Ray Whitney compared the NHL owners to "schoolyard bullies." "To be out this long, for a game that was thriving, to be doing this kind of damage to the league makes no sense to us as players," said Whitney. "To me, it just shows a lack of respect for the game by the people in charge. They're not really hockey people, they didn't grow up loving the game of hockey." All that being said, Whitney doesn't think the two sides are particularly far apart.

Ray Whitney doesn't plan to play anywhere in the event of an NHL lockout. The 40-year-old winger is growing tired of people commenting on his age and his production last season proved that he can still play the game at a high level. Whitney recorded 24 goals and 77 points in 82 games with Phoenix and he was great on the power play, which should help the Stars this campaign. However, it is interesting to speculate if a shortened year would help or hinder him. Whitney wore down during the 2012 playoffs due to a plethora of ailments, so some extra time off at the beginning should do him some good, but playing a compressed schedule could lead to other injuries. In a full season, Whitney would probably end up somewhere in the 60-pont range with Dallas, so he's worth rolling the dice on regardless of his age or when the 2012-13 campaign begins.

Ray Whitney has signed a two-year/$9 million contract with the Dallas Stars. The 40-year-old was outstanding last season with 24 goals and 77 points. He was 12th in the NHL in scoring and ninth in plus/minus at plus-26. It was the second best season of his long NHL career but you should expect closer to 60-65 points next season in Dallas.

The Phoenix Coyotes would like to have Ray Whitney back in the fold next season, but they appear to be hesitant on giving the 40-year-old winger a multi-year term. "Would we re-sign him? Absolutely, we'd re-sign him without question," Phoenix GM Don Maloney said. "Would we sign him for more than one year? Then we'd have to debate. What number would we sign him for? Then there's probably some debate." Whitney enjoyed a very productive 2011-12 campaign with 24 goals and 77 points in 82 games. If the price and term is right then the Coyotes will welcome him back; otherwise he might be permitted to test the waters on July 1.

Ray Whitney played with back, stomach and shoulder injuries in the Stanley Cup playoffs. No wonder he was mostly ineffective for the Coyotes of late as it takes a lot longer to recover from injuries at the age of 40 than it does his much younger teammates. Whitney was an offensive stud this season with 24 goals and 77 points in the regular season. He is an unrestricted free agent and if he does not re-sign with the Coyotes, then look for a big two-year contract for the veteran who will be healthy for the start of training camp.

Ray Whitney registered an assist in Phoenix's 2-0 victory Sunday. Whitney snapped his six-game pointless streak. He was a huge contributor for the Coyotes during the regular season, but his recent slump has hurt the Coyotes. They're just one game away from elimination in the Western Conference finals, so they need Whitney to step up in this series.

Ray Whitney and Radim Vrbata have been pointless in the Western Conference Final thus far. The streak for Whitney has reached six games, a huge drop off from the winger who led the Coyotes with 77 points including 24 goals in the regular season but has only two goals and six points in 14 playoff games. Vrbata has been even worse in the playoffs with only two goals and four points after potting 35 goals and 62 points in the regular season. Vrbata is also pointless in his last six and both will have to come alive to push the series back to Phoenix.

Ray Whitney has been held pointless in his last five postseason games. The Coyotes are down 2-0 to Los Angeles in the Western Conference Finals and need him to step up with their season hanging in the balance. He is projected to play with Antoine Vermette and Shane Doan in Game 3 on Thursday night. Whitney has generated two goals and four assists in 13 playoff contests after leading the team in scoring, with 77 points, during the regular season.

The Coyotes' top player this season is 40 years old, and Ray Whitney will need to keep up his success if Phoenix has any chance of upsetting the Los Angeles Kings in the Western Conference final, which begins tonight. Whitney played all 82 games for Phoenix and had 24 goals and 53 assists, a team-leading 77 points. People who follow the Coyotes feel Whitney has been the team's best player. "He's been an unbelievable player for us," Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said. "The thing that you've seen from him throughout his whole career, his skill, his knowledge of the game, the ways he affects the game, but the one thing that doesn't come across enough and you have to have the ability at his age to do, is his passion to play the game." Whitney has six points in 11 playoff games, including an important winner in overtime of Game 1 against Nashville in the conference semifinals. "He loves coming to the rink. He loves the competition," Tippett said. "I've seen a lot of players as they got older, they kind of lose some of that passion, and it's still alive and strong in Ray. He brings that attitude to the rink every day. It's a great example for our younger players."

The Western Conference final will begin Sunday, the NHL announced. The third-seeded Phoenix Coyotes will host the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Kings in a series that has been set since Monday. Phoenix will have waited six days for a game, while Los Angeles has had five days without any action. Game 2 will be played Tuesday, May 16. The Coyotes had three wins, two of which came after regulation (overtime/shootout), versus the Kings in six games during the regular season.