Buzz is elated - or just feeling the effects of too much egg nog - that Hayley Wickenheiser was named the Canadian Press female athlete of the year. She is the first women's hockey player to be so named since the Bobbie Rosenfeld award was first handed out in 1993. Buzz says, "It's about time..."
The Grinch made a few visits to the NHL infirmary over the holidays, his first stop to steal the joy from Burnaby Joe Sakic's season. Sakic will undergo hernia surgery, sidelining him for eight to 12 weeks. He has already missed 12 games due to what was originally described as a groin injury. At least they didn't call it a "lower body" injury, a Buzz pet peeve...
In the "tell me something I don't already know" category, Buzz sees that Sidney Crosby is the leading vote-getter for the NHL all-star game in Atlanta on Jan. 27. What's notable is that Crosby has nearly twice as many votes as runner-up (and league leading scorer) Vincent Lecavalier. Now if there was only a way to vote in Buzz favorite Sean Avery...
In case you needed further proof that the Penguins are officially off the NHL deathbed, all 19 Pittsburgh home games have been sellouts. The team has set a club record with a 32-game sellout streak dating back to last season...
Columbus, which lost for the 12th straight time (more on that below) to Nashville on Dec. 27, did so without Rick Nash, who was missed a second consecutive game with a throat problem. The hard-luck Jackets also placed spirited checkers Michael Peca and Manny Malhotra on injured reserve...
Speaking of Nashville, the win on the 27th marked the 300th win in Predators' franchise history. It was also Barry Trotz' 300th win, as he has been the only head coach the team has ever known. He joins some pretty select company to pull off the feat, including Scotty Bowman (Montreal and Detroit) and Lindy Ruff (377 wins with Buffalo)...
You know things are bad when you can't win in Atlanta. Well, until last night. Nathan Horton sparked Florida to a 5-3 victory over Atlanta on Dec. 27, scoring two goals. It was the first time the Cats had beaten the Thrashers at home in 11 games...
The folks at Madison Square Garden avoided staying on Santa's naughty list by settling a lawsuit with a former Rangers' cheerleader who sued for sexual discrimination. Courtney Prince, who was fired in 2004, alleged that the suits at MSG failed to protect their skating cheerleaders from being inappropriately touched when they ventured out into the stands, among other things...
Quote of the Day: "There is no secret to beating Columbus... And if there was I wouldn't tell you. They threw everything but the kitchen sink at us." Nashville head coach Barry Trotz after his Predators defeated the Blue Jackets for the 12th straight time.
Quote of the Day, Pt. II: "We have zip for confidence. We can't give our problems to someone else. We need to mentally, first of all, start thinking, 'I need to make a difference. I need to regain my confidence here.' Hopefully a few guys start doing that, and maybe a good thing happens." Tampa Bay coach John Tortorella said after his team lost for the eighth time in 10 games (5-2 to Montreal on Dec. 27).