Access denied

The issue of the Minnesota Wild handing out game-day credentials to bloggers creeps into the NHL blogsphere every now and then. It is almost a right of passage that a blogger will seek out the press box, in some markets gaining access, and in others being denied. But it seems that this years debate had a Wild flavor to it and took a turn for the worst, as the heat was turned up a bit when a recent rift broke out between two bloggers over this topic. The short version was basically finger pointing by one blogger as to why, using the other blogger as an example, blogs are not given press access in certain markets.

Hockey Wilderness, which covers our Wild, fired the opening shot in this not so friendly discussion against a blog at KuklasKorner, Able to Yzerman, which by the title would indicate it being a Detroit Red Wings blog but since I have only read a few posts I can't say for sure. What I can say is that this battle quickly turned nasty, complete with name-calling, profanity, and allegedly some threats directed towards Hockey Wilderness, run by BReynolds. The threats were denied by Able to Yzerman and the main blogger there IwoCPO. You will have to head in both directions to read the trashy posts yourself, as I don't want to get into a blow-by-blow account of the happenings. However, be sure to check out the apology from our Wild guy, as it seems to offer a hint of regret that he chose that particular blog to pick on.

Now if I read the initial post accurately, the main issue and crux of the argument laid out as to why the Wild do not offer press box seats to bloggers is simply bad writing, including grammar, and lack of objectivity by the writer. That is where Able to Yzerman enters the debate because apparently that blog violates the above issues and is seen as an example of why teams like the Wild don't offer credentials to bloggers. Now I really don't know enough about what the Wild media relations folks use as a guideline when deciding who gets a seast in the Al Shaver Press Box, but I will say that this blog did inquire about obtaining single game credentials but was promptly denied.

So without pointing fingers and dragging the whole debate between these two blogs into this post, the question really should be what are the reasons behind the Wild denying access to non-mainstream media such as fan blogs (and I am using the term media loosely in relation to fan blogs)? The obvious answer is that if it were that simple, everybody would grab a blog and want access. But lets face it, publishing a blog alone does not make a blogger qualified to cover a professional sports team. And even if bloggers were given access, how different would their posts be and how would that benefit the Wild & readers? I know of at least one blogger who I believe has full-season credentials with the Wild. Brad Ratgen, who covers the the team at HockeyBuzz.com, does sit above for most home games (and he manages to slip that in with every post). However...no offense to Ratgen..his game story posts are bland and nondescript. If I want a recap I head on over to the professionals, like Michael Russo, who is one talented writer for the Star Tribune. And as for his non-game story and opinion pieces, the Buzz is usually off the mark in my opinion, and offers nothing more from the press box than could have been offered from home.

Which brings me to a point...the majority bloggers are not professionals, even the ones masked by a big network of blogs. Most are fans that have a passion about a particular team and are also motivated and have the desire to publish an opinion for all to see. There are good blogs and bad blogs, with good writers and bad writers. Are there talented bloggers out there that should have access to the Wild? I am sure there are. Would I like to be one of them? Yes I would. But that does not mean I am qualified. In fact, I am not sure what I would do if given game-day credentials. While I do understand the argument for allowing non-mainstream media access to the Wild (again, using the term media loosely), I don't agree with how our friend at Hockey Wilderness went about making it. The unfortunate part is that he did not help the cause with his post.

Fletcher's sweet moves

Minnesota Wild fans thought they were getting a mover and a shaker when the team announced several years ago that the organizations first GM would be longtime NHL'er Doug Risebrough. Risebrough was a hire that was seen as a coup of sorts, as luring a name like his to an expansion team was sure to bring instant credibility to the new franchise. What fans received instead were blockbuster trade deadline moves such as the deal that brought in Chris Simon for a sixth round draft pick. Enter new GM Chuck Fletcher and his limited experience. His few moves to date have given fans faith in the front office again, which is a concept that has been missing for some time. Fletcher managed to get rid of excess baggage in Benoit Pouliot while acquiring what looks to be a strong power-forward in Guillaume Latendresse. Fletcher also recognized early that the Wild was very thin up the middle and plucked Andrew Ebbett off of the waiver wire. The 'key-goal' impact that these two players have had offensively for this team has been immediate and will hopefully last all season long. The two combined for the OT winner last night against Nashville, as Ebbett scored his second goal in a Wild uniform, with one assist going to Latendresse, who also notched a goal earlier in the game. And speaking of Latendresse (2nd rounder, 45th overall by Montreal)...he has netted 3 points in 3 games with Minnesota.

A funny side-story...WCCO radio runs a Wednesday segment called "Fletch", featuring Fletcher and Strib columnist Sid Hartman. Well, if you ever listen to Hartman, who is still a sport icon in this town, you will know that he has lost something over the years...and he called Fletcher 'Cliff' several times during their interview. To Chuck's credit, he let it pass and played it like a pro.

On a roll

It is a mini-roll, but one that is badly needed. First off the Wild is on a three-game winning streak. Not bad for a revamped team that only one season ago had only one four-game winning streak and only two three-game winning streaks all season long. Secondly, the Wild have earned points in 9 of their last 11 games, going 6-2-3.

The unfortunate results of the Wild's recent success? The team is still bottom dwellers in the Western Conference, only 1 point ahead of last place Anaheim and Edmonton. The good news is that next up on the schedule are those Ducks, and putting together a four-game win streak would be quite an accomplishment, considering the early season troubles that plagued this team.

Sellout reaches minimal numbers

Eight tickets distributed was the difference in the Nashville game becoming a non-sellout, which would have halted the streak at 339 for regular season games and 379 games overall. Everybody now knows, thanks to Russo, that this streak is superficial at best, and one wonders what game will finally be known as the one that cracked the streak...only the Wild knows this, since it seems to be in their direct control. Whatever game is chosen, it is pretty clear that the team is having a hard time finding legitimate ticket buyers, as a crowd of 18071 has to be the lowest in the franchises history.

Looking for votes

I suppose this could be considered trying to stuff the ballot boxes, maybe...but head on over to The NHL Arena anyway and vote for your favorite Wild blog, Wild-Puck of course!

It seems to be a friendly place to discuss the Wild and the NHL...as is Wild-Puck [Minnesota Wild Message Boards].

The view from the cheap seats

Cheap, as in very inexpensive, or free. Zero is what I paid to sit way up in the Xcel Energy Center last night, as our Minnesota Wild scored in the closing seconds for a 3-2 victory over the storied New York Islanders organization. But rather than re-hashing the game, which does warrant a closer look simply because it was a rare win for the home team (rehashes can be found on all other Wild blogs), I wanted to give a view from the 5th level.

Winner winner, chicken dinner

News Radio 830 WCCO runs a contest on Wednesdays, which are labeled 'Wild Wednesday's', where the first caller who correctly answers a trivia question is the winner of tickets for two to a Wild game (they also on occasion determine the winner via choosing the phone number from the 'Wild' text messages received). The catch, and this is a big one, is that these tickets are not your ordinary tickets in the lower level, club level, or even the upper level, but instead reserved seats in the Al Shaver Press Box, located near the rafters of the X.

It's the nosebleed

If you have ever looked up at the press box above, you have noticed that there are two rows to accommodate the working media. The bottom row (press row) consists of chairs and a working counter that is reserved mostly for print media, along with a few online media sites, as well as the Wilds' top end communications personnel. The second level of the press box is primarily a row of booths which house the local and road radio & television broadcast crews. Also mixed into those booths are two reserved for the Wild top executives and two reserved for the NHL off-ice crews. And mixed in on either side of the booths, are again chairs that are used by scratched players and other Wild employees. Now story goes that Wild radio personalities Bob Kurtz and Tom Reid wanted a closer look than the one given from their booth (you have to lean over a bit to see over press row to get the full view of the ice surface below from the booth), so they moved down to the chairs in press row, leaving their radio booth empty. So winners of this contest are the beneficiary's' and sit in the spacious booth above.

It's a who's who

Not only can you get a glimpse of the players scratched, the local and national media are at arms length as well. Icon Sid Hartman made an appearance last night as well as Lou Nanne, Larry Fitzgerald, & Cliff Fletcher, father of Wild GM Chuck Fletcher. And the list of local media goes on and on from our favorite Michael Russo (Star Tribune), Bruce Brothers (Pioneer Press), Doug Johnson (Let's Play Hockey), Eric Nelson (WCCO), Wild television broadcast crew of Dan Terhaar & Mike Greenlay, and Wild radio broadcast crew of Kurtz & Reid. On top of that, as I mentioned earlier, the two Wild booths house Fletcher and other Wild front office executives. And finally, there was a sighting of Wild owner Craig Leipold in the press box last night. One lucky WCCO Wild Wednesday winner actually had a conversation with Leipold as he breezed on by and asked "how's it going?" The quick and smartly worded reply went like this, "good", as they backed into the booths opening.

Bonus on top of bonus

If the winning the tickets were not enough, get ready for the pre-game meal. That's right, they treat you to dinner downstairs, along with all of the other working media, Wild employees, and NHL personnel. And once situated in the press box, there is an endless supply of snacks and refreshments. Finally, the radio crew sit almost directly below you in press row, and it is a real treat to watch those two professionals work the game.

Opportunity of a lifetime

I have had the fortune of sitting about as close as you can get to about as far away from the action as possible. The very first game attended, year one & third home game (the teams first ever regular season win), the club randomly selected ticket holders to 'upgrade to the glass', where they would move the selectee's down to the first row to occupy the Anderson Window seats. And guess who had those seats against Tampa Bay on October 18 2000? And as for this latest adventure, truth be told, I am a two-time winner of these press box tickets. I also had the fortune of occupying the same booth two season ago when the team lost another close game to the San Jose Sharks. In fact, that was a shootout win for the Sharks which featured Pierre-Marc Bouchard making his his spin-o-rama move on his attempt, which ended up in the back of the net. Topping that game however, was last nights dramatic finish, where Owen Nolan scored the winner with 67 seconds remaining in the game.

To steal a line from 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' regarding these press box seats, "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up"...and I was lucky enough to pick them up twice.

Failed road trip

Our Minnesota Wild recently had their four road-trip come to a concussion with a shootout loss at the hands of the lowly Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes by the way, snapped a 14-game winless streak that dated back to early October. This game was a painful way to end this trip, but fitting because of the inconsistent way that Minnesota has been playing of late.

After the Wild finished off the Toronto Maple Leafs to start the teams Eastern Conference road swing, it looked as if the team may have solved their road woes. It was not that long ago that this edition of the Wild stamped themselves into the teams record book by going on an 8 game road losing streak. So when they went into Air Canada Centre and took down the Leafs 5-2, the confidence was apparent and the hope was that it would carry throughout the teams next 3 games. Unfortunately, even though the Wild earned 2 more points in the standings in those remaining games, they were not even close to earning anything more than that.

To sum up the final 3 games, Minnesota failed to protect a 2 goal third period lead and lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The following night, the excuse wheel was spinning at full throttle after the team dropped a not so close one to the Washington Capitals, 3-1. Truth be told, the Caps were without Alex Ovechkin and carried the play for much of the night. The excuse of the day was the obvious 'back-to-back' song and dance. Finally, the Wild gave away a game to a Carolina team that now has a total of 3 wins on the season. Now some may give credit to our Wild bunch for climbing back into the game after being down 3-0 and 4-1 before tying it up in the final period. On the surface, you could make that mistake, but a closer look may suggest that the team came out so flat that the only reason they were able to make a charge was because of who they happened to be playing.

The result of this four-game trip, 1-1-2.

A couple of firsts

Two members of the Wild scored their first career goals today against the Canes. Recent recalled forward Robbie Earl notched career goals number 1 & 2, including the game tying goal, as he helped lead the comeback that eventually fell short. And in between Earls two goals, big defenseman John Scott notched his first ever NHL goal.

Response to Leipolds search for 'marquee events'

You have to love an active owner...one of this type of active anyway. No, we do not want to see one that storms the locker room or sits on the glass hollering obscenities at the referees. But an owner looking to add events and attractions for the fans and his team is a win-win for the franchise.

Michael Russo of the StarTribune recently ran an article with a short Q & A on a few projects that Wild owner Craig Leipold is working on.

The three included holding a Winter Classic game, hosting the NHL Entry Draft, and opening the season on the road, in Europe.

Who would not want to attend an outdoor game, featuring our Wild skaters at TCF Bank Stadium? It was once a novel idea and has taken on more historically significant teams and stadiums, but what the heck, it would be great fun. The only question would be who to bring in to attract a national audience.

And to hold the leagues annual entry draft would also be a cool event to host, much like it was when the team and community hosted the 54th National Hockey League All-Star Game. What better way to get the fans up-close and personal with the leagues future stars.

But somebody has to explain to me the benefit of sending a franchise overseas to open the regular season play...because I don't simply see any. Hopefully Leipold passes on this one.

From the in-box

MINNESOTA WILD TO HOST SKILLS COMPETITION ON JANUARY 24

SAINT PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The National Hockey League’s (NHL) Minnesota Wild announced today that the team will hold a Skills Competition, a fan orientated skills event featuring Wild players on Sunday, Jan. 24 starting at 11:00 a.m. at Xcel Energy Center. Gate 1 (southeast corner of Xcel Energy Center off of Kellogg Boulevard) will open to the public at 10:30 a.m. Proceeds will benefit the Minnesota Wild Foundation.

Tickets for the Minnesota Wild Skills Competition are on sale now at the Xcel Energy Center Box Office and all Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com) locations or charge by phone by calling (800) 745-3000. General admission tickets are $10.00 in advance or $15.00 if purchased on January 24. Minnesota Wild season ticket holders will receive a complimentary ticket to the Skills Competition for each season ticket on their account.

Fans that purchase a lower level or Treasure Island Resort & Casino Club Level ticket to any Minnesota Wild non-premium home game in December will receive a complimentary Skills Competition ticket in an event suite, a private meet and greet with the Wild coaching staff and a 2009-10 team yearbook.

Minnesota Wild players will be situated at different autograph stations and sign autographs beginning at 11:00 a.m. A $10 autograph ticket must be purchased at each autograph station. Autograph tickets will be distributed to the first 250 fans in line at each station.

Following autographs, players will participate in a variety of on-ice competitions starting at approximately 1:00 p.m. All fans in attendance will also be able to participate in interactive hockey games, a silent auction, raffle and grab bags featuring Minnesota Wild autographed merchandise. The Wild last held a Skills Competition on Jan. 12, 2003.

Great seats are still available for all Minnesota Wild home games. For more information on single game ticket packages visit www.wild.com/ticketpacks.

-- WILD --

Follow the Minnesota Wild on Twitter and Facebook.

The journalist with 2 hats

Michael Russo may have burned a few bridges for his blog yesterday, but at least he got something off his chest I guess. I am not sure what prompted his latest 'Rant', but calling out one of the Minnesota Wild's young guns is probably not the best thing for a beat writer to do, especially when that reporter is constantly looking for material withing that locker-room. In fact, calling out anybody on that team is a lose-lose for Russo. But whatever the reason or motivation behind his blog yesterday, I don't agree with how it was laid out or where it ended up.

Without re-hashing his work, Russo basically blasted Burns for being inaccessible on his or the teams off-nights when a few stalls over, James Sheppard answers all of his critiques, no matter what the circumstances may be. I believe Russo's point is that Burns has been given a pass for his shoddy play, while Sheppard is being torched at every turn, by both the fans and media. And the one player of the two who you would expect to stand up and face the music is Burns, when in fact it is Sheppard.

Which brings me to this...which one is frustrated with Burns, Russo the reporter or Russo the columnist?

This is confusing to me too, but it seems that this newspaper journalist has taken on several hats in order to fit the job description. What I don't agree with is the platform that is used to bake players, as Russo the columnist posts this in his blog, while the print and web edition take on the reporter in Russo, where we are given 'just the facts please'. I guess the problem comes, and maybe this is what confuses me, when both devices to cover one subject is used. By doing this, readers don't know who is covering the team and it also comes across as if there are two different teams being covered. In fact, it would not surprise me if that, before answering any question or having any conversations with Russo, the players insist on knowing which guy they were talking to, the columnist or reporter.

Russo is a great beat writer and does an exceptional job at covering the team. His reports are usually spot-on. And on the flip side, his blog is equally as informative and enlightening. I would never suggest anything less than Russo gives fans but I sometimes wonder if he has overstepped his boundaries. This latest is an example of how his coverage may suffer because of the shot that he has taken at Burns, the outcome of which could include less material coming out of the locker-room. Then there was a blog written a few days ago. It had an allegedly funny story about another person banned from the X by our previous front office. Funny to Russo, and I'll give him the fact that the story was mildly entertaining. But to then hide behind the paper by not naming names was nothing more than not standing up like a man (Russo's inference about Burns) and revealing the whole story.

And I am wondering if Russo's latest blog should have not have named names as well.

Just as I expected...almost

Finally, others are getting on board. I thought it was a bit obvious, but more and more are seeing this Minnesota Wild team for what it is...a few 'higher-end' players surrounded by a bunch of 'nice' players. And the drop-off between the high and nice is pretty severe. It was written by Russo in his blog that 'It's forwards just aren't that aggressive, and don't have the wheels. This will be something Chuck Fletcher will have to address in future transactions if Todd Richards is going to deploy a skating, fore-checking system.'

Finally, someone that actually reaches some readers has pointed this out. After all, the sales pitch that was delivered by new GM Chuck Fletcher, then re-pitched by new Coach Todd Richards, had most believing that the problem and fixes for this franchise was a simple 'system' switch. But what those same believers forgot was that in order to play this up-tempo style, more aggressive and wheel bearing players are needed. It's rather simple and can be read below...'System this system that'.

A couple of things to consider with this new approach to the game that our Wild have taken with their current roster...they average only 2 goals a game, which ranks 28th in the league. And behind the blue line, an area that had always been solid with Minnesota, they have given up 3.33 goals per game, good for 24th.

But beyond these few stats, what says it all is their record, 2-7-0.

As for this team being almost what I expected? It's worse.

In-box prospect report

Minnesota Wild Prospects Report – Oct. 20, 2009

HOUSTON AEROS (3-3-0-0, 4th in West Division) – The Aeros earned their third weekend split of the season, defeating the San Antonio Rampage, 5-2, before falling to the Texas Stars, 5-1, in a shootout at Toyota Center Saturday. Houston handed the Rampage its first regulation loss of the season with the help of two goals from RW Duncan Milroy on Friday night. RW Danny Irmen, C Peter Zingoni, and D Ryan Gunderson also scored for Houston in the win in front of 6,567 at Toyota Center. The Aeros fell to intra-state rival Texas on Saturday night. RW J-M Daoust scored the lone Houston goal and G Wade Dubielewicz replaced Anton Khudobin in net after he gave up four second period goals. The Aeros face the Lake Erie Monsters Wednesday night before traveling to San Antonio for a series with the Rampage this weekend.

Pre-season schedule announced

To feed the appetite of those who feel the need to dive further into the Minnesota Wild schedule, they released the remaining games today, the pre-season portion. Now all we need is the good part of the schedule released...the television broadcast dates. Sorry, I am one of those 'ticket-less' fans...

DATE                OPPONENT                   LOCATION               TIME (CT)
Tuesday, Sept. 15    at St. Louis Blues        Scottrade Center       7:00 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 18     Columbus Blue Jackets     Xcel Energy Center     7:00 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 20     Chicago Blackhawks        Xcel Energy Center     5:00 p.m.
Monday, Sept. 21     at Columbus Blue Jackets  Nationwide Arena       6:00 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 24   St. Louis Blues Xcel      Energy Center          7:00 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 25     at  Chicago Blackhawks    United Center          7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 29    at Philadelphia Flyers    Wachovia Center        6:00 p.m.
*Dates and times subject to change

Goaltender Dubielewicz signs

You might be saying, 'who?'...but if you followed the University of Minnesota Golden Gopher hockey program over the years, you know this player and the reason the signing interests me. Wade Dubielewicz was a stand-out netminder for the Denver Pioneers from 99-03. Even though he played only 4 seasons in the WCHA, he was one of those college players who seemed to have 20+ years of eligibility...you know the ones that come back year after year and never seem to leave. His record peaked in his Junior season, where he had a 20-4 record, a 1.72 gaa, and a .943 save %. I cannot recall exactly what happened to him during his Senior season, as he was on the short-end of splitting games with another standout in Adam Berkhoel...and it may have been a case of just that, losing his starting job to another standout. Most recently, he has mainly been a career minor-leaguer but does have 40 NHL games played in the last 5 seasons.

Hendrickson to coach

An interesting piece of speculation from Russo...with the loss of the Wild's video coach Matt Shaw, Russo threw in the name Darby Hendrickson as a possible replacement. You have seen Darby on the FSN Wild telecasts the past couple of seasons, as he retired from playing after a short stint overseas a few years ago. You may recall that Hendrickson was an original member of the Wild and in fact scored the teams very first regular season goal at the X. Now if you have followed me at Wild-Puck, you know that I am not in the 'one of us' crowd, but I am now putting on my homer cap when I say that it would be great to have him in the Wild organization as a coach. He truly has the 'minnesota nice' touch and would make a great addition to the team.

Take a seat you homers...

Just a short post as my summer has been busy and to be honest, the Minnesota Wild have not been at the forefront of my thoughts...

I was born and raised in Minnesota, and so have lived in the State of Hockey my entire life. I grew up playing the great game on ice and have followed all levels for years and years. Yet I have been amused and bewildered by those, who like myself have a connection to the game of hockey and our hometown talent, who seem to think that our local professional team has passed on those locals through some sort of conspiracy theory. There is in fact one local media guy who is constantly barking on the good neighbor that the Wild need local guys and was ecstatic that they finally got a bit of home-town blood when they selected Todd Richards as their new coach. Hopefully now with the addition of another native folks will put an end to the anti-Minnesotan-Wild connection, as the Wild used the 16th overall pick to select 'one of us', so you can just sit down now. The Minnesota Wild selected Eden Prairie High Schooler Nick Leddy with their first round selection in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

Gaborik makes appearance at draft

No, not Marian , but his brother Branislav. This was confirmed to me by the one guy who is accessible and who would know, Michael Russo...thanks Russo. I was watching the draft and caught a glimpse of what looked like Marian when the camera scanned the Wild draft table. I then remembered that Marian had a brother on the payroll as a European scout. How odd that must be for Branislav...

Intersting live chat with Russo

Just by luck, I had a chance to view and participate in the live chat put on by the StarTribune's Michael Russo. It was a chat session where you sent in the questions and the editor, or whoever was assisting Russo, decided what would be published along with Russo's response. They also had a few polls going for fans to vote on that included whether or not Jacques Lemaire would be back and who is the team MVP.

There were many good questions by the participants, and as you will always get, a few that slipped through that were basically tiresome. The 'why don't the Wild ever draft a Minnesotan' is one that is older than hockey itself. But for the most part, it was a good session with good questions. I did find a few responses from Russo that caught my attention. On whether or not the Wild could receive something good in return in a Marian Gaborik trade, Russo thinks that the teams that may be looking will have cap trouble taking on the salary of Gaborik, so they will have to unload something in return. Another one that I found interesting was the idea that the Wild may not move Niklas Backstrom before the NHL trade deadline even if they have not re-signed him. And one more I can think of was a thought I had the day they introduced Kevin Constantine as the new coach of the Houston Aeros back in 2007...the question being who is the likeliest candidate to replace Lemaire if he retires.

Anyway, it was a good 'chat' session. I believe that Russo does a great job keeping us informed, and for the most part, tells it like it is. It is somewhat rare these days to find a beat writer who sticks his neck out for the fans. And as for being on the same page as the fans, there is no one more in-tune with us than Russo.

Here is a link to my boards where I posted the entire session...
Russo's Chat

Hold your applause please

It's easy to get excited after a win over the defending Stanley Cup Champions...especially with the way things have been going lately. But I encourage you, even beg you, to hold your applause and enthusiasm. Remember this has been a Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde team all season. One test has been passed by our Minnesota Wild and that was a 5-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings. Tonight, part II will be taken when Minnesota faces the Chicago Black Hawks and how the team emerges after a big win and little rest will be the answer.

The Wings did spot our Wild a two goal lead as Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard, who was playing in his first game of the season, looked out of place, especially early in the game. But to be fair, Minnesota came out hot and ready to play, so a mixture of the two set the tone for the game. Once again the Wild were out-shot, but as I wrote earlier, this is not an unusual occurrence. The key last night was that the team capitalized on their opportunities and was able to come away with a much needed victory.

Reigning iron-man no more

Too bad for Andrew Brunette, but his 509 consecutive games played streak ended when he was a scratch for the game against the Red Wings. And Brian Stensaas, who is filling in for Michael Russo over at the StarTribune, wrote that it looked as if Brunette would not even be taking the trip to Chicago. And even as 509 straight played sounds unattainable, imagine adding an additional 5+ seasons to that number. The all-time NHL iron-man is Doug Jarvis, who played in 964 straight from 1975 to 1987. So with Brunette's streak over, our league's current iron-man is now the Florida Panthers Jay Bouwmeester, who has played 319 straight.

Welcome back Weller

Craig Weller was back in action last night and it was good to see him. He has been out for the past 13 games with a head injury caused by a fight he had in the Edmonton game back on January 15. My take...it's simply unbelievable to me that a guy gets beaten with a foreign object the way that he did, (and by beaten, I don't mean defeated, I mean beaten), and nothing is done by the league. I am referring to the Weller-Sheldon Souray fight during that Edmonton game, where Souray hit Weller repeatedly in the head with a wrist guard. Now word is that Souray was 'talked to' during the All-Star break, and to that I say big deal. And just recently, an enhanced video of the incident has emerged that clearly shows the vicious attack. My question is where is it written that there is a 'statute of limitations' on dolling out penalties? It's sad, but this league is more worried about 'National Inquirer' tabloid incidents rather than the safety of its players.

Nolan continues to impress

How about our 16-year veteran Owen Nolan? He has emerged as one of our go-to guys lately and has recorded 6 points in his last 3 games and 16 points in 14 games. And consider he is only 1 goal and 2 points away from passing his last season totals, with 25 games yet to be played. I did not think he would make this much of an impact on the score-sheet, but it just goes to show you the value seasoned veterans can have on a team that has been up and down all season and is currently fighting for the final playoff position in the Western Conference.