Wanted: 1 Goalie Coach and a VCR

Just cleaning up around the Lounge.

***The Ottawa Senators went to work this morning minus a goaltending coach. Eli Wilson took the fall for the shortcomings in the Senators' net; things did not go all that well Tuesday night in Atlanta, where the Thrashers put six goals on the board in a 6-1 victory over the Senators. And to lighten up the mood a bit, the Senators took to the ice at Lasker Rink on the north end of Central Park in New York. According to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun, the day included some dodgeball and some European handball. The Senators face the Rangers at the Garden on Thursday.

***A moment of silence, please, for the old VCR in the Lounge. The VCR, which I purchased in 1992 for the sole purpose of recording hockey, is being retired. It refuses to give me back the tape of the Devils/Rangers game from Tuesday night. Some fine games were recorded by the old box. The remote and I became a team as I consumed up the four games a night, three on tape. But last night's game of keep-away meant it was time for a change.

***The Canucks/Wild and the Bruins/Ducks are the live games on the Lounge TV tonight. Capitals/Panthers will be on Web radio as will the Penguins/Flames. The testing of the three VCRs I have in reserve begins Thursday. (That is unless I coax that Devils/Rangers tape out of the old reliable.)

***Still looking for suggestions to stock the jukebox. If you have some good tunes in mind, go down to the bottom of this post and offer them up in the comments section after the scoreboard.

***Afternoon update. Ilya Kovalchuk tells the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he remains upbeat about his contract talks with the Thrashers and that he remains confident that a deal will get done. I guess I'd also be confident if I were certain that big truckload of cash was about to be dropped on my doorstep. Still, you have to wonder what the Thrashers could get in trade for their star player at this late date. The Dany Heatley trade, to Ottawa for Marian Hossa, didn't work out too well. Well, it didn't leave the team with a lasting star presence, which had to be in the mind of General Manager Don Waddell when he made the move. What would you ask for Kovalchuk and which team would you start talking to first?

THE SCOREBOARD
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Carolina 4, at Toronto 2
At N.Y. Islanders 6, Detroit 0
New Jersey 1, at N.Y. Rangers 0 SO
At Philadelphia 6, Dallas 3
At Atlanta 6, Ottawa 1
At Tampa Bay 7, Washington 4
At St. Louis 4, Columbus 1
Nashville 5, at Edmonton 3
San Jose 3, at Phoenix 1
The standings are here.
Recap by Sportsnet.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Lowell 2, at Portland 1
At Texas 2, San Antonio 0
Manitoba 4, at Abbotsford 3 OT
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Wheeling 5, at Cincinnati 3
At Victoria 5, Las Vegas 3
The standings are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Victoriaville 7, at Val-d'Or 1
At Gatineau 4, Rimouski 3
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Moose Jaw 2, Brandon 0
At Prince Albert 8, Calgary 1
At Saskatoon 3, Swift Current 2
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Sioux City 8, at Lincoln 2
The standings are here.