Chara faces decision on surgery

In the games leading up to Boston Bruins' 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals on March 8, Zdeno Chara's left shoulder had absorbed some bumps and bruises.

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But in the second period against the Capitals, when Chara swung and missed on a one-timer, the captain felt pain deep within the shoulder, which hasn't been right since.

"I felt my AC joint was a little loose and sore," Chara told the Boston Globe. "But when I missed that one-time shot, it really felt like there was damage in the shoulder. Ever since then, I was playing with it. It didn't pop out, but it was a weird feeling. Just really sharp pain inside the shoulder."

General manager Peter Chiarelli said Wednesday he believes Chara will require surgery. Chara said he hopes to avoid it.

"That's my first priority," Chara said. "Nobody wants to have surgery. But I also have to be smart. There's a fine line. You can avoid it, but running into the same problem next year, I don't want to do that. We're going to have to make a decision and see what's in there."

Chara also played through a hip injury in the middle of the season. He is still hoping to travel to Mozambique in June as an athlete-ambassador for Right to Play, the Canadian humanitarian organization. Chara is also in the running for the Norris Trophy as the NHL's top defenceman, which will be awarded in Toronto on June 12.

"It's a real thrill," Chara said of being nominated along with Detroit's Nicklas Lidstrom and Calgary's Dion Phaneuf. "Obviously, I'm thankful for (our) group of guys. I wouldn't be able to be nominated without them. They really contributed big time."

Wideman also hobbled

Boston Bruins defenceman Dennis Wideman confirmed to the Boston Globe he was playing with a groin injury for much of the season. He wasn't sure whether he would undergo a procedure.

"Parts of December and January, it was pretty sore," Wideman said of the groin, particularly the right side. "I couldn't really stride and skate full out. I had some bouts where I had more worse days than good days. Those days where it was really tight and really sore, it would take a long time to warm up. But then a week later it would be fine."

Late in Game 1 of the first-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens, Wideman took a hit from forward Guillaume Latendresse that hurt the left side of his groin. Wideman had to miss Game 2, but returned for the rest of the series. Wideman said that had it been the regular season, he would have missed seven to 10 days.

Poile, Trotz expect better for next season

The ice has barely melted at the Sommet Center, but the Nashville Predators' coaching staff is already looking toward the 2008-09 season.

The coaching staff, along with David Poile, president of hockey operations/general manager, was headed to Milwaukee to watch the Admirals play the rest of the week in the American Hockey League playoffs.

"I know we are going to be better and stronger in so many ways next season," Poile told the Nashville City Paper. "We have a stable ownership. That is a necessity for us to do our jobs. We have a much more normal situation. I feel bullish on our future."

Last year in late April, Poile couldn't say that.

"Sitting here 12 months later you never know how things will turn out," Poile said. "We were limited in our budget and resources. We had to go out and sign value free agents in Marty Gelinas, Radek Bonk, Jed Ortmeyer and Greg de Vries.

"Marty Gelinas was one of the best players we have ever signed here. When he got hurt we missed his veteran leadership. Radek Bonk got some big goals for us this year. Jed Ortmeyer unfortunately also had an ACL injury like Gelinas. And Greg de Vries was paired with Dan Hamhuis as the No. 1 defensive pairing that was used in shutdown situations."

Also signed as a free agent last summer was goaltender Dan Ellis. He will be an unrestricted free agent again this summer.

"He was such an unheralded signing that we thought so highly of that we signed him to a two-way contract," Poile said. "We told him in all likelihood he would spend most of the year in Milwaukee. We know how that turned out."

Pandolfo, Brylin want to stay with Devils

Jay Pandolfo and Sergei Brylin have played their entire careers with the New Jersey Devils, but this summer they will have to decide whether they want to stay or seek employment elsewhere.

None of the Devils' potential unrestricted free agents are expected to break the bank on the open market this summer, but Pandolfo and Brylin are their most significant because of their tenures.

Brylin, 34, has played 13 seasons for the Devils and was a member of all three of their Stanley Cup champion teams. But he has a player option on his contract for 2008-09 for $1.52 million US. If he wants to stay, he can simply elect to exercise that option, but, as he pointed out Monday, that's only "for one year."

He said he would like a deal for at least two years. If the Devils won't give it to him, he can wait until July 1 and see if another NHL team will.

His first choice would be to continue his run with the Devils, though.

"We'll see what kind of offer I'm going to get and go from there," he said to the Bergen Record.

Pandolfo, 33, also would like to return and said he would re-sign before July 1, "if we can get something worked out here."

"I've played my whole career here," Pandolfo said. "It's a great organization. There's a whole bunch of reasons."

Pandolfo, a veteran of 11 NHL seasons who was voted the team's "Players' Player" and "Unsung Hero" by his teammates for the third year in a row, said there's been little discussion of his contract with Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello so far. Pandolfo would at least double his 2007-08 salary of $836,000 US on the open market.

Sharks, Stars stop the insanity

The last time the San Jose Sharks and Dallas Stars shared the same ice, it was a meaningless game to finish the regular season. Playoff positions were set, nothing was at stake.

And yet things got a little insane.

Before the game ended in a 4-2 Dallas victory, the Sharks established a team record with 95 penalty minutes and left-winger Jody Shelley set an individual franchise record with 41, including two 10-minute misconducts and a game misconduct.

"We didn't expect that one bit, but for some reason things got a little rough, a little physical," Sharks rookie Devin Setoguchi told the Mercury News. "And it showed a lot of character on both sides, sticking up for each other."

The Sharks and Stars are about to get reacquainted, meeting in the Western Conference semifinals that begin tonight at HP Pavilion.

"When you finish off a season like that, you know it's going to be a battle," Setoguchi said.

Battle, yes. Throngs in the penalty box, probably not.

Because in a game that counts, players say, they know better than to put their team at a disadvantage.

"This is not how you'd handle it and we're all smart enough to know that," Shelley said at the time. "Stuff just needed to be addressed."

He said it:

"I haven't felt this good in maybe 10 or 15 years, since I was a kid. I feel like I did when I played in Chicago, before Philly and Phoenix, way back when." - 38-year-old Jeremy Roenick finds new life as a San Jose Shark

Ice chips:

The Los Angeles Kings have agreed to terms on a three-year entry-level contract with forward Bud Holloway, the club's third-round selection (86th overall) in the 2006 entry draft. Holloway, 20, recently finished his fourth full season with the Western Hockey League's Seattle Thunderbirds, recording 83 points (43 goals, 40 assists) and 55 penalty minutes in 70 regular-season games, and 10 points (five goals, five assists) and four penalty minutes in 12 playoff games. . . . . The Tampa Bay Lightning signed forward Paul Szczechura to a two-year contract. The five-foot-11, 190-pound native of Belleville, Ont., scored 14 goals in 24 games with the American Hockey League's Norfolk Admirals last season after netting two in 29 games with the Iowa Stars before being traded Jan. 15 in exchange for future considerations.