Wild honor Prince; Hitchcock loves Tarasenko (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.

• A salute for Prince at the Xcel Energey Center. (Minnesota Wild)

• St. Louis Blues goaltender Brian Elliott looked unstoppable in Games 1-4 of their first-round series against the Chicago Blackhawks. Then the Hawks figured out how to beat him. [Chicago Sun-Times]

• Blues coach Ken Hitchcock refuted any sort of rift with star sniper Vladimir Tarasenko saying he "loves" the player. During Game 6, it appeared Tarasenko was upset with Hitchcock because of power play ice-time. [Belleville News-Democrat]

• The Blackhawks have found balance with four lines, which has helped their comeback against the Blues. [CSN Chicago]

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• Hitchcock on a Game 7 situation: “We’ve got Game 7 at home. It’s the best case scenario we could’ve hoped for.” [Frozen Notes]

• In recent years, the Anaheim Ducks haven’t had much Game 7 success on home ice. But they also haven’t done well in Game 6 situations on the road. [Orange County Register]

• John Chayka appears to be the front-runner for the vacant Arizona Coyotes GM job. The team hired the 26-year-old Chayka last summer because of his understanding of hockey analytics. [Arizona Republic]

• New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault will have to change his approach for next season if he wants to coax more success out of his group. The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Rangers in five games in the first-round of the playoffs. [New York Post]

• The Los Angeles Kings need to figure out their salary cap issues so they can return to prosperity next year. [Mayor’s Manor]

• The Kings had a chance at a potential dynasty. Instead they’ve found themselves in some on-ice and off-ice disarray the last two years. [Sporting News]

• Why the Nashville Predators will force a Game 7 with the Anaheim Ducks, and why they won't. [Tennessean]

• This was a lost season for the Rangers thanks to the team’s management: “The makeup and colossal failure of this team is not on the players. It’s on the decision makers.” [Blue Seats Blog]

• What should the Rangers do this offseason? Should they reload, retool or rebuild? [Blueshirt Banter]

• The Detroit Red Wings need to make some big changes this offseason. Even though they made the playoffs for the 25th straight year there were some troubling signs with their current group. [Detroit Free Press]

• Minnesota Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk was beat by some fluky goals in his team’s first-round playoff loss to the Dallas Stars.  [Minneapolis Star Tribune]

•  Meghan Duggan will step down as assistant coach of the Clarkson women’s hockey team in order to pursue a pro career along the 2018 Olympic Games for Team USA. Duggan also played last season with the NWHL’s Buffalo Beauts. [Today’s Slapshot]

• A close and detailed look at how AHL hockey players have tried to recover from recent concussions. Their approach appears to have changed in recent years.  [Austin American Statesman]

• Thomas Chabot checked the head of fellow Ottawa Senators prospect Gabriel Gagne in the QMJHL semifinals between Saint John and Shawinigan. Chabot received a major penalty for checking to the head, and a game misconduct for the hit. [Buzzing the Net]

• Ten things you should know about owning a fantasy hockey team. For example, why you should be careful about posting trades on social media. [Dobber Hockey]

• Finland beats Sweden to win the IIHF U18 World Championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota. [IIHF]

• Every hockey card set from 1990-91 ranked. [Puck Junk]

• Finally, The Minnesota Wild hold a moment of silence for Prince.

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