Saturdays game against the Orioles and Dustin McGowan, w

With the NHL Draft coming up on June 27 and free agency opening on July 1, discussions between NHL general managers are heating up towards a busy off-season. Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Defensive Depth TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting the Toronto Maple Leafs have considerable interest in unrestricted free-agent defenceman Dan Boyle. LeBrun says one source believes Torontos interest is "serious." The Detroit Red Wings and New York Rangers are also interested in the services of the 37-year-old. LeBrun says the New York Islanders still remain an option with the Montreal Canadiens likely out of the running after re-signing Andrei Markov. TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reported on the following issues: Patience is a Virtue Minnesota Wild forward Dany Heatley and former Tampa Bay Lightning forward Ryan Malone may have to be patient in free agency according to Dreger. Dreger says their willingness to take one-year contracts will draw attention from more teams. The Lightning used their second compliance buyout on Malone on Wednesday while Heatley will become an unrestricted free-agent on July 1. Draft Talk Conversation regarding the Florida Panthers first overall pick should heat up Thursday ahead of Fridays NHL Entry Draft. If offers for the top pick dont improve, Florida intends to hold on to it. Canucks Complex Dealings The Vancouver Canucks are still trying to trade Ryan Kesler but this is a complicated negotiation. Its believed Kesler has identified just two teams in the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks. That puts rookie general manager Jim Benning and the management of the Canucks in a tough spot because theyre just negiotioation with the two teams. Maybe its possible that the Canucks try to pull in their horns in an effort to encourage Kelser to expand his list. Blackhawks Hope to Keep the Band Together GM Stan Bowman and the Chicago Blackhawks are very eager to make sure the star component remains intact for a lengthy period of time. Were talking about how the new CBA is going to impact the superstar model of player and certainly Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews qualify as such. No longer is it allowed to frontload and go with that 10, 12 or 15-year mega-deal. Now we know its a maximum of eight years so its not inconceivable that, as long as the salary cap climbs to around $75 million in 2016 that Kane and Toews could come in around $11-12 million each. Iginla and Alfredsson Drawn Together Jarome Iginla and Daniel Alfredsson could have an impact on each others future, depending on whether they both get what they want, which is to sign where they played last year. Iginla wants to stay with the Boston Bruins and theres talk theyre negotiating on both a two-year deal and perhaps a one-year deal maybe very similar to the contract he signed with the Bruins last year with a cap hit of $1.8 million with a bonus structure that deeply impacted the Bruins. If they cant get a deal done in Boston, then the Detroit Red Wings are among the teams that are keenly interested in Iginla as well. The Red Wings also have interest in Alfredsson, who is believed to be coming back but he hasnt made it 100 per cent certain yet. He works on his own timeframe, similar to Teemu Selanne but Im also told hes willing to be flexible. ----------------------------------------- Shopping Around Despite a good conversation between the team and his agent, Paul Stastny plans to test the free-agent market before making a decision on his future. Adrian Dater of the Denver Post spoke with Avalanche executive vice president of hockey operations Joe Sakic, who said Stastny wants to field offers before seeing if his current team will match the amounts. Dater also reports Sakic saying that he isnt put off by Stastnys plan to field offers because hes earned the right to be in that position. Vinny On The Move? Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Flyers general manager Ron Hextall might be willing to move veteran forward Vincent Lecavalier if he agrees to waive his no-trade clause. In the report, Hextall is quoted as saying hes spoken to Lecavaliers agent but would not elaborate further. Carchidis story also talks about Flyers draft prospects and the players they are looking at selecting in the upcoming NHL Draft. Bobby Smith Jersey . -- Andy Dorman and Kelyn Rowe scored in the second half to lead the New England Revolution to a 2-1 victory over Sporting Kansas City in the first leg of their Eastern Conference semifinals series on Saturday night. Brett Hull Jersey .com) - Rakeem Christmas scored 21 points, B. http://www.thedallasstarshockey.com/alexander-radulov-hockey-jersey/ .Y. Islanders 4Winnipeg 5 Dallas 2Nashville 3 Colorado 0San Jose 5 Edmonton 2---AHLProvidence 5 St. Johns 4 (OT)Chicago 6 San Antonio 2---NBACleveland 105 Toronto 101Portland 98 Detroit 86New Orleans 104 New York 93Oklahoma City 114 Milwaukee 101Memphis 114 Dallas 105Miami 103 Phoenix 97Utah 100 San Antonio 96L. Ben Bishop Jersey . Despite Arsenals financial firepower, the 31-year-old midfielder was the only arrival in the January transfer window. Signed until the end of the season as injury cover, Kallstrom might not be fit until mid-March after arriving Friday at Arsenal having injured his back earlier in the week while training with Spartak Moscow. Jon Casey Jersey . -- Jack Del Rio only wanted to talk about the Cowboys, not the Trojans.BALTIMORE – Theres something about the pitching mound at Oriole Park. After losing Brett Cecil to groin tightness on Friday, the Blue Jays watched as R.A. Dickey removed himself from the game in the seventh inning on Saturday with the same problem. Dickey insisted the decision to excuse himself was as much preventative as anything else but the sight of the knuckleballer trudging off the field cast a further pall on a 3-2 loss to the Orioles. "I didnt want to jeopardize my next start," said Dickey. "I was probably out of the game after that next batter anyway so I decided it was probably in everybodys best interest to call it a day." The Blue Jays conclude their four-game set in Baltimore on Sunday and have an off-day on Monday before opening up a three-game series in New York. Dickey isnt scheduled to work again until Saturday in Cincinnati and hes hopeful the extra day will provide enough time for a full recovery. He saw a doctor after leaving the game and the diagnosis left Dickey feeling optimistic. He admitted, however, that he has never had a groin injury and therefore had no comparable to assess the degree of the problem. Meantime, Adam Lind fouled a pitch off the top of his right foot in the sixth inning. He finished the at-bat against Orioles starter Bud Norris, grounding out, and didnt return when his designated hitters spot came up again in the eighth. Dioner Navarro took his place. X-rays were negative, its a bone bruise, but Lind was noticeably hobbling after the game. "You can see the seams," said Lind of the bruise. "I didnt have a shin guard on or a foot guard so Ill be wearing one in the near future," said Lind. "I hit it pretty good. I hit it right on the sweet spot so it wasnt a soft liner off my foot. It was a pretty good one." Lind will ice the injury on Saturday night and didnt rule out playing on Sunday, although to the observer that would seem unlikely. Offensive Struggles Torontos offensive slump continued on Saturday. While the Jays got nine hits off five Orioles pitchers, the club stranded five runners in scoring position on the afternoon. Jose Bautista was thrown out at home trying to score from first base on Edwin Encarnacions one-out double in the eighth. Baltimore led 3-1 at the time. Chalk it up to a bad send by third base coach Luis Rivera, who was overaggressive in waving Bautista around, perhaps because everyone is pressing to try to generate runs. Toronto has lost six of eight games heading into Sundays series finale with the Orioles. At the time of this publishing, the Yankees were three games back of the Jays for top spot in the AL East (pending the result of their game on Saturday night in Oakland). Baltimore, in third place, closed the gap to three-and-a-half games. Left-hander J.A. Happ gets the Sunday start. The Orioles counter with right-hander Chris Tillman. McGowans First Save Dustin McGowan pitched the final inning and two-thirds of Friday nights 4-0 Blue Jays win over the Orioles, notching his first career big league save. He didnt know of his milestone, however, until after the game when Jose Bautista presented him with the baseball. The Jays led 4-0 in the eighth when McGowan replaced Brrett Cecil, who went down with a groin injury.ddddddddddddThe Orioles had two runners on, meaning the tying run was in the on deck circle, qualifying McGowan for the save. "I usually do," said McGowan when told he didnt know the rules for a save. "When I came in, I was just focused on getting the batter out." McGowans first pitch came in a 1-2 count to Baltimore slugger Chris Davis. Davis, like probably most in the ballpark, was expecting a fastball. What he got was a changeup on the outer half of the plate with plenty of movement. He flailed and struck out. "Yeah it was a good pitch," said McGowan. "It was the best pitch I could throw in that situation and luckily it worked out." McGowan had never had a save. Had he had a one-pitch strikeout before? "I dont think Ive ever had one of those either," said McGowan. "Probably the last one of those I get, too." Whats clear in his tone of voice and in his body language is McGowans at peace with his permanent move to the bullpen. He thrived in the role last season and in 11 relief appearances this year, McGowans allowed one earned run in 13 1/3 innings (0.68 ERA) while striking out eight and walking only one. Manager John Gibbons has said repeatedly he believes the life of a short man will lengthen McGowans career. "I think hes right," said McGowan. "Im recovering a lot better out of the bullpen and Im not throwing 100 pitches, which makes it a lot easier." The role suits McGowans personality, too. Hell throw his fastball at 95 miles per hour without worry. "Thats one thing you can do out of the bullpen. You can let it go," said McGowan. "When I was starting, I had to reserve some in the tank. Its fun letting it go, too. Its how Ive always been so it kind of works out good for me." Jays Fast-track Santos Return A day after manager John Gibbons indicated Sergio Santos would remain with Double-A New Hampshire for a third rehabilitation appearance, Santos was back with the Blue Jays on Saturday. The reason: Brett Cecil has a groin injury and while he hasnt been placed on the disabled list, Cecil wasnt available for Saturdays game against the Orioles and Dustin McGowan, who threw 1 2/3 innings on Friday evening, was available in a limited role. Outfielder Darin Mastroianni was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo to make roster space for Santos. Cecil was feeling better on Saturday but wasnt sure whether he would require a trip to the disabled list. Manager John Gibbons cant have a short bench and a short bullpen at the same time so a decision will have to be made soon. "A couple of days," said Gibbons. "Were short on our roster too with a position player." Mastroianni and Kevin Pillar, both right-handed hitting outfielders, are inside the 10-day option window, meaning neither can return to the Blue Jays unless they replace a player whos gone on the disabled list. Pillar was part of a centerfield platoon with left-handed hitting Anthony Gose in the absence of Colby Rasmus. The absence of a dedicated fourth outfielder means Gibbons would turn to Steve Tolleson to take an outfield spot in the event a late-game replacement is needed. ' ' '