Here are all the links from around the hockey world, and what I’m reading, while looking forward to the next time the Bruins and Canadiens face off against each other.
*FOH (Friend of Haggs) Mark Divver has all the details from the good, the bad and the ugly last weekend with the Providence Bruins.
*Tracey Myers examines this season’s condensed schedule in the NHL, and how it’s impacting coaching, managers and players around the league. It certainly hasn’t been a good development in a lot of hockey people’s opinions.
*Jack Todd says a lot of nice things about Claude Julien that I totally agree with as he takes over the Canadiens this week. It’s also 100 percent possible that a person can be both classy and a great hockey coach while at the same time no longer being an effective fit for a hockey team as it happened with the Bruins. Julien will go on and have success in Montreal, but let’s not forget he’s taking over a first place team that is supposed to have some level of success.
*John Tavares is still remaining loyal to the New York Islanders franchise at this point as the Maple Leafs media are looking to stir things up about a potential free agent choice coming up for the star player.
*Happy birthday to the legendary Jaromir Jagr, who turns 45 years old today and continues to score, create and add to his Hall of Fame career.
*FOH (Friend of Haggs) and PHT writer Mike Halford has Antoine Vermette getting a 10-game suspension for slashing at a linesman. Yeah, that’s a no-no. Pretty shocking for a player like Vermette that’s always had a pretty gentlemanly reputation.
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*Good piece from Chris Johnston about a young Auston Matthews getting discovered while playing for a Ukrainian team.
*For something completely different: It sounds like the iconic newsstand in Harvard Square is getting turned into a chain pizza place, and that’s a damn shame.