Tim Panaccio looks at the illustrious history of number two draft picks (login info.): guys like Chris Pronger, Brad Park and Petr Nedved. Of course, this year's draft is supposed to be pretty thin, so I'm not sure there'll be a miracle number two. I think there's just a lot of weight placed on guys going first overall. That's heavy to live up to.
Also, Jean-Sebastien Giguere is going to average $6 million a year over the next four years (login info.). I'm taking that as a sign Scott Niedermayer is going to retire. Either that, or the Ducks are going with just Niedermayer, Pronger, and Giguere next season.

Why doesn't HBO want to admit that Kevin "ENTOURAGE" Connolly is an Islanders fan? Yesterday, PuckUpdate reported Connolly is a fan of the fish sticks. What we can now also report is that HBO seems to be Photoshopping the Isles' logo out of promotional photos.
What gives HBO?
What gives?
Also, Brett Hull is leaving NBC for an operations gig with the Dallas Stars (thanks to Newsday's Neil Best for the pointer). Hull never seemed comfortable on NBC. I always felt he thought things would be more freewheeling and spontaneous. I never heard anything bad about his work calling Stars games but his NBC work seemed forced and often staged. He's a colorful guy. It's a shame NBC couldn't get things flowing.

The Islanders are getting huge.
As you may recall, I recently learned Loudon Wainwright III is some kind of Islanders fan.
And now, PuckUpdate has learned ENTOURAGE's Kevin Connolly is one. On Sunday's episode, he wore an Islanders cap throughout the entire show. This was the best grab I could find:

I did some research and apparently Connolly is a hockey/Isles fan:

I just know you're an Islanders fan.

Die-hard Islanders fan - and we're going to the playoffs, and we're going big in the playoffs. Islanders are going to go deep into the playoffs. I feel it.

Do you paint your face?

Do I what?!?

Paint your face.

With Islanders colors? No, but I wear an Islanders hat. I'm wearing one on Entourage this year a couple times. The Islanders are the pride and joy of Long Island. They're all we got out there.

Obviously, it's an old interview.
So there you have it.
Also, Doubt About It, a Pittsburgh sports blog is comparing the 1991 Cup-winning Penguins to the 1992 version. Definitely worth checking out.

Wow. Claude Julien is the new coach of the Bruins. He's kind of a dull choice. I guess the Bruins will play a defensive system next season. The Bruins might have moved quickly, firing old coach Dave Lewis and hiring Julien, to keep Julien from going to Ottawa, where coach Bryan Murray was bumped from coach to GM.
That whole thing made me very tired.
Also, Scott Niedermayer might be getting ready to retire from the Ducks, leaving money on the table, but joints in their sockets (sorry — the story is Insider Only). Niedermayer is the only hockey player to have won a Stanley Cup, an Olympic gold medal, a World Cup, a World Championship, a World Junior Championship and a Memorial Cup. That's crazy. He should retire and sell his genes.

Is it me or is every recent Sunday spent wondering if someone was whacked?
Last week, I had no idea what the hell happened to Tony. Heart disease? Bullet? Retirement? Spinoff?
This week, I have no idea what happend to Ottawa GM John Muckler. Is he in? Is he out?
You may recall Ottawa made it to the Stanley Cup finals just a week or so ago. The team imploded, which would seem to indicate a coaching issue more than a team construction issue. So it's curious that coach Bryan Murray seems to be sliding into the GM slot. I guess he would have been made owner if the Senators had won the Cup? Or if the top line had shown up for the Finals?
Of course, over in Boston, coach Dave Lewis never saw it coming. After an awful season but vague commitments, he was fired (login info.). Lewis didn't do a great job with an average-at-best team. But one season seems to be a bit soon to pull the trigger. Kevin Paul Dupont guesses GM Peter Chiarelli better settle into some kind of coaching rhythm, or he'll be on the dole, too. To be honest, I never really understood why Mike Sullivan was fired in the first place. Dupont also says former Isles GM/Bruins hero Mike Milbury would be a great coach. I'm not sure how he'd be from a strategy perspective, but he'd be pretty fun to watch.
Also, Larry Brooks reports "Mark Recchi and Gary Roberts...will either return to the Penguins together or not at all". It's a good thing Joe Nieuwendyk retired or the three of them would probably be looking for an all-or-nothing deal. They'd maybe even demand to be on the same line.
Finally, apparently Loudon Wainwright III is an Islanders fan. Who knew?