Seriously, as much as I love and respect Sakic, I began to worry about his safety.  He seemed riddled by ridiculous injuries last year (an infected tooth, herniated disc and a snow blower accident that crushed three fingers) and I really believe that it’s better to go out on a high note than to gradually fade away from the game.   He leaves behind a great legacy as a class act and has earned a spot among the NHL’s career scoring leaders. He’s eighth in points (1,641), 11th in assists (1,016) and 14th in goals (625). 

I’m sure his presence on the ice and among the fans will be immediately felt since he’s been with the team since 1995.  They will retire his No. 19 jersey during the upcoming season-opener.  His sweater will join those of Patrick Roy (33) and Ray Bourque (77).

"After having the privilege of playing for 20 years, I’m leaving the game of hockey with nothing but great memories and a sense of accomplishment," Sakic said. "The game has given me more than I ever dreamed of, and for that I am truly grateful."

I’m also grateful for what he has contributed to this sport that I love so much. 

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image: TSN

I know some people are glad that he’ll get to play with Teemu Selanne.  Many Habs fans had hoped they would become teammates but not with the Ducks, of course.  They worked well together when they helped Finland capture the silver medal at the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin so hopefully they can turn on the magic again before Selanne retires.  Even Koivu seemed happy with the news.  In a statement he said: “I’m very excited to join the Ducks this coming season.  I’m also looking forward to a full season with Teemu Selanne as a teammate.”

I know that he must be relieved to, at least, be going to a team where he feels he might be welcomed but at the same time, I’m slightly furious with this decision.  Okay, I’m irate.  Koivu knew that his days with the club might be numbered after they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs but there were a million factors that led to that.  Uh, let me think – their coach was fired and replaced by Bob Gainey, their goaltender Carey Price seemed to forget he was on the ice half the time, there was so much pressure to perform during their 100th anniversary and the players knew that the team was being sold.  That’s a lot of stress.  I’m not making excuses but I don’t think the solution was to completely dismantle the team.  Yes, they have a new coach and new owners and they’ve let star players like Alex Kovalev go but do you really think with all of those changes that it is the right time to take the team’s anchor, their captain, away?

When you do too much with a team (Tampa Bay Lightning and the Calgary Flames three seasons ago come to mind) it can lose its identity.  It’s not like Montreal failed to make the playoffs – they just didn’t advance.

I’m from Montreal and I know how much he is loved there.  I also know that he’s had to take a lot of flack from the media and some fans because he doesn’t speak French very well but that’s par for the course in La Belle Province.  When he was diagnosed with intra-abdominal non-Hodgkins lymphoma everyone was so stunned and worried but he pulled through and when he came back to the team, he was greeted by an incredible welcome.  My brother was the national anthem singer that year and I remember how energized the place was.  He got an eight-minute standing ovation.  He even earned a Masterton Trophy that season after showing extreme courage and dedication to his team.

Now, he’s going from being the captain to being on the roster.  He’s going from a city with a huge, overwhelming even, hockey market to a city where I was shocked last summer to discover that most people couldn’t care less about hockey.  I couldn’t find any merchandise at the three, count ‘em THREE, malls I went to and when I did make it to the Ducks store (there’s only one and it’s at the Honda Center) it was closed.  It was daytime!

At least the Ducks seem to know what they have.  General manager Bob Murray made the following statement:  “Saku Koivu’s character and leadership qualities are unquestioned.  He is a skilled playmaker and we are thrilled to add him to our team.”

In 13 NHL seasons, Koivu has dressed for 792 games and has scored 191 goals with 450 assists.  A foot injury limited him to playing only 65 games for the Habs in 2008-09 but he managed to score 16 goals and posted 36 assists.

Koivu is a class act and a well-respected player.  I hope he accomplishes great things over in Anaheim.

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That means it’s pretty likely that the 34-year-old veteran will play out the rest of his time in the league with the team.  The contract includes a no-movement clause.

"I am very excited to be able to retire a Philadelphia Flyer and I am looking forward to many years with the Flyers logo on my chest," Pronger said in a statement.

Pronger joined the team on June 27th after the Anaheim Ducks traded him for Joffrey Lupul and Luca Sbisa as well as a conditional third-round pick in 2010 or 2011.

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I’m interested in how this might affect Toronto’s stats next year since I’ve heard a lot of good thing about Gustavsson.  I know that his nickname is “The Monster” and some have called him the best non-NHL goaltender and I can see why – last year while he played for Farjestad in the Swedish Elite League, he posted a 1.96 goals against average and a .932 save percentage.   His team went on to win the league championship.

image: TSN

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The injury apparently plagued the star “for quite a while” but the 25-year-old played in the postseason with so much intensity that I never would have guessed that he was suffering from a torn labrum.  I have been living with the lingering discomfort associated with a similar shoulder injury and I can tell you that it’s pretty painful and all I do is type for a living.

According to TSN, he had surgery yesterday to repair the injury but it will take about four to five months for him to be ready to join his teammates.  "We all agreed it was best for him to have the surgery at this time," said GM Ray Shero. "Although he will miss training camp and the start of the season, the doctors expect him to make a complete recovery."

I think it’s better to lose a guy at the beginning of the season than the end so it sounds like a pretty good plan.  Hopefully he will able to work around the injury but still keep in shape. 

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According to the Globe and Mail, the NHL is investigating some comments that Toronto Maple Leafs coach, Ron Wilson, made in reference to the team’s interest in signing Daniel and Henrik Sedin.

On June 31st, Wilson said (on the Fan 590):  “You’re hearing right now, and this sounds very contradictory but, there’s a real possibility, I would think, that we would be going after the Sedins. Let’s just speculate there.”

Apparently, “an unnamed NHL executive remarked that what Wilson said was a ‘clear-cut case of tampering.’”  The Canucks haven’t filed a tampering complaint and the league won’t confirm the reports but NHL bylaw No. 15 states that tampering is, “the making or causing to be made through any medium, public or private, any statement indicating any intention or desire of or interest in acquiring the services [of a player on another club].”  If you go by that, Wilson really is in violation of this rule.

Of course, complicating matters is the fact that Toronto GM, Brian Burke, happened to be in Sweden at the time and many assumed that he was there to woo the Sedin brothers.  Naturally, the club has an explanation for his trip and said that he was there to talk to Swedish free-gent goalie Jonas Gustavsson.

I know some people don’t think it’s worth wasting time and money on investigating this issue but I think that they need to send a message that this isn’t acceptable.  Otherwise, we’re going to start seeing coaches and players sending out messages through the media more and more.

image: TSN

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Gainey told Montreal radio station CJAD that the club did make an offer but the Russian star took too long to consider the deal.  "We hadn’t agreed on the amount, but another player was willing to come and join our team," Gainey said. "So the dollars that we had allotted there for a particular position were grabbed up by another player."

The team’s roster is going to look so different in the coming season.  In addition to losing the winger, captain Saku Koivu believes that he might not be offered a contract, Montreal was busy at the free agency deadline and the team has new owners (and a new coach).

With all their wheeling and dealing, the Habs still have $9 million remaining under the salary cap but they also have four restricted free agents left to sign.

Where do you think Kovalev will go?

***UPDATE*** Kovalev has signed a two-year, $10 million contract with the Ottawa Senators.

image: TSN

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I wanted them to have another chance at winning the Cup but a rematch seemed so unlikely.  When it finally happened, I couldn’t believe it.  I really hoped that the Penguins wouldn’t meet the same fate as they did in 2008 and towards the end of this year’s finals, I wondered if they had it in them to stave off a team like the Detroit Red Wings.

Anyway, I could go on and on about it but this great DVD set highlights some incredible plays by Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marc-André Fleury, Jordan Staal and, of course, the rest of the amazing team.  They really pulled together and made this happen.

I’m also really interesting in watching the interviews with the players and coaches as well as seeing the exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage.

image: Amazon

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The Kings have really been struggling lately but at least the weather in LA is better than Denver, right?  fortunately, he seems pretty happy about the move: "They have great young players.  I’ve always thought the world of (Anze) Kopitar since playing against him at the World Championships in Austria where he dominated. To play with him and Drew Doughty and (Dustin) Brown…these are great young players and I’m excited about that."

The Avalanche have also had it rough since many players, including Smyth, have been plagued with injuries (Joe Sakic almost seemed like someone had put a hex on him).  Still, he might not have had a stellar year but it was decent.  Smyth finished last season with 26 goals and 33 assists in 77 games.

The erstwhile “Captain Canada” has also been invited to the orientation camp for the upcoming 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

image: TSN

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Samuelsson seems happy with the transaction.  In a conference call he said: "Obviously that (the money) was the key, I shouldn’t lie.   They have a good thing going and I think my role can be a little different here. I like the team.  When you play against Vancouver it’s always a hard game and a skill game too.  You need some experience (to win the Cup). You need to be hungry. I believe we can do some damage."

He had a decent season with the Detroit Red Wings last season.  During the regular season, he posted 40 points in 81 games and 10 points in 23 playoff games.

He definitely has experience too.  He’s played in 466 NHL games and he also was part of Sweden’s gold medal-winning team at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino.  

I think he could be really good in Vancouver’s lineup and I’m interested in seeing his chemistry with Henrik and Daniel Sedin.

image: TSN

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