I get one upped all the time on the blogosphere for quality of posts — be it from guys who I agree with or vehemenently disagree with…

A great example of being one upped is Jes Golbez post over at Hockey Rants about Nikolai Khabibulin. I said in a short piece I’m not crying over Khabby’s loss… Jes goes further - comparing age and stats between Jocelyn Thibult and Khabibulin as well as some other commentary on Bill Wirtz “Throw money at the wall and see what sticks” approach to rebuilding as well as Khabbies strengths and weaknesses.

Jason Kirk at Predator’s Den has had a real tough time during the lockout. Though he received Craig Leopold’s attention through mail after sending the owner and the organization his season ticket resignation, he’s lost his best friend and co-blogger Charlie Tuttle to cancer…

But now the Predators have just come out of nowhere (at least to some people’s perceptions) and signed one of the most dynamic players in pro hockey - Paul Kariya - to a 2 year contract. Jason’s thoughts on the subject are chronicled here but just for the sake of saying it for the third time Jason, Congratulations! It’s one hell of a pickup for the Preds!

“That’s my preference,” he said.

Feaster and agent Kent Hughes are expected to talk early next week. Neither side expects to file for arbitration.

So sayeth Lightning Notes from the St. Petersburg Times.

Lecavalier’s willingness to sign long term will come down to money - just as it did for Nikolai Khabibulin. Nik decided to take the five million extra from Chicago and run (not that the Bolts didn’t make an effort in their contractual offerings to retain him).

Meanwhile, in the same column, John Tortorella seems to take the “cry me a river, build me a bridge and get the hell over it” approach with Khabibulin’s loss:

“The goaltender will always be the focal point come playoffs and Nik was the best come playoff time last year,” Tortorella said. “But I’m not going to disrespect the organization or Nik’s teammates by saying that. I’ve seen how the supporting cast has come along.”

…Is this the Tampa Bay Lightning or the New England Patriots?

At any rate, Sean Burke’s name is roaming around as a potential signing by the Bolts as competition for John Grahame