RIGHT MOVE BY OVECHKIN

There's no question that Alex Ovechkin scored again with his decision to withdraw from the All-Star "Game," and the Washington Capitals were right to support it. Why would anyone expect him to attend after being suspended three games for his hit on Pittsburgh defenceman Zbynek Michalek on Sunday? Here's the good news: Ovechkin returns to the lineup next Saturday when the Capitals visit the Canadiens.

REDS RECALL SUMMIT SERIES

I see where Russia is planning an exhibition game on Feb. 26 in Moscow's Red Square to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Summit Series between the Soviet Union and Canada. Paul Henderson, who scored the winning goals in three of the games, already has accepted the invitation, while team captain Phil Esposito and Wayne Gretzky also have been invited. I can understand why Gretzky was invited, even though he was only 11 when this one-of-a-kind series was played in September 1972. However, no word yet on whether Wayne plans to attend.

BAD NIGHT FOR TOP LINE

I'm guessing that Michael Cammalleri now knows something was lost in the translation when he described his trade to Calgary as "a blast." That's precisely what the Flames received from head coach Brent Sutter following a 1-0 loss to the San Jose Sharks - the final game before the all-star break. "Our top two forward lines weren't very good," Sutter said. "When one line has three shots on net between the three of them and they end up being a minus . for whatever reason, they never had it tonight." The line Sutter had in mind was Jarome Iginla, one shot; Mikael Backlund, one shot; and Cammalleri, one shot.

JACKETS FANS PLAN PROTEST

The Columbus Blue Jackets are dead last in the NHL - and some of their fans want a few of their executives to pay for it. Head coach Scott Arniel was fired some time ago, and on Saturday fans plan to protest outside the team's arena and call for the dismissal of team president Mike Priest and GM Scott Howson.

'CANES CLICKED IN JANUARY

The Carolina Hurricanes appear to be getting their game together. In their final game on Monday before the all-star break, they edged Winnipeg 2-1. Goaltender Cam Ward again starred, Jeff Skinner and Tim Brent scored goals, and the defence was gritty when it needed to be. Though outshot 14-2 by the Jets in the final period, the Hurricanes emerged with a victory that ensured them a winning record for January. Carolina is 4-1-2 in its past seven games and 5-3-3 for the month.

SABRES END LOSING STREAKS

The Buffalo Sabres, to the surprise of many, have been a major disappointment thus far, but their 2-1 shootout victory over New Jersey on Tuesday gave them a reason to celebrate. It ended a slide of five games overall and 12 consecutive losses on the road. They visit the Canadiens on Tuesday.

ROOKIE'S GOAL LIFTS LIGHTNING

Somewhere, rookie Mike Angelidis is wearing a smile. On Tuesday, he was called up by Tampa Bay and responded with his first goal on his first shot in his first NHL game in a 4-2 Lightning victory over Columbus. "During the celebration I thought I was going to faint," Angelidis said. It was, in every way, a dream come true - all the more so because the victory, with Vinny Lecavalier and Marty St. Louis delivering a goal and an assist apiece, provided the Lightning with a seasonbest four-game winning streak. And if you're wondering how important St. Louis is to this team, he logged 28: 56 of ice time in the game.

JULIEN QUICK ON THE DRAW

Gotta love Claude Julien's response to a question from a reporter about his team's defence following the Bruins' 5-3 loss to the Capitals on Tuesday. "Talk about our defence? There was none," the coach responded quickly. "The way we played, we gave them their goals." Mistakes led to three of the Capitals' first four goals on a night they played without Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green.

BLACKHAWKS SLIP IN WEST

Have you noticed the up-and-down season the Chicago Blackhawks are having? At one point, they led the Western Conference. Now, they're ranked No. 6 in the West and No.

4 in the Central Division. The reason: injuries to Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp.

FLYERS BATTLE CONCUSSIONS

Is there no end to Philadelphia's series of head injuries? When Danny Brière went down with a concussion it raised to six the number of Flyers who have suffered that injury this season. Brière joined Matt Read, Brayden Schenn, Chris Pronger, James van Riemsdyk and Claude Giroux as players who have suffered or are still sidelined by concussions.

ROUGH VISIT FOR TURRIS

It's likely Kyle Turris will remember his first game back in Phoenix since being traded from the Coyotes to Ottawa in mid-December. You might remember that Turris held out for two months before rejoining the Coyotes for six games and renewing his request to be traded. So it was no surprise he was booed every time he touched the puck and Coyotes fans cheered loudly when Turris was hammered to the ice on his first shift. As you'd expect, Turris insisted he "didn't really hear any of the booing," but Coyotes veteran Shane Doan put a better spin on it this way: "He made it very clear he didn't want to be here. So more power to him. See ya!"