12/2 Notes

PHOTOS BY KIRTHMON F. DOZIER/DFP

... Above are two pictures from the Detroit Free Press showing Steve Yzerman practicing at Troy Sports Center yesterday in his visor. It's a lot darker than I'd imagined, so much so that, apparently, long-time teammate Kris Draper did not recognize him at first. ... Speaking of Draper, he isn't going to Europe to play any more. He's gotten too caught up in being a family man to disrupt the family's life for three months or so. ... Nick Lidstrom also was planning on headed overseas next calender year. Apparently, though, he and his wife are now worried about uprooting their two young sons like that. ... Manny Legace won't go to Europe either. He's watching his pennies now and eating out less. Apparently, his $1.3 million contract won't be enough to sustain him were he to play for less overseas. (via. Freep) ... I'll be going to the charity game tonight and I'll be wearing my Steve Yzerman jersey, like most of the other people there, I imagine. ... The NHLPA's website isn't completely useless after all! Check out their "NHLPA Members in Europe" page. It's a portal to English-language stats sites for each country's leagues. They also have some concise game reports published on the NHLPA site itself. Should be a good resource for webmasters who are trying to find material to publish (like Brian and I) as well as fans trying to keep track of their favorite players (also like Brian and I). They also re-designed the site so it looks a lot better. ... Thanks to Brian for giving me those above links. I hope I didn't steal your thunder by using them as my own. Sorry. This next one I found myself. ... Well, something's finally happened today with regard to negotiations. The NHLPA invited the NHL to meet next Thursday, December 9th, and the League accepted. It'll be the first time since September 9th that the two sides have met in any official capacity. The players apparently are working on a new proposal and will offer it in the meeting. The NHL will probably turn it down flat but at least something's happening. Maybe there is hope after all, though I wouldn't hold my breath.