--Ben Bishop is the biggest name when it comes to goalies that are pending unrestricted free agents, but as The Hockey News points out, there are other useful players at that position that could find themselves on different teams next season. Chad Johnson, Brian Elliott, Ryan Miller, Steve Mason and Scott Darling could all be nice pickups if they don’t re-sign with their respective clubs before July 1st. (The Hockey News)
--Claude Julien is considered by many to be one of the best coaches in hockey, but that doesn’t mean he won’t face any challenges in his new adventure with the Montreal Canadiens. His biggest obstacle will be finding ways to win without being able to count on a strong two-way center like he did in Boston with Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. (Vice Sports)
--Sabres forward Evander Kane scored a spectacular goal in last night’s 2-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche. You can watch the highlights from that game by clicking the video at the top of the page.
--The Toronto Maple Leafs surprised many by being in playoff contention this late into the season, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline. But thanks to some creative cap management, the Leafs could potentially be one of the teams that makes the biggest splash between now and the end of the month. (Sportsnet)
--Penguins captain Sidney Crosby hit the 10,00-point mark in yesterday’s win over the Winnipeg Jets. Crosby is in pretty elite company when it comes to points-per-game for players that have played a minimum of 500 games in the NHL:
Per @EliasSports, points per game, min. 500 GP:
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) February 17, 2017
1. Gretzky: 1.92
2. Lemieux: 1.88
3. Bossy: 1.50
4. Orr: 1.39
5. Crosby: 1.32
--Speaking of Crosby’s latest accomplishment, the Penguins PR staff came up with a list of 110 different players that helped the Penguins captain hit the 1,000-point mark. To no one’s surprise, Evgeni Malkin leads the way, as he had a direct link to 262 of Crosby’s points. (BarDown)
--The Garden of Dreams foundation allowed a young New York Rangers fan to get the experience of a lifetime. Moshe Illouz became an honorary Rangers player five days. He answered questions from the media and got to skate with Henrik Lundqvist and the gang.
Yesterday #NYR agreed to terms with @gardenofdreams teen Moshe to be an honorary #NYR for 5 days. Watch his press conference here! https://t.co/MA6rIulA0M
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 16, 2017
