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.
• From readers AllyK: "Came home from work tonight to find my Columbus Blue Jackets tickets waiting for me. After being a season ticket holder in Phoenix for 3 seasons, I got used to having a ticket card, which works somewhat like a debit card with all the games loaded on to it, so I am not used to hard tickets. As I was flipping through my ticket book, this jumped out at me right away. Someone in Columbus thinks that the Coyotes have already moved to Canada, or think that since last time Atlanta lost a team it was to Calgary, maybe the Coyotes went there as well. You can see my next game after this is the Jan 13th game, which is against Phoenix. Whoops."
• As everyone else signs, what is Luke Schenn really worth to the Toronto Maple Leafs. [Leafs Nation]
• The Dallas Stars will file for bankruptcy next week, rather than this week: "Earlier this week lenders approved the plan, under which Vancouver businessman Tom Gaglardi, who has submitted an offer to buy the team, would be the lead bidder for the Stars." [ESPN Dallas]
• Zdeno Chara, Marian Hossa and Marian Gaborik attend the funeral for Pavol Demitra. [NHL]
• The Carolina Hurricanes honor the memory of Josef Vasicek with a patch on their sleeves this season. [Canes]
• Cam Cole on staged fights in the NHL: "There is no justification for them, beyond the blood lust of fans, and no reason to employ the one-trick ponies who engage in them. They don't affect the outcomes of hockey games, don't set the tone for future meetings, don't prove anything about a team's toughness or lack of it." [Vancouver Sun]
• Josh Bailey has a 7 a.m. deadline to ink a new deal with the New York Islanders or else he could "forfeit the season." [NYI Point Blank]
• Alexei Yashin is unlikely to take part in Islanders training camp … so where is he headed? [ESPN NY]
• Bruce Ratner wants to the Islanders and the Nets playing in Brooklyn. [Lighthouse Hockey]
• Guy Lafleur's son Mark was sentenced Thursday to 66 days in jail for drug possession and violating condition. "It just seemed like the right number," said Judge M. Lemieux. [QMI]
• Really interesting find from Illegal Curve about how fans, rather than PR or marketing firms, should determine traditions and rallying points for a team. [Uptown]
• Harrison's Minnesota Wild preview was savaged by Hockey Wilderness. [HW]
• Harrison's Minnesota Wild preview was savaged by First Round Bust. [FRB]
• His coach calls him a "minute muncher," but can Jonathan Ericsson become a top 4 defenseman for the Detroit Red Wings this season? [Red Wings]
• If you're checking out the Philadelphia Flyers vs. Washington Capitals rookie game, here are five players to keep our eyes on. [Broad Street Hockey]
• Billiards would be better if they were hockey. And man, NHL on FOX made up for the glow puck with their commercials, didn't they? OK, maybe just the robots. There's no apology for putting a [expletive] comet tail on the puck.
• Bob Hunter on the plan to "save" the Columbus Blue Jackets: "Without some kind of deal, the city seems destined to lose the Blue Jackets — to Quebec or some other franchise-poacher. And if it does, there's no way that area can thrive as it does now. Using gambling revenue we've never had seems like a relatively painless way to ensure the vitality of the Arena District, which will maintain the city's vibrant image." [Dispatch]
• On the third anniversary of Jack Falla's death. [Backyard Hockey]
• Hockey Canada launches a new website that educations players, coaches and parents about its new rule on head-checks. [Globe & Mail]
• Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs on the Phoenix Coyotes: "Negotiations among prospective buyers, the NHL and the City of Glendale are ongoing and sensitive. I will not be commenting on the negotiations or any other Coyotes/Arena related matters until there are documents ready to be brought forward for discussions and possible votes." [@LisaHalverstadt]
• Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk on his expectations: "The way expectations are now, every single win is a win we otherwise would not have, under a young group of this magnitude, saying that, the expectations are that we'll be a fun team to watch, I think we're going to be competitive, we're going to be exciting, people's imaginations are going to run wild, and we're going to have to manage those expectations because we don't want to get people too excited, but I think we're going to be A) very competitive, B) a lot of fun to watch." [Sens Extra]
• Sidney Crosby is a Ferrari. The San Jose Sharks drive Porsches. [Sharks]
• Finally, here is actress Emily Blunt (the one that was so mean to Anne Hathaway in "Devils Wears Prada") engaging in a little stickwork at the Toronto International Film Festival: