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.
• Many have claimed to see the rotund apparition who is rumored to haunt the Shark Tank, but he only appears after Logan Couture goals ... [AP]
• Cool find by Rich Piepho: Alden Ford, a NY-based comedian, blogs about watching "Slap Shot" for the first time. "I'm not used to having the depression and wacky-antics portions of my brain poked so hard at the same time, and from different directions. Some of the jokes are solid and the tragedy is effective to the point of being a little sickening sometimes." [Splitsider]
• Nashville Predators winger Patric Hornqvist was given a $2,500 fine, but no suspension, for his elbow on Tyler Seguin on Thursday night. [Bruins Blog]
• Lightning Strikes reports there was no further discipline for Vincent Lecavalier after his slash on P.K. Subban. Vinny talked about Subban Friday morning: "Everybody knows he was playing a role there. Myself and probably most of the guys don't respect a guy like that. He's the type of guy who doesn't respect anybody. It's all there is to say. He's not a well-liked guy, not because of the way he plays but because of the way he does things. He's a great player. He will be for a long time. But his attitude, that's just the way he is." [Lightning Stikes]
• Custance with a piece on how NHL GMs feel about the NFL's labor unrest: "The NFL lockout may temporarily relieve the NHL of competition on the sporting landscape, but it's not something NHL executives are openly rooting for." [Sporting News]
• The Stanley Cup playoffs will (yet again) not feature the Columbus Blue Jackets. Does that put GM Scott Howson on the chopping block? "There is no question that Scott [Howson] is coming back," team president Mike Priest told Puck-Rakers. "He is the general manager of this team. I know there are people creating rumors, but Scott is our general manager and he will be back as our general manager. There's nothing more to it." [Puck-Rakers]
• This week, the Washington Redskins demanded the Washington Post remove the name "Redskins" from a blog covering the team. Friday it was revealed that the Montreal Canadiens demanded the Montreal Gazette change the name of its Habs Inside/Out blog, which will now be known as "Hockey Inside/Out." Are we at the dawn of an age of trademark enforcement? Word of advice to the corporate jackasses perpetrating this misguided brand management: Don't come after the blogs. Because we won't simply change the word to "hockey" and call it a day. [Habs Inside/Out]
• Attention fans seated near the tunnel to the dressing rooms: Rick Rypien returns to the ice for the Manitoba Moose Friday night. [QMI]
• Kings of Leonsis interviews Remy, who created that rather comical "I'm a Caps Fan" rap song. [KoL]
• The Royal Half has a theory about why the Los Angeles Kings crapped the bed Thursday night, and it has everything to do with the Irish. [TRH]
• Despite their team's inability to defeat the Ottawa Senators, New Jersey Devils fans are uploading their "I believe!" photos to the Star-Ledger website. [NJ.com]
• Michal Neuvirth to start, Nicklas Backstrom to play and the Washington Capitals can clinch a playoff spot against the Devils. [Capitals Insider]
• General manager Ken Holland said that defenseman Brian Rafalski (knee) is expected to play Saturday night against the Nashville Predators, while forward Pavel Datsyuk (lower-body injury) is "day to day," via Burnside. [ESPN]
• If you've not seen this yet, it's the controversial goal by Ray Whitney of the Phoenix Coyotes against the Edmonton Oilers that's notable for two reasons: For the fact that a "good goal" call on the ice determined the War Room's decision, because the video was inconclusive; and for Tom Renney going bat-crap crazy after the decision.
• Los Angeles Kings coach Terry Murray on fans booing his team: "You know what the most disappointing, frustrating thing was? At the end of the second period, we were booed off the ice by our fans. That is the most embarrassing thing I have ever been through. That's the worst I've ever been through, in all the years I've been coaching. I've been behind the bench almost 3,000 hockey games in the NHL, and booed off the ice by your own fans at the end of the second period, here after this road trip, going 4-0 in hard places, very disappointing." [LA Kings Insider]
• They need a little help, but the Philadelphia Flyers can clinch a playoff spot Friday night. [Broad Street Hockey]
• Cool bit from the NHL: "The four National Hockey League Clubs based in the Midwestern U.S. will receive a different kind of award at the close of the 2010-11 NHL regular season. The United States' Environmental Protection Agency will honor the Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota Wild for their commitment to recovering all prepared but untouched concession food as part of the NHL's partnership with Rock and Wrap it Up! To date, the four Clubs have combined to divert nearly 12 tons of waste from reaching landfills, while providing 18,000 meals to local community shelters."
• Please to be welcoming Sticks and Giggles to the hockey blogosphere. [Sticks and Giggles]
• Yet another "how to fix the NHL" column, with a five-point plan that includes the following on fighting: "In spite of a vocal and aggressive minority of objectors, fighting should be absolutely banned, with 10, then 20 and 30 game suspensions for repeat offenders. If fights are an essential part of a contact sport, why has football, an intrinsically more violent sport, completely banished them?" [Troy Media]
• Finally, San Jose Sharks fan Emily Hall presents "Steve Ott: The New Voice of Reason (Cry Me a River)." So … not a fan then?