boards feet first as he battled for the puck with the Red Wings' Nicklas Lidstrom with a little under 15 minutes left in the third period. MacTavish said that Pisani, who was on crutches after the game, would be out at least a month. Edmonton forward Dustin Penner was a healthy scratch for the second consecutive game.

Boston Bruins (11-3-4) over the Toronto Maple Leafs (7-8-4) 3-2
-The Bruins would jump out to a 2-0 lead in the 1st period thanks to goals from Phil Kessel and Matt Hunwick. Jason Blake would cut the lead in half before the 1st intermission. In the 2nd period, Toronto was really moving around well and getting scoring chances, but Michael Ryder would score a highlight real goal to give the Bruins the lead for good. Claude Julien won his 100th game behind the Bruins bench (Mikhail Grabovski scored the other Toronto goal). Tim Thomas made 28 saves in the win while Vesa Toskala stopped 19 in the loss.

San Jose Sharks (16-3-1) over the Nashville Predators (9-8-1) 4-1

-San Jose would jump out to a 4-0 lead after two periods and improved their record to a league-best 33 points. Devin Setoguchi (PP), Jody Shelley, Tomas Pilhal and Patrick Marleau scored for San Jose and David Legwand scored the lone Nashville goal (SH). Brian Boucher made 32 saves to improve to 6-1-1 on the season. The big story here was Jason Arnott being taken to the hospital during the game. San Jose's Joe Pavelski and Arnott collided and crashed into the net as they both were charging toward the puck. Arnott was pushed headfirst into Sharks goalie Brian Boucher and was carried off after lying motionless on the ice for several minutes. He was taken to the hospital as a precaution. "Arnott is going to be fine," Predators coach Barry Trotz said. "He was released from the hospital and came back to the arena to change clothes before going home. It looks like it is just a neck strain." Trotz said Arnott might miss Tuesday's practice due to soreness, but that he expected him to be ready for Friday night's game at Tampa Bay.

AROUND THE BOARDS

-The Colorado Avalanche signed 22-year-old center Paul Stastny to a five-year contract extension through the 2013-2014 season. Last season, Stastny led the Avalanche with 71 points in 66 games and was selected to play in his first All-Star Game. He leads the Avs with 15 points in 16 games this season.

-NHL Central Scouting will released its fall preliminary rankings today:

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=392972

-NHL goal scoring leader Alexander Semin skated for about half of the team's practice on Monday and traveled with teammates to Anaheim. The Capitals are hopeful that he'll be ready to go Wednesday. Semin missed the third period of the Capitals' 3-1 win over the Devils in Washington on Friday with an undisclosed upper-body injury. He skated out for the pre-game warmup Saturday, the second game of the home-and-home series, but quickly left the ice. He had 13 goals and 27 points through Friday.

-Reports out of Sweden indicate that Victor Hedman will be out around three weeks with a separated shoulder. Hedman is a top candidate to be taken No. 1 overall in the 2009 NHL entry draft. If the prognosis is accurate, the injury should not prevent him from playing for Sweden in the 2009 World Junior Championship in Ottawa. There were some initial fears late last week when Hedman was checked into the boards that he may have broken his collarbone, but it's now identified as a separated shoulder. (Credit Bob McKenzie - TSN)

GAME OF THE NIGHT

Minnesota Wild (10-4-1) @ Pittsburgh Penguins (11-4-2) - 7PM

The Penguins will be looking for the 7th straight win against the Minnesota Wild at home tonight. They'll have to give it a shot without their starting goaltender, Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury, 8-3-0 with a 2.86 goals-against average on the season, will be replaced by Dany Sabourin, 3-1 with a 1.68 GAA. "It's not a major injury," head coach Michel Therrien said Monday. "We just don't want to take a risk." The Pens 6 game winning streak has been sparked by Evgeni Malkin. Malkin has a 13-game point streak, recording six goals and 21 assists in that span. If not for inconsistent offense, the Wild might also be carrying a lengthy winning streak into Tuesday's game. Minnesota won its second straight Saturday, 3-2 in a shootout over Columbus, but the Wild went 2-4 prior to the consecutive victories, managing 10 goals during that stretch.

Other Action:
Montreal (10-4-2) @ Carolina (9-7-2) - 7PM
Edmonton (8-7-2) @ Columbus (8-7-3) - 7PM
Florida (6-9-1) @ Tampa Bay (5-7-5) - 7:30PM
Colorado (8-8-0) @ Calgary (9-8-1) - 9:30PM

Chicago (7-4-5) @ Phoenix (8-8-0) - 9:30PM

^ALL TIMES EASTERN


*My weekly power rankings, "PLUS/MINUS", comes out tonight

~Dropping the Gloves with Andrew Bogusch comes out Wednesday evenings

FEEL FREE TO COMMENT OR EMAIL ANYTIME HERE OR AT FROMTHESLOT@GMAIL.COM

FTS 11/17/08

TOP STORY

SAN JOSE BACK ON TRACK

(Photo Credit: AP)

Joe Pavelski Pokechecks the puck from Patrick Sharp

San Jose Sharks (15-3-1) over the Chicago Blackhawks (7-4-5) 6-5

Devin Setoguchi's power-play goal with 4:15 left gave San Jose a 6-5 victory over Chicago on Sunday night, the Blackhawks' first home loss in regulation this season. Dan Boyle scored two power-play goals for the Sharks, who went 4-for-6 with the man advantage. Milan Michalek, Joe Thornton and Jeremy Roenick also connected to help NHL-leading San Jose win its second straight to improve to 9-1-1 in its last 11. Joe Pavelski had three assists.

Chicago defensemen Brian Campbell and Cam Barker each had a goal and two assists. The Blackhawks' Kris Versteeg scored a pair of goals and Patrick Kane also added one for Chicago. Chicago coach Joel Quenneville wasn't happy about the opening effort from the Blackhawks. "They got the lead on the first shift," Quenneville said. "We couldn't keep possession of the puck. And some of the penalties we took... not with a power-play threat they have. "I'm not happy at all with the way this thing ended. They're a good team. We had them where we wanted them and let them off the hook. We were gracious." Michalek opened the scoring 42 seconds in, connecting from the left circle following a faceoff.

Jeremey Roenick's goal was his first since March 28 and first in 21 games. Sharks G Evgeni Nabokov missed his fifth game because of a lower-body injury. San Jose RW Mike Grier sat out with a lower-body injury, sustained in the Sharks' previous game and RW Jonathan Cheechoo returned after missing four games with a back injury. The Sharks next game is tonight at Nashville (see our Game of the Night). The Blackhawks next game is tomorrow night when they open up a 6 game road trip at Phoenix.

For more on this, AP Link: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iClBtiC4_-yKWzsWFimsCv-OgUBQD94GDQ2G0

RUMOR MILL

-We've been saying that the Devils might make a deal for a goalie in the absence of Martin Brodeur. Look for Nikolai Khabibulin to be that guy. Staying with the Devils, John Madden could be on the move as well.

-Staying with NYC-area teams and goalies, it looks like the Isles will be trying to make a deal for Oilers G Dwayne Roloson.

-The Michael Nylander to Vancouver rumors are heating up again. Chicago is also another possible destination.

-Marian Gaborik's name is coming up again. Toronto is the team stirring the pot again. Nik Antropov would probably be one of the center pieces heading back.

LAST NIGHT'S RECAP

Carolina Hurricanes (9-7-2) over the Tampa Bay Lightning (5-7-5) 3-2 (SO)

-Martin St. Louis and Vinny Lecavalier (PPG) would get Tampa out to a 2-0 lead early in the 2nd period. They wouldn't be able to hold on in Rick Tocchet's coaching debut though. Wade Brookbank and Rod Brind'Amour would tie things up in the 2nd period and then Brind'Amour and Tuomo Ruutu would pot 2 shootout goals for the win. Cam Ward made 26 saves in the win while Mike Smith made 28 in the loss. The victory snapped a three-game losing steak for Carolina. The Canes have now won just two of their last six games.

Montreal Canadiens (10-4-2) over the St. Louis Blues (6-8-2) 3-2 (SO)

-The Habs won for just the second time in six games after starting the season 8-1-1. Alexei Kovalev would score the lone shootout goal for the road win. Andrei Kostitsyn had a goal and an assist and Robert Lang added the other Montreal goal. Steve Regier scored both St. Louis goals (one of them was on the PP). Montreal D Francis Bouillon took a shot to the mouth off in overtime and was immediately rushed off the ice.Montreal D Mike Komisarek (strained shoulder) missed his second straight game after being injured during a fight Thursday night in Boston.

Philadelphia Flyers (7-6-4) over the Atlanta Thrashers (7-8-2) 4-3
-Antero Niittymaki made 29 saves to improve to 11-0-0 against the Thrashers in his career to snap Atlanta's 5 game winning streak. The Flyers are now 13-0-1 in the last three seasons against the Thrashers. Joffrey Lupul would score the game-winner with just over 6 minutes remaing for Philadelphia. Simon Gagne, Mike Knuble, and Kimmo Timmonen (PPG) scored for the Flyers while Erik Christensen, Bryan Little and Slava Kozlov would score for Atlanta. The Flyers are 13-0-1 in the last three seasons against the Thrashers.

Anaheim Ducks (10-7-2) over the Los Angeles Kings (7-8-2) 2-0

-Ducks G Jonas Hiller made 29 saves to earn his first career shutout. Bret Hedican scored his first goal as a Duck and Corey Perry scored the other one in the battle of LA. It was the Ducks' second shutout in the last two meetings between the Southern California rivals. The last time they met on Nov. 4 at Staples Center, the Ducks won 1-0 on Chris Pronger's overtime goal. The only other time the Ducks have had consecutive shutouts against the Kings in 2000-01, both in Anaheim by 4-0 scores. The Ducks are 0-for-13 on the power play in their first three games against the Kings. Last season they were 5-for-36 in eight meetings. The Ducks are 6-0 when leading after two periods.

GAME OF THE NIGHT

San Jose Sharks (15-3-1) @ Nashville Predators (9-7-1) - 8PM

The Sharks are looking to avenge their lone home loss of the season when they travel to Tennessee tonight. They are coming off a 6-5 come-from-behind win over Chicago last night. The Predators have won 3 in a row and are coming off a 3-1 win in Los Angeles on Saturday. They are coming back from a 6 game road trip. Nashville went 3-3-0 on the trip. Dan Ellis will be in net for the Preds and is 1-1-0 with a 2.49 GAA versus the Sharks. Expect Brian Boucher to start again for San Jose.

Other Action:

Vancouver (10-6-1) @ NY Islanders (6-9-2) - 7PM

Ottawa (6-9-2) @ NY Rangers (13-5-2) - 7PM

Edmonton (8-7-2) @ Detroit (11-2-3) - 7:30PM

Boston (10-3-4) @ Toronto (7-7-4) - 7:30PM

^ALL TIMES EASTERN

*My weekly power rankings, "PLUS/MINUS", comes out tonight

~Dropping the Gloves with Andrew Bogusch comes out Wednesday evenings

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