In the Pittsburgh/Vancouver game at 17:57 of the first period, video replay conclusively determined that the puck shot by Daniel Sedin did not entirely cross the goalline. The overhead angle was used to support the call on the ice by referee Brad Watson.

You have arrived at the Situation Room Blog -- the place you want to be every night of the 2011-12 season.

Starting tonight, NHL.com reports instantly from inside the League's Hockey Operations situation room in Toronto, where Hockey Ops reviews and decides disputed goals.

Plus, find out the "why" behind those calls. You get the NHL's official ruling first -- here at the Situation Room Blog.

WINNIPEG -- Crowds have flocked to The Forks, Winnipeg's downtown gathering spot along the banks of the Red River.

The 2011 Molson Canadian NHL Face-Off is the draw for the crowd, estimated to be anywhere between 30,000 and 50,000 fans, ready to mark the start of the 2011-12 NHL season -- and the return to the NHL to Winnipeg after a 15-year absence. The Jets play their first game against Montreal on Sunday.

Windy but sunny and unseasonably warm weather is providing a further lure to Winnipeggers ready to mark the city's return to the NHL via the Winnipeg Jets. The NHL Network, Canadian Tire, EA Sports, Molson Canadian, Reebok, Scotiabank, Visa and XM all have booths on site.

Also providing entertainment is local band Inward Eye. Later in the evening, platinum-selling rock band Three Days Grace will play before Bachman & Turner cap the evening.

Fans will also have a chance to meet Jets captain Andrew Ladd and teammates Zach Bogosian, Tanner Glass and Mark Stuart, along with CBC host George Stroumboulopoulos. Tonight's Montreal Canadiens-Toronto Maple Leafs game is set to air on giant video boards.

NHL Network analyst and former NHL goalie Kevin Weekes will be blogging for NHL.com throughout the 2011-12 season. Look for "Weekes on the Web" video and text blog entries Tuesday through Friday on NHL.com home page. You can also find an archive of Weekes on the Web here.

For my Opening Day blog, I went deep to name my "undercover" teams in each conference as the puck is about to drop on the regular season:

Eastern Conference

Buffalo is my undercover candidate in the Eastern Conference. Oh sure, you say, they spent all that money. But it is more than the money that new owner Terry Pegula has spent. I like the way this team was built this summer.

It is a high skills team that is good at transition, skating the puck or passing the puck out of the defensive zone. This team has a high level of hockey sense, especially adding Christian Ehrhoff to the blue line.

I think the Sabres still need a legitimate power forward to compete for a Cup, but they are more gritty now. There will be a willingness among the Sabres to play a physical game, particularly in the playoffs. When I talk about "gritty," I mean that willingness. There is not a lot of room on the ice to make plays in the postseason. That's why you see bottom-six forwards often succeed and raise their visibility among fans. Those third- and fourth-line guys are accustomed to making plays in traffic. Buffalo will be good in that respect this season.

And listen, Ryan Miller is the best in the business as a goalie. One important factor is he has a proven backup this season to keep him more rested for the playoff grind. Jhonas Enroth played some big games down the stretch for Buffalo last season. I like his game a lot.

The Sabres won't be undercover by April.

Western Conference

In the West, I'm going further off the grid. I like what St. Louis has assembled. They are my undercover team in the Western Conference. They have a ton of skill among the top-six forwards. Chris Stewart is going to be a star in this League; he will score 40 to 45 goals this year.

Add all-star David Backes and the Blues have a double threat at power forward. That will be a nightmare for opposing teams. I honestly think that was a big reason why Boston beat Vancouver for the Cup. The Canucks struggled to handle Nathan Horton and Milan Lucic on the same line. Add Jason Arnott for the Blues and those are some big bodies.

I like Alex Pietrangelo a lot. He is another player who is going to be a big star. St. Louis can make some big noise in the playoffs if Halak plays the way in goal that he did for Montreal during the 2009 postseason. If Halak plays that well, the Blues will be a scary team that no one in the West will want to face.

WINNIPEG -- Avoiding the opening night of NHL competition might be difficult in Winnipeg on Thursday evening.

The Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs will be play before a national audience on CBC's "Hockey Night In Canada." The Canadiens will visit the Jets on Sunday in Winnipeg's first NHL regular-season game since 1996.

Fans in Winnipeg will be able to watch the game on big screens at The Forks as part of the 2011 Molson Canadian NHL Face-Off on Thursday.

Jets coach Claude Noel was asked whether he would sit down with a bag of popcorn and take in the Canadiens-Maple Leafs game. Noel did not coach in the League last season, so the telecast will provide him with an early scouting report on his club's first opponent.

"I don't know about popcorn," Noel said, "but I'll watch the game tonight. Montreal, we play them, so we'll get a glimpse of what we'll be up against and go from there."

Replies from a number of Jets players varied as to whether, and how much, of Thursday's Montreal-Toronto contest they will sample.

Goaltender Ondrej Pavelec plans to take in the game at home. A quiet night at home might be the last calm that Pavelec is able to experience until Monday morning.

"(I'm) really excited," Pavelec said of Sunday's game. "It's going to be huge. It's going to be a really exciting night for us."

Still, Noel, Pavelec and the rest of the Jets all agreed that Sunday can't arrive quick enough.

"I can't wait for the season to start," Noel said.

WINNIPEG -- Hockey figures from all across the League are converging upon Winnipeg this weekend, and the Winnipeg Jets will have an addition to the roster, as well.

The Jets claimed left wing Brett MacLean on waivers Thursday morning from the Phoenix Coyotes. The Jets anticipate that the 22-year-old MacLean will arrive in Winnipeg on Thursday evening.

MacLean, who also can play right wing, was a 2007 second-round selection by the Coyotes. He scored 23 goals in 51 games with the AHL San Antonio Rampage, while also scoring 2 goals in 13 NHL games with the Coyotes.

"He is someone that our scouts have identified as maybe a guy who can break into the NHL on a full-time basis," Winnipeg General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff told media. "In this case, an opportunity to see what MacLean brings to our organization. Maybe he gives a little more depth in the organization."

To clear room on the Winnipeg roster, the Jets sent right wing Patrice Cormier to their American Hockey League affiliate, the St. John's IceCaps.

WINNIPEG -- Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff’s opportunities to reflect have been limited this summer.

Hired by the Jets on June 8, the former Chicago Blackhawks assistant general manager has spent his summer orchestrating the mammoth task of relocating an NHL club, reshaping its roster, hiring a new coaching staff and, of course, handling the many off-ice chores that come with moving from Chicago.

But Cheveldayoff took a moment Thursday to soak in the all-hockey environment that is Winnipeg this weekend, including its being the centerpiece of the 2011 Molson Canadian NHL Face-Off.

"All of the players here are enjoying the opportunity for change," Cheveldayoff said of his club's start in a new home. "They're embracing the enthusiasm in the building and the community. I think that like anyone, they're just excited to get started. It's a long journey, and this will be the first step for all of them."

Taking a long-term view while handling his club's day-to-day affairs does not afford Cheveldayoff the luxury of attaching additional significance to his club's season-opener Sunday against the Canadiens (4 p.m. ET, NHLN-US, CBC, RDS).

"I don't look at this game differently than I'm going to look at any game coming up," Cheveldayoff said. "As a manager, you look at the short-term ... but you also have to look at the long-term situation and see what plays itself out."

Still, even the all-business Cheveldayoff could not help but absorb the excitement in the city surrounding the Jets.

"(I am) very excited," he said. "Excited for the community, the Chipman family, for guys like (assistant GM) Craig Heisinger, who stuck in there for so long. For the city of Winnipeg, it's going to be a very special day."

WINNIPEG -- The Winnipeg Jets will be the final NHL club to make its 2011-12 debut.

The Jets are in the midst of a nine-day break that will end Sunday when they host the Montreal Canadiens (4 p.m. ET, NHLN-US, CBC, RDS) in the city’s first regular-season NHL game  in more than 15 years.

Coach Claude Noel’s club has not been in game competition since last Friday, when they lost a shootout to the visiting Nashville Predators. The club missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs last spring, so other than international competition and playoff time logged with other clubs, most of the Jets have not seen regular-season competition in nearly six months.

Left wing Tanner Glass is an exception among the group. Glass spent last season with the Vancouver Canucks and was in the lineup for the Stanley Cup Final Game 7 loss to the Boston Bruins.

Playing that late meant a shortened offseason but Glass, whose busy summer included signing with the Jets on July 1 and getting married, is ready to go.

"For me personally, I'd like to get it going," Glass said. "Even though it has been a short summer for me, the season is here. Right now, it feels like we should get going."

Whether the extended break is a benefit is a matter of debate. The delay does allow additional time to hammer out systems and team play for a young club adjusting to a new city and a new coach. The Canadiens already will have played a game by Sunday.

"It all depends on how you handle it, right?" defenseman Mark Stuart said of the time off. "If we don't put our work in practice, then they might have an advantage. If we do, then I think it's pretty even. We have a chance to get some good practice time. As long we do the right things, we'll be ready to go."

WINNIPEG -- The Winnipeg Jets wrapped practice Thursday with a light moment.

The team gathered at center ice to "practice" their fan salute. Like other NHL teams, the Jets have adopted the European tradition of paying tribute to their fans at the end of games.

Afterward, captain Andrew Ladd explained the salute was for use in the 2011 Molson Canadian NHL Face-Off later in the day.

"It's something that we did the first few games," Ladd said. "It's nice to give the crowd credit for being so supportive of us."