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Good news for Nail.
Nail Yakupov is getting his wish.
Hockey Canada announced in brief a statement early Saturday that it was releasing the flashy forward to play in the Russian-based KHL during the NHL lockout.
Yakupov, the No. 1 pick by the Edmonton Oilers at this year’s draft, was suspended earlier in the week after it was revealed he didn’t secure a transfer card to join Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk.
Katz got himself into a spot of trouble.
The owner of the Edmonton Oilers, feeling the heat from fans for threatening to move the NHL team to Seattle, apologized Saturday in full-page newspaper ads.
"I took for granted your support and your love for the Oilers," said Daryl Katz in the open letter.
"That was wrong, and I apologize.
"The simple fact is that the Oilers need Edmonton, and Edmonton needs the Oilers."
CBC has a nifty little map of where NHL'ers are ending up.
Dozens of NHL players have committed to many different teams in Russia, Finland, Sweden, Ukraine, Germany, Switzerland, Belarus, Slovakia, Latvia, Poland and the Czech Republic.
Maurice talks about coaching in Russia.
Some months ago, on his way to coach hockey in Russia, former Toronto Maple Leafs coach Paul Maurice bumped into one of his ex-players, Nolan Pratt, at the airport in Columbus, Ohio. Pratt had played in the Continental Hockey League (KHL) and Maurice thought he could get a quick primer on what to expect.
Good news: Rick Nash isn't injured.
The Rangers can breathe easy today after an MRI exam showed no damage to the shoulder star acquisition Rick Nash injured while playing for Davos in the Swiss league Friday.
Nash may rest his shoulder on a day-to-day basis before returning to action for Davos.
Prospect Hockey has an article about an Avalanche hopeful.
The Colorado Avalanche have fully bought in to the youth movement. Key players such as; Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, Ryan O'Reilly, and Paul Stastny, have helped the Avalanche lead in the right direction.
The Avalanche selected Landeskog with the second overall pick in the 2011 National Hockey League Entry Draft. In that same draft, Colorado chose Plymouth Whalers forward Garrett Meurs in the fifth round with the 123rd overall pick.