NEWS AND NOTES FOR JULY 29th

JULY 29th: NEWS & NOTES

Ray Emery Invited to Blackhawks Camp

Patty B: This is very interesting, and I was not expecting the Blackhawks to be a team interested in Emery. I really believed that Alex Salak would be a good back-up for Chicago and if Emery ends up making the team (which he will probably do), Salak will be pushed down to the AHL.

The Avalanche Signed 1st Round Draft Picks, Gabriel Landeskog and Duncan Siemens

Patty B: Landeskog was arguably the most NHL ready of all 2011 draftees so his signing was unsurprising and I expect him to make the Avs out of camp. Siemens getting signed is a tad bit surprising, but I still expect him to be returned to his Junior club once the season starts.

Canucks Re-Sign Jannik Hansen To A 3 Year Deal Which Will Pay Him $1.35 Million Per Season

Patty B: The 25 year old, Jannik Hansen, has developed into a talented depth winger who puts up a respectable amount of points while being very solid defensively. The Canucks were able to get him locked up for the near-future at a very reasonable salary of $1,350,000 per season.

Freddy Sjostrom Signed With Färjestad of the Swedish Elite League

Patty B: Sjostrom has been a very good NHL'er and one of the better bottom-six guys out there, which makes this even more surprising. I really thought, he would be able to find a home in the NHL, but it looks like he couldn't and will now be playing overseas.

Alexei Kovalev Has Signed In The KHL

Patty B: No surprise here really, his game has not been NHL caliber for awhile, but should transfer over to the KHL really well. This is the end to a very good NHL career, as I don't believe he will be returning.