For the inaugural Breakaway Challenge at this year’s NHL All-Star Game skills competition, the league had high hopes for its dipsy-doodling superstars.
A best-case scenario last night in Atlanta would have seen Alexander Ovechkin, Ryan Getzlaf, or Pavel Datsyuk deliver a moment of individual brilliance that would have topped Vince Carter leaping over that French guy […]

I have to disagree with TSN analyst Bob McKenzie’s assertion that hiring Cliff Fletcher as interim GM is a smart move for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
It’s not that the 72-year-old veteran NHL executive is underqualified to take over this much-ballyhooed National Hockey League franchise after John Ferguson Jr. was fired on Tuesday. Winning the 1989 […]

January 8, 2008. GM Place. Final score: Vancouver Canucks 3, New York Islanders 2 by shootout. Vancouver outshoots the Islanders 45-28.
This might have been the sloppiest game I’ve seen all year at GM Place.
The Islanders’ game notes trumpeted: “CHRISTIE BRINKLEY SUPPORTS HER HOME TEAM.” That’s great for the 53-year-old supermodel, but can you actually be […]

The Good: Canada Golden Again at World Juniors
Congratulations to Team Canada for winning its fourth consecutive gold medal at the IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic. A couple of days ago, I questioned whether Canada’s mental focus was where it needed to be heading into a potential final with the Russians. Of course, […]

When Michal Rozsival broke into the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1999-00, he wasn’t anyone’s idea of a bona fide number one blueliner. But at age 29, the 6-2, 210-pound Czech has come into his own. Logging a team-high average of more than 24 minutes nightly with the New York Rangers, Roszival is performing […]

Brad Marchand should have listened to Zach Boychuk.
When Canada lost 4-3 to Sweden in round-robin action at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship, it ended a 20-game winning streak at the tournament. Boychuk, whose 91 points for Lethbridge last year earned him third place in the WHL scoring derby, told reporters: “In the last couple […]

As we kick off the New Year, would it shock you to learn that hockey has overtaken the other three major North American pro sports?
And is just this wishful thinking from a lifelong hockey fan (that would be me) who really doesn’t care much about what happens in football, basketball, or baseball?
Far from it. In […]