Hockey Hearsay

Hockey Hearsay runs weekdays, 12 months a year; mixing NHL stories, quotes and fantasy takes.

There wasn’t much good for the Montreal Canadiens to take away from their home opener against the Calgary Flames Thursday night, according to QMI Agency.

All the positive stuff was pretty much done by the two-minute mark of the first period and it all had to do with winger Max Pacioretty.

He was playing his first regular-season game at the Bell Centre since that devastating hit by Boston Bruins defenceman Zdeno Chara last March that left Pacioretty with a cracked vertebra and a concussion. He got the biggest and most emotional ovation in the pre-game introductions.

“I’m so thankful that the city supports me,” said Pacioretty, who set up the Canadiens’ only goal by Andrei Kostitsyn for a short-lived 1-0 lead. “They stood up for me in my situation. It’s great to get that support, but at the same time, I wish we could have performed a little bit better. It’s a long season. We’ve got 79 games left and I’m looking to prove to these fans that I can help this team win games.

“It was tough for me to hold it in out there with everything I’ve been through. It’s probably the best feeling in the world knowing I have so much support out there. I’m looking forward to following through and performing for the fans.”

The Winnipeg Sun notes that Kevin Cheveldayoff didn’t spend much time looking up at the rafters inside the United Center and staring at the 2010 Stanley Cup banner on Thursday.

Back in the Windy City as the general manager of the Winnipeg Jets, the former Chicago Blackhawks assistant GM made the rounds and talked to plenty of old friends.

But at the end of the day, this was a business trip.

“It is a very special time,” Cheveldayoff said. “Anytime you can come back to where you won a championship, it is special. The culture in this organization is a lot like our culture with the Winnipeg Jets.

“The memories are important and I have the ring and all of the special things that go with it, but there’s so many things happening. It’s exciting but the events are all over. This is about hockey and obviously each and every night it’s about the two points.”

Cheveldayoff worked for the Blackhawks for two seasons, but spent another 12 running the Chicago Wolves and leading them to four championships, two in the International Hockey League and another two in the American Hockey League.

The Sun says that Cheveldayoff clearly remembers his initial encounters with Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman before he was hired.

“We talked on a personal level quite extensively and our personalities seemed to click pretty well,” Cheveldayoff said. “One of the things I told him first off, I looked him straight in the eye and said ‘I want to be a general manager in this league but I don’t want your job.’

“From that point on, we understood each other.”

When the Jets called the Blackhawks for permission to speak with Cheveldayoff this summer, Bowman wasn’t about to say no.

“I knew at some point he was going to get an opportunity,” Bowman said. “He’s a very bright guy, he’s very capable and deserving of a chance. He certainly worked his way up and paid his dues, so to speak. The time was right for him.

“He’s a humble guy and his work ethic is unmatched. But he’s also very bright and he treats people fairly. Personality-wise, he’s got the right balance but he’s also got some really good insight and has experience running teams.”

The Washington Post says that when Alex Ovechkin’s first goal of the season went in the net behind Pittsburgh goaltender Brent Johnson, not everyone saw it. The referees missed the goal as the play unfolded, when Ovechkin placed a deft deflection on a wicked point shot by Mike Green, sending the puck speeding into the upper-right corner of the cage.

“I screamed to Greenie, ‘Take a shot! Take a shot!’ So I tipped it, it hit the post but I don’t know it goes in — my celebration was not that good,” Ovechkin said. “I’m glad I’m scoring. I feel much better in the second period, third period, when I have more chance to be on the ice.”

Ovechkin skated just 18:55 against the Penguins in Washington’s 3-2 overtime win Thursday, but he was a physical presence throughout the contest. He finished with a game-high six shots and had three shots on goal, along with only one attempt that didn’t reach its target.

While Pittsburgh’s defenders pride themselves on shutting Ovechkin down, and have done a good job of it recently, Washington’s captain started to look a little more like himself against the rivals.

“I thought he was a lot more engaged in the game,” Coach Bruce Boudreau said. “I thought he was a lot better, working both ends of the ice and really trying. Sometimes you really try, you get nothing. Sometimes you really try, you get four goals. And he had some shots on goal and you could see progress all the time. I think that’s okay.”

The New York Post writes that if the Islanders could make a mold and mint last night's performance over and over again, they would be a very happy franchise come playoff time.

They got a dominating two-goal, two-assist performance from John Tavares, solid goaltending from Al Montoya, and played shutdown defense against one of the most explosive offenses in the NHL. It all resulted in a 5-1 win over the Lightning in front of 9,759 at the Coliseum.

"It was big that we got out of the gate early," said coach Jack Capuano about the Islanders' four-goal first period. "We've talked about putting 60 minutes together, and I thought tonight for the most part we were close to that. We did a lot of good things. I thought overall it was a good effort."

Tavares opened the game with a historic first period, becoming the first Islander to record four points in a period since Niklas Andersen on Dec. 10, 1996. He scored the first goal 36 seconds in, taking a good wrist shot from the left circle that was popped up in the air and swatted in by the hand Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman (taken No. 2 overall in the 2009 draft, one pick behind Tavares).

By the time the period ended, Tavares had his two goals and two primary assists, while his linemates Matt Moulson and P.A. Parenteau both added a goal and an assist apiece, finishing the frame up 4-1.

"We just did the right things and fed off each other," Tavares said of his line, all three of them finishing plus-4. "[We] played a simple game, got pucks to the net, went to the front of the net and got rewarded for it."

When the Isles added a goal from Michael Grabner in the second period to make it 5-1, they had chased their former goalie, Dwayne Roloson, from the Lightning's net. He was replaced by Mathieu Garon.

"I knew I wanted more shots on net," said Tavares, who left the third period slightly early with a cramp in his right quad. "We're starting to feel a little bit better."

Fire & Ice indicates the Devils might have to recall another goaltender after Martin Brodeur “tweaked” his right shoulder Thursday night and left the game after the first period, but GM Lou Lamoriello said no decision has been made on that, yet.

Lamoriello said Brodeur “feels better today” and will accompany the team on its flight to Nashville today. The Devils are scheduled to practice this afternoon in Nashville. They play the Predators there Saturday night and then have five days off before hosting San Jose next Friday, so it would seem logical that the Devils would hold Brodeur out of Saturday’s game and give him that long break to recover.

It may be time to worry some about Peter Mueller again, according to The Denver Post.

The Avalanche left wing, who missed all of last season with a concussion, did not play in Thursday's game against Ottawa because the team said he was not feeling well.

There were no specifics about what that meant, however, with the team saying only that Mueller will be re-evaluated Saturday morning, as it will take today off before playing Montreal on Saturday night.

Asked if Mueller's absence was related to a recurrence of concussion symptoms, Joe Sacco said, "We'll see how he presents on Saturday."

Mueller was with his teammates after their 7-1 win over Ottawa, and was smiling and talking. But he was not made available to the Colorado Avalanche media.

Mueller's spot in the lineup was taken by Joakim Lindstrom, who scored twice in his first game of the season. Sitting out the first three games was tough for Lindstrom, who led the Swedish Elite League in scoring last season and signed as a free agent with Colorado to resurrect a previous NHL career.

Lindstrom's first goal, at 17:20 of the second period, came after a puck popped high in the air behind an unaware Craig Anderson and landed in the crease.

"I saw it was in the air all the time. I think I was one of the few guys who saw it was in the air. It was great it landed where it landed," Lindstrom said.

The Buffalo News points out that it's been nearly a week since the Sabres last played. Since then, they've mixed in easy practices, hard skates, a day off and locker room tours.

The Sabres finally return to action tonight, with Buffalo eager for the home opener. The Carolina Hurricanes will skate into First Niagara Center to face a team that's 2-0 and hoping to show the locals that the summer of hype was justified.

"I'm expecting it to be pretty crazy out there," right wing Drew Stafford said. "With everything that's gone on with all the changes, we've got off to a decent start now, over in Europe we played pretty well, so I think fans are excited. If I was a fan, I'd be coming out and screaming my head off for us, so I'm looking forward to a great turnout."

The Sabres welcomed the time to recuperate following last week's debut in Finland and Germany. Their internal clocks reset earlier in the week, however, so the past couple of days have been respite overkill.

Coach Lindy Ruff's goal is to rein them in a bit. He, too, is eager to feel the energy fans will bring to the refurbished foot of Washington Street. However, he recalls how differently the team played at home last season, specifically the 0-6-1 start.

"The atmosphere is going to be great," Ruff said. "The thing we have to put aside is don't let our emotions run wild with the atmosphere. We have a game to play. We have some situations we know we have to execute in, some you can't be too hyped up for. To play your best games you have to be relaxed and you've got to be ready to play.

"Last year we had a little bit of a taste of not playing well at home to start the year, and we need to play a game where we're paying attention to our system, to how we play, and the score will take care of itself."

In Buffalo, the phrase "lot of positives" is an understatement.

Fans are giddy at the prospect of finally seeing newcomers Robyn Regehr, Christian Ehrhoff and Ville Leino in a game situation. They're hoping the line of Luke Adam, Thomas Vanek and Jason Pominville can continue its torrid start, which has featured five goals and 13 points in two games. The locals want an up-close look at the squad that kept Anaheim and Los Angeles quiet while making plenty of its own noise.

Buffalo, basically, is just ready for the puck to drop.

"A good start can really make or break a season," Stafford said. "If you start behind the eight-ball, you're playing catch-up the rest of the year. You look at us last year. We started OK and we kind of trailed off for a while there. We were near the bottom, and we had to battle. You look at years past, like the year we won the Presidents' Trophy [in 2007], we started off just flying out of the gates, and it helps.

"We had a great week of practice here to make sure our habits are in order, and I think the guys are ready to go."

The Raleigh News & Observer reports that defenseman Ryan Murphy won't be making the jump from junior hockey to the NHL at age 18 this season.

The Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday returned Murphy, their first-round draft pick this year, to the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League.

Murphy earned a spot on the Canes' 23-man roster for the regular season but did not play in any of the first four games. He had hoped to follow the path set last season by forward Jeff Skinner, a former Kitchener teammate who was the NHL's rookie of the year at 18.

"The fact that he went beyond the start of the season with us as an 18-year-old defenseman is really exceptional and tells what we think of him," general manager Jim Rutherford said Thursday of Murphy. "We feel him staying with us an extra week and participating in practice and seeing regular-season games, getting a feel for the tempo of games and the tempo of practices, will help him this season and help in his development."

Murphy, from Aurora, Ont., was the 12th overall pick of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and was arguably the best offensive defenseman in the draft.

"Obviously I've learned a lot," Murphy said. "I found out what it's like to be a professional hockey player but I guess it's time to go back down to junior for another year.

"I wish I had gotten in a game to see what it's like in the regular season, but that wasn't up to me and I'm happy with what I've done. I learned a lot. It's a lot faster, a lot quicker, but I'll work hard and see where that takes me."

The Columbus Dispatch believes that preseason concerns about the Blue Jackets’ No. 1 line — that center Jeff Carter and right winger Rick Nash would have too much of a shoot-first mentality to truly mesh — have mostly been dismissed during the first week of the season.

Those two, along with left winger Vinny Prospal, have combined for four goals, eight assists, a plus-5 rating and 39 shots on goal, almost single-handedly keeping the Jackets in all four games.

But the Jackets are off to the worst start in franchise history, 0-3-1 heading into Saturday’s game at Dallas, in part because not enough players have joined in the heavy lifting.

“We’ve only gotten goals from our big line,” coach Scott Arniel said. “We’ve only got one unit scoring. You don’t win with two goals (per game) in this league unless you do an outstanding job shutting people down.”

R.J. Umberger, Antoine Vermette and Derick Brassard — the three most obvious names on the roster when it comes to “secondary” scoring — are still looking for their first points.

“The only thing we’re going to do is battle through it,” said Umberger, who has played with Vermette on a line for most of his three-plus seasons in Columbus. “We haven’t lost it. We haven’t lost anything. We’re just not clicking, not scoring.

“We have to focus on being a little greasy, increasing our battles and winning those loose pucks. Not pretty, just get greasy goals. We’re getting chances. We’ve had chances every game. It will come.”

The article notes the Blue Jackets worked on getting “greasy” yesterday in practice.

Several drills focused on short-range scoring, forcing rebounds, overwhelming the goaltender with traffic, and crashing the net.

“You have to stick with it and keep doing what you’re doing,” Vermette said. “The one thing you learn through the years is not to panic and change something and knock the whole thing out of whack. Eventually, you start getting the bounces.”

The Blue Jackets can’t afford to wait much longer, however.

After the frustrating loss on Wednesday — the Jackets gave up an extra-attacker goal with 40 seconds remaining that forced overtime — the pressure to win keeps growing.

“I didn’t think we’d be” 0-3-1, Umberger said. “It’s early in the season, but there’s some urgency to put some wins together because you don’t want to get too far behind at the get-go. It’s hard to catch up in this league.”

The Philadelphia Inquirer observes that Mike Richards did his best to downplay the situation. But even in his low-key style, the anticipation of playing against the Flyers was inescapable.

The center and former captain will make his first appearance against his old team when the Los Angeles Kings visit the Flyers for Saturday night's game at the Wells Fargo Center.

"I try not to think about it as much as possible," Richards said after Thursday's morning skate at the Prudential Center. "It will be an exciting night once I get there."

The Flyers rebuilt the team when they traded two of their cornerstones, Richards and Jeff Carter, with Carter going to Columbus.

Richards says it's nice to be surrounded by some familiar faces such as Simon Gagne and Kings assistant coach John Stevens, the former Flyers head coach. No longer a team captain, Richards said it has been easy to fit in with his new teammates.

"The guys in the dressing room have helped out a lot and made me feel at home," Richards said.

Stevens, now in his second season as a Kings assistant, understands the significance of Richards' return to the Wells Fargo Center.

"When you think of Mike Richards you think of Philadelphia, so this is certainly a big event for him and for the fans," Stevens said.

Richards made a strong debut with his new team. The Kings opened their season in Europe, beating the New York Rangers, 3-2, in overtime in Stockholm, Sweden. Richards scored a goal and assisted on the game-winner.

"He has a lot of leadership and is a character player with a winning attitude," said Kings coach Terry Murray, yet another former Flyers head coach. "For the Kings he gives us more strength down the middle of the ice."

Richards said that he'll always have a good feeling about Flyers fans.

"I enjoyed playing in front of them every night and was excited to play in front of them," he said. "And I will be excited to play in front of them on Saturday."

D in the East: "morning chris- Back again with question for the guru!

Decent draft H2H Yahoo minus my goalie options. Miller, Halak and Mason. Not sure after Miller I can win many goalie stats week in and out. Pickup options Pavelec, Anderson, Smith, Rask, Bernier, Schneider, Hedberg, Dubnyk, Khabibulin.

Am I better off with a change? My leash is short with Mason. Another team dropped Duchene who I grabbed so maybe a bad goalie dump is to follow? Thanks."

Chris: Despite Ottawa's start, I'd rather have Anderson than Mason. That said, with Miller and Halak there and getting a lot of starts I could also see going with Rask or Schneider for the time being. They should both see solid start totals (likely Rask with more, but we'll see) and the peripherals should be strong. We also know in advance of any start time which guy will be between the pipes.

If you don't want to bother with an extra goalie, just use your two starters (dumping Mason) and using the extra spot for offence.

joe.zone: "Hey Chris,

H2H, 8 team league. Craig Anderson has been my third goalie behind Hiller and Luongo; I was looking for some decent peripherals against the Avs last night. Well we both know how that worked out. My question now is; should I drop Anderson for Niklas Backstrom?

Cheers, and here's hoping Hemsky's hurt (s)houlder heals hurriedly."

Chris: No kidding on Hemsky. Ouch. As far as Anderson, it's easier to be impatient in an 8-team league with other solid options. Backstrom is what I'd consider a fairly similar choice in the long run and his numbers are certainly stronger now. Sure, make the switch. I still think Anderson will come back in a strong manner, but you don't need to sit around and wait with good FA options.

­Chris Nichols is Sportsnet.ca's fantasy hockey writer.