Not to rain on anyone's parade but I could care less if it is over. Screw the owners- they overpaid players to begin with My very own Ted Leonsis being one of the main culprits. Then he had nerve to complain about the outrageous salaries and a "flawed" business model. NO ONE MADE HIM PUT A GUN TO HIS HEAD WHEN HE SIGNED JAGR for $10mil per year. Screw the players- they kept jerking around. They should have taken the deal that the owners offered back in the winter. They gained zippy and lost everything. Just like I did for MLB for a couple seasons. I'M NOT GOING BACK. AT LEAST NOT NEXT SEASON. I'M PISSED. I LEARNED TO LIVE WITHOUT THE NHL. WAY TO RUIN IT FOR ME... I WON'T WATCH YOUR GAMES. I WON'T GO SEE THE CAPS PLAY. You did what you "HAD TO DO", so I'm going to do WHAT I HAVE TO DO. I hope that the rest of you enjoy having the league back...
Today is a truly beautiful day. Hockey is on the way back, finally! Now come on Oilers and bring E-Town another Cup!!!!!!
Agree on the amount of interesting stuff that we have to look forward. On the draft thing, I didn't realize that Philly had any chance. When did they switch to this format. I thought it was a weighted lottery based on the last regular season standings with only the bottom few teams having a shot at first. Then again its not like I've been following all the NHL news during the long dark winter. Glad to hear that it is almost time for me to finally wear some of the Flyers gear I got for a song last Xmas.
The lottery format was just announced today as well, I assume after lengthy consultation among the GMs. Each team starts with 3 balls. Each playoff appearance in last 3 yrs = lose 1 ball. Minus 1 ball for any #1 pick in last 4 years (FLA's pick traded counts vs. FLA). Minimum 1 ball per team. 7 round snake draft. I wanna know what happens to all the 8th and 9th round picks that were traded during last year's draft, since the draft is now 7 rounds in length.
Let's go Flyers! *Clap clap clapclapclap* Let's go Flyers! *Clap clap clapclapclap* Let's go Flyers! *Clap clap clapclapclap*
Well Domi is a cheap shot artist and I'm not defending his actions... I hate fighting and the goon culture that hockey has promoted for so long. It is easier to like him though when he's on your team than not. On the other hand, Domi also didnt just give the middle finger to NHL fans in the condescending way that Roenick did... And while Roenick will never admit it, we also know that Domi wasnt responsible for trashing his room at the 1998 Nagano Olympics like an unidentified (read Chelios and Roenick) American player... of course, if Domi ever got invited to represent Canada at the Olympics, I'd have to start cheering for Sweden
I'm so glad this is finally over. Go Devils. What do you guys think about all the proposed rule changes? Personally I would like to see the rinks be bigger, smaller goalie equipment and the elimination of the red line. I just hope the don't make ties be broken by shootouts.
This offseason will be wild. The Bruins have three players officially under contract, only one of which (Patrice Bergeron) played in their playoff series against Montreal in '04. They, along with teams like the Isles, set themselves up for the work stoppage accordingly. Other teams (Detroit, Colorado, Dallas) are going to have to trim some payroll.
Well, Ewing was before my time, so I can't speak to that, but in all honesty, do you really think that any team would have been NEARLY as bad as the Rangers if they'd played the cancelled season? The Rangers finally went to rebuild. They had Holik, Jagr and a bunch of mid-level prospects left for last season. Nobody else would have been nearly as bad. If the league does fix it, I'd think it would land Crosby in Edmonton. With all the "Next Gretzky" stuff, Edmonton would be a headline writing machine for Crosby. It would also put some focus and media attention on one of the Canadian teams (many of which were struggling pre-lockout). If it's based on who would likely have had the real number one pick this year, he would go to the Rangers. If it's based on what's best for the marketing of the league, he would go to Edmonton. If it's really a weighted drawing, who the ******** knows (just as long as it's not Philadelphia).
La la la la la la la La la la la la la la La la la la la la la THE RANGERS SUCK!!!!!! The continuous drive for five continues!
I'm not a fan AT ALL of the shootout. They are already talking about something like 4v4 for 8 minutes, then 3v3 for 5 minutes, then going to the shootout. I say play 3v3 until there's a winner. I like taking out the red line, tag-up offsides, and no-touch icing. Most of these are already implemented in international or NCAA hockey, so it won't be too hard to incorporate them into the NHL. I say "no go" on the bigger nets. Players have practiced for years and years on the standard net and I think it would take a long time to get used to a different shape and size. I don't have a problem with reducing the size of the goalies' equipment, though.
Actually, for marketing the game and the league, it would be better to have him in the largest media market in the country, New York. As for the proposed rule changes: the 3 on 3 idea is ludicrous, I hate the idea of shootouts, smaller goalie pads are a must, but, above all, they've got to start by actually calling obstruction in the neutral zone. No more of this "call it only in the first half of the season and then ease up so that by the playoffs guys are getting tackled and no penalty is called" crap.
Yeah, Slats went nuts and pretty much got rid of the players I would've like to have kept and kept the players I wanted to get rid of. Tom Poti and Mike Dunham being my top two choices. But after the firesale that saw Nedved, Kovalev, LEETCH!, and others, I couldn't name you the first line let alone the fourth. It was almost a complete turnover. And yes, we would've sucked a huge amount of suck that season. As well as the pads, I think they need to regulate the sticks that players are using these days. The complaint about limiting goaltender's equipment was that the sticks like the graphite ones they're using adds more speed to the puck and that the goalies are merely protecting themselves. So I don't know, you limit the size of goalies pads and then maybe you allow only wooden sticks or metal shafts to be used. As for the obstruction; didn't the league want refs to call more of that and when they did, they complained that there were too many stoppages because so many penalties were being called? I could be thinking of something else maybe, not sure. So anyway, what does all this mean? I know a lot of players have gone overseas to play, so does that mean they're no longer obligated to their former NHL club? Or even players that didn't go overseas; do they still have a contract with their club?
With the pads, it's not a question of thickness (which provides protection) but width. Guys are using W-I-D-E pads, and guys like Giguere are compunding the problem by wearing no suspenders and letting his pants ride so low that the 5 hole was practically gone. I think you may be right on the obstruction calls, though. People will just have to get used to more penalties....