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Dodger Stadium Winter Classic; 10 worst NHL fans; ‘While The Men Watch’ debate (Puck Headlines) (Puck Daddy)

Here are your Puck Headlines: a glorious collection of news and views collected from the greatest blogosphere in sports and the few, the proud, the mainstream hockey media. • Viggo Mortensen is a huge Montreal Canadiens fan. What better way to remind the world of this fact than by wrapping Kirsten Dunst in a Habs flag at Cannes, continuing an odd red carpet tradition for Aragorn. [ OMG Yahoo! , via Martin Leroux] • Marty Brodeur on the Mark Messier guarantee ghosts of 1994 haunting the New Jersey Devils in Game 6: "I know if you guys look at it, it looks the same, but it's different teams and a different way of playing the game and it's 18 years ago and that's a long time. I know I'm feeling a lot different. I'm feeling a lot more appreciative of what's going on." [ Fire & Ice ] • Bruce Driver on 1994: "I ended up going to New York and played with Mark, a tremendous leader and one of the best captains of all time. In 1994 against us, Mark did what he did, backed it up and scored three goals. But from our standpoint, the way we looked at it, we blew the game." [ NYT ] • Great piece on the friendship between Devils fans and Rangers fans, unnatural that it is. [ WNYC, via Michael Raphael] • No structural damage in Michal Rozsival's knee after that Dustin Brown hit. [ Sportsnet ] • Mirtle with poll on fighting that finds hardcore fans love it, non-fans loathe it. [Globe & Mail, and see graphic ] • Earl Sleek sees a lot of the 2003 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the 2012 Los Angeles Kings. Say, are those the Devils on the other side of the bracket? [ Battle of Cali ] • Los Angeles Dodgers President Stan Kasten wants to pursue a Winter Classic at Dodger Stadium. Read this and other stories in our new book "[Expletive] No One Would Be Saying If The Kings Weren't In The Cup Final." [ LA Times ] • Rich Hammond on the matter: "Gary Bettman has sneered (literally) at any suggestion that a Winter Classic could be played in a warm-weather environment. And while the Kings would love to host an outdoor game — Luc Robitaille is a particularly big proponent — AEG is also in the planning stages of a new downtown football stadium, which would probably be a more likely location in the event that Bettman stops sneering." [ LA Kings Insider ] • The 10 most annoying hockey fans. Including you, Guy Trying To Get on TV. [ THW ]

 

Blue Jackets re-sign Ryan Russell to 1-year deal (The Associated Press)

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) The Columbus Blue Jackets have agreed to terms on a one-year, two-way NHL-American Hockey League contract with center Ryan Russell.

 

While The Men Watch Hockey Night, the women get frustrated with CBC (Puck Daddy)

(Ed. Note: The "While The Men Watch" controversy rages on , as CBC Sports presents a new program featuring two women who commentate on hockey while the "sports addicted men" in their lives watch it. The backlash was palpable, but it's not without its defenders. We asked blogger/Montreal Canadiens fan Julie Veilleux, a.k.a. @MetricJulie , for her take on the program.) By Julie Veilleux When I first heard about " While the Men Watch ", I thought to myself, "Great. More women in sports acting ditzy and pretending they're Sarah Jessica Parker." Then I saw the backlash on Twitter and in various blogs. While awesome for recognizing sexism and outdated gender roles, something about the intensity of the criticism toward the two hosts bothered me. I mean, okay. They ARE willingly enforcing the myth that all female sports fans are really just sports widows who reluctantly and begrudgingly learn the sport to please their man or spend more time with him. They DO contribute to a system that, while maybe being "fringe" and letting women to join in on the conversation, still only allows those corresponding to a standard of beauty to take part. But to hate these women because they like pink, or talking about men, or hinting at wanting to have sex with them, seems pretty unfair. I like pink. I like men. I like stuff. That doesn't make me a bad fan or less of a fan. Most of the outrage I've seen has been directed toward the CBC for putting this show on the air, but there have been personal and gendered attacks on the hosts as well. Well, that's not solving anything. I hate the way the system works just as much as anyone else who's been discriminated against based on gender, orientation or color. But there are a whole lot of things wrong with While the Men Watch that are worth your ire. Let's take a look at just a few of them, shall we?

 

Canucks coach signs contract extension (AFP)

Alain Vigneault has signed a contract extension to remain as coach of the Vancouver Canucks, the National Hockey League team announced on Wednesday.

 

How the Last 13 Stanley Cup Champions Didn't Repeat, Part 4: Fan's Take (Yahoo! Contributor Network)

In the past 13 years, all 13 Stanley Cup champions fell short of raising the Cup another consecutive time. The first part of my series looked at how the champions from 1999, 2000 and 2001 failed to repeat. Part two studied how the 2002, 2003 and 2004 champions missed the chance to win again. Last week, part three explained how the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 champions were undone the next year. Finally, this series ends by exploring the way the 2010, 2011 and 2012 champions went home early.

 

Alain Vigneault signs extension with Vancouver Canucks because he’s excellent (Puck Daddy)

When Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis signed his contract extension earlier this month, the conversation turned to the future of coach Alain Vigneault. His return was never a guarantee, given the team's President's Trophy-to-first-round-exit performance and the fact that Vingeault has been on and off the hot seat since 2008. But Gillis gave him an endorsement: "He has done an excellent job and I don't know why you wouldn't want somebody back who has done an excellent job and has the results to show for it," said the GM. On Wednesday, the Canucks made a most excellent decision: Signing Vigneault, 51 to a contract extension. From the Canucks: "Alain has established himself as one of the premiere coaches in the National Hockey League," said Gillis. "He has demonstrated a commitment to winning that has led to back-to-back Presidents' Trophies and we are confident his dedication and hard work will continue to yield positive results. Alain has built a foundation of winning with this franchise and I feel he can continue to build on that foundation to achieve our ultimate goal." "I am pleased to be signing this extension to continue as the Head Coach of such an outstanding organization," said Vigneault. "I look forward to taking the next step with this franchise in bringing the Stanley Cup to Vancouver. I feel fortunate to be able to work with such a dedicated group of management, coaches and players in this great city I love." Vigneault had one more season left on his current deal. Had the Canucks severed ties with him, heavy speculation had him potentially returning to the Montreal Canadiens to fill that vacancy.

 

Dubinsky returns for Game 5; No hearing for Brown; Spacek rips Habs (Puck Headlines) (Puck Daddy)

• John Tortorella, when asked how he was going to get his forwards going on Tuesday: "Pray." He then read an excerpt from his memoir on a trip he took around the world after splitting from the Tampa Bay Lightning. • By the way, in case it wasn't clear that John Tortorella's sense of humour is lacking, on Wednesday morning he made it clear that he was joking about prayer and retracted the joke. [ NHL ] • No hearing for Dustin Brown for his controversial collision with Michal Rozsival. [ LA Kings Insider ] • Brandon Dubinsky returns to the Rangers' lineup for Game 5. [ Newsday ] • Showing some much-needed attention to the Devils' relatively anonymous blueline. [ NJ ] • An argument for shaking up the New York Rangers' lines by removing Carl Hagelin from the top unit: "Hagelin is currently playing top line minutes with the Rangers two most skilled forwards, and ha exactly zero goals to show for it. That's no goals and just three assists in 18 games so far this postseason. No matter which way you look at this, it's unacceptable to have a top line player with zero goals in 18 games. At some point, changes need to be made." [ Blue Seat Blogs ] • Jaroslav Spacek claims he might have retired at the end of the year if he had finished it in Montreal, and rips the Canadiens hockey operations team, from the bizarre rules for the players to the total lack of communication. "'So much bad stuff,' Spacek said. 'In my 20-year hockey career, I'd never seen anything like it. If you don't like the way I play, kick me in the ass. But no one said anything. It was terrible.'" [ Montreal Gazette ] • Another major step towards the Phoenix Coyotes staying in Arizona was taken after the team was eliminated last night, as the Glendale City Council voted to approve a preliminary budget that includes $17 million to the prospective buyer of the team for operating costs for the city's Jobing.com Arena." [ Winnipeg Free Press ] • The Wild have signed 2010 first-round pick Mikael Grandlund to his entry-level contract. He announced the deal himself in a video on the Wild's website. [ Wild ] • Michael Arace on the American invasion in the NHL. [ Blue Jackets Xtra ] • Alex Semin cuts his forehead on his gold medal, which is a very enigmatic thing to do. [ RMNB ]

 

Misunderstood Kirill Kabanov is maturing and focusing on hockey (Yahoo! Sports)

The Shawinigan Cataractes forward no longer cares about how he's perceived by those who don't know him.

 

Kings cruise into Stanley Cup finals (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Los Angeles Kings booked their place in the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in almost 20 years after wrapping up the NHL Western Conference title with a 4-3 overtime win over Phoenix in Game Five on Tuesday.

 

Peter DeBoer’s Devils: How coach’s philosophy, rivalry with Tortorella have defined New Jersey’s playoff run (Puck Daddy)

The New Jersey Devils' three Stanley Cup winners since 1995 have featured some constants: Goaltender Martin Brodeur, Grand Emperor Lou Lamoriello and the defensive foundation those champions where constructed on. But their coaches have defined each of them. Jacques Lemaire's trapping Devils in 1995. Larry Robinson, the players' coach, whose stunning conference finals tirade sparked the Devils' 3-1 comeback over the Flyers and eventual Cup win in 2000. The late Pat Burns, the coaches' coach, who reined in their offensive stars and oversaw a return to defensive discipline in 2003. Tied 2-2 with the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Final, the Devils may still fall short of the Cup in 2012. But should they grab the Chalice, Coach Peter DeBoer has personalized this team in the same manner as his Hall of Fame (and should-damn-well-be-in the Hall of Fame, in Burns's case) predecessors had. He's pushed the right buttons. Preached the right sermons. Earned his players' belief in an offensive system that attempts to re-chisel the cemented stereotypes about Devils hockey. His comportment is one of intellectual serenity — Dan Bylsma style — with a touch of rage. His communication with the players has been honest and non-political. He couldn't have done this three years ago, when ego prevented him from fulfilling his potential as an NHL head coach. That he was the given the chance to do this at all tracks back to July 2011, when Lamoriello stunned the hockey world with an uncharacteristic choice behind the bench.