Lots of news to get through this morning, but here’s our brief congratulations to Steve Dangle for getting hired full-time by Rogers Sportsnet this week. Dangle’s become one of the bigger faces in the non-mainstream hockey media and I’m excited to see what he does next. Anyways, hockey news time!
**If you needed another reason to tune into Colbert Report on Thursday night, Jim Cornelison will be singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” on the show as part of its celebration of the anthem’s 200th anniversary (NBC Chicago)
**NHL.com rates Teuvo Teravainen as the No. 5 prospect in hockey as part of its new Top 60 prospects list. Defenseman Adam Clendening also makes the cut at No. 56. (Second City Hockey)
**Sam Fels answers some questions, including one on the hiring of Kevin Dineen to the coaching staff. It’ll be interesting to see how he impacts a team with minimal roster turnover. (The Committed Indian)
**Longtime veteran Saku Koivu announced his official retirement from the NHL after 18 seasons. He never won a Stanley Cup, but the longtime captain of the Montreal Canadiens finished with 40-plus points in 13 different seasons. (NHLPA)
**We already knew, but the NHL announced Nationals Park as the host of the 2015 Winter Classic on Tuesday (Pro Hockey Talk)
**Ryan Johansen and the Blue Jackets plan to continue talks on a new deal this weekend. They probably need to finish this soon: “If Johansen, a restricted free agent, isn’t signed by next Wednesday, he will be asked to vacate his space in the Blue Jackets’ dressing room at Nationwide Arena and to stay away from the building.” Is that bad? That sounds bad. (Columbus Dispatch)
**The Anaheim Ducks have extended the contract of coach Bruce Boudreau through the 2016-17 season. His previous deal was set to expire at the end of 2014-15. (Ducks)
**Greg Wyshynski looks at a dozen great things about hockey video games, including the introduction of Be a Pro mode and commercials involving Phil Hartman (Puck Daddy)
**Here’s the review of NHL 15 from IGN, which is titled “Empty Net” but still gives the game a 7/10. I *love* the gameplay on PS4 but it’s hard to really be thrilled with the game until Online Team Play is patched in next month. After some updates and a price drop or two, it’ll be worth adding in my opinion. (IGN)
**Does Jarome Iginla have another 30-goal season left in the tank? (SB Nation)
**The Bruins could be forced to deal Johnny Boychuk, but the defenseman is hoping to stay in Boston (Pro Hockey Talk)
**P.K. Subban thinks he would “embrace” the chance to take over as captain of the Canadiens. The superstar defenseman is certainly a reasonable choice for the role. (NHL.com)
**A look back at Bob Suter’s impact on hockey in the United States (SB Nation)
**Pavel Daystuk says his knee is no longer bothering him, which would be a change of pace for the Red Wings after an injury-filled 2013-14 (Red Wings)
**Vincent Lecavalier could be moving to the wing in Philadelphia. “I guess we’ll see what happens the first day of training camp.” (Pro Hockey Talk)
**If you’re capable of helping, here’s one way to contribute to a good cause (The Committed Indian)