BURKE AGREES TO TERMS OF CONTRACT WITH MAPLE LEAFS

Burke says he’s been told the deal is done

Sources tell TSN the major points of a contract to make Brian Burke the president and general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs have been settled.

Burke says he’s been told the deal is done, however he hasn’t reviewed or signed the contract as of yet.  Burke is in Boston with his family for the American Thanksgiving holiday.

Nothing is expected to be finalized until Friday with an announcement expected on Saturday.

The contract is for the remainder of this season followed by five additional years.  It is reportedly worth approximately $18 million.  One of the clauses is that Burke will have complete autonomy to run the team as he sees fit through the 2014 season, reporting only to the CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, Richard Peddie.

Burke is set to become the 13th general manager in the club’s 92-year history.  He became available after the veteran NHL executive stepped down from his post as general manager of the Anaheim Ducks on Nov. 12.

Burke was hired by the Ducks in 2005 and helped build the club into Stanley Cup contenders upon his arrival.

Source: TSN.ca staff broke this story.  You can read the entire story at TSN.ca

Leafs and Sens down to Shootout

The Maple Leafs ended a team-record 17-game stretch without being outshot.

OTTAWA (AP) -Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson scored in a shootout to give the Ottawa Senators a 2-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.

Spezza beat Vesa Toskala with a shot on Ottawa’s first attempt. Alfredsson also shot and scored on the Senators’ third attempt to give Ottawa its second straight win.

Alex Auld stopped Nikolai Kulemin and Lee Stempniak in the shootout after turning aside 25 shots during the game.

Mike Fisher returned to the Senators’ lineup and opened the scoring early in the first. Kulemin drew Toronto even moments later.

Toskala stopped 34 shots as the Maple Leafs earned a standings point despite extending their losing streak to five (0-3-2).

Ottawa out-shot Toronto 35-26 overall, including a 5-0 margin in overtime as Toskala came up with a pair of big stops on Fisher in the dying seconds of the extra period.

The Maple Leafs ended a team-record 17-game stretch without being outshot.

Source: The rest of this AP story at NHL.com

Billed as the Battle of Ontario, these two teams are both fighting to stay out of the Northeast Division basement. With 20 points, the Senators are just one point ahead of the last-place Leafs.

The Senators opened the scoring as Fisher scored his third of the season after missing the last two games due to a knee injury. Fisher was looking to pass to Shean Donovan, but the puck bounced in off Tomas Kaberle.

The Leafs didn’t take long to respond, scoring 59 seconds later as Kulemin was left all alone driving to the net.

After a fast-paced, energetic first period things slowed down in the second. Both teams had a couple chances, but both Toskala and Auld were solid.

Ottawa’s Dany Heatley was clearly frustrated midway through the period as he slammed his stick against the boards after Toskala made a great glove save.

Source: this story can be read in full at TSN.ca

Red Wings drop home game to Habs 3-1

Just the way Canadiens coach Guy Carbonneau drew it up.

DETROIT (AP) -The Montreal Canadiens clogged up the neutral zone and Carey Price took care of almost everything that managed to slip through.

Price made 32 saves, and Maxim Lapierre, Tomas Plekanec and Christopher Higgins scored second-period goals in Montreal’s 3-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday night.

“We didn’t forecheck,” Plekanec said. “We stayed in the neutral zone and tried to make them make turnovers and we did a great job.”

Just the way Canadiens coach Guy Carbonneau drew it up.

“They’re a team that likes to control the puck,” Carbonneau said. “Just tried to play as tough as we can in the neutral zone and make them dump it in.”

Johan Franzen scored for Detroit, and Ty Conklin stopped 22 shots.

“I thought they played their system real well,” Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom said. “I think we saw their first play was right at the red line and they were backing off and not giving us any speed through the neutral zone. Once we got the puck in we lost a lot of 1-on-1 battles in the corners, couldn’t sustain that pressure that we wanted to.”

Lapierre opened the scoring 5:23 into the second period when his attempted pass from behind the net deflected in off Lidstrom’s skate.

Source: more from NHL.com

“Montreal is a good team, and we don’t want to take anything away from them,” coach Mike Babcock said. “They had a good plan, and they worked hard, they competed hard. I knew looking at the schedule in the summer that this was a tough game.”

The Wings hadn’t been shut out at home since Dec. 31, 2007, and Johan Franzen made sure that stretch stayed alive with a beautiful goal at 13:31 of the third period. He stripped Ryan O’Byrne of the puck and then bulled his way to the net, weaving around one Canadien after another like they were pylons before beating Carey Price with a backhand.

Source: more of Helen St. James article at the Detroit Free Press

Johan Franzen finally broke Price’s shutout on an unassisted goal with 6:29 remaining when he stole the puck in the neutral zone from defenseman Ryan O’Byrne.

Franzen broke in on the left side and made an outstanding goal scorer’s move, which was all the more impressive considering he’s 6-foot-2, 210 pounds.

He took the puck from his backhand to his forehand and to his backhand for his 10th goal in 16 games.

It was not nearly enough.

This was certainly one of the more challenging spots created by the schedule-maker this season.

Detroit played Monday in Vancouver, stayed overnight, left Tuesday morning and didn’t get back home until around 7 p.m.

There simply wasn’t much recovery time following an eight-day trip that resulted in victories at Edmonton and Calgary, and an overtime loss in Vancouver.

Coach Mike Babcock said he saw the potential danger with this game as soon as the schedule was released.

Source: more of Dave Dye’s article at the Detroit News

Carey Price made 32 saves as the Montreal Canadiens defeated Detroit 3-1 at Joe Louis Arena.

“I knew looking at the schedule in the summer that this was a tough game,” Babcock said afterward. “We stayed over (after Sunday’s game in Vancouver) to try to counteract it, but obviously we still didn’t have the kind of jump we normally do, and they won more one-on-one battles. They played everyone back, clogged up the neutral zone. We turned it over too many times.”

It was the first time the Red Wings scored fewer than two goals in a game this season. They had gained at least one point in nine consecutive games (7-0-2) and in 18 of their first 20 before Wednesday.

Source: Ansar Khan’s article at Mlive

Chicago comes up short in OT against San Jose 3-2

Nabokov: “We have to realize that nobody is going to give it to us,”

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -The San Jose Sharks know they’ve needed more than any team’s share of lucky bounces to get off to an 18-3-1 start. Not many were more fortuitous than the loose puck that went exactly where Joe Thornton wanted it in overtime.

Thornton gathered the puck and scored on a give-and-go with Ryane Clowe 45 seconds into OT, and the Sharks beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 on Wednesday night for their fifth consecutive victory.

Another standout first period with a 17-2 shots advantage devolved into a scrappy struggle for the Sharks, who finally faced a young, hungry opponent that could match their speed and aggressiveness. Captain Jonathan Toews scored two goals, including the go-ahead score early in the third period during a 5-on-3 power play set up by Mike Grier’s game misconduct penalty for injuring defenseman Aaron Johnson.

But captain Patrick Marleau tied it for San Jose midway through the third period with a clever wraparound goal past Cristobal Huet’s outstretched skate. Thornton then got the puck right where and when he wanted it in overtime, jumping on a turnover and trading bang-bang passes with Clowe, who had two assists.

“It’s a 50-50 puck, and sometimes it goes your way,” Thornton said. “Clowe fed me a great pass. It was pretty much an empty net.”

Source: more at NHL.com

The Sharks have played 22 home games without a regulation loss since March 3, 2008. When the clubs met in Chicago 10 days earlier, the Sharks handed the Blackhawks their first home loss in regulation this season, but Chicago fell just short of returning the favor.

San Jose forward Mike Grier got a game misconduct penalty late in the second period for boarding Johnson, who crumpled to the ice and eventually left holding his arm to his body. The hit wasn’t particularly hard, but Johnson wasn’t in position to defend himself after clearing the puck behind him.

Source: continue reading at the Chicago Sun Times

Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said Khabibulin and defenseman Aaron Johnson would have their injuries re-evaluated either today or Friday.

Khabibulin’s undisclosed injury, possibly to either his hamstring or groin, came minutes after Johnson left with a problem to his left arm or shoulder.

Johnson was creamed by Sharks winger Mike Grier, who earned a major penalty and game misconduct for boarding.

“Hopefully they’re not severe,” Quenneville said of the injuries.

Thornton’s winner came after a turnover by Brent Seabrook, who tried to pass to Duncan Keith in the middle of his own zone. Keith lost the battle to Thornton, who gave it to Ryane Clowe, then scored on the return feed.

Source: more of this article by Tim Sassone at the Chicago Daily Herald

It took a shootout but the Rangers finish on top

Tom Renney: “We played hard, stayed intense,”

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -Markus Naslund did his part to help the New York Rangers stay perfect against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Naslund scored twice and had one of two New York goals in a shootout to lead the Rangers past the Lightning, 3-2 on Wednesday night.

“We know that this building is a tough building to play in, and they’re a desperate team,” Naslund said. “We had to work hard to get the win, but it was nice to get it.”

Nikolai Zherdev had two assists, and also scored in the shootout. Henrik Lundqvist stopped 27 shots in regulation and also turned aside both Tampa Bay shots during the shootout.

“We played hard, stayed intense,” Rangers coach Tom Renney said. “That’s a sign of a mature team.”

Lundqvist is 10-4-2 - allowing six goals in four victories this season - against Tampa Bay. The Rangers swept the four-game season series - that included two games in the Czech Republic - with the Lightning.

“I guess we like the challenge to play this team,” Lundqvist said. “We had a good start of the year in Prague when we played this team.”

New York has won five of its last seven games.

Source: more from the NHL.com

No Ranger could have liked the fact that they needed a shootout to get this one done, thanks to Mark Recchi’s deflection of Martin St. Louis’ shot that beat Lundqvist just inside the post with 49.6 seconds left in regulation. But after Tampa goalie Mike Smith stopped Chris Drury’s breakaway a minute and a half into overtime, Naslund and Zherdev scored in the shootout. Lundqvist stopped Radim Vrbata and Jussi Jokinen on Tampa’s two tries.

Source: more from MICHAEL OBERNAUER at the NY Daily Hearld

That’s as good as explanation as any, for despite being pounded physically much of the night by a Lightning club that had been challenged to take the body by interim head coach Rick Tocchet, and despite generating a mere handful of scoring opportunities, the Rangers not only put themselves in position to win, they won.

They won by playing a simple and methodical game and by remaining committed to their structure. The Blueshirts were solid in their own end of the ice, led on this night by Michal Rozsival, who well may have had his most solid game of the season.

Source: more from Larry Brooks at the NY Post

Solid effort for the Sabres, down red hot Bruins 3-2

Marc Savard: “We didn’t play three periods and it cost us,”

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) -A gritty effort finally produced the results the Buffalo Sabres desperately needed.

Derek Roy scored twice and the Sabres beat the Northeast Division-leading Boston Bruins 3-2 on Wednesday night to snap a five-game losing streak.

After outshooting their previous two opponents - Philadelphia and the New York Islanders - by a 77-51 margin, Buffalo still found itself on the losing end. But against the Bruins, the Sabres were able to convert on their chances to win for just the second time in the last nine games.

“It was a just a matter of getting the bounces,” Roy said. “We were desperate for a win, and when you’re desperate guys are making plays, blocking shots, and not being too fancy. Everyone was on the same page, and played hard.”

Beating the Bruins, who came in tied with the New York Rangers atop the Eastern Conference, added that much more for the downtrodden Sabres (10-8-3), who started the year 8-2-2.

“It just shows we can play with anybody if we play consistent for 60 minutes and pay attention to our system,” said Jochen Hecht, whose short-handed goal in the second period gave Buffalo a 3-1 lead with 15 minutes to go. “If we play our game and keep it simple we can beat anybody in this league.”

Source: full story at NHL.com

“For two periods we didn’t quite match their desperation, or their effort and determination,” coach Claude Julien said of a Sabres team that had lost its previous five games. “That got us in a tough spot. We tried to battle back in the third and came up a little short. We got better as the game went on. I thought we had a real poor first. In the second we started coming around, and in the third we started playing more the way we play.”

Source: more from Stephen Harris Boston Herald

Therein lies the good news for the Bruins in 2008-09. When they are “just OK,” which is about all they have been now for years, they aren’t happy about it. “Just OK” has a loser’s ring to it these days in the Hub of Hockey. They were slow to get into their “A” game against the Sabres, and by the time they began to pick up their playmaking, their hitting, and their goaltending, they were chasing a 3-1 Buffalo lead and an expiring clock.

Down by a pair of goals, and playing just OK? Not good enough. Not by a long shot (like, say, the one Jochen Hecht nailed by Tim Thomas, while shorthanded, for that 3-1 lead in the second period).

Source: more from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe

Turnovers, Late Penalties and Pressure stop Wings Winning Streak

Sanford: “We’re rallying around each other,”

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) -Sami Salo woke up just in time to save the Canucks.

After missing the previous two games with the flu, Salo returned Monday night to set up the tying goal with 2:25 left in regulation and score the winner on a power play 2:33 into overtime, lifting Vancouver to a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

“I basically slept the last 96 hours before today, so it’s a nice feeling to get the win,” said Salo, whose point shot was tipped in by Daniel Sedin to tie it.

That came 50 seconds after Pavel Datsyuk gave Detroit the lead with a power-play goal. The Red Wings outshot Vancouver 34-16 through regulation, but it was all Canucks in overtime.

Vancouver had all eight shots in the extra period, including an early 3-on-2 rush when Willie Mitchell’s shot hit Chris Osgood in the mask and a sprawled Ryan Kesler put the rebound off the post.

Salo finally ended it after Johan Franzen was called for interference, one-timing Pavol Demitra’s soft pass over Osgood’s shoulder from just inside the left circle after the Canucks worked the puck around for almost a full minute.

“I have to thank (Demitra) for that goal,” said Salo, who also hit the post in the opening minutes. “I’ve had a few posts here lately.”

Curtis Sanford made 32 saves in his first start since star goalie Roberto Luongo was injured, and Taylor Pyatt also scored for the Canucks, who have won four straight for the first time this season. Vancouver hasn’t lost in regulation since a 3-2 defeat to Detroit on Nov. 2, going 8-0-2 since.

“We’re rallying around each other,” Sanford said. “There’s adversity right now and we’re finding a way to deal with it. We have each other’s back out there and we’re going to find a way to get through all this.”

Mikael Samuelsson had a goal and an assist for the Red Wings. The defending Stanley Cup champions had their five-game winning streak snapped, but still lead the NHL with a 10-1-2 record on the road.

“We let one slip away,” coach Mike Babcock said. “Full marks to them. We gave up 24 shots on the road and very few opportunities and they were able to find a way to win. We took a penalty in overtime and they made a good play.”

Source: Continue reading this story at NHL.com

Canadiens lose heart-breaker to Islanders 4-3 in SO

Everyone on the Canadiens was quick to come to O’Byrne’s defense

MONTREAL (AP) -Ryan O’Byrne blamed himself for costing the Canadiens a point. He didn’t blame the Montreal fans for booing him.

O’Byrne allowed the tying goal when he put the puck in his own net on a delayed penalty, and Bill Guerin scored the shootout clincher for the New York Islanders in a 4-3 victory over Montreal on Monday night.

Guerin was credited with the goal on O’Byrne’s gaffe, which made it 3-all at 15:13 of the third period.

After the game, a disconsolate O’Byrne said he didn’t realize a penalty was being called on Sean Bergenheim. So when Doug Weight pressured him on the forecheck, O’Byrne figured he would send the puck back to goalie Carey Price.

But Price was off for an extra attacker, so he wasn’t there to stop it and the puck slid slowly into the net. Parts of the Bell Centre sellout crowd of 21,273 booed for a long time after the goal. Before overtime, fans chanted O’Byrne’s name in derision as the Canadiens filed off the bench toward the dressing room.

“I feel bad. I apologized to everyone in the room,” said O’Byrne, who didn’t see the ice for the rest of the game. “The fans are eager for victories and they had a right to react the way they did.”

Richard Park and Trent Hunter also scored for the surging Islanders, who won for the fifth time in six games.

Steve Begin, Josh Gorges and Maxim Lapierre scored rare goals for the Canadiens, who lost their second consecutive shootout but still have points in four of their last five games.

Everyone on the Canadiens was quick to come to O’Byrne’s defense, especially Gorges, who shot a nasty look toward the crowd after the game.

“I know it’s tough because they expect a lot and we expect a lot out of ourselves as well,” Gorges said. “I know how it feels. I’ve put the puck into my net before. It’s never intentional. It’s a bad break, and nobody feels more sick to his stomach about it than Ryan does.

Source: More of this story at NHL.com

Rangers turn Coyotes into lap dogs

Gretzky: “We can’t find ways to score goals right now.”

NEW YORK (AP) -The starts still aren’t going the way the New York Rangers would like, but they sure enjoyed this finish.

Brandon Dubinsky scored his first goal in 14 games and Nikolai Zherdev had three assists for the Rangers, who shook off another early deficit and surged to a 4-1 win over the slumping Phoenix Coyotes on Monday night.

After a three-game winning streak, New York dropped two straight in which its was outscored a combined 10-4 by Vancouver and Ottawa.

“The effort was good, the intentions were good, the outcome was great,” coach Tom Renney said. “When you are trying to turn things around and get yourself back on track, you can’t do it all in one shift. We wanted to, but that doesn’t work.”

On the flip side, the Coyotes lost their sixth straight (0-4-2). Wayne Gretzky’s young and talented club had several scoring chances early, but it got out of the first period in a 1-all tie despite outshooting the Rangers 15-11.

The Coyotes have only 10 goals during their skid - including three in an overtime loss at Philadelphia on Saturday.

“We’ve got to keep going. That’s our job,” captain Shane Doan said. “Someone is going to have to have a big game. Whether it’s our goaltending, whether it’s some of our guys on the blue line or up front, someone is going to have to do something.

Source: More of this AP Story at NHL.com