1.   Blackmun said he understood the concerns of hockey officials who view naming a team so early as destructive to the competitive balance.

2.   According to one hockey official, it will take at least six to eight weeks for Stevens to complete the program.

3.   According to two hockey officials, Stevens will enter the second phase of the substance abuse program run by the league and the players association.

4.   But WFAN Radio reported Friday morning that the teams were discussing a deal, and a hockey official who insisted on anonymity confirmed that.

5.   Hockey officials ignore high-sticking as long as they get to keep the sticks.

6.   It was not the first time a hockey federation official was killed.

7.   The Lindros family was there in conjunction with the Ontario Brain Injury Association and minor hockey officials to call attention to the problem of concussions.

8.   Which is to say less than U.S. hockey officials expected when they pieced together a team it felt would win the gold medal.

9.   A hockey official in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan faces charges of sexual assault and sexual exploitation after a complaint by a junior hockey player in neighboring Alberta.

10.   Before the meeting, hockey officials in Sweden and Finland both said they were against an eight-team tournament.