Video: NHL tough guy Jody Shelley retires

By Cam TuckerAug 9, 2013, 10:35 PM EDT
4 Comments

Jody Shelley has retired from the National Hockey League and will now begin a new career.

Shelley, who accrued more than 1,500 penalty minutes in 627 regular season games in the National Hockey League, will now move into the front office of the Columbus Blue Jackets, as first reported by Shawn Mitchell of The Columbus Dispatch

“When I decided to stop playing, the next question was: What do I want to do?” Shelley told the Columbus Dispatch.

“I wanted to remain involved in the NHL, in some capacity. For me, the Blue Jackets were a perfect fit. And this opportunity is amazing. My wife is from here, we’re settled back in the area and the way this is working out – it’s awesome.”

Shelley spent most of seven seasons in his NHL career with the Blue Jackets.

Flyers acquire Streit from Isles

By Mike HalfordJun 12, 2013, 1:33 PM EDT
55 Comments

The Philadelphia Flyers’ quest for defensive help continued on Wednesday, as GM Paul Holmgren announced he’d traded for the rights to New York Islanders blueliner Mark Streit.

“Mark is a player we would have had interest in on July 5th,” Holmgren said in a statement. “We now have exclusive negotiating rights and we are hopeful that we can get an agreement in place prior to him becoming an unrestricted free agent.”

In exchange, the Islanders receive prospect Shane Harper and a fourth-round pick at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.

Streit, 35, was a key member of the Isles this year. He led all New York defensemen in scoring (27 points) and finished second on the team in power play points, with eight.

In the playoffs, he tied John Tavares for the team playoff scoring lead (five points) and averaged over 20 minutes a night.

Following the Islanders’ first-round exit against Pittsburgh, Streit told Newsday he wanted to return to New York as his five-year, $20.5 million deal was set to expire on July 5.

“I’ve said it all along, I want to be back,” he explained. “I love it here, I love Long Island and the organization has been great to me.”

But it appears for all that love talk, money got in the way.

Here’s more:

The Islanders are believed to have made a three-year offer for the same $4.75 million per season that Lubomir Visnovsky accepted on the eve of the trade deadline (Visnovsky’s deal is for two years), but Streit is looking for north of $5.5 million per season.

With the free agent market for defensemen very thin, Streit could command $6 million per year and even possibly get a four-year deal. The Islanders wanted Streit back to keep the continuity Garth Snow has built, but the Isles GM is also not interested in busting his salary structure to keep Streit.

It’ll be interesting to see if Philadelphia can match Streit’s reported salary demands.

The Flyers are currently over $64.3 million cap for next season, with 24 players under contract and decisions pending on a number of veteran UFAs (that, to be frank, are probably not that high of a priority: Simon Gagne, Mike Knuble, Ruslan Fedotenko, Jody Shelley, Adam Hall, Matt Walker, Kurtis Foster and Kent Huskins).

Things get demonstratively better in 2014-15, when the Flyers project to be nearly $18 million under the cap, albeit with deals for Claude Giroux, Brayden Schenn and Sean Couturier needing to get done.

Philly’s move to acquire Streit is the second of its kind in recent days.

Last week, the Dallas Stars traded for the rights to 39-year-old Ottawa defenseman Sergei Gonchar, then proceeded to sign the veteran blueliner to a two-year, $10 million deal.

Update: According to ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun, Streit’s agent — Pat Brisson — is scheduled to meet with Holmgren later today to begin contract negotiations.

NHL on NBCSN: Flyers, Devils battle for pride

By Ryan DadounApr 18, 2013, 8:04 AM EDT
11 Comments

NBCSN’s ongoing coverage of the 2013 campaign will continue tonight when the Philadelphia Flyers host the New Jersey Devils at the Wells Fargo Center at 7:30 p.m. ET. In addition to NBCSN, you can also watch the game online.

Just under a year ago, the Philadelphia Flyers and New Jersey Devils battled in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, with the Devils winning that series in five games.

Barring a miracle, neither team will make the playoffs in 2013, so this will almost certainly be their final opportunity to face each other before the summer.

The Devils have dominated the season series, winning three games over the Flyers before narrowing losing a shootout to Philadelphia on March 15.

Those games against Philadelphia must seem so long ago in New Jersey. At the time, they looked like a good bet to make the playoffs. Then Ilya Kovalchuk suffered a shoulder injury and they haven’t won since.

That’s 10 straight defeats for the Devils. To make matters worse, they have played 120:37 minutes without scoring a single goal.

“Absurd is a good word for it,” DeBoer said after a 2-0 loss to Toronto on Monday. “I don’t have an answer. I know the guys are emptying the tank.”

Kovalchuk won’t be able to come back and save them tonight. He might not return at all this season.

“I don’t know. I’m taking this day to day, literally,” coach Pete DeBoer told the Star-Ledger. “I’m not looking beyond. He’s not ready for Philly. Let’s look at Florida (Saturday afternoon at Prudential Center).”

With or without him, the Devils need this win. Not for the sake of keeping their bleak playoff hopes alive, just to simply put themselves in a position where maybe they can enter the summer with some kind of silver lining.

The Flyers likely want the same thing. They’ve won their last two games and while their chances of advancing to the postseason are equally bleak, they still have their pride. So these teams will fight and hope that 2013-14 will go differently.

Probable goaltenders: NJD – Martin Brodeur (10-8-7, 2.25 GAA, .901 SV%) | PHI – Steve Mason (4-8-1, 2.70 GAA, .908 SV%)

Top scorers: NJD – Patrik Elias (11-20-31, 42 GP) | PHI – Claude Giroux (13-31-44, 43 GP)

Notable Injuries:
New Jersey – Forwards: Kovalchuk Defensemen: Bryce Salvador (wrist)
Philadelphia – Forwards: Zac Rinaldo (ankle), Maxime Talbot (leg), Jody Shelley (hip), Ruslan Fedotenko (upper body) Defensemen: Bruno Gervais (stomach), Kent Huskins (concussion), Nicklas Grossmann (concussion), Braydon Coburn (shoulder), Andrej Meszaros (shoulder), Marc-Andre Bourdon (concussion), Chris Pronger (concussion)

NHL on NBCSN: Rangers continue fight for playoff spot vs Flyers

By Ryan DadounApr 16, 2013, 8:04 AM EDT
3 Comments

NBCSN’s ongoing coverage of the 2013 campaign will continue tonight when the Philadelphia Flyers host the New York Rangers at the Wells Fargo Center at 7:30 p.m. ET.

They haven’t been mathematically eliminated yet, but realistically, the Philadelphia Flyers are not going to make the playoffs.

That doesn’t mean they’ve given up. Just ask the Montreal Canadiens, who were overwhelmed by a frustrated Flyers team last night. Scott Hartnell had a hat trick as the Flyers earned a crushing 7-3 victory.

“We’re still playing for a lot of pride,” Luke Schenn said in a CSN Philly report. “I don’t think we’re ever going to throw in the towel. These [final seven] games, we’ve got to compete hard. Losing can’t become accepted, that’s just the mentality you’ve got to have around here.”

Fair enough, but the Rangers know that it will be more than just their pride that’s wounded if they come up flat against the Flyers tonight.

New York has won two straight games, but they are in eighth place and have just a two-point cushion over the Winnipeg Jets, albeit with a game in hand.

The Rangers schedule is odd in the sense that they will only play teams currently shy of a playoff spot or already eliminated from consideration. At the same time, teams with nothing left but personal pride to fight for can be dangerous and the Rangers will have to play seven games in just 12 days.

That exhausting stretch could weigh on them in the final games of the season, which makes picking up points now when they’re relatively rested and facing a team at the end of a three games in four days stretch all the more critical.

Probable goaltenders: PHI – Steve Mason (3-8-1, 2.75 GAA, .904 SV%) | NYR – Henrik Lundqvist (19-14-3, 2.06 GAA, .928 SV%)

Top scorers: PHI – Jakub Voracek (18-24-42, 42 GP) and Claude Giroux (13-29-42, 42 GP) | NYR – Rick Nash (17-18-35, 37 GP)

Notable Injuries:
Philadelphia – Forwards: Zac Rinaldo (ankle), Maxime Talbot (leg), Jody Shelley (hip) Defensemen: Kent Huskins (concussion), Nicklas Grossmann (concussion), Marc-Andre Bourdon (concussion), Chris Pronger (concussion)
New York – Forwards: Derek Dorsett (shoulder) Defensemen: Marc Staal (eye), Michael Sauer (concussion)

Trade: Philly sends Zolnierczyk to Anaheim for Rosehill

By Mike HalfordApr 1, 2013, 4:36 PM EDT
60 Comments

The Anaheim Ducks have acquired forward Harry Zolnierczyk from Philadelphia in exchange for pugilist Jay Rosehill, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie.

Zolnierczyk, 25, has spent the last two seasons shuttling between Philly and its AHL affiliate in Adirondack. He played in 37 games for the Flyers during the 2011-12 season, scoring 3G-3A-6PTS.

This season, the former Brown University product appeared in seven games, making a name for himself with a series of controversial hits.

The most recent one came in early March, when he was suspended four games for charging Senators forward Mike Lundin. (Pictured)

Rosehill, 27, signed a one-year deal with the Ducks in early January, but has spent the entire season playing with AHL Norfolk. He’s actually been somewhat productive with the Admirals, scoring 4G-4A-8PTS in 33 games while racking up 90 PIM.

Rosehill last appeared in the NHL during the 2011-12 campaign, appearing in 31 games for Toronto. He failed to score a point but did register 60 penalty minutes and a minus-four rating.

So, what does this deal mean for each team?

Zolnierczyk’s aggressive ways will add to a Ducks team loaded with size: David Steckel (6-foot-6, 215 pounds) Bryan Allen (6-foot-5, 226 pounds), Sheldon Souray (6-foot-4, 233 pounds) Patrick Maroon (6-4, 225) and Brad Staubitz (30 fights over the last two seasons).

Of course, Harry Z will have to make the Ducks first. He’s reportedly off to Norfolk to start.

Rosehill could squeeze into the Flyers lineup given the injuries to forwards Danny Briere, Max Talbot and Jody Shelley, though it seems like the AHL is a more likely landing spot.