Things got a little tense for the Vancouver Canucks at practice yesterday.  I’m not surprised.  I just finished talking about how much trouble that team was having even with Roberto Luongo and Mats Sundin in the lineup. 

Apparently, a veteran (Willie Mitchell) and a rookie (Mason Raymond) got into an altercation in front of the net which resulted in Raymond being punched in the head and cross-checked by Mitchell.  Shane O’Brien got in the middle and challenged Mitchell, who then backed down.  WOW!

”We’re doing a lot of good things but we need to crank it up so sometimes there’s a little spillover there,” Mitchell said. ”We need to be practising the way we want to compete in a game.”

Coach Alain Vigneault had some words for the situation: “I think right now it’s just a matter of going out and playing.  That’s what we have to focus on. Guys haven’t forgotten how to play.”

Hmmm… sorry but if the guys have forgotten how to play then I think the coach has forgotten how to instruct.  I don’t know what to say but this situation is looking more sour by the day.

image: TSN

As a Calgary Flames fan, I have to say that I was both happy and unhappy by some of the deals that went down after the end of last season.  I was crushed that they dealt away Alex Tanguay, thrilled to see Kristian Huselius gone and stunned to learn that Todd Bertuzzi was now on the roster.  I barely cared or noticed, really, when they announced the addition of Michael Cammalleri.  It wasn’t a negative thing, it was just that it just felt like a plain old trade.  Maybe the other three deals had just affected me so much that Cammy got lost in the shuffle.

Fast-forward a couple months and, suddenly, you couldn’t help but notice Cammalleri in the lineup.  He’s seamlessly fit right in with the team and, in many ways, could be their most valuable player.  I wondered if the All-Star break would affect him but last night, when the Flames hosted the Buffalo Sabres, he turned on the magic and delivered a hat-trick (his second of the season), leading the Flames to a 5-2 victory.

His career high is 34 goals in a season and, currently, he’s got 25 already and has passed captain, Jarome Iginla, for most goals this year.  Cammelleri is currently a pending unrestricted free agent so I hope they offer him a deal sooner than later. 

image: TSN

Where is this miracle on ice we’ve been waiting months to see?  Former Toronto Maple Leafs team captain, Mats Sundin, was supposed to improve the chances that the Vancouver Canucks would make the playoffs, yet, with him and goaltender, Roberto Luongo, back in the lineup, the team continues to drop points. 

In eight games, the Canucks have just one win with Sundin on the ice.  Sometimes, he’s even a liability.  Last night, he was scoreless again unless you count the penalty he gave up that allowed the Nashville Predators to put one up on the board.  They ended up blowing a 3-1 lead and ultimately lost 5-3 to the Preds.  AT HOME! 

Need more convincing?  Sundin has notched just three points since he joined the club but he’s been in the box during four of the opposing team’s power-play goals.  How nice is that?

image: TSN

As if the Tampa Bay Lightning aren’t struggling enough, they’ve been dealt yet another blow – backup goaltender, Olaf Kolzig will be out of the lineup for about 3-4 weeks after a distal biceps tendon rupture in his left arm.

The netminder is scheduled to have surgery on Saturday and will probably be out until next season unless, of course, the Lightning make the playoffs.  Since the Bolts have a snowball’s chance in hell of making it to the postseason, this basically means that we won’t be seeing Kolzig until some time this fall.

image: TSN

The Detroit Red Wings have given star forward, Henrik Zetterberg, an incredible deal – a 12-year, $72 million USD contract extension!

Wow!  Aren’t we in a recession?  Anyway, the team made the announcement today.  The deal will keep Zetterberg with the Red Wings until he’s 40 years old.  You can’t blame them, though.  The man has 43 points in 45 games so far this season.

image: TSN

Those of you hoping the rest over the All-Star break was going to magically heal Pittsburgh Penguins captain, Sidney Crosby, might be sorely disappointed.  Even though Sid practiced with the team yesterday, his status is still in question for Wednesday’s game against the New York Rangers. 

"Five days (off the ice) is pretty long, and I was a little rusty," Crosby said. "(I pushed it) as hard as I could, (because) if you can’t go hard in practice, you probably can’t go hard in the game."

Crosby is expected to practice with the team again today, at which time, he said he would make a decision about Wednesday night’s game.  Honestly, I want him back in the lineup for the Pens but I also want him healthy.  If he takes a few more days off and it means he can be strong during the playoff push, then I think he should just continue to rest. 

image: TSN

It’s uncertain whether forward, Sam Gagner, will be in the Edmonton Oilers lineup tonight against the Buffalo Sabres.

Gagner has had problems with the ankle all season but expected to feel better after resting over the All-Star break.  When things didn’t improve, he was sent for an MRI.  Whatever it is, it hasn’t kept him from playing – he’s missed just three games, averages 16 minutes of ice time and has posted four goals and 13 assists.

image: TSN

Mike Comrie (New York Islanders) and his girlfriend, Hilary Duff, were spotted taking a stroll while on vacation in the Bahamas. 

I saw some other pictures of them at a casino and swimming with the dolphins (don’t laugh even though I totally did).  Before you start jumping to conclusions, Hilary, who just turned 21, has said that while she can’t see herself with anyone else, she’s not going to rush into marriage.

image: splashnewsonline.com

I wanted to live blog tonight’s game but I had a cable fail which, unfortunately, prevented me from watching it live and then, when my DVR recorded a later game, the shootout was cut off because it went over the scheduled time.  Okay, I am finished venting…

Just like last year, the best in the East beat out the best in the West (much to my chagrin) with a final score of 12-11.  There are a lot of videos available on the NHL site but here is the scoring summary followed by the video of the shootout.

ASW: Tkachuk, K. (01:16 in 1st), Marleau, P. (19:48 in 1st), Souray, S. (03:29 in 2nd), Boyle, D. (05:14 in 2nd), Nash, R. (08:27 in 2nd), Hejduk, M. (09:02 in 2nd), Souray, S. (10:34 in 2nd), Iginla, J. (16:46 in 2nd), Doan, S. (00:32 in 3rd), Toews, J. (02:32 in 3rd), Kane, P. (15:19 in 3rd)

ASE: Ovechkin, A. (06:26 in 1st), Staal, E. (09:30 in 1st), Kovalev, A. (16:34 in 1st), Markov, A. (19:23 in 1st), St. Louis, M. (01:21 in 2nd), Parise, Z. (02:11 in 2nd), Malkin, E. (07:45 in 2nd), Kovalev, A. (13:35 in 2nd), Heatley, D. (02:17 in 3rd), St. Louis, M. (13:19 in 3rd), Bouwmeester, J. (16:21 in 3rd), Kovalev, A. (00:00 in 2nd OT)

GOALIES

• ASW: J. Giguere, N. Backstrom, R. Luongo
• ASE: T. Thomas, H. Lundqvist, C. Price

image: TSN

Did you watch the 2009 NHL YoungStars game last night?  I really preferred the new format with the rookies facing off against the sophomores.  Here are the rosters:

The rookies destroyed the sophomores winning the game (comprised of three, six-minute periods) with a final score of 9-5. 

WATCH THE 2nd and 3rd video after the jump!

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