Why Hockey Is The Best Sport - Page 5

Asher · February 11, 2004, 23:43

Well it's 2-1 now, so it's not so bad.

Ben Kenobi · February 11, 2004, 23:49

For Vancouver...

Odd how you forgot to mention that.

http://www.scoreboard.msnbc.com/msnb...b_20040211.asp

Goal by Ruutu.

Kontiki · February 11, 2004, 23:49

I'm seriously thinking I need to get a digital cable package next year so I actually watch more than the occassional Canucks game....

Asher · February 11, 2004, 23:51

I'm watching the NHL.com IceCast and listening to the FAN960 internet cast.

I meant 2-1 for Vancouver, that should've been obvious from my anger for playing Turek.

Ben Kenobi · February 11, 2004, 23:54

Well if Ruutu can score on him, I feel your pain.

Kontiki · February 12, 2004, 00:02

Quote:

Originally posted by Asher
I'm watching the NHL.com IceCast and listening to the FAN960 internet cast.

I meant 2-1 for Vancouver, that should've been obvious from my anger for playing Turek.

Hmmm...I might have to try that sometime. Do you need to subscribe to that? How about system requirements - I have DSL, but a pretty old crappy computer....

Asher · February 12, 2004, 00:03

The IceCast is a free applet thing. It updates like every minute or so. Shows who's playing, where shots were taken on the ice, the score, etc.

Radio webcasts are also free.

If you've got > 100MHz it should work...

Kontiki · February 12, 2004, 00:06

But no live action, huh?

Bah, I'll just bite the bullet and get the cable package. Shouldn't be too much....

Tingkai · February 12, 2004, 01:03

Quote:

Originally posted by Agathon
Last year the Leafs were beaten before the playoffs started. Half the team was smashed up and their #1 playoff man, Roberts, was just back from a long term injury. Add to that the fact that Corson was disrupting the whole team and it doesn't look good. Now Corson and Green are gone, Tucker is back on good terms with the rest of the team. They are a tight bunch and have excellent role players.

Trust me, they are a lot better and a lot deeper this year (how else have they managed to stay near the top despite having a terrible swathe of injuries?). Whoever comes out of the east will win the cup.

The defence is also a lot stronger. McCabe is doing great. Kaberle is solid. Klee adds a bit of offense. Another offensive D would be nice, but not vital (unlike last year).

Last year there were lots of holes and that's why the fans were demanding trades. This year, the Leafs have got what they need to take the cup. Any trades will just be for insurance.

Asher · February 12, 2004, 01:05

Just an update, Flames are up 3-2 on Vancouver with 10 mintes to go. Even with Turek in net.

Asher · February 12, 2004, 01:26

Quote:

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
I doesn't matter who you play... It's a hopeless cause against Vancouver. Play your good goalie for the games you can win.

Calgary wins, 3-2 final.

cinch · February 12, 2004, 01:52

Make that 3 in a row, fellas!

**********************************

Oil pull no punches in win over Atlanta

Atlanta was forced to finish the game with an empty net after Pasi Nurminen was assessed a fighting major for his dance with Ty Conklin.

EDMONTON (CP) -- Goaltenders Ty Conklin and Pasi Nurminen brawled at centre-ice to cap wild melee between the Edmonton Oilers and Thrashers that also included a fight that spilled into the Atlanta bench.

With the Oilers up 4-1 and less than two minutes left, all five Oilers and Thrashers paired up in the neutral zone.

Atlanta's Serge Aubin and Edmonton's Mike Bishai paired up and Bishai was thrown into the Thrashers bench. The two continued to trade punches, with Bishai in the Atlanta bench and Aubin on the ice. The Thrashers on the bench looked on, unsure of what to do.

The two goaltenders dropped them at centre, with Conklin getting the better of Nurminen.

Both were ejected and Atlanta had to finish the game without a goalie. Starter Byron Dafoe was injured earlier in the contest.

The Oilers won the game 5-1.

*************************************

Most entertaining game o' the year?

Maybe.

The train's a-rollin'!

Old. Time. Hockey.

Agathon · February 12, 2004, 03:01

Yeah.... saw it on The Score.

Kick ass game by the looks of it.

Ben Kenobi · February 12, 2004, 04:29

Can't win 'em all.

Agathon · February 12, 2004, 04:43

Who cares, there was a goalie fight! Not as good as Roy vs Osgood, but a goalie fight nonetheless.

And as for those wussies that don't like fighting, go and play in the girls' sandpit - that was a promising looking brawl too. Almost as good as the time Darcy Tucker attacked the entire Ottawa bench on his own.

Ogie Oglethorpe · February 12, 2004, 08:57

Dang I missed it. I am so putting on ESPN.

Woot! Woot! Goalers droppin 'em!

Kontiki · February 12, 2004, 10:20

Hey, what's the deal with Salo? Has Edmonton officially given the number one job to Conklin? I know Salo was injured earlier, and he sucked before that, but you hardly see him play anymore.

Damn me for picking Salo in my pool!!

RedFred · February 12, 2004, 16:34

How did I miss this thread?

Some of the proposed rule changes seem good, others silly. I'm all for an equal number of points being exchanged in every game. The stupid system where teams can either split 2 or 3 points that they have now needs to be changed. I don't mind the reduction in goalies' pads but the behind the net thing seems silly.

All these wide bluelines, move the net around, remove the red line ideas come from attempts to avoid doing the right thing and migrate to European-sized rinks. Practically all of the rinks in the NHL are newer than 15 years, so they really blew the opportunity to act back in 1990 but they should still bite the bullet. Now.

My biggest complaint besides the upcoming strike/lockout is the inconsistant refereeing. Some of the refs just aren't good enough, and worse still, when the playoffs come, they use a whole different standard.

Another complaint I have is that with its speed hockey has always been the toughest sport to announce. But with so many teams and so many players it is getting harder still. And a lot of the new arenas put the announcers in seats almost as bad as the nosebleeds.

Going way back to Cherry... I don't feel I can support him anymore. He was always funny and controversial but he used to display more hockey knowledge. His act is getting a bit tired and I don't know if I care if they went so far as to bring in somebody new.

cinch · February 12, 2004, 16:54

Quote:

Originally posted by Kontiki
Hey, what's the deal with Salo? Has Edmonton officially given the number one job to Conklin? I know Salo was injured earlier, and he sucked before that, but you hardly see him play anymore.

Damn me for picking Salo in my pool!!

He's still around... I don't want to say, unequivocally, he's a functional backup, but... that's basically what he is.

It's not that he's playing TERRIBLY, it's just that Conklin's playing much, much better. Also, for 4mil per year, Salo should be a frigging Belfour out there... But he ain't.

He's a nice guy, though, so most people cut him some slack... but they'd definitely like to see his salary dumped (preferably to the Rangers) before the tradeline.

I like Salo, but I admit... Conklin's the man this season.

Brundlefly · February 12, 2004, 16:56

As far as sports fighting is concerned, you can't beat baseball for a good scrap. Who could forget Pedro Martinez v. Don Zimmer last year..

cinch · February 12, 2004, 17:18

Also, I should note about last night's Oil/Thrash game:

Thrashers D Andy Sutton turtled when Laraque tried to fight him late in the third (before the big brawl)... then Sutton went after Brewer during the big brawl, trying to fight him.

Shows what he's made of, I guess.

Guynemer · February 12, 2004, 17:44

Quote:

Originally posted by Agathon
Who cares, there was a goalie fight! Not as good as Roy vs Osgood, but a goalie fight nonetheless.

Roy vs Osgood was nothing compared to the original Red Wings/Avs goalie throwdown, Roy vs Vernon. Despite giving up several inches in height and reach, and quite a few pounds, Mike Vernon beat Patricia silly.

(See, I may not like the fact that fighting is in hockey, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate a good fight... especially when total ****** like Roy get their clocks cleaned.)

Agathon · February 12, 2004, 20:01

For those that missed the fun

http://dmsinger.escaped.net/cftemp00...a_edmonton.wmv

joncha · February 12, 2004, 20:47

Did anyone else catch Trevor Kidd's take on the proposed rule changes?

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/Con...l=970081593064

Quote:

NHL blasts away at Kidd
Leaf goaltender's pad demo draws fire

Work on game, Campbell tells backup

PAUL HUNTER
SPORTS REPORTER

It was a bit of showmanship that triggered some of the best shots Maple Leafs goaltender Trevor Kidd has faced all season. And those blasts came from the NHL's head office.

When Kidd was asked to comment on proposed rule changes that would see his goaltending pads shrink to 10 inches wide from 12 inches, he reached for a prop. Toronto's backup netminder produced a tiny-looking pad, one intended for use in peewee hockey, and noted its 11-inch width.

"That's a 12-year-old's goal pad and that's illegal," said Kidd. "It's tough to comment on these changes. If that pad I showed you is illegal on a 12-year-old where do I start?"

"Honestly, I think if they want to score more goals, they should take away our helmets."

Some 2,700 kilometres away in the Nevada desert, NHL vice-president Colin Campbell was clearly annoyed by Kidd's comments.

"Yeah, Trevor Kidd, he can say that. If I were him I'd work on my game," Campbell said of the netminder who has allowed 12 goals in starting Toronto's last three games.

"The players, ones who are in the same association as Trevor Kidd I think, say they can't see the net any more because the goalies are too big. If I seem aggravated it's because we always get these knee-jerk reactions when we do something. And you can leave the `knee' out of that if you want. We're just trying to do the right thing."

Campbell noted that Kidd "is an individual that got big in a hurry."

When informed that Campbell sniped back at him, Kidd said he didn't intend to get into a fight with the league.

"I was just kidding around. Maybe I went too far," he said last night. "I'm all for anything that makes the game better."

In an attempt to pump up offence, the league's general managers have suggested changes that include shrinking the goalie's pads and taking away his ability to go behind the goal line to play the puck.

That elicited the anticipated angry reaction from Ed Belfour, the Leafs' star netminder who is one of the best in the NHL at handling the puck. The usually reticent Belfour was livid about the proposals

"I think they're a joke. It's embarrassing that someone would even propose something like that," he said. "We measured Bryan Marchment's shin pad this morning. It's eight inches. So, basically, they want us to wear defenceman shin pads. When I played with (Craig) Ludwig, he had nine-inch shin pads ... I don't know what they're thinking."

Pretty funny stuff. I like Colly Campbell's dig the best, though: "If I were him I'd work on my game."

jon.

Imran Siddiqui · February 12, 2004, 23:26

Quote:

Atlanta was forced to finish the game with an empty net after Pasi Nurminen was assessed a fighting major for his dance with Ty Conklin.

See wha the idiocy of fighting brings

.

----

Quote:

I seem aggravated it's because we always get these knee-jerk reactions when we do something. And you can leave the `knee' out of that if you want.

Colin Campbel rocks!

And the pads need to get smaller. The best picture of the Stanley Cup Finals last year were when Marty Brodeur and J.S. Giguere were shaking hands after Game 7. Giggy's shoulder pads were, no joke, like 4 inches bigger than Marty's.

Tingkai · February 12, 2004, 23:35

Campbell's comments are funny, but way out of line. He's a friggen V-P of the NHL and he's taking cheap shots at Kidd just because Kidd dares to criticise the recommendation.

Meanwhile, the NHL owners say they're going to listen to players and other people before making a decision. Yeah, right.

RedFred · February 13, 2004, 17:05

Quote:

Originally posted by cinch
...He's a nice guy, though, so most people cut him some slack... but they'd definitely like to see his salary dumped (preferably to the Rangers) before the tradeline.

This seems to be the main function of the Rangers in today's NHL: a place where other teams can dump salary.

Imran Siddiqui · February 13, 2004, 21:07

Let it not be said that they don't have their place in the NHL

.

Ben Kenobi · February 13, 2004, 21:15

What astonishes me is that Brodeur could pass the shutout record of Terry Sawchuck before he finishes.

Kontiki · February 13, 2004, 22:19

All right, let's go for some rediculously early (and therefore likely rediculously off base) predictions.

Which teams do you think will:

A) win their respective divisions
B) make the playoffs
C) get to the finals - and who wins?

For the record, these are the current 16 playoff teams:
East:
Philly
Toronto
Tampa Bay
Boston
Ottawa
New Jersey
Montreal
Islanders

West:
Colorado
Detroit
San Jose
Vancouver
Calgary
Dallas
LA
St. Louis

My predictions:
East - The eight that would make it in now are the same eight that actually will. New Jersey makes a late season charge at Philly for the Atlantic title, but Philly hangs on. Ottawa goes on a roll and, coupled with a Toronto slide, takes the Northeast. Tampa is a mortal lock for the Southeast.

New Jersey (dammit!) wins the east, after another close battle with Ottawa

West - Detroit wins the Central with little problem. Colorado and Vancouver battle it out until the last week of the regular season for the Northwest (sound familiar?) but Colorado ends up taking it. Dallas overtakes San Jose and claims the Pacific crown. Calgary and Nashville battle it out for the final playoff spot, with Nashville eventually sneaking in.

Really tough to pick who's coming out of the west. I'd love to say Vancouver, but Cloutier just ain't a playoff goaltender. If Blake doesn't come back, Colorado is going to have a tough go, but will eventually win. Watch out for Dallas as the darkhorse, though.

Unfortunately, it's another cup for New Jersey.