| Points | ||
| 1. | Zach Parise-MIN | 11 |
| 2. | Paul Stastny-COL | 10 |
| Nathan MacKinnon-COL | 10 | |
| Anze Kopitar-LAK | 10 | |
| 5. | Jonathan Toews-CHI | 8 |
| Brent Seabrook-CHI | 8 | |
| Matt Niskanen-PIT | 8 | |
| Paul Martin-PIT | 8 | |
| Evgeni Malkin-PIT | 8 | |
| Patrick Kane-CHI | ||
Toronto Sun - It's been a tough off-season for NCAA hockey teams and the NHL is responsible for most of the pain.
Although it's really nothing new, the exodus of players from American colleges to the pro or junior ranks seems to be more pronounced this year.
The trend continued Tuesday when Montreal Canadiens' first-round pick Jarred Tinordi bailed on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to join the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League. Tinordi hasn't signed with the Habs but jumping to the Knights allows him to attend training camp in Montreal, something that wouldn't have happened if he stuck with Notre Dame.
But Tinordi, the son of former NHLer Mark Tinordi, isn't even the only Canadiens prospect to walk away from school in the last month or so.
Louis Leblanc, the Habs' first-rounder from 2009, was forced to leave the Harvard Crimson after one season when he signed an entry-level contract with the Canadiens. He's eligible to play in the American Hockey League but instead joined the Montreal Junior of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Forward Jerry D'Amigo officially ended his short career with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute when he signed Wednesday. D'Amigo spent just one season at RPI, racking up 34 points (10 goals, 24 assists) in 35 games.
In the last couple of weeks, first-rounder Kyle Palmieri has skated away from Notre Dame after agreeing to a contract with the Anaheim Ducks and Nick Leddy signed with the Chicago Blackhawks, leaving Minnesota in the process. Palmieri will start the season in the AHL and there's a good chance D'Amigo will wind up with the Marlies, although the Guelph Storm and Kitchener Rangers have their fingers crossed that the two U.S. junior teammates get sent to junior at some point.
Major junior teams gave the NCAA a couple of kicks of their own, though, snatching away some top-end talent at the last minute.
Lucas Lessio, playing with the Canadian under-18 team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, didn't live up to the verbal commitment he made to join Michigan in 2011 and opted instead to sign with the OHL's Oshawa Generals. Julian Melchiori did the same when he joined the Kitchener Rangers recently instead of heading to Massachusetts-Lowell for his freshman season.
Since April 1, 17 players gave up NCAA eligibility to sign with NHL teams, according to figures compiled by insidecollegehockey.com. Factor in the others, like Tinord, Lessio and Melchiori, all of whom never even showed up on campus, and you can see how hard the U.S. schools have been hit.
It's not unusual for players to leave college early, though. Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, Blues defenceman Erik Johnson, Kings blueliner Jack Johnson, Oilers forward Andrew Cogliano and Canucks forward Mason Raymond all dropped out in 2007 to work in the NHL
Anyway, basically what is going on here is that McDonagh realizes he has options and is not about to be forced into something he does not want to necessarily do. With knowing that he will captain Wisconsin next season, and knowing that he is guaranteed an expected amount of playing time as well as responsibility, he is leaning toward sticking with the Badgers. This is option number one.
Option number two would be to agree on terms with the Blueshirts, sign an entry level contract and jump straight to the pros instead of finishing his senior year in college. The difference between option one and option two, besides salary of course, is that he is guaranteed absolutely nothing once signing with the Rangers. He is not guaranteed that same playing time he is with Wisconsin, and he certainly is not going to be given the same amount of responsibility.
Take Matt Gilroy, for example, who signed with the Rangers out of college last April. A former Hobey Baker Award winner, Gilroy entered the National Hockey League playing under a coach that apparently did not have much patients to allow him to develop. He was docked ice time, sent down to the minors, and then was sentenced to watch the final week of the regular season from the press box. Again, a Hobey Baker Award winner, coming out of college, was shown very little respect by head coach John Tortorella, and barely was given a chance.
After seeing that, can you blame McDonagh for wanting to stay in college for his final year where he is one of their "go to" players instead of being belittled by Tortorella and possibly not even dressing on occasion? I cannot, and it is a shame that out coach can possibly scare off future talent. Gilroy has potential, and could have developed nicely this past season, but Torts finds it necessary to play individuals such as Wade Redden over him. If I am McDonagh, I do not jump to the pros and lock into a contract with the risk of having to contend with that nonsense.
Now I am not saying this is why McDonagh is holding out, but without a doubt, it is a possible explanation. Once the upcoming NCAA season concludes, the 6-foot-1 blue-liner has no choice but to enter the National Hockey League, and there is plenty of time between the end of his season and early August for him to strike a deal with the Blueshirts before becoming an unrestricted free agent and New York losses his rights. Until then, he is Rangers property and has shown no indication whatsoever of not wanting to play on Broadway as Brooks claims in his article.
McDonagh has the upper hand in this situation, which is rare for a rookie entering the league, and most people that are fortunate enough to have that upper hand are going to fully take advantage of it. If he does not have to rush, why should he? With the risk of making the wrong decision, he should take all of the time given to him be sure he is making the right one. No, it may not be the ideal thing for the Rangers (or their fans), but I am presenting the situation to you from his point of view
[Rangers Tribune]
redhawkforlife said; People will say it was a clean hit. I agree. But Jack knew exactly what he was doing at that exact area of the ice. We've seen it over and over from him from jr's on up.
Bonk said; Who would've guessed? Hack checks someone cleanly for the first time in his adult life, and the guy loses consciousness. I'll bet he won't try that again.
Josh D who put the video said;jack johnson nearly kills ryan smyth
Joe Sakic added: "It wasn't a dirty hit. (Johnson) hit him hard and (Smyth) hit the corner of the glass. It was just unfortunate as to where it happened."
Johnson said, "that he felt bad about the check that sent Smyth sprawling to the ice."
However, he knew what was coming next. Clean hit or not, a fight had to happen. It's part of hockey's code.
But there's honor among fighters, and Laperriere extended Johnson the courtesy of deciding when the brawl would occur.
"He came up to me and said, 'Do you want to get it over with?"' Johnson said. "I said, 'Sure."'
The fight never took place as Rob Blake stepped in and played the role of peacemaker, quickly breaking up the fracas. He didn't want to see his young defenseman get hurt by the fists of Laperriere. Not for what he thought was a clean hit.
UMicers said; JJ is a disgrace to himself, Michigan and LA. He's always done that crap. Us Michigan fans don't count him as a Wolverine. He stayed here 2 years then went pro. I hate the Avs, but I like Ryan Smith - He's an Oiler to me.
It looks like Smyth got his head run into the column that connects each glass pane. Almost as if it was protruded out from the glass. Or was that the angle and it was really just JJ's elbow he threw?
I've seen a LOT dirtier hits. Still, JJ is an IDIOT of the highest order.
There were two scraps in last night’s game against the Wild. Nathan McIver had a good bout with Aaron Voros early in the first period. In the second, Alex Burrows took exception to a hit Brian Rolston put on Willie Mitchell. Rolston got Mitchell hard from behind, no call was made, and Burrows wasn’t giving Rolston any option. It was Rolston’s first major since 1994-95 when he had a fight with Ken Klee. Klee picked up the instigator in that one, something the Star Tribune also noted.
Ultimately, it may come down to kids, and how willing the Bruins are to give up future promise for present production. There will be bidders for Phil Kessel, who was benched after two periods Sunday, his game noticeably lacking edge and dimension in this, his second NHL season. Goalie prospect Tuukka Rask and improving blue liner Mark Stuart also will bring bids, but they likely would be more difficult to sacrifice than Kessel, whose speed, though alluring, in some ways is holding him back from discovering what else he can do out there. Julien, like Dave Lewis last season, is beginning to realize it.
Kessel was the No. 5 pick in the 2006 draft. Five years earlier, Stanislav Chistov was taken fifth overall by the Anaheim Ducks, who dealt him last year to the Bruins. He wasn't totally useless, but he wasn't much more. Today, Chistov is back in Russia, another once-prime prospect gone bust. Kessel has more to offer, because of his speed and a knack around the net during shootouts. But he must show the coaching staff that he's willing to be smarter and work harder, especially in the dirtier areas of the ice.
Kyle Okposo, the top prospect in the Islanders' system, has left the University of Minnesota and is in the process of negotiating an entry-level contract with the Islanders, the team acknowledged in a statement Wednesday.
"We're extremely excited about the possibility of Kyle joining our organization soon," general manager Garth Snow said in the statement. "He's a great talent, one of the most exciting prospects in the game. Kyle has the dedication and character we want for our franchise."
The 19-year-old winger from St. Paul was the Islanders' first-round selection and seventh overall in the 2006 NHL draft. .Okposo had 40 points (19 goals and 21 assists) in 40 games for the Golden Gophers as a freshman, but he struggled this season after coach Don Lucia put him at center. In 18 games, Okposo totaled six goals and five assists for 11 points, and he had a team-worst minus-9 rating.
At a news conference Wednesday to announce Okposo had dropped out, Lucia hinted at meddling by the Islanders, saying, "It is unfortunate that the Islanders put him in a very difficult position."
But Okposo previously indicated to local reporters that he was unhappy playing for Lucia.
WCHA Evening Out After Years of Player Exodus
by Brad Salmen/CHN Reporter
The 2005 collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and the players' union that ended the 2004 lockout might have an unintended consequence — leveling the playing field in the WCHA.
For a period of 10 years or so, beginning in the mid-1990s, the WCHA seemed to be split into three tiers — call them the "haves", the "have-somes," and the "have-nots." Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota, which indisputably have the biggest and most lavish facilities, were invariably in the top five of the league, while Colorado College, Denver and St. Cloud St. battled for the last two home-ice first-round WCHA playoff spots. Lesser-funded Minnesota St., Alaska-Anchorage, Michigan Tech and Minnesota-Duluth, meanwhile, occasionally crept into that top tier, but a simple season-by-season analysis shows that more often than not, they finished in the bottom half of the league.
Then came the 2004 NHL lockout, and the new collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players' union.
The agreement, which established a salary cap and capped the rookie maximum salary, also contained an important provision linking players' salaries to overall league revenues. As a result, the focus for both sides became increasing those revenues, which in turn put more pressure than ever on franchises to field competitive teams.
The result of this pressure trickled down to the American Hockey League (AHL), the premier minor league for the NHL. Instead of suiting some older, former NHL players as they had in the past, most of the AHL teams began courting more younger players to groom for the NHL.
There was another effect: Instead of the reduced rookie maximum making it less enticing for players to leave, it actually made it less risky for NHL teams to pursue them, so they went after college players more aggressively, and college players have not shown any reluctance to go.
Therein lies the rub, especially for the WCHA. While all six NCAA Division I hockey leagues saw an increase in underclassmen leaving before their senior year, a record 12 WCHA underclassmen signed pro contracts after last season, more than the rest of Division I combined.
It's no coincidence that the majority of those players — nine of the 12 — were from the aforementioned "haves" and "have somes." And the result of that mass exodus has led to a 2007-08 season that just might be the most competitive WCHA season in years.
"It used to be, there were two divisions, or three tiers (in the WCHA)," said St. Cloud St. coach Bob Motzko. "But in the last few years, it keeps melting more and more. There are no 'surprises' in the league anymore."
Consider: Colorado College (8-2-0 in the WCHA) was not one of the teams to lose an underclassman to early signing, and has raced to the top of the division after being picked seventh in the preseason Grand Forks Herald WCHA Coaches' poll. Ditto Michigan Tech (currently fourth place in the WCHA) and Alaska-Anchorage, who in a rare occurrence split at Minnesota two weekends ago. But Wisconsin, North Dakota and Minnesota, those three top-tier teams, all lost two players pre-graduation, and this season all three have struggled.
It's not pandemic; as always in hockey, there are X-factors. Denver, back-to-back NCAA champions in 2004-05, has not missed a beat without Geoff Paukovich and Ryan Dingle, and currently reside in second place. And Minnesota-Duluth lost two underclassmen as well (Mason Raymond and Matt Niskanen), but behind the surprising goaltending of Alex Stalock is in third.
Nevertheless, the increased loss of underclassmen prompted WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod and three other NCAA Division I League commissioners to write a letter to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman regarding the matter earlier this year.
Their concern, said McLeod, was not the impact on the league standings; on the contrary, he said, having more parity only helps the league overall. Instead, he said, the concern stems from having more players leave without graduating, which is not only bad for the athletes who may or may not have a career in the NHL, but also might affect graduation rates, a factor in NCAA scholarship administration.
"Since the bargaining agreement, (the WCHA) has had an influx of high-end players, which is great for the league — we enjoy having them when they do come here," said McLeod. However, he said, "it's a good news-bad new situation. Teams that recruit these top-end players find themselves struggling to fill their positions when they leave early, and teams that don't are able to get leadership from their senior players."
Ultimately, he said, the league's interests lie with the players. While McLeod said the dialogue with Bettman did not result in any concrete solutions, just starting that conversation is a good step forward.
"The goal is to graduate as many players as we can," said McLeod. "We have to be careful. I'm not sure we want to institute rules like they have in football (where a player cannot leave until after his junior year). But a number of coaches have expressed their concerns, and we're sympathetic to that."
Charlestown, MA -- Boston Bruins leading goal scorer Phil Kessel launched ReadBoston's Reading Trail Program on Monday, November 5 at the John F. Kennedy Family Service Center in Charlestown.
"I enjoyed it," said Kessel after meeting the children. "I had a lot of fun."
The Reading Trail Program is an early literacy program designed to increase reading at home and in childcare settings. Kessel read to preschool students and passed out a free book (I Stink, the story of the garbage truck) to each child in attendance.
"It was a good time. (The children) behaved themselves well and they listened," said Kessel, who although nervous beforehand, was very, very pleased with the event, afterward.
This year, the Boston Bruins are partnering with ReadBoston and will participate in a number of events throughout the coming months. In addition to Kessel's appearance on Monday, the Bruins will provide Reading Trail Programs with customized "trail guides" to track the number of books each child reads; those children who complete their trail guides will receive a Bruins bookmark.
Asked if he would be volunteering to read again, Phil gave an emphatic shake of the head and a loud "Yes." The children and their teachers appreciated the gesture and he was given the latest (if not the most important) standing "O" of his career and the kids waved their new book and said "Thank you, Phil."
Mayor Thomas M. Menino and other city leaders founded ReadBoston in 1995 with a simple, ambitious mission: to ensure that every child in Boston can read at grade level by the third grade. ReadBoston is making great strides to achieve its goal by forming partnerships with city organizations committed to children's literacy, and by funneling resources, innovative programs, books and best practices into Boston neighborhoods.
Kessel and the 7-5-1 Bruins are in the midst of a nine-game stretch where the Bruins face only their Northeast Division rivals - with three scheduled against the Sabres and two games each against the Maple Leafs, Senators and Canadiens - over the next three weeks.
Grieco headed to OHL By Brad Schlossman
Anthony Grieco, UND's backup goaltender, has left school and returned to Ontario, where he will play in the Ontario Hockey League, his father said Monday.
Grieco, an 18-year-old sophomore from Brampton, Ont., had not played this season for the Sioux. He saw action in eight games as a rookie, posting a 3-2-1 mark with a 3.49 goals-against average and .884 save percentage.
Grieco's father, Charlie, said it was essential for his son to get playing time as he recovered from a knee injury that he suffered at the end of last season.
"He needed some playing time or his skill level would be deteriorating," Charlie said.
Anthony will play for the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors, a team that drafted him in the 10th round in the 2004 OHL draft.
Anthony will play for the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors, a team that drafted him in the 10th round in the 2004 OHL draft.
Grieco drove through the night Sunday to return to Ontario, where he began practicing with the Majors this afternoon.
"He's built some really great relationships (at UND), so it was pretty emotional," Charlie said.
The departure leaves UND with two goaltenders starter Jean-Philippe Lamoureux and backup Aaron Walski. Lamoureux has started 32 consecutive games for the Sioux dating back to last season and was named the national player of the month in October by the Hockey Commissioners' Association.
"The team is playing solid and Phil has been playing well," Charlie said. "Being there a year and a half, (Anthony) needed playing time."
Grieco was a late addition to the roster last summer. He signed a letter of intent in June, just weeks before goaltender Jordan Parise freed up a roster spot by signing with the New Jersey Devils.
Grieco had been courted by the Majors throughout his tenure at UND, Charlie said.
Rash of injuries to defence corps testing Oilers early in the season
Canadian Press Oct 31, 2007, 7:33 PM EDT
EDMONTON - The talk when training camp began was that depth on the blue line might be the Edmonton Oilers' ace-in-the-hole this season.
That's a card the Oilers are going to have to play now as they've lost third-year rearguard Matt Greene to a broken left ankle that will keep him out of the line-up as long as three months.
Greene, injured in the second period of a 2-1 loss to Detroit Tuesday, will need surgery. He joins Sheldon Souray, out since Oct. 10 with a sprained left shoulder, and Joni Pitkanen, out another month after surgery to repair damaged knee cartilage, on the shelf.
With all of that, coach Craig MacTavish summoned his best poker face Wednesday.
"These (comments) could come back to haunt me and I don't normally throw these out there, but I'm not all that worried about the injuries on the back end," MacTavish said.
"From what I've seen, with (who) we have healthy, we're going to be able to overcome it."
Vancouver, B.C. - Vancouver Canucks Senior Vice President and General Manager Dave Nonis announced today that left wing Mason Raymond has been re-assigned to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL.
Raymond, 22, has played in nine games for the Canucks in 2007-08, recording his first NHL point (0-1-1) on October 5, 2007 versus San Jose. He has played in one game for the Moose and recorded two assists.
The Calgary, Alberta native spent the 2006-07 season with the University of Minnesota-Duluth and the Manitoba Moose. He registered 46 points (14-32-46) in 39 games with Minnesota and four points (2-2-4) in 11 games with Manitoba. In the post-season, Raymond recorded one assist in 13 AHL playoff games.
The 6’0”, 182-pound forward was originally drafted by the Canucks in the 2005 Entry Draft, 51st overall.
