Articles by Doug Stolhand

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Marian Gaborik’s long recovery from hip surgery got a little bit shorter on Monday when he returned to the Twin Cities to get ready to rejoin the Minnesota Wild.

OTTAWA – The Ottawa Senators are in unfamiliar territory ahead of Wednesday’s NHL trade deadline.Instead of trying to add pieces with an eye on the post-season picture, Senators general manager Bryan Murray goes into deadline day with a willingness to unload players who don’t figure into next season’s plan.

BROSSARD, Que. – If the Montreal Canadiens have another deal to make before the NHL trading deadline, the one who would be least surprised to move is veteran Mathieu Dandenault.

The Atlanta Thrashers have traded defenceman Niclas Havelid and forward Myles Stoesz to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for blueliner Anssi Salmela.

MONTREAL – Forward Andrew Conboy, suspended by Michigan State University this season for an attack on a Michigan player, has signed a three-year contract with the Montreal Canadiens.

NEW YORK – Mark Bell is headed back to the American Hockey League.The New York Rangers have assigned the 28-year-old forward to Hartford. Bell was claimed off waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs last Wednesday and didn’t appear in a game for the Rangers.

TORONTO – Dallas Stars forward Steve Ott has received a one-game suspension for gouging Anaheim’s Travis Moen in the eye during a game over the weekend.

RALEIGH, N.C. – The Carolina Hurricanes will be without Jussi Jokinen because the forward has returned to Finland following the death of his father.

WASHINGTON – Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau saw a troubling trend: His team took too many penalties, and didn’t play well when it was a man short.

Scoring summaries from Sunday’s NHL games:Lightning 8 at Flames 6First Period1. Tampa Bay, Artyukhin 5 11:072. Calgary, Iginla 25 (Moss, Cammalleri) 15:44 (pp)Penalties – Krajicek TB (interference) 14:36, Phaneuf Cal (holding) 17:24.

Movements in the world of hockey:National Hockey LeagueNHL-Suspended Dallas F Steve Ott indefinitely for receiving a match penalty for intent to injure at the end of Saturday’s game against Anaheim.

CALGARY – Vincent Lecavalier scored twice and added an assist Sunday night to lead the Tampa Bay Lightning a wild 8-6 victory over the Calgary Flames.

VANCOUVER, B.C. – Ryan Kesler scored the winner and Roberto Luongo made 19 saves as the Vancouver Canucks gave themselves some breathing room in the tight Western Conference playoff race with a 3-1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday.

CLEVELAND – Cedrick Desjardins made 40 saves as the Hamilton Bulldogs beat the Lake Erie Monsters 3-1 in AHL play Sunday.Steve Gainey, Yanick Lehoux and Brock Trotter scored for the Bulldogs who improved to 36-23-2-0.

WASHINGTON – The Florida Panthers were preparing to face Alex Ovechkin and the rest of the Washington Capitals when their pre-game video session was cut short less than halfway through because the visitors’ projector broke.

TORONTO – Anton Stralman and Andre Deveaux each scored two goals for the Marlies, but the Grand Rapids Griffins hung on in a back-and-forth affair to edge Toronto 5-4 in AHL play Sunday.

DALLAS – NHL scoring leader Evgeni Malkin had a goal and two assists while Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 20 shots as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Dallas Stars 4-1 on Sunday, their third straight win without captain Sidney Crosby.

CHICAGO – Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith and Dustin Byfuglien scored in the first period, and Antti Niemi made 22 saves in his first NHL start to give the Chicago Blackhawks a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday.

NEWARK, N.J. – Martin Brodeur earned his 100th NHL regular-season shutout with a 27-save effort, and the New Jersey Devils extended their lead in the Atlantic Division with a 3-0 victory over the second-place Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday.