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Foul plays in Anaheim

CALL THEM the Honda Center Hoodlums. The Anaheim Ducks dropped the ‘Mighty’ from their nickname, but have grown mighty in stature, leaving the rest of the NHL in their bare-knuckled wake. Through mid-February, Anaheim had accumulated 54 fighting majors, 20 more than the team second-most pugilistic team, the Nashville Predators. When asked by a reporter about his team’s penchant for punch-ups, GM Brian Burke acknowledged it’s part of the master plan. “If you’re going to come into our barn, you better be ready for a square dance,” he said. On the surface, it’s difficult to knock Burke’s philosophy. Anaheim has mostly been a tour de force this season. But there is some blarney blended in with the bluster. Consider: • In today’s NHL, most bouts are enforcer vs. enforcer or fourth-liners trying to make…

NHL Team Reports Trade Tracker

Deadline drama different for all TRADE TRACKER The trade deadline is a nervous time for everyone in the NHL. Well, except Rick DiPietro. Everyone else – from players on the block to GMs who could be on the chopping block should things not go well – is aware a lot goes down at the last minute. This week’s team stories look at what each of the 30 NHL franchises have done at the deadline the past three seasons. For the Devils, bigger names such as Viktor Kozlov and Brad Lukowich didn’t help, while the year of Pascal Rheaume did. Columbus has stolen some great talent in the past in the form of Jaroslav Spacek and Ray Whitney, but couldn’t re-sign them for the long-term. In Tampa, Darryl Sydor was the answer in 2004, but deals have…

Marching to success

BRAD MARCHAND RAN the full gamut of emotions last season with the Moncton Wildcats. There was the thrill of capturing the QMJHL title, followed by the pain of losing to the Quebec Remparts in the Memorial Cup final. “That was a tough way to end a great season,” said the 18-year-old, who’s now with the Val d’Or Foreurs. “You think about it all summer. It makes me even more hungry to go back to this year’s Memorial Cup and finish the job.” Val d’Or, which is among the league’s top powers, counts heavily on Marchand, Boston’s fourth round pick (71st overall) in 2006. The Halifax, N.S., native helped Canada capture gold at this year’s World Junior Championship and also at the 2005 under-18 Junior World Cup. And he won bronze with Team Atlantic at…