NHL

[sggg]

Bastard, you know your hockey.

Gomez is one of the most overrated players in the league. The guy falls apart in the playoffs every year and can't play defence.... he's an albatross around Eliáš' neck right now so I really hope hes the guy to go if we make a trade.

I think José Theodore will have a good season. He's a character guy who rises to the occasion under pressure. He's supposed to be in good shape and hopefully the off ice distractions will make him focus on hockey even more.

As for the throwbacks, apparently the Habs "white" sweater is actually going to be beige?!

* http://radio-canada.ca/sports/hockey...Canadien.shtml

I am not so sure if that will work well with modern uniform materials.... but I hope it does because I have wanted the white hoop kit for a long time.

[The Bastard]

Beige?!? Damn, it looks like they haven't been washed or something. It's still a nice jersey.

Speaking of the Canadiens, how is their training camp going? I assume you live in Montreal SGGG and might have some info. Damn TSN and Sportsnet haven't said shit about them and internet coverage of the team seems to be scarce.

Finally, more people should post in this damn thread cause hockey kicks ass.

[sggg]

Speaking of the Canadiens, how is their training camp going? I assume you live in Montreal SGGG and might have some info. Damn TSN and Sportsnet haven't said shit about them and internet coverage of the team seems to be scarce.

Yup. I am in Montréal. The Habs training camp seems to be going well. Not much newsworthy content so far. The big news is that Breezeby shaved his head.



What is exciting is that there are rosters spots open and the Habs are loaded with top prospects. I am really high on Perezhogin. He looked amazing during last year's World Jrs so I hope he makes the team. Higgins looks really good too.

Finally, more people should post in this damn thread cause hockey kicks ass.

Hopefully they will once the season gets started. The media coverage of training camp for most US-based teams is practically non-existant so it takes a while before people start talking about their team.

[sggg]

Tonight Global National News had a feature on the effort to bring the NHL back to Winnipeg. The group they profiled run this website, which they are promoting during the Canucks exhibition game in Winnipeg:

* http://jetsowner.com/

They already have a new arena in the works. I think it could happen if (big if) the CBA gets sorted out so that smaller teams can compete. Revenue sharing, some kind of cap, etc. If they sort that out Winnipeg (and Québec City) could well return. It seems that the cause has a lot of sympathy on both sides of the border.

Here's to hoping.

[The Bastard]

Man, hockey back in Winnipeg would be swell. I love those jerseys. If Winnipeg and Quebec City got teams again, which cities would lose their team? Or would they just add them to the large heap as is. I would also like the Hartford Whalers to return as well, but that is very unlikely.

On a side note, Winnipeg seems to be having population problems. Hopefully, if the new arena is built and the Jets returned it would help that situation as well.

[sggg]

I doubt the NHL would expand again. There are a whole bunch of NHL cities which are having problems right now. Some of these problems would be helped by a new CBA, so such a scenario would not only help Canadian cities to get their teams back but could also help some smaller US markets. It would be a good thing for everybody.

However, a place like Atlanta is not a small market. They have only had the team back a few years and the area is already half empty. The Penguins have huge problems, but I hope they stay put. The Panthers, Predators, Hurricanes, and Coyotes all have problems. The 'Yotes are getting a new rink, so they should be fine for a while. The Ducks building was almost always half empty before their playoff run. Along with the Lightning they have been helped a lot by having a successful season last year, but you still need to wonder about the long term vitality of a team in a market where there simply are not many hockey fans.

Take a city like Québec. They had some of the worst teams in NHL history, but they still played to near capacity every single year. What will happen if they go through a similar run of futility in Denver? The old Colorado Rockies could not even draw 10k a game.

Every city in the NHL has the potential to do well during prosperous times but it's hard when the team struggles because (except for the hardcore fans - every team has some) people don't love and follow the sport. They have never played it. They don't watch it on TV (eep, lookit the ratings). There comes a time when the NHL will realise that it will never get huge ratings in the US and that selling out it's loyal fanbase for pie in the sky makes no sense. It makes more sense to look long term, have security, and to rely on loyal support while growing the sport patiently. Expanding the NHL was a good idea (San José is a great example), it was just terribly done because of greedy shortsighted owners.

Anyway, it will all come down to 2004. We'll see what the NHL is like after the new CBA. It will either be fixed or fall apart at a faster pace. If they don't fix things the Oilers, Flames, Senators, and Canucks will be gone before you know it.. and even smaller market teams in the US like the Predators and Penguins will go belly-up.

The only good news there is that the Leafs still couldn't win the Cup even if half the league went out of business.

[sggg]

Brodeur blasts brethren over pad issue

MONTREAL (CP) - Martin Brodeur of the Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils has taken his fellow goaltenders to task for complaints about new restrictions on the size of their equipment.

Brodeur, in his new weekly column in Le Journal de Montreal on Tuesday, said complaints mainly made by goaltenders from Quebec that the new rules left them vulnerable to injuries were unfounded.

"The limit for the height of goaltender's pads is 38 inches (96 cm), so?" said Brodeur, a three-time Cup winner. "Mine have always been 34 inches (86 cm) and that's enough.

"I've always preferred less bulky equipment so I could move around easier. Certain goaltenders have really gone too far in the last few years and I can understand why the league wants to stop it."

New York Islanders goalie Garth Snow was thought to have had the tallest pads last season and the chief reason why the league took action.

"Garth Snow keeps adding pieces to his pads," said Brodeur. "And his shoulder pads are so big he looks like Goldorak, the robot I watched killing the bad guys on TV when I was a kid."

Some goalies complained that a ban on extra pieces of padding on the knees would lead to injuries, but Brodeur said he suspects they are more concerned with leaving openings for pucks to trickle between their pads.

"I have to point out that I don't use the butterfly style, unlike most Quebec goaltenders," Brodeur said. "With plastic foils attached to their pads, butterfly goalies could completely close the space between their legs.

"I can understand why forwards complained they can't score when they shoot for the five-hole. Jean-Sebastien Giguere was the target of such complaints last year."

Brodeur allowed that while he didn't buy the goaltenders' complaints, it was important that goalies be well protected, especially with modern-day players shooting the puck harder with lightweight composite sticks.

"A few years ago, Mats Sundin would never take a slapshot until he got to the top of the faceoff circle," Brodeur said of the Toronto Maple Leafs captain. "Now, with the new composite sticks, he can fire a bullet from the blue-line - and beat me from time to time."

Brodeur, a Montreal native, began the column last week. He doesn't write it, but speaks to a Journal reporter, who then writes what he says into column form.

* http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?ID=54906&hubName=nhl

Absolutely brilliant. He really said it, especially about Giguère. He just said what everyone else has been thinking about the goalie-pad problem. Not only is he the best stopper in the league, but he also has the smallest equiptment. He plays his position by relying on positioning and skill, as opposed to taking up as much space as humanly possible.

I really hope the NHL starts a bigger crackdown on this problem. Plus, Brodeur won't have to change anything and he'll be even better in comparision to the stay-puft marshmallow crowd.

I also read that the NHL made soft elbow pads mandatory for players this year. That's a good start, next they need to eliminate the Goldoraks!

[The Bastard]

I read that on TSN's website. He bashed some goalies real good (Rightfully so I might add). It's strange how the best goalie in the league currently doesn't use the butterfly style and as you mentioned SGGG, uses the smallest equipment in the entire league. Man, imagine if his equipment was the standard, scoring would be way higher and we wouldn't even have to consider getting rid of the red line (although high scoring games would be the norm without that damn line).

On a side note: I can't believe he mentioned Goldorak! What a nutball!

In other NHL news, a few days ago Saku Koivu managed to injure himself again. 3 to 4 weeks till he'll be ready. Man, why is this guy so cursed?

Last thing I wanna say is I hope Kerry Fraser has a stroke or something. Just because.....

[sggg]

* http://mightyducks.com/PressBox/Pres...PressBoxID=760



Ducks 3rd.... ewwww.... looks like a US college thing. Their last 3rd was much much better than this one or their regular ones.


ps. The Kings called and said they want their colours back.

[The Bastard]

No kidding......Just when I thought the Ducks jersey couldn't get any crappier, they go out and do this. Stealing the Kings colours for that crap is just wrong.

In stupid NHL news, NHLPA files grievance for goalies. Apparently goalies are whining about the new regulations. Especially that silly bastard Garth Snow (Goldorak) who says he got hit in the knee. I hate the NHLPA a little more everyday. Start the damn season already.