You heard it here first. A few days ago I wondered why teams would take a chance on Dominik Hasek and not someone like Arturs Irbe.
Columbus answered the bell and traded for him.
I'm guessing he'll be backing up starter Marc Denis, with the hope he'll emerge as a starter or push Denis to greater heights.
I'm curious what this means for Fred Brathwaite, Denis' backup last season, who only had four wins in 21 games. Irbe was actually playing in the ECHL last year, so he's a pretty big risk. Who knows if he's ready for the NHL. Or if he'll ever be ready. So maybe Columbus will hold onto a few goalies and see who floats and who sinks.

Awww geez.
Everyone's piling on hockey.
Now it's the competitive eaters.
The New York Post's infamous Page Six had an item on how ESPN is going to air the annual Fourth of July hot dog-eating contest from Coney Island.
Fine, right?
Yeah. Until the trash talking starts.
Richard Shea, the president of the International Federation of Competitive Eating told Page Six "We have clearly passed the NHL in popularity."
I think he's being tongue-in-cheek but it still hurts. Especially since Shea fronts a sport that any of my relatives can utterly dominate on any given holiday.
I'm just saying.

This is a little interesting.
Knight Ridder has a pretty run-of-the mill interview with Bobby Hull, talking up the WHA.
But in the interview, Hull says he doubts his son Brett will join the WHA.
The reason?
"[Brett] has a mandate to become the second-highest goal scorer. He's not going to burn any bridges in case the lockout is short so he can continue to pursue that record."
"That record" is passing Gordie Howe on the career goals list. He's just 60 away from passing Howe and moving into second place.
Brett Hull would be such a great WHA personality, though. He's so sassy and outspoken. But if the league was made up of too many guys like Hull and Jeremy Roenick, the whole thing could degenerate into the XFL — all trash talk.
In fact, if no one else has the name, I'm going to suggest Roenick change his to Me Skate Me.
I'm so curious if the WHA will even get off the ground, though. I don't even know what to root for.

Wow. It must be fun to work for the Flyers.
If you're part of the broadcast team, they tell you they can't sign you to a contract until the lockout is settled (see below).
Then they sign Keith Primeau to a $17 million, 4-year deal (login info here).
I'm very, very shocked the Flyers could find the money for Primeau and not find a small portion of that to support the people that support the players.
The Flyers are going to try and sign Alex Zhamnov next. Zhamnov, while a great Flyer, came over in a trade toward the end of this season. So it's not like he has a history with the team. You know. Like the support staff did.
And to be honest, I don't think the Flyers would have even made Primeau an offer if he hadn't had such an amazing playoffs. Before the playoffs, he hadn't been a true on-ice force in quite some time.
So the Flyers are taking really good care of the millionaire players they're getting ready to lockout. It's just everyone else in the organization they're going to punish.
Pure class.

Am I the only one shocked that suddenly every team wants Dominik Hasek?
Ottawa has been rumored to be hot for Hasek for quite some time. But now the Ottawa Sun is saying some other teams, including the Canucks, Rangers, Kings and Blues, are warm for Dom's form.
Hasek looked horrible last season. You know. When he actually played. And to sign him with the chance of a lockout, when he won't play even longer? It just seems crazy. It's such a huge risk. If I'm a GM looking for a goalie, I'd rather grab a Byron Dafoe or an Arturs Irbe than a Hasek. At least those guys are a bit healthier.
I'm actually shocked the Red Wings aren't trying to deal Curtis Joseph again, though. They spent so much time screwing him over this season. It seems like it would be a hard habit for them to break.

Larry Brooks has a throw-away suggestion that's really kind of interesting.
In Sunday's NHL column, he suggested the NHL create an award for the team with the most goals in a season. He recommends a huge bonus for the coach of the team, too. This way, coaches will have some incentive to coach offensively.
It's simple as hell to do and it might really increase the tempo of games. And you don't have to create new rules or lines or equipment or anything.
Oh. And on a semi-related note, in the sense that Brooks' writes for the New York Post and the Rangers are a New York team, game seven of the 1994 Stanley Cup finals are on MSG tonight (Monday).
If your cable system gets MSG, check it out. If it doesn't, your options are kind of limited. I'm sure there's a LAW & ORDER: SOMETHING SOMETHING on somewhere, though.

I'm trying not to write about the upcoming lockout, but it's kind of hard. There's so much stuff tied up in it.
Like what about the announcers.
In Philadelphia, it seems the broadcast teams aren't getting their contracts renewed if there's a strike (l:philly@cheesesteak.com;p:philly).
The Flyers said they're trying to shift people to protect as many jobs as possible, but you can only protect so many jobs. The rest of the people who work NHL games are pretty screwed.
Flyer producer Bryan Cooper told the Philadelphia Inquirer about surviving the 1994-95 lockout: "I nearly got killed in '94. I nearly went bankrupt. I don't know whether we're pawns or a sign that the owners are serious. I'm not sure. But from what I understand, they have no positive sign that a deal is going to get done in time."
It's pretty crappy to work in hockey right now. For players and owners and everyone else associated with the game.