Hockey Hearsay

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The New York Post recalls that discouraged by an early-season loss to the Oilers, Rangers coach John Tortorella held a 16-second press conference where he left without taking any questions. Tortorella will have a much harder time avoiding the cameras and microphones over the next month.

HBO began shooting for their four-episode 24/7 series earlier this week, which will provide behind-the-scenes coverage of the Rangers leading into their Winter Classic matchup with the Flyers on Jan. 2. Tortorella has a reputation keeping things private, but he had to make assurances to the cable network and NHL that he would not interfere with the work of the HBO crews.

“The coach has made it clear that, yes, he is concerned about things that provide glimpses at their strategy and possibly with their injuries, but he has not given us restrictions on what we can do,” HBO’s coordinator producer Dave Harmon said.

“We are expecting the full cooperation of the Rangers. We are not expecting any less than we got from the Penguins, Capitals or what we are to get from the Flyers. Until I see otherwise, I’m not worried about it.”

The Rangers may be in a welcoming mood for their new guests having won five of their past seven games after last night’s game with the Lightning. When Washington and Pittsburgh were shown last year, viewers got to witness the lows of the Capitals’ eight-game losing streak followed by winning four out of five heading into their New Year’s Day matchup with the Penguins. The most infamous highlight from the series was then Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau cursing up a storm after one of his team’s defeats.

“We are coming into their house and everyone runs their house differently. That’s part of what we established the first year is that we can be a little flexible, it’s not one size fits all,” NHL COO John Collins told The Post of the show, which premieres Wednesday night.

“The one thing is we need access and that needs to continue throughout the series. You have to give Washington credit because they were going through a tough stretch that they ultimately turned around, but they never restricted the access, never threw the cameras out and it just made for some incredibly compelling television.”

HBO will have nine crew members and three cameras with the Rangers for 30 days, which started Dec. 5 and runs just beyond their game in Philadelphia played at Citizen’s Bank Park. Teams will not have the chance to look at the final copy of the show, but while the cameras are shooting they can tell producers that certain shots are “off limits.”

“But we’ve found with ‘Hard Knocks’ and the NHL so far that that is incredibly rare,’’ Harmon said. “It’s more is in the training room with injuries than it is with anything else, where there’s doctor/patient privilege and things like that that teams simply don’t want the rest of the league finding out about.”

The Raleigh News & Observer reports as Hockey Hearsay publishes today that the Carolina Hurricanes have traded defenseman Tomas Kaberle to the Montreal Canadiens for defenseman Jaroslav Spacek, general manager Jim Rutherford said.

Kaberle signed a three-year, $12.75 million free-agent contract with the Canes in July but has mostly been a disappointment on the blue line this season. Kaberle, a former All-Star with the Toronto Maple Leafs, was traded by the Leafs to the Boston Bruins last season and was a part of the Bruins' Stanley Cup run.

Spacek, 37, also is a native of the Czach Republic. He is in his third season with the Habs and has played 12 games this seasion, with no goals and three assists.

Spacek was placed on injured reserve Nov. 16 with an upper-body injury.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review says that sounding fearful of enduring another long layoff, Sidney Crosby on Thursday said he wanted to "err on the side of caution" before returning to game action after he experienced a post-practice headache this week.

"I just want to be smart with this," said Crosby, who did not travel with the team to Philadelphia for last night's game but whose comments appeared on the Penguins' website. "It's been a long road back.

"I've taken some good hits over the past few weeks and am happy with the way my body responded. But after discussing things with doctors, it was better to make sure I was cautious before returning to play."

Crosby, who missed half of last season with a concussion and did not return until Nov. 21, felt a slight headache after Wednesday's practice. That prompted the team's decision to sit him last night and Saturday at the New York Islanders.

Team officials do not believe the headache is alarming.

Crosby endured a physical game Monday against Boston, including absorbing an accidental hard hit from teammate Chris Kunitz. Neither Crosby nor Kunitz missed a shift.

The next day, Crosby visited Micky Collins, the clinical psychologist who heads UPMC's Sports Concussion Program. General manager Ray Shero had said Crosby saw Collins on Wednesday. Crosby took an imPACT test, which showed the same data that was evident before he returned to game action last month. Team officials said that was an encouraging sign.

"(Collins) said there is no indication of a concussion at this point," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said after the team's morning skating yesterday. "After practice, he had a slight headache. He knows his body well."

The Tribune-Review indicates Bylsma said Crosby's headache was not necessarily the result of one hit.

"He took a couple of hits in that game," Bylsma said. "He didn't feel 100 percent after the game."

Crosby is feeling well enough to resume his normal routine, Bylsma said.

"He anticipates working out tomorrow," Bylsma said. "That's where he's at right now."

The Penguins hope to have Crosby, who has 12 points in eight games, in the lineup Dec. 13 when they host the Detroit Red Wings.

The Calgary Herald communicates that Curtis Glencross will always hold a special feeling for the city of Brooks and now the southern Alberta community will forever remember the farm boy from Provost.

Glencross will have his Bandits jersey No. 17 officially retired tonight during an Alberta Junior Hockey League game.

“It’s kind of neat because it’s the number my dad wore, too,” said the 28-year-old winger with the Calgary Flames, following Thursday morning’s pre-game skate at the Scotiabank Saddledome. “Mom, dad, all my family . . . even my grandparents are coming up, so it’s going to be a good crew of people . . . a lot of fun."

Glencross was initially told by the Bandits they were thinking of retiring his jersey toward the end of last season. Plans were finalized prior to the start of this season.

“I was surprised,” confessed Glencross. “It’s an honour, being one of the first jerseys to go up in Brooks. It’s a place where I had my start in junior hockey, kind of where it all took off. It’s nice that the community and the team appreciates you like that.”

Glencross, who was born in Kindersley, Sask., came out of midget hockey in Provost to play two seasons with the Bandits. He racked up 23 goals among 45 points in his first 60-game season and then banged in 42 goals in a 68-point season his second campaign.

That caught the University of Alaska’s attention, where he was offered a hockey scholarship. Two seasons there and he moved on to the American Hockey League and, eventually, made his National Hockey League debut with Anaheim and Columbus in 2006 before going to Edmonton in 2007 and then Calgary in 2008.

“I had two great years in Brooks,” said Glencross, “and probably the best billets you could ever ask for. The organization was great . . . I was a kid coming out of Provost not knowing too much and got a chance to play junior A.

“They gave me an opportunity to play after midget hockey when I never thought I’d end up playing anywhere after midget hockey with all my buddies back home. I went to a junior A camp once before and got cut and never really thought of anything else. I thought I’d end up working or going to school and they gave me an opportunity.”

The Chicago Sun-Times believes it wasn’t Marian Hossa’s prettiest goal. But that doesn’t negate its significance.

Hossa scored his 400th career goal in the first period of the Blackhawks’ 3-2 overtime victory Thursday against the New York Islanders at the Nassau Coliseum. He became the 85th player to reach that plateau.

“You would think it would be something you would remember, a nice one, but I’ll take this,” said Hossa, who also assisted on two goals by Patrick Sharp. “Right away when I scored, [Sharp] picked it up and gave it to me. It was very nice.”

With the Hawks on the power play, Hossa was behind the net with the puck and tried to pass it to Jonathan Toews, but it deflected off goalie Al Montoya and in. His 400 career goals rank fifth among active players, trailing Jaromir Jagr, Teemu Selanne, Jarome Iginla and Jason Arnott.

“It’s a great number, 400,” Hossa said. “It means something. I didn’t think about it too much. . . . I tried to basically make the pass to Jonathan Toews. I think it hit the goalie’s stick and skate and ended up in the net. It was one of the lucky ones.”

Coach Joel Quenneville called Hossa a “pretty amazing player.”

‘‘When I think of him, I don’t think about his offense,” Quenneville said. “But 400 is an amazing number. He should be proud of that achievement. But it’s his overall game that makes him special.”

The Chicago Sun-Times mentions that Daniel Carcillo expected some attention when he was brought in to be the Hawks’ tough guy, but he didn’t expect to have his own radio show, the “Bomb Shelter,” on WGN-AM (720), where he can talk about music. He’s enjoying being a semi-media member recording his show on days off.

“It’s different sitting in the room with microphones,” Carcillo said. “You’ve got to kind of pretend you’re talking to people. It’s different, but it’s also fun, interesting and new. It’s something I’ve been interested in for the longest time. I’m pretty proud of it.”

The Detroit Free Press indicates that Red Wings forward Pavel Datsyuk sat out the third period Thursday night as a precaution and isn't expected to miss any games.

Coach Mike Babcock said Datsyuk "got a bump" the other day, and "we knew he was a bit sore" with a lower-body injury coming into the Coyotes game. Datsyuk, tied for the team lead with 26 points, set up two goals in the 5-2 victory at Joe Louis Arena.

"He's fine," Babcock said. "It's not a tear, nothing like that." Asked if sitting Datsyuk had a lot to do with the Wings leading 5-1, after 40 minutes, Babcock nodded.

The Wings have had few quiet nights from Datsyuk's line since it gained Todd Bertuzzi starting Nov. 19 at Los Angeles. Datsyuk has 15 points in that span, Johan Franzen has 10, and Bertuzzi picked up his fifth point, and first goal, of the stretch when he scored a 1:16 into Thursday's game.

"Bert's got a lot of assists here lately," Babcock said. "He's been playing real well. I thought their first two shifts of the game were absolutely dominant, Pav, Mule and him."

Bertuzzi's main role is to be in front of the net and get pucks to his linemates, but also, "I've got to try to bury my chances when I get them," Bertuzzi said.

Franzen said he has more room with Bertuzzi on the line, because opponents have to pay attention to Bertuzzi. "He's got really good speed," Franzen said, "and he forechecks hard and he's winning a lot of pucks for us."

That has led to a steady, productive stretch for Franzen, who has points in eight of the past 10 games and is on nearly a point-a-game pace for the season, with 26 points in 27 games. "He's in those spots that goal scorers go to, and that's his game," Bertuzzi said. "He can pass well, but he's more of a shooter in those spots. He always seems to be in the right spot at the right time.

"He's got a very good cut-back move. He can go outside, then cut inside. For a big man, he's probably one of the best I've ever seen. It's a pretty potent move, and he gets a lot of opportunities that way."

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune relays that as Matt Hackett did a TV interview after his NHL debut victory Tuesday in San Jose, goalie coach Bob Mason walked by and gave Hackett a big thumbs up.

So imagine Mason's glee Thursday morning when he got to tell the 21-year-old rookie he would be making his first NHL start later that night against the Los Angeles Kings.

"He was all smiles," coach Mike Yeo said. "Mase likes to do those things, like they're his children."

Well, Mason had to be one proud papa after Hackett lifted the depleted Wild, which was without injured Devin Setoguchi and Cal Clutterbuck and ejected Kyle Brodziak, to a 4-2 victory at the Staples Center.

Hackett made 42 saves as the league-leading Wild swept the three California teams on the same road trip for the first time in history.

''This has been the best 72 hours of my life,'' Hackett said.

PhillyNews.com conveys that in December, there is no rest for the road-weary Flyers.

They swept a three-game trip that wrapped up on Wednesday in Buffalo, one that also included stops in Anaheim and Phoenix. They will play just two of their next nine games at the Wells Fargo Center before the Winter Classic.

And if anyone can appreciate the extra rest that came earlier in the week, with 3 days off between Saturday's win against Coyotes and Wednesday, it is Kimmo Timonen.

Timonen, 36, has played in 212 straight games. But that's not to say he hasn't dealt with his fair share of bumps and bruises. He has been nagged by a wonky lower back practically since he arrived in Philadelphia.

"My injuries aren't really going away that fast," Timonen told a Finnish news outlet this week.

Of the 26 skaters who have donned the Flyers uniform this season, Timonen is one of just eight to have appeared in all 27 games. He rarely misses a practice. On the blue line, he has been as steady as ever. And he has been a calming influence for the rookie-laden Flyers lineup with Chris Pronger and Andreas Lilja out with injuries.

"For me, what's most impressive about him is his durability," coach Peter Laviolette said. "I have told him he is like the mail. He shows up every day. It's in your box. You don't think about how it gets there."

Timonen is tied for third among all NHL defensemen with 18 assists. This year, he is asking for just one thing for the holidays.

"I have one wish for Santa," Timonen said in the Finnish paper. "Bring me at least one goal."

The Tampa Tribune notes that in last night's 3-2 shootout win over the Rangers, Tampa Bay became fired up after falling behind 2-1 on a shorthanded goal by Artem Anisimov at 13:23 of the second period. After scoring, Anisimov turned toward the Lightning net and put his stick up like a gun and pretended to fire it at the net where Mathieu Garon was fishing the puck out.

Immediately upon the gesture, Lightning captain Vinny Lecavalier went after Anisimov and a scrum ensued that involved every player on the ice, and perhaps one who came off the bench to intervene. By the time it was all sorted out, five players received penalties that totaled 36 minutes. And though Tampa Bay failed to convert on the power play that ensued from the incident, it was a moment that charged up the Lightning bench.

"He points his stick like he fires at our net, I'm sure his teammates and their coach was not impressed with that,'' Lecavalier said. "We were offended and it's disrespectful. It's not like he was happy to score a goal and did some type of (fist) pump; it was directly at our net and our goalie.''

Anisimov was not made available to the media after the game at the request of Rangers head coach John Tortorella.

"It was the wrong thing to do, so I guess I'm in a protective mode for him, because I think he deserves to be protected," Tortorella said. "I don't blame Tampa at all as far as how they reacted. But I want to protect Artie – he's a solid, solid guy that made a mistake. I still don't think he really understands what he was doing. He's a good kid. … I don't think he realized what would happen in that situation. It's a lesson learned pretty quickly.''

Lightning head coach Guy Boucher called Thursday's game a team effort, something that showed when Lecavalier went after Anisimov.

"It was a good rallying moment for us,'' Boucher said. "We wanted to stick together tonight and we were not going to win it individually, we didn't have enough to win it individually, we had to win it as a team. That was a gesture that I think proved the players were in it together. Vinny, the captain showing the way, in the fact that we are not going to take humiliation and he certainly set the tone for the rest of the game.''

The Washington Post reports that Roman Hamrlik did not rotate in consistently during line rushes this morning but the veteran defenseman said after the workout that he expects to be back in Washington Capitals’ lineup Friday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“I’m cleared to go,” Hamrlik said. “I feel much better.”

Coach Dale Hunter confirmed that Hamrlik will be returning to the lineup.

“Roman’s a veteran; he’s been around a long time and we need him back in there,” Hunter said. “He moves the puck, passes really well. We need him there to block shots. He’s one of the best shot-blockers, so he should give us a lift tonight.”

Hamrlik missed the past four games with what the team has called a lower-body injury, which the defenseman said was not a groin problem like what he experienced during training camp back in September.

Through 23 games, Hamrlik has one point, 18 penalty minutes, is second on the team with 46 blocked shots but has a team worst rating of minus-10. He is in the first year of a two-year contract worth $7 million.

The 37-year-old Czech participated in practice or morning skates each of the past four days, but Hamrlik said he didn’t feel ready to return until Friday.

“I talked to the coaches and the training staff and I didn’t feel comfortable out there. I don’t want to push,” Hamrlik said. “Obviously it would be different story if it were in the playoffs — I would probably go and play. I want to be 100 percent, and it feels like it. I’m ready to go today.”

With Hamrlik back in the mix against Toronto, Jeff Schultz appears to be the odd man out. Schultz, who skated a season-low 3 minutes and 55 seconds against Ottawa on Wednesday, was the last player on the ice and taking part in some one-on-one work with assistant coach Jim Johnson.

Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com

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