from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press, Dylan Larkin looked to Henrik Zetterberg. Darren Helm looked to Kris Draper. Mired in a bleak season, there isn’t much for the Detroit Red Wings to rally around. They struggle to score, struggle to keep the puck out of their own net, and spend most games playing from behind. The next opportunity to stop what has grown to an 11-game losing streak comes Tuesday at Winnipeg. The unifying force in the locker room is to not surrender, to not allow a 31st-place ranking to seep into the culture veterans learned when they were young. Helm provided an example in Saturday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, delivering a big shift that culminated with him setting up a goal. It’s the kind of performance he remembers seeing from older teammates. continued

from Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News, Less than 24 hours after they were smoked by the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Sharks trailed by two goals less than nine minutes into the first period Sunday and never fully recovered in a 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers at BB&T Center.... The Sharks are now 0-2-1 on this trip that ends Tuesday in Nashville, and have been outscored 14-5 so far through regulation and overtime. On road trips of more than one game this season, the Sharks are now 2-7-2. Add it all up and the Sharks, on a four-game slide, are a pedestrian 15-15-2. “I think we’re a little too relaxed right now,” Sharks winger Evander Kane said. “A couple games where we got off to bad starts and weren’t able to fight back, and we really didn’t have much fight-back after we got down. That’s really the most disappointing part.” more

from Bryan Horwath of the Las Vegas Sun, Many remember how the technology created a glowing puck on TV screens, leaving a cometlike trail of color once the puck reached certain speeds. But FoxTrax didn’t last long, to the delight of hockey purists who’d denounced it as too gimmicky for a sport steeped in tradition. Dave Lehanski, the NHL’s senior vice president of development and innovation, says FoxTrax was “way ahead of its time, but it just wasn’t ready back then. You could see it wasn’t working right.” Now, the NHL is preparing to introduce a more advanced version of the technology in 2020 in an attempt to make itself more attractive to younger viewers. Players will don wearable technology—sensors about the size of an Oreo cookie—on the back of their shoulder pads, which will track certain metrics in real time. The puck will also be outfitted with a chip that can communicate with a series of cameras and sensors. The technology was tested in January during two Vegas Golden Knights games at T-Mobile Arena. Golden Knights winger Max Pacioretty says he’s intrigued by the idea, but adds, “There were a lot of issues with bouncing pucks and whatnot.” Still, he says, “It’s something that could be fun for the fans.” That’s the league’s goal for this technology, which will produce more in-game data to enhance the viewing experience, especially for statistics fans and sports bettors who desire more information. read on

THREE HARD LAPS  * Jack Eichel assisted on the Sabres’ overtime goal to extend the League’s longest active point streak to 13 contests. He is one of 10 players on pace to reach the 100-point mark in 2019-20.  * Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau each eclipsed the 35-point mark Sunday. They became the first Panthers teammates to achieve the feat prior to their 30th game.  * Jacob Trouba was one of six Rangers defensemen with a point against the Golden Knights. New York leads all teams in points by defensemen this season (26-60—86).

via Sportsnet, Kyle Bukauskas, Chris Johnston and Elliotte Friedman discuss the topics that will be discussed at the NHL Board of Governors meeting.  

from Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News, If you look at the Red Wings’ individual statistics today — and some of them are ghastly, so don’t for long — there is a rather surprising player with the fifth-most points on the team. It’s not a forward. It’s defenseman Filip Hronek, who continues to put together an admirable first full season in the NHL, while playing a ton of minutes and basically learning on the job. With Danny DeKeyser hurt for the majority of the season thus far, and Trevor Daley and Mike Green missing portions of the schedule, Hronek has had to play more minutes than probably is ideal for a developing 22-year-old pro. But Hronek has been up to the task, with 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 29 games, with a minus-13 rating, while playing a competitive, 23 minutes a game (leading the team) — the brand of hockey that this roster needs. continued

from Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, All eyes turn to Gary Bettman and Bill Daly. With NHL owners set to gather for a Board of Governors meeting unlike any other in recent memory, the league’s most powerful men will speak publicly for the first time since Bill Peters resigned from the Calgary Flames, Marc Crawford was suspended by the Chicago Blackhawks and hockey’s culture was placed under the microscope by a series of allegations from former players. The two-day gathering at America’s most scenic golf resort isn’t expected to produce sweeping answers. The issues are deep enough and serious enough that time will be required to form a complete plan of action, which is why the tone set by Bettman and Daly will be so significant. The commissioner and deputy commissioner have already met with Akim Aliu, the player who spoke up about mistreatment from Peters — his former coach in the American Hockey League who used racial slurs in the dressing room. That was followed by allegations from others about abuse from their coaches, both physical and mental, which led to Crawford being removed from the bench while the Blackhawks conduct an investigation. continued with more topics which were discussed on Saturday Headlines last night...

via Helene St. James tweet, Tyler Bertuzzi practicing today. Blocked shot yesterday. Red Wings next game is Tuesday at Winnipeg. If there are post-practice interviews, I will add them to this post.

from Sonny Sachdeva of Sportsnet, Marco Argentino has been the man NHL superstars from Gretzky to McDavid trust with their gear. Now, he's also helping shape the future of equipment design. The smell of leather hangs thick in the air, tangled with the scent of metal and wood and the years-old collections of dust that gather here and there atop the shelves lining every wall in the place. It’s mid-March of 1991, and 26-year-old Marco Argentino is perched on a stool in the back corner of this unassuming shoe repair shop, engrossed as he inspects the finer details of the hockey gloves on the desk in front of him. This isn’t any old run-of-the-mill establishment, though walking down Wellington Street and glancing up at the curling blue-and-white lettering atop the storefront — Cordonnerie Argentino — a passerby could be forgiven for not feeling the full weight of the Argentinos’ place in Montreal’s storied hockey history. No, this shop isn’t interchangeable with any of the others that have lined this street, precisely because the pair of gloves sitting before Argentino isn’t interchangeable with any other in the city. These particular gloves belong to Guy Carbonneau, captain of the Montreal Canadiens, who’s awaiting the results of Argentino’s work as he prepares for the ’91 playoffs. The problem is the palms. The captain wants them replaced with something thinner, something that gives him a better feel for his stick. Argentino’s already made one unsuccessful attempt today, sewing on a fresh horsehide palm and making the trek up to the Montreal Forum, only to be met with a stern, “Thinner.”  continued

Not sure if this is new, but I believe it is.  When the Wings scored last night, the rink lights went out at the LCA except for a spotlight on the goal scorer along with some flashing lights. My idea is just the opposite.  Keep the lights off during play, then turn them on when the Wings score.  Imagine the saved energy! Please LCA, don't do this again.  

from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press, When a team is as fragile as the Detroit Red Wings are, anything positive helps. Their losing streak has grown to 11 games, but at least they came away from Saturday’s game with a little more confidence in their ability to score. After scoring just five goals the previous six games, the Wings scored twice in the third period in the 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. “We have to do a better job of trying to keep four out, or five, but I thought we competed right till the end and that’s a good sign for this team,” Luke Glendening said. “We had a tough first getting down 2-0, but we battled till the last minute.”     from Ansar Khan of Mlive, It was another night where the Detroit Red Wings answered more questions about the many things that have gone wrong during the team’s worst stretch in years. But if there is anything positive to be gleaned from Saturday’s 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins at Little Caesars Arena, it was Dylan Larkin looking like his usual self, following an extended slump. Larkin picked up a goal and an assist, giving him four points in three games (two goals, two assists) after seven games without a point. He led the comeback efforts and had chances to score the tying goal in the final minute before John Marino’s empty-net goal with nine seconds remaining sealed it. “His drive’s great,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. continued

via Jon Rosen of LA Kings Insider, McLellan, on whether he saw the Zac Rinaldo hit: Well, of course I did. You guys all looked at it too. I’m always asked this question after. What usually happens is one coach says, ‘I haven’t looked at it yet,’ and the other coach says, ‘you know what, I think the player was in a vulnerable position, I think that the head was targeted, I think that the weight went up and I think the feet came off the ice,’ so figure out which coach was which. [Reporter: What about the heart from Kyle Clifford standing up for Pro and the moments that followed?] It’s a team move and that’s what Cliffy does for his teammates. [Reporter: Did they get tossed because it happened during a TV timeout?] Yeah. Watch the hit below. and then the fight...

THREE HARD LAPS * Sebastian Aho (3-2—5) scored an even-strength, power-play and shorthanded goal en route to recording his third career hat trick and the NHL’s eighth five-point performance of the season. * Captain Gabriel Landeskog scored the last of four Avalanche goals as Colorado handed Boston its first regulation loss at TD Garden this season. * Tampa Bay was one of seven teams to score at least five goals Saturday (also Vancouver, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Carolina, Toronto and Nashville). It marked the fourth time this season that seven teams each scored five or more goals on the same night.

Wings played hard, played desperate in the third period but feel short, losing 5-3 to Pittsburgh. Detroit goals, team stats and a thumbs up or down for you are below. Next game on Tuesday at 9:00pm ET in Winnipeg.

Highlights first, below Glendening, Biega, Larkin and Blashill.  

via Sportsnet, Brian Burke discusses the Calgary Flames working their way out of a rough patch and Joe Thornton punching Petr Mrazek.  

via Sportsnet, The panel updates news around the NHL including the upcoming board of governors meetings, and trade rumours surrounding Taylor Hall with the New Jersey Devils and Alex Galchenyuk on the Pittsburgh Penguins. Plus a new idea for the All-Star weekend.  

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post, - Checked in with Mathieu Schneider, who has held an executive position with the NHLPA since 2011, and with Glenn Healy, in his third year as executive director of the NHL Alumni Association following a stint with the PA late last decade, whether they had ever received a complaint from a player about coach abuse. The answer from both was: “Never.”... - he cool kids seem to think that “tandeming” in goal is a new thing. It is not. The 1960-61 Red Wings gave 36 starts to Terry Sawchuk and 34 to Hank Bassen. The 1962-63 Maple Leafs gave 42 starts to Johnny Bower and 28 to Don Simmons. The 1965-66 Rangers gave 34 starts to Ed Giacomin, 27 to Cesare Maniago and nine to Simmons. The 1966-67 Black Hawks (that’s what they were then) gave 41 starts to Denis DeJordy and 29 to Glenn Hall. Those were the Original Six days of Original Tandeming. - Four forwards with at least 385:00 of full strength have scored only one five-on-five goal, and they are Jonathan Toews, Phil Kessel, Joe Pavelski and Mikael Backlund. Among the 11 who have scored just two are Hall, Jamie Benn, Johnny Gaudreau, Bo Horvat and Ryan O’Reilly. more on the first topic and other hockey blurbs...

Good job HNIC. via Sportsnet,  

It's nice to be back after a much needed break from all the negativity that has surrounded the Wings since the big decline. A chance to refocus, and, see how it goes between now and the All Star break. Of course, there is more controversy in the news regarding the former coach, but, we don't care about that on a game night. We're here to enjoy whatever happens on the ice. Good or bad. Tonight is Grateful Dead night at the Pizzarena, so with that in mind, a Dead lyric..... "Lately, it occurs to me  What a long, strange trip it's been."  It's a Live Blog!

Tkachuk received 2 for a cross check and 2 for roughing. :24 seconds left in the 3rd, Sens down by one and their goalie pulled.  

from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun, - Brendan Shanahan doesn’t like to look back. At least publicly, he doesn’t. But if he were to take stock of all the moves he’s made since becoming president of the Maple Leafs six years ago, probably the biggest error he made was being too quick to push Lou Lamoriello out as general manager after just three seasons on the job.... - You know this was a forgettable decade for the Maple Leafs when Tyler Bozak not only lead the team in games played but also in assists. Phil Kessel scored the most goals, 181, and the most points, 394. - My NHL all-decade team: Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane, Alex Ovechkin up front, Brett Burns and Victor Hedman on defence, Marc-Andre Fleury in goal. Second team: Brad Marchand, Claude Giroux and Evgeni Malkin up front; Erik Karlsson and Drew Doughty on defence, Carey Price in goal. - Not making the playoffs, which seems rather possible right now, will make this the most disastrous, disappointing Maple Leafs season in memory. And they traded away their first-round pick to get someone to take Patrick Marleau’s salary. more on the first topic plus additional hockey talk...

It will cost you $4.5M. from Judy Rose at the Detroit Free Press, Pavel Datsyuk,the former Red Wing superstar fans called "The Magic Man," built this stunning lakeside house during the 14 years he played hockey in Detroit. On the outside, it is a limestone castle, even to the tall, skinny turret where a vertical slit forms the front window — a spot where hidden archers could repel an enemy. But step inside and the home turns super sleek — curving walls, curving glass, white marble, granite, porcelain tile, lacquered zebra wood. Fine woods glow on accent walls. Spaces are defined by curves, including the three-story curving stairs. It’s a unique house, designed by architect Alexander Bogaerts. continued with pictures...

Blashill first, Ericsson below.   "If continue to play good hockey we'll find our way to a win. Once you find your way to a win you'll boost your confidence. Nobody can inject confidence in you, you have to go out and earn it." Coach Blashill | #PITvsDET pic.twitter.com/xcenwKYSb2 — Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 7, 2019

from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe, During his days on Broadway, zipping around in what was coach Herb Brooks’s novel, circle-back Ranger game plan, Mark Pavelich didn’t say much. One of the stars of the 1980 US Olympic team, “Pav” also was among the quietest Team USA players, then had little urge or inclination to talk upon coming to the big city to launch his NHL career. The running joke, rooted in both truth and humor, was that he wouldn’t appear for postgame interviews on the Rangers’ TV broadcasts unless the payout included fishing gear that he could lug back home to Minnesota come springtime. Pavelich, 61, on Wednesday was left with little to say, or perhaps was incapable of expressing anything, when Minnesota judge Michael Cuzzo deemed him mentally ill and dangerous, and ultimately incapable of standing trial for a felony assault charge. In August, Pavelich allegedly beat a friend with a metal pole, inflicting a number of injuries, including cracked ribs, a bruised kidney, and a fractured vertebra.  continued plus more hockey topics...

from Samantha Pell of The Washington Post, ... Carlson’s strong defense created offense. As his point total continues to soar — 43 points (11 goals, 32 assists) after Friday night’s win— his teammates and coaches find themselves reminding reporters of Carlson’s defensive strengths. They don’t want Carlson to be typecast as an “offensive defenseman.” “He’s not all offense; he’s not carrying the puck the entire game like some of the other guys in the league that I would call offensive,” Coach Todd Reirden said.... The label “offensive defenseman” has been thrown around for years in hockey, but in this era, what is its true definition? Do players get miffed when they are categorized as “offensive”? The answers vary. Drew Doughty, the 2015-16 Norris Trophy winner as the NHL’s top defenseman, sees offensive defensemen as being defined in two ways. First, there are players who can skate, rush the puck often and make plays.... The mold of offensive defensemen started in the late 1960s with how Bobby Orr played the game, opening up the creativity and the freedom to jump into plays. It continued with players such as Paul Coffey and Nicklas Lidstrom. “Teams were searching for quarterback, offensive-type defensemen that just add a lot to your team,” said Doug Wilson... more players mentioned...

from Max Bultman of The Athletic, At present, the Red Wings are at 47 of the maximum 50 contracts, according to CapFriendly. That shouldn’t pose an issue since a handful of those contracts (including those of Trevor Daley, Mike Green, Jonathan Ericsson and Jimmy Howard) expire as unrestricted free agents after the season. Of the prospects on Detroit’s reserve list, whom Yzerman must either sign or relinquish the right to do so by this summer, only goalie prospect Victor Brattstrom looks like a solid bet to do so. There are prospects Detroit could choose to sign earlier than it has to (in order to bring them over from Europe or lure them from college, for example) but still, even if the Red Wings wanted to sign a couple of outside free agents, they could, in theory, bring all their RFAs back. But that doesn’t seem likely. Whether because of prospect development, planning for future moves, or simply an evaluation that certain pieces don’t fit, at least some of the Red Wings’ pending restricted free-agent forwards are likely going to have to head elsewhere after this season.... With one caveat: I won’t get into the big three of Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou and Tyler Bertuzzi in this piece. They’re all obvious locks to bring back (barring a trade of some kind) and I’ll go more in-depth on their situations and potential contracts later on.... On the inside track Robby Fabbri: Let’s start with the most immediately successful of the Red Wings’ in-season trades because he’s the most obvious candidate to be back next season.  many more (paid subscription) names including those in Grand Rapids...

from Amy Lamare of Celebrity Net Worth, To own a pro-sports team is to be in a very exclusive club. In fact, it's a club open exclusively to billionaires. That's true in the NFL, NBA, and the NHL. The 15-richest NHL team owners have a combined net worth near $115 billion. The richest of them all is David Thomson, owner of the Winnipeg Jets. He has a net worth of $33 billion, thanks to his family's media empire. #15. Brian Roberts — Philadelphia Flyers Net Worth: $2 billion Age: 60 Nationality: American Brian Roberts is the son of Comcast co-founder Ralph Roberts. Brian has been the CEO of the media giant since 2002. He inherited the company when his father died in 2015. read on

from Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press, Retired Detroit Red Wings forward Darren McCarty said Friday there was a strong current of disrespect from former Wings coach Mike Babcock that spared almost no one and cost the team the Stanley Cup in 2009. McCarty played for coaches Scotty Bowman and Dave Lewis from 1993 to 2004. He returned for the 2008-09 and ’08-’09 seasons, when Babcock was the coach. The Wings beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Cup finals in ’08 and lost to the Pens in the finals the next season. “And our (dressing) room worked in different ways and when I came back you could tell that things were different,” McCarty told the Free Press, “but the thing that didn’t change was that guys played for each other. “That’s the key. In spite of him, right? In spite of him. And I learned that more getting into ’09 because we won in ’08 in spite of him and lost in ’09 because of him. That’s exactly the thing because he misused (Pavel) Datsyuk, (Henrik) Zetterberg and just because he’s stubborn and that was his way.” continued

from Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post, P.K. Subban should be embarrassed. The Devils invested a lot in the bombastic defenseman, and he has become an absolute shell of himself on the ice. Imagine, after this debacle of a season in New Jersey where his insipid play surely helped to get a good man and good coach in John Hynes fired, Subban is on the books for an annual $9 million for the next two years. Players fade. Subban is 30 years old, and that happens. But what should be embarrassing is that during this time of organizational upheaval, he is out and about almost every day with another promotion. On Wednesday, a day after Hynes was fired following desultory efforts in a 4-0 loss to the Rangers at home and a 7-1 thumping up in Buffalo, Subban was at Bryant Park doing an appearance for Red Bull. The press release said he was “2103 James Norris Memorial Trophy winner, entrepreneur, and philanthropist.” On Thursday night, he was at the Adidas flagship store in Manhattan. What a great way to get ready for a big back-to-back under new coach Alain Nasreddine, Friday night at home against the Blackhawks and then Subban’s big return to Nashville on Saturday night. Should be a barnburner (or tape burner?). The league has bought in, too. continued

THREE HARD LAPS * A self-described “nice guy who tries hard and loves the game” made his return to the City of Champions, where he helped the Penguins win consecutive Stanley Cups. * Twelve of 14 games contested over the last two days have been decided by a one-goal margin (85.7%), including four of five on Friday. * Three of the top six leading scorers this season are in action tonight when the Bruins host the Avalanche at TD Garden.

from Merrit Kennedy of NPR,  When the Japanese launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, sailor Lauren Bruner was the second-to-last person to get off the USS Arizona alive. Bruner and five others were stranded on the doomed ship when a sailor on a repair ship spotted them and threw them a line. Even though Bruner was badly burned and had been shot twice, the 21-year-old managed to climb to safety. He died in September at the age of 98, and on Saturday, his remains will return to the USS Arizona. He is expected to be the final USS Arizona survivor to be interred on the sunken warship, Pearl Harbor National Memorial spokesperson Jay Blount tells NPR. There are three remaining survivors and they have expressed other wishes for their remains. According to the USS Arizona Memorial, Don Stratton, Lou Conter, and Ken Potts "are the only former crewmen remaining from the 337 men who survived the attack on the battleship." Bruner's family will hold a funeral at the USS Arizona Memorial on Saturday evening. A team of National Park Service and military divers will then receive the urn of his ashes and place it in the hull of the USS Arizona wreckage. Blount says that 43 other survivors of the attack have been interred on the ship in the same location since the Navy started the practice in 1982. continued

500 words We are getting close to that time of year where we begin thinking of a team or teams near the bottom of the standings in each conference.  Sort of like the St. Louis Blues who were at the bottom of their conference this time of year last season, only to finish the season by raising the Stanley Cup. If you were to visit any of the legal betting sites for US customers would you have confidence to pick one or two of the teams about to be mentioned? Before you say no, remember the person who bet on the Blues when they were a long shot at 250/1 in January?  By mid-June, he was $150K richer.

A standing ovation for Phil Kessel during his tribute video.  

Lsrry Murphy sits down with Filip Hronek. Fox SportsDetroit with their Wingspan features, watch four more here.  

But all the way to the left must not be good.   Happy Friday, friends! Everything at https://t.co/2pAM8TpwFX is updated. A thread on teams: https://t.co/Q5WLGFbuMI Teams that take the same rate of shots: PHI, BOS, FLA, TBL, CBJ, DAL, OTT. The difference b/w MTL (66, most) and DET (48, least) is 18 shots, which is a lot. pic.twitter.com/c48pM9rj1a — Sean Tierney (@ChartingHockey) December 6, 2019

from Dana Wakiji of DetroitRedWings.com, It doesn't seem like it was that long ago that Tyler Bertuzzi was just looking to crack the Red Wings lineup. Now he's a mainstay on the top line and on the power-play unit that gets the most time. Bertuzzi, 24, is making the most of his increased role, leading the team with 24 points (10-14-24) in 30 games. Last season, Bertuzzi had nine goals and seven assists in his first 30 games. "It's another year of experience, I would say," Bertuzzi said after Friday's practice at the BELFOR Training Center. "We finished the year last year really strong and I think that connection came over to this year. Obviously some games could be a lot better, and some games were really good, so we just gotta be more consistent." Bertuzzi is averaging 19:35 in ice time this year compared to 16:31 last year.... It's not official, but there's a reasonable chance alternate captain Justin Abdelkader could return to the Wings lineup for Saturday's 7 p.m. tilt versus the Pittsburgh Penguins at Little Caesars Arena. Abdelkader has missed the Wings' last 11 games with an upper-body injury after blocking a shot in the closing minutes of Detroit's 3-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Nov.10.... Daley, 36, skated with his teammates during Friday's practice. "It was good to see Trevor," Blashill said. "Trevor stated to me he feels like he's doing really well but I think he was very, very cautious that the last time he started pushing it, he went backwards. So there's still that opportunity that that could happen but so far he's been making real progress forward. more...

3 minutes worth of saves.  

I wanted to let everyone know the latest KK Donation Drive was a success. Donations game from folks on Twitter, KK visitors and of course KK members. Donations ranged up to $200. I am sincerely thankful and very moved by the generosity. Back to work I go.

#RedWings lines at practice: Bertuzzi-Larkin-Fabbri Athanasiou-Filppula-Glendening Helm-Nielsen-Zadina Perlini-Ehn-Erne Abdelkader not practicing. Defense pairs: Nemeth-Hronek Cholowski-Green Biega-McIlrath Ericsson-Bowey Daley (IR) is practicing again. pic.twitter.com/ninViG7WLY — Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) December 6, 2019

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Detroit Red Wings have recalled forward Filip Zadina from the Grand Rapids Griffins. ? ??Zadina, 20, ranks among the Griffins’ leaders this season with 13 points (3rd), seven goals (3rd), six assists (T7th) and four power play goals (2nd) in 20 games. The 6-foot, 188-pound winger made his NHL season debut on Nov. 24 and has chipped in two assists while averaging 13:55 of ice time in five appearances for Detroit. ? ??Since becoming the 176th Griffins alumnus to play in the NHL when he made his debut with the Red Wings on Feb. 24, 2019 vs. San Jose, Zadina has posted five points (1-4—5) in 14 career games.

from Jack Harris of the LA Times, EDMONTON, Canada —  Cameras and tape recorders crisscrossed the Edmonton Oilers’ locker room, cycling from stall to stall to capture the stories of the day. A familiar buzz filled the circular space, questions and conversations between players and reporters floating through the air the morning before a home game. But the moment Connor McDavid stood up, everything else stopped. The rest of the room fell silent. When the most prominent athlete in Edmonton was ready to speak, all the attention came flocking to him. “He could run for mayor and win tomorrow,” said Tom Gazzola, an Edmonton sports radio host in his 13th season covering the team. “He’s basically a god, worshipped for what he does.” McDavid never asked to be the Chosen One in Edmonton, to procure the prophetic pressures placed on him as the Oilers’ prodigal son. Had draft lottery luck played out differently when he entered the league as the highest-touted prospect in years back in 2015, he might have ended up in Arizona or Buffalo, Carolina or New Jersey. continued

from Neil Greenberg of The Washington Post, ... That start includes a 21-4-5 record with an NHL-high 47 points in 30 games, making Carlson the best player on the best team with a case for the Hart Trophy, awarded annually to the league’s MVP. Forwards have dominated the award. Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price won it in 2015, and the last defenseman to win it was Chris Pronger in 2000. Before that, it was Orr in 1972. Nicklas Lidstrom, a seven-time Norris winner and four-time Stanley Cup winner widely considered to be one of the best defensemen ever, never finished higher than fourth on MVP ballots. Despite those odds, Carlson is making a strong case. Let’s start with the last two defensemen to win the award, Pronger and Orr. Differences in season lengths, roster sizes and scoring environments make it difficult to compare season-long stats, but two advanced metrics, goals created and point shares, make era adjustments, allowing a more direct assessment of their respective performances. Goals created accounts for assists and adjusts them to the team level. Point shares is an adaptation of the win shares metric Bill James created in 2002 for baseball. In hockey, point shares estimate the number of standing points (two points for a win in regulation, overtime or a shootout and one point for an overtime or shootout loss) each player is responsible for. The higher the number, the more that player contributing to winning. more

from Richard Morin of the Arizona Republic, The Coyotes captured first place in the Pacific Division with a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday. With the win, the Coyotes (17-9-4) gained sole possession of first place in the division for the first time since Oct. 26, 2015. It is the latest in the season atop the Pacific Division standings for the Coyotes since the end of the 2011-12 season, a year that featured both the team's lone divisional crown and most-recent playoff berth. The Coyotes were held to anemic 18 shots but still managed more finishes than the Flyers, who suffered just their second regulation loss at home this season. continue for the game recap...

Longer video is below but the first video is more zoomed in.   Jesperi Kotkaniemi falls awkwardly after being taken out by Nikita Zadorov pic.twitter.com/OYE8slqaKL — Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) December 6, 2019

HREE HARD LAPS * Offseason acquisitions helped the Coyotes and Wild continue recent strings of success. * A familiar face scored the game-winning goal in his return to Columbus, which also welcomed back its former president of hockey operations. * Eight of nine games contested Thursday were decided by a one-goal margin, including four which required overtime.

Mrazek and Thornton get 2 for slashing plus Thornton receives 2 for roughing.  

It would appear Taylor Hall is more likely to be dealt with the Devils current situation but which teams are already asking about his services? What would New Jersey's asking price be? The Insiders have the latest and also touch on why 'hockey culture' will be a key topic at next week's BOG meetings. Watch at TSN.

NHL season is on its run and at this moment we can take a look back and see which teams have been performing well so far. Some of them are expected to be on the top, while a few are considered as overachievers. Let’s see who are the top favorites for winning divisions and challenging the Stanley Cup with the help of the betting tips experts at BettingTips4you.com.

from Rick Westhead of TSN, The NHL Players’ Association is accused of covering up a theft of more than $100,000 in union funds by one of its executives, according to a lawsuit filed in Ontario Superior Court in Toronto. The allegations are included in an $8.7-million wrongful dismissal case filed Nov. 3 by Allan Etherington, a 49-year-old former technical support analyst who worked for the NHLPA from September 10, 2008 until Feb. 13, 2019. Etherington also accuses the union of income tax and insurance fraud. Union officials named as defendants in the case include Stephen Frank, the NHLPA’s former director of technology and security information technology; former NHL player Mathieu Schneider, who is now a special assistant to NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr; union lawyer Roman Stoykewych; chief financial officer Richard Smit; director of finance Stephen Sax; and chief of global business strategies Sandra Monteiro. continued

from Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports Boston, Undoubtedly the Bruins could use a player of Hall’s caliber as the big, skilled winger that David Krejci has been looking for on his line for the last couple of seasons. It would force the Bruins to rearrange things a little bit, of course, whether it's shifting Jake DeBrusk down to the third line, or requiring one of Anders Bjork, Danton Heinen or DeBrusk to play on the right side rather than the left. But those are minor adjustments when it comes to a 28-year-old who's just a couple of years removed from 39 goals and 93 points on his way to the NHL’s MVP Award, and a player who could immediately give the Bruins two extremely dangerous offensive lines while handing Krejci the kind of experienced top goal-scorer he has been without since the days of Milan Lucic, Nathan Horton, Jarome Iginla, and even Loui Eriksson. The issues are two-fold with Hall, as they are with any number of big ticket items available at the deadline. The first issue would be the prohibitive cost for a player who's a former No. 1 overall pick and a Hart Trophy winner as well. The Devils would be seeking something along the lines of the Ottawa haul for Mark Stone (forward and D-man prospects along with a high draft pick).   more

Sportsnet style, 4 1/2 minutes long.  

from the CBC Archives, It was a crime story involving the most famous trophy in Canada, which had allegedly been pilfered from the Hockey Hall of Fame. "The Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe trophies are more than symbols of hockey's greatness today," the CBC's John O'Leary told Update viewers on Dec. 5, 1970. "They and the [Bill] Masterton trophy are objects of a police search."... The Toronto Star reported that an alarm at the museum did not go off as expected. "One day a mouse set if off. Yet it doesn't work when the trophies are taken," the museum's curator and former Toronto Telegram reporter, Maurice (Lefty) Reid, told the paper. It was later reported, however, that the stolen Stanley Cup was not the true, original trophy. The one that was stolen, was the replica used for on-ice presentations. "It's a perfect reproduction,"  said Campbell, when describing the stolen, but not-quite-true Stanley Cup trophy, according to a report by the Globe and Mail. The missing Masterton and Smythe trophies, however, were the real deal. Fortunately for hockey fans, the trophies were recovered just over two weeks after they were taken. read on

from Peter J. Wallner of Mlive, A move down to the Grand Rapids Griffins, whether temporary or not, did not come as a surprise to Taro Hirose. Self-evaluation told him that. "I think when you're not playing and not playing well, as I don't think I was, there's always the reality that you can get sent down," he said after his first game with the Griffins and in the AHL. "I'm just looking at it as a positive and trying to get better while I'm down here."... It's uncertain what happens next. Up top, Justin Abdelkader might be ready to return from injury, which could leave both player in Grand Rapids. If not, one of them is expected to return. Based on recent outings, Zadina would appear the frontrunner. Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill had spoken about moving him to the first line and he had been practicing earlier this week on the power play unit. Where could that leave Hirose? He said that's out of his hands. read on

Through one-third of the season, it feels like almost a lock that Makar will win the Calder Trophy and there’s even some Norris buzz – though Washington’s John Carlson is the front-runner right now. So with everyone knowing just how good the puck-moving Makar is already, is it getting harder to operate, or does his growing book of experience make things easier for the former UMass superstar? -Ryan Kennedy of the Hockey News who has more on Cale Makar.

Through one-third of the season, it feels like almost a lock that Makar will win the Calder Trophy and there’s even some Norris buzz – though Washington’s John Carlson is the front-runner right now. So with everyone knowing just how good the puck-moving Makar is already, is it getting harder to operate, or does his growing book of experience make things easier for the former UMass superstar? -Ryan Kennedy of the Hockey News who has more on Cale Makar.

from Michael Arace of the Columbus Dispatch, The Jackets won at least 45 games in each of the previous three seasons. The consensus three months ago, then, was that they had built something that was greater than the sum of their parts. As their hype video says, “From out of our blue, we rise.” The new season is one-third gone now. The Jackets (11-12-4, 26 points) are in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division and in 13th place in the Eastern Conference. Their 68 goals scored and minus-16 differential through 27 games put them among the most anemic teams in the league. Old rule of thumb: The earlier a team can get into playoff position, the better. Over the previous six years, 74 of 96 teams in a playoff spot on Thanksgiving Day went on to clinch. On Thursday past, the Jackets were in seventh place in the wild-card standings. (Insert turkey joke here.)... Although there is a lot of hockey yet to play, you will in the coming days get as good a gauge on these Jackets as you’re going to get. Remember all that talk about proving doubters wrong? About how the team would respond after losing Panarin, Bobrovsky, et al.? About how a strong locker room would coalesce in defiance? Now is the time. The Jackets host Panarin and the New York Rangers on Thursday. The Jackets play at Florida on Saturday and will probably see Bobrovsky in net. The Jackets play the Ovechkins in Washington on Monday. If they have an emotional response — if they rise — you will see what has largely been missing so far. more

from Terry Jones of the Edmonton Sun, How do you lose 5-2 to the floundering Ottawa Senators, a team that came off a fifth straight loss the night before on the coast, when you are a top of the tables team playing at home with two days of rest? How does a sinking, at times stinking, draft lottery team now have a six-game winning streak in Edmonton? I mean, come on. Just when you start to toast this Oilers team for their growing character, developing culture and commitment to each other, they lose by three. At home. To Ottawa. continued The Senators beat the Oilers 5-2, watch the highlights below.

from Dave Caldwell of the New York Times, Fortified by the rookie center Jack Hughes and defenseman P.K. Subban, this season’s Devils team would be not just good; it would be fun and entertaining, a hot ticket. Goaltender Cory Schneider and forward Taylor Hall, the league’s most valuable player in 2018, appeared healthy after struggling with injuries the previous season. Over the course of two dreadful months, though, it became obvious that something was terribly wrong. ... “Everybody had higher expectations, but collectively as a group, our team, I don’t think there’s any one player who’s performing even at the level, let alone above, that we expect, or maybe they expect,” Shero said.... Subban, projected as a top-line stopper and power-play asset, has only two goals and a poor minus-12 rating. Forward Kyle Palmieri is the only Devils player with 10 goals. Hischier has five goals and Hughes has four. The Devils are 28th out of 31 N.H.L. teams in goals per game. “Coming into the season, you had a lot of promise, a lot of expectations,” said Palmieri, a New Jersey native who joined the team in 2015. “My time in Jersey hasn’t come with a ton of expectations, as far as what we were expected to achieve.” more

NEW YORK, December 5, 2019 –Today, the NHL and Disney Streaming Services launched GameFlow, a new interactive tool that leverages shot pressure data to provide fans with a visual depiction of a game’s momentum. Available exclusively in the NHL® mobile app, fans can access GameFlow during or after a game via Gamecenter to follow the flow of a game and track how offensive shot pressure corresponds to goals.

Ansar Khan of Mlive answers some fan mail. Q: Have you ever, in all your time reporting, seen a team cry out louder for new coaching? – Peter A: You can make a strong case for Jeff Blashill being replaced. The Red Wings have the fewest points in the NHL and rank last in goals for, goals against and the power play. They have lost eight in a row in regulation and are winless in 10.  Coaches have been fired for less. But this team is so thin on talent and skill that I don’t think it would make much difference who is coaching. Expectations were low entering the season. Blashill wasn't going to be judged as much on wins and losses as he was the team's compete level and growth of young players.... Q: (Andreas) Athanasiou is leading the league on the wrong side of the plus/minus stats. Will a change of scenery benefit him and the Wings if they get current or future help for him? – C Josefs A: I think so. Athanasiou has been in the rumor mill before, notably during difficult contract negotiations that cost him the start of the 2017-18 season, but the Red Wings were right to keep him and were rewarded with a 30-goal season in 2018-19. But while this season has been a struggle for virtually everyone on the roster, it has been particularly difficult for Athanasiou, who has five goals and 15 points in 28 games, along with an NHL-worst minus-31 rating. more on each of the above questions plus more Q and A...

THREE HARD LAPS * Nathan MacKinnon factored on two of three Avalanche goals and became the 11th player in 2019-20 to collect multiple points in four consecutive games. * Edmonton, Alta. native Tyler Ennis collected three points to help the Senators register their sixth straight win at Rogers Place. * John Carlson scored twice, including the game-winning goal to eclipse the 100-goal mark and help the Capitals earn their second five-game win streak of the season (also: 6-0-0 from Oct. 25 - Nov. 9).

from Peter J. Wallner of Mlive, The Griffins are mimicking the Detroit Red Wings and that’s not good. Their losing streak reached six Wednesday with a 5-2 defeat at home to Chicago that dropped the AHL team to 9-13-1-1. Both goals came in the third as Taro Hirose scored in his Griffins debut and Evgeny Svechnikov had a power play goal in the final minute. “Right now it seems like we’re not finding ways to win," said captain Matthew Ford. “It seems like too often there’s a breakdown, something goes wrong and one thing leads to another.”... The Griffins are at least relative newcomers to the doldrums. They started November in third place but haven't won since Nov. 20 and are now seventh in the Central Division. read on added 11:11pm, Post game interviews from the game tonight can be watched below. (Ford, Hirose and Simon).  Game highlights too.

from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun, There is an inherent pressure that goes along with signing a giant contract in any sport. Some players need time to adjust. Some players feel the pressure. You sign the big deal and instantly expectations change. For the first time, really, in Auston Matthews’ time in Toronto, there is some wondering about who is he is and what he can become. There have been too many uninspired shifts this season, on Wednesday night, too many shifts where he’s barely noticeable. Late in the Avs game, Matthews finally got going. He had one good chance to score, set up another chance and was open in scoring position and not spotted by Morgan Rielly on another.... This is a difficult time for hockey in Toronto. The Leafs have made their coaching change. On Wednesday, they abandoned their goaltending rotation, mostly out of desperation, and Frederik Andersen was brilliant in defeat. This is a tense time for general manager Kyle Dubas. This is his team, Matthews is his No. 1 player. And the player he has chosen to invest in most heavily mirrors his team, looking rather ordinary. Looking nothing like a player who is supposed to move mountains. more, the Leafs lost 3-1 to the Avs...

from Morgan Campbell of the Toronto Star, Since we’re all sharing stories about racism, hockey, and the stifling whiteness of Canadian institutions, here’s mine. In November of 2000, I was six weeks into a yearlong internship at the Star, pinch-hitting for a sick colleague on the hockey beat. So I showed up at Lakeshore Arena to report a story about the Edmonton Oilers, who were playing the Leafs the next night, and whose roster included five Black players. Late in the media session, a scrum formed around Scarborough’s Anson Carter. I asked him about the role race played in his professional life, and he gave calm, thoughtful answers. When I asked whether people tried to portray him as something he isn’t because he was a Black athlete in a largely white sport, he responded that people tried but said, “I’m not a politician. I’m hockey player.” The following morning, that same exchange appeared in a competing publication under the byline and logo of a white columnist also present at the Carter scrum. continued

from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, - Maybe the most impossible question to answer is what Mike Babcock’s future will be. When he was fired, word was that at least two teams privately reached out to gauge his interest in coaching right away — only to be told that he preferred to take some time. I heard from people in Russia that there was KHL interest, either as a coach or a consultant. There were rumours he’d be offered a World Junior role (not as head coach, but in an advisory position) and/or the head job for the World Championships. Then came the avalanche, and now that’s all in doubt.... - Chris Chelios’s Spittin’ Chiclets interview about Babcock had some confusing timelines, because when the Johan Franzen incident occurred (as Nashville eliminated Detroit in Game 5 of the 2012 first round), Chelios was no longer on the Red Wings. He referenced a meeting Ken Holland had with the players, where the GM defended his coach. I think this has to do with Marty McSorley. McSorley worked on San Jose Sharks broadcasts, and once said none of the Red Wings liked playing for Babcock. Word got back to Detroit reporters, who asked Holland about it.... - Reminder of other situations to watch: Los Angeles with most of their veterans, with the exception of Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar; Buffalo with its defence; Carolina continues to look for a top-nine forward. Meanwhile, things have calmed in Minnesota as the Wild show a surge. - And one GM predicts, “Watch St. Louis. They think they can repeat, and they will go for it.” more on the first two topics plus additional Thoughts...

#RedWings Steve Yzerman will watch Filip Zadina and Taro Hirose play for @griffinshockey tonight and then decide what to do, whether to recall or keep one or both there. — Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) December 4, 2019

I am putting this in A2Y and you should know why. from Sam Cosentino of Sportsnet, Here’s our December list of the top 31 NHL Draft prospects. 1. Alexis Lafreniere, LW, Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL): Mystery surrounding his absence from the CIBC Canada-Russia series along with an incident involving an official, have shown an edgier side. 2. Quinton Byfield, C, Sudbury Wolves (OHL): Exhibits the ability to play in all three zones. Is extremely agile for his size, yet he has plenty of room on his frame to add strength. 3. Lucas Raymond, LW, Frolunda (SHL): Numbers playing against men (five points in 16 games) are mitigating due to lack of ice-time. Should excel once again at the world juniors, which would be a big confidence booster. read on

via Ansar Khan tweet, lines and D pairs at practice: Bertuzzi-Larkin-Fabbri Athanasiou-Filppula-Glendening Abdelkader-Nielsen-Helm Erne-Ehn-Perlini Nemeth-Hronek Cholowski-Green Biega-McIlrath Ericsson-Bowey

from Michael Smith of CarolinaHurricanes.com, Our chat touched on a number of subjects, including the team's start, contributions from young players, Erik Haula's injury, Justin Williams and more. Hurricanes.com: Anything new on Justin Williams? Waddell: We continue to talk with him. I think he's working out a little bit more on his own right now. I think he's going to start coming to the gym a little more. That's a positive sign. What that end result is yet is still a mystery to all of us, but we're hopeful that maybe there is an opportunity there to have him come back. more Q & A...

from Lisa Dillman of The Athletic, Former Kings captain Norstrom talks Marc Crawford’s behavior and Sean Avery pushing people’s buttons Norstrom, who played in 903 NHL games, appeared in 62 games in 2006-07 under Crawford. In February of that season, he was traded to the Dallas Stars in a multi-player deal which also involved draft picks. “I never had that kind of confrontation,” said Norstrom, who was the Kings’ captain. “But he was strong-willed. I also just read that Sean Avery was one of the players that came out with information about Crow. In all fairness, that’s how Sean approached people around him and confronted people, in your face. I won’t say physical. But with in-your-face challenging. Sean did that with everyone. Players, coaches, opponents, teammates. That was his way. He wouldn’t take anything from anyone. He confronted them. In your face. “So was Crawford. He confronted people in that sense.” much more (paid subscription)

two minutes for elbowing and a game misconduct.  

THREE HARD LAPS  * John Carlson became the sixth player (and first defenseman) to reach the 40-point mark in 2019-20. Only one other season since 1990s ended featured as many 40-point scorers through the first 433 games, which was 2005-06 (Jaromir Jagr, Jason Spezza, Daniel Alfredsson, Peter Forsberg, Dany Heatley, Eric Staal and Joe Thornton). * The League-leading Bruins extended a plethora of streaks to maintain their edge over the Capitals for first place in the NHL standings. * Chris Driedger became the ninth goaltender in League history to post a shutout streak of at least 89 minutes from the first start of his NHL career – a feat last achieved by Jordan Binnington before backstopping St. Louis to a Stanley Cup.

Five for elbowing and a game misconduct after a review.  

Joe Thornton: "He'd [Evander Kane] put you to sleep" Tom Wilson: "At least I got a ring though" pic.twitter.com/UN0NlAWwkA — Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) December 4, 2019

from Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News, So, as the Red Wings began a rare, four-day break between games Tuesday with an intense practice, it was a chance to “kind of hit the reset button,” forward Luke Glendening said. “A good time to be together and just to get back to basics here,” Glendening said. Several players after Monday’s loss to the New York Islanders, along with coach Jeff Blashill, talked about the need to work hard in practice this week — but also bring a level of fun, enthusiasm and enjoyment into the locker room. Let’s face it, fun has been in short supply considering all the defeats. But this week will be a good opportunity to loosen up a bit. “For sure, it’s not easy when you’re losing every week to come in with a good attitude,” Glendening said. “Maybe these four days will be good for us in terms of just we don’t have any games and we can have some on the ice and have some fun together, and have renewed energy.” continued

Aliu was represented in the meeting by Jim Bunting from Toronto-based Tyr and Ben Meiselas from Geragos & Geragos, the same US-based firm that has represented Colin Kaepernick in his dealings with NFL. [3/3] — Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) December 4, 2019

#RedWings have assigned forwards Filip Zadina and Taro Hirose to the @griffinshockey — Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) December 3, 2019

Like it or not, the days of the iron-fisted coach have more or less run their course. No one wants to be yelled at. They certainly don’t want to be punched, kicked or choked. What worked in the past simply does not work anymore. The Sutters and Babcocks of the coaching world are now as antiquated as sticks with aluminum shafts. -Michael Traikos of the National Post where you can read more on the changes coming.

from the New Jersey Devils, The New Jersey Devils today announced that they have relieved John Hynes of his head coaching duties. Alain Nasreddine will become Interim Head Coach and Peter Horachek, currently a pro scout for the team, will join the coaching staff as an assistant under Nasreddine. The announcements were made by Devils' Executive Vice President/General Manager Ray Shero. Alain Nasreddine will start in his role for tonight's game versus Vegas. He heads up the staff of Horachek and existing assistants Rick Kowalsky, Mike Grier and goaltending coach, Roland Melanson. "John played an integral role in the development of this team in establishing a foundation for our future and we are grateful for his commitment, passion and unmatched work ethic," said Shero. "John is a respected leader, developer of talent and friend which makes this decision difficult. We are a team that values and takes pride in accountability to the results we produce. We are collectively disappointed in our performance on the ice and believe changes were needed, starting with our head coach. I have been consistent in my desire to build something here in New Jersey that earns the respect of teams throughout the league and pride in our fans. That is not where we were heading and for me to tolerate anything less was not acceptable." continued

Akim Aliu made a brief statement today after his meeting with #NHL. He said Gary Bettman and Bill Daly have been very receptive, that “big change is coming” and it’s “long overdue.” via @TSNScianitti: pic.twitter.com/dmityB6Plf — Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) December 3, 2019

Only change in #RedWings practice at BELFOR Training Center is Fabbri on top line with Larkin and Bertuzzi while Glendening shifts to line with Filppula and Athanasiou. — Dana Wakiji (@Dwakiji) December 3, 2019

Jared Clinton of The Hockey News points out the bad, the very bad but I an concentrating on the good... ...in the interest of looking on the bright side and attempting not to pile on during what has already been an incredibly difficult season for the Red Wings faithful, we feel the need to point out that there have been a few positives. Here are five silver linings: 1. TOP LOTTERY ODDS Not since 1986 have the Red Wings had the first-overall pick in the draft and the last time Detroit picked in the top three was at the 1990 draft. That could change this season. While the draft lottery doesn’t promise the league’s last-place team anything, the Red Wings would have a nearly 50-percent chance at finishing with a top-three selection and an 18.5-percent chance of landing the first-overall pick if they finished dead-last. But there’s good news here just about any way you slice it. If the Red Wings fail to secure the first-overall pick, they’re doing so ahead of a draft that is considered one of the deepest in recent memory with a uber-skilled projected one-two of Alexis Lafreniere and Quinton Byfield. 2. OPPORTUNITY, OPPORTUNITY, OPPORTUNITY The lack of pressure, and lack of expectation, has opened up plenty of opportunity for younger players to come into the lineup and prove their worth. No player has done more with the chances they’ve been afforded than Filip Hronek. Drafted 53rd overall in 2016, he wasn’t considered one of Detroit’s blue-chippers, but there looks to be plenty of potential and upside in the 22-year-old rearguard. He’s been productive offensively – his 13 points put him fifth in team scoring – and he’s averaging 23 minutes per game, more than any other blueliner. much more

from Luke Fox of Sportsnet, Rikard Gronborg believes it’s only a matter of time. And with the disturbing crackling of the old boys coaching network in recent days, the most qualified coaching candidate outside of North America might be on to something. Nineteen years have passed since the last European coach was hired to stand behind a National Hockey League bench — Finland’s Alpo Suhonen (Blackhawks) and the Czech Republic’s Ivan Hlinka (Penguins) landed gigs in 2000-01. Perhaps the National Hockey League is getting ripe for a broader worldview when it comes to its coach hiring policy. Thirty per cent of the league’s players are European, and 55 per cent of 2019-20’s rookie class is European. “That tells you where the trend is going. So, I think it’s just a matter of time that NHL teams in the U.S. and Canada look over here at some of the excellent European coaches,” Gronborg says. “Hockey is hockey. The challenge is for the NHL to open up a new chapter. Hiring coaches with some new backgrounds is only healthy.” continued

Yeah. I've been watching.  And it's been tough.  I'm not talking about the losing. We expected that and I have like 5000 percent confidence in the Rightful GM and what he will do for us and our famililes.  No. I'm not talking about the losing. I'm talking about our Uncle Mike and some revelations that aren't really all that revelatory.  None of us are incredibly surprised that Babcock is, was and probably always been an a-hole of the highest order. If memory serves, it's why we dug him for as long as we did...or at least one of the reasons.

TORONTO (Dec. 3, 2019) – Matt Stajan has announced his retirement from professional hockey today following 14 seasons playing in the National Hockey League (NHL). Born in Mississauga, Ontario, Stajan tallied 413 career points (146 goals, 267 assists) in 1,003 NHL games. After he was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round (57th overall) of the 2002 NHL Draft, Stajan played five-plus seasons in Toronto prior to being traded to the Calgary Flames, where he played over eight seasons.

from Nicholas J. Cotsonika of NHL.com, Jeff Blashill faces a massive challenge as coach of the Detroit Red Wings, and we aren't talking about winning. "It's hard when you lose to keep a calm …" His voice trailed off as he searched for a better word. "Not calm," he said. "To keep clear eyes, where you see things as they are, because frustration can build." Blashill knows it doesn't look good. The Red Wings have gone winless in 10 games (0-8-2) and lost eight straight in regulation. They're last in the NHL with 17 points even though they have played 30 games, most in the League. They're five points behind the 30th-place team, the New Jersey Devils, who have four games in hand. Their point percentage is .283, putting them on pace for about 46 points. Since the NHL salary cap arrived in 2005-06, ushering in an era of parity, the lowest point total in a full 82 games has been 48, by the Colorado Avalanche in 2016-17. "This is the toughest year I've been a part of," said forward Darren Helm, who has played for the Red Wings since 2007-08, the last time they won the Stanley Cup. conitnued

Just over 13 minutes to watch.  

The Wings are off until Saturday night when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins so we have some time to talk. We all could probably use a breather to regroup and look forward to the future. Below you will find Detroit's current roster which you can use as a reference to this question. Who on the roster as of today, including players on IR, will be on the 2020-21 opening night roster? Consider a player being traded, not re-signed, a possible buyout, retired or whatever else you can think of. Just tell me who returns. and if you'd like, you can add players currently in Grand Rapids. No strict rules and you can freelance too.

from Samantha Pell of The Washington Post, Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom, who is in the final year of a 10-year, $67 million contract, confirmed Monday that he is negotiating his next deal on his own. Putting trust in himself and the Capitals organization, Backstrom parted ways with his agent, Mark Levine, just before the season started. Backstrom said he ideally wanted to get a deal done before the season, but he is in continuing talks with Washington’s front office. “I feel like I’ve been here long enough and I feel like I’ve seen everything, and I don’t think it’s anything to hide,” said Backstrom, who was drafted by the Capitals with the No. 4 pick in 2006 and made his NHL debut in 2007. “We will see what happens here moving forward. We will see what happens. I just believed that I wanted to do this myself. I feel like I have a good enough relationship with the organization that we can be honest and talk, and that is how it is.” continued

THREE HARD LAPS * Jack Eichel registered his second three-point outing in three games to propel the Sabres to a seven-goal outburst at KeyBank Center. * Jake Allen posted his 20th career shutout (all w/ STL) to climb the franchise’s all-time list and help the Blues continue their success on the road this calendar year. * Elias Pettersson (39-58—97 in 99 GP) is expected to appear in his 100th NHL game when the Canucks host Brady Tkachuk and the Senators at Rogers Arena Tuesday.

from Ansar Khan of Mlive, The standings are an eyesore and the team statistics are ugly across the board for the Detroit Red Wings 30 games into the season. They are the worst team in the NHL by virtually every measure, starting with the primary indicator – their league-low 17 points. It’s a number they’ve been stuck on for some time, due to eight consecutive regulation losses -- 10 games without a win overall (0-8-2). Coach Jeff Blashill, however, put a positive spin on much of this recent stretch. “From the coaching staff perspective, I don’t have to walk around here and be mad at everybody and be dark and gloomy,” Blashill said. “We’ve played pretty well the last number of games, with the exception of a terrible game against Toronto (6-0 loss on Wednesday), and we got no results to show for it. The scoresheet looks terrible. I get all that. But I’m just telling you our guys have done lots of good stuff, so let’s just keep building on those things.” continued Maybe the hightlight of the night could be Mickey Redmond's story of  getting his tongue stuck to a metal post, watch below.

The Detroit Red Wings lost tonight to the New York Islanders 4-1, the losing streak hits 10. If only the Wings had a power play. Six chances on the pp, one goal by Dylan Larkin. Detroit goal and game stats are below.

Game highlights and after the game talk from Helm, Larkin, Beruzzi and Blashill in one video.  

The Sabres lead 7-1 after 40 minutes.  

Marc Crawford will be away from the team during this time and the organization will have no further comment until completion of the review. #Blackhawks — Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 3, 2019

Yeah, we're back with another game to play tonight against a solid Islanders team. What can I say? It's tough being a Detroit Red Wings fan right now. It doesn't look to get any better in the near future with some tough times ahead. Even mediocrity would be a huge improvement. Something's gotta give.... It's a Live Blog!

from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press, Asked if a player ever came to him and accused Babcock of abusive behavior, former Wings general manager Ken Holland told the Free Press, “no. The answer is no.”... Holland told the Free Press he talked to Chelios on Monday afternoon, and that Chelios admitted the incident he describes with Holland did not happen after the Nashville game. Chelios said he was in the locker room when Holland told players that if they had a problem with Babcock, they were welcome to address it with Holland in his office.... In a text message to the Free Press, Chelios said he made his comments about Babcock and wanted to leave it at that. Babcock did not return a message requesting comment. more, basically a recap of what was said in the Swedesh newspaper and the audio from Chelios this morning...

Dispatching Hughes to play in the World Juniors would not be the worst thing for him or the Devils. What Hughes probably needs right now is a dose of positive vibes and playing for that team would undoubtedly accomplish that. The Americans have an outstanding team without Hughes in the lineup, one that is a legitimate favorite to win the tournament. Cole Caufield, with whom Hughes formed a two-man, record-setting wrecking crew for the U.S. development program last season, will be on the roster and there’s already some built-in chemistry there. Hughes would have the chance to dominate again against players his own age and there’s literally no downside to that. If the Devils were to loan Hughes, he’d be out of the lineup for about a month, which would give the Devils some time to decide what to do with him upon his return. -Ken Campbell of The Hockey News where you can read more on this topic.

Sportsnet style, 4 1/2 minutes long.  

Jeff Blashill after today's skate, Eric Comrie and Frans Nielsen below.   Coach Blashill wraps up morning skate. #NYIvsDET tonight at 7:30. pic.twitter.com/IuoyAXojyW — Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 2, 2019

Kyle Okposo on his though process following his latest concussion: pic.twitter.com/TuC9EDJk0g — Lance Lysowski (@LLysowski) December 2, 2019

NEW YORK (Dec. 2, 2019) – Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, Calgary Flames goaltender David Rittich and San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the week ending Dec. 1.

from Jeff Blair of Sportsnet, It’s great that hockey’s having this moment, that topics such as inclusion, bullying and hazing have been pushed into the forefront by the forced resignation of Bill Peters as head coach of the Calgary Flames stemming from allegations of racial epithets dating back to his time as a coach with the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. But for this conversation to result in anything substantive, to go beyond whatever findings and action the NHL takes once its investigation is complete and not simply disappear amid the churn of an NHL season, then current and past NHL players need to refrain from this “bad guy” narrative that is seeping into the conversation not only on Twitter, but in the mainstream media. It’s the idea that a player with what his peers may deem to be a checkered past either on or off the ice should somehow not speak up. That somehow only the game’s “good guys” – “good” as defined by hockey players, executives or media – carry any real weight. That somehow, observations by players who made their living on some of the nastier edges of the game – yes, I am talking about players such as Daniel Carcillo – shouldn’t carry weight because of real or imagined past transgressions. continued

Last Friday, I started a KK Donation Drive and it is going okay ($525) as of this morning. Another $500 would be great and allow me to carry on for the next 3-4 months. As I mentioned in the original post, a huge, anonymous donation has been made over the last 2 years which basically covers my hosting fee for the hockey season. You can get donation information in the link above or get it below. Any little bit helps and is much appreciated. For the 28K+ followers on Twitter, again any amount helps, just imagine if just 10% of those followers donated $5.   You would not see a KK Donation Drive for at least 2 years.

Ansar Khan tweet, RedWings on ice for morning skate prior to facing @NYIslanders at @LCArena_Detroit Bernier starting. Newly acquired goalie Eric Comrie, wearing No. 34, will back-up. added 10:45am, Khan... lines at skate: Bertuzzi-Larkin-Glendening Athanasiou-Filppula-Fabbri Helm-Nielsen-Zadina Perlini-Ehn-Erne (Hirose rotating in) Defense: Nemeth-Hronek Cholowski-Green Biega-McIlrath Ericsson-Bowey (extras?)

Babcock verbally assaulted Johan Franzen on the bench, causing Franzen a nervous break down pic.twitter.com/KBU3Qf5q7B — Peter Andrianopoulos (@peterandri) December 2, 2019