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Peter Mueller expected to return from injury

Aug 27

Posted by Chris in Fantasy, News | 1 Comment

After sitting out all of last season with a concussion sustained during the first pre-season game of the season, The Denver Post is reporting that Colorado Avalanche forward Peter Mueller appears to be healthy, fit and ready to play.

“I’m excited to be a hockey player again,” Mueller said Wednesday. “Obviously, I’ve had concussions in the past and it’s something I have to deal with, but right now everything is in the right direction. Everything is pointing forward. I’m excited that it’s all behind me.”

The 23-year-old has been skating regularly and will partake in team physicals in mid-September for on-ice clearance. As long as all goes well, Mueller should be back in the lineup for the Avs when they open their season on Saturday, Oct. 8 at home against the Detroit Red Wings.

Mueller will also take extra precautions against sustaining another concussion this season. He will sport the new Easton S19 Z-Shock, a one-piece hockey helmet that Easton claims exceeds minimum safety regulations by as much as 40 percent. Mueller will also sport a tinted visor to help minimize the effects that bright lights can have on concussion victims.

“Sometimes I feel like I’m in ‘Top Gun’ out there with the tinted visor, but it’s been great and a very comfortable helmet to wear,” Mueller said of the new Easton helmet.

While news of Mueller’s imminent return should pay dividends for the young and highly talented Colorado Avalanche squad, it will also come as good news for Fantasy Hockey players looking for a quality sleeper this year.

Mueller never really seemed to live up to his full potential with the Phoenix Coyotes, who drafted him 8th overall in 2006, but he showed that potential after getting traded to the Avalanche in 2010 where he promptly posted 20 points, including nine goals, in 15 games before being sidelined with the first of two concussions that kept him off the ice for the better part of a year.

Several players around the NHL are still sidelined by concussion symptoms – most notable David Perron of the St. Louis Blues and Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

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Red Wings forward Kris Draper announces retirement

Jul 26

Posted by Chris in News | No Comments

After 17 years with the Detroit Red Wings, grinder Kris Draper announced his retirement from the National Hockey League this afternoon at a press conference at Joe Louis Arena.

“This is the most difficult decision I’ve ever had to make because I love the game of hockey, and I love being a Red Wing,” Draper said during the news conference. ”I consider myself one of the luckiest athletes of all time to be able to play with this organization for 17 years.”

Originally drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in 1989, Draper spent several seasons bouncing around Winnipeg’s minor league system before he was finally traded to the Red Wings in 1993 for only a dollar. That single dollar may have been one of the best monetary transactions the Red Wings made as Draper became a pivotal role player for the Red Wings during the 1990’s and 2000’s, especially as a center on Detroit’s famed “Grind Line” with former teammates Kirk Maltby and Darren McCarty. Draper helped the team win four Stanley Cup championships during his tenure.

“I think the best way to put it is,” said senior vice president Jim Devellano, “it was a dollar well spent.”

Draper also represented his home country of Canada several times during his NHL career, winning gold medals at multiple international tournaments, including two World Championships (1990, 1991) and the World Championships (2003). Draper also played for Team Canada at the 2006 Winter Olympics, but the team failed to garner a medal that year.

Perhaps what Draper will be most remembered for, however, is his involvement in the exhilarating rivalry between the Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche throughout the mid-to-late 90’s. The rivalry began when Claude Lemieux sent Draper face-first into the boards with a hit from behind during Game 6 of the 1996 Western Conference Finals at Colorado, resulting in numerous facial injuries to Draper. The Avalanche went on to win the series, and the Stanley Cup, but the hit sparked one of the league’s most vicious rivalries that culminated the following season in a massive brawl between the two clubs and caused several seasons of bitterness. The rivalry managed to strengthen the bonds of Red Wings teammates during those years as they went on to win back-to-back championships in 1996-97 and 1997-98.

Later in his career, while still an effective grinder and face-off player, Draper became a mentor to young up-and-coming talent like Justin Abdelkader and Darren Helm, the latter of which shows many similarities to Draper with his ability to cause turnovers with his speed.

With so many players clamoring for roster spots, however, the Red Wings simply couldn’t afford to keep Draper on another season and risk losing valuable young talent. Draper stated earlier this summer that he wished to play another season, but he expressed his disinterest in signing a two-way contract or playing for another team.

The Red Wings stated during the press conference that Draper will take an unspecified position within the organization, much like former teammates Kirk Maltby and the recently retired Chris Osgood.

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Chris Osgood Retires

Jul 19

Posted by EB in News, Rumors | 1 Comment

Today at Noon EST, along side Detroit Red Wings’ General Manager Ken Holland, goaltender Chris Osgood will hold a press conference. The conference will most likely be an emotional filled retirement announcement.

The 38 year old Osgood began his career in the ’93 – ’94 season with the Detroit Red Wings. Going 23-8-5 in his rookie season, it was evident he was bound for greatness. He has scored a goal in the WHL, two time winner of the William M. Jennigs Trophy (fewest goals scored during the regular season with a minimum of 25 games played), and currently holds the 10th ranking for all-time wins as a goaltender with 401. These stats are merely a glimpse of his career.

Osgood had short stints with both the New York Islanders and the St. Louis Blues, yet the majority of his play has been with the Detroit Red Wings. Being there for the Wings through the thick and thin, Osgood is most notably  known for his helmet/cage combination goalie mask. Perhaps even recognized as a feisty goalie who fought with Colorado Avalanche net-minder Patrick Roy. For Red Wings’ fans though, he will always be known as the Wizard of Oz.

Unfortunately Osgood’s time has come to an end in the NHL. With current Red Wing’s young goaltender Jimmy Howard taking the number one spot, as well as coming off of a season filled with groin injuries and surgeries, it proved to be his Achilles heel. He can hang his head high though. Through his career as a Detroit Red Wing, Osgood brought home the Stanley Cup three times, both back to back years in 1997 and 1998, as well as another in 2008.

It is a sad day indeed, as another great player retires.

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Semin rumors swirl while Capitals seek cap relief

Jul 15

Posted by Chris in Rumors, Soap Box | 2 Comments

The Washington Capitals have some tough decisions to make concerning their 23-man roster in the coming weeks as the team finds themselves roughly $900,000 over the salary cap after the recent signing of defenseman Karl Alzner, leading many to speculate that a big move could be on the horizon for a team looking to add depth and become cap compliant.

The trio of Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin eats up roughly one-third of the team’s salary cap – and rightly so as they also accounted for 35 percent of the team’s offense last season. With the former two locked up by long-term contracts, the most likely candidate to be moved appears to be Alexander Semin and his one-year, $6.7 million contract. As a top three scorer, moving Semin could not only give the Capitals the cap relief they need, but it could also help the team balance their scoring and make them a deeper team offensively.

The New York Islanders, Nashville Predators, Colorado Avalanche, Phoenix Coyotes and Winnipeg Jets are all currently under the salary cap floor. Semin’s contract could easily push several of these teams over the floor, but many of them may not be willing to trade the assets required to obtain Semin.

The Capitals need scoring depth, they need roster players capable of joining the team and paying immediate dividends – not prospects and draft picks. The Capitals would likely look to pick up a good second or third line center in a deal as well. Colorado has a lot of good, young talent and could benefit from Semin’s scoring touch, but the Capitals wouldn’t receive the necessary cap relief if they traded for Paul Stastny and the Avalanche would be very hard pressed to trade budding star Matt Duchene.

In fact, most of those teams have few assets up the middle making it difficult for them to trade away those assets. The more likely scenario would be for many of those teams to sign remaining free agents like Alex Kovalev to lucrative one-year contracts to meet the floor. That way they can retain their budding star players and still become cap compliant.  

The Detroit Red Wings are one team continually associated with Semin trade rumors. This could mostly be a product of the Wings’ available cap space, however. The Wings have just under $6.5 million available in cap room with only a backup goaltender left to sign. The Capitals would likely target Valtteri Filppula in the trade, along with picks or prospects, but the Wings would probably be more eager to move Jiri Hudler in a packaged deal in order to retain Filppula. Adding Semin to the Wings would give Detroit more of an offensive punch and Semin would fit in well on the top line with fellow Russian Pavel Datsyuk. The Red Wings tend to drag their feet in situations like this, however, so a deal is highly improbable.

The Capitals will likely explore all options that would allow them to retain Alexander Semin and still become cap compliant, most of which include trading lesser salaries and bringing up young players to fill bottom line holes. But if the team is serious about winning soon, they will also explore options that could send Semin elsewhere in exchange for offensive depth.

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Avalanche will retire Peter Forsberg’s number

Jun 30

Posted by Chris in News | No Comments

The Colorado Avalanche will pay homage to Peter Forsberg, one of the franchise’s greatest players, by retiring his number to the rafters prior to their season opener on Oct. 8 against the Detroit Red Wings.

Forsberg was one of the best two-way forwards in the NHL during his prime in the 1990’s and helped the Avalanche secure two Stanley Cup titles in 1996 and 2001. He currently ranks tenth all-time in career points per game and fourth all-time in career assists per game. Forsberg finished his NHL career with 249 goals and 636 assists in 708 career games spent with the Avalanche, Philadelphia Flyers and Nashville Predators.

Forsberg tried to complete an NHL comeback last season with the Avalanche after several seasons overseas but opted out of the comeback after only two games thanks to nagging foot injuries.

It’s fitting that Forsberg’s number will be retired in a game against the Red Wings, a team who Forsberg battled against throughout most of the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Both the Avalanche and Red Wings were two of the most dominant teams in the NHL during that time with the two teams combining for five of the 10 Stanley Cup titles won between 1995 and 2004.

Forsberg’s number will hang in the rafters alongside goaltender Patrick Roy, Avalanche all-time leading scorer Joe Sakic and defenseman Ray Bourque.

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NHL Stanley Cup Finals facts and other fun trivia

Jun 1

Posted by Chris in News, Soap Box | 1 Comment

The Stanley Cup playoffs are a long, exhausting grind. The process takes nearly two months to complete with teams playing every other night in hard-fought, physical battles where players are tested to the extreme both mentally and physically. It’s no wonder that some say the Stanley Cup is the toughest trophy to win in professional sports. With the Stanley Cup Finals set to begin tonight in Vancouver, here are some interesting facts about past Stanley Cup winners and losers – including some history about this year’s combatants.

  •  The Boston Bruins, one of the Original Six teams, have one of the worst Stanley Cup track records with a dismal .294 winning percentage. In 17 previous appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals, the Bruins have won five times with their last victory coming in 1972. This will be the team’s sixth Stanley Cup Finals appearance since their last victory.  
  • The Vancouver Canucks have never won the Stanley Cup. The team made two previous appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals since joining the NHL in 1970 – once in 1982 and the second time in 1994.
  • Only two teams currently in the NHL have never lost in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Colorado Avalanche made two appearances, winning the Stanley Cup in both 1996 and 2001, while the Tampa Bay Lightning won their only appearance in the Finals in 2004. 
  • Six teams have never made an appearance in the Finals: the Columbus Blue Jackets (nine seasons), Minnesota Wild (nine seasons), Atlanta Thrashers (10 seasons), Nashville Predators (11 seasons), San Jose Sharks (18 seasons) and Phoenix Coyotes (13 seasons, and 17 seasons as the Winnipeg Jets).
  • In addition to those teams, another seven teams have appeared in the Finals but never won the Stanley Cup: the Vancouver Canucks (two appearances), St. Louis Blues (three appearances), Buffalo Sabres (two appearances), Florida Panthers (one appearance), Los Angeles Kings (one appearance), Ottawa Senators (one appearance) and the Washington Capitals (one appearance).
  • The Montreal Canadiens are the most decorated team in the NHL with an incredible 24 Stanley Cup championships in 34 appearances. The last time the team won the Stanley Cup was in 1993, which was also their last appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals as well.
  • Henri “The Rocket” Richard has won the most Stanley Cups as a player with 11.
  • Mark Messier is the only player to captain two different teams to a Stanley Cup championship. He captained both the Edmonton Oilers and the New York Rangers to championships.  

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McCarty and Lemieux Get Together Again

Apr 3

Posted by Eddie in Media, News | 1 Comment

Because of this picture, Claude Lemieux will forever be known as "The Turtle".

Yesterday in Detroit, memories of one of great moments in Detroit sports history were rehashed when Darren McCarty and Claude Lemieux sat next to each other at an autograph signing. For those who don’t remember, it was 14 years ago last week when McCarty went after Lemieux in an on-ice brawl between the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche. It started the season before that, in 1996 when Lemieux boarded Kris Draper head first into the boards. Lemieux’s hit caused Draper to land face first in front of the Red Wings’ bench, where there is no plexiglas. Draper suffered a concussion, broken jaw, broken nose, and a broken cheekbone. His jaw was wired shut for more than a month.
Lemieux was unwilling to apologize for the hit, which made McCarty fueled with anger that had to wait over nine months for it to be let out. “I have nothing to say bad about Claude as a person — off the ice,” McCarty said in a recent interview. “But as a player, no, I don’t have respect for him. He played the way he did, and I’ll be the first to tell you he took Drapes’ face.”

Lemieux was suspended only two games and fined $1,000. NHL players today only wished they were suspended two games and fined $1,000 for less infractions such as checking to the head.

McCarty credits the March 26, 1997 fight, where he also scored the game-winning goal in overtime, as the spark the Red Wings needed on their way to the Stanley Cup in 1997. In addition to the fights with Lemieux, McCarty is also known on the ice for scoring the Stanley Cup-clinching goal against Philadelphia. He said on 97.1 The Ticket Friday afternoon “I’ve only beaten two people one-on-one in my career, and that was one of them.”

The rivalry arguably began May 29, 1996 and ended May 31, 2002 between the Avalanche and Red Wings was one of the greatest in the history of the NHL, something that hasn’t been seen in the new style of the NHL that demphasize fighting and good rivalries. As told in the Adrian Dater book “Blood Feud“, the rivalry met it’s end when Detroit beat Colorado 7-0 in game seven of the 2002 Conference Finals. In the coming seasons afterward, major players in the rivalry such as Lemieux, McCarty, Peter Forsberg, and Patrick Roy either retired or moved on to other teams.

McCarty currently works in media, where he makes occasional appearances on NHL Network and 97.1 The Ticket (WXYT) in Detroit. He guest hosted a show Friday afternoon, where he talked about how he is able to set aside the angst he still has for Lemieux and can sign autographs of the fight for a couple hours. He did say, that he was “Not going to go out and have a beer with him afterward.” He also said that the autograph signing is “simply business” and that if asked, he would travel to Denver to do a similiar autograph appearance.

Prices ranged from $5 for an individual autograph to $65 for a signed picture of both players.

For videos involving the fights between the two teams, visit the links below:

May 29, 1996, where Lemieux checked Draper face-first into the boards. Play is at the :53 mark.

March 26, 1997brawl between McCarty and Lemieux.

November 11, 1997fight at the opening faceoff between McCarty and Lemieux.

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Busy Friday highlighted by big trades

Feb 19

Posted by Chris in News, Rumors | 2 Comments

The Boston Bruins were big winners Friday night after making some roster overhauls and landing one of the biggest trade-deadline targets this season in defenseman Tomas Kaberle. The Bruins weren’t the only active team, however, as the Atlanta Thrashers, Ottawa Senators, Carolina Hurricane and Colorado Avalanche also made moves.

It was widely expected that Kaberle, who had a no-trade clause on his contract, would be moved by the Maple Leafs this season instead of risking losing Kaberle to free agency for nothing in return. The return ended up being pretty significant as the Leafs received prospect forward Joe Colborne in addition to the Bruins’ first-round draft pick at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and a conditional second round pick in 2012. But the Bruins were willing to take the hit in order to grab a puck-moving defenseman like Kaberle. The extra offensive push that Kaberle provides should help spark the Bruins’ offense, especially on the power play where Kaberle already has 22 assists.

In order to fit Kaberle under the salary cap, the Bruins made another move with the Atlanta Thrashers where they acquired forward Rich Peverley and defenseman Boris Valabik in exchange for forward Blake Wheeler and defenseman Mark Stuart. With 34 points in 59 games with the Thrashers, Peverley will help offset the loss of injured center Marc Savard in Boston and will give the Bruins another scoring center and good face-off guy.

The Ottawa Senators and Colorado Avalanche clicked for a deal when they exchanged goalies yesterday afternoon. The Avalanche sent goaltender Craig Anderson to Ottawa in exchange for goaltender Brian Elliott. Both goalies are set to become unrestricted free agents at the end of the season and this may be more of a money move than anything else. In fact, rumors surfaced immediately that the Senators may turn around and try to trade Anderson again as Ottawa is selling off most of their assets in an attempt to rebuild their program. But at 29-years-old, Anderson would be a solid goalie to try and rebuild your program with.

Colorado wasn’t done, however, as the team made another significant move early this morning by sending forward Chris Stewart, defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk and a conditional 2011 or 2012 second-round draft pick to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for defenseman Erik Johnson (pictured), forward Jay McClement and a conditional 2011 or 2012 first-round draft pick.

With the moves that Colorado is making, it would appear as if the team is pulling themselves out of the playoff race for this season but gearing up for a strong run next year. Johnson will be a huge addition to the blue line for the Avs and still has another year on his contract before becoming a restricted free agent in 2012. When the rest of the team’s blue line gets healthy, the Avs could have a very deep, very solid defensive unit on the ice next season. Plus, the team could have anywhere between $10 and $16 million in available cap space heading into free agency this summer in order to bring in some quality scoring to help replace the loss of Stewart.

With nine days still remaining until the trade deadline, more big moves are still expected. Keep an eye on the Senators as more trades could still be coming. Will they decide to move players like Spezza and Alfredsson? And who can afford Spezza’s hefty cap hit? Brad Richards of Dallas keeps popping up in trade rumors as well. Many pundits think he will not re-sign in Dallas and the Stars, despite being in playoff contention, don’t want to lose Richards for nothing. But the real fun of trade deadline time are the unexpected moves, like the one that Colorado and St. Louis just completed. If nothing else, expect more of the unexpected in the days to come.

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Forsberg to Begin Practicing with Avalanche

Jan 22

Posted by EB in News | 1 Comment

Yes, you read correct, Peter Forsberg will begin practicing with the Colorado Avalanche.

Colorado recently lost left winger Tomas Fleischmann for the rest of the season to blood clots in each of his lungs. Fleischmann, a left winger, has 12 goals and 19 assists totaling for 31 points, a team high of 5th best point getter.

Forsberg, who is turning out to be the NHL version of Brett Favre, also plays left wing. The saying, “One man’s misfortune is another man’s fortune” comes to mind.

There is no signed contract as of yet, and no guarantee that Forsberg will in fact be skilled enough to still play in the NHL. At 37 years of age, and out of the NHL since 2008, it will be interesting to see what all transpires.

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Caps trade Fleischmann to Avs for Hannan

Nov 30

Posted by Chris in News | 2 Comments

In an attempt to bolster their blue line, the Washington Capitals sent forward Tomas Fleischmann to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for veteran shut-down defenseman Scott Hannan.

Hannan, an 11-year veteran of the NHL, waived his no-trade clause to be sent to the Washington Capitals and should provide an immediate boost to their blue line as a shut-down defenseman against the opposition’s top talent.

“I’ve been counted on to be a defensive player and to kill penalties and to play against other teams’ top lines,” the 6-foot-1, 225-pound Hannan said, essentially listing the very things the Capitals have been seeking. “I’ll be put in a defensive role there; I don’t think I’ll change that up too much.”

This will be Hannan’s third NHL club after spending time with the San Jose Sharks and the Avalanche.

The 26-year-old Fleischmann has been the subject of trade talk for some time now. After a career season last year where he posted 23 goals and 28 assists in 69 games, Fleischmann started this season as the second line center for the Capitals but has been slow out of the gate with only four goals and 10 points for one of the league’s most potent offenses and has found himself sitting in the press box as a healthy scratch at points during this season. However, a change of scenery could do some good for Fleischmann, who spent five years with the Capitals.

“In Tomas we are acquiring a top-six forward who is only 26 years old,” said Avalanche GM Greg Sherman in a press release. “His addition will bolster our lineup immediately.”

Fleischmann could immediately see time on the wing of one of the top two lines in Colorado as the team is pretty much set at center with Matt Duchene and Paul Stastny centering the top two lines. If nothing else, Fleischman certainly provides the team with a bit more depth and more options on offense.

The Avalanche seemingly acquired a preemptive replacement for Hannan yesterday when they traded for defenseman Matt Hunwick from the Boston Bruins in exchange for minor leaguer Colby Cohen.

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