What does everyone think about this possible @mnwild jersey? #mnwild pic.twitter.com/8hXJqQydZS
— Wild About Minny (@WildAboutMinny) January 15, 2014
God I hope not, this would be one ugly Minnesota Wild jersey.
What does everyone think about this possible @mnwild jersey? #mnwild pic.twitter.com/8hXJqQydZS
— Wild About Minny (@WildAboutMinny) January 15, 2014
Chad Graff, Pioneer Press -- The Wild placed captain Mikko Koivu and goalie Josh Harding on injured reserve Monday.With a offensively challenged line-up and with the current injuries, the Wild are going to have to have someone step up and chip in offensively.
That means each will sit out at least seven days.
Koivu was injured Saturday night when he apparently blocked a shot with his ankle. The Wild did not announce a time frame for Koivu's return, but an update is expected Monday afternoon after the team practices in Los Angeles.
Harding was termed "ill" in the days leading to Monday. He had been placed on IR last month to adjust to treatment changes for multiple sclerosis. The changes were termed "minor" by Harding and the team, but he only appeared in two games after being activated in late December.
Michael Russo, Rsso's Rants -- For a team that lacks confidence and has 22 goals in the past 15 games and must dig deep and figure out a way to stop the bleeding and climb back into the top-8, Parise's absence comes out a bad time.
Parise blocked a shot by Alex Steen on Nov. 25. Coincidentally - or maybe not, the Wild is 5-9-1 since and 1-7-1, including that game in St. Louis, on the road since.
Parise was supposed to miss two to three weeks because of the bum foot but instead missed one game because he felt he could play through the injury and because of how difficult a stretch of games the Wild had coming up.
Commendable, but Parise was clearly playing through pain and the last week to 10 days, his off-ice limp was getting more and more pronounced. You could see it on the ice, too.
My educated guess is Parise will now need to stay off the foot for a little while so it doesn't linger any longer. How long? No clue, but this time doctors may have more say than Parise.
#MNwild lines in warm ups: Parise-Koivu-Coyle Niederreiter-Haula-Pominville Heatley-Brodziak-Zucker Cooke-Konopka-Mitchell
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) November 29, 2013
Parise on line rushes w first line. Haula centering line 2. Fontaine indeed the scratch if Parise feels he can go, which he does :) #mnwild
— Michael Russo (@Russostrib) November 29, 2013
Unbelievable. Zach Parise is skating in line rushes with the Wild. pic.twitter.com/oREXBG4wnc
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) November 27, 2013
"GAME ON!" -- Wayne Campbell, Garth Algar in 1992. Also, Zach Parise and Keith Ballard, today: http://t.co/r5j74GVtl0
— North Dakota MHockey (@UNDMHockey) October 31, 2013
Larry Brooks, New York Post -- The point has been made here repeatedly. These aren’t your fights from the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s or ’80s. Fighters today are massive, weight-trained punchers who do damage with every blow to the head they land.What do you think of the call to ban fighting in the NHL? Former UND All-American forward Zach Parise thinks that fighting has a place in the game of hockey and I have to agree with him.
And, far more often than not, today’s fighters are designated to play that role, whereas in the old days — the days that established the NHL’s so-called tradition and, ugh, code — the best players in the league invariably were the ones to drop their gloves.
Let’s be honest here: It is not called the Donald Brashear Hat Trick.
It simply is intellectually dishonest to claim commitment to reducing the number of concussions in hockey by legislating against checks to the head while blithely permitting players to punch each other in the head. The brain does not necessarily distinguish between punishments absorbed.
“A lot of times it keeps everything in check,” the Wild’s Zach Parise said. “You can’t just run around and know you’re being protected by the rules and protected by the officials.” [Mike Russo, Star Tribune]I agree with Zach. I am going to say that Parise is one of the players that would probably face a lot of more scrutiny if the NHL got rid of fighting. Without that deterrent, star players would face more targeted violence from the "Rats" in the NHL.
#hockey UND Hockey: A Season of Change http://t.co/X2hf6MQbg2
— The Hockey Writers (@TheHockeyWriter) October 3, 2013
Jason Pominville signs 5-year extension with the Minnesota Wild http://t.co/GU1rctfwM4
— Hockey Wilderness (@hockeywildernes) October 3, 2013
Why he's great MT @FaberBrandon: Jonathan Toews spent today sharing the Stanley Cup w/ 200+ residents @ Misericordia pic.twitter.com/6IdaEAGzuz
— Mike McMahon (@MikeMcMahonCHN) October 3, 2013
It's officially hockey season UND fans! I talk to Hakstol, Rocco, Simpson, Mark Mac, Saunders, and Mattson here>> http://t.co/bFPEqSfC1l
— Dan Corey (@DanCorey8) October 3, 2013
Simpson is UND's youngest player to wear the "C" since Greg Johnson in 91-92 (10th youngest in UND history)
— Dan Corey (@DanCorey8) October 3, 2013
Today's story on @UNDMHockey as they prepare for their first year in the @TheNCHC http://t.co/ZQfVptMaGM
— Beth Hoole (@bethhooleVNL) October 3, 2013
Damien Cox, Toronto Star -- But the question NHL hanging judge Brendan Shanahan needs to ask himself is whether justice will be done if Kessel is suspended and the Buffalo Sabres don't receive any sanctions at all, not even a token fine.I know that there’s going to be a few people that think that Phil Kessel had a beat down coming. But I ask you; think about it this way. Interchange Leafs forward Phil Kessel with Sidney Crosby, Patrice Bergeron, Zach Parise or even Jonathan Toews. Now I got your attention, right? Do we really want a two-bit goon like John Scott beating the bejesus out of a star player? Do we want him to just take liberties against marquee players? First off, I am not a dove by any stretch of the imagination. I love a good bare knuckles brawl, but the head coach of the Maple Leafs bares some of the blame in this situation.
If Shanahan chooses that option, he will be in effect opening the door to a strategy in which enforcers can jump star players on opposing teams without the league coming down hard on them. The league should protect its marquee players, although it seldom makes that a priority and instead allows the Patrick Kaletas of the world to run wild. You can say Kessel did wrong, but you better have a explanation as to how he should have handled a 6-foot-8 goon who had already dropped his gloves.
You can argue the goon in question, John Scott, did nothing overly wrong under the rules of the game, other than breaking them and getting a penalty. But in combination with Buffalo coach Ron Rolston, Scott instigated the entire affair by doing what most NHL people would argue is completely against the culture and spirit of the game, and that's menacing a skill player who had done absolutely nothing to provoke Scott.
Matt Cooke of the Pittsburgh Penguins. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Jess Myers, 1500ESPN.com -- "He was pretty dirty," Parise said. "He got under your skin, and he's got that ability to take your focus off the game and off scoring goals, and he puts your focus on him. That's a good trait to have, and that's a good player for us to have."
A quick check of Cooke's online bio shows nearly as many NHL suspensions for dirty and dangerous plays as trips to the playoffs. It also shows a Stanley Cup ring that Cooke won with the Penguins (who had an assistant coach named Mike Yeo back then) in 2009. Still, over the summer when the Wild inked Cooke to a free agent pact, the reaction of some fans was akin to announcing that a tried and true goon like Ulf Samuelsson, or Todd Bertuzzi or Chris Simon (again) would be wearing green and red.
"I understand their reaction. I don't blame them for it, and they're entitled to it," said Cooke on Sunday. "But I'm a different player now, and somehow, some way, with this being the State of Hockey, I believe if for some reason I was on this side doing the same things, they'd be loving me. So I ask for patience, and hopefully after three or four shifts their opinions will change."
Good read MT @BillHoppeNHL Thomas Vanek: http://t.co/Z3yLE8NDx0 "I’m telling you right now, that’s not true. I’ve never asked for a trade"
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) August 29, 2013
Bill Hoppe, Olean Times Herald – Thomas Vanek spoke firmly. No, the high-scoring winger said, he hasn’t asked to be traded from the Buffalo Sabres. The widespread belief he wants out of town doesn’t bother him. But it’s simply not true.
“The media and people, they can make up their own assumptions as long as I know where I’m at and stuff and my family’s at. That’s fine,” Vanek said following an off-ice workout Wednesday morning. “At the end of the day, people will find out, either from me or the Sabres, just like I’m telling you right now, that’s not true. I’ve never asked for a trade, so I’m not surprised that I’m still here.
”Nonetheless, the Sabres have said Vanek and starting goalie Ryan Miller, the two franchise cornerstones whose contracts expire after the upcoming season, could be dealt.
After the Sabres dished several high-profile veterans late last season and began looking to the future, Vanek was the most outspoken, voicing some disappointment and saying he didn’t want to partake in a two- or three-year rebuild. But the 29-year-old also said he would wait and see before making another commitment to the Sabres, something that he repeated on Wednesday.
"We were fortunate to sign both Zach and Ryan," Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher said. "Looking back now, in hindsight with a year removed, I can't even say how lucky we are that we did sign them. You hear horror stories of all these big free-agent signings that don't pan out, and we signed arguably the best defenseman in the League and one of the best goal scorers in the League. Both players lived up to expectations. They're great people."The Wild if they get the right breaks and some players develop I think they could, this could be a breakout season for the Minnesota Wild. Young players like Charlie Coyle, Jason Zucker and Mikael Granlund. I have to say that I am excited for the season to start.
The Wild's return to the postseason was short-lived. Minnesota was ousted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference Quarterfinals in five games, scoring seven goals. The team obviously was frustrated, but the emergence of defenseman and forwards Charlie Coyle and Jason Zucker has everyone within the organization excited about what lies ahead.
" Fletcher said. "We have a good mix of veteran players and young players up front. We like our defense with the addition of Ballard. Certainly, with Nik Backstrom and Josh Harding and the emergence of Darcy Kuemper last year, we like our depth in goal. Every team could always use upgrades, but right now we're really happy with where we're at. There will be some good competition in camp and we're excited to see where some of our young players will sort out." [Brian Compton - NHL.com ]
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Ottawa Senators (NHL)
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209 (95)
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1993-07-14
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1984-03-26
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Syracuse, N.Y.
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175 (79)
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1980-07-17
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East Lansing, Mich.
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Buffalo Sabres (NHL)
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Minnetonka, Minn.
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1987-01-13
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Ann Arbor, Mich.
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Columbus Blue Jackets (NHL)
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1994-10-03
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Plano, Texas
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1991-03-20
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Eden Prairie, Minn.
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200 (91)
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1981-03-05
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Minneapolis, Minn.
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213 (97)
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1989-06-13
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St. Paul, Minn.
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6-2 (188)
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219 (99)
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1980-09-26
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San Francisco, Calif.
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Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL)
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207 (94)
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1989-01-29
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Greenwich, Conn.
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6-1 (185)
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198 (90)
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1985-01-21
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Madison, Wis.
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Minnesota Wild (NHL)
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6-1 (185)
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196 (89)
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1994-02-26
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Rochester, Mich.
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1986-09-09
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Boston, Mass.
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Phoenix Coyotes (NHL)
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1987-02-25
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Muskegon, Mich.
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221 (100)
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1984-05-01
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Minneapolis, Minn.
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6-2 (188)
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207 (94)
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1991-11-27
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Gardena, Calif.
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215 (98)
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1992-07-17
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Minneapolis, Minn.
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Florida Panthers (NHL)
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212 (96)
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1984-11-04
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Ithaca, N.Y.
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180 (82)
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1985-03-21
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Rochester, N.Y.
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196 (89)
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1994-02-12
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181 (82)
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1988-11-19
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Buffalo, N.Y.
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202 (92)
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1984-08-31
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Livonia, Mich.
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Vancouver Canucks (NHL)
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202 (92)
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1987-10-02
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Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL)
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6-1 (185)
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199 (90)
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1987-01-08
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Salt Lake City, Utah
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Los Angeles Kings (NHL)
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212 (96)
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1988-03-16
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St. Paul, Minn.
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New York Islanders (NHL)
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5-11 (180)
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189 (86)
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1986-12-23
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Warroad, Minn.
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St. Louis Blues (NHL)
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6-2 (188)
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219 (99)
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1988-11-20
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New Canaan, Conn.
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Montreal Canadiens (NHL)
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5-11 (180)
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197 (90)
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1991-02-01
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Smithtown, N.Y.
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Anaheim Ducks (NHL)
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5-11 (180)
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190 (86)
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1984-07-28
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Minneapolis, Minn.
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Minnesota Wild (NHL)
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5-11 (180)
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190 (86)
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1984-07-11
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Plover, Wis.
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San Jose Sharks (NHL)
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6-2 (188)
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200 (91)
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1987-03-17
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Cherry Hills, N.J.
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Ottawa Senators (NHL)
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202 (92)
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1992-10-27
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Gibsonia, Pa.
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Chicago Blackhawks (NHL)
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202 (92)
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1989-09-05
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Madison, Wis.
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Nashville Predators (NHL)
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6-0 (183)
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205 (93)
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1985-12-27
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St. Louis, Mo.
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Colorado Avalanche (NHL)
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6-0 (183)
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196 (90)
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1990-06-18
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Hastings, Minn.
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New York Rangers (NHL)
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6-3 (191)
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200 (91)
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1989-05-04
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Middletown, N.J.
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Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL)
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205 (93)
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1986-08-31
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Robbinsdale, Minn.
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Winnipeg Jets (NHL)
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