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.
• When the NHL returns to your city, after seeing a team ripped from it 15 years earlier, the celebration is not a sobering experience. (Near the bottom of the image, you'll notice the captain of the Jets.) [Via @WinnipegGordo]
• Former Thrashers captain Andrew Ladd: "For me, I think the old school jerseys and the name 'Jets' is pretty cool. … It would be fun to be a part of that again." [CP]
• Chicken Parm on the NHL in Winnipeg's Canadian impact: "There's no guarantee that the Canadian dollar will always be at this level. If the dollar, where it is right now, makes it work, then that's pretty risky - because there's going to be ups and downs there. But I really hope it works and I really hope a team gets into Quebec City. I love going to Quebec City." [Globe & Mail]
• Jeff Schultz on the end of the Thrashers: "This is how it ends: With the weasel of a commissioner not stepping foot in the city, with another season passing without a playoff game, with a lying ownership group maintaining it did all it could to save a franchise that in reality it spent most of seven years wrecking." [AJC]
• Remembering the terrible uniforms of Thrashers teams. [HOTH]
• The Ice Man on the ownership that killed the NHL in Atlanta: "We will not forget you and we will not forget your names. But most importantly we will not forget what you collectively did to destroy NHL hockey in Atlanta, nor shall we forgive you for your actions." [Ice Man]
• Nice piece by Brian LeBlanc on the impact of today on Atlanta Thrashers fans: "So, sure, let's hear it for the NHL returning a seventh team to Canada. Hoorah and all that. But let's not forget that the relocation of the Thrashers to Winnipeg comes with costs that can't be covered by a relocation fee or a purchase price. There are good people in Atlanta, people who had nothing to do with the ownership squabbles and sideshows, who are about to find themselves out of work." [Canes Country]
• Talking realignment and the Detroit Red Wings, and whether there's a chance a new team in Winnipeg means the Winged Wheel in the Eastern Conference. [Malik]
• In happier news for a Southern U.S. market, it appears the sale of the Dallas Stars to Canadian businessman Tom Gaglardi is progressing to the point of big news by week's end. [DMN]
• Is Boston a hockey town again? [Boston Globe]
• Tyler Dellow with another enlightening post on Colin Campbell: Do referees that whistle the fewest penalties against Gregory Campbell of the Boston Bruins get more work in the Stanley Cup Final? [mc79hockey]
• One of the best stats blogs on the web is going all-Winnipeg. [Behind the Net]
• Wait, didn't the St. Louis Blues get the memo that there can be no news that doesn't involve Manitoba for the next 24 hours? Patrik Berglund signs a new two-year deal that will pay him $4.5 million. [Post Dispatch]
• Jack Skille gets a 2-year deal with the Florida Panthers. [On Frozen Pond]
• David Andrews, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Hockey League, released the following statement after today's announcement by True North Sports & Entertainment in Winnipeg: "Manitoba deserves to have NHL hockey, and we have no doubt that the NHL will be successful in its return to Winnipeg. Our sincere thanks go to the Manitoba Moose fans who have supported the American Hockey League loyally and passionately for the past 10 years. The future of the Manitoba AHL franchise will be determined in the weeks ahead, and we look forward to Winnipeg's NHL club developing its top prospects in the AHL."
• FACT: The man on the right is 8 feet tall. Also, we never really thought about the challenges of being Zdeno Chara and using a backpack until now. [AP]
• Some Vancouver Canucks Stanley Cup Final tickets were put on sale today. They lasted about 3 seconds. [CBC Sports]
• Nice Canucks lawn, but they really wimped out on the logo. [Kurtenblog]
• Whoa … whoa … whoa … Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Sharp gets a C-plus for his 2010-11 grade? [Second City Hockey]
• Catching up with James van Riemsdyk. [Philly.com]
• Good interview with Marcus Johansson of the Washington Capitals on the team's playoff elimination at the hands of the Tampa Bay Lightning: "Tampa got us to play exactly as they wanted. We had to dump and chase and we failed when we tried to do that. They tightened up the game for us and they took away everything we are good at." [Japers' Rink]
• Ryan Kennedy on the rising stock of Tomas Jurco after the Memorial Cup. [THN]
• An update on the "Jeff Skinner Ratings" for 2012. [Buzzing the Net]
• Finally, here's the Q&A portion of today's press conference.