Sergei Kostitsyn – AWOL. He bolted from Hamilton and the rumor is that he is on a plane to Russia. Full story here. If he’s gone – then I have to think he’s gone for good.

The Pens have confirmed – the wrist is broken and Gonchar is out 4-6 weeks. That’s 28 to 42 days, so December 2nd at the latest and November 18 at the earliest. That’s 14 to 21 games he will miss.

Marc Savard has a broken left foot and will be out 4-6 weeks. With Savard – that means he’ll be back in two. I wouldn’t bet too much money on that, but call it a hunch – several years ago he got a couple of supposedly long-term injuries and he came back (way too) early and flourished. Just going by that memory, don’t expect it to be as bad as 4-6 weeks. Krejci is starting to come around and obviously Bergeron has the ability to really step up.

NJ has sent Cory Murphy down to the AHL. That’s about that for Mr. Murphy. Injuries killed his progress and it’s unlikely that he’ll ever get back on track in the NHL.

After four points in the first two games, Vrbata has zero in his last five. He has fired 22 shots on goal in that span, though, so there is still hope for the streaky winger.

Iginla played with Conroy and Glencross last night. Jokinen played with Sjostrom and Nystrom. The combos were successful, as the team exploded for six goals, so expect things to remain this way for awhile. Sjostrom clicked well with Jokinen, picking up two points. It’s all about chemistry, so perhaps Sjostrom will take advantage of his millionth chance.

I’d like to welcome Dan Snyder as the new editor of DobberBaseball. Under Dan’s leadership, the site will have a stronger focus on answering your questions in the forum, and rankings ranking rankings! Remember, you can always access the baseball site via the tabs up top within the banner.

Sergei Gonchar may have broken his hand or wrist. He did not play in the third period last night, but the Pens are not (yet) saying how bad the injury is. This would be huge for Goligoski and Letang owners, and obviously devastating for Gonchar owners.

The Kings returned Oscar Moller to Manchester. He played two games and averaged just under eight minutes. Don’t expect points from Moller in the NHL this season. With the loss of Frolov next summer, Moller should be fine next campaign even though they are opposite wings (they’ll just move Purcell or Brown or somebody over). Moller is ranked 15th on my prospects list.

Chris Stewart, who managed to get into just four games, has been sent down to the AHL. Poolies are hoping he doesn’t disappoint like his brother Anthony. He is ranked 50th on my prospects list.

The Preds have recalled Alexander Sulzer and Dave Scatchard. Sulzer had an impressive six points in five games for Milwaukee and he was supposed to be a lock to make the Preds out of camp. We’ll see if he takes advantage of this opportunity.

What do you think of this strategy/conspiracy theory? Team A wants to send Player X to the AHL but he has to clear waivers. Team B, a Conference rival, claims Player X and then keeps him for a month, never or rarely dressing him for games. Then, when the player is nice and rusty, Team B waives him knowing Team A will reclaim him. Now Team A reclaims him, but he’s rusty and will never get back on track this season. Frankly, I think it’s brilliant. So is that what the Penguins are doing to the Caps with Bourque?

From Portzline in “Puck Rakers“: At today’s morning skate, Hitchcock said rookie Nikita Filatov would player “either tonight (in Calgary) or in Edmonton (on Thursday).” Well, Filatov (did not) play (last night) against the Flames, so that means he’s in for the Edmonton game after three straight healthy scratches. “It’s a man league, the NHL. It’s a big man’s league,” Hitchcock said. “He’s learning how to compete at this level. He’s going to be a good player. He’s getting better every day. Our philosophy with young players … when they’re starting to lose confidence in being able to win the one-on-ones that we need them to win, rather than let them go right into the tank, we pull them out, work with them and put them back in when we think they’re ready. He’s close now to being ready to compete at the level necessary to play. We’ve spent a lot of time working with him. Rather than just throw him out there and try to find minutes, we want him to be an effective player. We think with the last week of work with the coaching staff has really helped him and he’s going to be ready to go. He wants to play. When he gets in — because he’s going to play either tonight (Calgary) or in Edmonton (on Thursday) — it’s going to be tough getting him out (of the lineup). He’s hungry now. He’s going to be a good player.”

Here’s Filatov on the matter: “It’s good news, of course. It’s been a pretty long time since I played. I’m just working and getting ready and staying prepared. It’s just different for me. I didn’t used to miss games a lot before. I know what the coaches want from me. Of course I know this. And I’m trying to do it. Compete for pucks. Win one on one battles for the puck. I know this and I am trying my best to do it.”

The Caps’ Tomas Fleischmann has been cleared to practice. Look for him to return in about a week.

Mikko Koivu has been named team captain for the Wild.

Steve Ott (oblique muscle) will return to the Dallas lineup tonight. According to Heika,The lines are: Ribeiro with Benn and Morrow (great line this season); Wandell with Neal and Eriksson; Sutherby with Ott and Brunnstrom. Brad Richards is possible, but doubtful.

Islanders Point Blank is reporting that Okposo is off the Tavares line. Here are the combos: Tavares with Moulson and Weight; Nielsen with Bergenheim and Okposo; Bailey with Tambellini and Comeau…that means the Schremp experiment is not looking so good. My “Rob Brown” theory is still in effect – but it looks like Moulson is the new Brown, and not Schremp!