Farewell to a Swamp

The Flyers played their last-ever game at the Meadowlands with a familiar result, a 3-1 loss. Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur once again led the way, as her turned aside waves of Flyers chances in the first half of the game to keep it scoreless. Jersey then netted two goals in the final minutes of the second and that proved to be the winning margin.

There has been so much made of how the former Brendan Byrne Arena was a "house of horrors" for the Flyers over the years, too much in my opinion. It all has to do with the Flyers supposed franchise-long winning tradition and the fact that a few key records in certain arenas stand out as overwhelmingly losing ones. The orange and black have never been comfortable there just like in Uniondale, or the Boston Garden, Hartford, or in Edmonton for that 12 year stretch including playoffs. The fact is, bizarre things have happened to the team virtually anywhere away from South Broad Street, but because the Devils have been in the same division since their 1982 move from Denver, the story gets magnified.

However, lest we forget, they did finish the era with a 22-46-6 record in New Jersey, having lost the last eight games there since the cancelled season. Only twice since the dawn of the 1990s did the Flyers win as many as two regular season games there, and it was a miracle that it did occur in Games 3 and 4 of the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals. We fans and writers can only hope that a newer, winning tradition begins next season wherever the Devils play (since the new Prudential Center in Newark may not be ready for October - and it was pointed out on the Flyers TV broadcast that if it isn't, the Devils will play "somewhere else").

Whatever. Good riddance to that white-paneled box built on top of a fetid swamp built near a bunch of ugly access roads. I guess the only real "good" news about the new arena is that Flyers fans will have to pay a little less when heading up on to lovely Newark for a road trip.

Common Sense Takes a Back Seat

We all know the Flyers have been out of it since Christmas.

And yet, a few players who have been wracked with injury late in the season somehow keep popping back up for more punishment at the time when a return matters least.

For instance, Mike Knuble. He shattered his orbital bone in that scary collision with Brendan Shanahan in New York on February 17th, missed a month, and now he's back playing but limited by the thick, college-style full face-cage he has to wear for protection.

I understand as a professional, your duty is to recover quickly and get back to helping your squad, but this year's Flyers model is one bad hit away from becoming an exploding Ford Pinto.

Todd Fedoruk. Now that the opposite side of his face was brutalized in that "fight" with Colton Orr last week, Fridge says he doesn't know when he'll come back, and maybe it won't be this year. Ya think?!?! All useless debate about the worth of fighting aside, it's pretty clear that if Fedoruk had come out and said he's going to rehab the whole year and come back next season if the Flyers want him or not, nobody would have blamed him. No point in being chivalrous and leaving the answer ambiguous for a team that has won 20 games all year, and which besides, sports the NHL's penalty-minute leader in a healthy Ben Eager.

Mike Richards. He already missed a huge chunk of time at mid-season with one of those pesky stomach muscle pulls that seemed to defy treatment. Opting for surgery, he returned in a month, but skated very gingerly the whole stretch up until he hurt his shoulder sliding into the boards last week against Florida.

Even though the injury was minor, why put him back into the lineup at this point? He's got a roster spot for next year and some push as a future captain, so why not work Mike York for all he's worth and bring up Ryan Potulny for a couple showcase starts with the team?

On to Simon Gagne. According to Tim Panaccio, the club's leading goal-scorer has a slight bulge in his groin area similar to a hernia, something which troubled him all through the season four years ago. Although he will not return this season, there is talk that Gagne is holding off surgery until later in the Spring, even though doctors recommend this type of thing be taken care of almost immediately. Maybe someone close to him ought to explain in clear, plain French that delaying these things will cost him rehab time in the summer - which costs practice time in training camp - which could mean a very slow start next year.

The common thread here seems to be that hockey players seem to have an innate drive to ignore or play through pain, resorting to drastic measures to come back and contribute in the present, to the point where it becomes damaging to themselves and the team in the future. Sometimes personal safety has to take a front seat, even if a few lonely voices question one's willingness to sacrifice for the good of the team.

There should be no heroes on the NHL's worst team. If things are going to get markedly better in 2007-2008, why not hold out and be the healthiest you can be on a team which might have a shot to contend?

Confessions of a Raging Cynic

It's trite and cliche, but, in my case, it happens to be true. The old saying,
"A pessimist is just an optimist who got his feelings hurt," definitely
applies to me when looking at the 2006-2007 Philadelphia Flyers.

I've acquired a reputation as "Negative Bob" amongst my fellow Phanatic
colleagues because of my pull-no-punches and avoid-all-compliment nature when
discussing most aspects of sports and life.

But if technology exists to make Joe Lunardi look taller, sound less grating
and appear less stocky on television than he is in real life, there must be
hope for me.

The phenomenon has happened once before, during the 1995 lockout season.
When the team opened up the year at 3-6-1, after five straight years out of
the playoffs, I was poised to watch games with nothing more than a winter-long
version of bitter-beer face.

Even after the big Recchi-LeClair-Desjardins trade, the rise from last to
first, and the clinching of a playoff spot and division title in back-to-back
games in late April, I was still unconvinced.

All it took then at the ripe young age of 17 to relax and let the Kool-Aid
slide down the gullet was a few thrilling overtime playoff wins and I was
hooked for the next 10 years. However, 12 years later, after weathering a
cancelled campaign, another first-round playoff failure and the worst regular
season in franchise history, it's not so easy to repair that Flying P logo-
shaped wound on my heart.

The thing is, I don't want to act and think so cynically -- it just comes so
easy. It's fun to paint a very vivid, sarcastic picture of events as they
happen, especially this season when the misfortune has been so dire, bizarre
and unrelenting.

But that's all changed now, because I'm going to slap on the Happy Helmet and
drink a pitcher full of orange-flavored positivity and a magical
transformation should take place.

Forget about losing four of four to the Panthers, Todd Fedoruk doing his best
Gerry Cooney imitation, or the league's lowest point total. In honor of the
Flyers' four-game sweep over playoff-bound Atlanta, I'm going to profess my
undying love for the team and express unbridled hope for the future.

So, here goes...

Ahhhh...it feels so good when it hits your lips....

...I see so very clearly now...

Simon Gagne? Every single shift he takes erases the memory of Tim Kerr and
John LeClair.

Martin Biron? The second coming of the first arrival of Ron Hextall!

Peter Forsberg? Nobody could ever accuse him of Hamlet-like tendencies. A
solid, resolute star player through and through. He's not hurting, he's just
resting so he'll be 100 percent ready when he comes back next season.

Derian Hatcher? A speedy transitional skater and stone wall on defense...he's
the guy to teach the young kids how to make it in the new NHL. Why didn't he
use that sniper's touch around the net more often??

Geoff Sanderson? Pelle Eklund ring a bell?

Scottie Upshall? Who cares if he's hurt, the ladies love him! And ladies bring
boyfriends, who bring buddies, who buy season tickets and fill the upper
levels!

Mike Richards and Jeff Carter? Peter Zezel, Murray Craven, and both Sutter
brothers all rolled into two. The focus they display on the ice at all times
is something the kids should emulate.

Janne Niinimaa - how can I forget the Finnish Flash? He's handling both ends
of the ice so adeptly these days, it's hard to believe he ever did well under
the abrasive Ken Hitchcock.

John Stevens? A mastermind. A champion. I can't imagine he's ever going to be
outcoached. He speaks not but golden nuggets of wisdom at all times.

Paul Holmgren - I just wanna shake your hand, sir. As I stare into those cold
Nordic brown eyes and see that squared and tensed jaw, it is soothing to know
the Flyers will get back on the Cup-winning track by splurging in free agency
come July.

The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades. Shades I'll be wearing next June
on that sunny day when the Stanley Cup parade happens. In fact, let me go stake out a spot at Broad and Oregon in preparation. You're all welcome to come along -- I have enough juice to last us the season.

Put Another Record On...

...aaaand the hits just keep on comin'.

Last night's 4-1 loss to Florida meant that the Panthers made it a clean sweep of the season series (4-0-0) over the Flyers for the first time in their brief history. That reverses the Flyers' first-ever season sweep of Florida last season.

The Panthers have given the Flyers fits since their 1993 inception - as head coaches Roger Neilson and Doug McLean brought that demon neutral zone trap down and walked out of the Spectrum and the CoreStates Center with more than a few shocking 0ne-or-more goal wins.

The entire series has been bizarre to say the least. With the two losses this season on South Broad Street, the Flyers are now 12-10-7 here, and even with two defeats in South Florida, are 20-7-1 there. The Flyers on more than one occasion, had suffered losses under a hail of plastic rats at the old Miami Arena in the mid-1990's. They lost a playoff game in overtime when the net was clearly dislodged from the rear when the winning goal was scored.

Florida became the last team to win three games at the Spectrum in one year (one regular season and two playoff wins) in 1995-96, and also were the first visiting team to win twice at the new building (October 5 and 27, 1996). Pavel Bure scored a hat trick in a 3-3 tie in his first game in a Panthers uniform after a trade from Vancouver in Philly.

But nothing could compare to the total whitewash the Panthers put on the Flyers in 2006-2007. The Flyers held the lead for exactly 1:54 of game time in the four contests. Florida held the Flyers to just five goals in those four games, an all time low for goals allowed in a season series, as well as an all time low for goals per game. Ed Belfour had hands down the easiest four wins of his storied career, never even breaking a sweat or whining once to the officials about players buzzing him in the crease. Hell, even Martin Biron heaped on the scorn by accidentally scoring the game-deciding goal on himself earlier in the month.

Alls I can say now is, I'll get you next time, Gadget...next time...

Tightening the Screws

Last night, there were two 2-1 games in the NHL.

Out of two total games. Pittsburgh and the Rangers. Canucks and the Oilers. All four teams who know how to turn on the offense. Three of those teams will make the playoffs, and one (the Oilers) will not.

So why the energy and goal crisis all of a sudden?

Surely in the era of the "new NHL" coaches and players know that a playoff berth is no longer contingent on how many one-goal games they can squeeze out of the remainder of the schedule. Don't they know they have extra points for overtime and shootout losses? Maybe not. Maybe the psychology of the pre-2004 NHL is still hard-wired into the men behind the bench and the boys out on the ice.

Let's not forget what all those excruciatingly close games from 1996 to 2004 have taught us, and what the 2006 season brought us: the knowledge that a loss is a loss is a loss, no matter if it's 2-1, 6-2, or 7-6. If a team in a playoff race loses by one goal, it still counts as a defeat, and the opportunity to make up the loss is removed. Dozens of coaches trotted out that method in the past, perhaps as a hairshirt over losing a three-goal game in late March. The only remedy then seemed to be winning as many one-goal games or tying as many games on purpose as punishment for losing by so much.

The illusion existed, and persisted, that your margin of wins or losses down the stretch was an indicator of how battle-ready certain teams were in the playoffs. Sadly, that perception still exists in 2007. Take a gander at the margin of victory for all playoff teams in the early stages of last season and this season, then compare them with the margin of victory in March and April for the same: you see that the average goals per game dips, and the goal differential in those games also takes a big tumble.

Pardon me, but I thought the ideas behind awarding points for overtime and shootout losses was to reward teams for throwing caution to the wind and going for the win, breaking them of the habit of playing a 65-minute chess match with little excitement. Instead, more and more teams in year two of the combined overtime/shootout loss column, are taking advantage of the system. More games this season than last have gone to either extra session. Sure, there's been the extra bonus of having a 5-4 game go the distance instead of a 2-2 game end in a tie, but the old-school philosophy of tightening up still prevails.

Lucky for us, there have been some days late in the season already where the trend was bucked, like last Saturday when Carolina won by five, Florida scored eight and won by three, and the Rangers defeated Boston by a touchdown and extra point.

Don't expect fireworks most nights, though. There are still six teams in contention for a final postseason
berth - five in the East and Colorado in the West. Even though the East has flipped the script and plays a more
open game like the West used to, there are enough teams who like to play spoiler who will be fighting tooth-and-nail with one-goal wins just for professional pride.

Sometimes the more things change, the more they stay the same. Unless you're out of contention, then nobody cares how badly you win or lose. These are the games to keep your eye on if you're a fan and want to be entertained - because the pressure's off and guys are playing for pride and numbers.

One Bad Omen

The Flyers pulled off a momentous feat in last night's 3-2 win over the playoff-bound Atlanta Thrashers.

A four-game, season-series sweep. Over a team battling for a division title, and which is 33 points ahead of them in the overall standings.

This does not bode well for Atlanta.

That's four games they've squandered, and all the difference between a comfortable division lead in the Southeast and the battle-royale they find themselves in with a struggling Tampa Bay club which has made up 15 points in the last 6 weeks.

It's not the end of the world, but how can you justify a team that is the oldest in the NHL - which is stocked with names like Holik, Mellanby, Tkachuk, Zhitnik, Hossa and Kovalchuk - loses all four games in some fashion to a Flyers club which will end the season dead last? One example that screams out is the 1984-85 Montreal Canadiens, who won the old Adams Division. They lost all three games to a Toronto Maple Leafs team which won 20 out of 80 regular season contests, then bowed out at home in overtime in Game 7 against provincial rival Quebec in the second round.

One should note that the Canadiens learned their lesson and won the Cup the following season, but Atlanta's deadline deals indicate a "win now" philosophy that belies any lesson-learning this season.

Or maybe the lesson is, don't underestimate your opponent, no matter what the standings say. The Flyers did not play particularly well or hard in each of the first three games against Atlanta, and walked away with three wins. Last night, once the Flyers got that 3-1 lead, Atlanta clearly carried the play and momentum but even down two goals to the 30th ranked club in the NHL, it's hard to claw back to tie or win.

The best salve Bob Hartley can apply in this situation is to get his team to erase the memory of the sweep by focusing on what needs to be done to win games in the remaining portion of the schedule. This is where the Holiks and Mellanbys and even the injured Steve Rucchins on the team have to shine, to keep the younger minds in focus and continually energetic. In the blink of an eye, the Thrashers can fall from third to sixth or lower in the Eastern Conference - and pundits won't hesitate to point out Philly's 4-0 record as the main culprit.

Penguins won't march: Deal reached for new arena

The Pittsburgh Penguins announced on Tuesday that they have reached an agreement with city, county and state officials for the financing of a new arena that will keep the club in the Steel City for the next 30 years.

At a cost of $290 million, the new building will be constructed across the street from Mellon Arena, home to the Pens since the team's 1967 inception. Team officials expect the new arena to be ready for the start of the 2009-2010 season. The club will play at Mellon until then on a short-term lease extension.

"This is another great step forward for the City of Pittsburgh and our region," said mayor Luke Ravenstahl. "We all worked very hard to ensure that the Penguins would stay here in Pittsburgh, and to provide a new 21st century entertainment center for our city without using local taxpayer dollars."

The Penguins' lease at the 46-year-old facility, nicknamed "The Igloo," which is the oldest rink remaining in the league, was to expire on June 30, at which point the team would have been free to leave.

The city-county Sports & Exhibition Authority will own the new arena, which will be operated by the Penguins, under the terms of the 30-year lease. The state will pay $7.5 million annually from a state economic development fund and slot machine revenues.

Don Barden, who owns Majestic Star Casino LLC, has been awarded the slots license for Pittsburgh, and will pay $7.5 million a year. The team itself will pay $3.8 million a year as well as $400,000 a year in capital improvements. The Penguins, who will be responsible for paying all operating costs, will also receive all revenue generated by the new arena.

Mediated by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, the agreement was reportedly reached last Thursday in Philadelphia between club co-owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle, PA governor Ed Rendell, Ravenstahl, and Allegheny County chief executive Dan Onorato.

Before the deal was struck, Lemieux threatened to relocate the team and trips to Las Vegas and Kansas City ensued. Kansas City offered the use of its yet-to-be completed Sprint Center rent-free if the Penguins decided to relocate there prior to the start of next season.

Simon’s stickwork provides rare opportunity for all involved

For once, the NHL got something right.

The punishment handed down by the league office to the New York Islanders’ Chris Simon on Sunday is the largest sentence in league history: 25 games. That means, beginning from this past Saturday’s game with Washington, the Isles enforcer is not eligible to play again until 25 total games have elapsed – regular season and playoffs combined. If New York should reach the postseason, the number of games would be reduced at the start of the 2007-2008 regular season.

Simon should hope his teammates rally and capture a playoff berth so that only this current year is disrupted.

Unlike Marty McSorley, whose 23-game suspension in February, 2000 for assaulting Vancouver’s Donald Brashear with a two-handed swing amounted to a premature end to the last-ditch effort of a veteran to earn a paycheck, removing Simon for 25 games brings a colorful and useful player’s career to a screeching halt.

The fact that the penalty was so stiff is surprising, given that the NHL has set a low bar in terms of precedent for stick-swinging infractions.

In 1973, when all but a handful of NHL players skated without head gear, California Seals defenseman Barry Cummins was suspended three games and fined $300 for cracking Bobby Clarke over the head which produced freely-flowing blood. All Dino Ciccarelli of the Minnesota North Stars had to do was spend one night in jail, booked on an assault charge, when he clubbed Toronto’s Luke Richardson on the side of the head with a two-handed chop in 1988. Ten years earlier, in 1978, Colorado’s Wilf Paiement drew a 15-game ban for giving a roundhouse swing to the mug of Detroit’s Dennis Polonich. The biggest of the bunch was a 16-game suspension handed down to Boston’s Eddie Shore in 1933, for slamming his stick full into the head of Toronto’s Ace Bailey and nearly killing him.

However, while I commend the swift action of league discipline czar Colin Campbell for acting quickly and first suspending Simon indefinitely, then handing down the weighty sentence, I still think there is room enough for more punishment in this case.

The 25^th pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1990 draft made his NHL debut for Quebec in 1992, and has crafted a reputation during an eventful 14-year career for causing chaos and mayhem for the Nordiques and five other franchises including the Islanders. His first suspension came in 1997, when he allegedly called Sabres forward Mike Grier a very forbidden six-letter word to his face. The incident was all the more perplexing given that Simon is a Native Canadian, and had to endure similar racial intolerance and epithets growing up.

Two more suspensions followed before this one, which did little to quell the raging spirit within the Wawa, Ontario native. He has amassed over 1700 penalty minutes in 692 career games. No stranger to the net as well as the penalty box, Simon also scored 29 goals in 1999-2000 for the Washington Capitals in a typically calm year.

So, I feel comfortable in saying that Simon should be subjected to more than 25 games for this jarring, heinous, and disturbing offense. Being a fighter by trade, one respected by teammates and opponents, Simon knows the ins and outs of those mysterious, unwritten hockey rules referred to as “The Code.”

Let’s be honest here. Hollweg’s hit was far from legal, as he caught Simon on a cross-check with his back fully turned to the boards, in that perilous position which can cause significant head and neck injuries if a skater is knocked off-balance. Hollweg knows that a player of his caliber is not to make snap decisions like that and get by without a response from a respected veteran. Likewise, Simon knows full well that he cannot make such a rash, impulsive and dangerous decision like the one that led to Hollweg’s injury and maintain the level of respect he worked so long to cultivate.

Through a decade and a half of prowling the ice, he is well aware that the proper response should be to wait until Hollweg is looking him squarely in the eyes before settling his differences by dropping the gloves. That’s why Simon’s retroactive excuse that he possibly suffered a concussion on the hit and thus may not have had his faculties about him at the time of the misdeed rings very hollow. Several former NHL tough guys have admitted to going toe-to-toe with an opponent after that player caused them to see stars and lived to fight again, so why should Chris Simon be any different?

That’s why the penalty can be and should be stiffer. Simon, a player who supposedly knows better, who knows exactly how to cause damage and how to relent when necessary, did cause harm to a fellow player in such a vicious and disrespectful manner.

There is widespread agreement that the NHL dropped the ball on the Todd Bertuzzi incident three years ago, exchanging 20 games plus a cancelled season for one player’s career and health. This time around, while it is comforting that Campbell has decided to set a new precedent, there is room for a greater stand.

Just look at the tape. There is nothing in Simon’s actions that should cause anyone to plead for clemency, and there is plenty to view which may cause the most even-tempered minds to be moved to pure shock, disgust and rage. Thank God whatever impulses prevented him from taking a full-on baseball-style swing with a full wind-up from stopped him from doing so, because if there was any pre-meditated thought like Bertuzzi’s head-slam on Simon’s part, Hollweg would have wound up as gravely injured as Steve Moore.

Barry Melrose has spoken at length on the incident beginning last Thursday night, when he emphatically called for a 40-game suspension. A virtual half-season ban even suggested in the heat of the moment is too excessive in my opinion. I think starting at 25 games, then re-evaluating the situation after that limit has elapsed, is a suitable comfort zone. That way, Simon has had plenty of time to apologize to Hollweg, to his team, to make his mea culpa to the league, and to assess where that violent impulse may have originated.

Simon’s shame and Hollweg’s suffering can also work for the greater good. The NHL should now take a huge step forward by framing stick infractions in the same manner they did for abuse of officials two decades ago. At one time, Paul Holmgren punched referee Andy Van Hellemond square in the face in a dispute over a penalty and received five games; outrage from NHL officials was so great that all further infractions towards the zebras carried an immediate 20-game sentence.

Let’s abolish the current system of minor for high-sticking, four minutes for drawing blood and a major plus a match penalty for egregious harm. Make the act of merely drawing blood due to careless stick work a major plus a match penalty and a one-game suspension, intent-to-injure a match penalty plus a five-game suspension, and turn a Simonesque wielding of the stick into a 25-gamer or more.

I need to make one more thing clear before I wrap this up, and I address this to the common fan as well as students of the game: the Simon-Hollweg incident is absolutely NOT an indicator that the NHL is evolving (or devolving) into a much more wanton, brutal, lawless entity. The league has persevered and prospered despite being peppered every so often by random, inexplicable acts which far outstrip the kinetic nature of the game – and will continue to evolve though incidents and accidents will continue to occur.

Nonetheless, when a stern hand is called for, the NHL should have no qualms about stepping in and bringing the hammer down. Chris Simon may feel that he’s been unfairly made an example of at some point during his suspension. But he should also counter that by knowing he brought shame and outrage upon a game which he is fortunate to have played in the first place, and was punished for the betterment of all.

Deja Vu

Can't we all just get along?

The Song Remains The Same

Three years later, there are two simple facts: Todd Bertuzzi still gets to play in the NHL, and Steve Moore cannot.

March 8, 2004 was the end of a blood feud between the Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche which had been simmering for months. Started when Canucks fourth-liner Brad May took some cheap shots at both Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg of the Avalanche in a February game in Denver, the whole ugly mess ended when Bertuzzi punched Moore from behind, then grabbed him and slammed him head-first into the ice. Moore was carted off the ice on a stretcher, a trail of blood quickly coagulating and freezing into the neutral zone at GM Place as his teammates rushed forth to defend their incapacitated teammate.

In between were festering allegations of headhunting, and the justification for Bertuzzi's actions being revenge for Moore's hit on Markus Naslund, which caused the Canucks' captain to suffer a mild concussion. At the time of the incident, the Avalanche had poured on the hurtin' on the scoreboard, on their way to a 9-2 blitz.

The timing of the hit was curious, in hindsight: It was the final meeting of six that season. In Vancouver. The clubs would not have a chance to meet in the playoffs until a much later round if at all. With the impending threat of a lockout, it could also have been the last meeting of the teams for an indefinite period of time.

The action itself, viewed through any prism you like, was one of the most egregious and atrocious violations of" The Code" that has occurred in NHL history.

First, the tale of the tape: Bertuzzi is shaped more like a block of granite than a man, 6'3", 225 lbs, who looms much larger and hits much harder than those dimensions would indicate. Moore stood 6'2 and weighed 205 lbs. So, the physical advantage goes to #44 in your program.

Next, the process: According to the unwritten Code, if any player wishes to engage a fellow skater in a fight, he must either exchange words face-to-face, or tap his mark on the shoulder. Bertuzzi did neither, first sucker punching Moore from behind, then grabbing him across the shoulders - all without facing his prey. Anyone with a long enough memory who saw the Moore incident also flashed back to February, 2000, when Marty McSorley (then with the Bruins) smacked the blade of his stick full force into Donald Brashear's face from behind on the very same ice - using the excuse that all he wanted to do was tap Brashear on the shoulder as indication he wanted to engage in fisticuffs.

Finally, the injury itself: As Bertuzzi rode the full force and momentum of his body into Moore, the Avs' forward's face struck the ice violently to one side, opening up facial cuts and abrasions from which a steady flow of blood poured forth. The force of the blow knocked Moore unconscious, and the violence with which he was tackled and shoved caused three of his neck vertebrae to fracture, coming dangerously close to paralysis. Moore was only brought into the world of sentience when it was required to stabilize his neck in order to leave the ice and get to the nearest hospital.

The penalty for such a willful, destructive act? 20 games. Bertuzzi was suspended for the remainder of the 2003-2004 regular season, plus the entirety of the Canucks' seven-game opening-round playoff loss to Calgary. The cancelled 2004-2005 season due to the lockout added more pathos to Bertuzzi's situation, as he held a press conference where he finally, tearfully expressed regret for the incident - causing some brave, oxygen-deprived columnists to declare the fact that "Bert" would be cleansed from extra guilt if he had that entire year to sit in the corner alone and think about what he did.

Still, when the NHL resumed play in October, 2005, two facts still remained: Todd Bertuzzi was allowed to continue his career, while Steve Moore was not.

I assure you, Bertuzzi's Kleenex-inducing mea culpa are the only tears that should be shed for either man. For those who view Bertuzzi's act in its proper context, there should be bitterness and righteous anger. Dale Hunter drew a still-record 21-game ban in 1993 for hitting Pierre Turgeon from behind in the closing minutes of the Islanders' playoff series victory over the Washington Capitals. Turgeon suffered a separated shoulder and returned to play at full health the following season for New York. Whether Bertuzzi is truly sorry in the depths of his soul and professes such in private, or whether the tears were semi-genuine and a calculated move is immaterial.

Moore, who only had cups of tea with the Avalanche spread over three seasons, played collegiately at Harvard. With his generous contract, he is able to pour money into his extensive rehabilitation at home in Ontario. With his support system that includes former players, coaches, and his agent, he is able to face every day of his recovery with optimism and determination.

Moreover, he is a graduate of that prestigious Ivy League school with a degree in environmental sciences and public policy. While some may snicker at the major as if it were a dressed-up version of "Rocks for Jocks, " if and when Moore decides to forego his goal of catching on with an NHL club, he will most certainly not be at a disadvantage to continue with a career and a life with those credentials.

The fan in me, which resides firmly in the dark recesses of my mind when putting words on a page, cries for retribution. I am not alone in the opinion, or the certainty that Bertuzzi has not been punished enough. At the time when discussion of the penalty for his actions ran to extremes, I called for his immediate suspension lasting through the end of that season, plus half of whatever season came next. I still stand by that opinion, as it would have given Gary Bettman a proper and fantastic chance to set a new precedent for punishing acts which cause harm to individuals and which denigrate the game itself.

As an avid observer, I would have delighted in an entire six-game slate of blood, guts and gore between Colorado and Vancouver aimed straight for the former 1993 draft pick of the New York Islanders. Scores be damned, the beast within me that watches hockey for its cathartic qualities would have been sated by at least one more brawl in response.

However, the writer and budding professional who attempts to shed light on his subject thanks Chance that the 2004-2005 season was wiped out, preventing either team, and its more excitable players, from wantonly causing chaos and mayhem. The extra year-plus off the ice allowed all the psychic wounds to heal, quelled the need for retribution, and caused those whose careers resumed to focus on bringing the NHL back from the rubble.

Nonetheless, three years later it is still perplexing that the league chooses to equate violence of this kind with the act of fighting. Fighting deals with respect of an opponent, and the honor of defending your teammate by dropping the gloves in a one-on-one situation. The inability of the battle-tested to grapple amongst themselves due to instigator penalties helped cause a random act of violence like Bertuzzi's to happen. There was clearly no respect for an opponent on Bertuzzi's part, and his actions caused life-threatening physical harm to another.

Three years later the song remains the same: Todd Bertuzzi can continue his career, while Steve Moore most likely will not.

Sugar and Spice, and Everything Nice...

Apparently, one overtime win over the Devils is sudden cause for both major newspapers in this city to pack stories chock full of quotes from the Flyers about how much hope there is for the future, and how much they all wish there were half the season to play instead of a handful of games remaining.

Look, it's great that this rag-tag bunch of Phantoms call-ups, deadline acquisitions, and veterans can squeeze out a couple nail-biters against potential playoff teams as this season circles the drain into the start of baseball...but let's remember that this team is still a deeply troubled, losing one. OK, so the string of points (in four straight games and five of their last six) is promising, but the actual record in that stretch (2-1-3) is nothing to write home about, plus, they're just 3-4-3 (or 3-7 if you're a hard case) in the last 10 contests.

Last time I checked, the NHL doesn't yet award points for spirited efforts where a losing team is "in the game" over the course of 60 minutes. It is a positive harbinger for the future that this wretched refuse wearing ashen black unis can earn a pair of points against a division leader, but the future is still 16 games (plus six more months after that) distant.

If you indulge in a bit of prediction for the remainder of the schedule, it looks like the Flyers may have five games they could win outright: Boston at home this weekend, at Phoenix, home against the Islanders, home against the Rangers, then home again to the Islanders provided they're officially out of the race. That's only 23 wins folks - nothing to hang your hat on even if those games turn out correctly. The rest of their opponents are teams either eager to shore up their playoff seeding, or will be skating through brick walls to make the postseason.

Still, as the cornerstone of the franchise and its marketing slogan has always been about effort and hard work - they can sell you a picture that hard work plus a little maturity is the ultimate cure-all for the club. Of course, it's not so. You need the right head coach and the better pick of players to make it all come together, and in this, the Flyers are sorely lacking from now until April 8th, and maybe even until July 1st.

For now, though, enjoy the suck. It's almost over. Take solace in a few more watchable games. Burn into your memories some good plays by some guys who won't be back in '08. Just don't believe the hype.

11:58

The Pittsburgh Penguins have not been able to reach a deal for a new arena anywhere in the city, so relocation looms as a more likely proposition.

Again, don't expect the NHL to mediate in this matter. Remember, the league's position is one for the overall health of all 30 teams, so whether the Pens stay in Pittsburgh, go to the ready-made situation in Kansas City, or end up in a totally different locale is of no consequence as long as the franchise itself is on stable footing.

The only true variable in the situation is how Mario Lemieux will be perceived. Will he be viewed in the same light as William Irsay, Art Modell, Donald Stirling, Jeffrey Loria - all renegade owners who tried to either strongarm a city to force a move, or unexpectedly yank one to a new city - or will he get a pass from a business perspective as a former franchise savior who was forced into drastic measures?

Update: According to the king of all incognito hockey bloggers, "Eklund" reports that the measure might have been prompted by Governor Ed Rendell himself as a way to spur a deal to get done and keep the Pens in Pittsburgh. Now Fast Eddie is going to petition the NHL to step in and block the move.

1) Since when does reverse psychology work with men who have more money than the person trying to use said psychology?

2) Good luck on that one, Monsieur Governor. Maybe you think you can sit eyeball-to-eyeball with The Commish and persuade him because of your mutual legal and cultural backgrounds, but if Bettman has presided over this issue like a passive king on his throne, there's not much you can do.

3) I know we fans and readers can spot when a beat writer is a shill for the team he covers, but since when can a mere blogger write something like "Penguins likely to stay in Pittsburgh" with any degree of certainty, even with his supposed network of sources?

A Lonely Island

The trade deadline acquisition of Martin Biron from the Buffalo Sabres last Tuesday might have signaled the end of the tenure for one of the most competitive but congenial players ever to set foot in the Flyers’ locker room.

Robert Esche isn’t playing.

He hasn’t started a game since February 22nd in Buffalo, when he was pulled after giving up four goals in 22 minutes during a 6-3 loss. He hasn’t completed a game since a 4-3 overtime loss at the Wachovia Center January 30th against Tampa Bay. He hasn’t won a game since January 2nd, picking up the victory by stopping 40 shots in a 3-2 Philly win over the Islanders in New York. His record at the moment: 5-9-2. Even more glaring, his alternate stats: .872 save percentage, and a garish 4.32 goals-against average.

But Robert Esche hasn’t left either.

Although sources have told several Philadelphia-area publications that he was the subject of trade talks at the start of the calendar year, and that by the end of January his locker at the Flyers Skate Zone in Voorhees was conspicuously less cluttered, Esche remains a part of the team.

As the deadline neared, there was talk in some quarters that Esche could be headed to Los Angeles, a team stocked with a glut of young and speedy talent. It didn’t hurt that the Kings’ president and general manager is Dean Lombardi, a former Flyers employee, and the assistant general manager is Ron Hextall. Adding more speculation to those rumors was LA’s waiver acquisition of Sean Burke, arriving in Southern California from Springfield of the AHL in late January. Burke mentored Esche when the young goaltender came up to the Phoenix Coyotes in 1999-2000, and that relationship continued off the ice and had grown since then. Esche has many times cited Burke’s addition to the Flyers roster in 2004 as a huge motivating factor in his success that Spring.

However, keeping Esche in hockey’s equivalent of the Phantom Zone after not dealing him for any value before the deadline passed complicates the Flyers goaltending situation.

Biron, an unrestricted free-agent after this season, wanted out of Buffalo in the worst way after Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff decided to give the starting job to Ryan Miller. Judging from interviews he conducted with American and Canadian press in the days leading up to last Tuesday, it seemed the 29-year-old didn’t care where he was dealt, as long as he got a chance to prove himself worthy. Now that he’s with the Flyers but still able to walk away to another team come summertime (as when Ed Belfour auditioned for other clubs at the tail end of the 1996-97 season in San Jose after Chicago dealt him away) for a bigger, better deal, the fact that Esche will also be unrestricted may create a deep crater around the crease in need of immediate filling.

Given that neither of the current Phantoms goaltenders are ready for prime time, and that the organization’s recent free-agent selections have read like a list of shell-shocked veterans on a final tour of duty, it would have clearly been more beneficial to the team to trade Esche for a jersey filler or more draft picks/prospects. Therefore, the man dubbed “Chico” would have been given a chance to start fresh somewhere else without having to spend so much time in limbo, and that acquired value could be used to attract another goaltender. Also, any deal along those lines would have been beneficial to Antero Niittymaki, giving him positive reinforcement that he has a long future with the club.

However, the fact that no deal occured opens things up to a great deal of uncertainty. If Biron chooses to stay, and is able to work out a deal, he’s a clear number one with Niittymaki as the capable back-up. Esche would then have a definite answer that his future is not in Philadelphia, and everyone gets on with their lives. On the other hand, if Biron chooses to walk, it is unclear if the Flyers could work fast enough to sign Esche before he draws better, more lucrative interest from other clubs.

For now, though, it’s hard to imagine the country music loving firebrand being anything close to pleased with his professional life. Despite a marriage and stable home with two kids, in the space of three calendar years he has slipped precipitously from postseason hero to pariah. Hopefully he’s putting extra effort into that great golf tournament he hosts each July just outside of his hometown of Utica, New York in his spare time when he’s not, of course, keeping himself sharp for a potential showcase start towards the end of the regular season.

Hall-of-Famer and Philadelphia legend Bernie Parent famously stated that a goalie stands on a very lonely island. As tough as it may be to stand and face 40 shots a game and the camera lights afterward, it’s worse for someone as battle-ready as Esche to be denied the chance to do so, and suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune while waiting.

Kansas City, here they come.

The biggest fears of Pittsburgh Penguins fans hover above the Steel City like a cloak of ash and soot from its former industrial days. Loyal followers of the two-time Stanley Cup winning franchise live in dire expectation that their beloved angry skating marine mammal will turn his gaze and his stride to the Midwest, not stopping until he reaches KC.

All that separates this town from their team from disappearing is the hopes of a business deal that will keep the Pens in Pittsburgh beyond the termination of their lease with Mellon Arena, which expires at the end of June.

However, I'll tell you several reasons why a Penguins move before the start of next season would benefit the NHL more than it would upset the people of Western Pennsylvania.

First, is the glut of young superstar talent stacked in the Eastern Conference. You have Crosby and Malkin just on the Penguins, followed by Alex Ovechkin. In the West, it's a series of stars on a couple teams, but no major franchise faces the NHL is presenting as a major draw. So, if you shift the Penguins to Kansas City, there's a bit more balance in terms of marketable uber-talent.

Second, under the current schedule which is up at the end of next season, there is too little inter-conference play. Having Crosby and Malkin in the Western Conference and the K.C. Penguins in the Central Division gives Detroit and Nashville eight cracks apiece at both players to showcase their talents, plus four games a year with aggressive offensive gameplans like those in Calgary, Colorado, San Jose and Los Angeles.

Third, if and when the Penguins move to the Midwest, the realignment of the divisions would put certain teams in better geographic positions. Pittsburgh would go from the Atlantic to the Central (with Detroit, St. Louis, Chicago, and Columbus, all midwestern towns). Nashville would move from the Central to the Southeast (providing a better geographic fit with the remaining Southern teams even though they'd be in a different time zone), and Washington heads northward to the Atlantic (where they'd also be in closer proximity to their old Patrick Division foes instead of travelling anywhere from 300 to 1200 miles within their former division).

Next, unlike 30 years ago when the NHL's reactionary stance against the WHA forced some bad expansion cities into the league, the Kansas City area is exponentially more vibrant and ready to host a big-league club.
Kansas City's metro area and sphere of influence stretches as far West as Manhattan, Kansas, as far north as Omaha, and as far south and southwest as Wichita and the Kansas suburbs close to the state line. After the Scouts departed for Denver, the IHL's Blades proved a capable and popular franchise for several NHL teams, most notably the San Jose Sharks. A good amount of players who figured in the Sharks' playoff upsets in 1994 and 1995 came through the old Kemper Arena before heading to Silicon Valley.

Further still, that relocation gives a nice string of franchises along the I-70 corridor from Columbus to Denver, including a Kansas City-St. Louis rivalry already explored in baseball's interleague play.

In addition (for however long it lasts), free rent in the spanking-new Sprint Center allows any advertising and merchandising revenue to be pumped cleanly and wholly back into the team to spend on veteran talent if the time comes where the Pens are legitimate Stanley Cup contenders on solid financial footing. This sure thing is bound to be more beneficial than having fans, team ownership, the mayor's office, local businessmen as well as Pennsylvania's governor strut and fret in hours when the moon is dark over whether or not the team can squeeze out one or two more years in its current state.

If the move should happen, I hope all Penguins fans don't misplace their fear, mistrust and anger. It's not as if the club will pack up and move in the middle of the night with no warning. There has been ample time for all team supporters to enjoy one or more games at the Igloo, and should the team resurface in Missouri for October 2007, the faithful should still want to root for their team, knowing that the move kept their beloveds from a much murkier fate.