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Enn-Swiss

September 21, 2012, 7:46 AM ET [27 Comments]
GARTH'S CORNER
NHL news by Garth • RSSArchiveCONTACT
For the second time this week, a Sabres player has agreed to a contract to play overseas in an elite hockey league.

Tyler Ennis signed Friday morning to play alongside his boyhood best friend, a fellow Edmontonian, Jared Spurgeon of the Minnesota Wild. They will play for SCL Tigers.



Ennis will turn 23 on Octiber 6.


Here's the translated press release from SCL:


Tyler Ennis and Jared Spurgeon to the SCL Tigers
The SCL Tigers committed during the NHL lockout the Forward Tyler Ennis (Buffalo Sabres) and defender Jared Spurgeon (Minnesota Wild)

The two 23-year-old Canadian Tyler Ennis and Jared Spurgeon are just a few houses away from each other grew up together in Edmonton and have their Junior spent time in the same club. They look forward, therefore the fact that their paths will cross in Langnau again.

The 175cm wide and 75kg heavy wing / center and link shooter Tyler Ennis, who won in 2009 with the Canadian U20 national team the gold medal, has been one of the season 2010/11 for Master squad of the Buffalo Sabres. The 175cm and 84kg heavy right shooter Jared Spurgeon made ​​his debut 2010/11 with the Minnesota Wild in the NHL and was promoted in the last season to root defender.

The Tigers' commitment Tyler Ennis and Jared Spurgeon was by an extraordinary financial support of individuals and companies from the environment SCL Tigers permits. The two Canadians will arrive during the course of the next few days in Langnau. When they are first to be used is yet to be determined.



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On Thursday, former teammates Marty Biron and Jochen Hecht joined the fray, while Jay McKee ran the line drills. Is this 2004-05 again?

Welcome to the lockout. For those asking, the answer is YES, Thomas Vanek is still in Buffalo. He’s skating with the boys, keeping in shape, busting chops, and getting in a good sweat. Vanek has been following this routine religiously for the past two and a half weeks. However, he told me today that he has bit of a conflict going on right now. Unlike the lockout of 2004-05, Vanek is a married man, with three kids at home right now. His decisions are mostly about plurality than singularity.

Vanek told me that he has determined a personal deadline for when he will make a move back to Austria to play hockey during the lockout.

“Again, it would be easier if it was just my wife and I. I would have been there (Austria) already, but I have a five year old who just started kindergarten here, and he lays hockey here. You know, I’ve got twin boys , they’re at a tough age, too. But, at the same time this (hockey) is what I do. If I go, Austria is probably 90% the only option”.

I asked Vanek if he was interested in playing for the Austria National Team.

“Well, no. Just in general. Go play for a team. That’s about it. I’m going to stick around here (Buffalo) for a little bit. Right now, my deadline is the end of September. That might change by the end of September.”.

Vanek is taking it day by day. He told me that he and his Sabres team would rather be playing NHL hockey, however, the lockout has turned the attention to what other options exist for he and his mates overseas. There are 19-21 regular attendees to the daily skates in suburban Buffalo. The dynamics will change in the next week.

“Its hard. Its hard for every guy, you know? We’ve got a good skate right now, but next week we’re going to lose half the guys (Amerks camp open on 9/28), and then, it slowly trickles…. One guy goes here, one guy goes there, two guys will go home. Then, you might as well not skate”.

Vanek is not committing to any opportunities in Austria right now. I’ll ask him again next week after the Rochester Americans open the doors to their camp and when Hodgson, Foligno, Adam, Girgensons, Tropp, McNabb, Brennan, Leggio, Knapp, Lieuwen, and the other prospects E-Z Pass their way down the I-90 to begin their respective seasons.

Vanek will know when its time to fly.

“I think it would be a great experience for my whole family. It wouldn’t be just picking up and leaving for vacation. This could be 2. 3 months. I’m used to the lifestyle , and my wife has been there, the kids have been there, too”.

One day at a time.


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I also spoke with Tyler Myers, who has been doing weight room workouts and off ice workouts this week. He told me that he is considering a couple of offers to play overseas. Nothing definite yer. He and his agent are reviewing the opportunities. Myers says he may just go home to Kelowna to workout there after the Amerks camp opens next week.


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James Mirtle of they Globe and Mail recently caught up to Ryan Miller, who is living and training in LA during the lockout.

Miller's dislike for Gary Bettman hasn't subsided in the past week. In fact, it seems to have intensified:


“I think the anger and frustration comes from knowing what the owners are capable of under the guidance of Gary Bettman,” Miller said in an e-mail. “They are willing to let a season burn as shown in 2004-05, and it is a path that they are comfortable taking as their choice form of negotiating.

“This is the third time and no matter how the NHL spins it, the same story is being told. They claim teams are struggling financially and player salary restriction is the only way to address the inevitable disasters. It is hard to trust the owners when it is the same story after years of documented growth and increasing revenue.”

The players insist they realize some teams are losing money, and that’s why they’ve proposed to increase revenue sharing from $150-million to $260-million for next season.

(The league has offered to raise it to $190-million, which is why Bettman says they’re not far apart on the issue.)



Here's the rest of the story here:


http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/globe-on-hockey/ryan-miller-it-is-hard-to-trust-the-owners/article4557473/
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Ladies and Gentlemen, please give it up for #32 Alex Ovechin and #71 Geno Malkin.

Two NHL superstars made their KHL debuts on Thursday night.




Ovechin could only muster one assist in garbage tome of Moscow Dynamo's blowout win over Dynamo Minsk.


Geno Malkin notched an assist in Magnitogosk's 4-3 loss to Salavat Yulaev.Fast forward to the 1:18 mark to watch Malkin get smoked by a text book, olde school hip check. Nice body work.

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