Will this virtual Stanley Cup be the only trophy the New York Rangers earn this postseason? (EA Sports)

By Adam Levine

In a simulation of the 2013 NHL playoffs, EA’s popular NHL 13 game predicts Stanley Cup glory for the New York Rangers.

EA has the Rangers knocking off the Capitals, Penguins and Canadiens en route to a Stanley Cup showdown with the Blackhawks. EA has the Rangers taking that series in six games on the way to their fifth Stanley Cup.

The simulation credits Rangers center Brad Richards with a 24-point playoff surge behind seven goals and 17 assists.

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Ryan Miller was pulled Friday night after some misadventures with the puck and four goals allowed. (Jerome Davis/Icon SMI)

By Allan Muir

An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• We’ve seen this before, haven’t we? A proud goaltender, waving in mock appreciation as a home crowd serenades him with a Bronx cheer? Yeah, Ryan Miller seemed as tired of the First Niagara Center crowd as they were of him after a couple of brutal goals led to an 8-4 Rangers’ win that ended Buffalo’s playoff hopes. Very easy to see him demanding a trade after that display.

• “Yes sir, just like clockwork, you can count on Brad Richards to record a hat trick once every 896 games.” That’s the great lead from Larry Brooks, writing about the veteran’s first career three-goal game in the rout of the Sabres.

• Like everyone else in Boston, the Penguins experienced an unusual day on Friday.

• It became apparent early on that as long as the manhunt for the bomber continued, the show could not go on in Boston. The postponement and rescheduling of Friday’s game means the Bruins play their final six games in a span of just nine days.

• A struggling Milan Lucic could be benched for today’s rescheduled matinee against the Penguins. That should please Bruins fans who are tired of watching him float through games.

• Mike Heika, who offers as entertaining a read as anybody out there these days, says the Stars were taught a valuable lesson in how to impose your will by the St. Louis Blues on Friday night. They probably would have preferred two points, but that lesson might pay greater dividends down the road.

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Brenden Morrow should enjoy playing for the Penguins with former Stars teammates James Neal and Matt Niskanen. (Noah Graham/NHLI via Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

A notated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• You like the Brenden Morrow/Joe Morrow trade? So do the folks in Pittsburgh and Dallas.

• Mike Heika offers up a solid piece on what Brenden Morrow meant to the Stars.

• Is former Sabres coach Lindy Ruff the first choice to replace Guy Boucher in Tampa?

• It’s time for Sabres owner Terry Pegula to bring in a team of hockey advisors to help him run the team. Bucky Gleason offers some smart recommendations, including Pat LaFontaine, Rick Dudley, Don Luce and Mike Peca.

• With his school-age children his top priority, Mike Ribeiro is looking for at least four years on his next contract. He’s hoping to stay in Washington, but if the Caps can’t meet that term demand, he thinks it’s best for him to move on.

• Ribeiro’s former teammate Brad Richards says “he’s never experienced anything like” his current struggles with the Rangers. His assist on Sunday night against the Capitals was his first point in seven games. Richards is Exhibit A when discussing New York’s lost season.

• Boston coach Claude Julien has demoted struggling winger Milan Lucic from the top line as the B’s look to shake up their offense.

• The Caps are hoping a system that promotes shorter outlet passes will minimize the physical abuse opponents lay on defenseman Mike Green. Being a little quicker on the draw would help him, too.

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By Allan Muir

It’s been three days since Brendan Shanahan watched video of repeat offender Patrick Kaleta shoving Brad Richards face-first into the boards and decided that this wasn’t the right time to send a message about reckless hits from behind.

Shanny didn’t just shanked the call. He missed the point entirely. That Richards wasn’t seriously injured — although he did miss Tuesday’s game with the Flyers — means nothing. What matters is that he easily could have been because of Kaleta’s stupidity.

If he didn’t understand that before, maybe he will now.

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Repeat offender Patrick Kaleta was lucky to get off so lightly for this hit on Brad Richards. (Bruce Benett/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

It’s clear that Brendan Shanahan hit Patrick Kaleta a lot harder than the Buffalo winger hit Brad Richards.

So why does the five-game suspension that Shanahan imposed on Monday afternoon feel like a slap on the wrist?

Not that anyone should be surprised by this verdict, especially in the wake of last week’s soft touch fine handed down to Dallas’ Jamie Benn. Shanny telegraphed this decision when he offered Kaleta a phone hearing, a format that ensured the sentence couldn’t be more than five games. That’s a significant number because a provision in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement allows a player to appeal any suspension above that level to an independent arbitrator.

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Alex Ovechkin showcased his star power with a hat trick on Saturday afternoon. [Mark Goldman/Icon SMI]

A super-sized weekend edition guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• SI.com’s own Adrian Dater reports the NHL and NHLPA are studying reports of Ambien abuse among the league’s sleep-deprived players. Abuse of the drug was linked to the death of enforcer Derek Boogaard.

• Here are the Sunday columns from Michael Russo, Bruce Garrioch, Mike Zeisberger and Steve Simmons.

• The daughter of Buffalo owner Terry Pegula says the Sabres are really bad. Dad must have been thrilled.

• Brad Richards has lost his swagger in New York, and while there’s still time to salvage his season, Larry Brooks wonders if the highly-compensated center might be a candidate for a contract buyout this summer. Seems crazy on the surface, but with the cap going down and Richards not living up to his deal, it’s probably been discussed.

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Current New York Rangers stars will be holding a clinic on Staten Island to benefit one of the area’s hardest hit places. (Photo by Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images)

By Stu Hackel

We’ll honor Day 60 of the NHL season being held hostage by not discussing the lockout but something more important, the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. This is out of the headlines in most places, but it remains a real problem for many people and, thankfully, some in hockey continue to pay attention.

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