Top Line: Sam Gagner tweets pic of mangled face; amazing Jake; more links
Sam Gagner's mug was pristine in his 2013-14 Oilers headshot. Now, not so much. (Andy Devlin/Getty Images)
By Allan Muir
An annotated guide to this morning's must-read hockey stories:
• This is what Oilers center Sam Gagner looked like right before the doctor prescribed a liquid diet for the next six weeks or so.
• Edmonton moved to ensure that the next opponent who takes liberties with one of its stars will face justice long before hearing from VP of player safety Brendan Shanahan.
• Maple Leafs winger Phil Kesselis getting called to the principal's office later today to discuss his Jedi antics in Sunday night's brawl with the Sabres.
• Damien Cox thinks Kessel should receive a get-out-of-jail-free card from Sheriff Shanny to send a message to NHL enforcers. He's wrong of course--Shanahan's job does not entail making up rules as he goes along--but as always Cox makes an interesting argument. The real problem for Shanahan is: How strictly can he punish Kessel, who took a couple of whacks at someone's ankles, after he has already handed out a five-game regular-season suspension to Canucks' tough guy Zack Kassian for the stick-swinging incident that left Gagner with a broken jaw?
• James Mirtle writes that Toronto's goon culture has come back to bite them.
• Jason Siegel says that winger Mason Raymond could be the prime beneficiary of David Clarkson's 10-game suspension for leaving the Maple Leafs' bench during the melee.
• Canadiens' goalie Carey Price was amazed by the Ryan Miller-Jonathan Bernier scuffle. "It's hard to get motivated to fight another goaltender," he said. "It's like fighting in a sumo outfit."
• Wild forward Jake Dowell has a personal reason for his long involvement with the Huntington's Disease Society of America. His father and brother are both dying from it. And Dowell might someday suffer the same fate. He tells his story here to Mike Russo, and later tonight on ESPN's "E:60" program.
• Not much to report from yesterday's meeting of the league's Board of Governors, although Gary Bettman says that the "vast majority" of general managers support the hybrid icing rule. The group also discussed Olympics issues and got updates on the sale of a couple of teams.
• You might want to carefully check your seat selection before buying hockey tickets at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
• They are really excited about adding Brenden Morrow in St. Louis. Do they not have access to any Stars video from the last two years in that town or what?
• I'm sure it's frustrating for Rangers GM Glen Sather to have the Derek Stepan contract situation dangling over him, but saying his star center is not "a big enough fool" to sit out the year is probably not going to build any bridges between the two sides.
• The Sharks will be without Raffi Torres for at least the first month of the season -- and maybe a lot longer -- after the feisty but well-meaning winger injured his knee in a collision with Ducks winger Emerson Etem.
• ICYMI: Our buddies over at Extra Mustard identified the hockey game that was playing in the bar at the end of this week's Breaking Bad.
• Despite being the GM of the Flames, Jay Feaster seems optimistic about his team's chances this season.
• A bar in Boston reports that a bachelor party from Toronto destroyed a mural commemorating the Bruins' epic Game 7 comeback win over the Leafs in their first-round playoff series last May. Bet it was that Cole Whittier guy who started the trouble. He was always up to no good.
• Loui Eriksson is anxious for the real games to start so he can show Boston's fans what he can do.
• There are at least half a dozen teams that could use forward Ryan Spooner right now. His problem is that the Bruins aren't one of them.
• Former Islanders' first rounder Nino Niederreiter is sure to survive the next round of cuts in Minnesota, but he'll have to prove that he can play a different kind of game in order to stick when the regular seasons starts.
• Hurricanes blueliner Matt Corrente is making an impression in Carolina by keeping the penalty box attendant company.
• The Senators were named the top professional sports team in Canada by the Worldwide Leader. The ranking is based on bang for the buck, coaching, fan relations, ownership, players, stadium experience, title track and ability to undertake a thorough crime scene investigation.
• Still stinging from last spring's first-round loss to the Red Wings, Anaheim center Corey Perry says it's time for him and Ryan Getzlafto step up and lead the Ducks to the Stanley Cup.
• "We’re going to [expletive] run other teams out of our building. We’re going to be a pack of wild dogs." That has to be the greatest quote from camp, right?
• You never want to see anyone get hurt, but in Detroit's case a few injuries could be the best thing that could happen.
• Tim Panaccio says the Flyerscould be showcasing a veteran defenseman. Know any teams that could use one of those?
• Philadelphia captain Claude Girouxmight not be ready to make his preseason debut tonight after all. It's too early to call it a setback, but it's not good if he can't go.
Kris Versteeg
their preseason debuts on Thursday
Lightning