Niclas Bergfors

Happy Thanksgiving to all IC's U.S. readers. Here is today's word from the team beat writers: The Ducks beat the Hurricanes 3-2 last night and the Orange County Register's Curtis Zupke breaks down the victory by the numbers. The Blackhawks laid a beat down on the San Jose Sharks and from the moment they took the ice together, it was clear Marian Hossa, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane were going to be something special together. Adrian Dater of the Denver Post feels that with the effort the Avalanche put forth against the Predators they should be happy to have escaped with one point. The enshrinement continues for the Dallas Stars' Brett Hull as the team honored him by making him the first member of the Stars' new 'Walk of Legends'. The Wings Kris Draper either must be very generous or he lost a bet as he will be hosting teammates Todd Bertuzzi and his family, Dan Cleary and his family, rookies Darren Helm and Justin Abdelkader, and relative newcomer Patrick Eaves for Thanksgiving. David Staples of the Edmonton Journal doesn't mince words when he says "If the Oilers don't make the playoffs, Kevin Lowe and Steve Tambellini will have to resign". Looks like it's pretty quiet at the Habs practice facility although Andrei Markov skated for ten minutes today and will be speaking with reporters on his condition. John Glennon of the Tennessean reports that the Predators 7 game winning streak is surprising enough on its own, but when you compare the roster of this team with that of the 2005-06 squad (franchise record of eight straight wins), things get even more eye-opening. The New Jersey Devils Niclas Bergfors is still not out of coach Jacques Lemaire doghouse, despite scoring last night against the Senators. Bobby Sanguinetti, the AHL's top scoring defenceman, was called up by the New York Rangers writes Newsdays Arthur Staple. James Gordon of the Ottawa Citizen takes a look back at the Senators losing effort last night against the New Jersey Devils. Despite the Flyers going 2-3 on the recent road trip backup goalie Brian Boucher gets Sam Carchidi's vote as Philadelphia's best player. If you are a Pittsburgh fan and want to give thanks for your Penguins, then tune into FSN Pittsburgh which will be broadcasting a bunch of games from last season. The Toronto Star's Damien Cox brings you his usual Thursday Mailbag with questions ranging from Phil Kessel, to fans staging a walkout, Leafs making playoffs, players not improving under coach Wilson, lack of a team captain and more. One game at a time is perhaps the most tired cliche in sports, but one that Vancouver Canuck centre Ryan Kesler apparently takes quite seriously.

On the Beat: Marian Hossa’s big debut, Stars honor Brett Hull, Habs Markov skates, if Oilers don’t make playoffs is it time for new management?

On the Beat: Iginla rides pine during shootout, Adrian Dater returns to Twitter, Oilers whipping boys come up big, Chris Drury to return Wednesday.