- Eric Duhatschek of the Globe and Mail: The NHL will come to a decision on whether they will participate in the 2018 Olympics in South Korea within the next six months according to deputy commissioner Bill Daly.
“I can tell you, (a decision) shouldn’t take all that long,” said Daly, soon after arriving with the NHL contingent for what many believe could be the league’s last involvement with the Olympic Games. “It’s part of a broader discussion with the players association about what we’re doing internationally. That discussion is under way. I would anticipate a fairly quick resolution with respect to the Olympics – six months.”
- Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun: Canucks coach John Tortorella said that Alex Burrows has a sprained hand from his fight with Phil Kessel and he is hoping that he’ll be ready to by the 19th. Tortorella on their injuries:
“It’s awful sitting on the losing streak but, more important, it’s trying to get some health back. Hopefully Henrik will be ready to go. There is a long list of them here. I don’t want to use that as an excuse. We just have to be a better team. I am preparing a bit of a training camp for those first four days, the 19th-22nd. The way I’m approaching it when it our guys come back, it’s a clean slate. It’s a 22-game schedule and we’re in the fight of our life here. We let a lot of people back in. It’s not just one or two teams, it’s a number of teams.”
- Tom Gulitti of the Bergon Record: The Devils have signed Johan Hedberg to a PTO with the Albany of the AHL and will be their second goalie as Keith Kinkaidrecovers from his groin strain.
“Kinkaid is hurt and they needed another goalie and I was around and available, so here I am,” Hedberg said.
- Mike Chambers of the Denver Post: The Avalanche are looking to host a Winter Classic or Stadium Series at Coors Field. The Colorado Rockies have said they are in talks with the Avalanche and the NHL.
- Cam Tucker of Pro Hockey Talk: NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly on the possibility of expansion to Seattle.
“When that happens, I think Seattle will certainly be an intriguing marketplace from the league’s perspective,” NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly recently told the Seattle Times.
“I think we have a belief in the Pacific Northwest. It being good hockey territory. I think, obviously, the Canucks have done a fantastic job — in Vancouver, but also throughout British Columbia and the Pacific region — at driving interest in the sport.
“So, we think the possibility is there. It’s kind of more obvious than some of the other areas. It doesn’t mean we’ve done our due diligence. We’d need to satisfy ourselves on the marketplace, but just the objective factors around the marketplace suggest Seattle would be a good hockey market.”