Empty Netter Assists - 01-10-12

Penguins

-In case you haven't heard, the Penguins are dealing with a few injuries.

-Welcome back Arron Asham... and Dustin Jeffrey (above)?

-Dan Bylsma speaks:

-Eric Tangradi speaks:

-Asham speaks:

-Debunking a few misconceptions about Sidney Crosby and the salary cap. (PG+)

-The Penguins' Jan. 22 home game against the Capitals has been moved to a 12:30 p.m. start.

-A potential development across the street from Consol Energy Center fell through.

-Happy 45th birthday to former Penguins defenseman Jeff Serowik. A free agent signing early in 1998-99, Serowik's Penguins career amounted to 26 games and six assists that season. A head injury midway through that season brought an end to his career. He currently operates hockey camps throughout the United States.

Atlantic Division

-Is Devils forward Adam Henrique a candidate for the Calder Trophy?

-The Islanders recalled goaltender Kevin Poulin from Bridgeport to fthe AHL and demoted goaltender Anders Nilsson to Bridgeport.

-London, Ont. native Christopher Morehouse was fined $200 (Canadian) over an incident where he was charged with throwing a banana at Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds during a preseason game.

Northeast Division

-Bruins forward Brad Marchand was suspended five games by the NHL for a low hit which caused Canucks defenseman Sami Salo to suffer a concussion Saturday:

{youtube width="465" height="266"}05-O-uRuKyY{/youtube}

-Marchand responded with a blog post for ESPN in which he claimed he did not clip Salo and accused NHL officials of not knowing the rules.

-EN Says: Marchand deserved a suspension. He's a dirty player with a history. He had nothing to gain from a hockey sense with this type of hit. The puck was loose, neither player had possession of it. Instead of pursuing the hit, Marchand chose to hit him low. When you add in the obvious history between the Bruins and Canucks, Marchand's intent seems pretty obvious. If there is anyone who is naive enough to give Marchand the benefit of the doubt, we have a Nigerian banker you need to get a hold of.

Southeast Division

-A goal and an assist from Marcel Goc led the Panthers to a 2-1 win against the Canucks. Scott Clemmensen made 26 saves in the victory.

-Defensive Play of the Night: Florida's Brian Campbell with a poke check on Vancouver's Alex Burrows:

-Intense Photo of the Night: Florida's Tomas Fleischmann leading a rush up ice:

-Panthers goaltender Jakob Markstrom is dealing with a knee injury.

-Florida recalled goaltender Brian Foster from San Antonio of the AHL.

Central Division

-The Blue Jackets fired head coach Scott Arniel and replaced him on an interim basis with former Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins coach Todd Richards. Arniel had a 45-60-18 record in a season and a half with Columbus.

-With forward Patrick Sharp sidelined three to four weeks due to an "upper-body" injury, the Blackhawks recalled forward Ben Smith from Rockford of the AHL.

-Blues goaltender Jaroslav Halak (right) is expected to play in Montreal tonight for the first time since the Canadiens traded him in the 2010 offseason.

-The Red Wings demoted former Penguins forward Chris Conner to Grand Rapids of the AHL.

-Predators defenseman Shane O'Brien is dealing with a knee injury.

Northwest Division

-With forward Jordan Eberle dealing with a wonky knee, the Oilers recalled forwards Magnus Paajarvi, Ryan O’Marra and Gilbert Brule from Oklahoma City of the AHL.

-Wild forward Matt Cullen is expected to play in his 1,000th career game tonight against the Sharks.

-The Wild recalled forward David McIntyre from Houston of the AHL and demoted defenseman Marco Scandella to Houston.

Pacific Division

-Kyle Clifford and Jack Johnson each had a goal and an assist for the Kings in a 5-2 win against the Capitals. Trent Hunter recorded two assists for Los Angeles while teammate Jonathan Bernier made 20 saves.

-Johnson did a "Tebow" after his goal:

{youtube width="465" height="345"}sd8o7bALKXA{/youtube}

-"The background behind it was that I've got some buddies that flew in from Michigan. And we were watching the [football] game last night and after the game they said, 'If you score, would you Tebow for us?' I said, 'Sure deal.' Then I ended up scoring and I thought, 'I've got to pay up.'" - Johnson on the celebration.

-Washington's Matt Hendricks > Los Angeles' Colin Fraser:

-Washington's Jason Chimera also had issues with Los Angeles' Willie Mitchell:

-Eight on Eight violence. Los Angeles' Drew Doughty versus Washington captain Alex Ovechkin:

-Kings forward Dustin Penner hurt his back... while eating pancakes?

-Ducks forward Jean Francois Jacques was suspended three games for a hit to the head of Blue Jackets forward R.J. Umberger Sunday night:

{youtube width="465" height="266"}Slo2lho4-j4{/youtube}

-Despite having a disciplinary hearing, Anaheim defenseman Francois Beauchemin was not suspended for a hit which caused Blue Jackets forward Jeff Carter to suffer a separated shoulder.

-The hit in question:

{youtube width="465" height="266"}B_SU8kAIo3M{/youtube}

-The Ducks recalled defenseman Kyle Cumiskey from Syracuse of the AHL.

-Stars forward Steve Ott has a bobblehead and it's pretty awesome:

Adams Division

-Boston's Claude Julien and San Jose's Todd McLellan will serve as coaches in the All-Star Lame Game.

-NHLPA head Donald Fehr said the association's decision to block realignment should not impact negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.

(Photos: Jeffrey-Ezra Shaw/Getty Images; Canucks/Panthers-Joel Auerbach/Getty Images; Halak-Dale MacMillan/Getty Images; Capitals/Kings-Bruce Bennett/Getty Images and Chris Carlson/Associated Press)