the hockey thread

[Jaimoe]

No score early in the 2nd in a spirited battle for World Jr. bronze between the US and Sweden. Canada vs the upstart Russkies tonight. Pretty solid tournament this year, game-by-game competetive wise (between the real teams).

[.Walt]

But our Tampa team is relativly strong depite the work stoppage coming right after we won the cup.  That team seemed poised for a great run and Vinny was about to explode - then nothing.  Despite that the fans have hung in there fairly well in a big building and we're getting rewarded this year.  A 1 - 0 overtime win against the caps in your first game with the team while still wearing an Islanders lid Rolo?  You've got to be kidding me.

Rollie the Goalie!! Much love for Rollie! I love the guy while in Minny. Tampa is a fun team to watch. I'd rank my top 5 teams to watch...Hawks, Canucks, Pens, Caps, and Tampa.

[.Walt]

It's disgusting that Canadian teams, even Vancouver, get shunned for this annual game. However, I understand why (ratings, Gary Bettman, the non-lucrative but high profile deal with NBC). Why can't one Canuck team such as the Leafs or Habs play the Rangers? Van wouldn't work as a host since it never gets cold enough to make outdoor ice in the city and surrounding area.

I get why the WC doesn't involve a Canadian team. I get why Minnesota doesn't get one too. I don't have a problem with it. I'd love to see a Habs or a Buds game, but it doesn't make sense. In order to make hockey a nation wide sport and get out of being a niche sport in the US the NHL needs to do this. LA has gotten a resurgence lately, and the time to act is now. Canada will always be there. That won't change, but I don't think it's a slap in the face of the most loyal fanbase.  I think the Winter Classic should be American teams vs American teams, and the Heritage Classic should be Canada teams.  What's good for the game is good for Canada.

[Jaimoe]

It's disgusting that Canadian teams, even Vancouver, get shunned for this annual game. However, I understand why (ratings, Gary Bettman, the non-lucrative but high profile deal with NBC). Why can't one Canuck team such as the Leafs or Habs play the Rangers? Van wouldn't work as a host since it never gets cold enough to make outdoor ice in the city and surrounding area.

I get why the WC doesn't involve a Canadian team. I get why Minnesota doesn't get one too. I don't have a problem with it. I'd love to see a Habs or a Buds game, but it doesn't make sense. In order to make hockey a nation wide sport and get out of being a niche sport in the US the NHL needs to do this. LA has gotten a resurgence lately, and the time to act is now. Canada will always be there. That won't change, but I don't think it's a slap in the face of the most loyal fanbase.  I think the Winter Classic should be American teams vs American teams, and the Heritage Classic should be Canada teams.  What's good for the game is good for Canada.

I think NBC and the NHL's pandering to the miniscule US market will do damage at some point when it comes to playoff time. When and if a Canadian team makes it into the playoffs and faces a marquee American team, NBC may be forced to show a game or two in the series. Will fringe fans tune out having no history with said Canuck franchise? I think so. Anyway, I know why the WC is now US based. At least in Canada, it's looked at as just another game, albeit a bit of a novelty.

Canada's collapse in last night's World Jr. final was biggest in the tournament's history. Giving up 5 goals in the 3rd on 10 shots overall is inexcusable. However, Canada played tight from the start and thought they had it won going into the 3rd, with a 3-0 lead. The Russians wanted it more - Canada looked nothing like the team that rolled over the Yanks in the semis. In fact, we played like the Yanks did in the semis.

[capt. scotty]

Of course seeing the Pens win 8-1 was good on its own, but damn the new arena is pretty spectacular. We were on the blue line about 10 rows from the worst seats in the house, and it felt like we were right on top of the ice.

We got to see a great penalty shot from Stamkos as well  ;D

Steve Stamkos Fails Miserably During Penalty Shot Attempt

[bowl of soup]

I spoke too soon.  Worst Lightning outing of the year.  They were slow and sluggish last night and just got spanked.  Rollo needs to put away that horrible generic Lightning mask and put his Islanders lid back on.  It's a shame that the casual sports fan is only going to know Stamkos because of that silly play - he's a great, great player.

[Jaimoe]

I spoke too soon.  Worst Lightning outing of the year.  They were slow and sluggish last night and just got spanked.  Rollo needs to put away that horrible generic Lightning mask and put his Islanders lid back on.  It's a shame that the casual sports fan is only going to know Stamkos because of that silly play - he's a great, great player.

A few years ago my friend met Martin St. Louis at the Rocket Richard movie premiere. He said to Marty: "TB is a good bad team". Well, Marty didn't like hearing that (I actually fed my friend that line). Anyway, I think they still are a good bad team.

[.Walt]

Finally got to watch the rest of the Pens Caps 24-7, and the last two episodes were great to watch. I hope they do it again. Loved it!

[bowl of soup]

I spoke too soon.  Worst Lightning outing of the year.  They were slow and sluggish last night and just got spanked.  Rollo needs to put away that horrible generic Lightning mask and put his Islanders lid back on.  It's a shame that the casual sports fan is only going to know Stamkos because of that silly play - he's a great, great player.

A few years ago my friend met Martin St. Louis at the Rocket Richard movie premiere. He said to Marty: "TB is a good bad team". Well, Marty didn't like hearing that (I actually fed my friend that line). Anyway, I think they still are a good bad team.

What's a good bad team?  Marty never seemed like much of a happy-go-lucky kind of guy and I'm surprised that he didn't punch your friend in his face.  We were more good than bad last night.

[capt. scotty]

I spoke too soon.  Worst Lightning outing of the year.  They were slow and sluggish last night and just got spanked.  Rollo needs to put away that horrible generic Lightning mask and put his Islanders lid back on.  It's a shame that the casual sports fan is only going to know Stamkos because of that silly play - he's a great, great player.

A few years ago my friend met Martin St. Louis at the Rocket Richard movie premiere. He said to Marty: "TB is a good bad team". Well, Marty didn't like hearing that (I actually fed my friend that line). Anyway, I think they still are a good bad team.

What's a good bad team?  Marty never seemed like much of a happy-go-lucky kind of guy and I'm surprised that he didn't punch your friend in his face.  We were more good than bad last night.

Id say usually a good bad team is a team with talent that doesnt play up to their skill level...Im not sure how much Id call Tampa a good bad team though. Theyve had a ton of offensive talent the entire decade, but have never had an above average goalie and their D has been pretty poor since their cup run.

[.Walt]

I went to the MN State vs Denver game on Saturday. What a let down. We were up 3-1 going into the 3rd but we gave up a couple quick chessy goals. Ended up losing 21 seconds into OT. I gotta say though that we played pretty good, and should have won (we tied 4-4 the first night). Denver is 6th in the nation and we played really well for 2 periods. That's our problem we let up in the 3rd. I'm happy that we swept the U of MN this year for the first time (I think).  We aren't bad, but in the WCHA we're horrible. Overall it was good to spend time with my mom and dad, go out to eat, drink some brews, and watch some hockey...great time regardless of the score

On a side note...I when to my roommates game tonight...they lost 5-1. The team is full of my friends. They have a big tournament in March and I'm the coach. It sucked that they can't check, so there goes the forecheck. I'm dressing up for the part. I was watching an interview with Patrick Kane, and he said that he plays summer hockey with his friends and one of them wheres a suit. So that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to the theft store tomorrow to buy a $5 suit and wear it. They played like shit. It's going to be hard to yell at them since I never played, but I know enough to yell at them, and that's what they need. 

[capt. scotty]

Tell your boy Patty Kane he needs to step his game up!!..My team blows, Ive been in the cellar for probably the last 6 weeks...I think its mostly because my goalies suck though (Vokoun, Neuvirth, Boucher, Steve Mason)

[.Walt]

Tell your boy Patty Kane he needs to step his game up!!..My team blows, Ive been in the cellar for probably the last 6 weeks...I think its mostly because my goalies suck though (Vokoun, Neuvirth, Boucher, Steve Mason)

Yeah, I was wondering how your team was doing. Kane isn't doing bad, not great, but decent. I'm really regretting drafting 40% Blackhawks. I'm 4 games back in my division. But goalies aren't worth that much in my league, so I'm rolling with just two. Crawford and Quick. The fucking Kings are pissing me off.

What do you use for your categories?
Skaters: G, A, +/-, SHP, GWG, SOG, PPP, PIM
Goalies: W, L, SV%, GAA, SO
It doesn't pay to start a bunch of shitty goalies in my league. We have a min. starts at 3, but I wish we had something else to encourage starting goalies like Minutes or saves. If If I get a shutout, I bench them after my third start.

[capt. scotty]

We used to play GWG and SHP points when they league started but took them out after a year. I kind of agree with it, because if you got just 1 SHP you usually won that category, and GWG were totally fluky and didnt seem equate with how good a player is (although you could say PIMs do the same thing. We also took out losses because it amounted to basically an extra point for whichever team already won for wins.

We have the min 3 starts as well, and I try to employ strategy with that, but usually it doesnt work (like this week, in 3 starts I have a pretty good 2.32 GAA and .922 SV%, but my opponent has a 1.89 GAA and .945 SV% and a shutout - though only 2 starts)..Youre almost screwed whether you start em all or only 3. Plus, youre basically giving away the wins category but only starting 3. Hopefully Vokoun gives me a nice game tonight, then I might stand pat and bench my goalies over the weekend if I can overtake the GAA and SV%

[.Walt]

We used to play GWG and SHP points when they league started but took them out after a year. I kind of agree with it, because if you got just 1 SHP you usually won that category, and GWG were totally fluky and didnt seem equate with how good a player is (although you could say PIMs do the same thing.

I kinda agree. I don't mind having one fluky category, but I don't like having 2 fluky categories. One is enough.  And I totally agree that it doesn't seem to show how good a player really is. It rewards average to below average players. I doubt I'll be able to get the commish to change anything though.

[capt. scotty]

I thought the fantasy draft for the all star game last night was pretty good for a first attempt and entertaining, although that announcer guy got progressively worse and it felt like I was watching Ben Stiller reaching with terrible jokes towards the end.

How the game pans out should be interesting. I think the goalies are pretty even, I think Lidstrom's team definitely has better D for a game like this. Its alarming how different the forwards are for each team. Staal's team clearly has the best goal scorers with arguably the 10 best scorers except for Stamkos, but Lidstrom's team has the vast majority of the best set up guys, and in a open game like this with so much talent on the ice, I think Id favor Team Lidstrom because of that. Considering all the politics Staal had to deal with by drafting both Canes (and Ward #1 overall) and his brother (probably the worst Dmen of the bunch for an all star game), his team is pretty strong.

Nice mindgames by Kane to allow Toews to slide a bit and his team pick him (and I thought Toews was actually pissed every Blackhawk + Byfuglien was picked before him)..I also thought Giroux and Perry were great late picks for Staal's team and really rounded it out well. Briere seemed like the biggest reach of any pick.

[Jaimoe]

The NHL game is unwatchable, but it's still 100 times better than the Pro Bowl. The best all-star game of them all is the CHL's Prospects Game, which has the best non-drafted players play a one-off. It's a no-holds-barred affair since all the players can move up or down in their NHL draft rankings. Fights and big hits are common. The matchup is East vs West with Team (Don) Cherry vs Team (Bobby) Orr. 

I thought the draft format was pretty entertaining. I'm assuming you are singling out TSN announcer/host James Duthie? I thought he did a fairly good job in a kangaroo-like court setting. He's an excellent all-round sport anchor/host on most days. His football and normal TSN hockey work is stellar. Pierre drove me nuts last night, but this isn't a rare thing.

[capt. scotty]

The NHL all star game is light years better than the NFL Pro Bowl (I see you just edited that in), and I like it much more than the NBA's game as well (they dont play D in the regular season anyway, not much different to see there).

The NHL and MLB are definitely my 2 favorite all star games, and baseball is my least favorite of the 4 sports probably. The MLB game actually has something on the line, so naturally that gives it an advantage. Just because the NHL all star game isnt "real hockey" because it doesnt have hitting and much defense, I think its a fun watch and a nice change of pace.

[Jaimoe]

The NHL all star game is light years better than the NFL Pro Bowl (I see you just edited that in), and I like it much more than the NBA's game as well (they dont play D in the regular season anyway, not much different to see there).

The NHL and MLB are definitely my 2 favorite all star games, and baseball is my least favorite of the 4 sports probably. The MLB game actually has something on the line, so naturally that gives it an advantage. Just because the NHL all star game isnt "real hockey" because it doesnt have hitting and much defense, I think its a fun watch and a nice change of pace.

Not sure if you read my response to your second-last post?  Anyway, I don't mind the MLB All-Star game, other than the offensive and disgraceful decision by the host network to no longer show the Canadian anthem.

A really good sort-of all-star hockey game is the annual (I think it's annual) NCAA all-stars vs CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) all-stars (the best players in Canadian university hockey). The games are a lot closer than you'd expect. The CIS is loaded with ex-CHL players that want to continue their careers while receiving a great education (many are late-bloomers) - and a few are ex-NHLers. Mike Danton (infamous NHLer from the Blues/Devils that was charged and jailed for trying to kill his old coach) was a star for St. Mary's Huskies (university in Halifax) this season and they won the national championship last season with Danton leading the way (he's now an Academic All-Canadian; weird story eh). It's often overlooked, but some CIS players make it to the NHL and lots are in the AHL.

[.Walt]

Sorry so late, but I wanted to add to the All-star game discussion.

I watched everything except most of the game. I have to say that I thought the draft was awesome and the highlight of the weekend! I watched it twice. The guy from TSN was funny and did a great job. The players were funny. Toews looked genuinely pissed  haha! Great idea, and I'll watch it again next year.


Over the weekend I laced up the skates, and hit the ice for the first time in a while. Great time, and I didn't fall once!