FanHouse SteveDownie

On Thursday, the NHL suspended Flyers forward Daniel Carcillo for his actions in the closing seconds of Pittsburgh's 4-1 win on Wednesday night. It was part of a somewhat embarrassing end to the game, as the Flyers racked up 23 penalty minutes in just 19 seconds.

Carcillo admitted that the official dropping the puck warned him not to try anything.

During the past week, we've been updating you on the unfortunate situation in the AHL where Norfolk Admirals forward Steve Downie was ejected from a game for allegedly slashing a referee with his stick. Video of the "slash" has finally surfaced.

After being ejected on Saturday night for "physical abuse of an official," the American Hockey League has announced that Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Steve Downie will be suspended 20 games for slashing a referee with his stick. He's already served the first three games, and according to the league announcement he will be eligible to return to the lineup on April 11 -- Norfolk's final game of the regular season.

Following the incident, there were two different stories being told. On one hand, John Walton, the play-by-play announcer for the Hershey Bears -- the team Norfolk was playing on Saturday night -- was outraged by the events on the ice.

Panthers 6, Capitals 2: After a couple of blowout losses this past week, the Florida Panthers rebounded for a convincing 6-2 win in Washington on Sunday, thanks in large part to a 3-for-6 effort from their power play. After Alexander Semin gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead, the Panthers picked up three consecutive power play goals on their way to a four goal first period.

Bryan McCabe registered four points in the win, while Stephen Weiss picked up a goal and two assists. Jay Bouwmeester, Brett McLean and Keith Ballard also added two points.

Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Steve Downie is certainly no stranger to controversy, as the 21-year-old forward has been suspended multiple times in his young career for various acts of idiocy.

On Saturday, Downie, currently playing for the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL, decided it had been too long since he did something ridiculous and was given a game misconduct during a game against the Hershey Bears for "physical abuse of an official." He's facing a 20-game suspension as a result.

Wednesday's action across the NHL marked the end of the first half of the season, and there were nine games on the schedule.

Bruins 4, Maple Leafs 3: For a while, it appeared as if Toronto had a chance to knock off the top team in the Eastern Conference, jumping out to a 3-1 lead over Boston. The Bruins, however, proved why there's a 30-point difference between the two teams in the standings and scored a pair of power play goals in the third period, forcing overtime. Michael Ryder scored the game-winner in a shootout, leading the Bruins to a 4-3 win.

Thursday night was Tim Gleason bobblehead night in Carolina, and after a quick search of eBay, I've found that you too can own this rare collectible for the low, low price of $29.99 (starting bid)! Exciting. And incredibly bizarre. Anyway, after the Maple Leafs jumped out to a 4-0 lead, the Hurricanes roared back to tie the game, thanks in large part to three goals in the first eight minutes of the third period.

Unfortunately, at the 13:44 mark of the period, Gleason, the man of the night, was sent to the box for high-sticking Nik Antropov which ultimately led to Tomas Kaberle scoring the game-winner, helping Toronto to a 6-4 win. Jason Blake netted a hat trick -- and picked up two assists -- for the Leafs, while Ian White and Niklas Hagman also added goals, as Toronto snapped a four-game losing streak.

It's been a rough couple of months for the Tampa Bay Lightning, as they're already on their second head coach of the season, the stud rookie is looking like somewhat of a dud, and the team is currently sitting with the fourth-worst record in the league. About the only way things could possibly get worse for the Lightning is if management did something completely crazy, off-the-wall and relatively insane, such as, oh, I don't know, trading team captain and franchise player Vincent Lecavalier.

Sounds crazy, sure, but earlier this week rumors began to surface that the Lightning may be shopping their captain before his new contract -- and no-trade clause -- kicks in this offseason.

Good news, however, as Bob McKenzie of TSN reports the Lightning have told Lecavalier the rumors are just that, and they have no intentions of trading him.

What a fantastic night of action. Between the wild games in Philadelphia and Montreal, and Sean Avery's most recent shenanigans, there's plenty to talk about, so let's get right to it.

In Philadelphia, Steve Downie made his nearly-triumphant return to the city of brotherly love as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and he put on a display of the best he has to offer, as well as the worst he has to offer. The Flyers ended up pulling out a chaotic 4-3 overtime win.

Early in the opening period, Downie gave Flyers fans a nice reminder as to why they shouldn't be missing his antics, as he picked up a pair of penalties at the 2-minute mark, giving the Flyers an early power play. Jeff Carter took advantage of the opportunity by firing a shot behind Tampa Bay goalie Mike Smith for the game's first goal.

From that point on, Smith and Philadelphia goalie Martin Biron were walls in net, holding down a 1-1 tie until the third period. And that's where things started to pick up.

Every week there are minor moves and stories around the National Hockey League that tend to fall through the cracks. Consider this our weekly roundup of those stories from the previous week, all wrapped up in one neat little package.

It didn't take Steve Downie long to leave his mark on his new team, as the feisty forward earned his first suspension as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning organization. It probably won't be his last suspension, either.

Downie, a former first-round pick of the Flyers, was sent to Tampa Bay a couple of weeks ago, along with Steve Eminger, in exchange for Matt Carle. After playing in just six games in Norfolk, Downie was suspended for three games this past week by the American Hockey League for checking Kyle McLaren from behind.

New team. Same player.

Downie could be a useful asset to some team if he would simply use his head a little more often, and avoid taking dirty runs at players. As long as he's good for two suspensions a year (especially if they happen to be 20-game suspensions) and is a 5-minute major waiting to happen every time he steps on the ice, he's not going to be of any real use to any team, regardless of how talented he may be.

Since I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon, I'd say the Flyers made themselves a fantastic trade, regardless of whether or not Carle fulfills expectations.