Happy US Turkey Day!

Hockey Blog In Canada wants to wish all of its United States-based readers a Happy Thanksgiving tonight. Of course, tomorrow is the dreaded "Black Friday" where shoppers go absolutely insane while trying to find that rare gem for half-price. I've been through a Black Friday or two in my time, and they are the definition of insanity. In knowing this, please have yourself a wonderful feast tonight, and take care tomorrow if you're brave enough to venture out near a mall. Let's take a look at a few stories from around the hockey world.

• One game in the AHL today, and the Binghamton Senators thumped the Adirondack Phantoms by a 7-0 score. Goaltender Andy Chiodo gave thanks for a solid defensive game in front of him as he posted his first shutout since March 11, 2006 when he was a member of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Josh Hennessy and Denis Hamel had a pair of goals each, pacing the B-Sens to the win.
• If you have tickets to Friday's ECHL game between the Alaska Aces and the hometown Utah Grizzlies, make sure you pick up a teddy bear on Black Friday. The Grizzlies are holding their "Teddy Bear Toss" on Friday, and encourage fans to toss a new or gently-used teddy bear on to the ice after their first goal. All teddy bears will be donated to patients at the Primary Children’s Medical Center in Salt Lake City.
• Nice little story from Steve Silver of the Las Vegas Sun about foreign players and their experience celebrating American Thanksgiving. Personally, I prefer ham over turkey, so I liked Sweden's Joel Gistedt's view on Thanksgiving and Christmas: "Last year was my first time. I like the ham more than turkey. Christmas in Sweden is the best. Great food — sausage and Swedish meatballs. I miss it."
• Brayden Schenn found himself traveling today as the Los Angeles Kings signed their highly-touted draft pick to a One-Day NHL Regular Season Amateur Tryout Agreement. With rookie Andrei Loktionov suffering an upper-body injury last night in Edmonton, the LOs Angeles Kings needed an emergency replacement in Vancouver, so they called on the WHL's Brandon Wheat Kings for Schenn. Congratulations to Brayden Schenn, and here's hoping he lights it up in Vancouver tonight!
• As some of you may be aware, I'm working with the AHL's Manitoba Moose in terms of providing them a fan's view on their website via the Antler Banter articles. Well, thanks to the opportunity they gave me, I was approached by the parent club as well. You can find me cross-posting the Antler Banter articles to the Vancouver Canucks' website as one of their "featured bloggers"! I thought that was pretty cool.
• The Ottawa Senators defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight by a 2-1 score, and there were some interesting notes in this game. First, referee Dave Jackson was injured after getting crunched by Rick Nash, and he didn't return after leaving the ice. Secondly, Jason Spezza opened the scoring for the Senators with just his second goal of the season, and his first even-strength marker of the season. That's right: November 26, and Ottawa's first-line centerman just scored his first even-strength goal. Ouch. Senators do win, however, on a Nick Foligno powerplay goal in the third period.

That's all for tonight, kids! For Captain Canuck and JTH, the mail is going out tomorrow, so I'll be contacting you guys for some info on your packages. For everyone else, enjoy the busiest shopping day in the USA tomorrow, and stay safe! Turkey sammiches for everyone!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!