Tensions between the sides palpably increased Thursday as the NFL’s labor impasse, which threatens part or all of the 2011 season, does not appear close to resolution with an 11:59 p.m. ET deadline looming Friday before the current collective bargaining agreement expires.

That means the owners could lock out the players. The NFL Players Association might opt to file an injunction or decertify Friday. Another option: Extension of the deadline for a third time.

The league and the players union met Thursday, but nine owners on the NFL’s labor committee who traveled to the nation’s capital — including Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys and Jerry Richardson of the Carolina Panthers— were not directly involved in the bogged-down negotiations.

That led to frustration on the players’ side as the union claimed no formal bargaining session took place. The talks are being overseen by federal mediator George Cohen. Full Story

Most power forwards take seven or eight years to really find their stride in the NHL and it’s a wonder more poolies haven’t caught onto that fact yet. But in the impatient world of fantasy hockey, giving up on a player in his early-20s is commonplace. That said, write Chicago left winger Bryan Bickell off at your own risk.

The 24-year-old has a great pedigree. Not only was he drafted 41st overall in 2004, he’s built like a tank at 6-foot-4, 223 pounds. I have found teams tend to give players who are drafted in the first couple rounds a few more chances than they would a lower draft pick. By the same token, it’s well known a bigger player will have more of an opportunity to thrive than a smaller player. Furthermore, in Bickell’s final season of junior hockey he posted 83 points in 67 contests.

However, on the whole, his pro numbers have been underwhelming, in part due to injury. As a rookie, he posted 25 points in 48 American League games for Norfolk and even had a cup of coffee with the Blackhawks. That’s a promising start, but after a ho-hum sophomore campaign his 2008-09 season was stalled by a broken thumb sustained in a fight – and that’s about when fantasy owners lost interest. But when we’re looking at power forwards, that kind of thinking is erroneous.

Twenty-two-year-old power forwards should not be written off. In fact, that’s about when you should start taking notice of them. Generally speaking, forwards who play a power game tend to break out between the ages of 25 and 27. If that sounds familiar to you, remember I said something similar about small offensive dynamos a few weeks back. But it’s true here as well. A great example is Todd Bertuzzi, who had a career high of 50 points at the age of 25, but by the time he was 28 he had posted seasons of 85 and 97 points. Full Story…

A late rally came up short as Saint Martin’s lost to Montana State Billings, 55-51, in the first round of the inaugural Great Northwest Athletic Conference women’s basketball tournament on Monday night.

“It was a great atmosphere for a tournament game,” MSUB coach Kevin Woodin said. “It was very exciting to be participating in the playoffs. To win a close game, you can’t ask for much more than that. I thought the game was very competitive and we knew it would be close. It really wasn’t decided until the final seconds.”
Jenny Heringer knocked down a jumper with 17 seconds remaining to blunt a late Saints comeback, and the Yellowjackets advanced to the tournament semifinals at top-seeded Western Washington on Wednesday.

“Heringer’s shot with around 17 seconds left was really big with the shot clock running down,” Woodin said. “I thought our team did a nice job of staying patient on that possession and finding the open player as Jenny hit a big shot.”

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In his first game for the Senators on Saturday night in Toronto, Anderson stopped 47 shots in a 1-0 shootout win.

“Making good first impressions is key —getting out there and having a good start for a home crowd,” Anderson said. “Guys did their job tonight, scored some goals, made some big plays defensively and made my job real easy.”

It helped that the Panthers (25-28-7) weren’t very good. Chris Higgins had their lone goal as they lost for the fourth time in five games.

“That was ugly,” Panthers coach Peter DeBoer said. “Credit to Ottawa, they played hard and did what they had to do to beat us, but we didn’t put up much of a fight.”

Scott Clemmensen finished with 29 saves for Florida, which went into the game eight points behind the Carolina Hurricanes for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot but played like a team that has no playoff future.

“We had a real good week last week, we beat San Jose, beat Tampa in Tampa, played Detroit real tough and then to come in this week and we lose on the Island [to New York on Monday] and lose here with two poor efforts —outscored 10-2 —there’s no excuse for it,” DeBoer said.

“I’m sure the players will say it’s the trade deadline weighing on their mind, but I don’t buy it.”

Panthers defenceman Jack Skille departed midway through the game after he chased the puck into the corner in the Ottawa zone and went down following a hit. He had to be helped off the ice by teammates and DeBoer said he suffered a high ankle sprain to his right leg and “is probably out for a while.”

Ottawa defenceman Erik Karlsson was a late scratch because of an upper-body injury and Chris Neil left in the second with a lower-body injury and did not return. The status of both players will be updated Thursday.

The Senators beat the Nashville Predators 2-1 on the road Dec. 23, then came back from the Christmas break to beat the Penguins.

Since then, Scotiabank Place has not been very hospitable but Ottawa caught an early break when Butler’s pass attempt to Nick Foligno in front of the net went off Panthers defenceman Mike Weaver and past Clemmensen.

Ottawa made it 2-0 early in the second on a power play when Shannon, playing the point, ripped a shot from the top of the faceoff circle.

Anderson gave up his first goal as a Senator at 4:18 mark of the second when Higgins’ shot deflected in off Ottawa defenceman Chris Phillips.

However, Butler restored the two-goal advantage with a nice individual effort, walking out from the corner and firing a wrist shot in over Clemmensen’s shoulder.

“Buttsy’s played great. You can see the chemistry is building, you can see his confidence is building and he’s starting to shoot the puck real well,” said Spezza.

Ottawa added a couple of late goals when Michalek scored on a rebound and Spezza capped a 2-on-1 break by keeping the puck and scoring.

The car slowly gained speed along the country road and Chris Neil pumped his legs as hard as he could in trying to keep up.

His mom was driving. He was just a boy. Now he’s in the Stanley Cup final, and the memories of how he got here will inspire him to be the best he can.

“I don’t think I’d be where I am today if it wasn’t for her,” says the Ottawa Senators forward. “She led the way for me.

“She’d wake me up in the morning and make sure I was out running. She’d have me chase the car or do whatever she had to do to get me to be quicker and faster. Whether it was hockey or baseball, she was dedicated in helping me be the best I could be. I can’t say enough about it.”  Read Full Story…