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Pre-game reading: On Beau Bennett, who’s developed a great perspective on life

-- Up top, John Tortorella has found another thing he doesn’t like. Add “getting recorded by a phone” to the list. (P.S. -- Too bad the phone didn’t start ringing.)

-- With the help of his Twitter account, Devils forward Beau Bennett has developed a good sense of humor about his terrible injury luck. “It’s all perspective, right? I’m still able to play in the NHL. Honestly, the stuff other people deal with.… I went to the children’s hospital a lot in Pittsburgh, and saw little kids battling for their lives. They can’t even leave the hospital, and I’m supposed to be upset because I’m in a locker room with some of the great hockey players of our time? It’s not hard to be a good person. It’s not hard to put a smile on your face.” (Sports Illustrated)

-- Here’s Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman, with a message for anyone worried about the consequences of signing Artemi Panari to a two-year contract extension: “My suggestion would be to try to enjoy the fact that we’ve got a great player who is a big part of our team. He wants to be here in Chicago, he loves playing with his teammates and he’s having a lot of fun and scoring a lot of goals. That’s really the thing that we’re excited about. The other stuff, we’ll make it work. The time to dissect that is not right now but we’ll get there eventually.” (CSN Chicago)

-- Based on his play at the World Juniors, the Arizona Coyotes have got themselves quite a prospect in American center Clayton Keller. “I think the hockey world already knows what he’s about,” said U.S. captain Luke Kunin. “He’s a high-end skill player, and he’s going to do great things down the road.” The Coyotes may be struggling now, but with Keller and another World Juniors star, Canadian center Dylan Strome, in the stable, the future is certainly brighter than the past and the present. (Sportsnet)

-- There are still tickets available for Sunday’s Centennial Classic outdoor game in Toronto. Though the league expects a full house at BMO Field, it’s been a tough sell in a city that’s pretty much tapped out when it comes to sports events. “Toronto also hosted the World Cup of Hockey in September, a CFL Grey Cup in November and the world junior hockey tournament, which is playing out right now (and in front of small crowds). That’s not to mention that the Raptors went to the NBA’s Eastern Conference finals last spring and remain a hot ticket this season, the Blue Jays made the MLB playoffs again in the fall and sold tickets through the (retractable) roof, and Toronto FC reached the MLS Cup final for the first time in franchise history.” (ESPN)

-- Love him or hate him, you have to appreciate the path Alex Burrows took to the NHL. The undrafted former member of the Greenville Grrrowl and Baton Rouge Kingfish will play his 800th regular-season game for the Vancouver Canucks tonight. “When I first started, I wanted to stay as long as I could,” said Burrows. “Eight hundred…I never thought I’d get here.” (The Province)

Enjoy the games!