I'll file this hit by Phaneuf under the "was that really necessary?" column. I know Phaneuf is known for his thunderous checks and reminds me of a latter-day Scott Stevens, but sheesh, it's pre-season... these two teams will probably only meet once in the regular season. Doesn't really seem necessary to send a "message", the way a player might do to a division rival.

Greetings, StarShadow. It was nice to see M-A F get some recognition last year when i thought it was one year overdue. When he stood on his head in Game 5 of the '08 Final (the Talbot/Sykora 3OT game, as I will forever remember it), he probably added oh, about $5-million to his contract!

I find too often in hockey, scorers get the credit when a team wins and the goalie gets the blame when the team loses. I guess visually, a "soft" goal is much more memorable and makes ESPN (or TSN up here in Canada!) much more than a forward fanning on a one-timer.

Anyways, thanks for posting.

Sincerely, PenguinsMarch

Love your pumpkin head logo. I hope you were rewarded richly for your efforts.

On the Flames: My crystal ball shows positive times ahead for Calgary. Adding Bouwmeester to a blue line that includes Phaneuf and Regehr, and a full season of Olli Jokinen and St. Jarome together should make for many a happy evening in Calgary.

Also, I hope Iginla is named Canada's captain for the Olympic team. His leadership and big-game skills are top-notch.

"Can the Bolts be competitive this year?"...Yes. Will they make the playoffs? In this commenter's humble opinion, no.

On offense, Martin St. Louis' consistency is unquestioned, and Lecavalier should rebound from last year's dip in production. Steven Stamkos stood up to the pressure of being the #1 overall pick in the amateur draft by scoring 23 goals and 23 assists while ex-Penguin Ryan Malone scored 26 goals in just 70 games (30 G/82 GP). Adding Alex Tanguay, a five time 20 goal scorer can't hurt either.

However, I fear production from outside the top six forwards may be thin. T-Bay was third-last in the Eastern Conference in goals scored last year and despite their talented forwards, just 11/15 in the conference in PP%.

Of course, they could surprise everyone and make me look like a moron.

And what's the deal with all the ex-Pens migrating to T-Bay? Malone, Noah Welch, Adam Hall, Gary Roberts (enjoy your retirement), Mark Recchi (for half a season)... Tocchet behind the bench....

Good points, noamzs. For an organization that has painstakingly worked hard the past two trade deadlines to acquire draft picks, it seems odd that they would be willing to take the risk of Kessel - solid, but not spectacular - for a team that will overachieve just by making the playoffs, and give up picks to acquire him.

However, I do feel Toronto's defence has been one of the league's most improved with Beauchemin, Komisarek and others now on board.

Looking forward to the first puck drop down at 40 Bay St... and all the other arenas!

Hi there, fellow hockey blogger.

I'm a Penguins blogger. How do I publish my posts so that they are filed under "Penguins" instead of just "NHL"? Pardon my WordPress illiteracy. I've used rival platforms for far too long.

Sincerely, PenguinsMarch