The Hockey Herald

via CBC:

Former National Hockey League forward Mike Danton, who was sentenced to 7½ years in prison in November 2004, is back in Canada and seeking parole.

Danton, who has played for the St. Louis Blues and New Jersey Devils, was transferred to Ontario’s Kingston Penitentiary on March 19. Since 2005, Danton had been petitioning to be moved to a Canadian prison.

Canadian officials say no dates have been set for a hearing but add a review is automatic given the time Danton has served. But it will likely take several months before he is granted parole.

per sportsnet.

via The Associated Press:

The Detroit Red Wings will open the 2009-10 regular season against the St. Louis Blues with a two-game series in Stockholm, while the Chicago Blackhawks play two games against the Florida Panthers in Helsinki.

The games are scheduled for Oct. 2-3, organizers said Thursday.

“It’s something different and really exciting, for sure,” said Panthers left wing Ville Peltonen, who was born in Finland. “I think they have been waiting to get a real game.”

via STL Today:

The Blues have re-signed center Andy McDonald to a four-year contract extension, a source has told the Post-Dispatch.
 
McDonald, 31, was set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
 
In 65 games with the Blues, he has 20 goals and 34 assists for 54 points.

via Post-Gazette:

Translation: Don’t expect Shero to get involved in bidding wars for some of the big-name, veteran free agents such as Bill Guerin, Keith Tkachuk and Doug Weight who are expected to go on the market in coming weeks.

Not because such players couldn’t address a short-term need, but because Shero isn’t inclined to have his long-range blueprint suffer for the sake of a quick, brief fix.

Paying a high price for a guy who could contribute over a period of years is one thing; doing it to bring in someone who wouldn’t be around long enough to learn to navigate the streets Downtown is quite another.

via TSN:

Atlanta’s Colby Armstrong has attracted interest this season, including from Pittsburgh who would like to see him reunited with Penguins captain Sidney Crosby.

Ottawa forward Chris Neil balances a measure of skill and toughness many teams are seeking. Neil is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in July and the senators may not have the cap space to re-sign him.

Philadelphia’s Scottie Upshall may be tough to part with, however he’s a restricted free agent this summer and is expecting a raise on the $1.25 million salary.

Keith Tkachuk offers experience, grit and offence and considering the St. Louis Blues struggles this season, Tkachuk is once again a trade target.

Washington’s Michael Nylander has two years remaining on his contract and he eats up 4.8 million in cap space, so he’s a tough sell. But for a team like the Vancouver Canucks eager to add some offence late in the season, Nylander may be the answer.

Toronto has a plethora of players considered to be in play and Nik Antropov is among those most talked about. If the leafs are offered a draft pick, or suitable prospect, they’ll trade him rather than try and negotiate an extension.

via Globe and Mail:

St. Louis Blues left wing Paul Kariya will have surgery on his left hip and could miss the rest of the season, the latest hit for a franchise beset by injuries to key players.

The 34-year-old Kariya hasn’t played since Nov. 5 in Anaheim, when his body was wrenched by a hit from behind and he tore muscle fibres near the top of his thigh. He had apparently recovered from the initial injury and skated with the team three days this week, but cut short his workout Friday after only about 10 minutes.

An MRI exam Friday revealed additional damage inside the hip and Kariya and the Blues elected for surgery on Saturday after consultation with several doctors. The decision was announced near the end of the first period of a game against the San Jose Sharks.

via Calgary Herald:

“It brings experience, confidence, and leadership,” Pietrangelo said of his NHL audition. “Those are the big things.When I was up there, I learned so much every day. Now I’m just trying to put it all together so I can apply it here. Some of the guys have been asking me a lot of questions, whether it’s here or on my junior team. Hopefully, I can apply that leadership.”

As a former defenceman, Canadian head coach Pat Quinn knows how hard it is to make the jump to the NHL.However he knows Pietrangelo will “be fine.”

“He’s a young man with an upside,” Quinn said. “He has terrific offensive skills. The reason he probably didn’t end up staying in the National Hockey League wasn’t because of the defensive side, but because of his play without the puck, which needs to come along like a lot of young defencemen. It’s a hard job to learn. You need to put your time in and get some experience. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s going to do it some day.”

via TSN:

The Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t wait for Brian Burke to come in and start making moves, as the club traded defenceman Carlo Colaiacovo and forward Alex Steen to the St. Louis Blues for forward Lee Stempniak on Monday.

via NHL.com:

The St. Louis Blues returned promising rookie defenseman Alex Pietrangelo to his junior team.

The 18-year-old Pietrangelo was the fourth overall pick in the draft. He played eight games with St. Louis, recording an assist and an even plus-minus rating.

The Blues could use Pietrangelo in nine games before his season counted as a full year. Instead, he’ll be with the Niagara Ice Dogs of the Ontario Hockey League.