Canucks News

"NHL free agent Mats Sundin met with Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Cliff Fletcher on Friday morning, the website tsn.ca reports, and was assured that the Leafs will keep the door open for their 37-year-old captain to return to Hogtown. Moreover, Sundin is expected to talk to one other team - the Montreal Canadiens - before returning to Europe. And his agent told a Toronto radio station Friday that "the decision-making process is down to Toronto and another team." The website reported that Sundin, with his agents JP Barry and Claes Elefalk, met with Fletcher as well as Joe Nieuwendyk, recently hired as Fletcher's assistant. "It was a very relaxed meeting," Barry said on AM640 Radio in ..."

"Despite reports to the contrary, Mats Sundin has not reduced his choice of teams to two -- if he does indeed play hockey this season. "He hasn't narrowed it down at all," Sundin's Calgary-based agent, J.P. Barry, stated Friday. "He's still trying to decide whether or not he's going to play and he won't comment to me, or anybody else, about teams until he does that. "I mean, if he has narrowed it down to two, that would be big news. At this stage, I would practically put out a press release if he's narrowed it down to two teams." The Vancouver Canucks are among Sundin's most ardent suitors and have offered him $10 million a season for either one or two years. Barry refuted the notion that ..."

"Nearly five months after hearing that their new general manager apparently had doubts about their leadership and future with the Vancouver Canucks, Daniel and Henrik Sedin will finally meet Mike Gillis next week at a meeting to clarify their standing. The Wednesday summit, which will include player agent J.P. Barry and assistant general manager Laurence Gilman, wasn't quite the extraordinary meeting with management the Sedins expected when last season ended. Barry and former general manager Dave Nonis had planned to travel together to Sweden and sign the Sedins to long-term extensions -- likely for less than market value, a concession the twins were willing to accept for the Canucks' ..."

"Matt Stajan may have a reservation as the Leafs' next captain waiting for him, but the classy centre is reluctant to speak on the subject because of one very large reason – the old captain is not entirely out of the picture yet. "I think we're all hoping Mats (Sundin) comes back," Stajan said last night as he appeared in the Festival Cup charity hockey game featuring celebrities and NHL athletes who help represent the Right to Play humanitarian organization. Some 6,000 fans took in the game at the Air Canada Centre in what was possibly the last chance for Leafs fans to see Sundin – their captain for the last 15 years – skate on home ice. Hockey stars like Doug Gilmour, Jason Spezza, and ..."

"Maybe it was the stubble – perhaps two days' worth of growth – on his uncharacteristically unshaven chin. Yesterday Mats Sundin looked for all the world like someone who has retired – or someone who at least was enjoying this elongated break from the grind of his daily workout routine – more than he did an elite-level athlete getting ready for another season. "To be honest with you, it's been a pretty relaxing summer," said Sundin yesterday. "I tried not to think about (hockey) too much. Just tried to get away from the game a bit." Sundin came to town to promote tonight's Festival Cup at the Air Canada Centre for the Right To Play charity. Hollywood stars in town for the film festival will ..."

"Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis wants his young players to realize there are "real opportunities" this September. Without Mats Sundin, or a similar player, the team is hoping one of its forward prospects can make a splash, push for a top-six spot and leave an impact. In several interviews this summer, Gillis has specifically mentioned Jannik Hansen, Mason Raymond and even 18-year-old Cody Hodgson as players he believes have a chance to make it happen. But the only prospect who is now skating every day with the Canucks is Michael Grabner. And he thinks it's giving him an advantage. For the mercurial Grabner, who scored 22 goals as an AHL rookie last year, training camp starts now. Gillis ..."

"Trevor Linden's jersey will forever be part of the Vancouver Canucks' heritage, but the just-retired player will sit on the sidelines for the time being to decide where his future lies. The Canucks confirmed Thursday something that was clear since team CEO Chris Zimmerman told season-ticket holders in July that Linden would be honoured in a significant way this coming season. The one-time captain and tireless community worker will have his No. 16 retired. His jersey will join Stan Smyl's No. 12 in the rafters at GM Place on Dec. 17 before the Canucks face Edmonton. "When I found out what the club was planning to do, I was truly grateful and very honoured," said Linden. "As a kid growing up ..."

"It didn't take long for new Canucks defenceman Lawrence Nycholat to get to Vancouver and begin his pursuit of an NHL job. Hours after his trade to the Canucks was finalized, the former Ottawa Senators farmhand was on a flight. He arrived Wednesday night and by Thursday morning he was on the ice with the Canucks, who are skating daily at Burnaby 8-Rinks. "Any time you're traded, you're happy to go to a place that wants you," Nycholat said. "It's a good opportunity. Now the onus is put on me to perform and show that I belong." Nycholat has a one-way contract that pays him $600,000, but he understands that hardly guarantees him a spot on Vancouver's crowded blueline. The Canucks have seven ..."

"Mike Gillis is prepared to bide his time to make the right deal if -- as it now appears -- Mats Sundin doesn't come to the Vancouver Canucks. In an interview with The Province on Thursday, Gillis, the Canucks' GM, said he would wait until "into November" if necessary to get the right player in a trade. Failing Sundin accepting Gillis' two-year, $20-million-US free-agent offer, the Canucks still have about $10 million to spend under the NHL salary cap. Sundin's latest statement suggested he might not return to the NHL until some time into the season. But Gillis is not letting the $10 million burn a hole in his pocket. "There are 10 teams at or above the salary cap," he said, adding that ..."

"Asked about the potential for blueliners to bolster last season's 23rd-ranked offence, Kevin Bieksa was understandably upbeat Thursday. "It's unlimited right now, and the main thing is to stay healthy," stressed the Vancouver Canucks defenceman. "Last year, we had such high expectations, but we never got to see that. If we get through camp, stay healthy and jell early, we can be effective." That's didn't occur last season. Sami Salo fractured a wrist in the camp intrasquad, and by the time the dominoes stopped falling, seven defencemen wound up missing 169 of the team's 277 man games lost to injury. Ouch. Mattias Ohlund was sidelined for 24 games and his nine goals were bettered by 23 ..."

"It could have been a scene straight out of a movie. The star player, on the brink of retiring, instead returns to town to announce he will play one more season. With the veteran leading the way, his team ends up winning its first championship in more than 40 years. But Mats Sundin was still reading from his own unfinished script Thursday when he returned to Toronto and appeared at a news conference in advance of his participation in Friday night's charity game, the Right To Play Festival Cup, at Air Canada Centre. The 37-year-old longtime captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs simply repeated what he has been saying all summer. Sundin, an unrestricted free agent, remains undecided about ..."

"Not playing hockey is supposed to be killing Trevor Linden, right? The guy who devoted most of his life and every molecule to the game, whose very identity was forged at the end of the stick and in a Vancouver Canuck uniform, finds himself too old to play and about to miss his first training camp. Yes, it's devastating. Linden is struggling to cope. In June, he exiled himself in grief to the French Riviera, where he was possibly the first farm boy from Medicine Hat, Alta., to book a prolonged stay in Cap D'Antibes. Linden turned inward and spent most of the summer in seclusion at his lakefront home near Kelowna, where he tried in vain to take comfort from many hours on his bike and boat, ..."

"The Vancouver Canucks made official Thursday what many have suspected since the final moments of last season: they're going to retire Trevor Linden's No. 16 jersey. The big event will take place Dec. 17 at GM Place. "It's going to be exciting," Linden said Thursday at a press conference to formally announce Trevor Linden Night. "I'm going to be a bit nervous but sharing that with our fans, my friends, my family and my teammates, or ex-teammates, will be very special." Linden was made aware of the club's intentions several weeks ago when Canucks CEO Chris Zimmerman told him what was in the works. He admitted he was both humbled and grateful. He will join Stan Smyl as the only other Canuck ..."

"The Vancouver Canucks will honour former captain Trevor Linden with a jersey-retirement ceremony prior to a Dec. 17 game against the Edmonton Oilers. "This is a tremendous honour and I am very grateful to the club," Linden said in a statement. "To be drafted by the Canucks organization 20 years ago as an 18 year old and to now have my sweater retired is very humbling and rewarding." Linden's No. 16 will join Stan Smyl's No. 12 as only the second retired jersey in the NHL team's 39-year history. The pre-game ceremony will include a number of guest speakers. Linden retired in June after 19 NHL seasons, 16 of them with the Canucks. He was captain for seven years and is the franchise's ..."

"His website greets you with a 'DH' emblazoned on a puck that's enveloped in a swirl of cosmic blue and white. The 'DH' stands for Darcy Hordichuk, but for the new Canucks enforcer it could just as well mean Designated Hitter. Not only has Hordichuk promised to punch it up with the baddest boys on the NHL block, the fourth-line winger worked with Ultimate Fighting Championship star Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell and trainer John Hackleman this summer to put more spring in his step and power in his punch. At a place called The Pit in San Luis Obispo, Calif., Hordichuk endured twice-daily workout regimens for two weeks after his wife, Lisa, parlayed her friend's familiarity with Hackleman into a ..."

"Willie Mitchell slugged a vacation home run without even swinging a bat. The Vancouver Canuck defenceman was at Yankee Stadium July 15 for Major League Baseball's home run derby and watched pal Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins win it all. Morneau, the New Westminser native, and Mitchell have been friends since the latter's days with the Wild. Mitchell and wife Megan were among Morneau's personal guests for the All-Star festivities. "I got to be a Twins fan when I was playing in Minnesota and Justin's a hockey fan," Mitchell said. "He actually asked me to go to the All-Star game in San Francisco last year but I couldn't make it. So he asked me again to be his guest if he was chosen ..."

"For a National Hockey League tough guy, new Vancouver Canuck Darcy Hordichuk has an unpredictable taste in dogs. His on-ice role calls for ferocity and size, yet his pets are itty-bitty Shih Tzus named Chandler and Franklin. Chandler and Franklin? What gives? "They are to protect my wife," Hordichuk winked Wednesday after a skate at Burnaby 8-Rinks. "They're two big killers. Twelve pounds each. We named Chandler when we lived in Chandler, Ariz., and Franklin when we lived in Franklin, Tenn. They're loving it here in Vancouver, walking up and down the streets of Yaletown meeting all the other dogs." It's apparent that Hordichuk, the pride of Kamsack, Sask., has retained his sense of humour ..."

"When the Vancouver Canucks thought about improving their team this summer, you would have had serious concerns had they not thought about bringing Joe Sakic back home to finish his career. Those inquiries were made and there were brief discussions, but ultimately as the 39-year-old Vancouver-born, Burnaby-bred Sakic explained Tuesday, he was committed to his life in Denver with the Colorado Avalanche. And at that point, Sakic had no idea whether he was going to play and until he started feeling better about himself and the game (which was in early July when he began training in earnest again), considering a return to his hometown couldn't have been in the cards. "They [the Canucks] spoke ..."

"Luc Bourdon's mom, Suzanne Boucher, desperately wants to make the long, cross-country trip to see her son honoured before the Canucks' home opener. Bourdon's spirit, his passion and his memory will flood GM Place before the Oct. 9 game against Calgary during a video tribute, a moment of silence and other elements that will make up a ceremony, which will take place before the 7:30 p.m. puck drop. The team is expected to fly Boucher from Shippagan, N.B., to Vancouver for the game. "She's been talking about how much she wants to to go," family friend Guysma Hache said. "It's still a very hard time for her. Luc is the only boy she had. She has told me more than once, she has lost everything -- ..."

"Vancouver Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said he was keeping his word when he traded speedy forward Ryan Shannon to Ottawa for minor-league all-star defenceman Lawrence Nycholat. Gillis told Shannon -- a firefly on ice who is constantly dogged about his size -- that he would deal him in the event it didn't look like he was going to have a chance to play regularly with the Canucks. "I just saw him as a player who has to play in the top six in this league to be effective," Gillis said. "We made some moves with [Steve] Bernier and [Kyle] Wellwood, and are in the hunt for another top-line, top-six player. "It would be very difficult and very challenging for Ryan in that environment." The ..."

"Mats Sundin's statements Tuesday on a Toronto radio station only underline why the Vancouver Canucks are unlikely to see him in their lineup this season. The big Swedish centre, to whom the Canucks offered a two-year, $20-million contract as soon as free agency began on July 1, appears to be as uncertain about his playing future as he was when the NHL regular season ended in April. "I'm still not at the point were I'm ready to make a decision about my future career as an NHL player," Sundin told Toronto's AM 640 radio from Sweden. "I was hoping after summer started that I would have a decision during the summer or during this fall at least. Where I'm at right now, I'm not at the point ..."

"Vancouver Canucks general manager Mike Gillis added to his depth on defence Tuesday by acquiring minor-league veteran Lawrence Nycholat from the Ottawa Senators for fringe forward Ryan Shannon. Nycholat, 29, figures to help anchor the Manitoba Moose blue line along with fellow veteran Nolan Baumgartner. A native of Calgary, Nycholat has appeared in 31 NHL games during his eight professional seasons. He is listed at 6-0 and 200 pounds. "We wanted more defencemen and we wanted guys who could play NHL games, so we made the move," Gillis explained. "We've been following Nycholat for the last month or so and when the Andrej Meszaros trade happened, Nycholat became expendable in Ottawa." ..."

"Marquee free agent Mats Sundin reiterated Tuesday he's still grappling with his playing future, but Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis won't yet surrender hope of landing the big Swede. Gillis put an interesting spin on the prevailing thought that if Sundin, 37, intended to accept the Canucks' $10 million-a-season offer he would have done so by now. Training camp opens Sept. 19. "The very reason we made such a substantial offer is the evaluation of the totality of the person," Gillis said. "The fact that he just didn't grab at the money while being unprepared to play is confirmation that I think we've gone in the right place. "I think that's a tribute to Mats," Gillis continued. "It's not ..."

"The Vancouver Canucks announced today that they will honour the memory of former Canucks defenceman Luc Bourdon on October 9, 2008 prior to the Canucks home opener. "Luc was an important part of our Canucks family. We want to make sure that everyone who Luc touched has the opportunity to celebrate his life and memory," said Chris Zimmerman, President and CEO, Canucks Sports & Entertainment. "Luc was a special person in so many ways. He brought great spirit and determination to all that that he did on-ice or off. His passion for our game was always present whenever he was with fans, team personnel or helping in the community. Luc will be forever a Canuck." The Canucks are asking fans to ..."

"After spending time with new general manager Mike Gillis this offseason, Roberto Luongo was impressed -- and that could be seen as an important first step in getting the goalie to extend his contract when the opportunity presents itself next summer. In a wide-ranging telephone interview from Montreal, Luongo talked like someone who expects to be in Vancouver longer than the two years remaining on his current deal. "The great thing is we're on the same page and we both want to win," Luongo said of Gillis. "We're here to win and we want to build a winning team that can contend for the Cup every year. "When I spoke to him, it was very reassuring for me because that's why I'm playing in ..."

"It will be two weeks before the Canucks' Roberto Luongo, Vancouver's biggest star, makes it back to the city -- together with his wife and daughter -- and strides again on to its biggest stage. The set has changed: new teammates, new equipment and a new, expanded, more demanding role. Gone are three of the longest-serving players, officially ending a stage production that had slowly, wearily wound down to dullness after first opening to sellouts, standing ovations and roaring reviews back in 2001. You thought this city's focus on Roberto Luongo was searing before? Just wait until you see what it's like without Trevor Linden, Brendan Morrison and Markus Naslund stealing scenes, chewing up ..."

"If you make the now reasonable assumption Mats Sundin is either retiring or going elsewhere, the Vancouer Canucks appear to have a problem on their hands. That's how conditioned we have become in Vancouver. We automatically assume that the young players in the organization like Mason Raymond or Cody Hodgson have absolutely no chance to come in and be impact players at the NHL level. We've been conditioned to think that way because it's happened so rarely in the past. And no matter what free agents the Canucks sign in the offseason or trades they make, until a young star emerges, they are unlikely to seriously contend for a Cup. Canucks director of player development Dave Gagner belives ..."

"Dave Cook, a casual Canucks fan, runs the East Gate Service Station at Manning Park in the heart of the Cascade Mountains on the Hope/Princeton Highway. It was an early Thursday morning two weeks ago when a biker on a Harley cruised in for a fill-up. Not until they got talking did Cook realize it was Brian Burke. He was travelling alone and said he was on his way to Princeton. Not long after he pulled away, Burke returned to Cook's gas station in ripped leathers, tears in his jeans and the bike scratched up a bit. Burke had been blinded by the sun and hit gravel, flipping him onto the side of the road. "He must be one tough bugger," Cook says. "He was shaken up but insisted on riding back ..."

"Do not trust this man. Do not loan him money, though he's hardly short of cash. Do not let him do your taxes, although he studied finance. Do not let Kevin Bieksa date your daughter, though he's blissfully married and has a 10 month old. Under no circumstances should the Vancouver Canuck defenceman be trusted. Actually, in most circumstances he can be trusted. But not with medical information. Bieksa lied. And even more outrageous for his profession, he admits it. "In the past, I probably told you I was 100 per cent but wasn't, so my credibility is not that high," Bieksa confessed Friday. "For what it's worth, I'm 100 per cent now. Finally." We'll believe it when we see it. And we probably ..."

"To understand Steve Bernier's struggles with confidence, to relate with the insecurities which have affected the new Vancouver Canucks forward during the past 18 months, one has to understand what happened to him in the middle of the 2006-07 season. Then with the San Jose Sharks, Bernier was in midst of what he thought was a breakout year, his first full season in the NHL. At the halfway point, Bernier -- a 2003 first-round draft pick -- had 11 goals and 14 points. The power forward was doing everything asked of him, he thought. He was continuing what he started in the playoffs the season before, when he was a force (eight points in 11 games). He was battling in front of the net. He was ..."

"The agent for free-agent centre Mats Sundin says his client may not make a decision about whether to continue his National Hockey League career until after the start of the regular season. J.P. Barry said Wednesday that a decision by Sundin is not imminent and suggested there is no guarantee that Sundin will meet his self-imposed, end-of-August deadline to decide whether he will play this season. "We are going to talk to him later this week just to get an update from him, but right now we are not putting any pressure on him because he has to get that feeling that he wants to play," Barry said. "But right now, he's no closer." Barry did not rule out the 37-year-old Sundin following a path ..."

"The 2007-08 edition of the Toronto Maple Leafs' media guide is as much a resource for player preferences as it is for player stats. According to the NHL team guide, Mats Sundin wants to meet human-rights activist Nelson Mandela, enjoys vacationing in the Swedish colony of Saint Barth and "would be an electrician" had he not been so skilled with the puck. It also reveals that the 37-year-old loves playing in Manhattan, listing New York and Madison Square Garden as his favourite road city and arena. So it hardly comes as a surprise that the Rangers, who recently lost Jaromir Jagr to the new Continental Hockey League in Russia, are on the shortlist of teams that Sundin would not mind playing ..."

"Cody Hodgson has drawn comparisons to Sam Gagner, the Edmonton Oilers youngster who made the NHL club as an 18-year old-last season seemingly against all odds, and ended up among the best of a bumper crop of rookies. Hodgson, the Vancouver Canucks' top pick (10th overall) in June's NHL draft, is nearly identical in physical size -- both are 5-foot-11, 190 pounds, both are right-hand shots and both play a style that's based on puck possession and on-ice smarts. But the doppelganger thing doesn't stop there. Hodgson is working this summer in London, Ont., under the eye of Dave Gagner, the Canucks' new director of player development and father of Sam -- and guess who his workout partner is? ..."

"Steve Bernier normally spends the dog days of summer at home in Quebec City, kicking back with family and friends before the grind of a new NHL season begins. This summer is different. The new Vancouver Canuck winger, one of general manager Mike Gillis's prized off-season acquisitions, has been in town for more than a week and is skating regularly with a few of his teammates at Burnaby 8 Rinks. Bernier, it seems, recognizes he will face lofty expectations this season and is determined to meet them. "This is the first time, actually, that I have come this early," the 23-year-old Bernier said after his Friday morning skate. "I am very, very excited to be in Vancouver. I want to make sure to ..."

"Former Vancouver coach Marc Crawford claims that Todd Bertuzzi acted in "direct disobedience" to instructions from the Canucks bench during the March 8, 2004 NHL game in which he attacked Colorado forward Steve Moore, breaking his neck and ending his career, according to court documents obtained by the Toronto Star. Crawford, in documents filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, pleads that the Vancouver coaching staff was trying to get Bertuzzi off the ice before his infamous sucker punch on Moore. "Just prior to the attack on Moore, Bertuzzi had been on a shift to kill a penalty, had missed the shift change and had remained on the ice for longer than the rest of his line," ..."

"Canuck coach Alain Vigneault has his staff gathered in Vancouver this week for their annual late-summer meetings and there are a couple of fresh faces at the table. We already knew about Ryan Walter, who was hired last month as an assistant, and on Wednesday the team announced that Darryl Williams will fill the last of the team's assistant coaching vacancies. It was a cross-country trip for Williams, who joins the Canucks after four seasons as an assistant with the St. John's Fog Devils of the Quebec junior league. Williams, 40, will be primarily responsible for video. "This is an exciting opportunity for me," Williams said Wednesday after the Canucks announced his appointment. "I have ..."

"New GM Mike Gillis vowed to make the Vancouver Canucks a tougher team to play against this season and apparently the grittier approach will extend right into the coaching ranks. The Canucks filled an assistant coach vacancy on Wednesday, with the hiring of Darryl Williams -- who has been coaching in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League the past four seasons, but rang up 128 fighting majors in an 11-season minor league career in the AHL and IHL. According to www.dropyourgloves.com the feisty Williams amassed 2,418 PIM in a 664-game minor pro career that ended in 1999. "That's something that I really enjoyed," said Williams, 40, who stepped right into the coaching ranks the next season with ..."

"The Vancouver Canucks' here today, gone tomorrow training camp in Whistler next month figures to be the team's shortest road trip of the season. Don't blink or you'll miss it. The Canucks open camp in Whistler on Saturday, Sept. 20 and break camp the following day. The players may not even have an opportunity to squeeze in a round of golf. The Canuck veterans report for pre-training camp medicals and testing at General Motors Place on Friday, Sept. 19. The team's first pre-season game goes Sept. 22 in Edmonton. The Canuck prospects get started a week earlier. After a two-day session at UBC on Sept. 13 and 14, the Canuck prospects head to Camrose, Alta., for a two-day tournament against the ..."

"It looks like Mats Sundin may wait until late August before deciding whether to return to the NHL - never mind with which team. Sundin seemed no closer to deciding on his future during an interview with a Sportsnet reporter, who caught up to the former Leafs captain on a golf course in Sweden on Monday. "I haven't decided yet," Sundin told the network. "I think sometime in August I hope to come to a conclusion on what I'm going to do ... if I'm going to play or not this year." Sundin backtracked on comments he made to a Swedish newspaper in July, when he suggested he'd choose his path in early August. "I never had a deadline," he said. "I know there was talk about the first of August, but ..."

"You've heard of a player-coach? Well, how about goaltender-marketing consultant? Curtis Sanford may well be auditioning for this multi-tasking position with the Vancouver Canucks, through his promoting of a contest that will allow the NHL club's fans to design the look of his goaltender's mask on its website, canucks.com. "I'm not too resistant when it comes to change, and I don't have any superstitions," said Sanford, who re-signed this summer to back up workhorse Roberto Luongo for a second season. "I think there's lots of creativity in the city of Vancouver, plenty of people in the city who are artistically capable. There are going to be some pretty incredible designs." The contest, ..."

"When Vancouver Canuck fans get their first look at goalie Curtis Sanford next season, some of them just might be repeating that famous line from The Lone Ranger and asking 'who is that masked man?' Sanford, who is returning for his second year as Roberto Luongo's backup, will be sporting a different look this season. Sanford and the rest of us will learn just how different that look will be in about two weeks. Sanford has agreed to let the fans design his mask's artwork. In fact, Sanford said Monday that the design contest announced earlier in the day by the Canucks was his idea. "At the end of last season I mentioned it as an idea to someone in the organization," Sanford said from his ..."

"Ex-Canucks forward Byron Ritchie has signed a one-year contract with Geneva of the Swiss Elite League. Ritchie, 31, played 71 games for Vancouver last season, recording 11 points and 80 penalty minutes. He also played for Calgary, Carolina and Florida during his NHL career. The terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed. Another former Canucks forward, Tyler Bouck, signed with the Buffalo Sabres. Bouck, 28, captained the AHL's Portland Pirates last season."

"So will he or won't he? Is Mighty Mats about to become a Hab, or will he take the money and run to Vancouver? Or will he decide that his heart is in Hogtown? Sheesh. The wonderful thing about spending part of the summer in Europe is that you don't have to listen to these soap operas. In Europe, it's was all about Cristiano Ronaldo, Man U and Real Madrid. Whether the papers were Italian, German, Croatian or Slovenian, they had the same obsession: where will Ronaldo end up? (At last peek, Sir Alex Ferguson was still saying that 100 million quid is still not enough for the Portuguese national - but who knows?) Apart from a few neighbourhoods in Montreal, few here really care where Ronaldo ..."

"Be it Pat Quinn, Brian Burke or Dave Nonis, year after year every July the Canucks general manager of the day would address the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in Penticton with an insight into what fans might expect for the coming season. A week ago Friday it was Steve Tambellini's turn. As vice-president and assistant GM, he was representing Mike Gillis and the sold-out gathering was anxious to hear an update on the Canucks' plans for the 2008-2009 season. More than a few knowledgeable hockey eyebrows shot up in surprise when Tambellini politely accepted a $10,000 Canucks for Kids cheque from Boston Pizza Foundation director Cheryl Treliving, and made no mention of the ..."

"As expected, yesterday's "soft deadline" passed with no word from the Mats Sundin camp about the star centre's future, but retired veterans like Steve Yzerman and Joe Nieuwendyk say the Leafs captain should play if he's having any doubts. "If there's any doubt and guys aren't sure, I think they should be playing," Yzerman said yesterday. "You can be retired for the rest of your life. You'll know when you're done. "If you're not 100 per cent certain that you don't want to play anymore, then the decision is that you should be playing." Added Nieuwendyk: "People always told me: `Play as long as you can.'" There had been some thought that Sundin would stick to an earlier Aug.1 deadline to ..."

"With no end in sight to the Mats Sundin saga, Canucks GM Mike Gillis said he isn't losing patience, adding he's prepared to start the season with the team he has now. Gillis maintains he has a Plan B and C still available if Sundin, at some point this month, turns his back on Vancouver's two-year, $20-million offer. But also Gillis started paving the way Thursday for the possibility that what you see now, is what you will get when the season starts. "I'm comfortable going into the season with the team we have now," Gillis said in a Thursday conference call. "I think there are a couple of younger players that we really believe are going to step up and fill holes and be good players. "I am ..."

"Steve Tambellini made it to the top of the NHL heap on Thursday, when he was named the new general manager of the Edmonton Oilers. After being short-listed in GM searches for several NHL teams in recent years, Tambellini, 50, left his jack of all trades job as assistant GM with the Vancouver Canucks to accept the role with the Oilers after the NHL club decided on a re-structuring under the new ownership of Daryl Katz. With the changes, previous GM Kevin Lowe moves upstairs to become the team's new president of hockey operations. Although Lowe -- who's been the Oilers GM since 2000 -- will oversee the entire operation, Tambellini will have a large amount of autonomy. His close relationship ..."

"You would think Steve Tambellini's move to Northwest Division rival Edmonton Oilers could hardly have come at a worse time for Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis. Not only does Tambellini take his encyclopedic knowledge of the Canucks organization and their strategic plans to Edmonton, where he becomes the Oilers new GM, but that same skill set would seem difficult for Gillis to replace with just six weeks until training camp. Well, yes, but Gillis said in a conference call on Thursday that a contingency plan is already in place to fill the hole created by Tambellini's sudden departure. "It's always a blow to lose someone of the qualities that Steve has, but he deserves it and these jobs ..."

"The Mats Sundin soap opera took another slippery turn Thursday when the big Swede informed agent J.P. Barry he still has not decided whether to continue his NHL playing career. Sundin's so-called "soft deadline" of Aug. 1 is now inoperative. There will be no decision today, according to Barry, and maybe no decision next week either. It's apparently Mats being Mats. Mr. Dithers has company. The guy can't seem to make up his mind. His suitors, including the Vancouver Canucks, are back in the wait-and-wait mode. "There is no Aug. 1," Barry said. "He set his own kind of deadline to make a decision in August but he's not there yet. There's not much more you can say. He needs more time." Sundin, ..."

"From the moment he became chief decision-maker in the Vancouver Canucks' hockey hierarchy, Mike Gillis expected to lose top assistant Steve Tambellini. That day arrived Thursday when Tambellini left Vancouver and signed a four-year contract to become general manager of the rival Edmonton Oilers. "I knew Steve was going to get a chance somewhere down the road here to run his own hockey team and I fully endorse it," Gillis said in a conference call from Kingston, Ont. "I made it clear to him if there was an opportunity that came his way, I certainly wouldn't stand in his way. "I think he's going to do a terrific job." Tambellini's departure leaves a significant hole in the Gillis management ..."