It is widely believed that the Ilya Kovalchuk deal and subsequent hearings have all but kept many NHL teams and unrestricted free agent players from making more of a splash this summer. Numerous trades—most notably a deal involving Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Tomas Kaberle—have been sitting on the back burner for quite some time, leaving many NHL teams and fans feeling like they have been kept hostage all summer long by the Kovalchuk saga. Yesterday, arbitrator Richard Block began hearing the arguments for and against the Kovalchuk contract from both the NHL and the Players Association. A decision on Kovalchuk’s 17-year, $102 million contract is expected by this Friday, if not by Monday at the latest. In the end, there are only really two scenarios that can come of Block’s findings. First, Block upholds the Kovalchuk deal, which will force

Last year I had the opportunity to cover the Winter Classic between the Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers. As an accredited writer I was able to take part in numerous interviews and take some pretty great pictures along the way. With the 2011 Winter Classic between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals already starting to steal the headlines I felt it might be cool to look back at my experience in Boston. Here is a look at some of my pictures: This is the first picture I took after the cab dropped me off on Yawkey Way right outside the legendary Fenway Park. The City of Boston and the NHL did a great job of promoting the event both in the media and on the streets of Boston. If you got within a square mile of Fenway you knew

The 2009-10 NHL season saw a lot of otherwise unknown goaltenders establish themselves as the go-to netminders for their respective teams. Jonathan Quick in Los Angeles, Michael Leighton in Philadelphia and Jimmy Howard in Detroit all had excellent seasons, followed by more than respectable playoff runs. With the 2010-11 season just a few months away, many NHL netminders will be looking to duplicate or surpass their 2009 success, with others trying to re-establish themselves as the number one crease beast. With that in mind, let’s take a look at 12 NHL goalies that must step up their play in order to have a successful 2010-11 season. Michael Leighton: Philadelphia Flyers Picked up on waivers by the Philadelphia Flyers late in the 2009-10 season; Michael Leighton had a very successful run with the Flyers, including a run to the Stanley Cup

As expected, the Edmonton Oilers used the number one pick to select Taylor Hall , while the Boston Bruins selected Tyler Seguin with the second overall pick. Hall, who won back-to-back Memorial Cups and Memorial Cup MVP’s, gives the Oilers a very talented, offensive-minded forward who should bring a certain amount of respect back to the floundering Oilers franchise. In Seguin, the Bruins get a player that won the OHL scoring title and is the more well rounded of the two top picks. Given Seguin’s skill-set the Bruins feel as if he is ready to step into their everyday lineup as a top six forward. No question, both teams got great players and, while I suspect Hall will be a tremendous NHL scorer, I suspect Seguin will emerge as the better, more well-rounded player. Despite all the speculation, there never

TSN reporter Darren Dreger is reporting that Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke has sent a fax to all NHL clubs outlining Tomas Kaberle’s contract status and the fact that the Czech defenseman is, in fact, available. The fax also points out that Kaberle’s no-trade clause will expire prior to the upcoming NHL Entry Draft, but will be in effect in August. Needless to say, there are a lot of NHL clubs that may be interested in a top-flight defenseman with Kaberle’s resume and achievements. Kaberle is highly regarded throughout NHL circles and it is being reported that as many as five NHL teams have already contacted Burke about the asking price for said defenseman. What Burke and Dreger are unwilling to share with us is which teams are/may be interested in Kaberle. Here is a look at my

It’s not very often that an NHL team gets a shot at selecting in the top-five of the NHL Entry Draft. If Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke had elected to pass on  Phil Kessel and keep his first-round draft choice the Leafs would be doing exactly that, in fact, the Leafs would be drafting second overall. Recent reports from various news outlets suggest that Burke is in hot pursuit of the Columbus Blue Jackets’ first round draft pick, which would be the fourth overall selection. In order to get the Blue Jackets coveted first-rounder the Leafs would have to give up veteran all-star calibre defenseman Tomas Kaberle and perhaps a forward such as Mikhail Grabovski or Nikolai Kulemin—who has yet to sign a long term deal with the Leafs and is in the middle of a contract squabble.