Dolphins love Evgeni Malkin

So, how’s your summer? Evgeni Malkin looks happy as he spends his getting a little friendly with a dolphin.
[via Penshead]

Winnipeg Jets bound for Central Division

Although it is not official, it appears that the Winnipeg Jets new division home will be the Central. After the Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg the obvious problem of being in the Southeast Division sent up discussion of realignment.

Teams in the Southeast like Tampa, Carolina and Florida would have to travel long distances to play their division rivals in their new home in Central Canada. So shaking up the divisions began.

Everyone had their opinion on where the teams should shake out and some came up with some rather drastic changes like going to 3 large divisions.

The debate about realignment didn’t just involve the Thrashers/Jets. Other teams have been wanting new homes, namely Detroit and Columbus who are Eastern Time Zone teams caught in the Western Conference. That creates problems when their team ventures out west on a regular basis and alienates the fan base.

If Winnipeg does go into the Central they would be only Canadian team in realigned NHL division. Personally, I think the NHL should focus on rivalries more and get Winnipeg in a division with more Canadian teams.

Forget about resuming those old divisional rivalries with the Oilers, Flames and Canucks, because it looks like the Winnipeg Jets future regional foes will include the Minnesota Wild, Chicago Blackhawks and Nashville Predators.

As the Winnipeg Sun first reported last month, the Jets, who will play in the Southeast Division in 2011-12 after moving from Atlanta, are expected to move to the Central Division of a realigned NHL in 2012-13.

The Jets will play up to six games a year against the Blackhawks, Wild, Predators, St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars and possibly Columbus Blue Jackets, but will likely only play Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto twice each year.

In late June the Sun laid out a realignment scenario, which is being discussed by NHL governors, that will feature two divisions in each conference, with either eight or seven teams in each division.

Wild owner Craig Leipold confirmed the plan to KFAN Sports Radio 1130 in Minneapolis recently.

“The realignment will almost certainly take place,” Leipold told the radio station. “There aren’t any people saying ‘No, let’s not do it.’ It’s been teed up by the league and it would be a four-division league.
[via Winnipeg Sun]

NHL 12 Update – Break the Glass with Massive Checks

EA Sports is gearing up to make their annual NHL video game the best ever and if the videos and specs popping out over the last few weeks are any indication, it will soon rival NHL 94 as one of the best hockey video games ever.

One of the new features of NHL 12, due out in September, is the new full-contact physics engine designed to make everything in the arena live and make the players more realistic.

More precisely, the players and their physical characteristics will play a huge role in the game so when you’re checking players or clearing the net, size does matter.

I wonder how many people will trade Chara to their team first thing when they a hold of the game?

Collisions will be awesome with players going over the boards, helmets flying off and even glass breaking. Personally, I can’t wait to get my hands on the game. It looks like this year’s version will have a lot of new and exciting features.

Puck Doctors Links Circle the Wagons

Dozens of Vancouver rioters turning themselves in to police

After the Game 7 riots in Vancouver, police made one thing clear: By any means necessary, they were going to identify those who took part in the riot.

That meant a massive social media effort in which people crowd-sourced the identities of alleged looters and arsonists; it also meant the Vancouver police scouring hours of footage themselves to find the perps.

As we near the 1-month anniversary of the June 15 riots (how will you celebrate?), it seems more than a few people who took part in them have owned up to their roles

20 Porn Stars You’ve Never Heard Of (Gallery)

Campus Socialite TV is off and running and we’re promoting our new show Blue Movies, the comedy series about the little Porn Studio trying to make it to the top. The show is hysterical, and we’re pulling out all the stops to bring it to you. Check out the pilot, right at the bottom of this article. In recent years, names like Sasha Grey and Bree Olson have gone household. They may be hot, and willing to do just about anything, but they aren’t the only ones out there.

Nashville going to the youth movement on the blue line?

While Shea Weber and Ryan Suter aren’t going anywhere, Shane O’Brien isn’t being brought back by the team and Cody Franson was traded to Toronto. The Predators still have a youthful guy like Jonathon Blum and veterans like Francois Bouillon, Kevin Klein, and Brett Lebda, no one’s job is truly safe outside of that top pairing. The answers for where to fill out ranks along the blue line might be coming from within and the guys that earn the jobs might be awfully young.

Who can guess what Circle the Wagons means?

Deputy Junior gives the kids of Reno a tour of the Sheriff’s department and explains to them why they bolt the beds down to the ground.  It’s called Circling the Wagons and it’s one of my favorite clips from the Comedy Central television series “Reno: 911!.”

CFL Endzone Planking Celebration

With the NFL in lockout we have the second-biggest football league getting ready to kick off. Up in Canada we begin the summer season of the CFL and in a game this week between Winnipeg and Hamilton there was a CFL planking sighting. I wonder how many times we’ll see this in the NFL next season?

Interview With Lingerie Football League All-Star Danielle Moinet

Theres only one face of every man’s favorite football league. No, Im not talking about the NFL and Tom Brady. Im talking about the LFL, the Lingerie Football League and Danielle Moinet. You better believe that this incredibly sexy, cool, hard-hitting LFL All-Star sat down with me in my native home-land of Puerto Rico last week and gave me an exclusive interview. Not only did she give me great answers to every question I asked, she also blessed all of you readers with never before seen pictures!

Minnesota Wild better after unusual flurry of activity

Minnesota Wild fans often feel left out during big NHL events. Few players in the team’s short history have deserved to be in the All-Star Game, the draft has traditionally been more painful than root canal, and they have never been in the running for big name free agents on July 1st nor much for mixing things up at the trade deadline. Add it all together, and it becomes clear why the team has never sniffed the Stanley Cup Finals.

Where Does Derek Jeter Rank Among the Best Shortstops Ever?

New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter is making his slow, albeit historic crawl towards 3,000 hits. But what’s the significance of 3,000 hits, really? Sure, it’s a nice round number and considering the relatively small number of ball players to accomplish this feat, how special is it?

Miss Sprint Cup Paige Duke Nude Photo Scandal Sends Internet Into Frenzy!

It has been nearly two years since Paige Duke was first profiled on Busted Coverage. It was the Summer of ’09 and we were running a Hottest Of The SEC post and needed a headliner. Paige was the girl, but we never provided you animals with her last name. Well, guess who’s in the news this morning for 5 VERY, VERY NSFW photos that were posted to the Internet and since removed. Too late. She’s lost her job as Miss Sprint Cup. Guess who has that ’09 gallery?

Ten Rookie Cards of the NHL’s Oldest Players

The return of one of the flashiest players of the 90s has me dusting off my boxes of hockey cards that were so carefully stuffed into a closet. Jaromir Jagr, the Penguins 1990 draft pick, has returned to the NHL and will be playing for the Philadelphia Flyers next year.

Clocking in at almost 40 years old, Jagr is out to prove he can still make the moves in the big league. But Jagr isn’t alone in being almost 40. Several players in the league have enjoyed long careers in the NHL and are still active.

Here’s a look at some of the rookie cards of the NHL’s oldest players. Click below to begin the gallery.

Rangers Win Brad Richards Lotto

The New York Rangers have finally locked up that high profile scorer they have been longing for when they agreed with free-agent Brad Richards to a huge deal this weekend. Richards was considered the big fish in the NHL free agent market this year as he left the Dallas Stars for greener, and richer, pastures.

There’s no bigger forum to play than Madison Square Garden and the Rangers have been desperately needing a star to get this team into the playoffs and the two parties agreed to a nine-year, $60 million deal.

Is Richards worth the money?

In 11 NHL seasons with Tampa Bay and Dallas, Richards has 220 goals and 496 assists in 772 games. Among active players, Richards is seventh in the NHL over the last two seasons with 1.11 points a game. During his career, Richards ranks 20th at 0.93 points, and 13th in the playoffs with 0.98 points.

In the long run, probably so. It’s a rich deal that hurts the Rangers against the cap but this team needs to start spending money and getting talent at MSG to help pay the bills. The team has had little impact in the playoffs and everyone in the league knows how important it is to attendance and the fan base to go deep into the playoffs.

The Rangers have had little success in the playoffs of late and lost in the Conference Quarterfinals to Washington Capitals, 1–4 last season. The quick exit only fueled the debate for the Rangers to reunite their coach, John Tortorella, with his2004 Stanley Cup star Richards in New York. Richards will play alongside Marian Gaborik on New York’s revamped top line.

Last season Richards netted a career-high 28 goals and 49 assists with the Dallas Stars and was coveted by most of the teams in the NHL after all but saying he would not return to Dallas, who failed to lock him up in a long-term contract. The Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs also were in the running for Richards but me thinks the addition of Tortorella was the key factor.

Although the Rangers have been burned over the last few years in signing players I think they got their man this time. Richards is a stud who may just be the biggest piece in their Stanley Cup puzzle.

Big Trade! Wild Send Havlat to Sharks for Heatley

Wow! Didn’t see this one coming. Looks like he’s burned another bridge in San Jose. Dany Heatley is extremely talented but he never pushed the Sharks to the Cup that they paid him to get. Now it’s onto Minnesota as the Sharks make their second big trade with the Wild in a week and send Heatley to the Wild in exchange for Martin Havlat.

The trade helps the Sharks again fill their roster with Wild talent after the draft-day trade that sent Wild all-star defenseman Brent Burns to San Jose for speedy forward Devin Setoguchi and two other players. The trade also moves Heatley closer to Ottawa, the team that traded him to San Jose in 2009 after the star signed a huge 6-year deal with the Sens.  After nixing a trade to Edmonton, Heatley ended up with the Sharks to help them get the Cup for the first time in franchise history.

Havlat signed a huge deal with Minnesota in 2007 after the Blackhawks, his former team, could not come up with a long-term deal for the player. Despite Havlat’s large contract, about $5 million/year, it is still much less than Heatley’s $7+ million/year.

The Sharks acquired Heatley two years ago, hoping he would be the piece that lifted them to the Stanley Cup. He had 39 goals his first season but only 26 last year as he played much of the second half with a broken hand.

Heatley was a disappointment in the playoffs, scoring five goals in 32 postseason games with San Jose while dealing with an assortment of injuries.

He previously had a no-move clause in his deal and had to give the Sharks a list of 10 teams he would not go to on July 1. The Wild were not on that list, leading to Sunday’s deal.

Havlat had a no-movement clause in his contract but waived it shortly after being presented with the deal earlier Sunday because of the desire to play for a team that reached the conference finals the past two years.

Big trade for both teams but even more surprising that this is the second time these two teams have pulled the trigger on huge swaps in a short period.

Flyers Win Jagr Lotto

Old habits die hard and Penguins fans were a little bit giddy this week with the news that one of their stars might be returning. It didn’t matter that the star in question was almost 40-years old and coming in with a lot of baggage.

Jaromir Jagr, the mulleted-star of the Penguins teams of the 90s, starred alongside Mario Lemieux to help the Pittsburgh Penguins capture some Stanley Cups. But, he hasn’t played for the Pens since the 2000-01 season and has bounced around Washington, New York, and Russia over the last decade.

Two Mullets and a Cup

For the last 3 years Jagr has played for the Russian KHL league for the Avangard Omsk. There he averaged a nice 1-point/game which isn’t too shabby for a guy nearing the age of 40.

Then the rumors began to build that Jagr wanted back in the NHL and Pittsburgh would soon grow out the mullet in anticipation of his return. Is he back for the money, or for the love of the game?

 

Turns out it’s for the money. Jagr did return to Pennsylvania for the next NHL season but he won’t be suiting up for the Pens. Turns out he took a higher offer to go across the state to Philly in what many Pens fans see as a traitorous act.

The Pens need Jagr more than the Flyers but with either team he should contribute solidly for a good 20-25 goals. The Pens suffered huge offensive injuries last year which slipped them out of the playoffs quickly without the talents of Crosby and Malkin to prove the team needs more depth.

To make matters worse, the Flyers plucked Maxime Talbot from the Pens as well. Jagr, 39, a 1990 first-round pick of the Penguins, got a one-year deal worth $3.3 million, and Talbot, 27, signed a five-year deal worth $9 million.

The Flyers have been making a flurry of moves lately trying to get back to the Stanley Cup which may have persuaded Jagr more than the prospect of playing in Pittsburgh with two injured stars.

Pens or Flyers, it will be interesting to see if the old man still has the skills to make the moves like he used to.

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