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Season Previews, Twitter Style: 30 Teams in 1 Day

September 7, 2010 By

If you could chart the how long a post has to be for it to fall under the tl/dr (too long / didn’t read) banner over the years, it would probably take a serious downward slope over the last year or so. I know that I don’t have enough time to read as many hockey blogs as I would like, and there are more and more hockey blogs every day (I’m not going to get into a ‘back in the old days’ rant, but I think I may have to some day soon, for my own sake). It’s probably part of the reason Twitter is so popular, with short little blasts that can sometimes get the point across (minus the tone).

On top of that, everyone is doing a season preview. And how many season previews do we need? When the twenty players (and three healthy scratches) hit the ice, most previews will have gone out the door. Much like the best laid plans, they have nothing to do with reality when the puck drops.

So how many previews do you need?

One more, of course.

This is a pocket sized preview of all thirty teams, in 140 characters each. Every one a twitter sized nugget in one place. I presume that I don’t have to tell you how twitter nomenclature works, or what a hashtag is. Thirty team previews, everything you need to know, all in one place. Enjoy.

Atlantic

New Jersey Devils – One guy won’t make all the difference, but it certainly will help. Lots of questions in goal now, the old get older. #1stRoundExitAgain #Lou

New York Islanders – Like Battlestar Galactica, they tell you there is a plan, but it never seems to form. A new building won’t solve everything. #IsDiPietroBack

New York Rangers – The circus is in town. Cap management by way of The Office, there isn’t a player they won’t overpay. #AveryIs… #ReddenToMinors #Torts

Philadelphia Flyers – Did this team get better in the offseason? Did they have to? Goalies won’t get any respect, but are trying to earn it. #ProngerLikesPucks

Pittsburgh Penguins -When you can get guys to take a pay cut to play with Crosby, you will have success. Rotating supporting cast for the big guys. #Flower

Northeast

Boston Bruins – A huge monkey on their back, it will loom the entire season. Thomas will be back to checking guys while Chara won’t. Potential. #Seguin

Buffalo Sabres – One day, this team will return to glory. This doesn’t look like the year. What will it take to kick them in the pants? #MillerTime #Defense?

Montreal Canadiens – Nice to see the Habs have a goalie. What else to they have? Some character, not much excitement. #GeorgeLaraqueMustHaveBeenTheProblem #Right

Ottawa Senators – The Senators would have an easier time winning the Grey Cup. This team can’t buy luck, or trade for a goalie. #SpezzaDrama

Toronto Maple Leafs – It’s truculence and Phaneuf vs. reality. Who will win? Putting my money on reality. Remade team in a classic Burke image, may just make P/O

Southeast

Atlanta Thrashers – This isn’t your Thrashers of old. A legitimate shot at the playoffs with this roster, but they will be battling a Cup hangover. #KovyWho?

Carolina Hurricanes – I don’t know. Probably out of the playoffs again. How many Staals can you fit on one team? Cam Ward will have to carry the team #2staals1cup

Florida Panthers – You can’t even sit in the cheap seats. There’s been a lot of talk of remaking the team, and Tallon may do it, but it will take more time.

Tampa Bay Lightning – A very improved team. Yzerman has done his job, now lets see what the coach can do. TBL got what they needed. #DanEliisProblems #ShutYoMouth?

Washington Capitals – Goalies have a lot to prove. Of course they will make the playoffs. But to go deep? Maybe. Defense is decent, but offense is sizzling.

Central
Chicago Blackhawks – Wouldn’t it be nice if the Blackhawks made a legit push for the Cup? Yeah, and if puppies would learn to take out the trash. #NotGonnaHappen

Columbus Blue Jackets – Will the real Steve Mason please stand up? Many good elements, and a new coaching staff that needs to make them play as a team #CoachHinote?

Detroit Red Wings – If they can stay healthy, they will be a dangerous team. But they aren’t getting any younger, and ‘certain players’ are still hanging around

Nashville Predators – What will it take for this team to stop being average? No team needs a top three draft pick more. #BetterCaptain

St. Louis Blues – I know there are NHL players on this team, but I just can’t name any. Goalie issues solved?

Northwest

Calgary Flames – Hey guys, were getting the band back together, but the bass player sucks, and the drummer is bad in the locker room. #PhaneufWasTheIssue

Colorado Avalanche – The song remains the same. It’s almost the Kings model, but less activity. Proof of youth, or another high draft pick? #ConsistancyNeeded

Edmonton Oilers – Oilers should miss the playoffs again. They need to, so they can get a few more good players. Re-Khab could be an issue. #OKCOilers #AHLTeam

Minnesota Wild – I’m sorry, did I fall asleep? I know they did something, but I don’t know what. Reduced ticket prices? #ItsLikeTheyDontCare

Vancouver Canucks – A few free agency moves will make up for FA losses. But the issues are larger than a few people. Everything starts with Bobby Lou. #Twins

Pacific

Anaheim Ducks – Selanne’s back, Kariya isn’t, and nothing else changed. But man, they are raring to go. Still a solid core, but what will be different? #Meh

Dallas Stars – Seriously, how could they have done nothing? The minors are pilfered already, and they are no better in goal. #DefenseWasTheProblem #StillIs

Los Angeles Kings – Losing out on KovalBucks could have been the best thing for them. The future is bright & experience is what this team needs. #TheFutureIsNow

Phoenix Coyotes – Will someone just buy this team? They can build on last season, didn’t need many more pieces. A few cheap forwards away from good things.

San Jose Sharks – How do you spell revenge? S-H-A-R-K-S. Offer sheet and Niemi will teach those ‘Hawks. Will goalie changes be enough? #SharksJumped

That does it. If you have twitter previews, I would love to see them. Throw them in the comments.

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Thin Air: Notes from the SLC

September 1, 2010 By

I don’t have enough depth of insight to post a full write-up of everything I’m thinking today about hockey, but there is enough going on in my head to warrant a notes post. Just some quick thoughts for the day:

Kovalchuk

- Remember when everyone said that this was better than the LeBron situation? If American sports fans cared as much about hockey as you or I, they would probably be laughing at us right now. Is this as bad a LeBron? Sure, but from a different angle. Even without a special, the Kovalchuk camp has done plenty that looks bad to fans of 29 other teams. That’s just business, though, with negotiations and gamesmanship designed to benefit the player. We wait (and now, we wait even longer).

- Lopping off two years and two million dollars from one of the silliest contracts ever submitted – one that so obviously tried to subvert the salary cap – seems like the smallest gesture the Devils could have made. The cap increase from the old contract to the new contract is only 666,000 dollars per year. Thanks for nothing, Lou.

- I know the default position is to be angry with the league, but if it takes one or two days to approve (or dismiss) a fifteen year contract that could have far reaching implications beyond the current CBA, so be it. Instant gratification is wonderful on twitter, but when it comes time to negotiate the next CBA, how the league handles this contract specifically will be used as evidence. This isn’t just about one player anymore.

- Besides, Kovalchuk will get his money. Maybe not every single dollar he thinks he should, and his escrow hit will be enough to easily fund a solid 4th line, but he will get paid. It just shouldn’t cost the Devils nothing against the cap. Signing a star player to a big contract is supposed to have implications to your roster. That’s part of the point of the cap.

The Interwebz Have Gone Crazy:

- Twitter made me look up two things today. The first was what QFT meant (Thanks, @bzarcher), and the other was who Paul Bissonnette is. I don’t really care about this whole BizNasty thing, and nothing would make me happier than to see this all be one big joke. Sure, it’s fun and all that, but in the end, it’s just going to end in tears. And unless he gets his hand slapped, it has nothing to do with hockey. And since he plays in Phoenix, that’s a given.

- The other thing Twitter made me do this week was read Deadspin. I’m not the target audience of Deadspin (I like hockey, don’t care about the other big three sports, and think public figures should be allowed private lives), but they seemed to have the most information on the Mike Wise fake twitter news situation. Wise’s point was that people will pick up just about any report online and run with it. It was not only done better elsewhere (I don’t remember where I saw the hockey blogger who announced that he was making a fake trade tweet, then posted the tweet, and people still picked up on it), but it shouldn’t have been made by a ‘reputable’ source (or at least one hired by a mainstream source). Wise cost himself some credibility, but from what I know about him, he seems more like a sports personality than a reporter, ala Jim Rome. Credibility doesn’t sound like the number one thing he trades on. Unsurprisingly, Wise was suspended by the paper for a month, which seems about right. Will that be the end of it? Oh, hell no.

- If you didn’t know, newspapers and other mainstream media outlets have ethics policies, and they are usually posted on the website of the media outlet. For example, here is the ethics policy for the Denver Post. And if you don’t think this applies to online media such as blogging, this section addresses that specifically. This doesn’t mean that media outlets actually follow these policies, but it does allow them to point to the accountability that independent bloggers are generally accused of lacking. Would you consider adopting and following an ethics policy? It’s a good question, considering how anonymous rumor sites and other outlets that don’t always adhere to the truth are scorned by most of the blogosphere.

- In the interests of unity and fairness, Ian Mendes of Sportsnet.ca posted his thoughts about bloggers being issued press credentials. Even if you are sick of this debate, you should read it. It takes on both sides of the aisle, and is one of the most honest looks at how each side views the other I’ve seen. (I saw this from both Kukla’s Korner and Greg Wyshynski’s twitter feed).

- See that? That’s called an attribution. If you blog, you should do it. Most hockey blogs don’t have sources that didn’t come down the series of tubes we call the internet. My blog and my podcast would be nothing without the hard work done by other people, who gather the news, do the reporting, and do the real work. It would be nothing without other people, and when I use something from them, this is how I show where it came from. Being first doesn’t mean as much as being smart. Attribute where things came from.

Odds and Ends

Khabibulin – Today on XM Home Ice was the first time I heard any mention of Nikolai Khabibulin possibly having travel issues with his DUI conviction. Chances are, no matter what happens in his appeal, the conviction will not be overturned. If I were a judge, I would be pissed that the ruling was challenged after what is essentially the lightest sentence possible being handed down. But Canada is not a fan of having DUI offenders allowed into their country. Look up what a Queen’s Pardon is. Things aren’t going to be easy for the Khabibulin. If this sticks, he earned it.

NHLPA – I know the news of Donald Fehr possibly becoming the NHLPA Executive Director strikes fear into the hearts of hockey fans who are still battling the nightmare of the last work stoppage, but it’s time to relax for a moment. It’s been so long since a real leadership in the NHLPA was around, fans (the hardcore who actually care) don’t remember what it looks like. The ‘partnership’ that was enjoyed by the Player’s Union and even more so by the NHL was nothing more than a face saving tactic. It diffused the anger of the fans, and brought them back with less fury and less of a target to blame for the lockout. This was the most one-sided partnership in history. The players can’t afford to roll over in the next CBA as much as they did in this one. The Fehr nomination is a step in the right direction for the NHLPA to start acting like a negotiation body again. It is a negotiation. Nothing goes 100% in anyone’s favor, but the last CBA sure leaned heavily.

Blatant Self Promotion :

If you made it this far, allow me to tell you about a few things. I set up a ‘support’ page over at The Rink Podcast. I’m not asking you for money, but instead a small amount of time. Please, take a look, and thanks. I’m starting to get the next season in order, and get some guests lined up.

I have been spending too much time on twitter. But if you want to follow me, you are more than welcome. I’d love to hear from you.

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Gary Bettman’s Mixed Bag

August 25, 2010 By

It isn’t often that I sympathize with Gary Bettman. Much of the jeers and boos he receives are well earned, and his tendency to spin news and issues to the point of insanity wear thin on those who are subjected to his interviews and press conferences. I’m not his biggest fan, but he’s the guy with the job, and I respect the job.

Today, though, I do have to say, he did get something right that the pundits immediately decried. Via Kukla’s Korner (with regards to the hundreds of tweets I saw the statement from as well):

Gary Bettman made a statement today at the World Hockey Summit in regards to how hockey fans feel about NHL participation in the Olympics.

via Scott Burnside tweet,

Bettman says fans’ response to NHL participation in Olympics is a “mixed bag”. Not sure we buy that.

(double blockquote across the sky!)

I would like to be one of the few that says, yes, for me, the Olympics are a mixed bag. And frankly, I would be happy not having the NHL in the Games.

We like to bask in the afterglow of something as fun, successful, and glorious as these last Olympic Games turned out to be for fans in North America. And since the North American fan is the one with the loudest voice, as well as the money and support that keeps the NHL going, they are going to get the most attention. Had the gold medal game not been between Canada and the USA, there may be a different tune being sung by some.

And while the Olympics are a great stage for some of the best players – eventually, after a few games, when they start playing like a team – there is the other alternative, the World Cup.

At the moment, the World Cup is dead, but just like killing off a popular comic book character, the dead tend to rise again. There is nothing to stop the NHL from resurrecting it, aside from a lot of hard work to make it happen. But considering the revenues that could be had – and everything these days are about the revenue – the NHL should give it some serious thought.

The only disadvantage that the World Cup has is that it isn’t the Olympics. It isn’t as sexy as the Olympics. It has a cheesy trophy, and is virtually meaningless. Meaning, though, is built. It’s built though the games, though the fans, and the players themselves.

Some of the advantages of the World Cup:

  • You can play it in the off season. No compressed NHL schedule.
  • Real training camp. Players can learn to play with one another, instead of just jamming their skill set together.
  • No break. If you aren’t playing in the Olympic break, you are either healing, or restarting your season, and maybe loosing momentum.
  • You can play on the world stage. Games can be held anywhere.
  • Revenue goes to the NHL.
  • No jumping through the IOC hoops and abiding by their stupid rules that make no sense to professional athletes.
  • You don’t have to wait for curling to finish to watch some hockey (imagine that, there are other sports)

There are disadvantages to not playing in the Olympics, certainly, but do they outweigh holding the World Cup? I’m not really sure. My feeling is no, not if you have a viable alternative.
The problem with Gary Bettman in all of this is that he has a tendency to speak too often for the fans. The knee-jerk reaction is that he is wrong as soon as he opens his mouth. I don’t feel he represents me as a fan, nor should he. His job is to represent the NHL, and the owners. But overall, the NHL probably has more data on the fans and their needs and wants than the rest of us. They don’t always apply it in a smart way, and they tend to spin that data in ways that fit their needs and wants, but the data is there. We, the bloggers and the tweeters, feel we have a handle on the metrics of the hockey fan, but we only have a certain demographic, those that are online, and just like the Commissioner, we promote the ones that tend to support our individual point of view.
Gary Bettman doesn’t represent me, but neither do the thousands of online pundits that feel like they have inside knowledge of what the fans want. For once, I have to side with Bettman on this one. It is a mixed bag, and there are many points of view. Just ask the 2005-06 Ottawa Senators. I won’t try to speak for them, though You’ll just have to ask.

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Dog Days of Summer

August 18, 2010 By

Alf

Last summer seemed like the longest off-season ever. For me, it dragged and dragged, and I couldn’t wait for October to come. This summer has a different feel to it, with the impending approach of training camp and the start of the season feeling like a bulldozer riding up my ankles.

I’m looking forward to the start of the next season, but it sure does feel like summer is going by fast. Perhaps it’s the entertainment that we have had all year. I haven’t been chiming in much lately, so I just wanted to throw some thoughts up here.

I’m happy the NHL won the Kovalchuk case:

Yeah, I know. Evil Bettman. I’m not a Devils fan. Whatever. But I didn’t like this contract for a multitude of reasons. It did more than just circumvent the salary cap, it circumvented parity, created a false market for star players, and restored the have and have not spending of the pre-cap days. It also wasn’t bargaining in good faith, which should be expected across the entire leagues, all teams, all agents, and all players. I understand that some people didn’t want to see the NHL win this case. I’m certainly glad they did.

The Avalanche are doing nothing:

This is the offseason of our discontent. The Colorado Avalanche haven’t touched the free agent market, and that has some fans concerned. I don’t blame them, but for the moment, I’m going to take the approach that the Avs have confidence in their minor league system (which just fells strange to type), and are very happy with the team they have now. I would have liked to see the Avalanche plug a few holes in the lower end of the market (two 20 – 25 goal scoring wingers and a bottom three defenseman), but looking at the over-spending that went on in the first part of free agency, I’m glad they didn’t repeat the mistakes of a few years ago (how did that Ryan Smyth / Scott Hannan free agency ‘splash’ work out?). I wouldn’t be surprised if a few bargains are picked up along the way. I would rather see two half Kovalchuks on the team than the real deal.

Twitter is killing my blogging:

I’ve been on twitter a lot lately (@Tapeleg). It’s a great time waster, but also a great place for conversation (not every conversation is great, mind you). I got into hockey blogging to have a conversation about hockey, to talk to people about hockey in a way that I wasn’t getting in my day to day life. Twitter is decent for that, but it isn’t perfect. It does fulfill some of my needs as a hockey fan, but not all of them. Twitter is great for reactions and instant analysis, but that doesn’t mean it’s superb at either. And staying away from my blog make me a worse writer. Those stumbling blocks come up more often, and I get more frustrated when I haven’t been regularly writing. It’s time to get back to the blog.

Jerseys to come:

Remember when I hated the RBK EDGE jerseys? Yeah, about that. I still hate the EDGE 1.0 version, which are just garbage. And the retail versions are an insult to your wallet. More expensive for a cheaper product? If you buy an off the shelf jersey, you are being had. But the player’s RBK EDGE 2.0 jerseys? Pretty nice. I’m still not convinced of the cut, but it’s a huge improvement over the 1.0. I now own two 1.0 jerseys, and a 2.0, all player jerseys. The 2.0 is a much nicer jersey than I was expecting. I will have photos to post at some point.

I also have some more jerseys to post. Photos have been taken of some jerseys I have owned for a while. The new ones still have to be photographed, but their day will come. For now, I will go back into the archives. And check out the jersey posts from Jay at The Avs Hockey Podcast and from Greg at The Post Pessimist Association blog.

More to come, I promise.

And if you need your fix, there was a new episode of The Rink posted. You can find it here.

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Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vancouver Canucks Game 2: Night of Awesome

May 4, 2010 By

I don’t have a lot to say about tonight’s game between the Blackhawks and the Canucks, other than it was a great time, and an amazing atmosphere for a game. I got some audio from the opening of the game, but I’m not sure if it’s usable, since the people around me were going ape-s#!+ the entire time. This is a city that loves their hockey team, which wasn’t the case a few short years ago.

My seats were great for watching a hockey game, but not so great for taking pictures. This game, though, I was more interested in the game than getting pictures from it. Still, I did get a few.

The United Center is big and imposing form the outside.

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This is not this man’s real hair:

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The UC is big. Really big.

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Warm-ups. It’s always weird when a player is looking in your general direction when you are taking their picture:

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Pre game:

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Game on:

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The crowd goes wild:

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They gave us red towels to waive for the game, but some of them didn’t make it home with their owners after the third Blackhawks goal:

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Really, there isn’t a lot to say. You watched the game, right? The short handed goal, the Canuck players bouncing off Byfuglien, it was all it looked like on TV and more.

The Blackhawks would like to remind you that there are only 11 wins until the cup can be theirs.

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Bad Timing Does Not Make a Bad Rule

November 21, 2009 By

Rule 32.2, which is basically the “intent to blow” rule, is under fire at the moment. So we are clear on what the rule says:

As there is a human factor involved in blowing the whistle to stop play, the Referee may deem the play to be stopped slightly prior to the whistle actually being blown. The fact that the puck may come loose or cross the goal line prior to the sound of the whistle has no bearing if the Referee has ruled that the play had been stopped prior to this happening.

I can’t think of a scenario where this rule is going to be applied where everyone will be satisfied. For the most part, intent to blow the whistle is going to come into play when the goalie has frozen the puck (or frozen it enough to make the play stop), the ref loses sight of the puck, or the puck crosses the goal line. Can you think of a scenario where half the fans involved didn’t feel screwed over by the refs?

This week has seen two instances of the “intent to blow” rule applied and pucks in the net not counted as goals. It doesn’t help that the first example went against a wildly popular team with a vocal fanbase. The second occurrence was the next night, on a play that would have made the Maple Leafs the victors in the battle of the basement.

When this happens, the masses cry for the heads of the refs involved, sweeping changes to the rule book, and rant about how the league is against their team (when I hear this kind of talk, I just smile and nod, and realize that I am dealing with a nutter). Like I said, everyone isn’t going to be satisfied.

The cries have gone up. The non-skating masses who have never read the entire rule book have spoken (no, reading a rule at a time does not count, go get the rule book and read it cover to cover). It’s time to end the era if “intent to blow,” right?

Wrong. I now intend to blow your mind:

The rule is a good rule, and should stay.

Mind blown? No? Maybe?

When you read the text of the rule, all the reasons for the rule to exist are there. There is a human factor involved, and for the 59:59 of a game that the refs go unnoticed, there is no problem with that human factor. It’s that one or two seconds of indecision (or in the case of the Leafs – Canes game, about 4 seconds), those small mistakes, those little moments that the frothing fans want the entire thing blown up.

And sure, it makes for good blog fodder to be outraged, or to take the refs to task (a meme that goes back way past Al Gore inventing the internet), but it’s also generally uninformed as well. There are very few people who write about hockey who skate, play the game, or – god forbid they should intensely learn about the game – have taken a coaching or officiating course (USA Hockey and Hockey Canada provide seminars at the beginning of every season, and have plenty on manuals, guides, and casebooks for further study). I realize that there are people who can’t do these things (and I don’t mean the basic excuse making kind of can’t, I mean really physically can’t), and those people get a pass. And yes, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but this isn’t their site. Also, it doesn’t mean I am better than everyone else.

Name one sport that puts the refs in this much close contact at this high of speed with the players (and box lacrosse doesn’t count, since it’s basically hockey on grass with a ball). Basketball is a comparatively slow game, with very few scenarios in which a rule like this would be needed. Football and baseball are sports played from moment to moment. In hockey, the refs are trapped on the ice with twelve angry men who want to win at all costs. They are checked, hit with the puck, and do everything they can to get out of the way of the action while constantly monitoring the game. The speed of the game, along with the danger of being on the ice with the players, makes officiating hockey one of the most difficult jobs in sports (not to mention that they skate the entire game, unlike the players).

Here’s a simple example: How do you blow your whistle when you are falling down to the ice? A few players get tangled up with the ref, he goes down, but needs to stop play. This is a perfect example for this rule being put in the books in the first place. I bet if you tried hard, you could come up with a few yourselves.

Were these two games fine examples of the rule being applied? No, they were not. I don’t see a reason the ref in Carolina shouldn’t have blown the whistle any earlier than he did. But that doesn’t mean the rule is a bad rule. One or two applications that are unsatisfactory to the fans does not make for a bad rule.

Oh, and comments are turned off for this post. Take your ref bashing and start your own blog with it. The refs are expected to be professionals, but the players aren’t held to the same standards? Yeah, I’m not interested.

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Thin Air: November 5th, Late Edition

November 6, 2009 By

Oh yes, another night of hockey highlights. I have the Ducks – Predators game on the DVR, but I can’t get motivated to watch. I mean, the point was to see what the problem with the Predators is, but I can’t do it. Not tonight.

- T-Squared? OK, Kevin Weekes. You can call Tim Thomas whatever you like. Still, Weekes is a solid commentator on NHL On the Fly. He doesn’t do stunned-by-the-moves all that well, but then again, he speaks with authority when he has to, and like a fan when I want him to. Good job, Kevin.

- I will be losing the NHL Network next week. I can’t tell you how sad I am about this.

- I understand the reasoning behind the NHL not modifying the point system, but I don’t like it. I think I will be writing about it soon.

- The Neil hit: A study in so what? A big guy who plays the body and has speed. What’s the problem?

- The Maple Leafs are going to play the Carolina Hurricanes. Someone has to win that game, which is too bad, really. If the Canes win, the coach keeps his job, and if the Leafs win, the city of Toronto will has to spend all that money on a parade.

- The Forearm Forklift? Awesome! Get me two sets. That thing looks… sorry, NHL Network commercials. Everything a 40 year old needs.

- Anze Kopitar’s first goal of the night was beautiful. Fleury looked bad. Not this bad, but still bad:

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- If I were the Penguins, I would be hanging my head low. Way to fall apart.

- I love seeing the water bottle on the top of the net bounce. It’s a wonderful thing.

- The Weezer Snuggie? At least they haven’t sold out.

- Shootouts: fun to watch, but not worth a point.

- Attendance in Atlanta: 10,878. Most of the fans must have been sitting in the upper bowl, because they weren’t in the lower.

- Voracek: Nice hair, just kidding.

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Bad Headlines 521st edition

September 21, 2009 By

These posts write themselves sometimes. But hey, it’s all in bad taste, right? This one is so bad, I won’t even reveal the source, author, or even link to the site.

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Mind you, this is from a site that asked me if I wanted to put their ads on this blog. I turned them down before (note: JaHL is ad free, and profit free, for that matter), and I will turn them down any time they come by.

Lame.

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C’mon, NHLPA.

September 18, 2009 By

There are two things that happened in the last few weeks that are massive potential game changers in the world of the NHL, and neither one will have (most likely) much impact this coming season. They are:

1) Stephen Walkom, the head of officiating for the NHL, stepped down, and,

2) The NHLPA fired their Executive Director, Paul Kelly.

The officiating will stay the course, but the second item, that needs some fleshing out.

Can we be perfectly honest here? The Players Association is not even close to a real union. For the most part, it is there to negotiate a contract, and then make nicey-nice with the players and public in between bargaining sessions. The membership is more complacent than a bartender working a noon shift, and are happy to tell you so for as long as you will listen. This is a “union” that is OK with it’s membership punching each other in the face. Most places, that sort of thing wouldn’t fly.

I point to this article on Wikipedia (the last bastion for facts in the world) whenever I bring up the NHLPA, because their first executive director was convicted of fraud (read about the charges and conviction here). If you don’t believe that source, read the book. It’s enlightening, and should be hockey history 101 for anyone who follows the business side of hockey.

Even Bob Goodenow wasn’t the best person for the union. From installing his own guy through back door policies as head of the union, to being non-existant in the CBA negotiations following the lockout, Goodenow wasn’t nearly as good for the NHLPA as he was touted to be. Any CBA that ends in a glad-handing “partnership” is basically code for ” You just got your back side handed to you.”

It didn’t shock me that Paul Kelly, the man who was hired after a long search – after the Players Association gave the owners everything the ever wanted (but got their own separate hotel rooms after a certain age), after the PA caved on their unifying cry of “no salary cap,” after the players came back needing a solid labor leader after licking their wounds – was let go. The players have always wanted someone who will handle them with kids gloves, regardless of what they actually need. And what they need is someone who can take care of the business side of things, while the players go do what they care about. It turns out they had that guy. They should have kept him.

Frankly, the NHLPA deserves anything they get. They deserve to have their asses handed to them in the next CBA. They deserve to be paying escrow to the owners for the privilege of playing hockey. They deserve a salary cap. They deserve a new executive director that will roll over for the league, because that is what the players want: ie – To play hockey at the expense of everything else.

Now, even the high and mighty Sidney Crosby wants answers. Hell, I want answers. I want to know what it was that actually pushed the union into letting Kelly go. All we have heard so far is speculation and hearsay. From being too cozy with Bettman and the league (so first you’re a partnership, then you aren’t), to improper email conduct (aka Ted Saskin part two), to conducting an audit of the union that some players didn’t like, we have heard it all, and so far none of it sticks. While we aren’t entitled to know everything, something is going to come out of this mess, and I think it’s going to be ugly.

There has never been a solid Players Association for the NHL. The closest they came was the early Goodenow years, before the crash came after years of prosperity. It’s time for the players to step up and treat their business like they own it. They need to go back and look at the sacrifices the players that came before them made to ensure fair treatment in a time when owners held all the cards.

Ed Lover says it best:

Screenshot 01-2

Sometimes, these blog post write themselves.

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If You Thought The Refs Were Good / Bad Before: Walkom to Step Down

August 25, 2009 By

Darren Dreger just dropped a minor bomb on twitter a little bit ago:

Stephen Walkom is stepping down as NHL dir of officiating and will attempt an on-ice comeback.

I think that sound I heard was a large vein in my head exploding. I had to rush over to TSN to find out more:

The 46-year old recently informed the league of his decision after several months of contemplating the move.

Walkom will physically prove he can return and will participate in the NHL officials training camp which opens on Sept 7.

I guess with the gapping void left by Mick McGeough and Kerry Fraser, we needed someone to direct our anger at.

While this is still in the “Sources tell TSN” stage, this has the potential of being a big move. If there was a number two face of the post lockout “new” NHL, Walkom was it, defending his refs, setting policies, and creating the checks and balances systems to keep an eye on his officials that many people felt failed miserably. He was the public face of the new rules, and was applauded for cleaning up the game, and vilified for ruining it at the same time. Calling everything seemed like such a good idea at the time. Will it hold up with a change at the top? Will the owners and GMs take this opportunity to review what they have wrought?

In any situation of massive overhaul, someone is going to be the fall guy, or take blame that isn’t deserved, and I’m sure Walkom has his share. But while the defenders of Gary Bettman will quickly point out that he is just a puppet for the owners, it’s fairly obvious he has massive sway and influence. I’m sure Walkom was in the same boat. The post-lockout era so far has been defined in a large part by the rules he had to oversee, and the refs he was in charge of. Without the rule changes, we wouldn’t have the parades to the penalty box, the uptempo game, and consequently, the shortening of some NHL careers. Walkom was the man who tried to keep all this in line. Combine that with the salary cap, and you have fundamental changes to the game that couldn’t have happened separately.

And if you don’t think this will have any influence on the league, name the directors of officiating for the other three major sports. Don’t look it up. Tell me when the last time you say said director get interviewed on a national broadcast. If you can do it, you are a bigger sports fan than I can imagine.

Who will replace Walkom (should this report pan out?). Make me happy, TSN:

Sources say the league is currently searching for Walkom’s successor, but will likely start the 2009-2010 season without his replacement in place.

Well, that’s comforting.
Good luck on the ice, Walkom. I’m sure everyone will be happy to see you back.

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