The last time Ottawa G Ray Emery swung his stick at an opponent, it cost him a three-game suspension. Emery could be facing disciplinary action again after taking a swipe Tuesday at Lightning LW Mathieu Darche. ...more

December 5, 2007

Nights like Wednesday don't come around very often in the National Hockey League. Not for All-Star players. Not for players who have their named etched on the Stanley Cup. And not for former overall No. 1 draft picks. ...more

November 15, 2007

1. SENATORS: An unbeaten record on the road (4-0-0) is a good sign they're for real. 2. RED WINGS: Like Ottawa, they've taken care of business away from home (13 points in eight road games). 3. HURRICANES: Depth of scoring (eight players in double-figure points already) has lifted them to the top of the Southeast again. 4. CANADIENS: League's best power play, even without departed D Sheldon Souray. 5. FLYERS: They're doing it with Martin Biron's great goaltending now; they'll need more scoring in the long run. 6. AVALANCHE: Went into Saturday still undefeated (6-0-0) at home. 7. BLUE JACKETS: If they awarded the Vezina in November, G Pascal Leclaire would get it. 8. WILD: They'd be even better right now if they were healthy. Especially if G Niklas Backstrom was healthy. 9. FLAMES: They've survived so far without consistent play from G Miikka Kiprusoff, but how long can that last? 10. BLUES: Doug Weight (no goals in 23 shots, two assists in 11 games) might be at the end of a very nice career. 11. BRUINS: If G Tim Thomas can keep this up (1.56 GAA, .949 save percentage), the city of Boston could have another sports achievement to celebrate next spring. 12. KINGS: Why do they deserve this high of a ranking? Check the standings. As of Saturday, believe it or not, they led the Pacific Division. 13. PENGUINS: Young Sidney Crosby is beginning to come around, leading the league in power-play points. 14. SHARKS: C Joe Thornton is again up to his point-a-game ways, and then some. 15. MAPLE LEAFS: It really does seem as if this team could take off if it would just get some consistent goalie play out of Vesa Toskala or Andrew Raycroft. Or both. 16. ISLANDERS: It was a nice gesture by Ted Nolan to step aside for one game in honor of Coach Al Arbour. 17. BLACKHAWKS: Rookie of the Year is between Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, with their combined 26 points. 18. PANTHERS: They're getting good goaltending. They just have so few goal scorers to help Olli Jokinen that it's tough to win consistently. 19. PREDATORS: G Dan Ellis, second in the NHL in GAA and save percentage, is pushing Chris Mason. 20. STARS: A 5-0 loss to Phoenix on Friday was called "rock bottom" by captain Brenden Morrow. He'd better hope it is. 21. DUCKS: Suddenly, they're Southern California's "other" team. Oh, it won't last. But the Kings are hot, and Anaheim is inexplicably cold. 22. RANGERS: It looks like Chris Drury is beginning to come around. Good thing for New York, which has wasted some great goalie play by Henrik Lundqvist so far. 23. SABRES: D Jaroslav Spacek is healthy and back in the lineup, and that should make a big difference as Buffalo climbs the Eastern Conference standings. 24. DEVILS: Their problems are many. They can't score, and Martin Brodeur hasn't been as dominant with a new defensive style in front of him. 25. LIGHTNING: It's not going to get any better until they figure out how to win on the road. 26. COYOTES: The good news is, they were only four points out of first place on Saturday. The bad news? Averaging 2.45 goals, they'll have a tough time making up even those four points. 27. CAPITALS: G Olaf Kolzig has not been bad. Neither has Alex Ovechkin. But injuries and lack of productive depth have done them in so far. 28. CANUCKS: Losing D Kevin Bieksa (cut on right calf by skate Thursday) for up to eight weeks could be a crippling blow. 29. OILERS: It hasn't helped at all that they've lost four defensemen to injuries, including Sheldon Souray. 30. THRASHERS: The way Ilya Kovalchuk is playing lately, they might yet work their way out of the bottom spot. Carter Gaddis ...more

November 4, 2007

PENGUINS 4, WILD 2: Evgeni Malkin scored twice and had an assist, and Sidney Crosby had a goal and three assists in Pittsburgh's victory against the Wild. ...more

October 31, 2007

GREAT BEGINNINGS There's no Sidney Crosby or Alex Ovechkin, like in 2005-06. But the rookies are OK (especially in Chicago), and here are a dozen first-year players who have begun to make a mark: ...more

October 28, 2007

MAPLE LEAFS 5, PENGUINS 2: Jiri Tlusty, playing his first NHL game, scored two goals 35 seconds apart during a four-goal Toronto flurry in the third period, and the Maple Leafs shook off an early-season slump to beat Pittsburgh and end the Penguins' three-game winning streak. Sidney Crosby scored his third goal, all against Toronto, for Pittsburgh. ...more

October 26, 2007

JOE DIMAGGIO 56-game hitting streak ...more

October 24, 2007

BLUE JACKETS 3, SABRES 0: Pascal Leclaire made 21 saves for his third shutout of the season and fourth overall, and Rick Nash had a goal and an assist to lead Columbus. Nash scored in the second period, seconds after he was denied on the NHL's first penalty shot of the season. ...more

October 20, 2007

Sidney Crosby's so-called slump is over, folks. Crosby scored his first two goals of the season, including the winner with 5:22 left in the third period, to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to a wild 6-4 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night. ...more

October 14, 2007

1. SENATORS: Back to their high-scoring ways, and G Martin Gerber has been pretty good. ...more

October 13, 2007