Hockey Hearsay runs weekdays, 12 months a year; mixing stories, quotes and fantasy takes from around the hockey world.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said this morning that he will practice with the club in training camp, starting with Saturday's first day on the ice. He has not, however, been cleared for contact, so will sit out scrimmages and contact drills.

"I'm excited to get going," said Crosby, who was diagnosed with a concussion Jan. 6 and did not play again last season.

"I'm pretty happy with the way things have gone the past week or so. Exertion's been pretty high."

Crosby was doing the same thing -- practicing with the team in non-contact situations -- before he began having headaches and other symptoms in April. He expects training camp practices to be set at a higher, tougher pace.

"I think camp will be a pretty good indication," he said. "It's going to be pretty intense.

"I feel pretty comfortable and confident with where I'm at."

Crosby indicated he will be evaluated as camp unfolds. There is no timetable for when he might be cleared for contact or when he might play. The Penguins open the season Oct. 6 at Vancouver.

Luke Schenn just didn’t seem like the holdout type, according to The Toronto Star.

So the 21-year-old Maple Leaf defenceman will indeed be on hand for the first day of training camp after agreeing to a new contract in the wee hours Friday morning.

The deal is for five years and $18 million, with an annual cap hit of about $3.5 million.

Schenn now becomes the fourth-highest paid member of the Toronto blue line corps behind Dion Phaneuf, Mike Komisarek and John-Michael Liles.

A five-year deal takes Schenn one year into his projected unrestricted free agent years. And the $3.5-million annual cap hit does not put Schenn in the top-50 highest paid NHL defencemen.

The Winnipeg Free Press reports that Dustin Byfuglien has arrived in Winnipeg and joined his Jets teammates as medicals and physicals kick off the club's inaugural training camp.

Byfuglien was at MTS Centre on Friday morning getting poked and prodded and is expected to meet with the media sometime prior to noon.

Byfuglien is facing legal issues stemming from a boating incident in his home state of Minnesota. Byfuglien was asked by police to provide a breath sample and after he passed the breathalyzer was detained and asked to offer a urine sample.

The 26-year-old defenceman refused and was arrested for refusal of a sample. Charges have yet to be laid although they are believed to be forthcoming.

Byfgulien was among the last of the Jets to arrive in Winnipeg but is expected to be on the ice Saturday morning at MTS Iceplex when training camp gets underway.

The Vancouver Sun details how it's a new season, and no one is happier about that than Vancouver Canucks defenceman Keith Ballard.

He's trying his best to forget about the last one.

Ballard, who along with the rest of the Canucks veterans reports for training camp Friday at Rogers Arena, is treating this season as a fresh start. That's exactly the message Vancouver's coaching staff delivered to him at the end of last season.

"That was kind of their message to me that (this) year is a clean slate, put (last) year behind you and start over and we'll see what happens," Ballard said this week.

To his credit, Ballard handled a difficult situation with considerable aplomb. He never ducked reporters' questions, never complained about his minutes and didn't make excuses. Even his sharp sense of humour remained intact.

"Everything happened and I have learned you go through tough times and you learn that you can get through it, stay positive and work through everything and I'm excited going into this year," Ballard said. "I feel great. I am really looking forward to camp."

Unlike last summer, when he wasn't able to begin his training until August because of his hip surgery, Ballard started his training almost immediately after the Canucks lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final to the Boston Bruins.

"I put in a lot of time to train and had some relaxing time with the family," said Ballard, who spends off-seasons in his native Minnesota. "Training-wise I have been healthy all summer and I have felt great so far on the ice. I have been skating for quite a while."

The Sun believes the Canucks could certainly use a bounce-back year from Ballard. The team lost and hasn't replaced Christian Ehrhoff, who signed with the Buffalo Sabres. But even with Ehrhoff gone, the battle for minutes won't be easy for Ballard, who is behind Kevin Bieksa, Dan Hamhuis, Alex Edler and Sami Salo on Vancouver's defensive depth chart. He'll battle Alberts, Aaron Rome, Tanev and others for the No. 5 and 6 spots on defence.

"Everybody wants to play as much as they can," Ballard said. "That stuff will sort itself out at camp. I am not concerned, my focus isn't I want to play these minutes, I want to play with this guy, I want to play in these situations. I want to come in and play to my abilities and the rest will take care of itself."

The Ottawa Sun recalls that Daniel Alfredsson, whose 2010-11 season was ended because of a bad back after just 54 games, finally had surgery to correct the problem in June. Meeting the media at the Kanata Golf and Country Club Thursday, he stopped short of declaring himself as good as new — or at least as good as a new 38-year-old.

Are you 100%, Dan?

“I don’t think anybody’s going to camp 100%,” Alfredsson said to at least one pair of raised eyebrows. Huh? That’s a reply given by a player returning from a mid-or late-season injury. The guy says “I don’t think anybody is 100% at this time of the season” and you get that. But in September, most if not all of them should be unblemished.

“But I feel good, and obviously excited to start off,” he continued. “Training has been going good so far. I’m happy where I am.”

Are there any restrictions or concerns with the back?

“Not right now, no,” said Alfredsson.

Are you good enough to play pre-season games at the start?

“Yeah, I should be,” he said. “I don’t know if I’ll play all the pre-season games. But hopefully I’ll get a few in.”

Just two or three of the seven, to get his timing back, is plenty.

The Sun relays Alfredsson admitted he doesn’t know for sure how long the back will hold up.

“I don’t know what to expect,” he said. “I’ll take it as it comes. Listen to the body. But as any athlete, I hope I can come back and play fully. As you get older, that’s going to be tougher and tougher, but we’ll assess the situation, how I feel, as we go along.

“Starting off, I expect to play a lot."

The San Jose Mercury News relays that Martin Havlat won't be going full tilt as the Sharks open training camp this weekend. In fact, the right wing acquired from the Minnesota Wild for his speed and scoring might not be going at all when players take the ice for the first time Saturday.

The Sharks disclosed Thursday that Havlat is recovering from arthroscopic shoulder surgery last May and is considered day-to-day. But general manager Doug Wilson wasn't treating that as a significant setback.

"Our goal is to get ready for the start of the year," Wilson said. "He's been skating a month, he looks great."

The injury occurred in May when Havlat, who came to San Jose in exchange for Dany Heatley, was playing for the Czech Republic in the world championships. Like Wilson, Havlat did not seem discouraged.

"I'm just working on the strength. It's in a good way," he said. "We just want to make sure everything is 100 percent."

Whenever Havlat can play, coach Todd McLellan has him penciled in on a line with Ryane Clowe and Logan Couture.

"I used to watch him when I was in Ottawa and he was with the Senators," said Couture, who played junior hockey there. "He's one of those players you can watch for an entire shift and see what he does with the puck and without the puck."

The Mercury News says the Sharks' top two goalies are also dealing with injuries, though one is far less of a concern than the other.

Wilson said starter Antti Niemi may not fully participate at the start of training camp because he recently had a cyst removed, but he should be fine shortly. Backup Antero Niittymaki, however, could be out 12 weeks if he decides to undergo surgery for ongoing pain problems that plagued him last season, when he missed 17 games with a groin injury.

We've gone over the projected forward lines for the Minnesota Wild recently in HH, but the Minneapolis Star-Tribune has more with Wild coach Mike Yeo today on that and more. Here are quotes directly from him.

Forward lines: "Devin Setoguchi - Mikko Koivu - Dany Heatley. Guillaume Latendresse - Matt Cullen - Pierre-Marc Bouchard. Darroll Powe - Kyle Brodziak - Cal Clutterbuck. Colton Gillies - Eric Nystrom - Brad Staubitz. Of course, it can change, but the reason you put it together now is to see if it's going to work, to see if those guys can develop the chemistry together or maybe there's an ingredient missing on a particular line."

About Powe-Brodziak-Clutterbuck line: "Everybody always talks about teams' first and second lines, but I'm a huge believer in every guy must contribute to a team. It doesn't matter if it's Staubitz or Koivu. Each guy has a role to fulfill. This third line can provide a clearly identified role, which sometimes makes it easier to go out and do your job. When I think about the possibility of them playing against other teams' top lines, one, physically, they're going to be punishing on them; two, they're smart and will play the game system-wise and structurally the right way; and three, the line can create a lot of momentum and be hungry to get to the offensive zone and buzz down there. It can be a real momentum line for us shift after shift."

Young players with a chance to make it: "Colton Gillies is a guy I'm expecting to be with our team. At his point in his career, we have to give him a good opportunity. [Defenseman] Justin Falk is like that, too. ... I've seen enough in their game that I believe they're going to be quality NHL players. Guys really knocking on the doorstep are Cody Almond and obviously Casey Wellman, among others, up front. On defense, Nate Prosser is a guy who really impressed us last year. Marco Scandella is a real interesting one for me. ... I believe he's a guy that can come in and make our team better if he's ready right now. But I definitely don't want any young kids not playing games or playing four or five minutes a night. But we as a staff want to ice the best team we can, so if Marco or Casey make us a better team, we'll make those decisions."

Defensive pairs: "Greg Zanon-Marek Zidlicky, Nick Schultz-Mike Lundin, Clayton Stoner-Jared Spurgeon."

Replacing Burns: "I don't want to see defensemen necessarily going end to end, coast to coast trying to score flashy goals, but I do want to see them execute well and support the attack. I think we do have guys that are very capable of doing that."

Addition of Heatley: "I don't like to say that one guy is critical to our team's success. But when you have a guy like that who can each and every shift go out and impact the game, the better he is, the better our team will be. The same goes with Setoguchi. I'm extremely hopeful for what Dany can bring, not just as far as goal production but leadership."

The Orange County Register writes that the Ducks already knew they had their heart – or, perhaps in this case, Hart – coming back in Corey Perry.

They already knew they had their soul returning in players like Ryan Getzlaf, Bobby Ryan and Lubomir Visnovsky.

On Thursday, they learned something else significant would be rejoining them for the 2011-12 season.

Their smile.

Teemu Selanne, more the face of this franchise than that goofy, Disney-generated duck mask ever could be, made it official.

The Finnish Flash isn’t ready to become the finished, past.

Selanne also disclosed that the Winnipeg Jets called to see if he would be interested in re-signing with his really old team, which, this season, will be new all over again.

He said his response was thanks, but no thanks because his “four kids and couple dogs and couple horses and stuff” simply represented too “many things to move” at this point of his life.

The Register indicates a smile is what Selanne brings to this team, this locker room, this organization. A certain levity. A certain lightness. A certain – very certain – foundation.

He is the Ducks’ past and also now their future, this team with so much young talent but still with room for some old perspective.

Of course, Selanne also returns with a level of ability that eventually will place him in hockey’s hall of fame. Yeah, there’s that, as well.

One year, $4 million.

The terms were disclosed. The impact needn’t be. Everyone knows how big Selanne’s decision was for a team loaded with potential and – after last spring’s early playoff fall to a franchise previously devoid of postseason success – want.

The Ducks, though, still will need every goal they can get this season. And, barring injury (which isn’t a minor consideration given that Selanne’s ligaments are as old as he is, 41), they added a bunch of them Thursday.

“The last month I’ve been skating with no pain,” Selanne explained of his recently repaired knee. “I’m very optimistic it’s going to last.”

The Montreal Gazette writes that the health of defenceman Andrei Markov is the No. 1 concern as the Canadiens gather at their training facility in Brossard Friday for the start of their main training camp.

Physicals and fitness testing are on the schedule for Day One and a setback in his rehabilitation from knee surgery will limit Markov’s participation when the players hit the ice Saturday.

Markov, who underwent his second major ACL reconstruction on his right knee in December, skated on his own in Brossard Thursday and it was obvious that he’s far from 100 per cent.

General manager Pierre Gauthier acknowledged as much when he addressed the media at the team’s golf tournament Wednesday, but he put on optimistic spin on the situation while preaching patience.

“It’s always a risk when you sign older players, first, and it’s a bigger risk when you sign older players who have had injuries,” said Gauthier, who gave Markov a three-year deal worth $17.5 million. “But you evaluate that as a calculated risk, and you also evaluate what your options are. In the case of Mr. Markov, he’s such a professional, such a hard working person. One of the things that was interesting about his knee is he had absolutely no collateral damage. The ACL was torn a second time, but in a lot of cases with knee injuries there’s something else that’s gone wrong, like an MCL or some cartilage. In his case it was strictly one band that was ruptured. So we feel pretty good about his prognosis.”

The article also points out there are few openings for jobs in Montreal and most of the battles among the forwards will be for ice time and spots on the top lines. There are arguably seven top-six forwards in camp with newcomer Erik Cole joining Tomas Plekanec, Michael Cammalleri, Scott Gomez, Andrei Kostitsyn, Brian Gionta and Max Pacioretty.

The most interesting situation on the bottom two lines involves where to use David Desharnais. He’s a natural centre, but head coach Jacques Martin used him on the wing during the playoffs last season. He could find himself back there if someone steps up to play centre. Two possibilities are Andreas Engqvist, whose 6-foot-4 frame would be welcome in the vertically challenged lineup, and Brock Trotter, who is back in the fold after a season with Dinamo Riga in the Kontinental Hockey League.

The St. Petersburg Times details how Tampa Bay's training camp opens today at the Ice Sports Forum, and for the first time in five years, Vincent Lecavalier comes in healthy.

"In five years?" exclaimed coach Guy Boucher.

In five years.

The center had arthroscopic surgery on his left wrist after the 2006-07 season to clean up cartilage. He had right shoulder surgery after 2007-08 for a torn labrum.

Cartilage in his right wrist was repaired just as the 2008-09 season was ending, and his right knee had arthroscopic surgery in August 2010.

"It just drains you," Lecavalier said. "Summer is a time to recharge your batteries. When you have surgery, they don't recharge."

The question is, can Lecavalier, 6 feet 4, 208 pounds, regain more of the form that made him one of the best players in the world from 2006 to 2008?

And can he do it for an entire season?

"I want to produce," Lecavalier said. "I know if I played the way I played since January, things will come and the goals will come."

But, Boucher said, "the expectations are not in terms of a number of points. The expectation is he's going to be more in shape, more ready to start."

"We always downplay the effect of injuries, but they are devastating. The enthusiasm that comes from the fact that there's no injury and being able to train in the summer the way he wanted to train will be invigorating for him."

Fire & Ice recalls that Patrik Elias was captain of the Devils once. He doesn’t have any interest in doing it again.

The job has remained vacant since Jamie Langenbrunner was traded in January and new head coach Pete DeBoer is expected to fill it eventually—possibly before the season starts, possible not.

As he said back in January, Elias thinks someone else, someone younger should get the C.

“I don’t need a letter to know what I’m supposed to do,” he said this morning during a break from his training camp physical. “I had the C. I didn’t like the situation the way it was handled when it was taken away. I don’t want to be put in that position again. I think I can help all the young guys and be a leader no matter what. It won’t matter to me.”

Elias was named Devils’ captain before the 2006-07 season by then head coach Claude Julien. He was stripped of the C by Brent Sutter at the start of the 2007 training camp. Sutter told the media about it before discussing it with Elias.

Langenbrunner was named captain on Dec. 5, 2007. Elias has remained an alternate captain since being stripped of the C.

“I’d rather have an A and just help out and there are young guys that can be put in that position for the future,” Elias said.

When asked what he would do if DeBoer offered him the C, Elias replied, “I don’t know. To be honest, I didn’t even think about it. I don’t think that will be the case, but I didn’t even think about it.”

Elias believes that Zach Parise would be a good fit as captain, but notes that Parise is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

When I asked Elias if he thinks Parise will be given the C, he replied,“Hopefully. Then again, you don’t want to have a captain for one year.”

The Chicago Tribune points out in a training camp outlook article that the Hawks already have been hit with injuries to two top players. How quickly — and effectively — forwards Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane bounce back could determine how successful the team is early in the season.

Kane was scheduled to have the splint on his left wrist removed Thursday as he recovers from July 19 surgery to repair a fractured wrist. The winger will be limited as camp begins but still hopes to play in up to four of the Hawks' seven exhibitions. He says doctors have told him "for the start of the season, no question at all I'll be 100 percent."

Sharp is expected to miss the bulk of camp and possibly the opening of the regular season after undergoing an emergency appendectomy Monday. Team physician Michael Terry said he expects the forward to have "a full recovery in approximately three to four weeks."

The New York Post affirms that the alignment up front entering camp for the Rangers seems rather obvious: Wolski-Richards-Gaborik; Dubinsky-Artem Anisimov-Ryan Callahan; Ruslan Fedotenko-Derek Stepan-Zuccarello (his spot to lose); Michael Rupp-Brian Boyle-Brandon Prust.

And on defense, it's fairly concrete as well: Marc Staal-Dan Girardi; McDonagh-Sauer (if healthy); a third pair with Erixon, Steve Eminger, Del Zotto and Pavel Valentenko in the mix. It would, however, be no surprise if the Blueshirts remain on the lookout for veteran assistance.

The goaltending tandem is etched in stone: Henrik Lundqvist backed up by Marty Biron.

The Rangers should be better. Richards should be a critical component in their improvement. But while captain Callahan told The Post on Monday he expects the Blueshirts "to be contenders and make a push for the Stanley Cup," his coach does not want to put the end before the means.

"I expect us to take the next step in the process," Tortorella said. "I don't want to talk about results. I want us to focus on what we need to do and how we have to play in order to get those results.

"We've kept our core here, we added the top free agent on the market in Richie in order to fill our hole at center and increase our level of talent, we signed Michael Rupp who is going to be a major factor for us moving up and down the lineup and our kids have an additional year of experience.

"I think we're where we want to be as an organization," the coach said. "But I'm not going into this putting pressure on the team by stating that we're Cup contenders.

"We're in the next step. But I do feel good about where we are; I don't want to leave any question about that."

The Washington Post says it might have been a rookie game with an outcome that holds little bearing on the future of either franchise, but you couldn’t tell that by watching Capitals defensive prospect Dmitry Orlov as time ticked away in the third period of a 3-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.

Orlov, 20, created several scoring chances late in the contest, had a shot ring off the crossbar and forced Philadelphia netminder Michael Houser to thwart another laser shot with a snappy glove save.

“There’s risk-reward in everything he does but offensively he can make plays that other players aren’t capable of. I think that was evident late in the game,” said Hershey Bears Coach Mark French, who directed the rookies in Philadelphia on Thursday. “He’s got that ability to rise at those special moments, he brings a coach on the edge of his seat and he does some things that are special.”

Perhaps more important, though, was how poised the Russian blue-liner was in an environment that, thanks to a vocal crowd at Wells Fargo Center, was unlike any other rookie game between these two clubs thus far. Orlov matched the Flyers’ physicality, dishing out a few solid checks of his own, and patrolled the point on the top power-play unit.

Orlov will continue to learn, of course, particularly when picking his spots to join the rush or lay a big hit on an opponent. But the confidence he possesses on the ice is also one of his biggest assets.

“He’s got some things to learn as he jumps into the play a little bit,” Coach Bruce Boudreau said. “But he has the jam to do it — a lot of guys wouldn’t have the guts to jump in when he does, but he does, and he’s ready to do it. When he learns to control all that he’s going to be really good.”

The Denver Post describes how Tyson Barrie is the son of a multimillionaire who grew up with a hungry, blue-collar attitude.

"He's earned his way in this game all along. Nothing's been handed to him," said Len Barrie​, a former NHL player and former part-owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning​, whose son is a budding rookie defenseman with the Avalanche. "He's his own person, and he's worked very hard to get where he's at, which has made it very satisfying to my wife and me as parents."

But while Tyson grew up in financial privilege, he earned his way in the tough world of the Western Hockey League as an undersized defenseman. Listed at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, Barrie thrived in the hard-hitting WHL with speed and a steady hand with the puck.

While making the Avalanche this season may be tough for the 20-year-old, he is considered a big part of the club's future plans. A good performance at training camp, starting Saturday at Family Sports Center, could get his NHL future started right away.

"I feel really good right now and I'd love to get a chance, but you know they've got a lot of D. It's up to them and you've just got to go out and make it hard on them," said Barrie, who was named the WHL defenseman of the year in 2010. "I'm not banking on being a shoo-in or anything, but I'm going to go out there and try to make their decision hard."

Barrie told The Post opponents occasionally have tried to get under his skin with taunts about his rich upbringing. That doesn't bother him at all, he said, but he was sensitive to the situation that occurred in the 2009 draft: Tampa Bay had a chance to draft him in the second round, and, his father said, "Our scouts really wanted to take him."

But while Tyson had his father coach him in youth hockey, he did not want the distractions of playing for his team as a pro. He told his father, as the Lightning's pick neared at No. 52 back in 2009, not to take him.

"Very few times have I ever seen him as adamant about something as that," Len Barrie said. "I could understand."

Said Tyson: "I wanted to do this on my own. I couldn't have been happier when Colorado took me."

The Buffalo News says Tyler Myers, the Sabres' rising star on the blue line, became the latest person to benefit from owner Terry Pegula's commitment to winning. Myers and the Sabres agreed to a seven-year contract extension worth $38.5 million, including a $10 million signing bonus July 1, 2012.

"We wanted to recognize Tyler not only for his abilities now but his abilities in the future," Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier said. "I don't think there's an area of Tyler's game that he won't continue to develop."

The 21-year-old has seemed destined to be a cornerstone for the franchise since earning a spot in the lineup as a teenager. The 2010 Rookie of the Year rebounded from a slow start to his sophomore season to regain his status as one of the team's most dependable blue-liners.

The two-year showing convinced the Sabres they needed to see more -- lots more. Myers will finish his three-year, entry-level contract that pays $1.3 million this season before starting the new seven-year pact. Upon completion of the extension, Myers will be just 29 and have played a full decade for the organization.

"It's something that I've wanted to do since I stepped in with Buffalo, is sign a long-term contract with them," Myers said. "I've been very happy since I've gotten here, and it's somewhere I want to be for the rest of my career."

The contract has an annual salary cap hit of $5.5 million, a total exceeded by just 13 other defensemen. No blue-liner earns as much as Myers will in 2012-13. In addition to the $10 million bonus, he will have a $2 million salary, giving him a $12 million season.

He'll make $6 million in the second year of the deal, $5 million in years three and four, followed by annual payments of $4 million, $3.5 million and $3 million.

The News indicates the front-loaded contract is similar in design to the 10-year, $40 million pact given to defenseman Christian Ehrhoff earlier this summer. It's the kind of deal only a big-market or big-pocketed owner can hand out, and it's one Regier would have lamented had another team signed it back when the Sabres worked with smaller budgets.

"In my position, you work with the resources you have available to do the best you possibly can, and you use them as responsibly as you can," Regier said. "We have tremendous opportunity, we have tremendous resources, we have a great group of guys here, we've added to that.

"The expectation internally is, we're going to win. That's a nice place to be."

The Detroit Free Press posits that the more the Red Wings can keep defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom's minutes in the low 20s, the better for the team in the long run. That goal is helped greatly by having Niklas Kronwall, who's hit the prime of his career.

Kronwall, 30, is coming off an excellent performance in 2010-11, a season in which he reached 11 goals, a personal-best in the NHL, and 37 points. He's an all-around talent who plays in all situations. And the more he does so, the more the Wings can reduce wear and tear on Lidstrom, their 41-year-old captain.

"Anytime we can have Swede not play 27-28 minutes on a daily basis, it's going to benefit the team," Kronwall said this week after an informal practice at Joe Louis Arena. Training camp begins this morning in Traverse City with physicals, and on-ice work starts Saturday.

"We're going to be so much better off because we know when playoff time comes, we're going to need him big-time."

Kronwall's career has been hampered by injuries. Making it through last season without any serious setbacks has left his confidence at an all-time high.

"Last year was a big year for me," he said. "I was able to stay somewhat healthy, and that was the main part. It's tough to take steps in the right direction if you're hurt all the time, so that way it was good for me to have a solid year with a lot of games and play quite a few minutes. I feel like I took my game to another level and hopefully I can keep doing that this year."

Kronwall's talents include a knack for upending opponents with open-ice hits that belie his slender 6-foot, 190-pound frame. The bigger benefit for the team is in having a guy who can take over some of the hard minutes otherwise bestowed on Lidstrom.

"Kronner does it all for us, in every situation," Danny Cleary said. "He's physical, he's a good passer, good scorer. I think he can score 15 goals, no problem. When he's out there, the biggest thing for me is, he's a real headsy player, a great team guy and a good leader."

The Raleigh News & Observer relays that today, preseason training camp begins as the Hurricanes players go through physical testing. On Saturday, the first official on-ice practices will be held at the RBC Center.

Here are some leading questions heading into Canes camp, which will interest fans and poolies alike:

WHO MOVES FORWARD?

Canes coach Paul Maurice says it's the most pressing question on everyone's mind.

"Which one of the young players will emerge to take those two openings we have (at forward)?" he says. "It's a question mark not because we don't have good people, but because we have a number of good people who can do it."

The forwards' names are familiar: Zac Dalpe, Zach Boychuk, Drayson Bowman, Jerome Samson. And there are more.

General manager Jim Rutherford has mentioned Dalpe a few times as the player most likely to be on the Canes' top two lines this season. But that's what training camp is for: The strong survive and the others go to Charlotte to play for the Checkers of the American Hockey League.

WHO PLAYS WITH STAAL?

Eric Staal again will center the Canes' top line but who will be his wing men? Erik Cole signed with the Montreal Canadiens after last season. Cory Stillman has retired.

There has been some talk that Jeff Skinner could move up to Staal's line on the left wing, but free-agent signee Alexei Ponikarovsky may get a first look there. On the right side, Jussi Jokinen, newcomer Anthony Stewart and Dalpe are among the names being tossed around.

ANOTHER SKINNER?

Jeff Skinner made the leap from the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League to the NHL last season at 18 and won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year. Now another Kitchener product, defenseman Ryan Murphy, is in the mix as well.

Murphy, 18, was the Canes' first-round draft pick this year and was thought to be the best offensive defenseman in the draft. His speed and puckhandling creativity for the Canes' rookie team in the Traverse City (Mich.) NHL prospect tournament last week made an impression.

"Murphy has the skill level and ability to play in the NHL but that's asking a lot of a young defenseman, to come into the league and play at his age," Rutherford says.

THE SURPRISE OF CAMP?

A year ago, it was Skinner. This year, it could be the player the Canes drafted just after Skinner in 2010.

Defenseman Justin Faulk was a second-round draft pick, went to Minnesota-Duluth last year and as a freshman helped the Bulldogs' win the 2011 NCAA title. He then went to Charlotte, jumping into the Checkers' lineup for the Calder Cup playoffs, and held his own.

Faulk, 19, also had a strong showing in the Traverse City tournament. His conditioning, strength and maturity have led to comparisons to Skinner.

Darren in St. Louis: "hi chris, happy almost hockey season!

third year of a keeper, 4 teams dropped out and the league is now at 16 teams. standard plus shp, fw, and hits. play 3c 3lw 3rw 6d 2w 1f and 2g nightly. keep 10, c lw rw d d g and 4 more at any position.

my keepers are c stamkos lw ryan rw giroux d karlsson d fowler g luongo brodeur couture e kane berglund.

the players on the teams that dropped have been released into the free agent pool for the draft on tue 9/20. i have the 13th overall selection. who do you think i should target? the first three goalies will likely go in the top 10. here are the top players that will be available on draft day. thanks!

bryzgalov, niemi, fleury, roloson, backstrom(g), d sedin, datsyuk, p kane, carter, m richards, chara, duchene, d boyle, letang, stastny, pavelski, burns, ennis, ladd, krejci, kronwall, weiss, callahan, dubinski, jml, stafford, kaberle, jagr, wisniewski, hejduk, seguin"

Chris: It's really tough to project 13 picks into a dispersal draft like that Darren.

Part of me would like to see you add a younger goalie this season in case Brodeur retires, but for now - unless someone like MAF falls into your lap - you can put that off until Brodeur decides. I kind of think he'll play beyond this year, unless the Devils stink.

My guess would be you won't have these guys from which to choose when you pick... Bryz, Niemi, MAF, Sedin, Datsyuk, Kane, Carter, Richards, Chara, Boyle, Letang.

Burns would be nice and maybe the first choice if he's there. Pavelski, Duchene/Stastny, Dubinsky and Wisniewski would be helpful. If you kept a few more guys, even investing in Seguin now (although you could likely easily get him back at the draft) would be fine in the long run... but a lot of guys there are better bets for this coming season.

Another possibility would be going with Niklas Backstrom, if there, as a third goalie and possible Brodeur replacement this summer if needed.

Charles in Burnaby: "Hiya Chris, first question in a loooong time.

I’m starting in another keeper league. I have the 9th spot of 12. The positions are: 10 forwards, 3D, 2 G, 1 BN, IR, IR

So it’s fairly deep. I want to go after Ovechkin, Crosby or Malkin with that first pick, so am considering swapping my 9th pick for one of the 1st three, in addition to my 3rd round pick (downgraded to 4th round) and my 1st round pick for next year (downgraded to 2nd). There are 4 keepers per team.

I know it’s a lot but I want an elite keeper. Should I go for it?"

Chris: I'd do it, sure. I'd be a little hesitant to target Crosby, although his long-term outlook is still supposed to be a full recovery. I'd likely rather want Stamkos and I'd still probably take Ovechkin first.

In terms of the price you'd pay though, I have no problem with it. There are few truly elite options and at the start of a keeper league is your best chance to get one of them.

Peter(Karlstad/Sweden): "Hi Chris, once again I'm looking for you for some help, last year I took over a team in a keeper league and managed to manage it to 3rd place, here are the details.

12 teams, Head-to-Head

Scoring F/D: G, A, +/-, PIM, PPP, GWG, FW, BLK Scoring G: W, L, GAA, SV%, SO

The keepers will be made up of 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 2D, 1G, 2 Util Team positions: C, C, C, LW, LW, LW, RW, RW, RW, D, D, D, D, Util, G, G, BN, BN, BN, BN, IR, IR, IR

And my team to choose keeper from is:

C: Henrik Zetterberg, Henrik Sedin, David Krejci, Patrick Sharp, David Legwand LW: Jussi Jokinen, Scott Hartnell, Peter Mueller, Matt Calvert RW: Patrick Kane, Ryan Callahan, Radim Vrbata, Martin Erat, Brad Boyes D: Mark Giordano, Alex Goligoski, James Wisniewski, Erik Karlsson G: Henrik Lundqvist, Ray Emery, Jhonas Enroth

The two first names(or first regarding goalie) is my preliminary keepers but now for my question(s), whom should I pick as my utility guys?

Currently I'm leaning towards Krejci and Wisniewski since Krejci will bring good amount of points and top notch FW while Wisniewski should get even more PPP this year then last.

But I'm not sure if I should keep Callahan or not due to his many injuries last year and the added burden of being team captain but on the other hand he will play with Richards...

Regards."

Chris: Peter, I'd make a few small changes. On D, I'd put Goligoski and Karlsson as your two keepers and use a util slot to keep Wisniewski. Giordano is ok, but I'd rather have the other three going forward.

Sharp's eligibility seems to vary league to league, but I'd keep him as your second utility guy over Krejci since Sharp should be eligible on the wing too. If you want Krejci's FW, try to get him back at the draft. I think it'll be easier to get him than Sharp back.

Otherwise, I'm fine with your choices. Mueller is one to watch, but can likely be had at the draft again too.

Twitter: @Nichols_NHLPool/ Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com

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