Here are the morning papers for Monday the 24th of November:
- Brendan Morrison was a healthy scratch for Anaheim on Saturday, so he knows he has to improve on his subpar play so far this season.
- The Bruins/Canadiens rivalrly does not look like it will simmer down anytime soon, writes Fluto Shinzawa. The Bruins brass was very happy with the way Milan Lucic handled himself during Saturday’s tilt at the Bell Centre.
- Youngster Mike Mancari has been arguably the Sabres’ best forward since being called up from the AHL.
- Coach Mike Keenan isn’t happy with where the Flames currently stand and thinks the team can be better.
- The Hurricanes just were not ready to play yesterday afternoon versus Nashville, writes Chip Alexander.
- Adam Foote will sit out tonight’s game versus the Ducks with injuries to his back and neck. Avalanche coach Tony Granato thinks the hit that injured Foote was dirty. Terry Frei thinks the Avalanche have a leadership void. At least Joe Sakic is expected to return to the line-up tonight.
- Aaron Portzline reviews the Blue Jackets now that we are a quarter of the way through the season.
- The Stars need to get back to their defensive roots if they want to turn their season around, writes Mike Heika. Here’s a preview of the Stars/Flyers game tonight.
- Tomas Holmstrom is expected to be out of the Red Wings line-up for the next week with back problems. Wings defenseman Brett Lebda has turned his game around since he was made a healthy scratch by coach Mike Babcock.
- Tom Gilbert is on pace to surpass his point totals from last season and now he has been assigned to play alongside Sheldon Souray, writes Derek Van Diest. Meantime, the Oilers have called Tim Sesito up from Springfield to add some grit and spunk to the line-up.
- The Panthers players were not happy to see Wade Belak placed on waivers. The Panthers have a lot of young players on long-term deals, and David Booth would eventually like to join that group.
- The Wild players want to play the same way they did versus Pittsburgh Monday night when Washington comes to town. Jacques Lemaire wants to see more offense from his players.
- Is Bob Gainey looking around for some offensive help? Apparently the Habs’ new practice facility is quite impressive.
- Predators defenseman Shea Weber continued his terrific play this season with another two goals yesterday afternoon in Carolina. Nashville took too many penalties on Sunday afternoon, but at least the players did a great job of killing them off.
- Injuries do not seem to be bothering the Devils, as Dainius Zubrus popped four goals yesterday in the team’s dominating 7-3 victory at Tampa Bay.
- There is talk on Long Island that Frans Nielsen’s injury could lead to the Islanders keeping Josh Bailey up with the big club for the entire season.
- Scott Gomez could return tonight for the Rangers as they take on the Coyotes at MSG. The Rangers’ next four games are against teams with a collective record of six games under .500. Larry Brooks thinks the Rangers need to put Scott Gomez between Markus Naslund and Nikolai Zherdev.
- Are the Senators waiting for the opportunity to make a pitch for Jay Bouwmeester? On the ice, Nick Foligno seems to finally be figuring out what works for him in the NHL.
- Ed Moran of the Philadelphia Daily News doesn’t think the Flyers need Brendan Shanahan. Meanwhile, Daniel Briere is not making much progress with his injured groin.
- Mike Zigomanis really has been a terrific addition to the Penguins roster. The Penguins aren’t displeased with their record so far this season but know they can be even better.
- With all the team’s injuries, the Blues have received a lot of help from their AHL call-ups.
- New coach Rick Tocchet wasn’t happy with his team’s play in its four goal loss to the Devils at home on Sunday. Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times tells readers that the Lightning played even worse than the 7-3 score demonstrates.
- Brian Burke will be in Toronto today, writes Damien Cox. Apparently the deal could be done by Thursday. It looks like Ian White will move back to defense for the Leafs.
- With the injury to Roberto Luongo, Cory Schneider is going to get a shot in Vancouver.
- Chris Clark has really struggled to get his game going this season and wants to turn it around in the worst way.
For Illegal Curve, I’m Richard Pollock.
