(Photo: Getty) Tim Thomas, Zdeno Chara and company are eager to get back on the ice and defend the Cup

As if anyone needs a reminder, hockey season really is just around the corner. Oct 6th can’t come soon enough!

That said, there is less than 24 hours until vetrans report for training camp and less than 48 hours until the Bruins’ first day of practice at TD Garden — with two practices at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Let’s get right to the links from the Internets, shall we?

News from The Hub

Brad Marchand’s maturity in the Bruins’ organization helped make this a win/win situation for both sides (Matt Kalman, The Bruins Blog)

Jesse Connolly has his outlook for the 2011-12 Bruins over at New England Hockey Journal

Another story on former Montreal Canadien and how he is happy to be on the other side of the Bruins-Habs rivalry from James Murphy at ESPN Boston.

Find out which Bruins rookies have a good chance at making the big squad from Doug Flynn at NESN.com

Ladies and gentlemen, your new ice girls for the 2011-12 season (again from NESN)

League news

The NHL is implementing its own social media policy for players and personel, which includes a social media blackout window before, during and after each game (similar to the NFL and NBA) for the upcoming season. Jordan Shifman from CBC Sports was the first to break this story Wednesday night.

Bob Hunter from The Columbus Dispatch discusses why its key for the Blue Jackets to stay in the capital of Ohio on Blue Jackets Extra.

CTV’s Habs correspondent Apron Basu says the team needs defenseman Andrei Markov to be healthy in April and more in his Daily Hab-it column.

John Tavares officially signed his new six-year contract extension worth $33 million. (Brian Compton, NHL.com)

Last but not least, Ducks forward Teemu Selanne announced that he will be lacing up the skates once again for the 2011-12 season — his 19th in the league and 13th with Anaheim — on the team’s official website (clip also embedded below)