NHL Morning Papers (Friday Edition): Rick Tocchet furious was officials, Wings put forth dominant performance and Brooks claims Sundin went for the money

Here are the morning papers for Friday the 19th of December:

• The Ducks have really received some nice contributions from the fourth line as of late.
• Thrashers fans should not expect any trades to be made before tonight’s Christmas holiday trade freeze.
• The Bruins haven’t looked as sharp in December as they did in Novemer, but they are still winning, evidenced by last night’s victory, writes Fluto Shinzawa.  David Krejci continued his hot streak last night with his first career hat trick.  Dan Shaughnessy is buying what the Bruins are selling this season.
• If you didn’t know, Maxim Afinogenov is in a horrible slump this season.
• Coming off two road victories, the Flames are looking for revenge tonight versus the Blackhawks.  Randy Sportak of the Calgary Sun thinks it is a two-horse race to win the Northwest Division title.
• The Hurricanes increased their lead over the Panthers last night and recorded their first back-to-back wins since November, writes Chip Alexander.  The Hurricanes have activated Anton Babchuk off injured reserve.
• The Blackhawks are just a very confident bunch these days.
• It was a weird one last night in Tampa, but the Avalanche will take any win they can get.  Both Ben Guite and Darcy Tucker returned to the Avalanche line-up last night.  It has been almost five years now, but yesterday Steve Moore’s agent admitted that the player won’t be able to play hockey ever again.
• Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock was furious last night after his team’s overtime goal by Manny Malhotra was disallowed.  Off the ice, it looks like Fredrik Norrena is heading to Russia.
• Thursday’s Dallas/Columbus game was about as action packed as you can get, writes Mike Heika.  On the injury front, Sergei Zubov hopes his latest injury, which puts him out for the season, isn’t a career-ender.
• Talk about making a statement, the Wings did just that at home last night versus San Jose.  Michael Rosenberg thinks the Sharks were the perfect motivational medicine for the Wings.  The Wings aren’t chasing San Jose as much as they are chasing their own shadows, writes Bob Wojnowski of the Detroit News.
• The Oilers had completely different lines at practice on Thursday.  If the Oilers don’t make progress over the next three games, Robert Tychkowski suggests making a trade.
• The Panthers got their scorers back last night, problem was they didn’t score, writes George Richards.
• It is desperate times for the Wild over the next week or two, writes Michael Russo.
• The Canadiens played in control last night and it showed, writes Red Fisher.  Meanwhile, Pat Hickey tells us that Matt D’Agostini is proving he belongs.  Hickey also provides his take on last night’s victory.
• The Predators lost again yesterday, and once again, they couldn’t put any offense on the scoreboard.  The Predators’ top four offensive players have been quiet as of late.
• Bobby Holik is hitting harder than he ever has in New Jersey this season.
• Kyle Okposo will return to the Islanders line-up in time to play at home in front of the Minnesota fans.  Brendan Witt doesn’t seem to be a very big fan of coach Scott Gordon’s system.
• Mats Sundin chose Vancouver over New York.  Larry Brooks says Mats Sundin simply followed the money.
• Senators GM Bryan Murray isn’t making any roster moves before tonight’s deadline.  But Craig Hartsburg has changed the lines, putting each of his stars with checking linemates.
• If you like to bet on streaks, then the Montreal/Philadelphia game on Thursday cost you money.  The Flyers lost, but the line of Hartnell-Carter-Lupul is working well.
• The Coyotes’ young players are really starting to demonstrate their skills as of late, and that was very apparent last night as Kyle Turris tallied the team’s only two markers on the way to a 2-1 win over Nashville.
• Marc-Andre Fleury was very sharp in his return from injury yesterday.  Meanwhile, the Penguins are hoping to have Ryan Whitney back in the line-up before Christmas.
• The Sharks were outplayed in every aspect of the game versus Detroit on Thursday, said coach McLellan.  Milan Michalek didn’t play last night.
• The Lightning coaches and players were furious about the way last night’s game against Colorado was decided.
• Ron Wilson’s goalie changes couldn’t help the Leafs on Thursday, as the team lost 8-5 at Boston.
• The Blues just have so many youngsters in the line-up that it is tough to compete, as evidenced by last night’s loss to Washington.  The Blues have now lost Eric Brewer for what might be the entire season.  The Leafs goalies weren’t very good but neither was the team’s defense.
• Apparently Mats Sundin will join the Canucks on December 28.  Here are all the reactions to the Sundin signings.  Mike Gillis is ecstatic to have the big Swede on board.  Sundin actually accepted less than the $10 million he was offered.
• Viktor Kozlov was the star for the Capitals on Thursday versus St. Louis.  Kozlov’s play allowed Bruce Boudreau to defeat his mentor Andy Murray.

For Illegal Curve, I’m Richard Pollock.