Hockey Hearsay

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

The Edmonton Sun writes that as Alberta closed the book on the 2012 world junior, there is the realization that host cities Edmonton and Calgary were big winners, no matter how it worked out in the end.

An hour before the gold-medal game featuring Sweden and Russia -- the next two tournament hosts -- IIHF president Rene Fasel, vice-president and tournament chairman Murray Costello and Hockey Canada president and CEO Bob Nicholson suggested it might take a little while for the host province to really realize the extent of what was accomplished in the hosting of the most ballistic world junior ever.

Fasel said the success of this tournament, and the string of successes in Canada leading up to it, has been incredible.

"You can play these games in some places (outside Canada) and shake hands with every person in the crowd," said Fasel.

"Canadian hockey fans are just amazing. I wish we could have Canadian hockey fans all over the world," he added.

There was no question of the big-picture success dating back to a year ago, when all the tickets were sold in three days.

"This tournament was taken to another level," said Nicholson, who announced a record-shattering attendance of 571,000, with 440,000 going through the turnstiles.

"That was the biggest delight," he said of the latter, which is the most record-shattering number of all.

The Sun points out that never before have such crowds -- which NHL teams like Phoenix, Columbus, Florida and the Islanders would have been happy to have -- watched games with Denmark, Latvia and the like.

"They didn't just show up for the Canadian games. There were 14,000 or 15,000 for every game," said Nicholson, who said he believed the event pumped $90 million into the Alberta economy.

Nicholson said it was too soon to come up with an exact figure in terms of how much money it made.

"It looks like it will be around the $20-million mark."

The previous record was $13.4 million, from Saskatoon two years ago.

"For the first time the IIHF will receive a share to fund programs in developing countries," said Nicholson. "Canada will now touch every part of the world, which is special."

So where do you go to top this?

"The tournament has never been held in Toronto or Montreal," said Nicholson, telegraphing two locations Hockey Canada would like to take the tournament in one of the the four years -- 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021 -- that they have already won the hosting rights for.

It is expected it'll be back in Edmonton and Calgary -- in reverse, with the Canada round-robin games in Calgary and the medal-round games in a new downtown arena in Edmonton -- in either 2017 or 2019.

After what the world experienced in the two Alberta NHL cities in 2012, they can't help but come back sooner rather than later.

"It's quite remarkable how Alberta responded," said Costello. "I don't know how it can be better than this."

The Globe and Mail reports that the International Ice Hockey Federation has launched a special task force to find out why concussions are plaguing the sport and would back a complete overhaul of the game if that would eradicate them.

The committee, which was announced Thursday prior to the World Junior Championship gold-medal game between Russia and Sweden, will reach out to specialists – such as physicians who treated superstar Sidney Crosby – coaches, former players and equipment experts as well as the National Hockey League.

“It would be great if we could arrive at something where there would be a global initiative to change the game in all aspects,” said IIHF vice-president Murray Costello, who will head the committee.

The former NHL player, who is also chairman of the federation’s medical committee, has been advocating the removal of head shots from the game for a decade and aims to make the sport safer for players at all levels around the world. Mr. Costello said that change won’t come quickly and there may be opposition, but officials shouldn’t rule out rethinking body-checking, slowing down the pace by again outlawing the two-line pass, altering equipment or even the size of the ice surface.

“[We] have the opportunity to bring the best people we can find together to work with us to try and nail down the problems in the game and the best way to overcome them,” Mr. Costello said.

The Globe and Mail notes the NHL has a players’ safety committee and has implemented certain rule changes in an effort to reduce head injuries. But it has not yet ordered an outright ban on hits to the head.

The safety-first message, however, is getting through to younger players, IIHF officials said. During the juniors tournament in Alberta, only one player was suspended leading up to the gold-medal game for a check to the head area, while last year in Buffalo, five players were suspended.

At least two players at this year’s tournament, however, were kept out of games because of concussion-like symptoms. Switzerland’s Sven Bartschi, a first-round draft pick of the Calgary Flames, was sidelined after being hit in the head during a game against Sweden, while Finland lost Olli Maata. The 17-year-old defenceman plays for the OHL’s London Knights and sat out Thursday’s bronze-medal game.

“All what we will look at will be geared toward keeping the spectacle as attractive as it really is,” Mr. Costello said, “while returning respect for the game, respect for the players in the game, respect for each other and respect for themselves when they play it.”

The Minneapolis Star Tribune recalls how Mikael Granlund has delivered on the big stage countless times, but the Wild's most prized prospect won't soon forget the puck sliding off his stick in a must-score shootout attempt in the semifinals of the World Junior Championships.

To add insult to injury, Granlund's miss catapulted the rival Swedes into Thursday night's gold medal game, where they beat Russia 1-0 in overtime. It also ultimately might have cost the Finns a medal because the Finns were trounced in the bronze medal game, 4-0 by Canada.

During the precise time of Granlund's shootout mishap Tuesday, the Wild touched down in Vancouver. Later that day, Wild captain Mikko Koivu watched the highlights. He saw Granlund's dejected face. He saw Granlund's tears as he stood with his head slumped over the bench. So on Wednesday, Koivu called Granlund, 19, to lift his spirits.

"At the end, it's one shootout attempt," said Koivu, who won a world championship for Finland with Granlund last May. "It's not going to make him any worse or any better as a player.

"Everybody who knows the game, everybody who looks at the game, they know what kind of player he is. One shot won't ruin that. He's got to know that. It was a tough spot to be in, and a big deal for him. But it won't make him any worse. He's going to do just fine when he gets to [Minnesota]."

If you know Koivu, he's not exactly the touchy, feely type. So for Koivu to show this kind of compassion was big.

"He said, 'It's just hockey,'" said Granlund, selected ninth overall in 2010. "He tried to cheer me up. It means a lot that he called me. He's a great player, and a good friend."

The reality is Koivu is right. Granlund, usually money in the bank in those situations, was named to the all-tournament team, tied for second in scoring and could make an immediate impact once he gets to Minnesota.

The article notes that he opted to stay unsigned so he can fulfill his six-month military obligation, finish school and, he hopes, lead HIFK to another SM-Liiga title. If the Wild doesn't sign Granlund by June 1, it loses his rights and he can re-enter the 2012 draft. The Wild can't sign him until after the world championships, so this could drag into May.

That said, the Star Tribune says the only negotiating issue will likely be bonus structure since he'll get the rookie max salary and signing bonus. Neither side seems worried about a deal being reached.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review points out that Penguins star Evgeni Malkin wasn't in the locker room following Thursday's practice at Consol Energy Center, but he certainly made his presence felt on Twitter during Tuesday's matchup of Russia and Canada in the world junior championships. Malkin mocked some of his Canadian teammates when Russia jumped to a 6-1 lead, then fell silent as Canada roared back before falling, 6-5.

"He's been a little annoying lately," center Jordan Staal said with a smile.

Staal's locker is next to Malkin's.

"It was well deserved, the way they played," Staal said. "You never want to lose to Russia, especially when you've got this loudmouth beside you."

Malkin jokingly demanded $100 from Canadians Sidney Crosby, Arron Asham, Marc-Andre Fleury, James Neal and Staal following the game. Neal was amused when Malkin became nervous in the game's final moments.

"For sure," he said. "He told us to pay up before the game was over. I guess he's lucky on that one."

"It's not just an opportunity to redeem himself, but because he's playing fantastic hockey right now," Canucks back-up goalie Cory Schneider told The Vancouver Province of starter Roberto Luongo's 9-2-2 run that includes three shutouts and a 1.82 goals-against average. The Canucks take on the defending Cup champion Boston Bruins Saturday in a rematch of last year's finals. "I think he's always revelled in the opportunity when people have kind of counted him out. He's responded with a big game and made a statement.

"If anybody wants to win, it's him to erase the memories of last year that people have carried about him."

The Boston Herald points out that Zdeno Chara may not be the most vocal captain, but when he does address something, people tend to listen.

The case in point is young Tyler Seguin.

Seguin had cooled off considerably after a torrid start. Chara decided to have a heart-to-heart with Seguin last month when the team was in Ottawa. The message: When things aren’t going you’re way, lean on your best assets. In Seguin’s case, that’s skating and shooting.

The results from the talk are not dramatic, but they’re undeniable. The goals still are not coming at the rate they were early in the season, but with a goal 1:16 into last night’s game Seguin had points (3-7-10) in six of seven games since Dec. 14. He finished with a goal and two assists in last night’s 9-0 Garden demolition of the Calgary Flames.

“I don’t think my game has changed drastically over the season. There was a little bit of a lull there in finding my consistency and that’s definitely something I’ve been searching for,” said Seguin. “I think it comes with staying focused and not being too hard on myself after games when I don’t have a lot of production.

“But I think after Ottawa, when I had my little talk with Z, I feel a lot better out there and I feel like I’m playing stronger,” he said.

Seguin showed more than a glimmer of the explosive, dynamic and complete player he was earlier this year.

“He was first on pucks, he was hard on pucks, he was battling, he was doing all the little things that people don’t always see, but are huge,” said linemate Patrice Bergeron. “I told him that was one of his best games all year. He was awesome. He was strong, he was hard to keep up with he was so fast. As a line (with Benoit Pouliot filling in for an ill Brad Marchand), we got three goals, but we missed a couple also. He really was doing a great job tonight with his vision, his speed but also his battle level.”

For Seguin, he’s still learning how to bring that every night.

“I’m just taking it game by game trying to keep improving,” said Seguin. “I knew I had a good start and I want to stay consistent and it’s just about finding a way to stay consistent. I think I’m starting to grab that, but I know I still have a lot ahead of me. . . . I’ve got to stay focused.”

PhillyNews.com writes that after quickly blowing a 4-2 in the third period of last night's game against the Chicago Blackhawks and without a timeout left, Flyers coach Peter Laviolette called his team to the bench to quickly regroup. Laviolette said he heard Claude Giroux skate up and down the bench with a message for his teammates.

"It's not going to happen again," Giroux said.

Giroux wouldn't let it happen. Instead, he and linemate Scott Hartnell tic-tac-toed a slam-dunk goal for James van Riemsdyk with 32.8 seconds left in the game, as the Flyers soared to a 5-4 regulation win over one of the NHL's top teams in their first real home game since Dec. 17.

With that, the Flyers avoided completely blowing their second third-period lead in as many games, after Monday's very visible 3-2 loss to the Rangers in the Winter Classic.

van Riemsdyk netted his first two-goal game since Oct. 27. Van Riemsdyk had scored just one goal in his previous 12 games since returning from a muscular tear in his midsection on Dec. 7.

The Daily News reported on Dec. 28 that van Riemsdyk has been playing through a cam impingement in his hip all season, an injury that could require surgery in the offseason. Even during that span, van Riemsdyk tweaked his knee.

Van Riemsdyk, 23, never publicly commented on the injuries.

"Some bounces haven't exactly gone my way for most of the year, but it feels good to contribute and help the team win," van Riemsdyk said. "I don't think I felt this comfortable on the ice as I did last year; I'm still working toward that for whatever reason."

Van Riemsdyk's teammates have known that he was quietly battling his way through various injuries, as he has floated from line to line on Laviolette's lineup card without finding a home.

"JVR was good. It was his best game," Laviolette said. "I liked that he was skating to be physical. He banged bodies out there. I always think that if you want to get yourself in the game, get your feet moving and go bang somebody because that always puts you around the puck. You can't hit people without the puck. You start moving your feet and looking for targets, all of a sudden you find yourself in the game, on the puck, around the play. He got going."

Avalanche center Paul Stastny and wingers David Jones and TJ Galiardi have something to prove, according to The Denver Post.

At the very least, they want to complement the Ryan O'Reilly-centered line (with rookie Gabriel Landeskog and veteran Milan Hejduk), Colorado's most productive in all three zones. And each would like to quiet his critics while prized young forward Matt Duchene​ recovers from a knee injury.

"There is that competitiveness within the team," Stastny said Thursday. "Especially since Dutchy went down, me, Jonesy, Gali, we'd like to get back on the scoring track and maybe take pressure off the (O'Reilly) line. At the same time, when one line scores, the other line wants to score. It's that healthy competition within a team, and when a team is playing well, multiple lines are chipping in."

Colorado's highest-paid player, is fourth on the team in scoring with 21 points and tied for third with 11 goals. He has been used in key situations all season, and his average ice time of 18:30 is third among forwards.

Jones and Galiardi, meanwhile, have spent time on the third and fourth lines and also have been healthy scratches. They will play together beside Stastny tonight for the first time this season. Colorado coach Joe Sacco put Jones on Stastny's right wing, replacing Daniel Winnik​, who is now on the Jay McClement-centered grind line.

"I think with Jonesy there, he's got more of a natural goal-scoring ability, so that might be someone that Paulie can feed off," Sacco said. "They've had some success in the past, those two guys together, and we do need some production from that line offensively. I like what they've been doing defensively, but I certainly (expect) some offensive production."

Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com

Submit your brief fantasy hockey question for a Hockey Hearsay blog via email. One per person, please and include your first name and hometown to represent!

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