Seeing GR8Ness

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

The Washington Post writes that the 2011-12 Edmonton Oilers are ripe with young talent, whose development individually and as a group is evident in each game they seem to play. They’re 4-2-2 on the year and 4-1-1 at home in Rexall Place. Edmonton has won its last two against Vancouver and the New York Rangers.

While the Oilers are in the midst of a rebuild, if there’s one team that understands what a young, skilled lineup can do, it’s the Capitals.

“It’s always nice to see when young kids come into the league and they dominate most the time everybody,” Alex Ovechkin said. “I remember when I was 19, 20 years old, everybody so excited to play against us because they know we have young team with Backie, Greenie, Sasha, me. So right now they have the same kind of situation.”

The “kid line” of rookie Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 18, and second-years Taylor Hall, 19, and Jordan Eberle, 21, lead Edmonton in scoring, having combined for eight goals and 22 points.

On Wednesday, Ovechkin was asked how familiar he was with the Oilers’ youngsters and was told that Hall figured the Washington captain didn’t know who he was.

“I know him, I met him a couple times. I met him last year in All-Star game; he probably forget it,” Ovechkin said, jokingly. “He’s superstar; he don’t know small guys like me right now.”

The Post points out that coach Bruce Boudreau won’t have the benefit of the last change to match his shutdown line against the speedy trio constantly, so it will be interesting to see how the Capitals counteract that particular group of Oilers.

Washington will also need to find a way to solve veteran goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin, who Boudreau said “is playing as good as I’ve seen him since his Tampa days.” Khabibulin is second in the league with a 0.97 goals against average and third in save percentage at .963; he’s stopped all but five of the 134 shots he’s faced in five games while going 3-0-2.

One difference between the young Oilers and the Capitals group from several seasons ago, Ovechkin pointed out, is that there is a different level of scrutiny here and a much brighter spotlight, regardless if the team is working through developmental years.

“It’s hard situation,” Ovechkin said. “When we was [young] I think when you compare Capitals and Edmonton right now — Capitals in the U.S. it’s not like more attention. Right now, here you can see cameras all over the place and it doesn’t matter how you play, you’re still going to have attention.”

The Winnipeg Sun reports that contrary to speculation that was threatening to spiral out of control on Wednesday, Jets forward Evander Kane is not looking for a change of scenery.

Although Kane was not available to comment on Wednesday's twitter speculation that he had asked Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff to be traded this week, he did speak with his agent, Craig Oster of Newport Sports, shortly after landing in Philadelphia.

"When I spoke to him, he was as surprised by the rumours as I was," Oster told The Sun in a telephone interview on Wednesday night. "I don't know where this came from. I'm told it was some twitter report that started it. But there's nothing to it from our side at all. There's been no discussion of a trade and no truth to this at all.

"Evander is very excited to be in Winnipeg and there's no issue whatsoever."

There was also some speculation Kane wasn't happy with his role in the early stages of the season and that there might be some friction between him and Jets head coach Claude Noel.

Also not true, according to Oster.

"There's nothing that I'm aware of," he said.

Although Kane saw limited ice time in the season opener as part of a motivational tactic from Noel, he's taken on a larger role of late and has been skating on a unit with Alex Burmistrov and Nik Antropov.

The article notes that with the evolution of twitter and the many opinions flying around the blogosphere, sometimes rumours end up taking on a life of their own.

"There's a lot of benefits to how hockey and sports are covered with social media and everything being in real time, but there are also some pitfalls that come with it and this is an example of how unfounded reports from unsubstantiated sources come out and end up becoming a bigger issue than they should," said Oster. "This is just part and parcel of the age we live in now."

The Jets open a seven-game road trip on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers.

The first encounter of the season with the Montreal Canadiens is always a circle-the-date game for Bruins fans, according to The Boston Herald.

And if the Bruins and Canadiens renew their rivalry with an old-fashioned home-and-home, as the teams play tonight at the Garden and Saturday in Montreal, then all the better.

While the two teams always seem to bring out the best in each other, the Bruins need to look inward rather than at the bleu, blanc et rouge sweaters on the other bench. If passion and effort were what was lacking in the Bruins recently, then the Habs would be the perfect cure-all. But the problems have stemmed more from a lack of 60-minute focus — a poorly timed defensive zone mistake here, a squandered scoring opportunity there — which has kept the Bruins from winning back-to-back games this year.

“Montreal is a great rivalry,” said Bruins coach Claude Julien after yesterday’s hour-plus practice at Ristuccia Arena. “But for me, it doesn’t matter who comes in. We just have to understand that we have to get ourselves winning on a more consistent basis and it’s as simple as that. It’s more about looking at ourselves than looking at the opponent. I know it sounds cliche, but that’s what it is. For us, whoever we play, we have to have that sense of urgency that will allow us to get ourselves back on track and back to the team everyone thinks we should be.”

The biggest problem thus far for the Bruins has been the lack of scoring. They’ve scored 19 goals in eight games (the same number they’ve allowed), but they’ve spent plenty of time in the offensive zone. That’s been true especially of the last two games, when they averaged 41 shots on net. The chances are there, but the Bruins scoring hands have not always been.

“Consistency is what we need in our game and a little bit more of a commitment and desperation and doing the right things,” said Julien. “That scale is tilting on the wrong side right now. Not by much, but we have to make it tilt the other way. And the only way to do that is to adjust on those little things, those little mistakes that cost us goals and bearing down on our opportunities.”

"He's a beast," Carey Price told The Montreal Gazette of Max Pacioretty, who scored twice and assisted once last night as a game-time insertion after suffering ligament damage to his right wrist in Monday's game against Florida. "He's a competitor, obviously. It's not fun to play hurt, but we need everybody right now. It shows he's got big nuts."

The Denver Post remembers that for a few days this summer, Shane O'Brien was a trendy — perhaps even trending — topic in Calgary.

Before O'Brien signed a free-agent deal with the Avalanche in mid-July, Flames fans logged onto Twitter to respond to swirling rumors that the team was talking contract with the rugged defenseman.

"That's one of the cool things about Twitter: You can get some feedback from the fans," O'Brien said before Wednesday's game with the Flames at the Saddledome. "There were a few tweets heading my way. The majority of them were happy to hear the rumor, and there was a few of them that didn't want to see me coming here."

O'Brien eventually signed a one- year, $1.1 million deal with the Avalanche, although the 28-year-old blueliner admitted the messages from fans in Calgary provided some food for thought.

"Anytime you can get people to tweet good stuff about you and want you to come to their team and play for their squad, it's flattering," O'Brien said. "I would have, at the time, had no problem coming to Calgary, but it's worked out unbelievably in Colorado. I couldn't be happier."

Philly.com observes that Flyers right winger Jaromir Jagr snickers when someone mentions that most players are retired when they reach his age.

"This age thing really isn't much of a problem," Jagr said, pointing out that 41-year-old Nicklas Lidstrom is still going strong in Detroit and that 43-year-old Mark Recchi helped the Bruins win the Stanley Cup last season. "I think if you love the game and you are able to practice every day, then age is not going to be a problem."

Jagr will be 40 on Feb. 15.

Some think "the problem with age is that you get a little more tired after games, and the recovery may take a little bit longer," Jagr said before he gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead over the host Canadiens on Wednesday. "But I think it's in your head; it's mental. . . . You don't think about it, and you're not tired."

After Wednesday's first period, Jagr had three goals and five assists in nine games.

For inspiration, Jagr keeps religious mementos at his locker at home and on the road. "Always have and always will," he said.

The Chicago Tribune reveals that Patrick Kane received a lot of phone calls and text messages after his other-worldly, 360-degree spin, no-look, back-handed pass to set up Blackhawks teammate Marian Hossa for a goal during Tuesday night's 3-2 shootout victory over the Ducks.

One message in particular stood out as it came from the man who perfected the spin-o-rama, former Hawks great and Hockey Hall-of-Famer Denis Savard.

"I've been hearing from a lot of people like my buddies and people back home and some different players too," Kane said Wednesday. "It was definitely pretty special hearing from a guy like (Savard)."

What did Savard tell the 22-year-old?

"I just said, 'Finally you got it done,'" Savard recalled with a laugh. "No, I just texted him and told him I'm enjoying how he's playing. I said 'Kaner, you're playing great, keep it going. Great job (Tuesday) night.'"

Savard said Kane's spin move around defenseman Toni Lydman and subsequent pass right on the tape of Hossa's stick was something to behold.

"Just, wow," Savard said. "I know I scored some good goals, but that one was pretty special. No one saw it coming. I watched the whole play and I know he looked over to Hossa but it happened so quickly and the puck was in the net."

The Tribune recalls that during his playing career from 1980-97, Savard scored 473 goals, 377 while wearing a Hawks sweater. He added 719 assists and ranks third in Hawks history with 1,096 points. The move he perfected while with the Hawks and Canadiens, in particular, has worked its way into the lexicon of hockey as the spin-o-rama.

"I just kind of ad-libbed it when I played," Savard said. "At one point for me it was when the opposite defenseman was going to come across the ice and kill me so I had no choice but to spin out the other way. I spun out and there was nobody around me."

Savard said there is a method to the madness of the spin-o-rama.

"(Kane's) able to do it from right to left coming down his right wing side," Savard said. "I was able to do it from left to right coming down the left wing. As you cross over the line the defenseman's going to try to close his gap against you.

"For me, it was 'go' time when the defenseman crossed his legs over and I had to spin out to the other side. You need a really tight gap from the defenseman when you're able to spin.

"It's more of a reaction situation. (Kane) has a special talent. You have to have confidence to do it."

The Toronto Sun writes that he has played for and won a Stanley Cup and has been in the Olympics, but Brad Richards knows he’s about to experience a different kind of excitement.

Finally on the verge of making his long-awaited home debut as a Broadway Blueshirt, the veteran centre says he knows what he’s getting into, a big reason why he signed the nine-year, $60-million US deal with the team on July 1.

“This will have a different feel for 41 games than what I’m used to for home games,” Richards said Thursday as he was the toast of a jammed Rangers dressing room, redone from top to bottom as part of the Madison Square Garden makeover. “It will be a great experience in my life and my career. I can’t wait to start.”

Nor can the fans, we’re guessing.

Since signing the deal, ending a bizarre free-agent courtship from several teams, including the Maple Leafs, the anticipation of his impact on the Rangers has been building. Though he has struggled at times on the team’s seven-game road trip to open the season, the Rangers feel Richards is ready to handle the lead role in a market that can be hard on its star players.

“That’s why he wanted to come here,” Rangers coach John Tortorella said of the 31-year-old star. “He wants that challenge and everything that comes with the city. It’s a great city, it’s a great sports town. There are different pressures here and accountability that comes when you come into a market like this. But that’s why Brad Richards is Brad Richards. He wanted this. And that’s why we want him.

“This is a great situation. I don’t worry about him. I think he’s going to settle other players down.”

The Sun points out that the Rangers survived that road journey to Sweden plus three Western Canadian provinces with a solid 3-2-2 record. Now they begin a six-game homestand they hope will set them up to be a force in the Eastern Conference.

Richards, for one, can’t wait to get on with the show that can be one of the great home rinks in the league.

“It’s a great feeling when you have a fan base that gets behind you like that,” Richards said. “It makes you feel a little bigger, a little faster. You know what kind of fans New Yorkers are in general for their sports teams. I just can’t wait to be on the ice with them behind me, putting on the jersey and getting out there.

“There’s a lot of history here and I’m honoured to be a part of it.”

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette notes that Jordan Staal is tied with winger James Neal for the team lead with nine points going into the home game tonight against the New York Islanders.

None of that captures the full scope of his game, which includes the keen defensive and penalty-killing skills he demonstrated even before he broke into the NHL as an 18-year-old in 2006-07. Or the improvement he has shown in other areas that don't show up on score sheets or statistically.

"It's still early, but, obviously, I'm feeling good," Staal said Wednesday after practice at Consol Energy Center.

"I don't know if my game's evolving or not, but I'm definitely feeling good about where I am and what I'm doing out there. I'm happy the puck's going in for me right now."

It could be that, at 23, he simply is rounding the turn and chugging toward the prime of his career. Staal shrugged at such a notion.

"The league's gotten younger, so I don't know if the prime has gotten younger," he said.

The article notes that with his offensive game coming around, he's leaving any lingering critics of his game high and dry.

"I don't think that just happens because you get older," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said of Staal's development. "He's stronger. His skating is a factor this year. It's been outstanding.

"He's been working to realize how big and strong he is with the puck in all areas of the ice, both defensively and offensively. You see him now create separation in the defensive zone, walking away from people [with the puck], and holding onto the puck in the offensive zone, using his skating and size to be able to make plays."

The development is wide-ranging. Take faceoffs. Staal takes them regularly as a center and was, to put it nicely, inconsistent his first several seasons. Through 11 games this season, he is winning 51.4 percent of his draws. That's up from 49.6 percent last season.

"The more faceoffs you take, the better you're going to get," Staal said. "As a team, we try to focus on being an elite team on draws. I've changed a few things, just trying some new things, going to my backhand more, things like that. Nothing really crazy."

The Miami Herald relays that Florida Panthers general manager Dale Tallon said rookie defenseman Erik Gudbranson would likely stay with the team after his so-called nine-game tryout.

Gudbranson, who is from the Ottawa area, will play his ninth game Thursday night against the Senators at Scotiabank Place.

If the Panthers were to send the 19-year-old back to his junior team in Kingston, Ontario, after Thursday’s game the team wouldn’t lose the first year of Gudbranson’s entry-level contract. If he stays, he can become a free agent a year sooner. The Panthers could still send him back to juniors after his 10th game played, but that rarely happens.

Florida could, however, loan Gudbranson back to his junior team in December, allowing him to participate in the two-week World Junior tournament for Team Canada.

“He’s played well enough, and it’s a positive that he stays here,’’ Tallon said while watching the Panthers work out Wednesday morning. “We’ll decide on Friday. But there’s a good chance — we’re leaning toward keeping him. What’s best for his future, for him totally is what’s important. Is it best for him to stay here? At this time, I would probably say it is. He’s been fine. I think he has a presence out there. … It will probably be better for him once we make this decision.’’

Said head coach Kevin Dineen: “When you feel like you are here on a tryout, the intensity level is high every day. If and when Erik is a full-time NHLer, he’ll be a good one for a long time. As a member of the organization, you’re always looking at long-term development. ... When you get here, we respect development, but he’s going to have to continue to play at an extremely high level to stay in the six-man rotation.’’

Gudbranson was a little upset about going back in 2010, but said he learned and experienced a lot.

“I was able to work on my offensive skill and I had a physical year that brought me along,’’ he said. “Playing in juniors was huge. Those are all learning experiences. The extra year was good.’’

The Winnipeg Free Press points out that with the serious eye injury to Philadelphia defenceman Chris Pronger on Monday, and not long after the puck in the face suffered by Jets captain Andrew Ladd, the matter of visors is again a discussion topic in the NHL.

"I think it's the player's choice, but I'd like to see players wear them," Jets coach Claude Noel said.

Ladd sounded like he wouldn't care to see the NHL mandate the eyewear.

"Ultimately, it's the player's choice... it's your decision, your body and your choice."

Ladd's wife has been suggesting for some time that he always wear a visor.

"I'll make the decision when it's time, when I'm able to take it off," he said. "She (his wife) has an opinion, but at the end of the day I think it's my choice and she knows it's whatever I feel comfortable with and she'll support me.

"Definitely, there's a little birdie in my ear, for sure."

The Columbus Dispatch says that before Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings, the Blue Jackets’ losing streak was 0-7-1; but that counts only the start of this season. It’s easy to forget that the Jackets ended last season with six straight losses (0-4-2), too. As poorly as many Blue Jackets have played during that stretch, only the goaltender carries a record next to his name on the stat sheet.

For Steve Mason, it showed an 0-9-2 mark since last March 29 and a 2-14-6 record since March 1.

Don’t think it didn’t bother him.

“We kind of live in a fantasy world,” Mason said. “We get to play hockey for a living. We don’t have to go to work every day like the average person, so for us to complain, it’s not fair.

“But it’s been extremely difficult, something that takes a toll on you mentally more than anything else. You get almost depressed. You’ve been working so hard, and to never get rewarded for that hard work and keep coming to the rink each day trying to stay positive … it’s a tough thing to do.

“Even trying to sleep at night — it’s next to impossible to fall asleep, just laying there trying to find a way out of it.”

The Dispatch indicates that most goaltenders grow up knowing that, much like NFL quarterbacks, they get the grief and the glory depending on their team’s play. But nothing, Mason said, can prepare a player for the vitriol of fans, especially in the age of social media.

He has let his Twitter feed go dormant, he said, because he didn’t like the wasted hours he spent looking at his cell phone. Given a direct path to the goalie, some fans got ugly.

“You never get used to hearing the negative stuff, but you turn a blind eye to it,” Mason said. “We had some difficult games. I’m sure I’ve been taking a lot of heat for it. So be it.

“You can’t get away from anything nowadays, not entirely. I try to stay away as much as possible, because it’s hard to keep the negative stuff from creeping in. You just have to be strong.”

joe.zone: "8 team keeper league, standard scoring with PIM and SHP. we skate 4C, 3L 3R, 2F, 4D, 1Util, 2G.

After getting almost shutout the first week of the season, I thought it was just because I was up against a team on a great start, then the second week I also got beaten by, what I thought was, a pretty mediocre team. I now sit dead last at a whopping 2-17-3. Please help!

C Eric Staal, Duchene, Franzen (c/rw), Skinner (c/lw) Dubinsky (c/lw), Filppula, Luke Adam LW Lucic, JVR, Moulson RW Gaborik, Williams, Doan, Backes, Brown, Cleary D Chara, Boyle, Kronwall, JM Liles G Luongo, Hiller, Backstrom

I feel like this team could be pretty good, but that I'm suffering from a lot of slow starts from my big guns, I can't wait much longer for people to start producing and I'm ready to dump Cleary for starters, though I am hesitant because playing on a line with Z and Pav has to pay off sooner than later, no?

FA's; Pacioretty, D'Agostini, Cooke, Kelly, David Jones, Marcus Johansson, Antropov, Burmistrov, Knuble, Gonchar, Ian White, Fowler

Really enjoying the nightly recaps, thanks and keep up the great work!"

Chris: Thanks. I'd start with Ian White over Kronwall on D. If the Sens can keep this up, I'd even consider Gonchar again if he won't be a +/- liability. The good thing is you have some decent options with it only being an 8-team league. Fowler will get his points too, so there's no shortage of options.

Cleary could be punted. The Wings may shift up lines and he will produce eventually, but you have equally-as-good long-term options and someone like Pacioretty would be fine. Burmistrov has been really good, but in the long run this year I don't think he'll be as worthwhile as Pacioretty.

Obviously your big guys need to get going. Luongo, Lucic, Staal and Duchene in particular (and many others) can be way better. Once they come around you'll start collecting more wins and make your way into the playoffs, where hopefully everything will fall into place.

Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com

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