NHL Morning Papers (Friday Edition): More off-ice rumors out of Montreal, Clouston gives Spezza some time on the bench and both Paul Ranger and Andrej Meszaros are gone for the season

Here are the morning papers for Friday the 20th of February:

• Chris Pronger is about to play his 1000th NHL game, writes Curtis Zupke.
• Fluto Shinzawa examines the factors that play a role in making a trade before the deadline.  Shinzawa also answers readers’ questions here.  Read about Mike Milbury’s take on a number of hockey issues here.  The Bruins were gone fishin’ yesterday–literally.
• The Buffalo plane crash has certainly effected former Sabres goalie Martin Biron.  On the ice, the Sabres generated 42 shots on net and were buzzing all night but the Flyers, and more specifically Mike Richards, were too much last night in the team’s 6-3 road loss.
• Adrian Aucoin had the winner for the Flames last night in overtime at Minnesota.  The Flames just continue to dominate the Wild.  In bad news, Rene Bourque has a high-ankle sprain.
• The Hurricanes won their fourth straight game on the road on Thursday with a dominating 6-2 performance over the Islanders.  Meanwhile, Justin Williams has been placed on IR with a broken hand.
• “We played almost a perfect game,” said Cristobal Huet after the Blackhawks went into Florida and defeated the Panthers 4-0.  Kris Versteeg is learning that there is more to the NHL than just scoring goals.
• Avalanche center Paul Stastny is hoping to return to the lineup sometime during his team’s upcoming six-game road trip.  Captain Joe Sakic is also talking about a return to the lineup.
• A lot of players on the Blue Jackets have ties to Toronto, and they stepped up their games to help Ken Hitchcock record his 500th career NHL victory last night at the Air Canada Center.  During the team’s time in Toronto, Rick Nash was asked about playing for the Maple Leafs.
• Everyone stepped up their respective games for the Stars last night, as they defeated the visiting Oilers 4-2 at the AAC.  It is going to be difficult to replace Brad Richards on the power play.
• The Wings are opening next season in Stockholm.  Henrik Zetterberg is very excited about starting next season in his home country.
• “They were more disciplined than us in a number of categories,” said coach Craig MacTavish after his team’s loss at Dallas.  Even with a victory last night, the Stars aren’t as invincible as they once were.  J.F. Jacques returned to the Oilers lineup on Thursday, after having times last season where he thought he’d never play again.
• ”They exposed us early with their speed,” said Panthers coach Peter DeBoer after his team’s loss to the Blackhawks at home.
• They recorded one point at the Xcel Center on Thursday, but Jacques Lemaire knows that isn’t good enough.  Nick Schultz is doing some great things off the ice.  Dan Fritsche scored his first goal as a member of the Wild on Thursday.
• There are rumors surrounding a number of Habs this morning regarding an arrest in Montreal.  With some problems off the ice, the Habs still have a number of problems on it as well.  Alexei Kovalev is expected to return to the Habs today.  However, his comments may make you think otherwise.
• The Predators lost an important game to the Blues last night at home.  Gary Bettman eased Predators fans’ fears with his comments on the team’s ownership.  Ville Koistinen wants a trade out of Nashville, and as a reward he was a healthy scratch again last night.
• Many of the Devils weren’t feeling very well, but they still came back to defeat the Lightning in Tampa Bay.  Former Devils coach Pat Burns continues to keep a positive attitude.  Writer’s note: We wish coach Burns all the best.
• The Islanders were awful yesterday, writes Greg Logan.
• Larry Brooks says Tom Renney deserves to coach the remainder of the season.
• The Sedin’s basically single-handedly handled the Sens yesterday.  Jason Spezza saw some time on the bench during the second period.  The Senators played last night without Daniel Alfredsson (broken jaw).
• Mike Richards proved why everyone has him as a shoe-in for Team Canada 2010 last night with a five-point performance versus Buffalo.  Daniel Briere is hoping to return to the lineup by next Wednesday.
• You know the shootout lasted a while if Daniel Carcillo scored the game winner for the Coyotes yesterday over Atlanta.
• Dan Bylsma registered his first NHL coaching victory on Thursday over the struggling Habs.  Suffice to say, Ron Cook is not yet sold on Bylsma as head coach.  Sergei Gonchar is happy to be back in the Penguins lineup.
• The new lines in San Jose haven’t changed the results on the ice, as the Sharks keep winning.  San Jose isn’t opening up next season in Europe.
• The Blues provided Andy Murray with his 300th coaching victory and, in turn, moved closer to 8th spot in the playoff race.
• Let’s just say the Lightning cannot hold a lead after the first period, writes Damian Cristodero.  In bad injury news, the Lightning have lost both Andrej Meszaros and Paul Ranger for the remainder of the season.
• The Leafs lost again last night but at least Nikolai Antropov is picking up his game.  The Leafs might be losing but at least Justin Pogge is getting some good experience.  Should Leafs fans keep a close eye on the Sedins this weekend?
• It was simply the Sedins show in Ottawa on Thursday, writes Jason Botchford.  Who was a bigger draw yesterday in Ottawa, the Canucks or Barack Obama?
• Alexander Ovechkin appears to be on his way to winning back-to-back Hart Trophies.