I'd like to play like Joe Thornton does right now. I try to mold my game around his. If you say four years, three years down the road, if I could be where he is, then I'd be pretty happy.

It was a treat to play with Mike two years ago in the All-Star Game, and it's great to have him here. He's so quick, and he's such a great player. It adds a little bit more to the story than just him being a local guy.

All the signs were right. And when I mean all the sings were right, the only signs that we care about when we start a project of making a record is, do we have the songs - it's that simple.

These represent a major expansion of this notion of right of refusal. You're seeing it broadening to many types of workers — even into the world of social workers — and for any service for which you have a moral or religious belief.

They didn't throw me on one of the top lines, but they didn't keep me out as a healthy scratch, either. I think Dave King and Doug were using me well, and I think it was good development for me. I couldn't think of a better team to come to for a young guy than Columbus. You aren't just going to jump in and be a star player at 18. It's tough to be a star in the NHL. I just fit in and played my role on the third line, and just kind of hit and chipped in with a goal here or there when I could.

[A Calder Trophy finalist last season, Nash hopes that his new bulk will enable him to muscle in goals around the net and do anything else to help turn around a team that limped to a Western Conference-worst 69 points. Columbus lost its top point-scorer when former captain Ray Whitney signed with Detroit, but his exit opened a spot for Nash on the second line. He will skate alongside speedy center Todd Marchant, who had career highs in goals (20) and assists (40) with Edmonton last year.] It's an honor to play with him, ... I grew up watching him and pretending I was him.