Resetti

Hart - Sidney Crosby Vezina - Sergei Bobrovsky Norris - PK Subban Art Ross - Martin St. Louis Selke - Jonathan Toews Masterton - Josh Harding Richard - Alexander Ovechkin Jack Adams - Michel Therrien Lady Byng - Matt Moulson Calder - Brandon Gallagher

Wow, if that shot by Bickell went in, it would have been devastating.

Something interesting that was pointed out to me. If the playoffs started today, all O6 teams would face each other in the first round: (2) Montréal Canadiens vs (7) New York Rangers (4) Boston Bruins vs (5) Toronto Maple Leafs (1) Chicago Blackhawks vs (8) Detroit Red Wings I don't know if the standings end up that way but that would be pretty amazing. Heck, how long has it been since all O6 teams made the playoffs the same year at all anyway?

The argument that there are teams in bad markets that water down the product of the game is valid, but I don't think that's something to necessarily pin on the salary cap. It's bad leadership. The NHL has the opportunity to relocate teams like Phoenix and haven't to this point. As far as the salary cap goes, it's about creating a level playing field. You're right that money doesn't buy championships, but in baseball you can pencil in half the playoff field just by looking at rosters. Teams without deep pockets face an uphill battle from the start. You have MLB cities that haven't seen playoff action in literally decades. I question whether some of those small market teams are even focused on winning. I'm pretty sure clubs like the Pirates have just pocketed all kickbacks from the luxury cap instead of funneling that into improving the on-field team. The fans suffer under this model. The salary cap pushes the burden of success on management and scouting. In a luxury cap scenario, talented players just have to float out into free agency until they land on Cash Island. Some teams end up being relegated to Pro Farm status. What's fair is having all teams built under the same set of rules. The NHL messes a lot of things up but the decision to have a hard salary cap is one thing they have right. Teams should not have a competitive advantage on the basis of being owned by a billionaire.

I am strongly in favor of the hard salary cap that the NHL runs. The burden of success is equal across the league as teams need to draft, develop, and manage talent wisely. I shudder at the mere suggestion of a soft cap/luxury tax. I honestly can't stand baseball because big market teams can steamroll free agency and the gulf between the haves and the have-nots widens. This is definitely something that the NHL got right. The shootout and three-point games are obviously problematic. I understand why they wanted to incentivize teams to play hard in OT instead of the ultra-conservative shell game fringe playoff teams used to play under old rules... but it has created some issues. I think these are things that need to be tweaked. As far as the rules are concerned, I think that the NHL has relapsed in a way. They wanted the game to have less obstruction and have more speed, but I think that we've regressed on that point. Part of that is in the enforcement of the new rules. Goalie equipment is getting ridiculous as well... they need to be protected, of course, but they look like they're in a sumo fat-suit! At any rate... I'm not going to fall into the trap of glorifying the past. Nostalgia clouds perception.

Yeah, soccer really captures the gist of it. Sports are supposed to be entertainment. I don't know what it is that drives some people, makes them so unconscionable. Maybe they don't have enough going on with themselves so they live vicariously through sports and teams, and it becomes bigger than them. At any rate, the unbridled hate that comes out of stories like these make me a cynical man.

Wow, some of the comments here and elsewhere are really low. While I'm not expecting anybody to be losing sleep over an injury to another team's star player, celebrating the pain anybody goes through with that kind of injury is rotten. Sports really brings out the worst in people, especially those shielded by the anonymity of the Internet. From what I'm reading, Crosby did not need to get his jaw wired shut. That's significant because it means he should be able to get back to solid foods earlier than someone who required that procedure. Athletes in particular who go through that tend to lose weight and strength, which sets back their recovery even further. Hopefully Crosby recovers in time for the playoffs. I, for one, prefer to watch hockey with its best players active.

I've suspected that the Rangers players have been tuning out Tortorella for a while. He's not a bad coach, he has a lot of hockey sense, but he is such an abrasive personality that it's only a matter of time before he wears thin. Still, Avery calling anybody a clown is rich.

The concern is whether or not a slapshot to the mouth could cause any recurring concussion symptoms. Hopefully they're just being cautious. The Penguins have enough of a lead in the East that they don't have to rush him back. Could have broken his jaw. If he was taken to the hospital, I'm guessing that's the nature of the injury.

He also acknowledged in his press conference that this thing happens all the time. As fans, the only reason we are reacting is because of that leaked report. I think it's pretty crummy that Iginla's reputation is being dragged through the mud because he exercised his contractual right to veto a trade and choose his landing spot. Then again, I've always been a fan of Iggy.

Why did everybody and their dog go to bed thinking Iginla was going to Boston? Because inaccurate information that the deal was confirmed were leaked by the media. Players with No-Movement Clauses in their contract do this all the time, but it doesn't get erroneously reported in the news. Blame the media.

"Magically"? If I were to submit a list right now of my top four dreams jobs in film, I might list some production companies that invest billions of dollars into projects. The chances of them taking me aren't great, but I think a place like 20th Century Fox is a place I'd want to go. I also include Filmways, Columbia Pictures, and Warner Independent Pictures. All of these places would be great landing spots for me. I hear that 20th Century Fox wants me to work for them; suddenly, I'm really excited about an opportunity that's apparently mutual. There's nothing really "magical" about it. Why is it such a difficult concept to grasp that submitting teams that you're interested in doesn't mean that a NMC-player is bound to that list?

I'm sorry, but this is just such a ridiculous statement. Iginla was "lying"? How would Iginla know when he submit his list of teams whether or not Pittsburgh would be interested? He may have been more interested in Pittsburgh than Boston (obviously), but he doesn't know if that's mutual so he's going to submit more than one team. The fact of the matter is that he had a No Move Clause in his contract which means he got the final say in where he goes. It wasn't a limited trade clause, in which he either submits teams that he will accept a trade to or not accept a trade to point-blank. He had control and he exercised it to give himself what he felt was his best opportunity. The fact that inaccurate information was reported is not his fault. It's insane that he's being pinned up as some kind of a jackass in this. This happens all the time, it's just not usually reported as "confirmed" trades before a player nixes it.

The Penguins GA/G is 2.47, tied for 9th in the league, which is just behind Detroit and Montreal at 2.46 GA/G. While I don't think there's any question that goaltending and defense has been Pittsburgh's biggest weakness, I think the popular thing to do is put too much stock in the Philadelphia series from last year.

The Hossa trade included Dupuis, and they also added Hal Gill. That was all for that season. If I'm remembering right, the Penguins have parted with their 2013 1st, 2nd, and 5th round draft picks, and their 2014 2nd round draft pick. However, they did pick up Dallas' 2013 3rd round pick. That honestly doesn't even look that bad to me.

I literally laughed out loud when I saw this. I thought it was a done deal to Boston, and had been joking about the Penguins pissing everyone off by grabbing Iginla too. Didn't think it was possible. Totally shocked. But they really have to win it all this year. They've pushed in all their chips for this year's run. Suddenly the Thursday night game is must-see-TV for me; I'm really curious to see what Iginla looks like on a line with Crosby.

Lemieux is co-owner with Ron Burkle, who is a billionaire, so they do have a ton of cash-flow to be spenders on the market. And as a team, they probably pull in pretty good revenue as well... I know they sell out all their games, and I imagine their jersey sales are pretty high as well.

Except that, because of the shortened season, less teams are accepting their place as sellers which drives the price up. Iginla would be a great pickup, but for the cost.

It isn't about Iginla's age, it's about Iginla's market value right now in combination with his age. He's going to be so expensive to bring in... I have no doubt that he would produce on any team, and give them a great push in the playoff picture, but he's a 35-year old rental player. If you're going to fork over what Calgary is demanding for him, you'd better have a great chance at winning the Stanley Cup this year. He will hit free agency after this season. If I was a GM, I would wait until we're in the final days of the trade deadline. If he's still available, I would expect that Calgary's asking price would start to bend because they want to get something for him instead of seeing him walk.

Although I think that whoever lands Iginla is getting a great player - despite his age: physical, hard-working, great leadership, with a scoring touch, who has to be hungrier to win the Cup than almost any other player out there - I think that the cost to acquire him is too high. I think that the only way he's worth it is if Calgary drops the price in the 11th hour of the trade deadline, knowing that it's better to get something than nothing at all.

I agree that Ray Shero has been a great GM in Pittsburgh... his only real misfire was Ponikarovsky a couple years ago. I figured the Penguins would throw out some of their defensive prospects as bait, since they've stockpiled them over the years, but I'm just surprised that the return ends up being Brenden Morrow. He's been tapering off the last couple seasons (maybe not coincidentally since the departure of James Neal), but maybe the change of scenery sparks something. I don't think the Penguins got fleeced or anything, but it's just not a real groundshaking move to me. I honestly thought that the Penguins were going to pull in Jarome Iginla. I think it's a testament to the high price of the trade market this lockout shortened season. I expected a lot more wheeling and dealing the next week or so across the league, and maybe we'll see some more action, but I'm curious what contenders are willing to part with to push themselves over the top.

I don't know how I feel about this move for the Penguins. I understand they have cap space so they want to pursue a rental player that puts them over the top, but is that guy Brenden Morrow? I don't know. I guess he gives them some grittiness and some more leadership, but unless they win the Cup this year then it's simply not worth it. The exchange of draft picks makes the deal a little more equitable but, in the big picture, Dallas wins this trade.

I remember part of last year's proposal included re-seeding the four division winners after the first two rounds of the playoffs so that the Stanley Cup Final had more possibilities (East vs East, West vs West, etc). Does anybody know if that will be the case under the new realignment? If so, with the role of the wild card slotting a team into another division's playoffs, it would then be possible to have a Stanley Cup Final from within a division (for example, Montreal vs Detroit).

I think the lesson to learn from the New York Rangers is to not underestimate the value of good, hard-working role players. Last year they were the Eastern Conference's top team, but after a big trade with Columbus, they might not make the playoffs at all. A great "team" isn't the collection of talent, it's the sum of its parts.

If every team in the league maintains their current pace, then the standings at the end of the year will look pretty much identical to what they are now.