The Colorado Avalanche: News from around the NHL - December 2nd, 2013

Adrian dater has an article out about Scott Parker.

Scott Parker did not participate in the class-action lawsuit filed last week in which 10 former NHL players claimed the league hid information that would have prevented their ongoing head trauma symptoms.

"I knew there were risks associated with what I did," said Parker, the former Avalanche enforcer who at age 35 is dealing with symptoms consistent with those of brain-injured victims.

Parker's view is both emblematic of the tough guy mentality that envelops hockey and of the fierce grip fighting holds on the sport.

Markham is still considering a new NHL-type arena, even without a NHL team on the horizon.

Whatever happens in Sochi, hockey is gold in this country. It was worth $5.2-billion to Rogers this week, and that number will change Canada in more ways than what we watch on Saturday nights. It is worth incredible amounts to those money-printing cartels that call themselves our NHL teams. It is a gold rush that feels inexhaustible, and that keeps making certain Canadians rich.

Which brings us to the city of Markham, which hopes to stake a claim. The city has been wrestling for some time with a proposal to build a $325-million arena that would hopefully house an NHL team. Mayor Frank Scarpitti revealed a modified version of the funding structure on Friday with a murky new $70-million extracted from unnamed developers. The plan is still full of holes, with at least $50-million not covered, and council is expected to vote on a previous version of the funding structure Monday or Tuesday. And between now and then, someone should tell them that they are risking an enormous amount of money for a project that is somewhere between risky and outright insane.

Because the Leafs don't get enough media attention, HBO will soon be in Toronto.

When HBO cameras descend on the Maple Leafs in the coming days, ahead of the Winter Classic, count on Randy Carlyle, Dave Nonis and many players spouting beads of high-definition sweat.

And it won’t just be the residue from game action.

One look at how the Leafs have tumbled in the past month and what awaits in December should provide plenty of realistic footage of a team on edge

Robidas broke his leg going into the boards.

Stars defenceman Stephane Robidas might miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken leg in Friday night’s game against the Blackhawks.