Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Thrashers fans and Fantasy owners of Ilya Kovalchuk have a smile on their face this morning, as Kovalchuk took part in yesterday’s practice. He was on a line with Antropov and Afinogenov. Kovalchuk is 95% a go for Thursday. He’s been out 3 weeks so far, original timetable was 4-6 weeks.
Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer: Both Daniel Briere and James Van Riemsdyk could be back in the lineup for Thursday’s Ottawa match-up. Ryan Parent and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen should also be back soon.
To go along with the Ducks JS Giguere to the Maple Leafs for Vesa Toskala, Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post Dispatch thinks the Red Wings might have an interest in Giguere as they are not thrilled with the tandem of Osgood and Howard so far.
Shelly Anderson of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: The injuries keep mounting up for the Penguins, as Brooks Orpik appears to be the latest Penguin injured. Orpik left last night’s game and joining Sergei Gonchar, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin, Tyler Kennedy Max Talbot on the sidelines.
Arthur Staple of the Newsday: Doug Weight’s upper-body-injury that he sustained on Friday will keep him out the lineup for 4-6 weeks. Kyle Okposo has been diagnosed with the H1N1 swine flu.
Mark Everson of the NY Post: Some of the New Jersey Devils forwards aren’t putting up the numbers they did in past season, and the blame may be on Jacques Lemaire’s systems. Well no #*$%, Lemaire’s ‘bore-the-crap-out-of-you’ systems will negate the skills out of anyone, see ‘Marion Gaborik’ and what he’ll do this year (if healthy).
Jesse Rogers of ESPN: Blackhawks center David Bolland will be out 3 to 4 months following surgery on a herniated disc. This probably means that Patrick Sharp and/or Kris Versteeg trade rumors may slow down.
From CSN Washington: Mikael Nylander has cleared waivers, and reportedly has deals in the KHL, and is ready to move on … But “We’re still exploring our options,” McPhee said. “I’d rather not elaborate right now. It is probably a better opportunity to talk about it tomorrow. I’d like to see how it goes today and then maybe we can discuss it tomorrow.”
Mike Zeisberger of the Toronto Sun: Coyotes GM Don Maloney plans on scouting Chris Chelios on Friday as the AHL Chicgo Wolves play San Antonio …. Peter Forsberg might decide by the end of the week if/where he’ll be playing
