NHL chicago Blackhawks

The Minnesota Wild had quite the busy day in free agency on Wednesday, signing shot-blocker Greg Zanon from the Nashville Predators, and swapping one oft-injured, yet supremely talented forward (Marian Gaborik) for another oft-injured, yet supremely talented forward (Martin Havlat). There was also a report from Michael Russo of the Star Tribune that the team was working on a deal with Saku Koivu.

Havlat, 28, signed a six-year, $30 million deal in Minnesota late Wednesday night, and followed it up by voicing his displeasure with the negotiating process in Chicago ... via Twitter.

We weren't far into the annual craziness of NHL free agency when the Edmonton Oilers suffered a significant loss.

Goalie Dwayne Roloson was a rock for this team over his three-plus seasons in northern Alberta. After practically carrying the Oilers to the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, he performed well over the new contract he signed that summer in Edmonton. The 39-year-old wanted a two-year deal when he got to free agency this year, but Edmonton didn't offer that. With Roloson gone to the Islanders, Edmonton moved very quickly to find a new starter.

For the second year in a row Marian Hossa has left the Stanley Cup runner-up in free agency. Unlike a year ago when he signed a one-year deal with the Red Wings, multiple media outlets are reporting on Wednesday that Hossa has signed a long-term, 12-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks. The contract reportedly carries a cap hit of just over $5 million per season.

It's officially the offseason, meaning the time is right to look into the future. We continue our division-by-division preview of the potential wheeling and dealing with the Central Division.

The Chicago Blackhawks are trying to build off a magical season. Columbus got its first taste of playoff hockey, while St. Louis returned to the playoffs after a far-too-long absence. Meanwhile, Nashville is trying to rebound after just missing the cut for the Western Conference playoffs.

The Detroit Red Wings have hoisted the Stanley Cup 11 times in their history and this year, they're going to have the chance to do it for the 12th time. Wednesday night they defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 2-1 in overtime, winning the series in five games. In the Finals the Wings will face the Penguins and for the first time since the Oilers and Islanders did it in 1983 and 1984 the Stanley Cup finals will be a repeat of the previous season.

Despite missing Pavel Datsyuk and Nicklas Lidstrom due to injury, the Wings closed out the Hawks on their home ice at the Joe. The scoreboard doesn't paint a clear picture of the game, either. If not for Hawks netminder Cristobal Huet, overtime likely would not have been necessary.

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It was hardly a disaster for the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday. Sure, two of their best players, captain Nicklas Lidstrom and Hart Trophy finalist Pavel Datsyuk, had to sit out with injuries. But the Red Wings have always been greater than the sum of their parts, and their 6-1 stomping of the Blackhawks proved that yet again.

If the Red Wings are going to end the Western Conference Finals in Game 5 Wednesday night, they'll have to do it without Lidstrom and Datsyuk again.

After watching his team get thumped on its home ice, 6-1 on Sunday afternoon, Chicago Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville sounded off in the postgame press conference, berating the officiating crew of Marc Joannette and Kevin Pollock for issuing Matt Walker a roughing penalty at the end of the first period, leading to Detroit's third goal of the game.

Quenneville called it the worst call in the history of sports, and essentially used it as an excuse for his team not showing up in the second and third periods. As punishment for his rant, the NHL announced on Monday that Quenneville will be fined $10,000.

Just a few hours after the league announced its tentative schedule for the Stanley Cup Finals on May 22, it's safe to say a number of hockey fans weren't exactly happy.

Why? Thanks to the demands of television, specifically the requirements of the NHL's broadcast television partner, NBC, the league was looking at a Finals start date of as late as June 5 unless both respective conference finals were decided by four-game sweeps. Once the Blackhawks managed to win Game 3 of the Western Conference finals, that possibility was closed, and the prospect of a lengthy layoff after a lackluster third round had become a certainty.

Following Niklas Kronwall's hit on Martin Havlat Friday night, there's been plenty of discussion about the officiating in the Western Conference final. Actually, there's always a lot of discussion about officiating in the NHL, and following Detroit's 6-1 dismantling of Chicago on Sunday afternoon, Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville sounded off, blaming the referees for ruining a good hockey game. Seriously.

That sound you're hearing is Red Wings fans laughing out loud.

Perhaps it was fitting that the Red Wings' first goal on Sunday came short-handed. After all, Detroit was without two significant contributors from the get-go in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals.

Hart Trophy finalist Pavel Datsyuk missed his second game with an ankle injury, while Norris Trophy finalist Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit's captain and one of the great defenders in league history, was an unexpected scratch with a lower-body injury. The Wings, also without Kris Draper, shrugged off their missing men and cruised 6-1 at Chicago to take a three games to one lead in the series with Game 5 set for Wednesday at Detroit.

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