New York Rangers Had a Scare

During Tuesday morning practice drills the New York Rangers narrowly avoided having their season go up in smoke. Currently sitting two points out of a playoff spot the Rangers were practicing some breakaway drills when their leading scorer Marian Gaborik who already has 69 points injured himself when he tried to jump over goalie Henrik Lundqvist’s pad. “I thought he was joking,” a shocked Lundqvist said about seeing Gaborik not getting up from the ice. “Hopefully he’ll be okay.” The good news for Gaborik who is in his first year of a lucrative five year 37.5 million dollar U.S. deal signed last summer with New York is that while he did receive some stitches no x-rays were needed for the leg. The other bit of great news for Rangers fans is that he didn’t hurt his hip which kept him out of a majority of games last season for the Minnesota Wild. “It’s not like it’s a twist to the groin or the knee,” Rangers assistant coach Jim Schoenfeld said. “It’s just a laceration.”  To say that Gaborik has been worth the big free agent bucks would be a complete understatement.. So far he has missed only two games and besides for chipping in with 35 goals has been a positive dressing room influence. No official announcement has been made about whether he will play at home on Wednesday against the Nashville Predators. This eight year veteran who is a former first round pick of the Minnesota Wild is also scheduled to play on the Slovakia team during the Olympics.

New York Rangers Had a Scare

During Tuesday morning practice drills the New York Rangers narrowly avoided having their season go up in smoke. Currently sitting two points out of a playoff spot the Rangers were practicing some breakaway drills when their leading scorer Marian Gaborik who already has 69 points injured himself when he tried to jump over goalie Henrik Lundqvist’s pad. “I thought he was joking,” a shocked Lundqvist said about seeing Gaborik not getting up from the ice. “Hopefully he’ll be okay.” The good news for Gaborik who is in his first year of a lucrative five year 37.5 million dollar U.S. deal signed last summer with New York is that while he did receive some stitches no x-rays were needed for the leg. The other bit of great news for Rangers fans is that he didn’t hurt his hip which kept him out of a majority of games last season for the Minnesota Wild. “It’s not like it’s a twist to the groin or the knee,” Rangers assistant coach Jim Schoenfeld said. “It’s just a laceration.”  To say that Gaborik has been worth the big free agent bucks would be a complete understatement.. So far he has missed only two games and besides for chipping in with 35 goals has been a positive dressing room influence. No official announcement has been made about whether he will play at home on Wednesday against the Nashville Predators. This eight year veteran who is a former first round pick of the Minnesota Wild is also scheduled to play on the Slovakia team during the Olympics.

Ryan Getzlaf is Injuried

All Canadian hockey fans will have their fingers crossed in the next 48 hours or so as scoring forward Ryan Getzlaf will have his injured left ankle examined. Being counted on to provide some clutch scoring along with toughness at the upcoming Vancouver Olympics Getzlaf who has 57 points this season for the Anaheim Ducks suffered on Monday what was diagnosed as a bad ankle sprain. “We really haven’t got an assessment, other than he sprained his ankle,” Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle said. “Right now, hes walking in a boot and he’ll walk on crutches and we’ll have an MRI done Tuesday. That will give us a better indication on the severity of the sprain.” Anaheim who has now won 12 of their past 17 games and ten straight at home understandably weren’t exactly in a celebratory mood after their 4-2 win against the streaking Los Angeles Kings after seeing Getzlaf hobbling around in teh dressing room on crutches. “When you have everyone going and then lose a guy, its tough,” Perry who had three points on this night said. “I mean, you can’t really replace a guy like that because hes got tremendous skill and he’s a great player.” There will be a huge to fill in Team Canadas roster if Getzlaf fails to get that necessary clearance to play for Canada. Besides for Perry and Getzlaf other Anaheim goal scorers were veterans Saku Koivu and Teemu Selanne. There is no underestimating this Ducks win as they got a huge performance from goaltender Jonas Hiller who made 35 saves as they snapped the Kings franchise best nine game winning streak which propelled them to third seeding in the Western Conference. “It was definitely fun,” Kings forward Anze Kopitar who had a goal said. “It was a good ride for us, but I thought they played a good hockey game. We just couldn’t get a bounce here and there or it would have been different.” Also scoring for the Kings was Oscar Moller.

Boston Bruins Stop the Slide

There was a huge collective sigh of relief coming out of New England on Sunday afternoon following their Boston Bruins breaking out of what was an ugly 10 game losing streak that put them out of a playoff position. Leading the way on this day was their young backup goaltender Tuukka Rask who made 36 saves in blanking the Montreal Canadiens 3-0. “It’s always nice to have a shutout, but first and foremost it’s nice to have a win,” Rask who now has four shutouts on the season said.. “They had some chances, but overall I think we kept them to the outside and I saw pretty much every puck. That always helps.” In posting a 0-6-4 record in their past 10 games Boston who had the best record last season in the Eastern Conference came into play two points out of a playoff spot. Fate was with them on this afternoon as two of their goals came courtesy of unintentional deflections from Montreal players. Still that didn’t seem to faze Bruins coach Claude Julien. “With what we’ve been going through the last little while, we were really hoping for a break to come our way,” he said. “It’s true, we had some luck tonight and that’s what got us the win our whole team was looking for.” It was a special game for Bruins rookie defenceman Adam McQuaid who in only his 12^th career game scored his first NHL goal. Also scoring for Boston was Marco Sturm with two. Meanwhile Montreal who had Jaroslav Halak in nets had their modest three game winning streak snapped. “That shouldn’t have happened,” Habs coach Jaques Martin said about his team falling behind 2-0 after the first period. “If you look at the standings, you’re playing a team you’re fighting for a playoff spot and we had a chance to hurt them. What’s disappointing is the way we came out, we lost the game in the first period.. If we’d played in the first the way we played in the second and third, we might have lost the game but at least we would have given it our best.” What’s really encouraging for Boston fans isn’t just the win but the fact that the three goals break an ugly streak where they have scored two or fewer for nine straight games.

Boston Bruins Stop the Slide

There was a huge collective sigh of relief coming out of New England on Sunday afternoon following their Boston Bruins breaking out of what was an ugly 10 game losing streak that put them out of a playoff position. Leading the way on this day was their young backup goaltender Tuukka Rask who made 36 saves in blanking the Montreal Canadiens 3-0. “It’s always nice to have a shutout, but first and foremost it’s nice to have a win,” Rask who now has four shutouts on the season said.. “They had some chances, but overall I think we kept them to the outside and I saw pretty much every puck. That always helps.” In posting a 0-6-4 record in their past 10 games Boston who had the best record last season in the Eastern Conference came into play two points out of a playoff spot. Fate was with them on this afternoon as two of their goals came courtesy of unintentional deflections from Montreal players. Still that didn’t seem to faze Bruins coach Claude Julien. “With what we’ve been going through the last little while, we were really hoping for a break to come our way,” he said. “It’s true, we had some luck tonight and that’s what got us the win our whole team was looking for.” It was a special game for Bruins rookie defenceman Adam McQuaid who in only his 12^th career game scored his first NHL goal. Also scoring for Boston was Marco Sturm with two. Meanwhile Montreal who had Jaroslav Halak in nets had their modest three game winning streak snapped. “That shouldn’t have happened,” Habs coach Jaques Martin said about his team falling behind 2-0 after the first period. “If you look at the standings, you’re playing a team you’re fighting for a playoff spot and we had a chance to hurt them. What’s disappointing is the way we came out, we lost the game in the first period.. If we’d played in the first the way we played in the second and third, we might have lost the game but at least we would have given it our best.” What’s really encouraging for Boston fans isn’t just the win but the fact that the three goals break an ugly streak where they have scored two or fewer for nine straight games.

Boston Bruins Stop the Slide

There was a huge collective sigh of relief coming out of New England on Sunday afternoon following their Boston Bruins breaking out of what was an ugly 10 game losing streak that put them out of a playoff position. Leading the way on this day was their young backup goaltender Tuukka Rask who made 36 saves in blanking the Montreal Canadiens 3-0. “It’s always nice to have a shutout, but first and foremost it’s nice to have a win,” Rask who now has four shutouts on the season said.. “They had some chances, but overall I think we kept them to the outside and I saw pretty much every puck. That always helps.” In posting a 0-6-4 record in their past 10 games Boston who had the best record last season in the Eastern Conference came into play two points out of a playoff spot. Fate was with them on this afternoon as two of their goals came courtesy of unintentional deflections from Montreal players. Still that didn’t seem to faze Bruins coach Claude Julien. “With what we’ve been going through the last little while, we were really hoping for a break to come our way,” he said. “It’s true, we had some luck tonight and that’s what got us the win our whole team was looking for.” It was a special game for Bruins rookie defenceman Adam McQuaid who in only his 12^th career game scored his first NHL goal. Also scoring for Boston was Marco Sturm with two. Meanwhile Montreal who had Jaroslav Halak in nets had their modest three game winning streak snapped. “That shouldn’t have happened,” Habs coach Jaques Martin said about his team falling behind 2-0 after the first period. “If you look at the standings, you’re playing a team you’re fighting for a playoff spot and we had a chance to hurt them. What’s disappointing is the way we came out, we lost the game in the first period.. If we’d played in the first the way we played in the second and third, we might have lost the game but at least we would have given it our best.” What’s really encouraging for Boston fans isn’t just the win but the fact that the three goals break an ugly streak where they have scored two or fewer for nine straight games.

LA Kings…11 wins in 12

Even though they haven’t been to postseason since 2002 the new and improved Los Angeles Kings have to be considered at least outside contenders for the Stanley Cup. With a collection of talented young scorers such as Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar, Alexander Frolov and Drew Doughty it’s no surprise that the Kings have climbed to third seed in the Western Conference with a respectable 75 points. While most of the hockey world is consumed with the dominating play of teams such as the Washington Capitals and Chicago Blackhawks it’s easy to overlook the feel good story in Hollywood which has the Kings not gaining nearly as much attention. On Saturday night this young team made a loud statement that they are to be taken seriously when they extended their winning streak to nine games by overcoming a three goal deficit and beating the powerful Detroit Red Wings 4-3. “We didn’t play a very good first, but I think it’s been our attitude this year that we’re never out of a game, especially with the way things are right now,” Brown whose team has won 11 of their last 12 games said. “Winning nine games in a row is obviously a franchise record, and I think what’s special about it is that it’s a team accomplishment.” Another key factor in Friday’s victory was goaltender Jonathan Quick who at this point is without question the most underrated goalie in hockey. This former 2005 Kings draft pick kicked out 20 Wings shots in registering his league best 34^th victory. What’s more impressive is that Quick who is only in his second year is only one win shy of tying the Kings Franchise record for wins in a season. Scoring for the Kings were Michal Handzus with two including the winner, Frolov and veteran Ryan Smyth. “It’s a very satisfying win to see the players come together for each other,” King coach Terry Murray said. “We want to build on it. We’ve got some big games before the Olympic break, so we want to push hard until we get there.” Meanwhile the Red Wings have lost nine of their past 12 games. Expect the Kings to be the underdogs this spring and capture the hearts of hockey fans with a long playoff run. Note- Mario Lessard won 35 games for the Kings in 1980-81 for the franchise record.

Brendan Burke is Killed in a Car Accident

On Friday night the die- hard Maple Leafs hockey fans in Toronto along with the players got a tragic reminder of how insignificant a hockey game really is in the overall picture of life. After a Toronto collapse where they surrendered three goals in a three minute span to lose 4-3 against the New Jersey Devils it was made public that Brendan Burke who is the son of Leafs GM Brian died that afternoon in an auto accident. Apparently Brendan who was only 21 years-old was driving a black jeep that lost control in icy conditions and skidded into oncoming traffic before being hit head on. In November Brendan received lots of praise and accolades from his father when he came out and admitted that he was gay. “I simply could not be more proud of Brendan than I am, and I love him as much as I admire him,” Burke said about his youngest son. The Leafs who play the Ottawa Senators at home on Saturday night were informed of the tragic news just before taking off from New Jersey. Needless to say the players were stunned and were quick to put things into perspective. “You never think, ‘that’s going to happen to me,” Maple Leafs defenceman Francois Beauchemin said. “But when it happens to somebody really close, like Brian, you kind of do think about it. It can happen any time, and it’s really tough.” Beauchemin said. Another player who expressed sorrow about the situation is one of the newest Leaf in goaltender Jean –Sebastien Giguere who like Beauchemin knew Brendan from their days with the Anaheim Ducks when Brian was the GM. “It’s really sad,” Giguere who shut out the New Jersey Devils 3-0 in his first Leaf start said. “I don’t think we can ever comprehend what Burkie is going through at this point. I think, right now, it’s best to just let him grieve and make sure that we do our job here at the rink to make sure he doesn’t have to worry about that.” Needless to say there will be a moment of silence before the Ottawa game on Saturday to remember the bright 21 year-old who had the courage to come out and admit to being gay. 29sports.com would like to express our condolences to the Burke family who request their privacy at this time.

NHL Short Notes

TOOTOO FORGOES FREE AGENCY

1.    The Nashville Predators took care of some in house business on Friday when they agreed with their veteran agitator Jordan Tootoo on a two year contract extension. Known for his rambunctious energy Tootoo who was slated to become a free agent this summer was drafted by the Preds fourth round in 2001. This 27 year-old who missed some time with a foot injury earlier this year has registered two goals and eight assist this season agreed to a two year extension. According to reports Tootoo will be paid 1.15 million next year and 1.35 in 2011/12.   

2.    WARD FINDS HIMSELF ONCE AGAIN SIDELINED 

Cam Ward and the Carolina Hurricanes can’t seem to escape falling victim this year to the dreaded injury bug. Carolina who were expected to be outside contenders for the Stanley Cup this year has had one costly injury after another and Friday night in Buffalo was no exception. The 25 year-old who has played in 26 of the last 27 games apparently had his previously injured knee stiffen on him during the long flight from Calgary to Buffalo. Ward who earlier missed 13 games due to a knee laceration was sent home to get the injury looked at. Carolina who beat Buffalo 4-3 had veteran Manny Legace in nets. Taking Ward’s spot on the roster will be Justin Peters who was called up from Albany of the American Hockey League.

      3.     CAPITALS WIN 13^TH STRAIGHT GAME

Rookie Michal Neuvirth was the hero on Friday night as he made 43 saves to extend the Washington Capitals franchise best winning streak to a lucky 13 games. Playing against the Atlanta Thrashers the Capitals who own the best record in the NHL got goals from captain Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Semin, Jason Chimera and Mike Green in what was a 5-2 decision. “The guys want to win more than anything,” Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau said. With this win Washington tied a franchise best of ten straight wins on home ice.

Ilya Kovalchuk is a Real Devil

The New Jersey Devils have never been hesitant to pull the trigger on a late season blockbuster trade. Over the years New Jersey has acquired such talents as Peter Stastny (1990), Alexander Mogilny (2000) and Joe Nieuwendyk in 2002. On Thursday the Devils made news in the hockey world when they once again pulled off a key late season trade in acquiring an elite scorer in two time 50 goal scorer Ilya Kovalchuk. Unfortunately the rebuilding Atlanta Thrashers couldn’t resign their former 2001 first overall pick and decided to trade their former captain now before he hits the open market in July as a free agent. While he is excited to be going to an elite team like the Devils Kovalchuk did have some nice words to say about his former organization. “(The Devils are) a good team with a great chance to make the playoffs and go far,” Kovalchuk said. “But it’s sad at the same time… I’ve been a Thrasher for eight years and I appreciated everything.” Kovalchuk who has 58 points this year will be making his Devils debut tonight in New Jersey against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Even though the Devils are currently first in the Atlantic Division, they have been slumping of late in losing consecutive games and four out of five. New Jersey will have their future hall of fame goaltender Martin Brodeur in net tonight as the Devils try to avenge a Leafs 3-0 win last Tuesday in Toronto.