NEW YORK -- With each goal Marian Gaborik scores, with each goal he sets up -- two goals and one assist Monday in the Rangers' 5-2 win over Phoenix -- it's impossible to not think about the most startling trade of the offseason.
The deal that had nothing to do with Gaborik, yet everything to do with the Rangers signing Gaborik.
FanHouse's Adam Gretz takes a look at his top 50 players in the NHL. No. 33 is New York Rangers forward Marian Gaborik.
You can't blame the New York Rangers for having an interest in free agent forward Marian Gaborik this offseason. A team that was lacking the offensive firepower it never replaced when Jaromir Jagr, Brendan Shanahan and Martin Straka left the Big Apple a year ago, the Rangers signed Gaborik to a five-year, $37.5 million contract on July 2, 2009. It's a couple of big numbers for a guy that has quite a lengthy track record of injuries.
We know Gaborik can play, but how much will he play? That's the question that will determine whether this signing will be remembered as a turning point for the Rangers franchise, or simply another mistake in a long line of free agency futility.
The New York Rangers continued their free agency spending on Thursday by signing 30-year-old forward Ales Kotalik to a three-year, $9 million deal. It's a move that could signal the end of restricted free agent Nikolai Zherdev's tenure in New York after one, uninspiring season.
As for Kotalik, he spent the 2008-09 season with Buffalo and Edmonton, while he's scored at least 20 goals in three of the past four seasons. He's also one of the best shootout specialists in the league. General manager Glen Sather, however, continues to sign checks with a stamp. Or so it seems.
The Minnesota Wild had quite the busy day in free agency on Wednesday, signing shot-blocker Greg Zanon from the Nashville Predators, and swapping one oft-injured, yet supremely talented forward (Marian Gaborik) for another oft-injured, yet supremely talented forward (Martin Havlat). There was also a report from Michael Russo of the Star Tribune that the team was working on a deal with Saku Koivu.
Havlat, 28, signed a six-year, $30 million deal in Minnesota late Wednesday night, and followed it up by voicing his displeasure with the negotiating process in Chicago ... via Twitter.
A crucial offseason, possibly the most significant in franchise history, is underway for the Minnesota Wild. Head coach Jacques Lemaire and general manager Doug Risebrough, the only people to ever hold those positions for the Wild, are both gone.
The process of finding a new general manager took precedent for owner Craig Leipold, and he made sure to take his time and get things right. After a series of interviews, and a list of candidates that included high-profile broadcaster Pierre McGuire, Leipold has settled on a front-office veteran with a track record of helping build winning teams.
Newsmakers in the NHL is a weekday morning attempt to clear yesterday's rebounds and look to the day ahead.
Blues 5, Blue Jackets 2: After knocking off Columbus in a shootout on Saturday, the St. Louis Blues completed their weekend home-and-home sweep of the Blue Jackets with a 5-2 win at Nationwide Arena. Patrik Berglund picked up a goal and two assists for the surging Blues, while Brad Boyes scored his 30th goal of the season, giving him two straight 30-goal campaigns.
T.J. Oshie made some highlights on Saturday for his crushing hit on Rick Nash, and followed it up on Sunday with his 14th goal of the season.
The defending champs claim the top spot in this week's power rankings, while the Anaheim Ducks and Carolina Hurricanes make jumps of their own as they look to earn playoff berths in their respective conferences.
There's also a new team taking over the basement, thanks to a pair of blowout losses on home ice in the past week.
Not much has gone right this season for Minnesota. Marian Gaborik was hurt for way too long, and now that he's back, Mikko Koivu's hurt. The Wild are still outside of the top eight in the Western Conference, and it looks like they'll have a hard time getting into the playoffs.
A bright spot most of the season has been the play of rookie Cal Clutterbuck. The 21-year-old has been consistently physical, and has shown great energy throughout the season. His reward won't be the Calder Trophy, but he has put himself in the record book.
Newsmakers in the NHL is a weekday morning attempt to clear yesterday's rebounds and look to the day ahead.
Ducks 7, Avalanche 2: This game won't be showing up on the career highlight film for Andrew Raycroft, as the veteran netminder surrendered four goals on just eight shots during the second period of Anaheim's 7-2 thrashing of Colorado. Corey Perry scored a pair of goals for the Ducks, while rookie Andrew Ebbett added a goal and two assists in the win.
Wild 3, Oilers 0: Bruce Ciskie already posted on the details of Marian Gaborik's triumphant return to the Minnesota lineup in its 3-0 win over Edmonton, and to continue the coverage here's some video of the Wild's third goal. Let's just give an assist to the Oilers on this one:
That's just an unfortunate -- and depending on your rooting interests, hilarious -- bounce for the Oilers. Amazingly, it wasn't the only goal a team scored on itself during this weekend's action.
FanHouse's Adam Gretz takes a look at his top 50 players in the NHL. No. 33 is New York Rangers forward Marian Gaborik. 
The New York Rangers continued their free agency spending on Thursday by signing 30-year-old forward Ales Kotalik to a three-year, $9 million deal. It's a move that could signal the end of restricted free agent Nikolai Zherdev's tenure in New York after one, uninspiring season. 
The Minnesota Wild had quite the busy day in free agency on Wednesday, signing shot-blocker Greg Zanon from the Nashville Predators, and swapping one oft-injured, yet supremely talented forward (Marian Gaborik) for another oft-injured, yet supremely talented forward (Martin Havlat). There was also a report from Michael Russo of the Star Tribune that the team was working on a deal with Saku Koivu.
Newsmakers in the NHL is a weekday morning attempt to clear yesterday's rebounds and look to the day ahead.
The defending champs claim the top spot in this week's power rankings, while the Anaheim Ducks and Carolina Hurricanes make jumps of their own as they look to earn playoff berths in their respective conferences.
Not much has gone right this season for Minnesota. Marian Gaborik was hurt for way too long, and now that he's back, Mikko Koivu's hurt. The Wild are still outside of the top eight in the Western Conference, and it looks like they'll have a hard time getting into the playoffs.
Newsmakers in the NHL is a weekday morning attempt to clear yesterday's rebounds and look to the day ahead.
