Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News: Brad Richards will take the morning skate with the Stars, and if all goes well, he’ll be in the lineup tonight. “You don’t want to get ahead of yourself, and I certainly know the process and what we have to go through, but as far as I’m concerned, I’m going to the arena tomorrow morning as a player,” Richards said .
Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News: Kulfan thinks that Lidstrom could win the Norris this year, and with the Red Wings still Stanley Cup contenders, he’s likely to return next season. Chris Osgood will be thinking about retiring after the season, but Kulfan also wouldn’t be surprised if he comes back for one more season.
Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun: The Senators need to re-sign Craig Anderson to hold the fort until Robin Lehner is ready. Jared Cowen and David Rundblad could be ready to make the jump to the NHL next year, and that could leave Filip Kuba and Brian Lee on the outside. Lee has a salary at $875,000, so he could be trade bait. Kuba makes $3.7 million, and if they can’t move him, he could be bought out.
Jim Gintonio of the Arizona Republic: Ed Jovanovski skated for the 1st time on Tuesday since having orbital bone surgery. He was wearing a face shield, and he hopes to return before the end of the season. Martin Hanzel, Ray Whitney and Derek Morris all missed last night’s game with lower body injuries and are day-to-day.
Tom Reed of the Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets forward Derick Brassard has been cleared to return to the lineup, and is a game time decision. He’s had a hand injury that has kept him out of the lineup for the last 3 weeks.
Jess Myers of the Denver Post: John-Michael Liles left night’s game after playing just over 2 minutes. “I think it was a quad injury, a leg injury. We’ll know more in the morning. He wasn’t able to return,” said Avalanche coach Joe Sacco.
George Johnson of the Calgary Herald: Flames center Brendan Morrison told media he’s uncertain about his availability for the remainder of the season, playoffs included. “We still have some swelling in the knee and it’ll probably be another two or three weeks before we get a solid evaluation,’’ he said on Tuesday. “We’re optimistic that I can hopefully come back but we’re not going to know until everything settles down and we test it. We just have to wait and see.’’
Eric Stephens via twitter: The Ducks have signed Luca Sbisa for 4 years, and $8.7 million contract extension. He’ll carry a $2.175 million cap hit, with annual salaries of $1.2 million, $2 million, $2.6 million, and $2.9 million.
Katie Carrera via twitter: Both Backstrom and Neuvirth didn’t skate yesterday, more should be known about their injuries today.
