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Canwest News Service
Is it any wonder Nikolai Khabibulin has a bad back, given the number of times he has carried the Edmonton Oilers?
As for his return, the goaltender could be back in the lineup Monday night. Or not. That's the thing with back injuries, they come and go at their preferred pace.
"It's day-to-day. If it doesn't get any better I'll probably get an MRI to see what it is," Khabibulin said Sunday.
The 36-year-old was good up until the Chicago Blackhawks rolled into Edmonton, then muscle tightness set in. He pushed through the Saturday morning skate, expecting that it would loosen up.
When it became apparent it wouldn't, Khabibulin was scratched, Jeff Deslauriers was told he would start, and Torrie Jung, a veteran on the Western Hockey League's Edmonton Oil Kings, was quickly inked to an amateur tryout. He watched Saturday night's game from the bench.
The Oilers have since called up Devan Dubnyk from the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League. Through 18 games, Dubnyk has fashioned a .924 save percentage with the Falcons.
"I had an injury a couple of years ago, but I haven't had anything since then. I don't know what it is," said Khabibulin. "Two days ago, I felt really good then it just felt tight."
SHARKS NOT OUT FOR REVENGE: The San Jose Sharks did not look at Saturday's 3-2 win over Anaheim as revenge for last season's playoff upset at the hands of the Ducks.
"Honestly, I don't like those questions," goaltender Evgeni Nabokov told the San Jose Mercury News. "To me, we went through this — we lost to Dallas, we lost to Calgary, we lost to Anaheim — you think we as players, every time we step on the ice we think about what happened two years ago or last year or three years ago? Honestly? No. You don't think about that, you just want to win that particular game no matter what."
FILATOV ENJOYS KHL: After a great start with his new Kontinental Hockey League club, Nikita Filatov said he's happy he decided to return to Russia.
"I've never thought about regrets. I was sure that all would be good. I took the right decision," Filatov told www.allhockey.ru after scoring once and setting up two other goals in a 4-1 win over Traktor Chelyabinsk.
Filatov, a Columbus Blue Jackets prospect, elected to join the KHL team for the rest of this season after his ice time was reduced in the NHL. The Jackets still hope to bring him back to training camp next year.
Filatov, who played with CSKA Moscow before leaving for the NHL, said returning to the team made perfect sense.
"This was for me the best option," he told the website. "First, it's Moscow, it's my hometown, and secondly it's CSKA, my mother club and I knew it would have been easy to get into the team. I was sure to be successful since the start and that my teammates would help me in that."
ICE CHIPS: According to ESPN.com, the NHL has asked the Minnesota Wild, Carolina Hurricanes, Boston Bruins, Columbus Blue Jackets, Phoenix Coyotes and San Jose Sharks if they are interested in beginning the 2010-11 regular season in Europe. . . . Philadelphia Flyers centre Blair Betts dislocated his right shoulder in a 3-1 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday night. Betts has dislocated that shoulder six times in his career.
