Today is a sad day at NHL Hot Stove as we close up shop.

I would like to thank every one who has ever contributed, commented and read our site. It was a fantastic ride which unfortunately we can no longer keep up.

Myself and David Strehle are taking on bigger roles at RLDHockey.net while Dustin Leed and The Hockey Guys has been generous enough to give a home to our other excellent contributors. Please be kind enough to give both sites a read.

The NHL announced tonight that they will change their current six-division setup into four conferences. For the first time since 1998, the League’s board of governors reached an agreement that not only alters the current outlook but also will allow every team to play a home-and-home series. The NHLPA will still need to approve the realignment but that appears to be a formality at this point.

These four conferences break down as the following:

Conference 1

Vancouver Canucks
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
Los Angeles Kings
San Jose Sharks
Anaheim Ducks
Colorado Avalanche
Phoenix Coyotes

Conference 2

Winnipeg Jets
Detroit Red Wings
Chicago Blackhawks
St. Louis Blues
Nashville Predators
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Minnesota Wild

Conference 3

Toronto Maple Leafs
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Boston Bruins
Buffalo Sabres
Florida Panthers
Tampa Bay Lightning

Conference 4

Pittsburgh Penguins
Philadelphia Flyers
New York Rangers
New York Islanders
New Jersey Devils
Carolina Hurricanes
Washington Capitals

The current playoff configuration will also change with the first two playoff series coming within the Conference. However, eight teams will still make the show but there should be much more parity. For example, a team in a ‘weaker’ division would not be allowed to grab the third seed if they narrowly make the playoffs.

Furthermore, the schedule works out well for all teams. Home-and-home series should account for roughly 44-46 games with the remaining games getting played in rivalries within the conference. This change, as well as keeping natural rivals like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia; Chicago and Detroit; Calgary and Edmonton; should pave way for more excitement and interest around North America.

Now that we have the details down, let’s get to the fun part. What do we name these conferences? Do they get the old names: Norris, Campbell, Adams and Patrick? Do we rename them something more current like Gretzky, Lemieux, Howe and Orr? Put your vote in below and give some write-ins into the comments.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

Just 11:14 into Tuesday nights tilt between the St. Louis Blues and Detroit Red Wings, forward Chris Stewart would drive defenseman Niklas Kronwall into the boards. The hit, which was several feet away from the boards, came from behind and was therefore given the appropriate checking from behind major and game misconduct.

See for yourself, Kronwall had close to no way of protecting himself from becoming a human accordion.

Stewart could face further disciplinary action from NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan even though Kronwall would later return to the ice. While the hit appears clear cut, Blues captain David Backes felt the punishment fit the crime. From St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

“Kronwall comes back,” Backes said. “(Stewart) has already been penalized for five (minutes) and missing the game … a five-minute power play against Detroit can be a death sentence. I don’t know. You look at the criteria put forth. (Stewart) has never been suspended before, never had a hearing before. Kronwall looks injured on the play, but he comes back. Is it an ugly hit? Yeah, it’s not pretty. But he’s a hard-nosed guy that has to play with that edge to be effective out there.”

We can certainly understand where Backes is coming from. Stewarts’ clean record could help him out when it comes to judgment day — Stewie holds 209 NHL games on his NHL resume. Then again, just because someone never committed a dirty play in the past doesn’t necessarily mean they are incapable of doing so.

As usual with questionable plays and suspensions we leave a vote to the user, who can help guide us through this much debated topic.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

By Dan4th Nicholas (Flickr: Eric Brewer)

Eric Brewer will face the St. Louis Blues for the first time since March 30th, 2004 on Saturday night, slightly nine months after getting traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 19th captain in team history was jettisoned from the Gateway to the West in exchange for a third round pick and defensive prospect Brock Beukeboom — a third round pick himself and son of former NHLer Jeff Beukeboom.

Although the Blues finished only 10 points out of a playoff seed, GM Doug Armstrong knew at the trade deadline the team would finish outside of the playoff picture. Brewer, an unrestricted free agent at the time (re-signed with the Bolts this June), became the casualty to proper asset management, leaving a young team for a contender in the Lightning.

In Tampa, the 32-year-old has thrived — playing a physical, two-way game and frequently lining up on the top power play unit. He leads all Lightning skaters in time of ice this season and led them in TOI/G last year. While with the Blues he still played the heavy minutes — leading the team in TOI/G in three of his five-plus seasons, finishing second twice — but playing on a contender with the League’s spotlight attached has given him his due.

As a former opponent of Brewer, Bolts GM Steve Yzerman knew what he was getting via trade. From The St. Petersburg Times, in February:

“He’s a very poised defenseman, a big guy who moves well,” Yzerman said. “He makes the good first pass. He’s a steady, reliable, good defenseman. I think he’s a very versatile guy who can play either side, a valuable player.”

Not only has Brewer been versatile and valuable, he’s been the stabilizing force on the team’s blue line. Most importantly, he fits in, just like he did in St. Louis.

Wearing a Blues sweater, the Vernon, British Columbia posted career highs in goals while establishing himself as a vital defender who could hit, block shots, play physically and contribute offensively. Clearly there would be no ill will against the team that gave him such a responsibility. Under former head coach he earned captaincy due to his lauded leadership qualities which have clearly translated its way over to the Southeast Division powerhouse.

When asked, Brewer was nothing but exuberant when discussing his former club. “I played with a lot of them for a long time and we had some really good times there. I have nothing but good things to say about their organization,” Brewer said to TampaBayLightning.com. Unlike most players who feel like they have something to prove, Brewer and the Blues know each other well and should provide the audience with gamesmanship at its best.

Should be an excellent game to watch if not to see how Brewer reacts but also to see defensive masterminds Guy Boucher and Ken Hitchcock fight to maintain the under.

By David Strehle
NHL Hot Stove Managing Editor

Davis Payne was relieved of his duties as head coach of the struggling
St. Louis Blues late last night and was replaced by Ken Hitchcock.

Payne had taken over as interim head coach when Andy Murray was fired last January.  After the team had finished the year on such a positive note with a 23-15-4 mark, he was made the permanent bench boss.

With expectations increased for the new season, the Blues had gotten off to a disappointing 6-7 start in their first 13 contests.

Hitchcock returns to an NHL bench for the first time since February of 2010. (Photo credit: Jamie Sabau / NHLI / Getty Images)

A news conference will be held on Monday to officially announce the hiring of Hitchcock with GM Doug Armstrong, who has a bit of history with Hitchcock.  The two were in the exact roles at the same time with the Dallas Stars, and both have worked together for Team Canada in international competition.

Of course, Dallas is where Hitchcock experienced his greatest triumph, winning the Stanley Cup in 1999.

In a telephone interview with the Associated Press, Payne said he was blind-sided by the decision:

“It’s shocking and it’s disappointing, but in the end, you’re responsible for all the areas of your hockey team.  There were pieces that weren’t firing on all cylinders and it’s under my umbrella of responsibility.”

One of Hitchcock’s first orders of business will be to try to get those cylinders firing again.  Specifically, a couple of Blues that were being counted on for big contributions, but have slumped mightily in the season’s first month.

Jaroslav Halak was acquired last year to become the franchise goaltender and after a promising 2010-11 season, has been terrible in the new campaign.  Halak is just 1-6-0, witha  3.35 goals-against average, and an awful .856 save percentage.  Backup netminder Brian Elliott has played well in relieving the laboring Halak, posting a 5-1-0 record, with a 1.72 GAA and .941 save percentage.

Winger Chris Stewart was picked up from the Colorado Avalanche last February in exchange for franchise defenseman Erik Johnson, and was expected to be a key goal contributor.  After scoring 15 goals and 23 points in 26 games with St. Louis down the stretch following his acquisition, Stewart has gotten off to ahorrendous start this year with just two goals and three points in the 13 contests.

By making the move and hiring Hitchcock now, the Blues locked the coach away from any other teams that may have been eyeing his services.

There was much speculation in the Wells Fargo Center press box in
Philadelphia on Saturday night that Columbus head coach Scott
Arniel was in danger of losing his job, and that Hitchcock would be brought back as coach as the Flyers trampled the seemingly disinterested Blue Jackets, 9-2.  Arniel’s troops basically were sleep-walking through the first two periods of the game, and in the end very much looked the part as the NHL’s worst team. 

With a 2-11-1 record and four days off prior to the Jackets next game – at home against the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night – the train of thought was this would be the perfect time for the club to make a move before the entire season was lost.  And the perfect man for the job?  Why not the one that they were still paying since his dismissal in February of 2010?

That’s right.  Hitchcock.  So if the Jackets wanted to bring “Hitch” back, it would have been a done deal, so to speak.

Columbus is already struggling to put fans in the seats, and financially, Hitchcock would have been a good choice – since they were already paying him.  But Jackets brass must have felt that Hitchcock just wasn’t the right fit for the club.

After picking up what the team felt were key building blocks in forward Jeff Carter and defenseman James Wisniewski during the summer, talk of Columbus making a playoff run was coming from everyone in the organization. 

That’s what makes their start that much more disappointing.

If the Blue Jackets are to make a coaching change – which many feel will be the case – they will look elsewhere to find Arniel’s successor.

By Jose Simoes

Many fans in Montreal were wondering what new GM Pierre Gauthier was thinking when he traded 2009-2010 playoff hero, Jaroslav Halak, to the St. Louis Blues for young forwards Lars Eller and Ian Schultz. After coming off a season in which he split starting duties with incumbent Carey Price, he posted a 26-13-0-5 record with a 2.40 GAA and .924 SV% to Prices 13-20-0-5, 2.77 GAA and .912 SV%. Many thought if either would be traded it would be Price but in a “big picture decision” the Habs saw a higher potential in Price than in Halak.

Following a dominant season and three rounds of playoff experience, Halak shipped off to St. Louis, giving fans visions of the playoffs, dancing in their heads. However, being a starting goalie, and more importantly, playing a starter’s share of minutes would prove to be a difficult adjustment for Halak in his first season with the Blues. After starting the season 8-1-1 in his first 10 games, Halak would see three consecutive runs of four winless games, broken up by two runs of back-to-back wins. This wasn’t exactly the start Blues management, or fans had envisioned, rather.

He would continue this bad run with only three wins in 13 games to start the new year. With the Blues sitting nine points out of the 8th playoff seed, their hopes quickly faded. A hand injury would then sideline Halak for most of February, making only four starts. Upon returning from injury, Halak would win his first four games before posting inconsistent efforts and winning only three of his next nine starts. He finished the season on a strong note by winning his final three games including a season ending shutout but by then the damage was clearly done.

In 2010-2011, the Czech netminder played and additional 12 games more than his previous season with Montreal but would only win one more game, rising from 26 to 27. What happened with those other 11 games? Eight more regulation losses and two more OT losses — not exactly the improvement one would hope to see from a #1 goalie. His GAA would rise as well from 2.40 to 2.48, a minuscule difference but his save percentage plummeted from .924 to .910; average numbers for any starting goalie in the NHL but a decrease from the previous seasons numbers and certainly not elit.

Numbers alone were not a major cause for concern as young goalies often have fluctuations in their numbers. However, this season’s play certainly alarmed the team’s brass.

To start the 2011-2012 NHL Season, Halak holds a 1-4 record with a 3.47 GAA and .835 SV%. By contrast, he didn’t record his fourth loss last season until November 17th –definitely not the same start he had to his St. Louis career. Here are where the numbers get troubling: in his four losses, he has given up 14 goals for a 3.87 GAA and an .825 SV%. By comparison, in the two losses of his first five games in 2010-2011, he gave up 7 goals for a 3.41 GAA and an .873 SV%. The numbers simply spell disaster.

When Halak is good, he’s very good. Through all the inconsistency that was his ’10-’11 campaign he still managed to allow one goal or less in 19 games including an impressive seven shutouts. However when he’s bad, he’s very bad — not giving his team any chance to win. During his first four-game win-less streak of 2010-2011, he allowed 19 goals for a 5.46 GAA and an .800 SV%. In addition, he gave up four goals or more in 12 of his 21 losses and 15 times total which includes seven games in January alone (when the Blues were fighting for a playoff seed).

Has Halak shown he is better suited for a 1-1a situation as opposed to a clear cut #1?

He thrived in Montreal when he was pushing Price for the top spot but likely hit his plateau in St. Louis with Ty Conklin and Ben Bishop posing no real challenge in ’10-‘11. While he is too good to sit on the bench as a #2, benched for 50+ games a year, he could find his comfort level playing between 45-55 games a year. This rest would also allow him to be fully rested when the playoffs start, ready for another long, perhaps surprising run.

Tonight, Brian Elliott will get the call between the pipes against the Vancouver Canucks. The former Ottawa Senator and short-lived Colorado Avalanche has challenged the native of Bratislava for playing time and outperformed him in the early going. Has Halak worried about his role? Not necessarily. From The St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

“Obviously, it’s not the start that I was hoping for, but here we are,” Halak said. “I’ve played five games and I’m 1-4. Obviously I need to work on my game. But it’s a long season. It’s only October. We’ve got so many games coming up. You just need to stay positive and work hard in practice.

“It’s always better to have a slow start than a slow finish. It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. We played 82 games. Good thing we don’t play 10 games a season.”

While Elliott may hold less accolades than Halak, he certainly is trying to push the 26-year-old. In return, Halak should reward his team with better play down the stretch — when it actually matters. He has the right attitude and the potential to succeed in the NHL so his doubters may just need a few weeks to go away. Either that, or Halak would become synonymous with Jim Carey, Steve Mason and those who came before them.

By Jeff Quirin
NHL Hot Stove Asscoiate Editor

History sure does have a nasty way of repeating it self in St. Louis. Especially with injuries.

As announced on the Blues official website, forward Andy McDonald has left the team and will return to St. Louis for additional testing after suffering a head injury during Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the Stars.

The incident occurred when it appears Dallas forward Vernon Fillder collided with McDonald at the end of the second period in what appeared to be a rather meaningless event. A “late” shot by McDonald as the horn sounded drew the ire of his opponents and in the ensuing scrum he was struck in the head. There are some claims that David Backes’ stick is also to blame in an inadvertent manner.

McDonald did return, after being cleared by Dallas doctors, for the third period. He was arguably the most effective player on the ice and easily the top Blues skater. Playing a part in several key opportunities to knot the score.

According to media reports on McDonald did not feel well today.

A concussion has not yet been confirmed. Considering McDonald’s history the likelihood is high. After the first, each subsequent concussion is easier to get. As such concern is warranted and appropriate measures will be taken.

On December 4th, 2010 on bad overtime ice, McDonald hit a rut in Edmonton. Causing him to lose his balance, fall and put his head directly in to Oiler’s captain Shawn Horcoff’s leg. The resulting concussion kept him out of the lineup for 24 games. In that stretch the Blues posted a weak 10-11-3 record. Setting them behind the playoff pace which they could never catch up to. Concussion issues also forced him to miss the Anaheim Ducks playoff run in 2003.

Another Blues player, forward David Perron, hasn’t played since an illegal blindside hit from San Jose Sharks captain Joe Thornton concussed him on November 4th, 2010. He too left the game he was injured in and returned. Perron’s games missed total sits at 75 (72 in 10-11, three so far in 11-12) and counting.

Defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo suffered a concussion due to a big hit by Nashville’s Jordin Tootoo on October, 28th 2010. Taking him out of the lineup for over two weeks before returning on November 15th. Colaiacovo is currently out of action with another concussion because of a dangerous play on an icing race by another Predator, Blake Geoffrion. The two were tangled and Colaiacovo’s head struck the boards.

A well documented history of concussion issues forced former Blues winger and McDonald linemate Paul Kariya to retire last season.

Looking at track record like that plus the new protocols put in place by the NHL, it’s easy to understand the Blues handling of the issue.

McDonald will be seen by Dr. Rick Wright per the team.
There are several options to fill the void to Backes’ left on the top line.

Alex Steen could slide up from third line and has a complementary history with the captain. This move would probably mean Chris Porter would dress in a bottom six role along side Jason Arnott or allow Vladimir Sobotka to take Steen’s place and Porter take Sobotka’s with Scott Nichol and Ryan Reaves on the energy line.

The most likely scenario is that Evgeny Grachev will step in as a one for one replacement. Head coach Davis Payne does prefer to roll three quality lines versus two scoring and two groups plumbers. Grachev and Backes tied for the tam lead in scoring during the preseason. The two developed a good bit of chemistry along with Jamie Langenbrunner who has remained to Backes’ right. Grachev cannot replace the speed dynamic McDonald brings, but can add soft hands and a big body around the net who can also make a play.

A Sobotka-Backes-D’Agostini reunion could be in order as well. The trio worked well together last season and could rekindle the spark that made them the Blues top line while McDonald was out. D’Agostini did replace Langenbrunner on the Backes line in the third period Thursday night when searching for the equalizing goal.

One thing is for certain, the quality of the off season acquisitions made by General Manager Doug Armstrong will be tested. Veteran additions like Arnott, Langenbrunnner, Nichol and Kent Huskins were sought for just this situation. Adversity last season caused the generally young lineup to go in to a shell. The experience factor to keep an even keel cannot be overlooked. Failure to execute and recover from the negative aspects of the game will sink the Blues playoff chances in 2012 just like they were in 2011.

By Alexander Monaghan
President

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By Jeff Quirin
NHL Hot Stove Associate Editor

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The final week of September has been on filled with good news regarding the health of St. Louis Blues forward David Perron. On Wednesday evening, the trend continued.

Blues play by play voice on Fox Sports Mid West John Kelly has the details.

With the a successful baseline test in the books Perron can start escalating his training level from the light skating he’s been doing for nearly a month. A return date to NHL action is still unknown, but the trip down the right path continues. Now just to avoid speed bumps and the recurrence of post-concussion syndrome symptoms.