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.
• Wayne Gretzky, Chris Chelios and Ray Bourque are officially revealed for NHL 12. Gretzky's first appearance? In his office behind the net. Bourque's first appearance? Face-washing Dan Cleary. Go figure. [EA Sports, and watch the trailer here.]
• The Florida Panthers are ranked No. 1 in the ESPN organizational rankings, which we're sure they'd trade in a millisecond if it meant not having made the playoffs three times in their existence. [Panthers]
• Ken Campbell on why there's no rush for Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and the Edmonton Oilers. Also, some good breaking down of the Oilers' plan, past and present. [THN]
• Really interesting take from Sam Page from On The Forecheck, as a Nashville Predators blogger turns heel on Shea Weber: "Don't misunderstand--Shea Weber is a great player. But a highest-paid-defenseman, $7.5 million-cap-hit player? Let some big market team scrape the cap ceiling, paying that little extra for Weber's stoicism, Olympic heroics, and beard-growing abilities. Nashville can pay less for more in Suter and spend the difference on filling holes. Let some other team trade young, cost-controlled offense for the privilege of signing Shea to an above-market rate contract." [OTF]
• Tim Connolly on being an injury-prone fragile player: "I'm just looking forward to my time in Toronto, getting ready for that." [NHL.com]
• Lee Sweatt retires from hockey rather than playing for the Ottawa Senators. Or to pursue business interests. One of the two. [Silver Sevens]
• American Hero John Carlson on the Washington Capitals' attitude next season: "We've been a team that's had great times and terrible times. Now it's time to get down to business. Looking back, maybe we were feeling things out [in the playoffs] a little bit too much instead of taking the bull by the horns. That's going to be the motto from day one. We want to be the aggressor." [Capitals Insider]
• Some Calgary merchants are saying that Winnipeg Jets gear is outselling that of the Flames. Which is incredible when you think about how Jets stuff just hit the market and that the Flames have been wearing the same gear for several years and everyone in Calgary already owns it. [CBC News]
• "It takes a real man to handle the pressure of leading a New York sports franchise; a real bald man. It takes an even manlier, and an even balder man though, to have led the 1994 New York Rangers NHL Team to a Stanley Cup Championship. Does this epically manly and epically bald man exist? Yes, yes he does; and his name is Mark Messier." [Bald Celebrity]
• In which Bob McKenzie overtakes Darren Dreger as King of the Hockey Twitter Journalists. [Cult of Hockey]
• The folks at Anaheim Calling took exception to an article we linked to called the Rise and Fall of the Pacific Division and just steamrolled it. [Anaheim Calling]
• Looking at the OHL trade request from Buffalo Sabres pick Daniel Catenacci. [Buzzing The Net]
• The "Worst 20 Team And Zone Adjusted Corsi Rating." We have no idea what it is, but Paul Mara's bad at it. [TPSH]
• Breaking down Martin Brodeur's save percentages by season with the New Jersey Devils. "Huh. Brodeur has better save percentages after the 2004 lockout as opposed to when he was in his prime earlier." [In Lou We Trust]
• A couple of days old, but the 10 most lopsided losses in Colorado Avalanche history features nostalgia and angst. [Mile High Hockey]
• Making the argument that Evgeni Nabokov should be the starter for the New York Islanders this season. "Would he really be better off fighting fellow aging Russian netminder Nikolai Khabibulin for playing time in Edmonton or trying to replace Ilya Bryzgalov in Phoenix?" Yes and yes? [PHT]
• Finally, via Kukla, an 11-year-old named Nick Smith spend $10 on a chance to shoot from the red line … and turned that investment into a $50,000 grand prize.