Ain’t nothing like the real thing: It’s doubtful that many fans would watch replacement players in the NHL, but will they tune in on ESPN3 to see Alex Ovechkin play for the KHL’s Dynamo Moscow? (Maxim Shemetov/Reuters photos)

By Stu Hackel

[UPDATE: The KHL deal with ESPN to show games from that league as discussed below has not been finalized and, until it is, the scheduled games listed in the item will not be shown on ESPN3. More on that in this blog post.]

With the NHL and NHLPA having trouble figuring out just what constitutes Hockey Related Revenue during Tuesday’s negotiations, it’s probable that the first few weeks of regular season games will have to be officially cancelled or, at least, postponed. It’s not good news.

With that in mind, here’s a little roundup of lockout-related items.

Picking Scabs: One of the more abhorrent rumors circulating about the current labor impasse was started by former Maple Leafs assistant GM Bill Watters who, most recently during a streamed internet program on Monday night, raised the possibility  of replacement players coming into the NHL in November as a means for Commissioner Gary Bettman to end the players’ resistance to the league’s contract offer.

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Alex Ovechkin stands out in hockey’s culture because he does things his own way. (Dave Sandford/Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

No one should be surprised that Alexander Ovechkin has, once again, commanded the spotlight — at least briefly — during the NHL lockout. Ovechkin has many talents and grabbing attention is one of them. He’s been as charismatic a personality as hockey has ever seen and he’s always relished standing apart, from his special on-ice abilities (which we hope are not on the wane), to his leaping, glass-crashing goal celebration, his yellow skate laces and his now-banned darkened visor. This is a one-of-a-kind specimen and we should accept no substitutes.

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The insurance on Alex Ovechkin for this year’s World Championships came to $400,000 and he played in only three games. The price for a KHL season will be much higher. (Photo by Yuri Kadobnov/AFP/GettyImages)

By Stu Hackel

They’re packing up and getting ready to go: Locked out NHL players have begun their inevitable migration to Europe in search of work.

Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar are headed to Magnitogorsk to play for Metallurg of the KHL. Jaromir Jagr heads home to Kladno in the Czech Republic to play for his hometown team, which he owns with his father, and it seems that Tomas Plekanec will go with him. Joe Thornton, who met his wife while playing for Davos in the Swiss league during the last lockout, will go back there and could be joined by Rick Nash, his linemate in Davos that season. Ilya Kovalchuk, Ruslan Fedotenko, Lubomir Visnovsky, Jiri Tlusty, Mark Streit, Yannick Weber, Jiri Hudler, Jussi Jokinen and goalies Michal Neuvirth and Semyon Varlamov are also part of the first wave of signings across the Atlantic. There are indications that Alex Ovechkin, Logan Couture, Niklas Backstrom and Anze Kopitar could be right behind while Pavel Datsyuk, who had reportedly been signed actually remains undecided.   (You can follow the post-lockout transactions here.)

These signings occasionally get murky, confirmed then unconfirmed. The player and the team must agree on the money, the player has to be formally transferred by the IIHF (Nail Yakopov is having that problem) and there is also the matter of insurance and we’ll get into that below.

What’s not murky is that while players wait for negotiators to reach an agreement, staying in shape is a priority. That’s why some choose to play in Europe. They can rent ice in North America and scrimmage with each other all they want, or practice with established clubs in their areas on a daily basis, but nothing takes the place of real games. For some, especially those who have families in North America, it’s not always an easy decision to pick up and go, so they may delay a Euro decision in hope that the sides reach an agreement sooner rather than later. But the longer this CBA stalemate goes on, the more those who remain here will consider going over.

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Unfortunately for free agent Alex Semin, his reputation precedes his impressive statistics. (Jerome Davis/Icon SMI)

By Stu Hackel

Goal scoring in the NHL is down, the thin free agent market is depleted of top offensive talent, and the trade market seems frozen, so one name in particular stands out: unrestricted free agent Alexander Semin. Theoretically at least, he could be the solution to some team’s scoring woes, but there he sits by the phone, waiting for his agent Marc Gandler to tell him which club wants to sign a supremely talented 28-year-old who has put up seasons of 38, 34 and 40 goals during his NHL career. His numbers are comparable to Zach Parise’s, but no one is throwing a 13-year contract worth $98 million at Semin. Not even close.

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In new Hall of Famer Adam Oates (right), the Caps hired a superb teacher. (Shelly Castellano/Icon SMI)

By Stu Hackel

You won’t see a guy have a better day than Adam Oates had on Tuesday, being officially announced as the head coach of the Washington Capitals and an honored member of the Hockey Hall of Fame (video) within the space of a few hours. “Obviously an absolutely fantastic day,” Oates said. “I don’t know if that’s ever happened before. I have to go out and play Lotto, I think.  Two huge honors.”

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How much Dale Hunter’s relationship with Alexander Ovechkin factored into the coach’s decision to quit is an intriguing question. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

The mercurial NHL coaching career of Dale Hunter came to an end on Monday when he told the Washington Capitals that, after less than six months, it was time to go. He did a lot in a short time, turning the glamorous Caps into a team suddenly known for glamorless defense. He got them into the playoffs, knocked off the defending Stanley Cup champion Bruins in the tightest seven-game series in playoff history and took the Eastern Conference’s top seed, the Rangers, to seven games before succumbing, 2-1, on Saturday. But now he’ll return to his OHL team, the London Knights, one of hockey’s most successful junior franchises, which he co-owns with his brother Mark.

“It wasn’t unexpected,” Caps GM George McPhee told reporters at the team’s suburban practice facility (video). But for those who saw in Hunter’s makeover the direction that the club must take to achieve that elusive playoff success in the Alex Ovechkin Era, the coach’s departure can’t be anything but a disappointment. Perhaps speaking for that segment of Caps Nation, The Post’s sports columnist Tom Boswell called Hunter’s decision “UNBELIEVABLE!”

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Hurts so good: Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh (27) takes one for his team by blocking a shot. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

Is shotblocking ruining hockey? Judging by what some commentators are saying, you’d think so. They claim it has dampened the great skill of the game’s best players and diminished the entertainment factor of the playoffs. You’d also think it’s the main ingredient in teams winning or losing.

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Frankly, Capitals coach Dale Hunter doesn’t give a damn what Alexander Ovechkin thinks about his diminished playing time during this postseason tournament. (Chuck Myers/MCT via Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

As the Rangers and Capitals continue their second round playoff series, one player has been and will continue to be the focus of attention — Alex Ovechkin. A few years ago, that might have been because he was the indisputable motor driving the Capitals, but now it’s because he is not.

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The Coyotes will have to be resourceful and determined to beat Nashville’s stout defense that has been fortified at key moments by the monster goaltending of Pekka Rinne. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

We quickly move to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, what they call the conference semi-finals. Upsets galore, tight games, lots of overtime and fierce play marked the first round and that shouldn’t change too much now. With some strong teams knocked out, every survivor must figure that it has a chance to keep its playoff run alive. All it has to do is continue playing to its strengths, shore up its weaknesses and have a good game plan against its opponent. Easy, right?

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Playing with great poise, young Braden Holtby has a chance to write another chapter in goaltending lore. (Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

This memorable first round moves on Wednesday night to the first of three Game 7s in the Eastern Conference when a pair of marquee clubs square off in Boston: the Stanley Cup champion Bruins and the newly-minted defensive strong boys/former offensive dynamo Washington Capitals.

Had it not been for the five straight overtime games between the Coyotes and Blackhawks, this would be hailed as clearly the opening round’s tightest series. Three matches have gone to extra time and of the total 387 minutes 31 seconds played in the six games, the teams have been tied for 268: 54 of them. Washington has led for 74:14; Boston for 44:23. The only two-goal lead, which the Caps had in Game 5, lasted all of 2:54. In a postseason that has seen many see-saw lead changes, this series has had none.

Additionally, each team has scored 14 goals. But most notably, this is the first playoff matchup in Stanley Cup history ever to have its first six games all decided by one-goal margins.

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