Here are the morning papers for Sunday the 1st of February:
- The always likeable Teemu Selanne scored the winning goal for Anaheim yesterday in Colorado.
- Tuukka Rask was terrific for Boston yesterday afternoon, as he shutout the Rangers 1-0. Claude Julien loves veteran center Stephane Yelle. Matt Hunwick was a healthy scratch. Kevin Paul Dupont’s Sunday notes column can be found here.
- Bucky Gleason thinks Sabres fans should be encouraged by Gary Bettman’s comments about the NHL having another team in Southern Ontario.
- Randy Sportak says Miikka Kiprusoff should be a strong candidate for the Vezina Trophy.
- Cam Ward was making his 16th consecutive start for Carolina on Saturday and he didn’t look tired, as he posted a 2-0 shutout victory.
- The Blackhawks beat San Jose in San Jose for the first time since 2003 and then jetted to Vegas.
- The Avalanche cannot seem to put together a full sixty minutes, writes Adrian Dater. Another problem for the Avs is the team’s terrible penalty killing.
- The Blue Jackets were defeated in all aspects of the game on Saturday night versus Dallas. Amazingly, Steve Mason has been playing with mono.
- It wasn’t a characteristic performance from the Stars but they’ll happily take the victory over the Columbus. Rookie James Neal impressed his teammates last night.
- Ville Leino scored just about the nicest first goal I’ve ever seen last night. Leino made a nice first impression, but Alexander Ovechkin stole the show and the game for the Capitals as the Wings lost their fifth game in a row.
- Jordan Eberle is already drawing fans in Edmonton. Robert Nilsson is confident in his team’s ability to make the playoffs.
- David Booth missed Saturday’s game against the Islanders with the flu. The Panthers blew a chance at two points against the lowly Islanders. At least the team’s on ice future looks very bright, writes David J. Neal.
- The Wild came out victorious of an emotional game at GM Place in Vancouver on Saturday. Cal Clutterbuck is the big fan favorite in Wild country. In his Sunday Insider column, Michael Russo examines the model organization that is the Detroit Red Wings.
- The Habs are hoping yesterday’s crazy late-game comeback is the key to turning around their recent struggles, writes Pat Hickey.
- The reason the Predators cannot score is because they have had too many offensive talents leave town over the past couple years.
- Brent Sutter has done a spectacular job with the Devils this season but is there a chance he wont’ return?
- Joey MacDonald may return to the Islanders lineup later this week. That said, Yann Danis made people forget about MacDonald’s absence with his performance last night.
- The Rangers are terrible in afternoon games. Larry Brooks isn’t exactly encouraged by the Rangers’ play as of late. Meanwhile, Brooks takes issue with a clause in the current revenue sharing agreement that won’t allow the Islanders to receive any payments because of the Long Island market size.
- Bruce Garrioch and his Sunday rumors column tell us that Martin Havlat may stay long-term in the Windy City. “He dumped the puck in three or four times. He seemed like he didn’t really want to play, like their season was maybe done,” said Blue Jackets defenseman Jan Hejda about Jason Spezza.
- The Flyers lead the league in penalties but they certainly aren’t the Broad Street Bullies. The Flyers were surprisingly shutout in St. Louis last night.
- The power play let the Coyotes down yesterday, said coach Wayne Gretzky.
- Mathieu Garon’s Penguins debut was certainly not impressive. At least the Penguins are expecting to get Sergei Gonchar back in about three weeks.
- The Sharks weren’t skating yesterday and Milan Michalek believes that’s why they lost. The penalty killing wasn’t good yesterday but it has been improving lately.
- Rick Tocchet is almost assuredly going to see his interim tag removed.
- Luke Schenn was a dominant force for Toronto on Saturday. Tomas Kaberle’s injury may not affect his trade value as some thought. Last night was a nice one for Doug Gilmour.
- The Canucks continued their struggles at home, losing in overtime to Minnesota. “Our battle level was better tonight and it needs to stay at that level,” said Canucks coach Alain Vigneault.
- By beating the NHL’s elite, the Capitals just continue to prove their worth. Alexander Ovechkin turned it on when it mattered most.
