FanHouse Charles Dolan

We all know that owners of any NHL hockey club have more than enough money to buy a few small Caribbean countries, mansions in every major North American city, and have enough left over for Chinese takeout.

So, just who are the NHL's kings of bling? According to Forbes, It's Mike Ilitch (Red Wings, pictured), and Charles Dolan (New York Rangers).

1. Mike Ilitch (Net worth: $1.6 billion)- It's hard to believe this fragile-looking old man was once an actual baseball player, but he was. He might have been a pro if not for injuries.

He spent decades building his Little Caesar's Pizza into one of the largest chains in America, using the proceeds to buy up his hometown teams. Ilitch bought hockey's Detroit Red Wings in 1982 for $8 million, today worth $293 million. He bought the Tigers for $82 million 10 years later; they're now worth more than $350 million.

Damn! That's some serious return on his investment. Meanwhile, my cruddy pension might get me 8% if I hit the jackpot and the stars align perfectly.

2. Charles Dolan (Net worth: $3.2 billion) - This guy isn't the wisest spender when it comes to his sports teams. Throughout his tenure, the Rangers and Knicks have paid premium prices for talent, and have often failed to even make the playoffs. While Ilitch will open the pocketbooks to improve his team, Dolan and his family tend to treat their teams like little toys, with very little vested interest in making truly good hockey decisions.

Every day from Monday to Saturday, The Ice Sheet will take a look at the biggest stories in the league that happened on the ice and elsewhere the night before.

I know it's too early to draw any lasting conclusions after having played only one full weekend of the 2007-08 NHL schedule. Still, even this early, we're already seeing some interesting performances on the ice that are -- at least for the moment -- defying the predictions of a lot of the experts. So while nobody is probably shocked that the Senators are 3-0 (this after going undefeated in seven preseason games), it's safe to say that there are a number of fans around the league who are suddenly experiencing the sweet and light burden of increased expectations.

How High is the Ceiling In Washington? Everyone knew that after acquiring free agents Michael Nylander, Viktor Kozlov and Tom Poti that the Washington Capitals were going to be a better team this season. The real question was how much better would they be? After watching the first period of their Saturday night game against Carolina, the answer might be a lot better than anyone anticipated.

In the first period, the Caps put on an absolute clinic with their new, "puck possession" style, cycling relentlessly and keeping Carolina bottled up in their own zone, outshooting the Hurricanes, 14-2. By the time it was over, the score was only 1-0 but the message had been sent: The Caps were a far different team, one that seemed more skilled, more tenacious and more physical than in many a season. Perhaps most frightening for opponents is the seemingly-psychic link that has developed between resident superstar winger Alex Ovechkin and Kozlov, his new center, never more so than in the first period when Kozlov executed a beautiful drop pass to Ovechkin at the top of the slot, with the younger Russian wiring a wrist shot past a helpless John Grahame. The goal was the 200th point of Ovechkin's NHL career.

When the inevitable Carolina surge came in the third period, the Caps and goalie Olie Kolzig were more than up to the challenge, playing more carefully to protect a lead, and doing the little things that often mean the difference between winning and losing, like when Ovechkin threw himself in front of a slap shot late in the period to help preserve a 2-0 win.