Top Line: Canadiens suffer devastating blow; Penguins' cap woes, more links
With goalie Carey Price down and out for the series, the Canadiens are likely finished. (Minas Panagiotakis/Icon SMI)
By Allan Muir
An annotated guide to this morning's must-read hockey stories:
• Will Carey Price be available to play tonight? The early official word was that he would be a game-time decision, although at least one source said he would be out for Game 2 vs. the Rangers and maybe beyond. That dire possibility was confirmed by coach Michel Therrien this morning. In that case, the Habs are done. The chances of Peter Budaj or Dustin Tokarski outdueling Henrik Lundqvist are about as good as Quebec making English its official language.
• The Rangers understand the emotional significance of attending the funeral of teammate Martin St. Louis' mother.Brad Richards says it has the potential to turn into a great story.
• "A lot of us really don't know [St. Louis]. Showing up is enough."
• Here's Brad Richards reflecting back on 15 years of friendship with Martin St. Louis.
• Could Brad Marchand be part of a shakeup of Boston's core following his disappointing postseason?
• Elliotte Friedman considers Pittsburgh's cap woes, the approaching loneliness of Peter Chiarelli and finds a bit of friendly advice for John Gibson in this week's 30 Thoughts column.
• The Blackhawks out-Kinged the Kings on their way to a 1-0 series lead.
• The Kings defied the script and played like the more rested team but still could not steal a Game 1 victory on Sunday.
• Lisa Dillman says struggles in transition doomed Los Angeles in the opener.
• Chicago's players showed their character by bouncing back after Jonathan Toews' disallowed goal. Their coach, on the other hand...
• Speedy Blackhawks forward Brandon Saad proved he has a little grit in his game with last night's performance.
• This continues to be Chicago's greatest advantage in these playoffs.
• It looked like a potentially devastating injury when Alex Ovechkin was carried off the ice at the World Championship on Sunday. Katie Carerra explains how it happened. Slava Malamud offers a morning update.
• Jake Allen is ready to graduate to full-time work in the NHL next season with the St. Louis Blues.
• Canada got an overtime goal from an unlikely hero to knock off Sweden at the World Championship.
• Today marks the 40th anniversary of Philadelphia's first Stanley Cup.
• Visor use is rising in the NHL, but one group continues to lag behind the pace.
Blue Jackets
Kerby Rychel