Putting the finishing touches on Part 2 of my Prime Cuts article series. Should be out this evening!

Michael Grabner is drawing in for Matt Pettinger in Game 2 tomorrow night.

Ovechkin or Crosby? Another hockey question on your mind? Ask me here!

Jarome Iginla recently went on record stating that he is willing to waive his no-trade clause. Calgary would be stupid to trade him – they don’t have the prospects/picks to rebuild properly. What they need to do (after getting a competent GM) is find a way to open up some cap space. They have solid pieces in place but are really hamstrung by some horrible contracts (Kotalik, Staios, Langkow, etc). Trading Regehr for some offense is an option as well. The defensive core with Bouwmeester, White, and Giordano is very solid.

An interview with Swedish goaltender (and Ottawa draft pick) Robin Lehner, a top prospect flying well below the radar.

Jordan Eberle will most likely be playing for Canada at the World Hockey Championship this year. Eberle could retire from hockey tomorrow and still a legend in Canadian hockey history. Joining him on the team will be Corey Perry, John Tavares, and Steve Stamkos.

As I mentioned yesterday, it is looking like the Islanders are going to be well below the cap floor this summer (to the tune of $9 or $10 million). Could they be players in the Kovalchuk sweepstakes? I doubt it, but money does talk. I wonder if a 10-year, $87.5 million deal would be enough?

Thoughts from last night:

I didn’t catch the Buffalo vs. Boston game, aside from the highlights. Looks like Miller played really well. What the heck was Toni Lydman thinking with his attempted spear of Milan Lucic?

Washington vs. Montreal

Montreal's top line is going to give the Caps fits all series long. That is the best game I have ever seen Mike Cammalleri play before. He played with his usual high level of offensive skill, but brought tenacity and grit that I hadn't seen from him before.

The Canadiens better get ready to pony up for Plekanec! Does he progress into an 80-point center?

It looked like the Capitals were playing to not lose. Really tentative game on their part.

Vancouver vs. Los Angeles

The pre-Olympic Break Jonathan Quick showed up (and then some). He was the only reason the Kings stuck around past 60 minutes.

Justin Williams looked very sluggish – I wonder if the Kings will promote Brown or Simmonds to the top unit?

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Randy Jones and Jack Johnson are a dismal pairing in the defensive zone. From reading various Kings blogs, it sounds like this has been the case for much of the season. I wonder if someone like Drewiskie will draw in?

Alex Edler looked like he was channeling Ulf Samuelsson last night – three monster open ice hits, including a beauty on Drew Doughty in the third period.

Oilers GM Steve Tambellini announced that he wants a bigger and tougher club for next season in a press conference yesterday. I’d believe him if this wasn’t a carbon copy of what he said last summer…

Throughout the summer I’ll be hosting a weekly question and answer thread on the DobberHockey messageboards. They have been very popular in the past, and I always enjoy dispensing advice. As I said yesterday, I’ll announce a regular time soon.

On twitter? Follow myself (@angus_j) and Dobber (@DobberHockey).

Part 2 of my Prime Cuts article series will be out today. I’ll unveil the third line and the second defensive pairing. Any guesses? If you have read my articles throughout the season, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out who will make the grade. Keith Yandle, who made the team (and was featured in Part 1), had a great game for the Coyotes on Wednesday night.

Chris Botta believes that the Islanders will be close to $10 million BELOW the cap floor this summer. What does that mean? Well, they are forced to add $10 million in salary. Their needs are many, so speculate away!

Does Marty St. Louis want to be traded? This article (containing quotes from Marty) does a bit of speculating. That loud noise is the collective screaming of poolies who own Steven Stamkos.

According to his agent, Jacob Markstrom may play another year or two in the SEL. I think this is just agent-speak – Markstrom is at most one year away from playing for the Panthers. I think he just wants to pressure the Panthers to open up a spot for him, which would probably involve shopping Tomas Vokoun this or next summer.

Tomas Plekanec with a silencer:

In case you missed it – the “save” in OT by Luongo last night. His stick gets caught in his pads so he has to contort his glove to swat the puck away.