Red Wings coach Mike Babcock has a simple way to describe the relationship between himself and his players. “I’m the coach. They play,” he said Saturday before Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals. “I have a good relationship with a lot of them. None of them would consider me their buddy. I’m not like that, and I’ve never been like that. Read Original Post Here
Top-line forward Tomas Holmstrom took an on-ice spin Saturday morning with his Detroit Red Wings teammates to test out his injured right leg hours before Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals. After gingerly skating for about 20 minutes and flexing his legs, the winger said he felt good but wasn’t sure if he would play. Read Original Post Here
The Detroit Red Wings can win the Stanley Cup on Saturday night, even if they may not realize it. Not in actuality, of course. At last check, the NHL still requires a team to win four games to lift the Stanley Cup, not three. No matter, a Red Wings victory on Pittsburgh’s home ice would likely be a devastating blow to a young Penguins team that was waxed by a combined 7-0 score in the first two… Read Original Post Here
For most hockey fans, the death of Vancouver Canucks defenseman Luc Bourdon on Thursday in a motorcycle crash was a sad but distant tragedy. For Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kristopher Letang, Bourdon’s death meant the loss of a former roommate and good friend, someone he had spoken with merely a few days ago and had planned to train and vacation with this summer. Bourdon, 21, was killed when his motorcycle collided with a truck near his home in Shippagan, Canada. He was Vancouver’s first-round pick and 10th overall in the 2005 entry draft.
Letang said that he and Bourdon had discussed the motorcycle in their last phone conversation and that Bourdon had gotten the bike only three days ago according to the Los Angeles Times.
"We know it was dangerous, but he had fun with it. I know he didn’t speed with it," said Letang, who roomed with Bourdon on the Val d’Or junior team and the Canadian national junior team. He just had, like, a bad move or something. Those things, you have, like, no second chance."
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Red Wings coach Mike Babcock wasn’t about to share any more information about Tomas Holmstrom’s injury than was absolutely required by the NHL. “What are the rules?” Babcock asked a league official Friday on the second of two consecutive off days in the Stanley Cup finals. “Do we have to talk about the injury or just what part of the body, or what do we have to do?” When told he had to provide the…
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The Detroit Red Wings enjoyed a day off fit for the stars. Not the Dallas Stars, either. Blocked by the NHL from returning to Detroit during the two-day layoff between Games 3 and 4 of the Stanley Cup finals, the Red Wings spent a day of luxury Thursday at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort about 70 miles south of Pittsburgh. Read Original Post Here
Gary Roberts pictured a soft landing back in Toronto or with rival Ottawa at last year’s trade deadline. Both teams were on his approved list of destinations when the Florida Panthers shopped the veteran winger around the NHL before last year’s trade deadline, and it took some prodding once general manager Jacques Martin completed a deal with the Penguins before Roberts agreed to take his act to… Read Original Post Here
The Phoenix Coyotes shocked the NHL community when they selected Blake Wheeler, a 17-year-old high school player from Minnesota, with the fifth overall pick of the 2004 draft. Nearly four years later, Wheeler has shocked the Coyotes by deciding not to sign with them, thus becoming an unrestricted free agent.
"I’m actually quite stunned," Coyotes General Manager Don Maloney said Thursday. "Quite frankly, we made him an offer significantly better than any other contract he can get (right now). But that’s his choice. I think (he’s received) bad advice, and I think he’s making a big mistake because of the commitment we’ve made to our young players and the young players we’re prepared to invest in."
Matt Keator, Wheeler’s agent, issued a statement Thursday in response to a news release that the Coyotes issued earlier in the day. It read: "We appreciate the Coyotes offering the maximum amount. There is no question that they wanted to sign Blake and made every effort to do so but there was more than money involved in this decision. Per the NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement, it is Blake’s right to pursue Unrestricted Free Agency. Most players wait until their late 20s to become Unrestricted and choose where they will live and play. Blake now has the opportunity at age 21, which is the biggest reason for him pursuing this route at this point in his career."
In a later e-mail, Keator added: "I did not expect Don to be pleased with this decision but he is a veteran hockey man and I am sure he will move forward with his rebuilding of the franchise just fine without Blake. Most people find it refreshing in this case that a professional player is not chasing the money but instead exercising his right to choose where he wants to play for a living."
Keator said Wheeler would not comment publicly until he signs with another team.
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Steve Bartlett, the agent for Wild left winger Brian Rolston, will travel to Minnesota this weekend to meet with his client, and then the Wild. Rolston, 35, who topped the 30-goal mark in each of his three seasons with the Wild, can become an unrestricted free agent July 1.
"I’m going to meet with Brian and try to get a handle of what our thoughts are," Bartlett said.
Assistant General Manager Tom Lynn said Thursday that he and Bartlett have planned to sit down after Bartlett meets with Rolston.
"Most people get into the thick of things in June," Lynn said. "There’s never been any doubts in our mind that we wanted Brian back, even going back to the early part of last year. It’s just a matter of if we can make it work for both sides."
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The Pittsburgh Penguins knew the Detroit Red Wings would block their path to winning the Stanley Cup finals. Maybe just not this much. Penguins coach Michel Therrien all but begged the on-ice officials again Friday to enforce the obstruction rules, arguing that one of his team’s greatest strengths is being taken away by the Red Wings’ defensive tactics.
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