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VANCOUVER – Missing the NHL playoffs is unacceptable but Dave Nonis says the Vancouver Canucks are closer to becoming a Stanley Cup contender than they were a year ago.

OTTAWA – Underachieving and undermanned, the Ottawa Senators admit they look like an easy target for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

WASHINGTON – It’s an hour after his team’s final regular-season game ends in victory, clinching his first NHL playoff berth, and Alex Ovechkin grabs one of the red T-shirts commemorating the Washington Capitals’ surprising Southeast Division title.

The NHL hasn’t had a repeat Stanley Cup champion since the Detroit Red Wings won their second straight league title 10 years ago.But don’t even think about pointing that out to the Anaheim Ducks.

Young talents from Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby to Evgeni Malkin and Carey Price are in the spotlight as the NHL Eastern Conference playoffs get set to begin.

Pat Burns is back where he belongs.Cancer has kept him from coaching since 2004 but he’s finally feeling healthy enough to step behind the bench again.

DALLAS – The Dallas Stars recalled goaltender Tobias Stephan from Iowa of the American Hockey League on Monday.They made roster room by assigning right-winger Konstantin Pushkarev to the AHL club.

TORONTO – Cliff Fletcher is assuring long-suffering Toronto Maple Leafs fans that better times beckon.”The message is simple,” says the interim general manager.

VANCOUVER – It was almost like the end of a Stanley Cup playoff series as players lined up to shake hands.But Trevor Linden was the only Vancouver Canuck who went through the entire lineup of the Calgary Flames after a 7-1 loss Saturday night.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Now the real season starts for the Anaheim Ducks, attempting to become the first team since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998 to win consecutive Stanley Cup championships.

VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks wasted little time putting a highly disappointing NHL season behind them Sunday as players cleaned out their lockers.

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Goalie Ryan Miller and play-making forward Jason Pominville won’t be going anywhere any time soon if the Buffalo Sabres have their way.

The Ottawa Senators get Sid The Kid – again – while the Calgary Flames will face the hottest team in the Western Conference when the NHL playoffs open this week.

NEWARK, N.J. – With the final seconds ticking off the clock in regulation, the New Jersey Devils stood on the bench and started congratulating one another.

DENVER – The regular-season finale between Colorado and Minnesota was relatively tame. That won’t be the case when the teams meet again later this week.

PHILADELPHIA – Martin Biron is going to have a difficult time protecting his shutout streak against Washington and NHL points leader Alex Ovechkin in the post-season.

DALLAS – Stars defenceman Mattias Norstrom doesn’t mind rough-and-tumble games, especially when he scores the winning goal.Norstrom’s rare goal put his team ahead for good late in the second period as the Dallas Stars rallied to beat the San Jose Sharks 4-2 on Sunday in a physical regular-season finale that included 160 penalty minutes, 95 for the Sharks.

The book closed on the NHL’s 2007-08 regular season Sunday and Alexander Ovechkin fills the pages from cover to back.”He’s a one-of-a-kind young man,” Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis told The Canadian Press on Sunday.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Keith Tkachuk took the shot from beyond centre ice toward an empty net. One “lucky bounce” later, his entire team was swarming him.

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings can now concentrate on the Stanley Cup Playoffs.Nicklas Lidstrom scored twice to lift Detroit to a 4-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday, the final day of the regular season.