Sabres Edge

Happy Wednesday. It's raining. Again. Oh, well, at least the day will be brightened at 10 a.m. when the Foo Fighters presale starts for their HSBC Arena show. Until then, your daily look around the NHL ...

*George Babcock, an assistant equipment manager for the Sabres, heard a crash behind him and saw Mike Kostelnik collapse to the floor while suffering a heart attack. Babcock's father died of a heart attack a few years ago, which heightened his awareness when Kostelnik became unresponsive. Babcock remembered an old CPR class and sprang into action, writes Bucky Gleason. He started cardiac compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until another patron -- a man sitting quietly at the bar who remains unknown -- arrived to help him.

(As an aside, George and I saw the Foo Fighters in Dallas a few seasons back.)

Kostelnik, called "Miracle Mike" by the nurses, is recovering at home. He's convinced he would be dead or would have suffered brain damage without Babcock's quick response. He walked away with a pacemaker and a new lease on life. Babcock walked away with a family of friends for life.

*In a wild, up-and-down game featuring a coming-of-age performance by a 19-year-old rookie, Tyler Seguin spearheaded a five-goal second period with two goals and two assists to lead the Bruins to a 6-5 win in Game Two of the Eastern Conference finals, writes the Boston Herald.

*San Jose captain Joe Thornton tried to get the Western Conference finals off to a raucous start when he asked gritty Vancouver Canucks forward Ryan Kesler to drop the gloves right off the opening faceoff.

"Why not?" Thornton said Tuesday, confirming he made the invitation to Kesler. "Let's fight. Let's start the series off with a bang."

It didn't happen. Instead, the Canucks rallied in the third period for a 3-2 win Sunday night. San Jose is trailing in a series for the first time this postseason and will have a chance to get even tonight in Game Two in Vancouver.

*The Buffalo Sabres insist they are just investigating everything, trying to find ways to improve the organization under owner Terry Pegula. It appears one improvement would be to reunite with the Rochester Americans.

*Justin Regier, son of Buffalo Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier, has earned playing privileges on the Canadian Tour. He shot 74 in Tuesday's U.S. Open regional qualifier, putting him in a playoff with Nic Mazze of Caledon East, Ont., for the last of four spots in sectional qualifying. But his chance to advance vanished when his tee shot on the second playoff hole clipped a tree and doomed him to bogey.

*The family of Derek Boogaard, the New York Rangers forward who died last week in Minnesota, is asking for donations to be made to Defending the Blue Line in his memory, in lieu of flowers. Defending the Blue Line is a nonprofit organization created by soldiers with the spirit of keeping hockey alive for the children of our nation's military heroes.

*Flyers forward Dan Carcillo has been suspended without pay for the first two games of next season for confronting officials during this year's playoffs.

---John Vogl

The Buffalo Sabres have been looking at all aspects of their organization, including their minor-league situation and a possible return to Rochester, and a reunion with their longtime affiliate is getting closer.

Sabres owner Terry Pegula has had talks to purchase the Amerks, a source told The Buffalo News today. The Associated Press quotes a source as saying the Sabres have signed a nonbinding letter of intent to purchase the American Hockey League club.

Jason Chaimovitch, the AHL's vice president of communications, told The News a sale would require the approval of the AHL board of governors, and the group has not been approached to examine any transactions.

The Sabres told The News today that neither team President Ted Black nor General Manager Darcy Regier had anything to add to their recent comments. Black said last week the Sabres are investigating numerous aspects of their organization. Regier pledged his support for the Portland Pirates, who reached a long-term extension of their affiliation with Buffalo in March 2010. Regier said the Sabres were interested in keeping the partnership.

"This has been a great relationship," Regier told the Maine Hockey Journal. "The city is terrific. There are no negatives; I guess you point to the geographical issue as the only one. Again, when you look at the job everyone has done here, it’s been a great relationship for us.

"The only place it comes in is maybe my ability to see the team play or some of the staff, or on call-ups and stuff like that, but that’s the constant within the league anyway, with the exception of very few teams. ... Right now our relationship remains with the Portland Pirates."

Amerks owner Curt Styres was elusive today when contacted by the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, which recently reported two NHL clubs have approached the Amerks to purchase the team.

"The only thing I can say is that the Rochester Americans will be playing next season," Styres told Democrat and Chronicle reporter Kevin Oklobzija, who also asked if Styres has sold the Amerks or was in serioius negotiations to sell. Oklobzija said Styres would only repeat the previous statement, adding, "I hope the sun is shining in Rochester tomorrow."

The Sabres were affiliated with Rochester for 29 seasons before moving to Portland in 2008-09.

The Associated Press reports the Sabres do not have an out clause in their deal with the Pirates. Chaimovitch told The News that theoretically an NHL team could own one club and be affiliated with another. That, however, would seem to make little sense.

---John Vogl

Well, Winnipeg is back in the news as a possible NHL destination. I've made my position clear that the city wouldn't top my list, but here's your chance to weigh in. All these cities have popped up in relocation/expansion talks during recent years. Pick one.

---John Vogl

Happy Tuesday. Guess what? It's still cold and rainy. That's almost as much of a shock as Winnipeg being included in NHL relocation rumors, so that's where we'll start ...

*Word is out that True North Sports and Entertainment is in negotiations with Atlanta Spirit to buy and relocate the Atlanta Thrashers for the coming 2011-12 season, the Winnipeg Free Press reports. The talks are not preliminary and the Free Press has learned the NHL is working on two schedule drafts for next season -- one with Winnipeg and another with Atlanta.

*The initial thought of Winnipeg Free Press columnist Doug Brown when he heard that the Coyotes bailout had suddenly transitioned to the Atlanta Thrashers clearing house sweepstakes was whether Winnipeg residents should brace themselves and start digging fox holes before the next volley of insolent player remarks start raining down on them again.

(I don't know if Thrashers players will say anything negative, but a few writers might. Trading Atlanta for Winnipeg? That's almost as lopsided as Stephane Beauregard for Dominik Hasek, especially for a guy who used to work in Georgia. Oh well. On the bright side, Buffalo will move up the list of least-appealing NHL road cities to visit, behind Newark, Detroit and Winnipeg.)

*Atlanta Journal Constitution columnist Mark Bradley asks, Does this franchise merit saving? "They’ve had 11 seasons, three more than the Flames did. They set up shop in a new arena and rode a wave of good will. They capitalized on none of it. If/when they leave, it won’t be because Atlanta failed the Thrashers. It will be because the Thrashers failed Atlanta."

*There is no definitive word on whether Bruins center Patrice Bergeron will play at all during the Eastern Conference final against the Lightning, let alone dress for tonight’s Game Two.

*Damian Cristodero of the St. Pete Times writes that Dwayne Roloson's eight straight playoff victories tie him with Hall of Famer Jacques Plante, who did it in 1969 with the Blues, for most by a goalie 40 or older. Roloson needs two more wins, not necessarily in a row, to tie former Red Wings goalie Dominik Hasek for most in a playoff season by those goalies of a certain age.

Roloson, 41, can pass Plante tonight against the Bruins in Game Two of the Eastern Conference final at TD Garden.

*The Calgary Flames have dropped the interim tag from general manager Jay Feaster's title, and they signed forward Curtis Glencross to a four-year, $10.2 million deal.

*One of my favorite Buffalo News co-workers of all time -- heck, one of my favorite people of all time -- has made her debut at BuffaloGolfer.com. Maybe someday the weather will be nice, Miss Taylor Van Ness.

---John Vogl

Happy Monday. Before your look around the NHL, just some words to remember from Brandon Lee in "The Crow": It can't rain all the time.

*Officially, the Vancouver Sun writes, it will go into the books as a third-period comeback win for the Vancouver Canucks. But really, its seeds were sown late in the second period when the Canucks buzzed all around San Jose goalie Antti Niemi for what seemed like an eternity.

They didn't score during one of the longest goal-mouth scrambles you'll ever see (the video is below), but the game changed right there. When it was over, the Canucks had a 3-2 win in the opener of the Western Conference final and the Sharks were exhausted.

*The San Jose Mercury News writes this wasn't exactly a case where the Sharks coughed up a third-period lead and let a well-deserved victory slip away.

No, Game One of the Western Conference finals Sunday night was one where the Sharks seemed more surprised that they held the lead before two goals 79 seconds apart by defenseman Kevin Bieksa and center Henrik Sedin sent them to a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Vancouver Canucks.

"There's nights when we lose our legs, but our minds are still pretty sharp. I didn't think that was the case tonight," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said. "It started with the ears and worked all the way through the body. We were like dogs chasing cars down the freeway. We weren't catching anybody."

*The Boston Globe's Kevin Paul Dupont, one of the biggest fans of Wegmans ever, says clearly, this isn’t Montreal. And sure as a slap shot it’s not the Flyers. The Bruins, now one giant step toward extinction in the Eastern Conference finals after Saturday night’s humbling 5-2 loss to Tampa Bay on Causeway Street, look as if they’ll have to change parts or approach if they hope to rub out the Lightning and make it to the Stanley Cup finals for the first time since 1990.

*Sabres Edge legend Sean Bergenheim is making himself known everywhere in the hockey world with a stellar playoff for Tampa Bay.

*Derek Boogaard's family has donated his brain to researchers who will check for damage that might have resulted from his career as an NHL enforcer. The News' Bob DiCesare writes the role of tough guys must be examined in wake of death of 28-year-old.

*In the latest chapter of hockey’s classic Nordic rivalry, Finland demolished Sweden 6-1 in the gold medal game of the 2011 IIHF World Championship. Petteri Nokelainen scored the first of five third-period Finnish goals, and it stood up as the winner.

---John Vogl

The NHL conference finals start tonight, with Boston hosting Tampa Bay in Game One of the Eastern Conference. Vancouver hosts San Jose on Sunday in the Western Conference opener.

Finland knocked off Russia today at the world championships, riding its 3-0 victory into the finals against Sweden on Sunday.

Finland's Mikael Granlund stole the show, carrying the puck on his stick from behind the net and shooting it lacrosse-style past the Russian goaltender for the first goal of the game.

---John Vogl

Happy Friday. We usually do this in the morning, but the day moves a little slower after former Sabres-writing cohort Tim Graham and I get together for some sodas, as we did Thursday night for Sharks-Red Wings Game Seven:

*The Buffalo Sabres have mailed their season-ticket renewal forms, and the recipients will notice something familiar: a 5 percent price increase. If fans want to spend even more, they can buy a travel package to see the team play in Europe.

*The San Jose Mercury News writes the Sharks took a big step toward shedding their reputation as playoff disappointments Thursday night. And so did Patrick Marleau.

With Marleau scoring what turned out to be the deciding goal in an intense and tightly-contested seven-game series, San Jose avoided a spot in the NHL hall of shame by beating the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 and advancing to the Western Conference finals for a second consecutive year.

*The Detroit Free Press writes Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom said he’ll take a little time to decide on his future. He’s deciding whether to retire or play another season. He’s 41, but is coming off a great playoff performance that saw him contribute four goals and eight points in 11 games, with all four goals coming during the Wings’ second-round series against the Sharks.

*Guy Boucher needed just one word to describe Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas: Enigma.

"He's shown that he's the best throughout the regular season and now in the playoffs he's shown the same," the Tampa Bay Lightning coach said. "I don't plan on him giving us any freebies, whatsoever. He doesn't have many weaknesses. I guess it's making everybody scratch their heads about what to do, including myself."

Thomas and the Bruins will host Tampa Bay in Game One of the Eastern Conference finals Saturday night.

*Even though Manny Malhotra still can't play for the Canucks, his surprise return to the ice Thursday provided a pick-me-up to his Vancouver teammates.

Out with a career-threatening eye injury since being hit by a deflected puck on March 16, Malhotra skated with the team for the first time since being hurt as the Canucks began to prepare for the Western Conference finals against the San Jose Sharks.

*Sweden overcame a 1-0 deficit in the second period with a furious rally to defeat the Czechs 5-2 this afternoon at Orange Arena. The win gives Tre Kronor the first spot in Sunday night’s gold-medal game.

*The president of Hockey Canada says two years without a medal at the IIHF World Hockey Championship is "totally unacceptable."

*Ken Hitchcock is ready to step behind a NHL bench again.

Despite the disappointment of seeing his Canadian team sent home from the IIHF World Hockey Championship with a quarterfinal loss to Russia, the veteran coach proved something to himself during the tournament.

"For me it's all about building teams," Hitchcock said after Canada's 2-1 loss to Russia on Thursday night. "If I get the chance I'm very confident now that I can build a good team."

*The Thrashers are for sale, and their future in Atlanta is tenuous at best, according to an Atlanta TV station that spoke with a team owner. Meanwhile, ESPN says NHL commissioner Gary Bettman refuted reports Thursday that an announcement was imminent on the sale and relocation of the Thrashers to Winnipeg.

*The New York Islanders have locked up another young forward for the next five years. The club announced today that Michael Grabner has agreed to terms on a five-year contract.

*The Winter Classic is coming to Philadelphia and Citizens Bank Park, according to the Philly Daily News.

*And for your sprinkling of news about the world champion San Francisco Giants, courtesy of the Santa Cruz Sentinel: About 200 billboards sprung up in Los Angeles on Thursday with police sketches of the two men who beat Giants fan Bryan Stow outside Dodger Stadium. The billboards -- which publicize a $100,000 reward for information leading to an arrest -- were donated by the billboards' owner, Lamar Advertising Co. Another 100 billboards with the attackers' sketches are expected to be put up this week, said Los Angeles police detective P.J. Morris.

---John Vogl

The Sabres are opening next season in Europe, and the team has joined with AAA Western and Central New York on packages that include tickets to an exhibition in Mannheim, Germany, and the regular-season contests in Berlin, Germany, and Helsinki, Finland.

The cost of the package for the two games in Germany is $1,699 per person. It includes six nights accommodations, transportation to all planned events, breakfast daily and special team activities. All applicable taxes and fees are included, but airfare and trip insurance are not.

A flight and ticket to the game in Finland is an optional tour that can be added. Space is limited for both packages.

The tour departs the United States on Oct. 2 and returns to the U.S. on Oct. 9. For more information call (800) 242-4244 or visit AAA.com.

---John Vogl

Russia scored twice in the third period, including the winner by Ilya Kovalchuk with 7:41 remaining, to come back and beat Canada, 2-1, at the world championships.

Jason Spezza opened the scoring for Canada in the second period. Alexei Kaigorodov's short-handed goal tied the game midway through the third, setting up Kovalchuk to break the 1-1 deadlock.

Marc-Andre Gragnani's highlight was knocking the puck away from Alex Ovechkin on a late one-on-one.

The semifinals will feature Russia playing Finland and the Czech Republic battling Sweden.

---John Vogl

The Sabres have announced their season-ticket plans for the 2011-12 season, and the price is going up approximately 5 percent. The package includes 40 regular-season games (one will be played in Europe and is excluded) and two discounted preseason games.

The price per game ranges from $23 in 300 Level III and IV to $92 in the 200 Club. Full package prices range from $940 to $3,730, up from $902 to $3,608. The Sabres also raised prices 5 percent last season.

The Sabres' said their average season-ticket price of $44.85 is $16 cheaper than the league average and ranks 23rd in the National Hockey League. Season-ticket holders will be receiving their renewal packages via mail over the next week. A 10 percent deposit is required by June 20 to secure the current seat location.

Level     Preseason/Game     Regular Season/Game     Package     Last Season/Package Increase
200 Club     $25.00     $92.00     $3,730.00     $3,608.00 ($88)     $122.00
200 Ends     $25.00     $75.00     $3,050.00     $2,911.00 ($71)     $139.00
100 Pref. Rink     $25.00     $87.00     $3,530.00     $3,403.00 ($83)     $127.00
100 II Rink     $25.00     $70.00     $2,850.00     $2,747.00 ($67)     $103.00
100 III Rink     $25.00     $58.00     $2,370.00     $2,255.00 ($55)     $115.00
100 Pref.     $25.00     $69.00     $2,810.00     $2,665.00 ($65)     $145.00
100 Level II     $20.00     $54.00     $2,200.00     $2,091.00 ($51)     $109.00
100 Level III     $15.00     $41.00     $1,670.00     $1,599.00 ($39)     $71.00
100 Level IV     $15.00     $36.00     $1,470.00     $1,394.00 ($34)     $76.00
300 Level I     $15.00     $41.00     $1,670.00     $1,599.00 ($39)     $71.00
300 Level II     $10.00     $30.00     $1,220.00     $1,189.00 ($29)     $31.00
300 Level III     $10.00     $23.00     $940.00     $902.00 ($22)     $38.00
300 Level IV     $10.00     $23.00     $940.00     $902.00 ($22)     $38.00

---John Vogl

I had my suspicions about this one all through the four straight games the Flyers lost to the Bruins, three of which they looked completely outclassed. It seemed like the Flyers had absolutely nothing left for Boston after the seven-game grind against the Sabres, while the Bruins didn't have nearly the same trouble summoning energy after their seven-game first-rounder against Montreal.

Turns out I was on to something.

In this CSNPhilly.com story, several Flyers speaking on locker cleanout day admitted the series against the Sabres took a lot out of them both mentally and physically.

“I think that the Buffalo series may have taken more out of us than a normal seven-game series,” said Flyers defenseman Sean O’Donnell. “They are physically and emotionally exhausting, there was a lot of ups and downs there. We came back a lot, I think looking back on that seven-game series, it seemed more like a nine- or 10-game series.”

There are plenty of other issues percolating around the Flyers in the wake of their quick second-round exit.

---Defenseman Chris Pronger will have back surgery on Thursday while several other players went under the knife on Wednesday. The most noteworthy was captain Mike Richards, who had a torn ligament in his wrist that clearly rendered him ineffective in both rounds. 

---Speaking of Richards, CSNPhilly's Tim Panaccio, the longtime Flyers beat writer, put together this story where coach Peter Laviolette admitted he's still working on his relationship with Richards. The Flyers' captain is a pretty churlish sort most of the time with the media and, based on his Twitter account, he wasn't happy with the story. Panaccio had this response.

---Flyers owner Ed Snider agrees with everyone who watched the team in the playoffs: They need to find a No. 1 goalie, whether it's Sergei Bobrovsky or an outsider, and stick with him. 

Said Snider: "... Either one of the goalies we have has to step up in training camp, or we have to make improvements to make sure it happens. But we are NEVER going to go through the goalie issues we’ve gone through in the last couple of years again."

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Jaromir Jagr scored three times today, leading the Czech Republic to a 4-0 victory over the United States at the world championships. The quarterfinal loss eliminates the Americans.

Sabres center Paul Gaustad finished with no goals and one assist in six games for the U.S. team.

Buffalo defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani will try to help Canada beat Russia in their quarterfinal at 2 p.m. Thursday. The game will be televised by Versus.

---John Vogl

Happy Wednesday. Unless you're a San Jose Sharks fan, that is ...

*For all their Stanley Cups and memorable playoff victories, the Detroit Red Wings haven't done anything like this in a long, long time.

Henrik Zetterberg and Valtteri Filppula scored less than two minutes apart in the third period, and the Red Wings came from behind again for a 3-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night, forcing a decisive seventh game after trailing 3-0 in the pulsating second-round series.

Detroit is the eighth NHL team to force a Game 7 after starting a series with three straight losses. The Red Wings did it themselves once, but that was back in 1945, and they ended up losing the finale to Toronto.

*The San Jose Mercury News writes the Sharks have one more chance not to make ingloriously horrible history.

One more chance not to go down in National Hockey League lore as a legendary gagging team that built a perfect 3-games-to-0 lead in a best-of-seven playoff series -- and then watched it all leak away in defeat.

One more chance not to join the three other infamous hockey teams that have done that, the only three teams on that list since 1939 when the NHL began playing best-of-seven series.

Is this, like, supposed to be fun? Because it doesn't feel like fun. Exciting and tense, maybe. But not fun.

*The NHL is considering a legal move to clear the way for the sale of the Phoenix Coyotes to Chicago businessman Matthew Hulsizer. The league also may have another potential buyer stepping forward in place of Hulsizer as the saga over ownership of the troubled team enters its third year.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly made those comments late Tuesday night after a marathon Glendale City Council meeting ended with a 5-2 vote in favor of giving the league $25 million in operating costs to keep the Coyotes in Arizona for another season.

*Ryan Kesler would never admit that he and the Vancouver Canucks need a few days off before the Western Conference finals.

Kesler is the player who asked doctors to cut off a badly broken finger in his first postseason game four years earlier, and he is also the guy who returned to Game 5 on Saturday night against the Nashville Predators in the same period in which he was hit so hard by a deflected puck that the cut went right through his lower lip and knocked out a tooth.

So even with his swollen face turning shades of yellow and purple around the stitches crisscrossing jaggedly an inch below his lip, Kesler wouldn't say he wanted time to recover.

That doesn't mean he isn't happy to have the well-timed break. The Canucks will be well-rested when they face the San Jose Sharks or the Detroit Red Wings in the opening game of the West finals at home on Sunday night.

*Flyers captain Mike Richards headlines a list of five players that need offseason surgery.

*Nashville coach Barry Trotz doesn't want his Predators to forget the pain of losing in the playoffs. Just consider it the necessary pains of growing up in the NHL.

*For real? That's the best they could come up with? Really good video, though. For real.

---John Vogl

Lindy Ruff and some other NHL coaches are moving into some historically interesting territory when it comes to victories.

Ruff finished the 2010-11 season with 526 wins as the Sabres coach. That's the second-most of any coach for wins with the same team.

Quietly, other names are moving up the all-time list. Take a look at Barry Trotz of Nashville, who is sixth -- ahead of Dick Irvin and Scotty Bowman. Paul Maurice and Mike Babcock joined the top 20 this year as well:

Name – Team – Wins
Al Arbour – N.Y. Islanders – 740
*Lindy Ruff – Buffalo – 526
Billy Reay – Chicago - 516
Toe Blake – Montreal – 500
Glen Sather – Edmonton - 464
*Barry Trotz – Nashville - 455
Dick Irvin – Montreal - 431
Scotty Bowman – Montreal – 419
Jack Adams – Detroit – 413
Scotty Bowman – Detroit – 410

Punch Imlach – Toronto – 370
Art Ross – Boston - 361
Bryan Murray – Washington - 343
Emile Francis – N.Y. Rangers – 342
Jacques Martin – Ottawa - 341
Sid Abel – Detroit – 340
*Paul Maurice – Carolina - 315
Fred Shero – Philadelphia - 308
Joel Quenneville – St. Louis – 307
*Mike Babcock – Detroit – 304

--- Budd Bailey

Boston will host Tampa Bay at 8 p.m. Saturday in Game One of the Eastern Conference finals, signifying the first drop of the puck in hockey's final four. Vancouver will host either Detroit or San Jose on Sunday.

Eastern Conference

Saturday, May 14     at Boston, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Tuesday, May 17     at Boston, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS
Thursday, May 19     at Tampa Bay, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS
Saturday, May 21     at Tampa Bay, 1:30 p.m.     NBC
*Monday, May 23     at Boston, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
*Wednesday, May 25     at Tampa Bay, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
*Friday, May 27     at Boston, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC

Western Conference

(if San Jose advances)

Sunday, May 15     at Vancouver, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Wednesday, May 18     at Vancouver, 9:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Friday, May 20     at San Jose, 9:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Sunday, May 22     at San Jose, 3:00 p.m.     NBC, CBC
*Tuesday, May 24     at Vancouver, 9:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
*Thursday, May 26     at San Jose, 9:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
*Saturday, May 28     at Vancouver, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC

(if Detroit advances)

Sunday, May 15     at Vancouver, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Wednesday, May 18     at Vancouver, 9:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Friday, May 20     at Detroit, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
Sunday, May 22     at Detroit, 3:00 p.m.     NBC, CBC
*Tuesday, May 24     at Vancouver, 9:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
*Thursday, May 26     at Detroit, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC
*Saturday, May 28     at Vancouver, 8:00 p.m.     VERSUS, CBC

---John Vogl

The Sabres are asking fans to nominate worthy players or personnel to be considered for the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame. The team's Hall of Fame Selection Committee will accept nominations until 5 p.m. May 20 via e-mail at bobsab1@aol.com.

Player nominations are limited to former Sabres, and fans are asked to include the number of games and total points accumulated by the player. Nominations of Sabres personnel in other categories, such as coaches, trainers and front office, will be determined and chosen by the committee, taking into account any fan suggestions.

---John Vogl

The Sabres, who already have a preseason stop in Europe on the schedule, continue to make travel plans. Buffalo's prospects will head to northern Michigan to take part in the Traverse City NHL Prospects Tournament, an eight-team event hosted by the Detroit Red Wings.

Prospects for the Sabres, Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues will participate from Sept. 10-14. Teams are divided into two divisions for a three-day round-robin tournament, then ranked by their win-loss records for seventh-, fifth-, third-place and championship games on the final day.

---John Vogl

Happy Monday, and happy 13th birthday to my son, Ty. And now, your look around the NHL, starting right here in the B-lo:

*The Buffalo Sabres' goaltending evolution could have been awkward.

Ryan Miller could merely watch one of his best friends get shoved aside. Patrick Lalime, that aforementioned best friend, could only sit idly by as he got pushed out of the crease -- and likely out of the NHL.

It could have been awkward, but winning and past experiences helped make Jhonas Enroth's arrival a smooth and successful one.

*My childhood street hockey buddy and fellow concert-goer Kris Baker of SabresProspects.com assesses the Sabres' future with an extensive look at the prospect ranks.

*Fewer than 24 hours after their elimination from the Calder Cup playoffs, members of the Portland Pirates were packing up Saturday and heading for home.

*The Detroit Red Wings are coming home with a chance to take a step toward history. Suddenly, that seems well within reach.

Tomas Holmstrom broke a tie with 6:08 remaining, and the Red Wings scored three third-period goals to avoid elimination with a 4-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Sunday night.

"There's a lot of character on this team. There's not any quit," said Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard, who made 39 saves. "Our season was on the line there in the third period, and we found a way."

Danny Cleary and Jonathan Ericsson also scored in the final period to send the series back to Detroit for Game Six on Tuesday night. After winning the first three games, San Jose is clinging to a 3-2 lead.

*The Nashville Predators are reminding the Vancouver Canucks that it's never over till it's really over.

Once again.

The Canucks thought they learned that lesson after nearly blowing a 3-0 series lead and needing overtime in Game Seven to knock off the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round. They led Nashville 3-1 only to see the Predators win their first elimination game in six tries Saturday night to extend this Western Conference semifinal to Game Six tonight in Nashville.

*The Boston Bruins picked the right time to play their best hockey. The offense is clicking, the defense is stingy and the coaching philosophy of sticking with the system is working. The Bruins are in the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 1992.

*In a season where winning the Stanley Cup was the only goal, the Philadelphia Flyers fell flat at the end.

*NHL.com has a brief look at the Eastern Conference finals featuring the Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning.

*The Czech Republic overcame the arrival of Alex Ovechkin to beat Russia 3-2 Sunday and maintain a perfect record at the IIHF World Hockey Championship. Jakub Voracek, Jaromir Jagr and Tomas Plekanec scored a goal each for the Czech Republic as Ovechkin couldn't help Russia avenge a 2-1 loss to the Czechs in the final of last year's worlds.

Also Sunday, Mikael Backlund scored 7:47 into the third period and added an empty-net goal to give Sweden a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Switzerland to secure a place in the quarters. The result means that the United States also advanced.

*The City of Glendale will vote Tuesday whether to ante up another $25 million to ensure the Phoenix Coyotes remain in town for at least another year.

The City of Glendale released its council agenda Friday and multiple sources confirmed to ESPN.com the city is looking at replicating an arrangement that cost $25 million this season to help cover operating costs while the NHL finds an owner for the franchise for next season.

The proposal is expected to pass -- one source told ESPN.com Friday it would be a "no-brainer" for the city -- and could take some of the pressure off of the municipality to sell more than $100 million in bonds that are crucial to closing a deal with Chicago businessman Matthew Hulsizer.

---John Vogl

Former Sabres goaltender Ty Conklin stopped 48 shots in regulation and overtime, but he was beaten by Jordan Eberle and Rick Nash in the shootout as Canada topped the United States, 4-3, at the world championships.

Sabres defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani had an assist for Canada. Paul Gaustad was kept off the score sheet for the U.S. team.

---John Vogl

Happy Friday. I guess the best thing about the NHL's second round is that it's almost over. Sweep, sweep, sweep (?) and five games (?). Not exactly the drama the league was looking for, eh?

*Terry Pegula watched Tim Connolly get crushed into the boards from behind. He saw Rob Niedermayer unsuspectingly accept a blow that sent him into the boards.

The Buffalo Sabres' owner began thinking of a rule change.

"I suggested some rearview mirrors for our headgear next year," Pegula said, "but I don't know if that's legal in the league."

Mirrors definitely won't be on the agenda of the NHL's board of governors or the competition committee. However, Pegula and Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier do have a few legitimate ideas they'd like the league to examine.

*Bucky Gleason writes that Pegula eliminating financial restrictions in pursuit of a Stanley Cup goes far beyond broadening the Sabres' options for acquiring players or expanding scouting. It also can be extended to keeping players in the system in an effort to help them manage the salary cap while improving their depth.

Take defenseman Shaone Morrisonn, for example. He isn't likely to crack the lineup next season but has one year and $2.075 million on his contract. One option would be buying out his deal to create more cap space, but they would have more salary room if they stashed him in Portland. Morrisonn would get the playing time he needed, offer guidance to younger players and still be available if they ran into injuries.

*Ryan Kesler seems to be trying to carry the Vancouver Canucks into the Western Conference finals almost singlehandedly.

Kesler broke a tie with a power-play goal at 7:28 of the third period for his second straight game-winner, and the Canucks beat the Nashville Predators 4-2 Thursday night to grab a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.

*No NHL team knows better than the Philadelphia Flyers how hard it is to overcome a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven playoff series.

Philadelphia beat Boston four straight times in last year's Eastern Conference semifinals to eliminate the Bruins en route to the Stanley Cup finals. This year, the Flyers are in a hole again, but at least they know the deficit isn't insurmountable.

The Bruins put the Flyers on the brink of elimination with a 5-1 victory on Wednesday night that gave Boston a chance to complete the sweep in Game Four tonight.

*While Ovechkin was Washington's best player in the second-round loss to Tampa Bay, he did not dominate games nearly as often as has come to be expected from one of the best players in the world.

Throughout this season when Ovechkin's lack of offensive production was brought up, the response from members of the organization was that it was related to the team's attempt to switch to a more defensive-oriented system. When the team met with the media for the final time this season Thursday, Ovechkin's injuries were the response to those questions.

*Canada and the United States are playing right now in the world championships. It's scoreless after one period. Paul Gaustad plays for the Americans, while Marc-Andre Gragnani is playing for Canada.

---John Vogl

Capitals owner Ted Leonsis, a former owner of AOL who is obviously big on the Internet, took to his blog today to analyze his top-seeded team's sweep at the hands of Tampa Bay. Among the excerpts:

"Little things seemed to bother us this series. We weren’t resilient and we didn’t get over obstacles placed in our way. We are all accountable on this performance starting with me.

"Their role players outplayed our role players.

"Their highest paid players outplayed our highest paid players.

"In fact, their role players outplayed our highest paid players.

"Their goaltending was better.

"Their special teams were better.

"They adhered to their coaches’ system better than we adhered to our coaches’ system.

"The wheels fell off for us. No doubt about that.

"Thank you for caring so much. I am so very sorry we let you all down."

---John Vogl