After eight years, the Edmonton Oilers and head coach Craig MacTavish will be parting ways following the team's third consecutive non-playoff season. The Oilers compiled a 301-252-103 during MacTavish's watch, while also playing in the Stanley Cup Final in 2005-06, losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in seven games.
Oh my, they're not going to like this in Buffalo. After the Penguins and Sabres skated to a 3-3 tie in regulation, Sidney Crosby deflected an Evgeni Malkin slap shot behind Buffalo goalie Ryan Miller in overtime, giving the Penguins a 4-3 win. As you can see from the above video, it was oh-so-close to being a high-stick.
They key, however, is that the call on the ice was that it was indeed a goal, meaning they would need conclusive evidence to overturn it. Is that conclusive? It's pretty darn close. The fact it's Crosby on the positive end of the call isn't going to sit well with anyone outside of Pittsburgh, I'm guessing, especially after he got away with punching some guy in the goods a week ago. So, cue the conspiracy theories! Anyway, what's done is done, Penguins win, and the Sabres blew three different leads on the night, including a 2-0 advantage in the second period, while going 1-for-6 on the power play.
Pittsburgh's Alex Goligoski picked up three points (two goals, assist) in the win, while Malkin added three helpers in his quest for 100. Malkin, by the way, now has 43 assists on the season -- an amazing number when you consider there were only three players in the NHL entering play on Monday with 43 points (Malkin, Crosby and Alex Ovechkin).
After setting an NHL record for the best start through 30 games, the San Jose Sharks ran into a brick wall on Wednesday by the name of Steve Mason. The Columbus rookie netminder stopped 47 shots in a 2-1 overtime win for the Blue Jackets.
For the Sharks, the loss snaps a three-game winning streak, though, they still haven't lost a game in regulation since November 9, so they've gained at least a point in 15 straight games. The Blue Jackets have now won three of their past four, all of which have come with Mason in net, who seems to be cementing himself as the team's No. 1 goaltender. The 47-save performance against San Jose improves his save percentage on the season to an impressive .929, while his record goes to 9-5-1.
The game remained scoreless through the first two periods, until San Jose's Devin Setoguchi scored at the 3:41 mark of the third period. Later in the frame, Mike Peca picked up his second of the season, tying the game, ultimately sending it to overtime.
The Blue Jackets registered only one shot in the extra period, though, they made it count as R.J. Umberger scored his ninth goal of the season to give Columbus the win.
Thanks to a series of injuries to goalies Jose Theodore and Brent Johnson, the Washington Capitals have had some rather unfamiliar faces suiting up the past two nights. On Friday, Ted Starkey told you the story of Brett Leonhardt, the Capitals web producer who had the opportunity to sit on the bench and serve as the backup goalie until Simeon Varlamov could make it to the arena, fresh off his callup from the minors.
On Saturday, it was Varlamov's moment to shine, as the 20-year old rookie turned aside 32 shots in his first NHL start, helping lead the Capitals to a 2-1 win in Montreal. The Canadiens peppered the former first-round pick with 27 shots over the final two periods, but he was up to the challenge, keeping the game tied at one until Michael Nylander scored his third goal of the season at the 17:28 mark of the third period, giving Washington the lead.
Tuesday night's game against Edmonton is probably one that Columbus goalie Pascal Leclaire would like to permanently erase from his memory, seeing as how it's probably the worst game he's ever played in the NHL. Leclaire gave up seven goals on just 19 shots, as the Oilers rolled to a 7-2 victory, snapping a three-game losing streak.
Columbus finished with a commanding edge in the shots department, firing 39 shots at Dwayne Roloson -- he stopped 37 of them -- and still managed to skate away losing by five goals.
The San Jose Sharks continued to distance themselves from the rest of the National Hockey League on Monday night, as they beat Nashville, 4-1, to improve to 16-3-1 on the season. The Sharks have earned at least a point in 11 of their previous 12 games, as they now have an 11 point lead over second-place Anaheim in the Pacific Division.
Setoguchi has 22 points in the Sharks first 20 games, while he's also filled the net four times in his previous four contests. As a team, the Sharks have a league-high 73 goals, seven more than second-place Detroit. Meanwhile, Boucher continued his solid play in net, as he's now 6-1-1 on the season, including 4-1-1 since taking over for Nabokov.
Perhaps the most newsworthy item from the game, aside from the Sharks continuing to systematically dismantle whatever team lines up across from them, was the fact Nashville's Jason Arnott had to be carried off the ice on a stretcher when he was knocked into Boucher during the first period. According to the AP game report, Arnott was taken to a local hospital and is being held for precautionary reasons.
Last offseason the Edmonton Oilers were quite active in the restricted free agent market, throwing huge offers at Buffalo's Thomas Vanek and Anaheim's Dustin Penner. The Sabres, naturally, refused to let Vanek get away, which in turn led to Oilers general manager Kevin Lowe gunning for Penner.
The Oilers signed the massive forward to a five-year, $21.25 million offer sheet, which the Ducks refused to match, sparking a rather hilarious war of words between Lowe, and then Ducks general manager Brian Burke. If you'll recall, Burke called the signing "an act of desperation by a general manager who is fighting to keep his job." Classic.
Anyway, the Oilers aren't even two years into Penner's contract, and they're already having a rather strong case of buyers remorse. Well, more accurately, head coach Craig MacTavish seems to be.
Through the first 16 games of the season, the 26-year old Penner has scored just three goals and was a healthy scratch in the Oilers 3-2 loss to Colorado on Saturday. Hopefully he found himself a nice, comfortable spot in the press box, because he's going to be sitting there again tonight when the Oilers travel to Detroit.
That sound you're hearing right about ... now, is the Toronto media working itself into a frenzy with the news that Brian Burke, the man they've been longing to take over the Maple Leafs, is now, in theory, a free agent. That's right, the Ducks announced today that Burke is stepping down from his position as General Manager and will be replaced by Bob Murray.
Burke will stay on as a consultant for the rest of the season.
From Bob McKenzie of TSN:
Sources tell TSN Burke will remain in a senior advisory capacity with the Ducks for now but that the final word on any hockey operations decisions in Anaheim will be made by Murray. Sources say Burke will, in this advisory capacity, have the ability to freely negotiate future employment opportunities as a GM in the NHL. That would pave the way for Burke to be hired as president and GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the days, weeks or months ahead, if the Leafs and Burke so desire. And there is strong reason to believe that is precisely what will happen. In any case, it would seem all but certain that Burke will find his way to Toronto as the Leafs' top hockey man.
Welcome to the NHL FanHouse 2008-09 season preview. While other sites are previewing "30 teams in 30 days," we decided to take advantage of the extra time off before the start of the season to bring you all 30 previews over the next three weeks. We're counting down in reverse order of finish from last season in each conference every weekday from now until October 3. Look for an Eastern Conference preview every morning and a Western Conference preview every afternoon. Click here to read them all.
What's Changed: Edmonton finished last year on a 18-10-1 run, so the idea in the offseason was to improve this team. The Oilers made their run on the backs of an assortment of young players, and hopes are high in the Land of Oil for this team. Edmonton brought in Cole from Carolina, giving their top line the punch and experience it needed. Cole will likely work with "veteran" Shawn Horcoff (just turned 30) and the greatly-talented Ales Hemsky on the top line.
The other significant move the Oilers made involved replacing offensive-minded defenseman Pitkanen, who was dealt for Cole. Edmonton packaged Stoll and Greene in a deal for Visnovsky, who was minus-18 last year but on a painfully bad Los Angeles team. He'll make sure that the defensive corps doesn't miss Pitkanen too much.
Outside of those two moves, not much has changed in Edmonton, except that the kids are a year older. Andrew Cogliano (45 points in 2007), Hemsky (71), Sam Gagner (49), Robert Nilsson (41), Kyle Brodziak (31), Tom Gilbert (33), and Dustin Penner (47) all were a big part of the team's late-season resurgence, and Penner - at age 26 - is the oldest of this group. Saying that their best days are ahead of them is an understatement.
Via bad trades, draft picks, and plain stupid signings, Kevin Lowe turned a surprising cup contender into a playoff no-show in the manner of a couple of months. Thus, he makes an easy target.
"The guy is an absolute media junkie and I guess he's achieving what he wants because he gets his name in the headlines. But the reality is, I hate the fact that my name is linked to this."
"He won a Stanley Cup? Great. I've won six Stanley Cups, you want to count rings? Who cares? It's just a little pathetic that he carries on."
"He's a moron, first of all. Secondly, he really believes that any news for the NHL is good news. Thirdly, he loves the limelight and I don't think anyone in hockey will dispute that."
It's hard to argue with Lowe on this one. Brian Burke has rarely met a microphone or TV camera he didn't love, and has, in a rather immature manner, continued to attack Lowe long after the silly Penner signing went down.
What part of "let it go" does Brian Burke not understand? Hey, I love his tirades, but there comes a point where it just becomes childish.
Of course, we now eagerly await Burke's fiery response ;) ...
Thanks to a series of injuries to goalies Jose Theodore and Brent Johnson, the Washington Capitals have had some rather unfamiliar faces suiting up the past two nights. On Friday, Ted Starkey told you the story of Brett Leonhardt, the Capitals web producer who had the opportunity to sit on the bench and serve as the backup goalie until Simeon Varlamov could make it to the arena, fresh off his callup from the minors. 
Tuesday night's game against Edmonton is probably one that Columbus goalie Pascal Leclaire would like to permanently erase from his memory, seeing as how it's probably the worst game he's ever played in the NHL. Leclaire gave up seven goals on just 19 shots, as the Oilers rolled to a 7-2 victory, snapping a three-game losing streak. 
The San Jose Sharks continued to distance themselves from the rest of the National Hockey League on Monday night, as they beat Nashville, 4-1, to improve to 16-3-1 on the season. The Sharks have earned at least a point in 11 of their previous 12 games, as they now have an 11 point lead over second-place Anaheim in the Pacific Division. 
Last offseason the Edmonton Oilers were quite active in the restricted free agent market, throwing huge offers at Buffalo's Thomas Vanek and Anaheim's Dustin Penner. The Sabres, naturally, refused to let Vanek get away, which in turn led to Oilers general manager Kevin Lowe gunning for Penner. 
That sound you're hearing right about ... now, is the Toronto media working itself into a frenzy with the news that Brian Burke, the man they've been longing to take over the Maple Leafs, is now, in theory, a free agent. That's right, the Ducks announced today that Burke is stepping down from his position as General Manager and will be replaced by Bob Murray. 
Ever since Kevin Lowe signed Dustin Penner to an obscenely large offer sheet last summer, Ducks GM Brian Burke has rarely seized an opportunity to rip into one of the league's worst managers. 
