Mike Carr's Blog

Posted by Mike Carr

The first year I got NHL Center Ice, I snagged another cable box from a different room just so I could watch two games at once with picture-in-picture.

This season, I recently moved. Although Charter Cable technically offers NHL Center Ice, when I went to order it I learned it wasn't offered in my market. Unacceptible! I switched to Dish.

As far as I'm concerned, NHL Center Ice is a make-it-or-break-it feature of a cable or satellite service.

Not everyone is as much of an NHL Center Ice junkie. Now that the free preview ended a few weeks ago, you may be debating whether to fork over $169 to order NHL Center Ice. Before you do, consult my article, "NHL Center Ice - Is it Worth the Money?"

Posted by Mike Carr

The game started with excitement, as Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis got a breakaway coming down fast on Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward. Ward made a beautiful save on St. Louis and continued slamming the door shut on the Lightning for the rest of the night.

Justin Williams had his own private shooting gallery on Tampa Bay goaltender Marc Denis tonight. Williams, who was still looking for his first goal of the season, found the back of the net.

His first goal was of the night was early in the 2nd period off a rebound shot and his second was a on a power play with 2:39 left in the period. He completed his first career NHL hat trick 37 seconds into the 3rd period on the power play.

Tampa's Mikita Alexeev finally got Tampa Bay on the board with 2:13 left in the 3rd period, ending Ward's hopes of a shutout.

The Hurricanes are now 3-0 after losing their first 4 games.

Posted by Mike Carr

After making numerous eye-popping moves and passes in the first period, including an assist on Sergei Gonchar's first period goal, terror struck the heart of Pittsburgh Penguins fans.

It all started innocently enough. Malkin was making a pass to teammate John LeClair, but LeClair missed the scoring chance and began losing an edge going around the left side of the net.

Malkin, after sending the pass away, went around the right side of the goal and the two collided behind the left goal post. Malkin tried hurdling over LeClair, but to no avail.

After coming down hard on the ice, Malkin stayed down on the ice for several minutes before finally getting up and skating away holding his left arm.

The Pittsburg Penguins announced that Malkin has a dislocated left shoulder. He did attend the Penguins practice today, but did not participate. It is not known if Malkin will be able to play in the Penguins home opener on Oct. 5th.

Also see: Evgeni Malkin Surfaces in Los Angeles | Evgeni Malkin Signs with Pittsburgh Penguins

Posted by Mike Carr

Domi spent 16 seasons in the NHL, (11 with the Leafs) as one of the league's premier enforcers. With the new NHL concentrating more on speed and skill, the enforcer roll has almost become extinct, helping the Toronto Maple Leafs decide to buy out Domi's remaining season on his contract.

Domi is third all-time in penalty minutes with 3,515, only ranking behind Dave Williams (3,966) and Dale Hunter (3565). During the 2005/2006 season, Domi recorded his 100th goal and played in his 1000th NHL game.

Fans won't lose Domi entirely. With his playing career over, Domi has signed on with Canadian sport network TSN, where he will still be able to be involved with the sport he loves.

Posted by Mike Carr

In the Inquirer's article today, Flyers' Primeau to announce retirement, they say Primeau confirmed that he plans to retire.

"I've had those discussions with my wife and I will have something more to say about it either Wednesday or Thursday," he told the newspaper. "I have not talked to the club since last week. I had been looking to get myself back into a position to play."

Keith Primeau took an elbow to the head from Montreal Canadiens' Alexander Perezhogin on October 25th, 2005. He has not played a game since due to post-concussion syndrome.

The captaincy is expected to go Peter Forsberg, according to the report.

Posted by Mike Carr

You can see his grin from ear to ear a mile away (that's almost two kilometers for my friends up north). He's got that little extra spring in his step that says, "I'm a happy man."

Rick Dipietro signed an almost-unheard-of 15-year, $67.5 million contract with the New York Islanders today. The contract will pay DiPietro $4.5 million a year for the next 15 years.

General managers around the league have spoken to the press under anonymity saying things like they feel "amazement" and another said, "They're trying to protect themselves from that $7 million salary, but quite honestly, it's an absolutely ridiculous thing to do."

"Crazy," one NHL GM told TSN. "Just (expletive deleted) crazy."

Islanders co-owner Charles Wang wanted Rick DiPietro in an Islanders sweater for a long, long time, and he got it. DiPietro will now be an Islander until he is just shy of his 40th birthday.

Unfortunately, this isn't the first time Wang got a player for the long haul. In 2001, the Islanders signed Alexei Yashin to a 10 year, $87.5 million contract. So now they have two players that they're stuck with through thick and thin.

I personally don't see the logic in signing a 25-year-old kid to that long of a contract worth that much. As others have pointed out, what motivation is he going to have now?

For good or ill, the Islanders are stuck with him. Choose your dance partners carefully. You can end up with a long, slow dance and a partner that likes to step on your feet.

Posted by Mike Carr

After an exciting summer of leaving his Russian team, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, after just signing with them, the youngster and his agent J.P. Barry had to figure out how to get Malkin into the United States.

Hours turned into days for Evegni, trying to stay out of sight of his Russian team while he and his agent worked on getting the proper paper work together so they both could get into the U.S.

Days later, Malkin appeared in Los Angeles at the Kings practice facility playing hockey with a smile on his face. He stayed in L.A. for three weeks.

Technorati tags: ice hockey | NHL | Pittsburgh Penguins

On Monday night, Malkin arrived in Pittsburg, where he was shown around and was able to meet with Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby.

Posted by Mike Carr

Robataille, who is the highest-scoring left winger in NHL history, will have his number retired in a pre-game ceremony on January 20 when the Kings play against the Phoenix Coyotes. Robitaille retired last season on April 17, according to the Los Angeles Kings.

During his 14-season run with the Los Angeles Kings, Robitaille has become the Kings' all-time goal scorer. He won a Stanley Cup with the Detroit Red Wings in 2002.

Luc finished his career playing in 1431 NHL regular season games, with 668 goals, 726 assists and 1394 points. He also played in 159 NHL playoff games with 58 goals and 127 points.

Luc Robitaille is listed number 10 in all-time goal leaders. He joins some impressive company, as the only other players with retired numbers in Los Angeles are Rogie Vachon, Marcel Dionne, Dave Taylor and Wayne Gretzky.

Posted by Mike Carr

He was sidelined by a knee injury near the end of the 2003-2004 season, but was cleared by the Coyotes medical staff on Tuesday. The last team he played for was the Toronto Maple Leafs, leaving amidst controversy.

The San Jose Mercury News reported that Nolan was skating with Logitech Ice Adult Hockey League, trying to get some ice time.

Posted by Mike Carr

"We have been planning all along to use the original colours and logo as our third jersey for next season," said Larry Quinn, the managing partner of the Buffalo Sabres.

The team will also be changing their regular jerseys, which had mixed reviews from fans, next seasons.

There is also a rumor that the Edmonton Oilers will be using the vintage look from the '80s as their 3rd jersey for next season.

Posted by Mike Carr

Detroit needed a number 1 guy in net after letting Manny Legace go. They came close to signing Ed Belfour, but that relationship didn't materialize. Assuming his career was done, Dominik Hasak said he was surprised and excited when he received the telephone call from Wings.

Posted by Mike Carr

Lindros told reporters, "I just really like the fit in Dallas," during a conference call.

Lindros spent last season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, playing in just 33 games due to a wrist injury. During his 33 games, he had 11 goals and 11 assists.

What concerns teams about Lindros is that he has had eight concussions in his 12 seasons in the NHL. He missed the entire 2000-2001 season due to a concussion.

He also played for the Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers.

Posted by Mike Carr

See my list of Top Hockey Movies to help make the dreary summer months pass quickly.

Posted by Mike Carr

The change will take effect in the 2006-07 season.

"This is a very significant and progressive step in the evolution of our league," AHL President and CEO David Andrews said. "The safety of our world-class athletes remain top priority."

Posted by Mike Carr

The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim held a press conference Thursday announcing they are now officially named the Anaheim Ducks. That wasn't the only thing revealed, though.

The Ducks also are also changing their uniforms next season. The Duck head we've all grown to love is no more. The new jerseys are black and gold with touch of orange to represent Orange County, California, where they're located.

The logo on the new uniforms are a modernized word logo saying "ducks."

The general consensus of game worn jersey collectors on gameworn.net is not good. Will people be as inclined to collect these game-worn hockey jerserys?

How do you feel about the look? See the new jersey, and then comment about it.

Posted by Mike Carr

Ovechkin attracted 124 of 129 first-place votes and five second-place votes for 1,275 points, almost a unanimous vote in support of him for the Calder Trophy.

He was just the second rookie in NHL history to tally 50 goals and 100 points in a season, with Teemu Selanne the first to boast such rookie feats in the 1992-93 hockey season.

See a complete list of the NHL award winners.

Posted by Mike Carr

In a poll on my main Ice Hockey page, 60 percent of voters chose the Oilers as the Stanley Cup winners. So far in the Stanley Cup Finals series, they haven't been as charmed as beforehand.

The Oilers lost game one in a tight showdown, with Carolina coming back from a deficit. Then they lost game two in an embarassing 5-0 shut-out.

Do you think they can still come back to win the coveted Stanley Cup? Discuss it on my Ice Hockey message board.

Posted by Mike Carr

The Buffalo Sabres' Daniel Briere scored a goal on Carolina Hurricane's Cam Ward less than five minutes into overtime and tied the Eastern Conference series 3-3.

The Carolina Hurricanes were hoping to put this series to rest tonight, but the Sabres were not going to go away so easily.

The Scoring started early in the 1st period with a goal by Buffalo Sabre J.P. Dumont at 4:56 of the 1st period, but after that, there wasn't much scoring. There was plenty of goaltender showcasing going on, with brilliant saves from both Cam Ward and Ryan Miller.

With less than four minutes in regulation, Carolina's Brent Hedican tied the game, giving his team an emotional lift at the end of regulation as the teams went into the locker room.

Early into overtime, Carolina's Doug Weight took a penalty for boarding and Buffalo took full advantage on the power play, scoring the game deciding goal.

Game seven of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference playoffs will be at the RBC center in Raleigh, North Carolina on Thursday. The winner of this series will be playing the NHL Western Conference Champions Edmonton Oilers, who won their series against Anaheim on May 27th.

Posted by Mike Carr

Two teams, the Ottawa Senators and the New Jersey Devils, advanced to the NHL Stanley Cup Playoff semi-finals tonight.

It was an ugly night for the New York Rangers. First, they lost superstar goal scorer Jaromir Jagr when he reaggravated a shoulder injury. Then, their season ended as the New Jersey Devils swept the first round series.

The Eastern Conference champion Ottawa Senators also advanced tonight, beating the Stanley Cup defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning in a 4-1 series win.

Tampa Bay went with goaltender Sean Burke after Ottawa shamed John Grahame out of net in their last meeting. Ottawa scored four goals in 17 shots on Grahame in game four, after netting five in 20 shots during game 3.

Posted by Mike Carr

Washington Capital Wonder-Rookie Alexander Ovechkin hit the 50-goal mark, making him just the second NHL rookie to ever hit 50 goals and 100 points (which he also did) in a single season, the Associated Press reports.

Ovechkin, the bright point in a dismal rebuilding season for the Capitals, is a front runner to garner this year's Rookie of the Year award, called the Calder Memorial Trophy from the NHL.

The only other rookie to hit 50 goals and 100 points in a season was Teemu Selanne, who landed a whopping 76 goals and 132 points during his first season for the Winnipeg Jets in the 1992-93 season.

Posted by Mike Carr

Denver's Matt Carle won the Hobey Baker award last night in Milwaukee. The former Denver defenseman was the first player to be named Western Collegiate Hockey Association's player of the year and defensive player of the year, both in the same year.

The Hobey Baker award winner flew to Milwaukee from San Jose and then will be returning to join the San Jose Sharks to play Dallas on Sunday. Carle joined the Sharks after the Pioneers' season ended.

Carle was a member of the Pioneer championship teams of 2004 and 2005. This past season, he led the nation in assists (42) and led defenseman with 53 points.

Carle beat out an impressive list of Hobey Baker finalists to win the trophy.

Technorati tags: hobey baker, hockey, sports, san jose sharks

Posted by Mike Carr

The Nashville Predators were officially named into the NHL in May of 1998. They played their first game on Oct. 10th, 1998 in front of a sellout crowd of 17,298. On August 5th, 2005 the Predators lured NHL superstar Paul Kariya to the club and, to top it all off, they're 4th in the Western Conference standings with a 43-24-8 record. You'd think the team would be taken seriously by now.

Now I know Nashville, Tennessee isn't exactly a hockey hotbed, but I'm sure they have some die-hard hockey fans who just might be fond of correct information.

The Tennessean newspaper Web site, which is self-proclaimed as "Middle Tennessee's #1 Online News Source," had a little trouble with its hockey reporting.

When writing about Brendan Witt's one-game suspension, they stumbled over the spelling of Blue Jackets player David Vyborny's name. Four different ways. Four different times. Seriously. (As of this blog posting, most of the mispellings had been corrected, but one remained).

Jaspers' Rink blog points out all the different ways you can apparently spell Vyborny in single article with some red ink. Ouch!

Posted by Mike Carr

With a 3-2 win over the Florida Panthers, the Carolina Hurricanes clinched the Southeast Division title tonight. The win also put them within three points of the Eastern Conference leaders, the Ottawa Senators.

Ray Whitney got his 15th goal of the season to tie the game at 19:18 of the first period, and the Hurricanes took the lead when Mark Recchi scored his 26th goal of the season at 3:31 of the second period.

Craig Adams got the game winner less than two minutes into the 3rd period with a short-handed goal.

Mike Van Ryn and Chris Gratton scored for the Panthers. After tonight's loss, the Panthers are eight points out of the playoffs.

Technorati tags: Carolina Hurricanes, Stanley Cup, playoffs, hockey, NHL

Posted by Mike Carr

The third mask Jacques Plante ever wore in an NHL game was acquired by the Canadian Museum of Civilization through an auction.

Jacques Plante was the first goalie to wear a goalie mask after getting hit in the face by a puck shot by Andy Bathgate during a game against the New York Rangers in 1959.

The first two masks are owned by the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. The Canadian Museum of Civilization has not announced when or if the mask will be on display.

Technorati tags: hockey, NHL, sports, Canada

Posted by Mike Carr

Jaromir Jagr set a New York Rangers record Wednesday night when he assisted on four goals in the Rangers 5-1 win over the New York Islanders.

Jagr has 113 points in 73 games so far this season. The previous record was held by Hall of Famer Jean Ratelle, who had the record of 109 points in the 1971-72 regular season.

In related Jagr news, the New York Rangers superstar wants to retire when his contract expires in two years. He will be 36 then, and he said he intends to return to Europe.

"It all depends on how healthy I'm going to be and how good I'm going to be," the hockey superstar told the New York Times. "I don't want to play on a third or a forth line. I don't think I can do it. It wouldn't be good for the team."

Technorati tags: Jaromir Jagr, hockey, NHL, New York Rangers

Posted by Mike Carr

The Los Angeles Kings fired head coach Andy Murray after the team lost five out of their last seven games and dropped 17 out of the 29 games since January 2.

The Kings are currently in ninth place with 79 points. Although they are tied in points with the Edmonton Oilers, they have more loses.

As of this writing, the sixth-place Anaheim Mighty Ducks (80 points) and the 10th-place San Jose Sharks (78 points) are separated by two points.

John Torchetti will be the interim coach for the rest of the season. Torchetti last coached the Florida Panthers for 27 games in the 2003-2004 season and had a 10-25-5 record.

Posted by Mike Carr

No, your eyes aren't deceiving you. You did see hockey players using pink sticks over the weekend. In a tribute to hockey moms, some NHL players used the not-so-manly color on their hockey sticks this weekend to raise awareness for breast cancer.

TPS Hockey announced it is paying an estimated $50,000 to make hockey sticks for the event. After their use, those pink sticks will be auctioned off by Frameworth Sports Marketing.

Posted by Mike Carr

The ten finalists for the Hobey Baker award were announced March 16, and it's possible there will be a two-time winner for the first time.

The finalists are:

• Ryan Potulny (Minnesota)
• Matt Carle (Denver)
• Chris Collins (Boston)
• Brian Elliot (Wisconsin)
• Andy Greene (Miami of Ohio)
• Greg Moore (Maine)
• Scott Parse (Nebraska-Omaha)
• Brett Sterling (Colorado)
• T.J. Trevelyan (St. Lawrence)
• Marty Sertich (Colorado) 2005 winner

Sertich could make history this year by becoming the first player to receive the award twice in its 25 years.

The Hobey Baker award is given out annually to the top National Collegiate Athletic Association men's ice hockey player. The finalists are selected by vote from the 59 NCAA division 1 head coaches and by online balloting, which ended in January.

On March 29, the three finalists will be announced and the winner will be revealed on April 7.