193 replies to this topic

[nasero]

Its kind of cute that Cam Ward has more goals this year than Scott Gomez. Good ole Montrelol.

[levitynyc]

The winter classic yesterday was incredible.

The officiating in the 3rd period was disgusting.

McDonough got pushed into his own net and was called for delay of game.

Gaborik was hooked on a 1on1 and there was no call.

Callahan was shooting for the empty net and got hooked in the neck and somehow got a penalty.

I'm glad torts stood up and said something.

The penalty shot call was close, but the officials and NBC definitely wanted OT.

[KnightAttack]

The winter classic yesterday was incredible.

The officiating in the 3rd period was disgusting.

McDonough got pushed into his own net and was called for delay of game.

Gaborik was hooked on a 1on1 and there was no call.

Callahan was shooting for the empty net and got hooked in the neck and somehow got a penalty.

I'm glad torts stood up and said something.

The penalty shot call was close, but the officials and NBC definitely wanted OT.

Eh, Callahan embellished that a bit. He put the stick around his neck. He could have got the shot away, but chose not to.

The rest, I agree with.

At the same time, Winnipeg is playing awesome. Big month ahead.

[levitynyc]

If you know anything about Ryan Callahan is that he'd be the last person in the NHL to embellish a penalty. He grabbed the stick to pull it away from his neck

[KnightAttack]

If you know anything about Ryan Callahan is that he'd be the last person in the NHL to embellish a penalty. He grabbed the stick to pull it away from his neck

IT WASN'T ON HIS NECK TO BEGIN WITH. It was on his arm. He moved it up to his neck. Go back and watch that play again.

[Reivax]

I like Callahan, but it honestly looked like he embellished it. Even if he didn't mean to, it really looked like it. Rangers got a break at the end when the whistle was blown when Henrik had zero control of the puck. The ref standing behind the net blew the whistle, but he had no clue where it was. From his angle it probably seemed like Lundqvist had it under his pad. It was a free puck and the flyers had control with a downed goalie. I think if there were such a conspiracy the play would have continued. The penalty shot probably wouldn't have been called under most circumstances, though.

[nasero]

Bruins domination, thats all I have to say.

[KnightAttack]

Start Rant -

Spoiler

Dear NHLPA,

WHAT THE FUCK. You blocked the movement to 4 divisions, why? For no good reason. They won't say, but rumor has it apparently it's over some bullshit about some guys thinking it's not "fair" to have two divisions with 8 and two divisions with 7. Well guess what? BOO FUCKING HOO. It's not going to affect most of the teams, and easily could have been figured out via a cross over, but instead of offering something reasonable, they instead fucked up this great proposal where everybody would play everybody! This is the stupid, most ridiculous thing I've ever heard.

Fuck you and your selfishness, I hope you get move severely screwed in the next labour negotiations because it's coming fast and fierce, and pissing off the owners isn't going to help your case. This is some low class bullshit, and I hope once again the owners bend you over the table, and really make you feel it. Donald Fehr can't save you, because the NHL needs tougher regulations than what it's at. You've completely lost my support, and I hope this ruins more support for you. I can live without hockey for another year if that is what it takes.

/End Rant.





- Also, I think they Jets might get beat by 8 years olds right now. Wow they are playing awful.

[Ondore]

So the Penguins have the following injuries:

Crosby (Concussion symptoms)
Letang (Concussion)
Staal (knee)
Neal (broken foot in practice today)
Adams (knee)
Jeffrey (knee)
Asham (used to be an enforcer; took a puck to the knee)

All but Staal (4-6 weeks) out indefinitely. PLAYOFFS???

[levitynyc]

That collision with Rupp looked entirely accidental

[KnightAttack]

My #1 Fantasy team (where I'm currently in 2nd place, although technically 3rd because we're separated into 2 divisions, and I'm second in my division, but only 4 games back right now at a record of 84-40-6), is taking a beating right now. Carter, Sharp, Marchand and Byfuglien are all out (3 hurt, one suspended), so this could be a rough week. Hopefully Big Buff is back soon.

[Reivax]

I'm also leading my one pool with friends with a 93-52-11 record. I'm doing pretty good with offence and little injuries, but my goalies are struggling to play well. I bet big picking up Bryzgalov and that's not paid off at all. My other pool with online buddies, I'm in second place. Have been in first or second all year, but have lost a few weeks recently due to a tiebreaker not going in my favour. I'm also in one more pool where you pick players from categories at the beginning of the year and you just accumulate the points on the year based on your picks and I'm in 6th place of 212 people. I've been steadily moving up and the top 5 get the money, so I'm excited about that one in particular.

I love me some hockey pools.

[KnightAttack]

that was a horrible, horrible, horrible reffing

[nasero]

Terrible calls in the last couple of Bruins games. This game had bad calls on both sides.

[KnightAttack]

Terrible calls in the last couple of Bruins games. This game had bad calls on both sides.

Oh I'm not disagreeing with that. It was just awful.

[levitynyc]

Rangers came away with a nice win tonight. Mike Smith for the Coyotes played amazing including a ridiculous save on Gaborik on a penalty shot in OT.

I bet the Lightning wish they still had him in net.

Edited by levitynyc, 10 January 2012 - 11:47 PM.

[nasero]

I bet the Lightning wish they had many things, like defense.... and goaltending.

[KnightAttack]

I bet the Lightning wish they had many things, like defense.... and goaltending.

I hope Winnipeg unloads some of their D soon. I want Mark Flood playing all the time. I think he's a much better defencemen then he's getting credit for, and I'd gladly see Hainsey (although with his contract, it's unlikely) or Jones sent packing.

[KnightAttack]

So, first the first time since April of 1996, I saw an NHL hockey game live.


It was awesome. My Dad and I went, managing to get tickets through the Fan Exchange (which is no easy feat because as soon as they go up, they're gone again). These tickets were 7 levels off the ice, in the "Premium" Section. Waitresses served us food and alcohol right to our seat. Our seating was below the "Budweiser Lounge", so we could get up and move around in there between periods. Our section had its own private bathrooms (so the lines were much, MUCH shorter than the outside), and even cooler was some of the people around us. In the row behind was a local businessman with his annoying commercials that EVERYBODY here knows, but much more cool was seeing seeing one row above and just across the stairs was Barry Shenkarow. For those less informed, 6 years ago if I would've seen him, I probably would have punched him, but I've realized a lot since then. You see, Shenkarow was the last owner of the original Jets franchise. It was good to see him there supporting the team.

For these "Premium" Seats, the ticket costs were $169.99 plus taxes and whatever else they charged, rounding out to be a little shy of $400 for the two of us. However, seeing the Jets beat the Sabres as well? Amazing.


Even better, My name got drawn in the Ticket Lottery for February, so I'm going to get to go again then too!

[Ondore]

Man, 7th row with that service? Amazing.

I had 2nd row for a Devils/Oilers game in Edmonton a few years back (got to see Brodeur in his last good year, 06-07), but I was in among the plebes.

[KnightAttack]

Man, 7th row with that service? Amazing.

I had 2nd row for a Devils/Oilers game in Edmonton a few years back (got to see Brodeur in his last good year, 06-07), but I was in among the plebes.

As I said, we were in the Premium Section. We were behind the Jets Goal for the first and third periods, and the entire section got that treatment. It was just awesome though. I can't wait to go back (although I doubt it'll be in the same section). Aiming for the Bruins vs Jets rematch.

[KnightAttack]

New Tickets acquired for the February 27th Game vs the Oilers. Sadly, I'm in the UpperDeck this time, although it's suppose to be the most rowdy. The better part is it's the away teams side for the 1st and 3rd, so hopefully I'll see lots of action this time.

[levitynyc]

Great Rangers win today. Love this team.... except Brian Boyle

[KnightAttack]

Jets need to find a way to win more. I was happy to see them come back, but man, they need to win those shootouts.

[Ondore]

Wings/Leafs at Michigan's Big House next January 1.

I might have to kill someone to get to this game, and there isn't a jury on the planet that would convict me for it.

[levitynyc]

I was expecting Wings / Blackhawks...Oh well....its gonna be awesome. I can see 100+ thousand packing that stadium

[KnightAttack]

I was expecting Wings / Blackhawks...Oh well....its gonna be awesome. I can see 100+ thousand packing that stadium

That would have been much more enjoyable.

Because y'know, Leafs suck.


I guess it's kinda cool having an outdoor game, but I have no interest whatsoever in attending one....even if one comes to Winnipeg (which is apparently being looked at). As far as I'm concerned, you are way, WAY too far from the ice. It's ridiculous.

[levitynyc]

Best team in the East....by FAR

[KnightAttack]

Best team in the East....by FAR

Best team by Far? No. Best team currently? Yes.

But there's a handful of teams in the West I'd put ahead of them as well.

Edited by KnightAttack, 14 February 2012 - 11:02 PM.

[KnightAttack]

So, I'm not sure how many people care, but I've been watching the chatter about the Coyotes for...forever. I'm always interested to see what people think will happen.

Everyone seems to think the most logical choice is Quebec, but really, I don't see that happening until an Arena gets built. Quebec keeps talking about it, but they've been talking since before True North started building the MTS Centre.


Anyways, a couple of interesting developments for those who care:

Glendale recently had a study done on the cost of keeping the arena open year-round without a "major" tenant there. Oddly (or...I'm not exactly sure what), they found that the cost would be $25 million dollars (the same amount of money they are paying to keep the Coyotes their currently. Some people think this means that keeping a Phoenix only seems natural then, but really, what good businessman wants to own a team that's still losing at least another $15 million a year (that was last years number) in a market that just isn't supporting it?


However, the more interesting development I think is coming out of Seattle. Seattle's wanted an NHL hockey team since....well....at least the early 90s, but really hasn't had the stadium to support a team. there is a hockey market there, as it's not super far away from Canada, and their is a WHL franchise there. But Seattle's current facilities are not up to current standards. Their current arena sits only 11,000 (which keep in mind, is still bigger then the Colisee, Quebec City's current arena), which is too small to make a go of a team without incredibly high ticket prices.

Seattle's savior in this mess however, could be more a team of men. Chris Hansen, is a billionaire hedge-fund operator, who has recently agreed to put up $290 million dollars into a new, state of the art facility in Seattle, with the local government kicking in an extra $200million, that will be paid back through arena fees. Hansen however has no interest in owning any sports teams, which seems a little odd for wanting to build a faculty. But for this rink to work and make a profit, Seattle believes they will need at least 2 tenants to make the rink a go. For this, they are looking at both the NBA and NHL to come.

For those not familiar with Seattle sports, Seattle lost the Supersonics a few years ago over this very subject. A new arena was needed, but nobody wanted to put the money up at the time. The NBA reluctantly left Seattle, but has wanted back in the market pretty much since it's left.

So, what about the hockey operations? The current owner of the Chicago Wolves, Don Levin, has been interested in purchasing a NHL team, but has no interest in building an arena (mostly because he said it himself, he doesn't have that much money). An ideal fit? This could really be happening. Bettman and Stern are well-known friends, and their are currently several NBA teams struggling to make a go of it. There was also at one time rumors of a possible NBA expansion, but I think that's more or less on hold.



Anyways, I think it's rather interesting to see what will happen in the next little while.

[KnightAttack]

First time for the Jets this year winning back to back games (10th Try this year). And it was over the Bruins. Love it.

Glad to see the Jets finally scoring as well. Gives some hope for the Future. We should have at least 3 - 20 Goal Scorers, and maybe even a 4th at some point hopefully. Hey, for a team that everyone said had "no scoring" this is a somewhat big deal.

[nasero]

Seattle would be a cool location. I'd like to see them try that or something like Utah or for some reason Green Bay kind of screams out to me for a NHL attempt. Otherwise I'd really like to see another Canadian team but the question is where?

[KnightAttack]

Seattle would be a cool location. I'd like to see them try that or something like Utah or for some reason Green Bay kind of screams out to me for a NHL attempt. Otherwise I'd really like to see another Canadian team but the question is where?

Both Seattle and Green Bay have minor teams, but I'm not really sure what the attendance is for them. I'm guessing people don't think it's viable, otherwise there would be more discussion there. That being said, I'd rather see a team in those spots than *shutter* Las Vegas. That's just stupid.

But realistically, the next team that needs to move (other than the Islanders, which will stay in the NY area), will be Seattle, Quebec City, Hartford, Southern Ontario or Kansas City, and in that order of likely hood as well.

And I say that for the following reasons:

(1) Seattle for everything discussed a couple posts above. If they can get ownership and an NHL team goes there at the same time as the NBA, it could work.

(2) Quebec "apparently" has a guy who wants to own a team, but it's been a lot of talk for a lot of years. They need a new rink. They'll get one, but I'm sure the building's going to have to come first.

(3) Hartford is one of the most overlooked players in the whole NHL landscape. The city is currently home to the Connecticut Whale of the AHL, playing in the same arena that the old team did. However, in recent years (and why the named changed), the original owner of the WHL team, Howard Baldwin, purchased the team. There was an interesting article up on THN talking about plans to do an over $250 million dollar renovation to the Hartford stadium, possibly making in "NHL" ready once again. It's still long shot because of well, fan support was never really that good of the original team, but if you have a willing owner and the teams losing money elsewhere, it's going to be hard to say no. Hartford is still a big area, and has some lengthy hockey history, which cannot hurt a 2nd try (unlike say, Atlanta, which never had that length).

(4) I say Southern Ontario because there is rumors always about a 2nd team in Toronto, or a new arena going up outside of Kitchener (? Think it was there), or Hamilton. But each area has a flaw. People aren't sure Toronto would support another team, the new arena is being built yet, and Hamilton's arena sucks. It's big enough, but it's terrible. I personally have never been there, but my Dad has, and he's been to a lot of the top arenas. He said the seating isn't right, there would have to be massive renovations done, and it's just not a good building.

(5) Kansas City is the 5th option for a number of reasons. They do have a newer facility, and built it on the same premise as Winnipeg, who followed the San Jose example. If you build it, you can draw a team back. Kansas City had a team years ago, but didn't have enough support. Kansas' biggest problem is they don't have someone who wants to own the team there, but if someone's looking to move a team, it's a possibility. They made news last year promising Charles Wang 20 or 25 years (can't remember) free lease if he moved the team there.

[KnightAttack]

Went to my 2nd Jets game tonight. Great game. It's too bad the Jets didn't pull it off. Pavelec played amazing, and they would've jumped from 9th to 3rd (LOL NHL rankings).

Oh well, it's still promising. Really missing Bogosian on the back line right now though. The Flyers just walked over the defense if Big B wasn't on the ice. Going again on Monday vs the Oilers, BECAUSE I CAN.

[nasero]

This is such a boring trade deadline, I'm so tired of hearing about Nash, Parise, Suter and nothing happening. You can't advertise such things and not deliver! I need to see other teams fanbases feel crushed and cheated .

[levitynyc]

Glad the Rangers are passing on Nash. They weren't accepting Dubinsky, Kreider and a pick. Del Zotto and McDonaugh are untouchables.

[KnightAttack]

This is such a boring trade deadline, I'm so tired of hearing about Nash, Parise, Suter and nothing happening. You can't advertise such things and not deliver! I need to see other teams fanbases feel crushed and cheated .

I've been crazy busy with a lot of things, so I'm a few days late on this. First off: Who the hell was sitting around watching TSN coverage all day? They said they set "record numbers", so I just want to know. Why would I care enough to watch for like, 8 hours of coverage. That's just stupid. The unfortunate part is, it's only going to get worse as rating go up....

Second, I went to my 3rd Jets game. Yeah. I was in the Upper Deck this time. It was an interesting experience being up there, being that I hadn't ever been for anything. It's pretty good, and still feels much safer than the old arena's upper deck, which when there was enough people on it, you could swing it some.

[Reivax]

I recorded the whole Trade Deadline coverage. I basically just fast forward through the whole thing and knock it all out in a couple hours. I do really enjoy it. Big trade or small, it's interesting to me. I feel a bit cheated since no big deals, with the exception of the Kassian/Hodgson, were made. And that was right at the very end. I think Buffalo made a killing getting a first and fourth pick for Gaustad. Nashville seemed to be the only team making moves just to improve themselves for this year's playoffs. I know we'll never know, but it would be nice to know what trades Toronto refused. I think they had a shot at Nash, but I respect not giving up a bunch of prospects for him. Apparently there were lots of offers, including one for Reimer. Possibly part of the Columbus offers, who knows. Burke said they were considering making moves regarding the goalies, so I was hoping Bernier's name would come up, unfortunately the only names I heard mentioned were Nabokov and Khabibulin. Luckily they didn't pick up either of them. Dodged a bullet with that one.

[KnightAttack]

5 on 1.


Let me repeat that. 5 on 1.


I'm not really sure when the last time I saw that was.

[Ondore]

It's the Flying W!