Hockey

The Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins will battle for an even series and a stranglehold on the Stanley Cup Final, respectively, at 8 PM EDT tonight (on the CBC and NBC). Weigh in here with your observations and other thoughts abou the day's events.

Mathieu Schneider discussed the NHLPA's take on the general managers' meetings and probable rule changes this afternoon. Schneider also weighed in on the GM's desire to "tackle" diving while speaking with ESPN's Scott Burnside... "I wouldn't say it's a big issue. Listen, hockey players have always prided themselves on being some of the toughest guys, and when you see some of the plays it makes you shake your head a little, but at the same time [league vice president Colin Campbell] will tell you a story of a player he thought dove and ended up having a broken neck. "Guys lose edges. Guys step on sticks. There are so many that are gray, even though there are the calls that everybody and their mother knows it's a dive, there are a lot of them that are gray. What happens is if you discipline one player, another player says, 'Well, I did the same thing.' It's very difficult. There is nothing that is black and white on it. It's not like a high stick," he said. And the GM's and NHL executives weighed in with their takes on hybrid icing and visors while speaking with NHL.com's Dan Rosen, who notes that the rule changes will become official when the Board of Governors votes on them during their meetings on June 27th:Continue reading "General managers weigh in on rule changes: shootout spin-o-rama to be outlawed; other tidbits!"

From ESPN Boston's Joe McDonald: When the puck drops on Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals between the Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night at TD Garden, it will mark the 200th career playoff game for Bruins forward Jaromir Jagr. The 41-year-old future Hall of Famer has played for six teams -- Pittsburgh, Washington, Philadelphia, Dallas and Boston -- during his NHL career and with the exception of the Stars (only played half of this season with Dallas), each of those teams have reached the postseason. Plus, he won a pair of Stanley Cups with the Penguins. “That’s pretty impressive,” said Bruins assistant captain Chris Kelly. “It shows, not only his regular-season numbers, it shows that he’s played consistently in the postseason -- a lot in the postseason. I don’t know where that ranks all-time but I’m sure it’s pretty high.” Jagr will become the 19th player in NHL history to reach 200 career playoff games. Chris Chelios is the all-time leader with 266 with Montreal, Chicago and Detroit.

It's the Boston Bruins hosting the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, and your pals at Puck Daddy are live chattin' this bad boy beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. You bring the insightful thoughts on the game. We bring the funny and the Hamburger Women. That's how this works. Puck Daddy Stanley Cup Final Game 4 Live Chat

BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins finally held their Stanley Cup Final Fan Fest, after it was rained out during Game 3 on Monday. And it was ... pretty much like their other fan fests every postseason. Let's take a look, shall we? There were Bruins fan signs ready-made for those fans that would require such homogenous tokens of enthusiasm. Ah, that's more like it: Homemade fan sign, tremendous flag in its Teemu-osity. "Because it's the Cup(s)." Here's something rather cool: AT&T had beer bottle koozies that you could personalize (in a way) with a player's number on the back. See? Now a guy dressed like Milan Lucic can have a beer from the koozies also dressed like Milan Lucic. What a country! Dunkin' Donuts had more shots than the Blackhawks in the first period of Game 2. Confession: I was thirsty. Double confession: This wasn't a giant iced coffee after all. As with any great fan fest, they had a dude in a Chicago Blackhawks jersey in a dunk tank so little kids could run up and push the bulls-eye. Check out the Rene Rancourt fist pumps from the mascot! Bruins fans were able to get their battle paint on for a small donation. Remember the Bruins Rally Towel Suit guy? This is his precursor, a woman who fashioned onsie and a hooded cape from them. She said she collected more when pissed off Leafs fans threw them at her in Round 1. Awwwwwkard ... Finally, the Fan Fest featured at least one amazing homemade Cup, sealed up so you can drink from the bowl. The gloves are an awesome, awesome touch sir.

BOSTON -- Mandatory use of visors for players entering the NHL next season, plus the testing of a form of hybrid icing in the preseason were among the items endorsed by the league's general managers on Wednesday. NHLPA Special Assistant Mathieu Schneider said that the GMs were committed to changing the way icings are called, and if all parties are pleased with it, the rule would officially be implemented beginning with the 2013-14 regular season. Along with hybrid icing and mandatory visors, video review of four-minute high sticking penalties, shallower nets (from 44 to 40 inches), and the need for the puck to make contact with a stick on a pass in order to wave off an icing will now go to the Board of Governors on June 27 for approval. More discussion needed on diving The issue of diving was also brought up Wednesday, but according to Schneider, there needs to be more discussion in order for there to be a recommendation to the BoG for some form of punishment. "There's so many that are gray, even though there's the calls that everybody and their mother knows that it's a dive, there are a lot of them that are gray," said Schneider. "What happens if you discipline one player and another player says, 'I did the same thing'? It's very difficult. There's nothing that's black and white. It's not like a high stick." Among the ideas discussed were better education of players and a list inside team dressing rooms. "It's something that we want to address, but we're not sure how to do it right now," Schneider said. Are the Avs serious or bluffing about passing on Seth Jones? Joe Sakic told Adrian Dater of the Denver Post that Colorado Avalanche were thinking about passing on defenseman Seth Jones and using the No. 1 overall pick on one of the top available forwards like Nathan MacKinnon or Jonathan Drouin. That news could certainly trigger movement when the NHL Draft arrives in 11 days, but there's some hesitance to believe that's exactly what the Avs plan to do. "One of the things it causes you do to is say is that for real or is that smoke screen?," said Calgary Flames GM Jay Feaster, who reportedly offered all three of his first round picks to Colorado for the first pick only to be declined. "I supposed you have to take it at face value and believe that it's true. But that's another part of what happens right now is that there's certainly a lot of sleight of hand that goes on. I don't know that you want to necessarily tell people what you're thinking." Lightning willing to stay pat at No. 3 If the first two picks go as many expect, the Tampa Bay Lightning will likely choose between Jonathan Drouin and Aleksander Barkov at No. 3. Despite all of the rumored movement that might happen in Newark and the news surrounding the Avalanche and the top pick, Lightning GM Steve Yzerman isn't expecting to move out of his spot. "I'm quite comfortable with the third pick and remaining there, but we're open to any scenario we think makes us a better organization," said Yzerman. When it comes time to make a decision for their pick, Yzerman says the Lightning will not make their selection based organizational need. "We believe in taking the best player available," he said. "That's been our philosophy and needs change from year to year. When these kids are actually ready to play, your needs can be entirely different for various reasons. That's just a simple rule of thumb that we have." Future of Coyotes affecting Mike Smith, Dave Tippett It sure sounds like what will happen to the Phoenix Coyotes will reach a resolution pretty soon. The Glendale City Council meeting later this month will set the wheels in motion one way or another for the team to either stay or relocate. With that uncertainly, Coyotes GM Don Maloney faces a tough situation trying to lock up both his head coach and No. 1 goaltender. "I'm hopeful that we can get something done with [Dave Tippett] sooner rather than later," he said. "How soon that is, it's hopefully before July 1. That'

Ek's note...I love the following article from the talented Sarah Conners who writes for the site Stanley Cup of Chowder. You should follow Sarah on Twitter as well @sarah_connors Hey neutral fan! Are you agonizing over which team to cheer for in the SCF? Don't cheer for the meteor; one team here is actually way better to cheer for than the other. Let me tell you all about why Boston is su...

Henrik Lundqvist, who on break-up day became the Rangers’ public voice of disaffection that in retrospect foretold the firing of John Tortorella as head coach 48 hours later, told The Post that he “would never put pressure on management on decisions like that.” “I know there is some speculation regarding Torts being fired, but let’s be clear on one thing,” Lundqvist said via an e-mail on Wednesday that contained his first comments on the matter. “It’s not my call who the coach should be for the New York Rangers. “I would never put pressure on the management on decisions like that. I’m just a player. My focus is to play the game and do the best I can on the ice. Whatever [happens] off the ice, I leave to our great staff we have working for this club.” A player? Yes. Just a player? Not quite. No one in sports is irreplaceable, but the franchise goaltender is as close as they come to fitting that description for the Rangers. And when Lundqvist issued a tepid response on the May 27 break-up day regarding his desire to sign a long-term extension on his contract that expires after this coming season, it set off alarm bells across all time zones of Blueshirt Country. This morning, Lundqvist further clarified his position regarding an extension. “It has no impact for me on who the coach is when it comes to my contract,” the 31-year-old told The Post. “I love everything about the New York Rangers. I love the fans. I love the organization. “I hope we can work something out when it is time to do so.” Left intentionally unsaid, of course, was when it will be time to do so and what he believes should be the cost of doing business. The Rangers have every intention to try and get this done before training camp opens in September. Lundqvist’s public comments in the wake of the team's elimination by the Bruins were the tip of an unseen iceberg of a break-up day on which a critical mass of players had used their exit interviews with management to express their extreme dissatisfaction with Tortorella’s unyielding approach and their belief that the club had gone as far as it could under him. The Post reported on May 30 that Lundqvist was troubled enough by the deteriorating dynamic between his teammates and the coach that he felt the need to give voice to it. But Lundqvist in his e-mail expressed nothing but gratitude to Tortorella, under whom the goaltender won the 2011-12 Vezina and finished second in the balloting this time around. “Torts and I had a great relationship,” said Lundqvist, who has returned to his home in Sweden for the summer. “It was exciting and refreshing to play for him. I never had a coach challenge me the way he did, in a good way. “When you play for a coach and he is let go, you feel really bad as a player. I feel like I should have done more. In the end, it’s up to us players to get the done, but coaches sometimes pay for our mistakes,” the goaltender continued. “I felt the same way when Tom [Renney] was let go four years ago.” Now, the Rangers will move on under Alain Vigneault, who reached an agreement to coach the club over the weekend but whose hiring has still not been officially announced. “I don’t know that much about him,” Lundqvist said. “All I hear, though, is that he is a great coach.” http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/rangers/lundqvist_wasn_behind_rangers_firing_tUopaAXDxi3Ia6Pc7vJlGM

NHL Injury Report - the latest on Nugent-Hopkins, Rinne, Brown and more In this week's edition of Carried Off the Ice we take a quick look at a few injury updates of couple players in the Stanley Cup Finals as well as a few non-playoff updates.

I am convinced that no one actually reads what I write up here for the open threads so I am just going to write a few of my favorite words/sounds. Enjoy! Disposition, anodyne, iridescent, lithe, svelte, welkin, ink, chrysalis, beguile, meandering, succor, quandary, decrepit, thorough, mulch, dew, cacophony, cataclysm, sepulcher, cantankerous, curmudgeon, mellifluous, melancholy, morbid, cumbersome, belligerence, benevolence, muck, juice, meat, maw, coarse, quagmire, heave, lunge, scramble, moss, endoplasmic reticulum, dulcet, tomahawk, effervescent, lobe, epitome, ethereal, halcyon, surreptitious, murmur, myriad, satchel, sequestered, tomfoolery, bubble, plethora, nebula, squander, boop, unctuous, sate, muzzle, filthy, and ham. Okay, so that was weird. Not as weird as the little statues of duckies with tiny Bruins capes/jerseys on them but pretty weird. Anyways, I hope you guys and gals enjoy a great Game Four tonight and that we in for some more intense and entertaining playoff hockey. What have you thought of the series thus far? What was the best game? The worst game? To follow the action and catch up on developing stories check out the two outstanding SB Nation blogs that cover the teams in the finals. The Stanley Cup of Chowder covering the Boston Bruins. Second City Hockey covering the Chicago Blackhawks. Remember to enjoy the game, be civil and respectful to one another, and please observe the Community Guidelines. Let's go hockey!