Morning Hits: Radulov, Datsyuk, Burmistrov, Brown and Blake

“I did not drink.  You want to know what really happened?  We were in Phoenix, and our hotel was on the other side of town from where you could have dinner.  Practically the whole team was at a restaurant.  Someone left earlier.  I came back 15 minutes later than the curfew.  Perhaps it is a violation, but not the one everyone is talking about.”

But the Americans said firmly – he was drunk.

“Even back then I said ‘Let me take a test and I will prove that I haven’t had even a glass of wine.  I can give blood if you want.’  But I was told that none of that was needed, and that I was drunk.  ‘OK,’ I tell them, ‘you have already made up your mind and I can’t do anything.’”

“Unfortunately for us, Pavel extended his contract with Detroit. I had a meeting with him a few days before the signing.

“We had the chance to get Pavel in a year’s time, but as a person who knows what the NHL is all about, I understand perfectly well why he did what he did.”

“I like Alexander Burmistrov,” Noel said today at the MTS Iceplex after he watched Jets prospects go through another day of summer development camp. “I’ve said that for two years. I’ve liked the way he’s played. I would have liked to have seen him do some things differently that it would help him further his career.

“He’s a smart player. He remains our property. He’s elected to change locations to advance his career. I guess that’s what he believed but I really don’t have any comment on what somebody else says.

“If Alexander had problems with me, he’s never mentioned it to me. He’s played two years here, played a lot of minutes for us in a lot of different situations. But thats what he feels needs to get done, between him and the people he works with.”