NHL Capsules: Suspense surrounds No. 1 pick in NHL draft
LOS ANGELES (AP) — When the Edmonton Oilers finally make the No. 1 pick in the NHL draft on Friday night, the most suspenseful mystery in Hollywood this week finally will be solved.
Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin are the clear-cut top prospects when the draft takes place in Los Angeles for the first time, but nobody knows who is No. 1 in the Oilers' minds.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Hall said with a shrug Wednesday.
Recent NHL drafts have contained relatively few surprises at the top: The Islanders eagerly grabbed John Tavares with the top pick last year, and Tampa Bay snatched up Steven Stamkos in 2008.
The situation is much murkier before the 30 NHL clubs settle into Staples Center for two days of choosing from a draft class that serendipitously includes two top prospects born and trained in southern California: forwards Emerson Etem and Beau Bennett.
But scouts and fans have spent months parsing the differences between Hall, the back-to-back Memorial Cup tournament MVP in just two OHL seasons, and Seguin, the league MVP.
Both are high-scoring forwards from Ontario who spent the past two seasons about 30 miles apart, playing on opposite sides of the Detroit River and the U.S.-Canada border. They faced each other in this spring's playoffs, with Hall's Windsor Spitfires sending home Seguin's Plymouth Whalers.
The hard-hitting Hall might have a slight edge over the smooth-skating Seguin in the minds of a small majority of scouts, but the Oilers will score big with either player — and so will the Boston Bruins, who pick second.
"It's part of the ride, just one step closer to the dream," Seguin said. "I was prepared to go through all of this from the start, and we know that the draft is just the beginning."
The Bruins are thought to covet Hall, who is represented by the son of Boston great Bobby Orr — not that the Hall of Fame defenseman's longtime presence in Hall's camp means anything. Hall claims he doesn't care whether he ends up with the rebuilding Oilers or the playoff-tested Bruins.
"They're very different situations, but they're both very good in their own way," Hall said.
Orr believes Edmonton will take Hall, but wouldn't be surprised if the Bruins offer a consideration to the Oilers to allow Hall to slip to Boston. The Oilers are known to be listening to offers, but Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli and Edmonton counterpart Steve Tambellini aren't talking.
The recent success of No. 1 picks also indicates Edmonton and Boston will expect big things immediately. Stamkos shared the Richard Trophy with Sidney Crosby this season in just his second NHL campaign, and Patrick Kane — the No. 1 pick by the Blackhawks in 2007 — just raised the Stanley Cup.
And neither top prospect will get the benefit of playing under the lesser media glare of a nontraditional hockey market. Seguin and Hall will be either in Edmonton, where the Oilers are the biggest show in town, or in Boston, where even superstar Joe Thornton eventually drew the Original Six fans' dislike before the former No. 1 pick was traded to San Jose.
That's just fine with both prospects, who intend to be in NHL uniforms this fall.
"I don't want to be back in juniors, as much as Windsor has been great to me," Hall said. "I think it's time for me to get to the next level."
Once the top two picks are off the board, Florida will kick off the rest of the draft with a choice from a fairly deep pool of physical forwards and offensive-minded defensemen. The 2010 draft is thin on top-end goaltending talent and European influence, but a record number of American prospects could be chosen in Friday's first round.
The rest of the draft happens Saturday.
While Hall and Seguin have few doubters, other top prospects have spent the last few weeks answering concerns about their NHL readiness, skill development and health. WHL forward Brett Connolly played just 16 games for Prince George last season while nursing a series of hip injuries, and rumors about his fitness have run rampant in draft circles, frustrating the rangy goal-scorer who might have been in the No. 1 pick discussion if healthy.
"It's annoying after a while, but I understand it and I think I showed everybody pretty well that it's in the past," Connolly said. "Hopefully a team will see that, and an opportunity will present itself to play at the next level."
Defensemen Erik Gudbranson, Brandon Gormley and Cam Fowler could be the next three picks after Hall and Seguin, all three appealing to many personnel departments with their NHL-ready skills. Fowler, Hall's teammate in Windsor, idolizes recently retired Anaheim defenseman Scott Niedermayer and hopes to answer critics who doubt his physical readiness for the NHL grind.
"Not many teammates can say they went 1 and 3, 4, 5, whatever," Fowler said. "Now that it's finally here, it's taken on a new level of excitement. We get to do all these fun things, and I have to pinch myself sometimes to remind me it's really happening."
The top prospects spent a fun-filled week in southern California, including a Hollywood tour, batting practice at Angel Stadium and even the red-carpet premiere of "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," the third installment in the vampire film series.
And no matter what happens Friday, Hall already has his first L.A. weekend planned out.
"On Saturday, I'm going to Disneyland," he said.
Youthful Avs have 17th overall pick in NHL draft
DENVER (AP) — Led by a band of talented youngsters, the Colorado Avalanche were largely overlooked last season, even as they lunged toward the playoffs.
That certainly won't be the case next season.
With rookies such as forwards Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly fueling the 2009-10 revival, Colorado made the postseason for a 12th time in 14 seasons since moving to the Mile High City.
A surprise run for a team that relied on 10 different rookies, who combined for a league-high 166 points.
"We opened some eyes last season," Avalanche coach Joe Sacco explained. "But teams are going to be waiting for us."
The Avalanche will seek to build on their youth movement Friday night with the 17th overall pick in the NHL draft. It's one of seven selections they own over the course of the two-day event.
A word of caution: Don't count on any of these draftees to suit up right away. Duchene and O'Reilly really weren't the norm. Most 18-year-olds typically don't start off their careers at the NHL level.
The special ones do, though. And these two definitely qualify into that category.
Duchene led NHL rookies in points and finished third in the rookie of the year voting Thursday night, behind Buffalo defenseman Tyler Myers and Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard.
O'Reilly contributed in other ways that didn't draw as much of the spotlight. He led the team in takeaways and frequently risked bumps and bruises to block shots.
"We've had some good youth injected into our lineup," Sacco said in a telephone interview from Las Vegas after he wound up third in the vote for coach of the year.
Given that youth, few expected the Avalanche to make much of a surge last season. Maybe in years to come, but not so soon, not this quick.
However, the rookies and first-year players were so steady all season long — as was veteran free agent goaltender Craig Anderson — in leading the franchise back into the postseason a year after finishing last in the Western Conference.
One reason for the quick turnaround was bringing in Sacco's aggressive, attacking style of play. Sacco wanted his players to bring an energy to the ice, an exuberance.
That's easy to do with such a youthful squad.
"Obviously, we're pleasantly surprised. But we believed we weren't as bad as people thought we were going to be," Sacco said. "We knew we could contend. That was a fun year and an exciting year. But there's a lot left to do."
Among the organization's tasks in the offseason was signing captain and mentor Adam Foote to a one-year deal, even if he does turn 39 in July. Foote had a calming influence, especially for Duchene, who lived in his basement.
"We're happy to have him back," Sacco said of Foote. "He did a real nice job for us."
Still, Colorado's defense isn't getting any younger. The defensive crew, as currently composed, averages nearly 30 years of age heading into next season.
And while there are skillful defensemen in the Avalanche's minor-league system, it remains an area that could be targeted in the draft.
Sacco insists he has no insight into any of the players Colorado may be selecting. He leaves those decisions to director of amateur scouting Rick Pracey, who struck gold last June.
"All I know is (the scouts) will do a great job," Sacco said.
Pracey is playing it close to the vest, not revealing too much about the Avalanche's draft strategy. Colorado could take a defenseman with the 17th pick, or might head in another direction.
"We're always looking for the best player available," Pracey said. "Looking at our depth charts, we certainly know where our strengths lie and where some needs are. At the same time, we need to get assets and get talent into the organization and go from there."
-- Pat Graham
GM says top target is forward with 18th pick
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The time of the year is here when the Nashville Predators do some of their best work with the NHL entry draft. And once again, general manager David Poile says they will be looking for offense first.
Really. Well, maybe.
The Predators pick 18th overall, and Poile says a forward is the top target for a team that scored exactly as many goals as allowed (225) this season. But Poile has drafted five defensemen overall with the franchise's top pick, including three of the past five drafts.
"You've heard me say that before so don't be surprised when I get up there and say we've drafted a defenseman," Poile said with a laugh. "Again, on balance, we'd like to get a forward."
Picking defensemen has worked pretty well for Poile and the Predators. They are well-respected around the NHL for building this franchise through the NHL entry draft, and Poile has found talented defensemen the likes of Canadian Olympian Shea Weber, U.S. Olympian Ryan Suter and just traded away Dan Hamhuis to bring back Ryan Parent, their top pick in 2005.
Nashville surprised draft watchers a year ago by making defenseman Ryan Ellis the team's top pick.
The secret to draft success with that top pick?
"Draft a defenseman," Poile said. "That's what we seem to do best."
Finding the right players in the draft is key for a franchise that doesn't have the money to chase stars in the free agent market. The Predators couldn't afford to keep Hamhuis, their top pick in 2001, which is why Poile worked out last weekend's trade to get one last bit of value out of the defenseman.
But Poile also traded away captain Jason Arnott last weekend. Arnott scored 19 goals and had 27 assists for 46 crucial points for a team that usually struggles for offense. Only three other playoff teams scored fewer goals than Nashville, and each is in the Eastern Conference.
Mock drafts have Nashville taking the likes of center Jeff Skinner of the OHL Kitchener Rangers or Nick Bjugstad of the USHS Blaine Bengals or sliding back to defense for someone like Dylan McIlrath of the WHL's Moose Jaw or American Jonathon Merrill. Poile will only say they have two or three players they think still will be available at No. 18 that they like.
Nashville has six picks in the draft being held in Los Angeles' Staples Center starting Friday night and concluding Saturday. The Predators currently are without a pick in the second or fourth rounds due to earlier trades.
"It certainly amplifies the point that all things being equal we'd like to take a forward. It also puts a little pressure on us. We've been a little spoiled in the last few drafts we've had so many picks," Poile said.
That means Poile will try to move into the second if possible, joking that his scouts call him daily asking him if he's made a move yet to gather more picks.
"We pride ourselves in how we've drafted, and we think we've got as good a core of young players coming in," he said.
-- Teresa M. Walker
Recent Wild drafts haven't yielded much production
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild have been stuck in the NHL's mediocre middle, with just two playoff appearances in five post-lockout seasons and only one trip past the first round in the franchise's 10-year history.
What's worse for the Wild and their long-term viability is that they've been too competitive to bottom out. Since getting Marian Gaborik with the third pick in their inaugural draft in 2000, the Wild have been in the top five only once. Benoit Pouliot, the No. 4 selection in 2005, was traded to Montreal last November.
Chicago and Pittsburgh were able to quickly rebuild tattered teams into Stanley Cup champions with top-three picks like Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane and Sidney Crosby and Jordan Staal, but the Wild never had a chance at those gems.
That young-talent drought has been exacerbated, too, by a lack of production from drafts between 2004 and 2007. Pouliot did bring in Guillaume Latendresse, who led the team with 25 goals in 55 games after his arrival in a trade, and another deal last season landed the third overall pick in 2004, defenseman Cam Barker, from the Blackhawks.
But that's essentially it. Aside from Cal Clutterbuck, a third-rounder in 2006 who has been a hard-hitting, productive right wing, the Wild haven't got much from the middle of the draft, either. And trades left them lacking a full slate of picks the last three years.
So when the Wild come up on the clock with the ninth pick in the first round Friday night, general manager Chuck Fletcher and assistant general manager Brent Flahr will need to make a shrewd selection, even if the player probably won't be playing for Minnesota for at least another year or two.
"I don't think it's fair for me to talk about what happened before I was here," Fletcher said last week. "I just know that every year if you're not adding two or three young players into your system, you're falling behind."
The average, Fletcher said, is 1.8 players per draft who play 100 or more NHL games over their career.
"We always are working on adding talent for the future, because if you don't in this system you're in trouble," he said. "You can't buy your way out of the basement. You have to have young players come in every year."
The Wild are also armed for Saturday with two second-rounders plus selections in the third, fourth, sixth and seventh rounds. In all, they have four of the first 69 picks and five of the first 99 selections.
Last year, they had only two of the first 77 and three of the first 103.
This is the first year Flahr will run the draft after former assistant general manager Tom Thompson was fired in April. The Wild look at the Blackhawks and the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia Flyers as teams to emulate.
"Those clubs were littered with good young players throughout their lineup," Fletcher said. "And the ultimate key to our long-term success is adding more youth into our organization. That doesn't mean we won't trade draft picks. That doesn't mean we won't trade young players. But over time we have to make sure we're adding a lot more than we're subtracting."
The draft isn't the only avenue for this. European free agents, like the Wild hit the mark on with goalie Niklas Backstrom out of Finland in 2006, are one way.
American college free agents are another, which Fletcher called "like free draft picks," after proudly pointing to the Wild's ability to sign forwards Casey Wellman and Jarod Palmer and defenseman Nate Prosser earlier this year.
Wellman had a goal and three assists in 12 games and is on track for a roster spot next season.
But the draft is the place to start this weekend. Might the Wild trade their No. 9 pick to acquire more ammunition?
"If we trade No. 9 for a player, ideally it'd be a younger player with some time left on his contract who can be part of our group here in Minnesota for several seasons," Fletcher said.
The Wild will likely have a couple of Minnesotans available to them at No. 9, in defenseman Derek Forbort of Duluth, a North Dakota recruit, and center Nick Bjugstad of Blaine, who is bound for the Gophers. Other prospects projected to be picked early include Finnish center Mikael Granlund, Swiss left wing Nino Niederreiter and Canadian center Ryan Johansen.
"Whether they be young players in the NHL, prospects, or draft picks, we just want young assets," Fletcher said.
-- Dave Campbell
Other NHL News
NHL owners agree on penalties for blindside hits
LOS ANGELES (AP) — NHL owners unanimously agreed Thursday to penalize blindside hits to the head with major penalties and ejections.
The new rule was the biggest development from the league's board of governors meeting, held one day before the NHL draft at Staples Center.
The board's approval was the final step to institute five-minute in-game penalties and game misconducts for such dangerous hits. Offenders still will be subject to possible supplemental discipline, as well.
"I wish we had changed this rule a year ago," Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke said. "Maybe we wouldn't have had those last two horrible incidents."
Burke referred to two nasty hits that went unpenalized during games last season, sparking relatively quick action on a new rule.
Philadelphia's Mike Richards landed a blindside hit on Florida's David Booth in October, keeping Booth out for 45 games with a concussion. Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke then leveled Boston's Marc Savard in March, sidelining the Bruins' star playmaker for the final 18 regular-season games and their first-round playoff series because of a concussion.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said the only change to the rule originally proposed by the league's general managers and then approved by the competition committee was the removal of the phrase "back-pressure," which players felt was too vague.
The rule now prohibits "lateral or blindside hits to an opponent where the head is targeted and/or the principle point of contact."
Boston Bruins president Cam Neely, who both received and dished out more than his share of big hits during his Hall of Fame playing career, approved of the move.
"I don't know if they're going to make everybody happy, but at least they're making an attempt to get it out of the game," Neely said.
The rule, titled "Illegal Check to the Head," also gives the referee the ability to hand out a match penalty if he believes the player attempted to deliberately injure his opponent. Any player who receives two game misconducts under this rule, in the regular season or playoffs, will be suspended automatically for the next game.
For each subsequent game misconduct penalty, the automatic suspension will be increased by one game.
The board of governors met for five hours Thursday at a downtown hotel across the street from Staples Center, where the draft will begin with the first round Friday night. An economic status report took up much of the session, including a detailed breakdown of the numbers behind the new salary cap.
Earlier, the NHL and the NHL Players' Association jointly announced that next season's salary cap will be $59.4 million, up from $56.8 million. Teams must maintain a minimum payroll of $43.4 million.
The owners also got an update from deputy commissioner Bill Daly on the NHL's progress in selling the league-owned Phoenix Coyotes. Bettman and Daly have been monitoring talks between the city government of Glendale, Ariz., and various potential ownership groups working on a mutually agreeable lease for Jobing.com Arena.
"We showed them last year's budget, this year's budget, and everybody is completely comfortable with what's going on," Bettman said. "We've been leaving it to Glendale to figure out who they can make a deal with, but I'm hopeful in the course of the summer, things will get resolved."
-- Greg Beacham
Sharks sign Marleau, Pavelski to 4-year deals
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — After excelling in the regular season, the Olympics and the playoffs, Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski both earned the right to test their worth on the free agent market.
Instead of looking for the biggest contract, the two star forwards decided to remain with the San Jose Sharks by signing four-year deals a week before becoming free agents.
"You want to be on a winning team and you want to allow the team to be able to bring in players or to keep players around in order for you to be a successful team and win," Marleau said. "That's definitely something we talked about and played a factor."
Marleau, who was eligible to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1, will reportedly receive $27.6 million. Pavelski, who could have been a restricted free agent, got $16 million.
General manager Doug Wilson said earlier in the week that it would be a "home run" if he could lock up his two most important potential free agents this week and he was able to deliver.
"They're the type of players just coming into their prime and elite level players," Wilson said. "I don't think there's any doubt and history has shown that the marketplace would have been very friendly and kind to these two players. Supply and demand. It's awfully rare that these type of players are available."
The moves to keep Marleau and Pavelski come two days after Wilson informed longtime goaltender Evgeni Nabokov that the team would not offer him a contract when he becomes a free agent. Wilson said he couldn't afford to spend too much of the team's cap space on goaltending. He was able to use that money to help keep the two star forwards.
Wilson praised the players for being willing to take contracts that will allow the Sharks to keep the core of this team together without hindering them in the future in terms of cap management.
Pavelski said he got a "fair deal" even if it's possible he could have made more if he waited until the start of free agency. He said Marleau's decision to stay shows a commitment the players have to make the necessary sacrifices to become a championship team.
"It's exciting he wants to stay," Pavelski said. "It's been a group that's been together for more than enough time. We want to accomplish the ultimate goal, which is to win a Cup. It's going to be fun to try to do it together."
Marleau and Pavelski helped lead San Jose to one if its most successful seasons in franchise history. The Sharks posted the top record in the Western Conference for the second straight year and beat Colorado and Detroit in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
San Jose fell short in its second appearance in the Western Conference final, getting swept by eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago.
With Pavelski and Marleau back to team with players such as Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, Dan Boyle and Ryane Clowe, the Sharks are looking to make an even deeper run next season.
"We're coming into a wonderful time for this organization age-wise where we probably have a four- or five-year window," Wilson said. "They want to be a part of it and it sent a strong message to their teammates and fans that this is where they wanted to be."
Marleau, the No. 2 overall pick in the 1997 draft, is first on the career list of almost every major offensive category for San Jose. He has more goals (320), assists (373) and games played (953) than any player in franchise history.
Marleau, 30, is coming off his most productive season. He scored a team-leading 44 goals, the fourth most in the NHL, and finished with 83 points playing mostly on a line with fellow Canadian Olympians Thornton and Heatley.
Marleau had eight goals and five assists in the playoffs, scoring the game-winners in San Jose's final two wins over Detroit in the second round, and five goals in four games against Chicago in the conference final. Marleau's 34 playoff goals since the 2003-04 season are the third most in the NHL.
Pavelski, 25, emerged as one of the top young players in the league this season. He played well for Team USA at the Olympics, where he won a silver medal, and then had a breakthrough early in the postseason.
He had nine goals, eight assists and three game-winning goals in 15 games. He scored two goals in the first-round clincher against Colorado and two in each of the first two games of the second round against Detroit, becoming the first player since Mario Lemieux in 1992 to have three straight multigoal games in the postseason.
Pavelski tied his career high in the regular season with 25 goals despite missing 15 games early with a broken foot. He also finished fourth in the league in faceoff percentage, winning 58.1 percent of his draws.
The Sharks now will try to lock up some of their other unrestricted free agents, including forwards Manny Malhotra and Scott Nichol and defenseman Niclas Wallin. Wilson said progress is being made in those talks.
-- Josh Dubow
Thrashers' Dudley picks Craig Ramsay as coach
ATLANTA (AP) — Craig Ramsay had to wait a decade for his next chance to be an NHL head coach. His old friend and former roommate, Rick Dudley, provided that opportunity.
Ramsay, who spent the last three years as an assistant with the Boston Bruins, was named the Atlanta Thrashers coach on Thursday. He joins Dudley, recently promoted to general manager, as the new leaders of a franchise that is starved for success.
Ramsay, 59, said he wasn't sure he would have another chance to direct a team after a successful but short stint as an interim head coach for Philadelphia in 2000.
"It goes through your mind," Ramsay said. "I've been in this business an awfully long time as a player and a coach. ... You start to look at it and think maybe that opportunity won't present itself again.
"When this came up and Rick and I got to talk, I relished the opportunity."
Ramsay replaces John Anderson, who was fired after the Thrashers (35-34-13) missed the playoffs.
Dudley said hiring Ramsay was an easy choice. The two played together with the Buffalo Sabres and AHL Cincinnati. When Dudley was Tampa Bay's general manager, he hired Ramsay as an assistant coach on a team that won the 2004 Stanley Cup.
"The simple truth is I've never had a doubt Craig could be a coach in this league from many years ago," Dudley said. "I brought him into Tampa because he understood exactly what was needed. ... There's never been a doubt in my mind. This was something that I thought was long overdue."
Dudley said he was looking for a coach who can teach.
"When you look for a head coach you're looking for somebody who can bring players to their optimal level as quickly as possible, and I've seen him do that before," he said.
Ramsay also was an interim head coach for Buffalo during the 1986-87 season. He also has worked as an assistant with Ottawa and Florida.
Ramsay played 14 seasons with Buffalo from 1971-85, finishing his career as a player-coach.
What makes the Thrashers, who have made only one playoff appearance, an attractive job?
"That's pretty simple, actually," Ramsay said. "That would be Rick Dudley. I've known Rick Dudley since 1971. He was my first roommate. We played together on two different occasions. I went to work for him in Tampa Bay. He put together a great product there and we won the Stanley Cup.
"I know what he can do as a hockey person. He's one of the best in the business."
Ramsay said he also has known Thrashers president and former general manager Don Waddell "for a long period of time."
Dudley hired Ramsay one day after completing a trade with the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks that brought playoff star Dustin Byfuglien, who had 11 postseason goals, to Atlanta.
The Thrashers also acquired defenseman Brent Sopel, forward Ben Eager and prospect Akim Aliu. Atlanta sent first- (24th overall) and second-round picks in this weekend's NHL draft to Chicago, as well as forwards Marty Reasoner, Joey Crabb and Jeremy Morin.
Ramsay said the 257-pound Byfuglien is "an exciting piece of what Rick is going to try to create down in Atlanta."
"We need for him to be a factor in the offensive zone as many times as he can," Ramsay said of the 25-year-old Byfuglien. "With his size and his talent level, he's one of those exciting players you look at and wonder how good can he get. We have to convince him he can be the best player ever in that role."
-- Charles Odum
Bruins sign Boychuk to 2-year extension
BOSTON (AP) — The Bruins signed defenseman Johnny Boychuk to a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 26-year-old Boychuk had five goals, 10 assists and 43 penalty minutes in 51 regular-season games for Boston in his first full NHL season.
Boychuk, who earned $500,000 last season, could have become an unrestricted free agent. Financial terms of his new deal weren't released.
"I was thinking about maybe going to free agency and seeing what was out there. But when I looked around the league, I knew what kind of position I'd be in," Boychuk said. "To come back to Boston and the great coaching staff that we have there and all the guys there, it made it a lot easier decision knowing that we would have all these people back.
"That was the main factor that tipped the scales for me."
Boychuk started last season as the Bruins' seventh defenseman. He was a healthy scratch for 23 of the club's first 26 games before he was assigned to Providence of the AHL for conditioning. He returned to Boston on Dec. 5 and missed only five games the rest of the season, an absence caused by a facial injury.
He had five goals and 15 points in the regular season. During the playoffs, he added two goals and six points in 13 games.
Boychuk, acquired from Colorado in June 2008, played in just one game for Boston during the 2008-09 season. With Providence, he had 20 goals and 65 points and won the Eddie Shore Award as the top defenseman in the AHL.
"He's made great strides this year. He was patient before he got in the lineup. He learned our system," general manager Peter Chiarelli said. "He's got a dimensional shot. He competes, he's got size. But the biggest thing that I saw was he's improved, going from being the defenseman of the year in the American League to our seventh D to start and working his way into our lineup, patiently but learning along the way.
"We have a very good defensive system and Johnny has picked it up and he's showed improvement while he's in the lineup."
Stanley Cup will take ride in Chicago gay parade
CHICAGO (AP) — The Stanley Cup, which has been on more adventures than perhaps any other piece of championship hardware, will make its first appearance in a gay-themed event this weekend.
The Chicago Gay Hockey Association invited the Blackhawks to join Sunday's Gay Pride Parade after the team won its first Stanley Cup title since 1961 — and the team said yes. So did the Chicago Cubs, who will have their own float in the parade for the first time.
According to the Hockey Hall of Fame's Phil Pritchard, it will mark the first time the NHL's championship trophy has been on display at a gay-themed event.
"We are thrilled that it worked out as it's important for the city and important for the franchise," Blackhawks spokesman Adam Rogowin said.
Defenseman Brent Sopel and his wife, Kelly, will accompany the Cup on a float in the parade. Sopel, who was traded this week to Atlanta, is a 33-year-old father of three who said he volunteered to honor the late son of Toronto general manager Brian Burke, his former boss in Vancouver.
Brendan Burke, 21, was killed in an auto accident in February, just three months after publicly disclosing his homosexuality.
"Anybody who has had to bury a child has suffered a heartbreak and this was the first thing that came to mind," Sopel said. "Everything that happened last year with Brendan coming out last year and dying three months later, it was a tragedy."
Sopel said he's not really trying to make a statement.
"But everybody is a person and we all have feelings," he said.
As for the Cubs, Hall of Famer Ernie Banks will ride in a vehicle decorated with a brick-and-ivy motif reminiscent of Wrigley Field's outfield wall. The ballpark is only a few blocks from the parade route, and the Cubs have supported various gay community causes over the past several years.
"We know we have many fans in the community," said Mike Lufrano, the team's vice president of community affairs.
Blackhawks deal Fraser to Oilers
CHICAGO (AP) — The Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks have made another deal, trading center Colin Fraser to the Edmonton Oilers for a sixth-round draft pick.
The 25-year-old Fraser had 36 points (13 goals, 23 assists) and 108 penalty minutes in 157 regular-season games with the Blackhawks over the past four years. He had seven goals and 19 points this past season.
The move on Thursday comes a day after the Blackhawks sent playoff star Dustin Byfuglien, defenseman Brent Sopel and forward Ben Eager to Atlanta.
In exchange, Chicago got first- (24th overall) and second-round picks in this week's NHL draft as well as forwards Marty Reasoner, Joey Crabb and Jeremy Morin from the Thrashers.
By acquiring the 151st pick from the Oilers, the Blackhawks now have 11 selections in the draft — five in the first two rounds (24, 30, 43, 54 and 60).
Ducks add Mike Foligno to coaching staff
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Anaheim Ducks have hired longtime junior hockey coach Mike Foligno as an assistant coach.
Foligno joined coach Randy Carlyle's staff on Thursday. He replaces Newell Brown, whose contract wasn't renewed.
Foligno spent the last seven seasons as the coach of the OHL's Sudbury Wolves, making the playoffs six times. He also served as the Wolves' general manager in his native Sudbury.
The No. 3 overall pick in the 1979 draft, Foligno played 15 years in the NHL, including nine seasons with the Buffalo Sabres.
Foligno also was an assistant coach in Colorado and Toronto, and got head coaching experience in the AHL, including five years in charge of the Hershey Bears.
Wild name Bombardir player development director
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild have appointed former defenseman Brad Bombardir as their director of player development.
The announcement was made Thursday.
The 38-year-old Bombardir was a popular player for the Wild from 2000-2004. He won a Stanley Cup with New Jersey and came to Minnesota in a trade with the Devils to help stock the inaugural Wild team. Bombardir was named captain a franchise-record seven times during his time with the team, which used to rotate the honor on a monthly basis.
His new role will include evaluation of prospects and implementation of developmental programs. Bombardir also serves as senior director of community relations for the Wild.
Brad Berry hired by Columbus Blue Jackets
GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) — Former University of North Dakota hockey standout Brad Berry has been hired as an assistant coach by the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets.
Berry has been running The Hockey Academy at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks.
The former UND defenseman and associate coach will work on the staff of Scott Arniel, who was recently hired as head coach of the Blue Jackets. Berry previously worked on Arniel's staff in Manitoba, in the American Hockey League.
One of the defensemen for Columbus is Mike Commodore, the former Fighting Sioux blue liner who returns to Grand Forks each summer to work out with Berry.
Elsewhere
Henderson '72 jersey fetches nearly $1.1 million
MONTREAL (AP) — It's a historic hockey jersey, now with a historic price tag.
Paul Henderson's legendary 1972 hockey sweater fetched more than $1 million at an auction following a late surge of interest. Its new Canadian owner on Wednesday promised to bring it home from the United States.
The final price makes the jersey Henderson wore when he scored Canada's winning goal in the 1972 Summit Series against the Soviets perhaps the most paid for a hockey sweater.
The winning bid smashes what's thought to be the record — $191,200 for a Bobby Orr rookie jersey. It is also more than four times the $250,000 that a few of Wayne Gretzky's jerseys had fetched in private sales.
A flurry of bids late Tuesday culminated in a winning offer of $1,067,538 submitted by Mitchell Goldhar, the owner of SmartCentres, a private real-estate development company based in Vaughan, Ontario, north of Toronto.
"I am pleased and proud to bring this important piece of Canadian history home," Goldhar said in a statement. "As a lifelong hockey fan I know what Paul Henderson's winning goal against the Russians in 1972 means to all Canadians."
Once the auction fees were factored in, the final price to be paid by Goldhar is actually $1.275 million.
Goldhar said the sweater will be sent on a national tour. He plans to make arrangements for it to be displayed in museums, including the Hockey Hall of Fame, to ensure as many Canadians as possible see it.
After the '72 series, Henderson gave the jersey to Team Canada's trainer Joe Sgro as a gift, and Sgro later sold it. It most recently belonged to an unidentified private American collector.
The sweater's previous owner, who wishes to remain anonymous, is a cancer survivor and apparently plans to donate some of the proceeds of the sale to charity. Henderson himself was diagnosed with cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, last fall.
Marc Juteau, president of Montreal area-based Classic Auctions, says Goldhar's bid was the 42nd entered for the 38-year-old red and white jersey.
