NHL: Pluses and minuses around the league

Times columnist Helene Elliott rates the pluses and minuses in the NHL from the last week:

+ Congratulations to Phoenix Coyotes forward Shane Doan, who scored his first hat trick, in his 1,161st game, and Calgary Flames winger Jarome Iginla, who scored his 500th goal. Each reached his milestone Saturday, a fitting convergence for two of the NHL’s classiest players.

+ NHL players and teams have stepped up with gifts and prayers to support Jack Jablonski, a Minnesota high school hockey player who suffered a severe spinal cord injury after being checked from behind and isn’t likely to walk again. Jablonski’s friends have set up a site to leave encouraging messages: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jackjablonski

+ The New York Rangers have won four consecutive games and nine of 10 to take the lead in the East. They have no one in the top 30 scorers — Marian Gaborik ranked 35th through Sunday’s games and leads them with 23 goals and 34 points — but they’ve gotten excellent goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist and solid team defense.

- The NHL had no motivation besides antagonizing players when it set a deadline of last Friday for them to approve its 2012-13 realignment plan. When players sought more information regarding travel and other unknowns and the league wouldn’t provide it, the players’ association withheld its consent. What’s the NHL’s rush? This is about gaining the upper hand in upcoming labor talks, and that’s deplorable.

- Is NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan getting soft? He suspended Daniel Carcillo of the Chicago Blackhawks only seven games for an ugly boarding infraction against Edmonton’s Tom Gilbert — and it was Carcillo’s NINTH league-imposed suspension or fine. A double-digit ban would have made a statement. This didn’t.

- Another opportunity missed: New York Rangers Coach John Tortorella was fined $30,000 for implying the referees at the Winter Classic made calls to give the Philadelphia Flyers chances to tie the score and conspired with NBC to take the game to overtime. He later apologized and said he had been speaking tongue in cheek, but no league can let its officials’ integrity be ripped without a six-figure punishment.