Pascal Dupuis's NHL Career is Over

As a NHL player, it's always sad and upsetting when you have to retire because of a medical condition. Well, unfortunately, an NHL player is being forced out of the NHL because of that.

The Pittsburgh Penguins winger Pascal Dupuis has been forced into retirement because of a blood clot condition that has hampered his ability to produce for the past two seasons. Dupuis is always a popular player in the dressing room and has skated on the line with Sidney Crosby. He's also been a big factor when it comes to the playoffs.

Penguins manager Jim Rutherford said of Dupuis, "I've never seen a man more determined to play and more determined to help his team. Unfortunately, we've reached the point where it's not in the best interest of his health to allow him to do that anymore."

I feel very bad for Dupuis. Health is always something you have to put forward and not enough players in sports understand that. We've seen guys in the NFL play through injuries because they're in the Super Bowl. Some Seahawks players have done that and have been forced to go straight to surgery because of that "Iron Man" factor. But I'm glad to see Dupuis is leaving before it's too late. A blood clot is not something to mess around with, especially if it's hampering your ability. We've seen what happened a couple of seasons ago with Rich Peverley when he fainted on the bench and then we found out he had a medical condition and was forced to retire because of it.

As a person, you should always put your health above any else. You should be able to go out and live a happy life free of conditions and problems. And I'm glad to see that Dupuis is doing just that. I understand this retirement and I do hope he gets well and is able to be with his family and to enjoy the rest of his life going forward. Although it may not be with hockey, we hope he is able to find something he can do free of medical worries and to be happy and living a long life. Good luck, Pascal Dupuis!

Talking About the Kings

Remember when the Los Angeles Kings lost their first three games of the season? Well, put those to rest. The Kings are 18-5-1 since then and look like they are ready to take the Stanley Cup crown.

Now obviously, it's still a little early to declare them the champs and we still have the playoffs to go through. But in my mind, they are like the Seahawks (my NFL team). They can do damage in the playoffs and they look ready to do that, but there are still months ahead for that.

There are several reasons why the LA Kings should be hard to beat.

1. Their history. The Kings are not the new kids on the street, but they have won a Stanley Cup 18 months ago, and two of them in the past 42 months. The core group has been responsible for most of those Stanley Cup wins, so look for them to do it again once they get there.

2. The puck control. For those of you who are analytical, the Corsi rating for the Kings is 57.6%. That's the best so far. If you don't know what Corsi is, it is the statistical measure of puck possession. That's pretty good for a very dominant team in the league.

3. Doughty is Norris Trophy candidate. Drew Doughty might just be a lock for the Norris Trophy when the awards come. So far, he's averaging 27:42 minutes a game and his Corsi rating is 59.75%. He's a difference-maker in the league, puck heads. Take notice!

4. Hot defense. The Kings are currently second in the league with a 2.07 goals-against-average per game. And Jonathan Quick in goal has also been responsible for that GAA. It's already tough to score against this team.

5. The Right time. Right now, the Kings look as good as anybody and they have the necessary players to win in the NHL again. There's your veterans, such as Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, and Jake Muzzin, and then there's your coach in Darryl Sutter who's been helping to build this team to look like a contender.

If you figure all of these reasons into the Kings' season so far, they look like a dominant threat to win the Stanley Cup. They could be the San Francisco Giants of the NHL. But, like they said, it's still too early. The season started two months ago, and it could easily slip away from them come February or March. But right now, right now, we got a team looking like they can go all the way.

How Concerned Should We Be About Corey Perry?

The Anaheim Ducks are not where they want to be at the start of this season. Bottom of the NHL's Pacific Division with a 2-7-2 record. Having trouble getting the offense going, and the defense is doing the best they can to keep pucks out of the net. But that's not the worst of the problems. That centers around Corey Perry.

You would think Corey Perry would be a star day in and day out for this Ducks team, but the fact of the matter is, he has no shots on 23 shots in 11 games. Yep, not good at all. And that also could be a factor into Bruce Boudreau losing his job.

Right now, this is a very concerning problem the Ducks have. They're already having trouble on offense, and now with Corey Perry having problems, this team could go South pretty year. I mean, this team was in the playoffs last year, got to the Western Conference Final, and now there's this. I worry that this won't be maken up for.

Right now, Corey Perry's gotta back into the grove of things. He's gotta get his goal-scoring back on track and that means making good plays and getting that puck in the net. I'm not saying he's doing bad, he's just not doing enough to get that puck where it needs to be.

Hopefully, the Ducks can recover and get back into the mix of things, but Corey Perry's gotta come through and make some good plays. Hey, they've got a pretty good schedule coming up with both Florida and Columbus, who are also doing a little poorly. So let's see if Perry can get back on his A game and get this team back to where it needs to be.

Is the Patrick Kane accuser saga over?

We might have seen the last of Patrick Kane being involved in a rape investigation.

His accuser has told investigators that the case "has caused tremendous stress for her and her family" and that she would be dropping the case and would no longer be going forward with it.

Kane has allegedly assaulted the woman on Aug. 2 in his home in Buffalo. He has not been suspended by the NHL for these allegations.

The accuser's former attorney had withdrawn from the case after citing a lack of evidence towards the case.

For Patrick Kane, this might finally mean the end of this story. The accuser withdrawing from the case might mean that she was lying or it might mean that she doesn't have the evidence she needs to actually bring Patrick Kane in.

Patrick Kane seems to me like a guy who's got a good head on his shoulders and this woman might be trying to tap into that and make some headlines out of it, and I believe it failed. On the other hand, we might not have heard the last from this story. In a couple of months, something else might pop up that might let us have to reopen this case. Either way, Patrick Kane has done nothing wrong, which is why the NHL has not suspended him.

The Blackhawks need Kane right now. They sit next to last in the competitive Central Division, and they need his offensive output and scoring to help them get back to the top. Now with this case seemingly over, Kane can now put his focus on the Blackhawks and helping them get back into the mix.

The Suspension of Mark Stone

Looks like the Ottawa Senators' leading scorer is gonna hit the bench for two games.

He has been suspended by the NHL for his hit to the head of the Red Wings' Landon Ferraro. Stone was assessed a minor penalty on the play and Ferraro, though he left the game, did return.

The league has said the hit was "reckless." Stone is not a repeat offender and will miss the Senators' games against the Canadiens on Tuesday and against the Jets on Thursday.

I'll be quick and brief. The punishment is justified. Although it was an illegal check to the head, Ferraro did return to the game and did play it out. If he had left for the rest of the game, you could possibly go up to three or four games, but the punishment is served with this two-game suspension. Let's hope the Senators can pick up the pieces and move on for two games without their leading scorer. Trust me, against the Canadiens, it's gonna be one tough battle.