Sabres/Coyotes 'Tank Wars' previews; Kevin Shattenkirk to return Saturday (Puck Headlines)

Here are your Puck Headlines: A glorious collection of news and views collected from the greatest blogosphere in sports and the few, the proud, the mainstream hockey media. Have a link you want to submit? Email us at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com.

• This is a good way to divy up a first NHL something puck. [Oilers]

• The Buffalo Sabres tanking creates a bizarre situation for fans.  [Die by the Blade]

• According to Arizona head coach Dave Tippett, Coyotes coaches and players are not playing for draft picks. [Fox Sports Arizona]

• Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk is about to return Saturday. This will give St. Louis even more defensive depth for the playoffs. Yikes. [Fansided]

• Memories of Luc Robitaille’s first hat trick at the Nassau Coliseum in advance of the Kings’ last game there. [Mayors Manor]

• Can the Kings defend their championship? I mean, can you really bet against the Kings in a seven-game series?  [The Hockey Writers]

• Let’s take a break to look at Alex Ovechkin and all his numbers over his career from an advanced stat perspective: [Japers Rink]

• A vasectomy couldn’t keep this Rangers fan from 1,000 straight home games. Read this story as much for the sweet old photo of Alexei Kovalev as anything else. [New York Post]

• Lanny McDonald and his mustache are the new Hockey Hall of Fame chairmen of the boards … or Lanny McDonald is the chairman of the board. [HHOF]

• And what is the task ahead for McDonald. [Greatest Hockey Legends]

• The Bruins raised a record $130,000 at the eighth annual Cuts for a Cause. Proceeds go to a pediatric cancer fund [Bruins]

• The Calgary Flames look at advanced stats … and they laugh, and keep winning regardless of how so-so they are in these categories. [Grantland]

• Former Red Wing, Canuck and RangerMikael Samuelsson has officially retired from hockey. [Kuklas Korner]

• The Red Wings are sliding this month, and goaltending and scoring slumps have been a major contributor. [MLive]

• Injuries will play a big role in the upcoming NCAA hockey tournament for the University of North Dakota. [Grand Forks Herald]

• “Nineteen-year-old Tristen Johnson was accused of striking UND player Lisa Marvin while she was trying to fill her stalled pickup with gas on a Grand Forks street last November. Marvin, of Warroad, Minnesota, suffered injuries that prevented her from playing and have put her hockey future in doubt.”[Kare 11]

• Two men accused of ripping off hockey players for $15 million face prison terms. Players include Mike Peca and Bryan Berard. [Daily News]

• Check out the schedule for the DC Analytics Conference. [Georgetown]

• Who is this Dylan Strome character and why is he causing such incredible buzz right now for the NHL draft? He's not Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel, but he is a scoring machine. [The Hockey Writers]

• Hockey in Chattanooga is actually looking quite solid … in spite of the whole lack of ice thing. [Nooga.com]

• A QMJHL first round playoff preview! [Buzzing the Net]

•  Hockey’s hottest lines? Of course one has to include Johnny Gaudreau, who is constantly on fire. [Dobber Hockey]

• The Islanders’ offense has slowed down to a snail’s pace. But why? Many a factors at play here. [Islanders Insight]

• So there are some age gaps with the Calgary Flames. How much does this really matter? It appears this rebuild is officially over. [Flames Nation] 

• Zbynek Michalek is adjusting to life with the Blues. An all-encompassing q&a with the former Penguins defenseman. [Empty Netters]

•  Some pretty neat stuff and happenings at the Ford Ice Center in Nashville.  [Golden Girls Hockey]

• You may not want to be the top seed in the Western Conference. Thanks Kings! [Pro Hockey News]

• Finally, Stinger goes a little bonkers with the hat trick bin.

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