Rick Nash and the cover of NHL 2k8

Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch:

As Nash made his way into Philips Arena before the game, he stopped on his own volition to chat with three guys who won a trip to Atlanta based on their ability to play the NHL2K8 video game.

"Rick was awed by them," Rhinehart said, "just as much as they were awed by him.

"That stuck with me, that Rick Nash would be perfect for this, because he's a great player and he's also a really passionate gamer."

Here is the full article.

I can't say I am much of a gamer anymore. I will leave any and all analysis on this topic to some of the other Illegal Curve contributors.

NHL Morning Papers: Non-Playoff Teams (Monday Edition)

Here are the morning papers for the teams that did not make the playoffs:

• The Carolina Hurricanes lost a lot of money this season, writes Luke Decock.
• Sabres prospect Chris Butler is extremely excited to have signed his first professional contract and wants to make the team's starting defense corps next fall.
• Rich Hammond of the L.A. Daily News examines Michal Handzus' first season in L.A.
• Rick Nash is going to undergo throat surgery this week, writes Aaron Portzline.
• There was a reason Kevin Lowe was not overly concerned about other teams raiding his young talent, writes Dan Barnes of the Edmonton Journal.
• The Coyotes have signed Michigan forward Chad Kolarik to a pro contract.
• Toronto fans should hope for the Stars to sweep the Ducks, writes Damien Cox.
• This past season may have been a nightmare in Vancouver, but the future already looks brighter with the big signing of Swedish youngster Fabian Brunnstrom.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

Email any thoughts, ideas or suggestions to illegalcurve@gmail.com

NHL Morning Papers (Sunday Edition)

Here are the Western Conference morning papers:

• The Canucks were able to withstand the Stars' comeback last night and came out of Dallas with an important 4-3 victory, writes Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Province. Before Vancouver took the ice last night, Trevor Linden addressed the team with a pre-game speech.
• "This was the biggest game of the year for us, and we got outplayed," said Coyotes coach Wayne Gretzky after his team's 5-2 home loss to the Oilers last night.
• The Oilers gave Dwayne Roloson his first start in net since February 1st, and the veteran netminder led the team to a 5-2 road victory over the Coyotes. Derek Van Diest of the Edmonton Sun tells readers about Coyotes rookie Peter Mueller.
• Jose Theodore was outplayed by Martin Brodeur yesterday afternoon, and the result was a 4-2 road victory for the Devils, writes Adrian Dater of the Denver Post. Terry Frei of the Denver Post provides readers with a number of tidbits in his Sunday column.
• Niklas Hjalmarsson has been getting a chance to prove his worth on the Chicago blue line, writes Chris Kuc.
• The Ducks stayed disciplined yesterday, and that allowed them to easily defeat the struggling Blues by a score of 5-2 on home ice.
• Jean Lefebvre of the Calgary Herald believes that this season may be Jarome Iginla's last good chance to take home the Hart Trophy. Meanwhile, Flames center Craig Conroy used to play with Chris Pronger in St. Louis, so he knows the big defenseman can snap.
• Tom Reed delves deeper into the significance of Rick Nash being named captain of the Blue Jackets. The Jackets have a tough schedule next week, writes Aaron Portzline. Here are the Jackets' projected lines for today's game versus Detroit.
• The Stars got to experience the goaltending of Johan Holmqvist last night versus Vancouver, and the experience did not last long, writes Mike Heika.
• Dominik Hasek is expected to suit up today against the Blue Jackets. The Red Wings didn't get off to a good start yesterday versus the Predators and it cost them, writes Helene St. James.
• Wild forward Marian Gaborik scored his 200th career goal, and the Wild ended their losing streak at five games yesterday by defeating the Kings 2-0 at the Xcel Energy Center.
• The Predators lost to the worst team in the league on Thursday, then beat the best team in the league on Saturday, writes Jessica Hopp. The Predators killed off a couple big penalties in the third period to secure the victory.
• There is no secret reason for the Sharks' success, writes Mark Purdy of the San Jose Mercury News.

The Eastern Conference morning papers won't be posted today. The regular format will return bright and early tomorrow morning. Have a good Sunday.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

Email any thoughts, ideas or suggestions to illegalcurve@gmail.com

News You Can Use Late in the Day

1. Bob McKenzie says the NHL will be playing an outdoor game next year.
2. Pierre Lebrun breaks down the races in the Eastern Conference.
3. Sidney Crosby will miss the Buffalo game with a sore ankle.
4. Rick Nash has been named the Captain in Columbus. Lets hope this Captain Columbus can navigate towards the playoffs.
5. Spector sees reason for optimism in LA.
6. Larry Brooks doesn't like the NHL schedule.
7. Andrew Cogliano highlights this week's Hot List.
8. Need a primer on the SEL playoffs? Well wait no more!
9. An update on the Dan Cloutier situation in Los Angeles.
10. The CHL Power Rankings and WHL Fines race, courtesy of Taking Note.
11. Eric Duhatschek likes the idea of playing at outdoor game at Yankee Stadium.
12. Meghan Agosta and Sarah Vaillancourt are finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Award.
13. The other Nik is turning heads in Detroit.
14. Hockey.com has a soft spot for the old buildings of the NHL.
15. The Nolan-Dipietro relationship has soured a little.
16. Kesler and Burrows are trying their best to keep Vancouver in the playoff hunt.
17. The Penguins will play Jokerit in an exhibition game next fall.
18. Allan Muir of SI says the Red Wings will succeed in this year's playoffs because of past adversity.
19. The NHLFA has now been around for 10 years.
20. Mike Brophy writes that Wayne Gretzky has broken the trend that sees great players become bad coaches.
21. Another Top 10 Names list.
22. Ryan Dixon notes that Jonathan Cheechoo and Thomas Vanek have rediscovered their scoring touch.
23. An update on the Hottest Ice Girls poll.
24. The Puck Stops Here gives its opinion on what Tampa should have done with Brad Richards.
25. The list is kind of dated, but here is a rundown of hockey players past and present with famous girlfriends.

Nightly Recap: Detroit Snaps Losing Skid

Detroit 5 - Columbus 4 (SO) - Johan Franzen scored the shootout winner in the 5th round of the shootout. Detroit snapped a three game losing streak, and is now 1-4 in shootouts. Columbus is 0-4 in shootouts. Rick Nash and Nicky Zherdev had three points each for the Jackets, Nicholas Lidstrom had three for the Wings.

Minnesota 4 - Colorado 1 - Minnesota received goals from four unlikely heroes, Matt Foy, Aaron Voros, Brent Burns and Stephane Veilleux. It was Brent Burns' fifth goal of the year, his second in two games.

Vancouver 4 - Calgary 1 - Markus Naslund and Henrik Sedin each had a goal and an assist. The Canucks are now 5-0-1 since losing top defenseman Kevin Bieksa and Sami Salo. The Canucks are now 8-0-1 vs the Northwest Division.

Tomorrow's Games (all times Eastern)
7:00pm NYI@NYR, FLA@WSH, TB@ATL (VS),
7:30pm OTT@MTL
8:30pm LA@DAL, NSH@STL

Fantasy Watch: Top Performers of the Week

Stats from October 15th-22nd

F Jason Williams, Chicago Blackhawks
2 G, 4 A

Williams is currently riding a four game point streak scoring seven points over that span. His highest output came on Saturday, where the forward scored one goal and assisted on three others, leading Chicago past Toronto. Williams has been extremely successful on the powerplay, and should continue to receive several minutes on the top unit.

F Rich Nash, Columbus Blue Jackets
3 G, 2 A

The former first overall pick suffered an off year last season but has rebounded quite nicely, scoring nine points in his first seven games. Finally getting help from some of his teammates, Nash may be in for a career year.

F Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
1G, 4 A, +1

This year's first overall pick has gotten off to a strong start, scoring five points in his last two games. Kane has meshed well with forward Jonathan Toews, as the two have lead Chicago to a 5-3 record. Those who nabbed Kane with a late pick in their fantasy drafts should reap in the benefits, as Kane may reach 60 points this year.

F Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames
3 G, 5 A +3

Iginla has been on fire over his past five games, scoring five goals and six assists. Iggy has shown no signs of slowing down and will most likely be among the leaders for most points come season's end.

D Chris Campoli, New York Islanders
5 A, -2

Campoli had a career night this past week, assisting on four Islanders goals. On the year, the defenseman has scored two goals and dished out seven helpers. Only in his third season as a pro, Campoli has proved to be a great offensive defenseman, and should continue to pick up points on the power play.

G Martin Biron, Philadelphia Flyers
3 W, 2 SO,

Biron has been everything Philadelphia has hoped for, winning six of his first seven games, while compiling a goals against average of 1.57. He has posted two shutouts this past week, propelling the Flyers into first place in the Atlantic Conference.



For Illegal Curve, Im Jonny Remis

Morning Musings

Here are the morning papers:

• Sharks' coach Ron Wilson was able to get Jonathan Cheechoo's attention by demoting him from the first line for the first period of Monday's game versus the Canucks. The sniper responded to his one period demotion with his first points of the season in the third period, leading the Sharks to a 4-2 victory over Vancouver.
• The Canucks left Roberto Luongo out to dry in the third period of last night's game and, for once, he was unable to bail his teammates out. Brad Zeimer of the Vancouver Sun believes that the Sharks have rightfully earned the tag of Stanley Cup contender. In reality, the Canucks had no answer for all-star Joe Thornton writes Iain MacIntyre in this morning's Vancouver Sun.
• The Ducks responded well to coach Randy Carlyle's challenge by downing the Red Wings 6-3 last night.
• It was evident after the Red Wings 6-3 loss to the Ducks on Monday night that Wings' coach Mike Babcock was unhappy with the officiating; however, Babcock was disciplined enough to not say anything that will get him fined. In other Wings' news, it is probably fair to say Chris Chelios and Gary Bettman won't be going out for lunch anytime soon.
• Bryan McCabe accidentally shot the puck in his own net with four seconds remaining in overtime to give the Sabres a 5-4 win over the Leafs. Damien Cox of the Toronto Star wonders if McCabe has entered Larry Murphy territory with Leaf fans.
• The Sabres didn't sell out last night's home game which ended a streak of 45 straight regular season games sold out at the HSBC Arena.
• According to Craig Custance of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Thrashers are expecting to have Marian Hossa back in the lineup for tonight's game versus Philadelphia.
• The Bruins play their home opener on Thursday night and the team is trying its best to steal some of the sporting spotlight with the Red Sox in the ALCS, the Patriots undefeated and Kevin Garnett debuting as a Celtic. In other Bruins' news, youngster Milan Lucic is making management's decision whether to keep him up in the NHL or send him back to juniors very difficult.
• Steve Macfarlane of the Calgary Sun tells readers that Iron Mike has mellowed with age. Meanwhile, Jean Lefebvre of the Calgary Herald points out that the Flames have had one player score twice in each of their five games played this season.
• The Hurricanes are on such a roll that 15 players showed up to workout on Monday rather than take an optional day off.
• As Chris Kuc of the Chicago Tribune explains, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane are not only the future for the Blackhawks, they are the present too.
• Oilers' coach Craig MacTavish thinks Jarret Stoll is lacking confidence. After losing their past four games, the Oilers are taking some time to golf and get to know each other in the desert before their next game at Phoenix on Thursday.
• The Stars believe that if they get their act together they can take control of the slow-starting Pacific Division.
• The Blue Jackets can't seem to find a sidekick for Rick Nash and are, once again, trying a new top line combination.
• Forget his incredible achievements on the ice, Joe Sakic's charitable work in the Denver area has been truly admirable; Adrian Dater of the Denver Post has the story.
• Carey Price took a shot off the collarbone in practice on Monday but the young netminder will be able to dress for tonight's game versus Florida. With Guillaume Latendresse in the coach's doghouse, Bryan Smolinksi will start tonight's game on the Habs' number two line.
• Michael Russo has a great piece on Jacques Lemaire favorite--Martin Skoula in this morning's Star Tribune.
• The Kings sent Jonathan Bernier back to juniors and Brady Murray back to the AHL to protect them from an environment that isn't conducive to young players writes Lonnie White and Lisa Dillman of the L.A. Times.
• After Saturday's comeback victory over Tampa, the Panthers had a team meeting stressing that they should play with more confidence. Meanwhile, as Steve Gorten of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes, coach Jacques Martin expects a better year from Ruslan Salei and Mike Van Ryn.
• If you are into ranking your lines 1-4, then the Rangers have the most expensive third line center in the entire league writes John Dellapina in this morning's New York Daily News. As Brendan Shanahan points out, if he went through five games without a goal in the middle of the season, no one would realize; however, because he hasn't scored in his team's first five games to start the season, his struggles have been magnified.
• According to Rich Chere of the Newark Star-Ledger, there is nothing new to report on the Richard Matvichuk front.
• In order to minimize their turnovers, the Predators have been working on their puck support the past two days at practice. On top of better puck support, showing some urgency and getting off to a good start is also imperative for the Predators.
• If the Islanders expect to return to the playoffs, they need to improve their offensive output writes Greg Logan of Newsday.
• With Ray Emery back to full health, a goalie controversy appears to be an inevitable issue in Ottawa. Coach John Paddock says he hasn't made up his mind yet as to who will start Thursday's game against the Canadiens.
• As Tim Pannacio of the Philadelphia Inquirer explains, the Flyers waived Jesse Boulerice in order to create room on their roster for another forward. Here are some quick notes about the Flyers put together by Pannacio.
• Coyotes' coach Wayne Gretzky is not coaching in the NHL for moral victories, he's coaching to win.
• The Penguins have an odd schedule which sees them play only three divisional opponents before November 3rd. Meanwhile in Penguins' camp, the team could have Brooks Orpik back in the lineup on Wednesday against New Jersey.
• As Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Dispatch writes, Brad Boyes has been a great addition to the Blues' lineup since his acquisition late last season for Dennis Wideman.
• Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune provides readers with an inside look at Tim Taylor's difficult rehabilitation.
• Eric Duhatschek of the Globe & Mail details how much of an advantage a good start to the regular season can really be.
• Kevin Allen of USA Today has an interesting piece about the relatively unknown Niklas Backstrom.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

Recap Type Thing

• It appears that the Hurricanes are returning to Stanley Cup form. Eric Staal scores two goals and Cam Ward allows just one late third period goal. They ice the Penguins 4-1.
• Rick Nash is the MONSTER of the night with 4 points. The Blue Jackets shutout the Stanley Cup Ducks 4-0. Goalie Pascal Leclaire puts up 28 saves for the shutout. Are the Ducks experiencing jetlag, or are they missing Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne?
• The New York Islanders "Free Agent Line" of Comrie, Guerin and Fedotenko combines for 10 points in a 6-4 win over the Sabres.
• Offseason accquisitions Michael Nylander and Viktor Kozlov pay immediate dividends for the Islanders, they boink the Thrashers 3-1.
• Dallas defeats Boston 4-1. Mike Modano scores a point, he is now within five of former Jet Phil Housley for most points by an American.
• Jeremy Roenick shows that he still has a pulse. He scores two goals to reach 497 for his career. The San Jose Sharks win 3-1 vs VANCOUVER (as it says on their new jerseys)

More News

• The off season aggressiveness of Kevin Lowe has earned him a multi year extension with the Edmonton Oilers. Could they have done this to spite Brian Burke? He can't be happy about this.
• Here are the top paid players at each position. Offseason signees Danny Briere, Thomas Vanek and Scotty Gomez top the list at $10 million per season each.
• After struggling on the power play versus the Sens, The Maple Leafs have been working on a new strategy