Pro players

An update on some of the former Mavericks in the pros: 

Tim Jackman (pictured, left) has been up with the New York Islanders for 29 games this season and has one goal, three assists and 46 PIM. ... David Backes has been on a roll of late. He has six goals, nine assists and 41 PIM in 38 games with the St. Louis Blues but has seven of those points in his last eight games, including a five-game scoring streak. Backes' MSU and Blues teammate Steve Wagner remains in the AHL in Peoria. ... The Anaheim Ducks' Ryan Carter has been skating regularly since being recalled in December. He has three assists and 23 PIM. On Wednesday, he won eight of 13 faceoffs and played more than 12 minutes. ... Grant Stevenson  has yet to play for the Calgary Flames but this week was named the AHL's player of the week. Playing for Quad City Stevenson ranks sixth in "the A"in overall scoring and is fourth with 22 goals. ... Travis Morin, meanwhile, scored a goal in the ECHL All-Star Game Wednesday. Morin, playing for South Carolina, is tied for eighth in the league scoring race with 43 points.

The Western College Hockey blog ran a transcript of an All-Star week interview with Morin. Here's a taste: On playing for coach Troy Jutting at MSU: "The thing that I had to learn the most was that I had to compete all the time. I probably didn't do that early in my college career and (Jutting would) say it. It's just something that you learn as you get a little bit older. You learn patience and when you have to choose your times. You've got to come to play every day because you never know what tomorrow holds."

Meanwhile, reporters in St. Louis are finding out, as I did over three years, that you can always go to Backes for a good quote. He told columnist Dan O'Neill this week that his ultimate golf foursome would include Albert Einstein, Babe Ruth and, uh, Jessica Simpson. "She can have some un-witty one-liners and she can just sit in the cart for all I care," Backes said.