Truth & Rumors > NHL

08:27 AM ET 05.23 | Dave Tippett, probably wisely, chose not to elaborate on his thoughts of the officiating after Phoenix bowed, but that doesn't mean the Coyotes were happy. One hit that was a hot topic after the game was Dustin Brown's hit on Michal Rozsival in overtime. "Rozsival was cutting to the middle, and I cut across and made contact," Brown said. "Obviously, they thought it was a kneeing. It happened at high speed. I felt like I got him with my shoulder and my left side and his right side all made contact from toe to shoulder." Coyotes players thought the hit came after the whistle. "If Raffi Torres gets 25 games for his hit during the play, then this guy (Brown) ought to be done forever," Smith said.

The Arizona Republic

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08:26 AM ET 05.23 | From one hard-nosed former Cap to another? "Any time you get an opportunity to be a head coach, you're interested," [Philadelphia Flyers assistant Craig Berube] told CSNWashington.com on Tuesday. "My situation is good here. No one has contacted me about it. We'll see what happens." Berube, 46, and Hunter, 51, played together with the Capitals from 1993-99 and remain good friends. ... Berube is believed to have one more year remaining on his contract with the Flyers. He played two seasons under Capitals general manager George McPhee from 1997-99, but said he has not spoken with the McPhee and is unaware of the Capitals' timeline on hiring a coach.

CSN Washington

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08:26 AM ET 05.23 | Just how badly Tomas Holmstrom wants to play could complicate Detroit's offseason. If Holmstrom says he's done with professional hockey, well, that's that. If Holmstrom says he wants to play on, the Wings will have some hard thinking to do. ... It's been nearly a month since the Wings cleaned out their lockers. At that time, Holmstrom said himself how hard it is to be effective as a fourth-line player and power play specialist; Babcock, on the same day, stated just as clearly that's that what Holmstrom is now. Holmstrom may well decide that four Stanley Cups and a thousand NHL games is enough. But if he wants more, the Wings have a tough decision on their hands.

Detroit Free Press

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08:28 AM ET 05.23 | Given that Tomas Vokoun is likely a goner, it would seem 22-year-old Braden Holtby and 24-year-old Michal Neuvirth are set to share net duties in 2012-13. Both Holtby and Neuvirth -- who are under contract for the 2012-13 season at the bargain rate of a $1.75 million combined salary cap hit and combined salary of $1,787,777 -- said they will be prepared for a competitive situation next year. ... Said Neuvirth: "You've got 82 games and anything can happen. Look at Holtsy, you know. He was in Hershey whole time and now he was starting goalie for us. So you never know. Gonna go home, work hard and be ready for training camp. I know I can be the number one in this league. That's my goal. I will do whatever it takes to be the man."

The Washington Post

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08:25 AM ET 05.23 | At only 20, Vladimir Tarasenko may be the rare young player to crack an NHL lineup. Tarasenko has the raw talent to play in the NHL now. But to me it's premature to pencil him in among the top-six forwards and let him go. While the Blues aren't planning for Tarasenko to spend time in the minors, he will face a steep transition and how he handles that will determine his role and ice time. Some of the Blues' young skilled players are still searching for their game after three or four years in the league. I would expect a similar timetable for Tarasenko. But there's no doubt he's a promising player and perhaps he could speed up the process by arriving this summer and going to work.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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