ESPN.com reports that the Edmonton Oilers have decided to let Tom Renney go following two losing seasons.

The team announced on its Twitter feed Thursday that it decided not to renew Renney’s contract.

Renney joined the team for the 2010-11 season and finished with an NHL-worst 25-45-12 record. The team improved to 32-40-10 this season, good for second-worst in the league.

The Vancouver Canucks should have Alain Vigneault locked in with a contract extension in the very near future.

Jason Botchford of The Province reports General Manager Mike Gillis plans to bring back the head coach after some so-called “insignificant” internal debate. TSN’s Bob McKenzie expects Vigneault’s extension with the Canucks “to be worked on and presumably completed in the next two weeks.”

Montreal Canadiens General Manager Marc Bergevin will do his best to sign Carey Price to a new contract, the Montreal Gazette reports.

Although the young netminder is approaching the end of a two-year, $5.5 million contract with the Canadiens, he does not seem concerned that in six weeks he could stand without a deal as a restricted free agent.

Bergevin has made it clear during his May 2 introduction as the Canadiens new General Manager that signing Price and defenseman P.K. Subban were top priorities, along with finding the club its new head coach.

The Gazette claims Price’s Edmonton-based agent, Gerry Johannson, has held a couple of cordial talks with Bergevin, and is optimistic serious discussions will begin in due course.

Click Here to Continue Reading »

Quick Hits from around the NHL:

• The Pittsburgh Penguins still has the option of simply holding on to Jordan Staal. And as General Manager Ray Shero tells the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, that’s not as far-fetched as some might think. ”I’d like to do that, if possible,” he said. “We’re looking at hopefully getting extensions with Sidney Crosby and Staal.”
• The Tampa Tribune reports the Tampa Bay Lightning are interested in bringing Riku Helenius back to North America. The first-round pick of the Lightning in the 2006 draft has played two seasons in the Swedish Elite League and one year in the Finnish Elite League since leaving to play overseas.
• Arizona Republic/Phoenix Gazette reports that Shane Doan won’t be disciplined by the NHL for his boarding major in Tuesday’s Game 2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings.

Phoenix Coyotes forward Martin Hanzal has been suspended for one game for boarding Los Angeles Kings forward Dustin Brown during Game 2 of the teams’ Western Conference Final playoff series Tuesday in Phoenix, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced today.

The incident occurred at 11:01 of the third period. Hanzal was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct for boarding.

The Washington Post reports that  unrestricted free agent Dennis Wideman is open to returning to the Washington Capitals next season.

It was not a surprise that the league filed the collective bargaining agreement notice of termination to the NHLPA.  There was some speculation that with the league might want to capitalize on the upswing in interest in the NHL in the United States and avoid a lockout at least in the short term. Fueled by the participation of large-market teams, viewership is reaching record numbers for NBC and the NBC Sports Network.

Article III of the agreement provided a slim hope a lockout could be avoided, as it was when the NHLPA elected to extend the agreement by one year. The article states that the CBA, “shall remain in effect from year to year (after it expires) unless and until either party shall deliver to the other a written notice of termination of the agreement at least 120 days prior to September 15, 2011 or not less than a like period in any year thereafter.”

Which means that if neither side had filed a termination notice before Friday, the agreement automatically would have rolled over for another year. But that will not be the case since the league has already notified the players it intends to terminate the agreement. The players had the same option, but there was little chance the NHLPA would have filed to terminate an agreement that has been largely favorable to them.

Click Here to Continue Reading »

CSNWashington’s Chuck Gormley, suggests a short list of candidates to replace Dale Hunter as the Washington Capitals head coach. The list includes Ron Wilson, Paul Maurice, Flyers assistant Craig Berube, Devils assistant Adam Oates, Marc French of the AHL Hershey Bears, and John Hynes of the Penguins’ farm team.

The Washington Post suggests Michel Therrien, Marc Crawford, Mike Keenan, Jacques Martin, and Jon Cooper (AHL Norfolk Admirals) also belong on the list of potential candidates.