Around The NHL: Game 2, Winnipeg, Rick Dudley

Photo Credit: TSN via Getty Images

In Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals, the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Boston Bruins 3-2 in overtime to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Alex Burrows scored the game winning goal for Vancouver just 11 seconds into overtime. Game 3 will be in Boston on Monday at 8 PM on VERSUS. 

CH: Unfortunately, I missed the game but it sounds like it was a great game all around. Huge win for the Canucks who will now maintain home ice advantage as the series moves to Boston.

AT: Great game by both sides. Nice to finally see some regulation scoring! Bruins D looked tired by the end of the game. Vancouver looked fast as hell... hence scoring so quickly into OT. Great game all around. Onto Boston.

TSN is reporting that True North has decided to not retain Rick Dudley as the new Winnipeg team's General Manager. Dudley had four years remaining on his contract after signing an extension with the Atlanta Thrashers this past January.

CH: Very bold move by the new ownership of the Winnipeg team. Dudley is a fantastic talent evaluator and could have really helped propelled the team to take the next step. Dudley will surely not be around for long, and if the Islanders wanted to take advantage of his availability, he would be a great candidate for a Team President type role, or just one who oversees all hockey operations with the front office. I don't expect this to happen by any stretch, but whoever does land Dudley will be getting a fantastic hockey mind in their organization.

AT: Agreed. Very odd that they'd rid themselves of Dudley as he clearly had a plan, but I guess True North has other plans. Good luck to them.

Speaking of Winnipeg, TSN is reporting the new team sold out 13,000 season tickets within 20 minutes of availability to the public as well as a long waiting list. With the MTS Centre's capacity at a little over 15,000, only 2,000 tickets will be available to the public per game.

CH: The response by the Winnipeg community has been outstanding and exactly what needed to happen for this to work. The only question is if they will be able to maintain it if the team continues to struggle. One would hope and expect they would. The amount of tickets sold here puts Winnipeg in the top half of teams for revenue sharing. Congratulations to True North, the Winnipeg community, and the NHL for making a seamless transition from a very unfortunate situation in Atlanta.

AT: Just an awesome job by the Winnipeg area fans. They've shown everyone that they're ready to have a team again, and that they will support it.

Around The NHL: June 2, 2011

5. Sidney Crosby Cleared For Off-Ice Workouts

TSN     Pittsburgh Post-Gazette     ESPN

CH: This is very encouraging to hear. Like him or hate him, Crosby is the best player in the world and it is extremely disadvantageous for all parties for him to be sidelined with this type of injury. Considering the NHL is trying to cut down on head injuries, having Crosby as the lead example would be a disaster. Most importantly, however, it's important Crosby is able to continue his career as one of the top players of the generation.

AT: The NHL is roaring back, and Crosby and his magnificent skills on ice are a huge part of it. To lose him would be catastrophic for the sport. He may very well lead the Penguins to several more Stanley Cups (much to my dismay), and will continue to lead the league in points and goals scored. The NHL needs you back, Sid. Get well soon.

4. New Winnipeg Team Has Sold Over 4,000 Season Tickets In Two Days

TSN     Winnipeg Free Press     ESPN

CH: When Commissioner Bettman stated that for the Winnipeg project to work, the team must sell 13,000 tickets, he wasn't kidding. So far, the city has responded to this demand as 4,000 Manitoba Moose season ticket holders have already signed on as season ticket holders for the new Winnipeg team. When tickets open to the general public in a few days, there should be no problems whatsoever getting to that 13,000 number.

AT: This is very encouraging news. I'd like nothing more than to see Winnipeg succeed. Hopefully with new ownership and a Canadian location, they'll be able to bring in higher end FAs as well. I'm very excited for the first Winnipeg-Islanders game.

Photo Credit: Ric Ernst

3. Dan Hamhuis Questionable For Game 2 With "Middle-Body" Injury

TSN     Vancouver Sun     ESPN

CH: Hamhuis is without question a big part of the Vancouver defense, which has been outstanding in these playoffs. The Canucks have set themselves up very nicely with their defensive depth. Keith Ballard should be able to step right in and do a solid job if Hamhuis is unable to go. Speaking of Ballard, he is a possible trade candidate in the offseason and potentially someone the Islanders may want to look into if they are interested in another Wisniewski-type deal.

AT: Vancouver's D is absolutely stacked. While losing a top 2 D-Man is always scary, I don't see it being a gigantic problem for Vancouver. I certainly hope not. If I have to see another Boston team win a championship, I may just quit the 4 major sports and pick up competitive chinese checkers.

2. Alex Burrows Faces No Suspension For Biting Patrice Bergeron

Photo Credit: Reuters

TSN     Vancouver Sun     Boston Globe     ESPN

CH: There is no excusing what Burrows did to Bergeron (though some may argue what Bergeron was doing putting his hand there to begin with). The fact of the matter is the NHL is not going to hand out suspensions in the Stanley Cup Final to a top line player unless he practically decapitates someone on the ice. During the regular season, Burrows probably gets a game or two, but it's not the regular season. The only irony I see here is that the day Gary Bettman asks for harsher supplemental discipline, something like this goes unpunished. Both teams are ready to move on, which is what they should do. Game 2 is Saturday night at 8 PM on NBC.

AT: As Carey said, it's the Cup finals. It was the right thing to do. They'll get over it. 

1. Dallas Stars Trying To Trade Brad Richards Before July 1

TSN     Dallas Morning News     ESPN

CH: Richards is the top pending unrestricted free agent on the market, which makes the Stars' inability to sign him a big, intriguing story. Logic will dictate big market teams like the Rangers, Maple Leafs, and Kings being in on trading for Richards' rights. However, the Stars are going to do what's best for them and if a smaller market team (such as Tampa Bay) comes along and offers them the best deal, they'll probably take it. That said, I would not expect the Islanders to even make an offer to Dallas. We will continue to keep tabs on this story as it continues to unfold during the Stanley Cup Finals and beyond.

AT: I question whether the Rangers can afford him with some major RFAs needing new deals. I can see him fitting in perfectly in Toronto, and they're certainly the kind of team to make a silly trade... calling Phil Kessel!

Around The NHL: June 1, 2011

Around the NHL will be a (somewhat) daily entry that goes over what the Top 5 NHL stories of the day are, in our opinion. So here we go:

5. Kevin Dineen named 11th Head Coach in Florida Panthers history.

Photo Credit: AP

Miami Herald     ESPN    TSN     Sun-Sentinel 

CH: This is Dale Tallon's first coaching hire as Panthers GM. Dineen is undoubtedly a good AHL coach, but as we've seen here on Long Island, the transition to the NHL game does not always carry over. However, the Panthers are a rebuilding team so the desire to hire an inexperienced coach may make sense. Overall, this is a pretty important hire for the Panthers as Tallon is putting a lot of faith in Dineen. It should be interesting to see how the Panthers respond in 2011-12 and beyond.

AT: The Portland Pirates had a great past season, even though they lost in the 2nd round. It should be interesting to see how Dineen works with such a young team. Good luck, Kevin.

4. Calgary trades 2009 1st Rounder Tim Erixon to Rangers

Photo Credit: Getty Images via Calgary Herald

Calgary Herald     ESPN     TSN     Newsday   

  

CH: This is flat out a major steal by the New York Rangers. Calgary was unable to sign Erixon, who would have re-entered the draft and could have even gone in the top 10. They say Erixon may be NHL ready. The Rangers traded Roman Horak and two second-round picks, before quickly signing Erixon before the 5 p.m. deadline. Erixon will compete for a spot on the Ranger blueline and could be part of their young core there for years to come.

AT: Erixon should be a staple in the Rangers blueline for years to come. They got a future top 4 D-Man who has already matured 2 years since the draft for very little. Great trade by the Rangers, and quite shocking - though one has to figure the Flames didn't have much of choice.

3. Gary Bettman's "State of the Union" Address

ESPN

CH: This went pretty under the radar this year, but the fact that Bettman's annual address came the day after relocation to Winnipeg was announced left a lot of intrigue for the hockey media. Amongst other things, Bettman announced that re-alignment will not occur in 2011-12. Winnipeg will play in the Southeast this year, which means they will play the Islanders four times (two on Long Island). Come 2012-13, Bettman hinted at a more "balanced schedule." Bettman also shot down any rumors of Quebec City receiving a team in the near future and also stressed harsher disciplinary actions regarding supplemental discipline.

AT: Atla--er, Winnipeg should have a fun time with all of that travel. Playing division rivals 24 times a year is going to create a lot of Delta miles for both Winnipeg and others in the Southeast division. As for Bettman's strong words on discipline, well... I'll believe that when I see it.

Photo Credit: AP

2. Colin Campbell Resigns; Shanahan Takes Over

 TSN     ESPN

CH: Had there not been a Stanley Cup Finals game last night, this would have been the number one story of the day without a doubt. This was a much needed change for the NHL, as Colin Campbell was unfit to handle the job at this juncture. The game is evolving every day, which makes it imperative a "new-school" player be the one to hand out supplemental discipline. I wish Shanahan the best of luck, because this is a thankless job and he will face a ton of criticism while doing it. However, he is unquestionably the best choice for this job right now.

AT: Adios, Mr. Campbell. There was never a decision you made that didn't make some people scratch their heads. I will give him credit for finally laying the hammer down on Matt Cooke, but in general Campbell was simply unfit, as Carey mentioned. Shanahan knows the newer, faster game and should be a bit more fair. Time will tell.

1. Vancouver Defeats Boston 1-0 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals

Vancouver Sun     ESPN     TSN     Boston Globe

Photo Credit: Boston Globe

CH: Wow. This was a fantastic hockey game from start to finish with hard hitting, outstanding goaltending, and even some shenanigans. We'll save the commentary on the Burrows/Bergeron incident for tomorrow. This game revolved around Luongo and Thomas, who both put on a heck of a show. The goal by Torres with just seconds left on the clock to win the game for the Canucks was a beautiful play. However, Boston certainly had their chances. Their powerplay was downright brutal last night. Vancouver didn't score on their extended powerplays either, but they at least generated some chances. What I can say, is this has the chance to be a much closer series than a lot of pundits expected.

AT: This was the battle of the goalies. The 37 year old Thomas who has the agility of a cat and the younger Luongo who still doesn't get his due from some people put on one of the better Cup final games I've seen in a while. Kesler in setting up that final play to get the puck to Torres was absolutely brilliant. The best part of it all? This game 1 had a higher TV rating in Boston than game 1 of Boston vs. Los Angeles in last year's NBA final. Hockey's back, baby.