In the interim, we'll probably change our lines around a little bit. There's no way we're going to replace him over the weekend. How we replace him, we're unsure at this time. We don't know if maybe we can get somebody who's in Europe now and wants to come back (to North America), or maybe we make a trade to acquire an offensive forward.

I'm very disappointed. We made the commitment to Mark in the summer when he signed on board. He told me personally (Thursday) that it had nothing to do with the team, the players on the team or the coach. He just felt this was an opportunity he could not refuse and he was going to take it.

Nothing's out of the realm of possibility right now.

It's better than (learning) right off the bat he's done for the year. We're hoping they don't find any more (damage) and that he'll be back playing soon.

That's about as odd as it gets. It's off the wall. It's a worst-case scenario for the prosecution. It's going to be very difficult for the prosecution to argue that it's not a problem.

We righted the ship and then Smith pulls his stunt and leaves us. We've just got to keep plugging away.

I think we're OK. We're going to look at bringing some kids in.

He'll bring a good work ethic and a great attitude to the team. He'll have an impact.