Top Line: Lou Lamoriello hails Jagr's rump; Brian Burke rumors; more links
Jaromir Jagr's ample caboose will add heft to the New Jersey Devils' lineup this season. (Getty Images)
By Allan Muir
An annotated guide to this morning's must-read hockey stories:
• Devils GM Lou Lamoriello is relieved that he doesn't have to worry about Jaromir Jagr's big butt anymore.
• The Brian Burke-to-Calgary rumors heated up overnight. Scott Cruikshank considers what it would mean to the Flames if one of the game's most polarizing figures was brought on board.
• Damien Cox writes that hiring Burke makes perfect sense for Calgary. Also, it doesn't.
• Whoever ends up in charge of the rebuild in Calgary has a few interesting pieces in place. The franchise's journey begins tonight as the Flames' rookies begin tournament play.
• Hey, is Miikka Kiprusoff retired or not?
• It's cute how the Oilers think that holding a press conference will end all the Ales Hemsky trade rumors and make his continued presence in Edmonton less awkward, isn't it?
• GM Craig MacTavish has turned over 40 percent of Edmonton's roster. Is that bold enough for ya?
• Nick Cotsonika gets Marc Staal to talk about his eye injury. It will kinda freak you out. And if you play, it will definitely ensure that you wear a shield.
• A wild summer behind him, Carey Price is set for a rebound season in net for the Canadiens.
• Seems that the universal disdain for the Sabres' new third jersey didn't go unnoticed in Buffalo.
• An ugly sweater is not the only problem in Western New York. The Sabres intended for Mikhail Grigorenko to play in the Traverse City rookie tournament. That's not gonna happen.
• Nazem Kadriis prepared to skip Toronto's training camp if that's what it takes to get contract negotiations moving. If I may be allowed to present an alternative option to Nazem: stop reading last year's clippings, take a long, cold shower and begin to embrace the reality that you are wildly overstating your value in this league.
• Only in Russia would it be deemed appropriate to name a thoroughfare Sacco and Vanzetti Street. Ordinarily, the wouldn't be hockey newsworthy, but Pavel Datsyuk has an apartment on that street and it was burgled late last month.
• Daniel Boone killed a bear and got a song written about him. Minnesota Wild defenseman Clayton Stoner does the same and he becomes the central figure in a dispute over trophy hunting rights in British Columbia.
• Win the Stanley Cup, get a contract extension! That's the way it's going in Chicago, where defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson was identified as part of the Hawks' core and handed a new five-year deal yesterday.
• You might not know the name Antti Raanta just yet, but odds are you will soon. Until then, dig his cool new Blackhawks mask.
• The Hurricanes already have Radek Dvorak coming to training camp for a tryout. They're hoping that Brenden Morrow will join him.
• Could UFA winger Damien Brunner be headed back to Switzerland? George Malik says it's an option, at least until an acceptable NHL offer lands on Brunner's table.
• GM George McPhee says limited cap space isn't the hold-up as the Capitals attempt to sign RFA forward Marcus Johansson.
• At least the Caps have signed 2013 first-rounder Andre Burakovsky to a three-year entry level deal. That's one top Russian prospect who is willing to play in North America . . .
• If everything goes according to his plan, and things usually do, Pierre Karl Peladeau will one day be the owner of an NHL team in Quebec City. But before the rest of the league's owners cash his check, they might want to read this piece to understand exactly who will be climbing into bed with them.
• President Vladimir Putin says there will be no discrimination against homosexuals in Sochi during the Olympics. Will that pronouncement put an end to NHL players having to answer questions about gay rights in Russia?
• Speaking of world leaders, Henrik Zetterberg, Daniel Alfredsson and the rest of Detroit's Swedish mafia talked about the importance of President Obama's visit to Stockholm.
• Want one more? The release of the long-awaited hockey book by Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper is only two months away. There's a preview available online now.
• Meanwhile, the Red Wings' Darren Helm skated yesterday, but said he was only "partly pain-free." Sounds like a trip to the LTIR is on the horizon for the valuable vet.
• Here's a story that will hit home with a lot of folks: Dave Steckel talks about his issues with fertility and his efforts to have an impact on the league's medical coverage.