Here's to hoping that all of our American friends had a fantastic Thanksgiving weekend and are all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for their return to the world of working stiffs. Also, here's to hoping our Canadian friends also had a good regular weekend. Let's get to the links, shall we?
Hockeytown, no limits
KuklasKorner : The Malik Report : Patrick Eaves’ broken jaw doesn’t necessarily mean that the Red Wings will recall a replacement
Malik is back with an in-depth look at what Eaves' injury means to the Red Wings' forward situation and how the spot may remain vacant for the time being due to roster and developmental considerations.
How to Cheat in the NHL | Nightmare on Helm Street
Jordan at NOHS looks at the idea of teams hiding bad contracts in the minors and how it can hurt the reputation of an organization who does this. Do you think the next CBA fixes this little loophole?
1,000th Post is a Roster Updataganza! " The Production Line - TP:60
Congrats to the boys at TPL for their 1,000th post. Happy milestone fellas. Drinks are on you tonight.
Red Wings goalie Ty Conklin makes most of practice time | Detroit Free Press
At least Conklin is showing the right attitude about the fact that he hasn't started a game since October. Hopefully he can use that time spent staying sharp in practice well for when he eventually does get another start.
Lidstrom, Howard each get an A+ in Wings’ first-quarter grades | Red Wings Front
Looking at these grades from Chuck Pleiness, there's nothing that sticks out with which I immediately disagree. Good ratings here.
Around the NHL
Ottawa GM blasts Crosby, Bylsma | ProHockeyTalk
So what starts with players chirping each other in the media about a nothing play has escalated to Ottawa's GM. Stay tuned for Mario Lemieux to get involved soon and talk about whether he wants to be part of a league where his captain isn't allowed to elbow people in the head without hearing about it. To the fleet: Climb Mt. Molehill!
Can We Stop With The False Equivalence? - Habs Eyes On The Prize
Among all of the good jokes about calling the cops on Pacioretty after his hit on Letang, there were some who took it seriously. HYotP isn't very happy with that.
The Canucks' "Goaltending Controversy" Continues - Nucks Misconduct
The Canucks have recently been playing their goaltenders based on merit rather than salary and it's been working well for them. Controversy's a' brewin' in western Canuckistan about which netminder should be playing more games.
The Flames Finally Get Honest with Fans - Matchsticks and Gasoline
Holy crap. You know things are bad in Calgary when they pull out the five stages of grief when looking at what's happened to their team in the last few seasons. Hopefully somebody up there can stomp out the still-smoldering embers of this team before starting their complete and necessary rebuild.
Blues give Hitchcock a win in return to Columbus | TSN
Ken Hitchcock returned to Columbus for the first time since being hired as the Blues' head coach and showed them what they missed out on when they let him go.
NHL snubbing Western Conference teams - The Denver Post
Adrian Dater is always funny because he's always complaining about dumb things. He unironically says "every single nationally televised game" features an Eastern Conference team two days after the Thanksgiving Showdown and later comes to say that Denver should get a Winter Classic. Here's a hint Dater: Denver should try getting a hockey team first.
Discussion of the Day: Last season, the Wings went to Tampa Bay to face the Lightning. This year, Yzerman's team brings their GM home to Detroit. What are your feelings on seeing his team in our building? This is the first time he's coming into Detroit as an enemy. Are you conflicted? How does that make you feel?