particular point in time than we’ve seen throughout the process,” Bettman told reporters

“There seems to be more interest at this particular point in time than we’ve seen throughout the process,” Bettman told reporters.

And he made it clear that, at least at this point in time, the NHL still has every intention of finalizing a deal to keep the team in Glendale.

“We’re not planning on moving Phoenix as we stand here today,” Bettman said, according to Cotsonika. Asked if a decision on relocation was imminent, he responded, “No. When it becomes imminent, we’ll tell you. We apparently aren’t operating on the same time frame that a lot of (reporters) are."

This despite widely circulated reports that the league intends to either complete a deal to keep the team in the desert or begin exploring relocation options by the start of the NHL playoffs on April 30, now less than four weeks away.

“We haven’t been exploring the alternatives,” Bettman said. “We are exploring everything we can do to work this out, and there seems to be considerable interest. If you go through the history of this, there have been lots of reasons -- not excuses, but lots of reasons -- this has taken a lot of time. There seems to be now, in the calm of the moment, a lot more interest than we’ve ever seen.”

Bettman also confirmed, as was stated in the FOXSportsArizona.com report, that the league will be selecting an ownership bid to pursue before approaching Glendale to work out a lease agreement, which has long been a stumbling block to completing a sale. Jamison worked out a deal with the city last year but, following the NHL lockout, was unable to complete the purchase of the franchise from the league.

"I’ve been in regular touch with the mayor, and we agreed that when we get a framework lined up, then we would come see the city," Bettman told reporters. "We don’t want the city to have to expend resources and time getting involved until there’s something concrete to present to them.”

Much of the questioning beyond the details of the current state of the ownership search focused on Seattle, often cited as the likely landing spot if the Coyotes were to relocate. A Seattle-based group has been attempting to purchase and move the NBA's Sacramento Kings and is developing an arena that could support both professional basketball and hockey.

And while Bettman's initial comments downplayed the possibility of relocating the Coyotes, his comments on Seattle left room for speculation.

“The research I’ve seen tells me that it would be a very strong hockey market,” Bettman said, according to the Yahoo report. “I haven’t looked at it in detail, but it’s all anecdotal and third hand. Obviously, if there were a team in Seattle, it might foster a pretty decent rivalry with the northern neighbor, namely Vancouver.

“But that doesn’t mean that anybody should take from that comment that we’re necessarily focused on Seattle or we’re planning on expanding there. You asked the question about Seattle. I wouldn’t have raised it. But it’s obviously an interesting market."

foxsportsarizona.com LOADED: 04.08.2013

668842 Pittsburgh Penguins

Morrow’s value to Pens should come in playoffs

By Josh Yohe

Penguins winger Brenden Morrow hasn't scored yet for his new team, hasn't done anything especially flashy and hasn't received as much attention as some other new acquisitions.

Morrow isn't concerned, nor is anyone else in the organization. General manager Ray Shero brought Morrow to Pittsburgh because of what he will contribute in the playoffs.

“If we could add grit and leadership to our top nine, we wanted that element,” Shero told the Tribune-Review about the trade to acquire Morrow in exchange for former Penguins prospect Joe Morrow.

“That led us to the Morrow deal. His game is not so much about stats and goals, even though I believe he will chip in. He could be that battle-tested guy who comes up big for us in many ways.”

Shero and coach Dan Bylsma are hardly concerned by Morrow's lack of production since joining the Penguins. Rather, they see him punishing defensemen in corners and making his patented beeline toward the net and imagine the damage he will do in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The reality that Morrow possesses leadership skills that remind the front office of former right wing Bill Guerin doesn't hurt.

Morrow has delivered a team-high 15 hits during the past three games, including a number of punishing blows against the Rangers in Friday's 2-1 victory. He has been a steady, respected locker room presence from Day 1.

“He has been as advertised,” Bylsma said. “He's added some punch to our physicality. He's been a real factor.”

In the postseason, power-play opportunities and pretty goals typically decline. Dirty goals are often the difference, and Morrow figures to score his share.

“Of course, I wish I had already scored,” Morrow explained.

But he isn't the least bit concerned.

“Throughout my career,” Morrow explained, “I just do the simple things and I keep going to the net. Eventually, the hockey gods start sending the bounces my way.”

Bylsma has been quite pleased with Morrow.

“He's a straightforward player,” Bylsma said. “He gets to the forecheck, gets in front of the net, and he doesn't get far away from the net. He's been excellent there. I'm disappointed that we haven't cashed in on him being in front of the net.”

Morrow doesn't stray far from the net and doesn't figure to stray far from center Brandon Sutter and left wing Matt Cooke. If the Penguins' lineup is healthy in the playoffs — or even if it isn't — those three players figure to comprise the third line.

Bylsma wants a third line that will be physically disruptive and defensively responsible. In Sutter, Morrow and Cooke, he sees such a line.

“That's fine with me,” Morrow said. “With the depth that we have on this team, I don't really think anybody will be unhappy with who they play with. But if it's the three of us, that's fine. I think that can be a really good line.”

Scoring might not always be the priority for that line, but that doesn't mean Morrow doesn't intend on chipping in. The 34-year-old veteran has been around long enough to know that his style better translates to the postseason — and the postseason is why the Penguins acquired him.

“I feel like I'm getting to the right places to score goals and doing the right things,” Morrow said. “I haven't scored yet, but that's OK. Eventually, it's going to happen.”

Note: The Penguins have recalled winger Beau Bennett from Wilkes-Barre.

Josh Yohe is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at jyohe@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JoshYohe_Trib.

Tribune Review LOADED: 04.08.2013

668843 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins clinch playoff berth

By Josh Yohe

The Penguins clinched a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs on Sunday night when the New Jersey Devils fell in a shootout against the Buffalo Sabres.

A victory in Carolina on Tuesday might be enough to clinch the Penguins their first divisional title since 2008.

The Penguins are the first team in the Eastern Conference to clinch a playoff spot. A 15-game winning streak in March propelled the Penguins to the top of the conference.

The Chicago Blackhawks and the Penguins clinched a playoff berth Sunday.

The Penguins have qualified for the playoffs in seven consecutive seasons.

— Josh Yohe

Tribune Review LOADED: 04.08.2013

668844 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins recall rookie winger Beau Bennett

April 7, 2013 2:50 pm

By Shelly Anderson / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The Penguins today recalled rookie winger Beau Bennett from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.

Bennett has three assists in four games since he was assigned to the Penguins' farm club for roster size purposes. In 19 NHL games with the Penguins this season, he has two goals, nine points.

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.08.2013

668845 Pittsburgh Penguins

Connecticut invades Frozen Four with Quinnipiac and Yale

April 8, 2013 12:06 am

By Sam Werner / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Yale and Quinnipiac's home rinks are separated by about eight miles down Whitney Avenue in New Haven, Conn. There's a chance Saturday night the two teams could be divided only by the red line at Consol Energy Center.

The two teams head into this weekend's Frozen Four with hopes of bringing the NCAA championship trophy back to Connecticut.

Both teams would have to win their respective semifinals -- Yale against Massachusetts Lowell and Quinnipiac against St. Cloud State -- to set up an all-Nutmeg State final, but their presence in Pittsburgh is a significant milestone for college hockey in Connecticut.

Before this season, neither seemed like a favorite to reach the Frozen Four. Quinnipiac went from unranked in the preseason polls to the No. 1 team for most of the season. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, barely snuck into the 16-team NCAA tournament field but knocked off giants Minnesota and North Dakota en route to their first Frozen Four appearance since 1952.

An in-state Frozen Four showdown, usually reserved for schools from Massachusetts, Minnesota or Michigan, is now within reach. On both sides, though, players and coaches weren't concerned with meeting a local rival in the title game.

"It's funny how many times I've been asked that question already, and like I said, it doesn't matter who I play or who we play," Quinnipiac senior defenseman Zack Currie said. "We want to win that national championship. That's a huge goal we have here. And whoever gets put in front of us, that's who we're going to focus on and that's who we're going to have to deal with."

Quinnipiac holds a 10-5-2 edge in the budding rivalry that dates to the Bobcats joining the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) in 2005.

Three of those wins for the Bobcats came this season. Quinnipiac swept the home-and-home regular-season series, coming back from a 2-0 deficit to win, 6-2, in February at Yale.

When Yale senior forward Andrew Miller was asked if he wanted another shot at Quinnipiac, he didn't take the bait.

"We want a shot to play for a national championship," Miller said. "So we've put ourselves in a position to do that. If we get the opportunity to play in a national championship game, that would be great."

While neither camp would comment on playing a local rival, both agreed it was a positive for the ECAC to have two teams in the Frozen Four. The ECAC, widely considered to be inferior to other power conferences such as the WCHA and Hockey East, hasn't had two teams on college hockey's biggest stage since 1983.

"It may be good for ECAC, definitely good for ECAC to have the two teams there," Currie said. "But we're focused on our first game here against St. Cloud and whoever is in that second game, hopefully we can meet [Yale] there."

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.08.2013

668846 Pittsburgh Penguins

Adams a cool cat killing penalties for Penguins

By Shelly Anderson / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Craig Adams knows what it must look like with four guys trying to shut down this shooting lane, then that passing lane, maybe knock the puck away from an opponent and, if all goes well, heave it down the ice.

"When I'm out there, I don't feel as frantic as [it looks]," the Penguins forward said of working on the penalty-kill. "I'm pretty relaxed, pretty focused.

"Even if it looks really close or they get a good chance, I'm not getting all excited about it -- whereas if I was on the power play, I'd probably be nervous."

Adams smiled at that last thought.

He leads the forwards with an average of 2 minutes, 51 seconds a game while short-handed, but never gets a sniff of the power play. At his age -- he turns 36 a day before the regular season ends -- Adams is not likely to grow into a power-play position.

His role on the team is set. Adams is a fourth-liner and penalty-killer who plays with tenacity, grit, a pinch of offense -- he has three goals, six points in 39 games going into a game Tuesday against the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, N.C. -- and the smarts that go with having a Harvard degree.

It has been that way since the Penguins shrewdly picked him up off of waivers from Chicago a few months before the team won the 2009 Stanley Cup title.

Whether it remains that way into next season is a question that will need to be addressed. Adams is eligible for unrestricted free agency after this season, and the Penguins will be loaded with too many forwards on the 23-man roster when it kicks in again next season if they bring everyone back. There currently is no roster limit.

"Of course you think about it. I think about it all the time," Adams said. "Not to the point where it gets in the way of work, but whenever it's your career and you have a family to take care of, you're always conscious of what's coming next, where you're going to be working."

He would like it to be with the Penguins moving ahead.

"This organization is first class from top to bottom," he said. "That makes it a fun place to play and a pleasure to be a part of."

Working in Adams' favor is that he is comfortable playing any of the three forward positions. He has been primarily a right winger this season.

"Anything's good for me," Adams said. "As long as I'm out there."

Center, by definition, comes with some extra defensive responsibilities and faceoff duties, but there are some issues playing on the wing, too.

"Probably the biggest challenges on wing are the wall plays in our end," Adams said. "It seems like most teams we play against nowadays, they send their [defensemen] hard down the wall. One of the toughest plays in hockey, I think, is trying to get a puck coming off the wall with a big defenseman coming down on you, and you know your job is to get the puck out [of your end] or make a play with it."

It was a play along the wall nearly two weeks ago that led to Adams' latest black eye. He got bloodied when he took a puck to the face in a game against Montreal.

Adams doesn't wear a protective visor, and he has only given a cursory thought to adding one to his helmet.

"I've had some discussions with my wife about it," Adams said. "I can't say I've seriously considered it yet. Maybe I'll think about it more."

Defenseman Brooks Orpik began wearing a visor earlier this season. That's what sparked Adams' conversation with his wife. Then, nine days ago, team captain Sidney Crosby got hit in the mouth with a puck, fracturing his jaw and knocking out some teeth.

"Obviously, Sid's got a visor on and it didn't help," Adams said. "It is definitely dangerous with pucks flying around, but when you're out there in the game, you really don't think about it. You're focused.

"It's a different thing in practice. If you're standing in front of the net and pucks are coming high, all you want to do is get out of the way, but in a game you're really focused. Unfortunately, bad bounces happen, but for the most part you have a pretty good idea where the puck is."

That kind of puck-tracking focus is essential when you are short-handed, an area that has slipped some this season, which befuddles Adams.

The Penguins are killing penalties at an 80.3 percent clip, which ranked 20th in the NHL. They finished third a year ago at 87.8 percent and in 2010-11 led the league at 86.1 percent.

"Our penalty-kill hasn't been as good as we've hoped this year," Adams said. "It's been hard to figure out why."

The Penguins recently had a stretch of 10 games where they killed 28 of 30 penalties, or 93.3 percent, including a couple of important three-on-five kills. Then things crashed Wednesday in a 6-1 loss to the New York Rangers, who scored on 3 of 4 power plays.

In a rematch Friday, the Penguins killed the two power plays the Rangers had in a 2-1 shootout win.

"We slipped with our execution and maybe some aggressiveness along the way," Adams said. "I feel like we're getting back to that now

"We know that down the stretch and into the playoffs, those kills are going to become more and more important."

•

NOTES -- The Penguins recalled rookie winger Beau Bennett from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. He had three assists in four games since he was sent to the AHL for roster room purposes. ... The Penguins on Sunday had a second day in a row off from practice. ... There were no updates on Crosby or winger James Neal, who seemed disoriented when he left a game Friday against the New York Rangers after being hit in the head by an elbow.

668847 Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins secure playoff spot as New Jersey loses to Buffalo

By Shelly Anderson / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The Penguins secured a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs Sunday night by virtue of New Jersey's 3-2 shootout loss to Buffalo. The Penguins became the second National Hockey League team to secure a playoff spot. Minutes before New Jersey's loss, Chicago nailed down a berth in the West with a win over Nashville.

The Penguins lead the Eastern Conference with 58 points in 39 games. This season was shortened to 48 games because of a lockout that pushed the start back to Jan. 19.

This will be the Penguins' seventh consecutive postseason appearance. They won the Stanley Cup in 2009 but have won just one playoff series since then. They lost in the first round each of the last two years.

With several Eastern teams jockeying for a spot in the playoffs or for a higher seed, the Penguins' first-round opponent might not be determined until close to the end of the season.

The Penguins' last regular-season game is April 27 at home against Carolina. The playoffs begin April 30.

Post Gazette LOADED: 04.08.2013

668848 San Jose Sharks

San Jose Sharks lose in shootout 5-4 to Dallas Stars

By David Pollak

Posted: 04/07/2013 04:22:05 PM PDT

Updated: 04/07/2013 04:45:54 PM PDT

SAN JOSE — The Sharks couldn't make it a clean sweep of their seven-game homestand Sunday afternoon, dropping a 5-4 shootout decision to the Dallas Stars after twice failing to hold a two-goal lead.

Dallas forward Jamie Benn scored the only shootout goal, beating goaltender Antti Niemi on the stick side while Stars netminder Kari Lehtonen stopped shots by Logan Couture, Dan Boyle and Brent Burns.

The loss ended San Jose's winning streak at seven games, but the one point at least temporarily moved San Jose into a tie for fourth place in the Western Conference.

The San Jose goals in regulation came from Tommy Wingels, Brent Burns, TJ Galiardi and Marc-Edouard Vlasic while the Stars got two goals from Alex Chiasson and one each from Eric Nystrom and Loui Eriksson.

The game also marked agitator Raffi Torres's first as a Shark and he earned two assists in addition to drawing one penalty and being a disruptive force for San Jose.

The Sharks scored the only goal of the first period when Logan Couture stripped a Dallas defender of the puck behind his own net, then threw it into the slot. Patrick Marleau whiffed, but Wingels connected with a 20-foot wrist shot at 8:39.

Burns made it a 2-0 game at 3:06 of the second period when his shot from the right faceoff circle found a short-side spot between Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen, but the lead didn't last long.

Shortly after Burns scored, however, Dallas found the back

of the San Jose net twice in a span of 26 seconds to make it a 2-2 game. A Vlasic turnover along the board led to Nystrom's goal at 3:41 and after San Jose had trouble clearing the puck in front of its net on the next shift, Chiasson tied it by converting a rebound of a host by Jamie Benn.

The Sharks showed their resiliency, however, on a beautiful goal by Galiardi on a play that started with Torres pressuring Nystrom into coughing up the puck. It found its way to Galiardi, whose spin-o-rama backhand move from 22-feet out seemed to catch Lehtonen off guard.

It took a video review by NHL officials in Toronto for the Sharks to make it 4-2 as Vlasic's wraparound attempt wasn't called a goal on the ice, though replays showed it did cross the line.

Dallas got the next two goals, however — Chiasson's second of the game at 6:07 of the third period on a nice pass from Ray Whitney, and Erikkson knocking a rebound past Niemi at 9:14.

Torres's presence in the lineup meant somebody had to sit and that turned out to be James Sheppard.

"Shep is coming out and by no means is it a reflection on his performance. He's played well," McLellan said. "But we have to get some people into the lineup and get them playing so they get accustomed to what we're trying to do. And we're running out of games to do that."

Defenseman Jason Demers also played after missing the past four games with a head injury suffered when he was hit March 28 by Detroit Red Wings center Cory Emmerton. Rookie Matt Tennyson, who was called up from Worcester when Demers was hurt, was a healthy scratch.

"Again, it's not a reflection on poor play. It's getting Demers back in," McLellan said.

Niemi earned his first point of the season with an assist on Burns's second-periood goal.

The Sharks were trying to become the first NHL team with a perfect record on a homestand of seven games or more, according to STATS.

San Jose Mercury News: LOADED: 04.08.2013

668849 San Jose Sharks

Sharks lose to Stars 5-4 in shootout

Ross McKeon

Updated 10:58 pm, Sunday, April 7, 2013

The Sharks squandered a pair of two-goal leads during a game Sunday that could have resulted in an NHL record.

Instead of becoming the first team in league history to win all seven games of a homestand, San Jose has to hope its 5-4 shootout loss to Dallas isn't a prelude of things to come.

Sunday's meltdown was the first of six games in 10 days for the Sharks, who frittered away a lot of the feel-good created by their recent success.

It's off on the road for four straight starting Tuesday in Columbus, knowing it will take better focus and a test of the team's depth to maintain its playoff standing in the tightly packed Western Conference race.

The Sharks, whose seven-game winning streak was snapped, held steady in fifth place with 47 points, but Minnesota (46) and St. Louis (44) each got a point closer.

"There's a way we play at home ... we have to try to bring that on the road," Sharks forward Joe Pavelski said.

Well, the way the Sharks played at home for the previous six before letting a 2-0 second-period lead slip away in a matter of 26 seconds, and a 4-2 lead disappear in the first half of the third period.

"A lot of mistakes, we were not very quick," Sharks head coach Todd McLellan said. "It was just a function of not focusing and not getting the job done."

Jamie Benn scored the lone goal in the shootout and Dallas goalie Kari Lehtonen denied Logan Couture, Dan Boyle and Brent Burns, all after the Sharks had two of the three shots taken in overtime to outshoot the Stars 36-33 after 65 minutes.

"I didn't like our game the whole" day, McLellan said. "It was nice we scored four goals, but we had a lot of key high-end, high-minute people who didn't perform very well."

The loss put a damper on the debut of Raffi Torres, a deadline-day acquisition from Phoenix who contributed two assists and was a disciplined, physical force on a newly formed third line with Pavelski and T.J. Galiardi.

"I thought they were our best line," McLellan said. "They spend a lot of time forechecking in the other team's zone. Raffi was on the score sheet positively and people knew when he was on the ice. A real good start for him."

Tommy Wingels scored the lone goal in the opening period when he one-timed a centering feed from Couture that was intended for Patrick Marleau. Burns made it 2-0 early in the second with a screamer just inside the near post from the right side.