Goalie John Grahame released by Omsk

"In another decision involving Avangard Omsk on Friday, the K.H.L. Disciplinary Committee announced that it has denied a K.H.L. Players Union appeal to reinstate goalie John Grahame with the club, upholding Avangard’s decision to terminate Grahame’s contract. The club dropped Grahame in December “for repeated violation of labor discipline.” Andrei Kovalenko, the union chairman, spoke on Grahame’s behalf before the committee, which also examined witness testimony and material, the league said. According to news reports from Russia last month, Avangard cited alcohol issues in connection with Grahame’s dismissal."

Grahame with the Islanders ?

"Islanders GM Garth Snow is on record as saying he won't trade a draft pick or prospect for a goalie, but would take Sabourin, who played in the same division with the Penguins, if he goes on waivers. The Islanders might also be considering former Canucks No. 2 goalie Curtis Sanford or John Grahame, who was released by Omsk in Russia."

Islanders bring back Wade Dubielewicz

"The Islanders have reached an agreement with former goaltender Wade Dubielewicz on a contract for the rest of the season for the pro-rated portion of a $500,000 annual salary, according to an NHL source.

The club has indicated plans to provide an update later Thursday on the condition of starter Rick DiPietro, but the signing of Dubielewicz is a strong indicator that DiPietro might be done for the season because of continued swelling in his surgically repaired knee.

Dubielewicz, who has been living with his family at their Connecticut home since receiving a buyout from Ak Bars Kazan in the Russian Kontinental Hockey League, is expected to practice with the Islanders Friday morning and likely be available for their game against the Devils Saturday night at the Coliseum."

Jaromir Jagr doesn't rule out return to Pittsburgh

"Jaromir Jagr said he has no designs on returning to the NHL in the short term, but if he ever did return he would be happy to go back to the Pittsburgh Penguins to play for his former idol, Mario Lemieux.

“I was thinking about it and if Mario would call me and say, ‘I’d like you to play for our team,’ I would think about it a lot,” Jagr said in a telephone interview from Moscow where the Kontinental League will hold its inaugural All-Star Game outdoors at Red Square Saturday. “I would play for the minimum salary. I would play for $350,000 just for him because I owe him my hockey life. I want to pay him back because he has made me what I am…besides my parents.”

Jagr is playing for Avangard Omsk on a two-year deal that pays him $7 million per season and he said he is bound to the contract with Osmk until after the 2009-10 season, so any return to the NHL (or the Czech League) would have to wait until after his 38th birthday.

Speaking of Jagr’s contract, there have been reports circulating through North America that the KHL, which is heavily-subsidized by the partly state-owned company Gazprom, has fallen on extremely hard times because of the global economic crisis and a drop in oil prices and is on the verge of collapse. There are reports that players are taking a 40-percent pay cut across the board, something Jagr says is untrue."

Kirill Kabanov is projected to be a top pick in the 2010 NHL draft

"Several scouts say the Moscow native, the Kontinental Hockey League's youngest player, stands a good chance to become the No.1 pick in the 2010 NHL entry draft.

J.P. Barry, the agent for Mats Sundin and Evgeni Malkin, said Kabanov's quickness is comparable to Alex Ovechkin at the same age and other agents and scouts are similarly complimentary. Three years ago, when Kabanov was 13, NHL super-agent Don Meehan flew him and his father Sergei, a former Russian army special forces major, to Toronto in an unsuccessful bid to sign Kabanov to a representation contract, Sergei Kabanov said.

Last year, agent Jay Grossman watched Kabanov play at the world under-17 championship in London, Ont., a tournament that featured John Tavares and others who will be eligible for the 2009 NHL draft. A full year younger than most others at the tournament, Kabanov finished third in scoring.

"He's the complete package," Grossman said.

ON THIS RAW Moscow evening, shortly after he was recalled to join Spartak's senior men's team, Kabanov and his parents converged on the city's cobblestone Red Square to talk about his future. He says it won't include the KHL, the new league created here by oligarchs and Russian hockey stars as an eventual rival to the NHL.

"It doesn't matter how much money they offer me here," Kabanov said. "Even with more money, life is more exciting in North America. In Canada, if you play like a star, you're treated that way. The NHL is a league with 100 years of history. The KHL has a bad name. It's an imitation league. And it's full of corruption.""

KHL All-Star game : Former NHLers lead Russian all-star voting

"Back in the U.S.S.R.: Well, it might not be the Soviet Union these days, but there's a Cold War feel to Russia's Kontinental Hockey League All-Star game.

For starters, the Jan. 10 game will be cold because it's being played outdoors in Moscow's Red Square. And the format calls for Team Yashin, stocked with Russian players, against Team Jagr, featuring players from other countries.

Familiar names top the fan voting, Alexander Radulov, the former Quebec Remparts star who ran out on the Nashville Predators to play for Salavat Yulaev Ufa, tops forward voting for Team Yashin. He's followed by Alexander Morozov and former Canadien Alexander Perezhogin.

The top vote-getter among Team Yashin defencemen is Konstantin Korneev. The CSKA star was selected by the Canadiens in the ninth round of the 2002 draft. Ray Emery, who is trying to rehabilitate his image with Atlant Mitishchi, tops the goaltender voting for Team Jagr, while former NHLer Ben Clymer tops the defencemen.

Another former Canadien, Marcel Hossa, was one of two automatic selections for Team Jagr. He's playing for Dynamo Riga."