New Jersey - Los Diablos seem to be everybody's favorite to make at least the conference finals year after year, no matter if they've made a miraculous second-half run of if they've dominated from start to finish. There's no reason to think this year won't be the case.
The Devils grew their reputation from getting the most out of the least, in talent and financially. I think they can finally shed that perception and lay waste to that backhanded compliment for good. Other than shucking Alexander Mogilny and unloading Vladimir Malakhov to San Jose in salary cap moves, New Jersey is a team that is confident standing pat. And why not? They have 48-goal scorer Brian Gionta back in the fold, and his EGG Line (with Scott Gomez and Patrik Elias) intact as well. Jamie Langenbrunner, Dan LaCouture, Jay Pandolfo and John Madden are charged with holding down opponents' top lines and adding clutch scoring touch. The defense, (while it will never return to its Chinese Wall glory days with Stevens and Daneyko) are young, mobile, agile and hostile. More is expected of Brian Rafalski after an up-and-down season last year, but he should have no trouble being the guide for the remainder of the eager but inexperienced defensive corps. Of course, there's always Martin Brodeur if all else fails. You can expect the usual 70 games, 2 to 2 1/2 goals against, a host of shutouts, and competitiveness the same as in the previous 12 seasons.
The Devils made great strides once again transforming their team into one that has as much firepower as staying power. With a weaker division and competition from the Rangers and Flyers less likely, Jersey will come out on top once again. Prediction: First place, two seed in playoffs.
NY Islanders - They should be re-named the "eye-slanders." Seriously, the ownership and front office shenanigans that marked the Islanders offseason will make watching games at the Nassau County Mausoleum even more offensive to the sighted ticket holder than in that late 1990's dip - and they'll do it without the Gorton's Fisherman jerseys.
Where to start? Alexei Yashin, who bears the captain's "C" as if it were drawn on with a dark blue magic marker? Rick DiPietro, the man who was such a "can't miss" in the 2000 draft, that the team gave up on Roberto Luongo, given a 15-year contract?? A roster predominantly stocked with last year's Bridgeport Sound Tigers?? I feel bad for Brendan Witt, Mike Sillinger, and Chris Simon, three players who signed onto Long Island in the summer. They will be looked upon to be the calming influence for a green Isles team. Even the sum of their parts won't be able to steer New York through bad waters. I feel even worse for Mike Dunham, a goaltender who has learned from Martin Brodeur, built a solid career in Nashville alongside Tomas Vokoun, now relegated to back-up behind the Golden Boy of Boston University. The Islanders may be able to steal a few games in the division or the conference at times, but the only purpose they will serve within the Atlantic will either be the pillow upon which the Flyers will rest after they've been run through by the Rangers and Devils, or the ceiling by which Pittsburgh measures the success of its youth movement.
The angry curses of every team the Isles beat on their way to four Cups are now coming back around to haunt this broken-down nag of a franchise. Prediction: 4th place. Will send flowers to the Penguins at the end of the season.
NY Rangers - More than big-name offensive talent and bone-rattling brawn on defense, the one thing that held the Rangers back last season was a player with heart and a tough-love approach to the game. Lucky for the Blueshirts, they found their man.
Brendan Shanahan is not the force of nature he was, scoring 46 goals between Hartford and Detroit back in 1996-97, but he's the closest living facsimile to Mark Messier the NHL has to offer. For a team on the verge of making noise in the regular and postseasons, the Rangers signed the most important player to push their squad over the hill. He'll more than make up for the combined losses of Martin Rucinsky (to St. Louis) and Jed Ortmayer (to a pulmonary embolism). The addition of forward Matt Cullen and defenseman Aaron Ward, both fresh from a Cup win in Carolina, adds depth and grit on the backline and another second-or-third-line threat. If Darius Kasparaitis remains free of the groin injuries that plagued his starts and cost him a big chunk of the season, and if the Jagr-Straka-Nylander-Prucha axis of scoring still spins as deadly as it did one season ago, the Rangers can be a top-flight team once again. Also, I'm not expecting Henrik Lundqvist to turn into the second coming of Pelle Lindbergh, but he's capable enough of making great strides this year against offenses that won't enjoy as much free rein. What's going to hold back the Manhattanites is, they will inevitably lose ground against at least Philly, the Devils, Buffalo and Ottawa in the conference. Prediction: 2nd place.
Philadelphia - In the course of three years and two seasons, Bob Clarke has once again indulged in hyper-rationalization of league philosophy. Fresh from the scorch marks Buffalo left all over the orange and black, Clarke has turned a predominantly veteran team who took Tampa Bay to seven games in 2004, into a predominantly youthful one.
There are several big problems in the mix for this season. First, the forward signings of Mark Cullen, Marty Murray, and Randy Robitaille. Next, the trade of durable fan favorite and space-creator Michal Handzus to Chicago for Kyle Calder. Finally, the promotions of Boyd Kane, Riley Cote, the retention of Niko Dimitrakos, and the inability to grab back two undervalued snipers from last year: Patrick Sharp and Jon Sim. Geoff Sanderson, another of the league's Ageless Wonders, gets a pass, because, even at age 36, he's worth three Brian Savages with his speed and scoring touch. Let's not even discuss the conversion of Petr Nedved into a checking winger. These minor disasters are counterbalanced by the success of the Gagne-Forsberg-Knuble first line, and the Carter-Richards-Whoever second line. The defense lost two of its best players - Kim Johnsson to Minnesota, and Eric Desjardins to retirement. In their place, a hopeless amalgam of spare parts: Nolan Baumgartner, Lars Jonsson, Freddy Meyer, and (depending on the injury situation) a nameless Phantom of the Week. The Terrible Twosome of Hatcher and Rathje figures to be on the receiving end of several thousand boos over the course of a 41-game home schedule. Joni Pitkanen and Denis Gauthier provide excellent counterpoint with their specialties, and will be the brightest spots through some tough times.
The goaltending issues in this city will never be resolved, as long as every Swede, Finn, Canuck and Yank who come down the pike are force-wedged into the Parent-Lidbergh-Hextall hero mold. The combined talents of the monster labelled "Roberto Eschimaki" are at best, a one-a and a two. Together, they will hold up fine, but "fine" doesn't cut it for a team that will fall short of the Cup for the 31st season. The Flyers are a team with so many puzzle pieces, you look at the whole and might see the Eiffel Tower sticking out of the side of the Taj Mahal, set inside the Grand Canyon. Prediction: 3rd place, with a lower win and point total than last year.
Pittsburgh - I don't know whether it will be due to the new owner, or the reluctance of the people of the Golden Triangle to welcome slots or pay for a new arena with public funds or taxes, but the Penguins will not be in Pittsburgh three years from now. Hartford, Hamilton, Winnipeg, wherever they land, will get to see some up-and-coming young talent as good as when the Nordiques came up in the mid 1990's.
In the final absence of Mario Lemieux on the ice, Mark Recchi and John LeClair are capable veterans who will provide on-and-off ice guidance and some needed offense to a team barely out of diapers. Crosby, Staal, and Letang are full of promise, but we only know that Crosby is the real deal. Ryan Malone, Michel Ouellet, Colby Armstrong, and Dominic Moore are a good young secondary nucleus. Sergei Gonchar gets the unfair task of presiding over a young defense that was left with a gaping hole once Dick Tarnstrom was dealt to Edmonton down the stretch last season. Marc-Andre Fleury and Jocelyn Thibault are competent enough in net to cut down on the number of potentially embarrasing losses. There's really not much left to say about a team that's been "On Notice" for ten years, now most likely playing out the string in a city that will be devastated without their presence. Prediction: 5th place.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Northeast Direct
Boston - Year after year, whether it's a small amount of tinkering or a series of moves that blow out half a roster, the Bruins organization has always touted itself as one that can put competitive teams on the ice for a budget. Three decades into the reign of error that marks Jeremy Jacobs' imprint on the B's, and the team is in danger of becoming a perennial cellar dweller.
There's no question now that the three-for-one Joe Thornton trade set the Bruins back at least four years. That deal robbed the city of its only marketable icon, and robbed the on-ice product of its greatest hope. True, the number three overall pick from 1997 was never going to be an Orr, Esposito, Bourque, or even Oates, but for whatever he was, his presence on Causeway Street was the lynchpin that held the team together. Leaving a core of Glen Murray, Patrice Bergeron, Mark Mowers, and Marco Sturm to carry the offense is not much to build upon. Adding Marc Savard as a free agent is a big step forward, but he's nowhere close to providing the assists and creating the space Thornton did. Young bucks Phil Kessel and Brad Boyes, Paul Mara and Yan Stastny possess nothing more than tremendous potential, which is a shaky thing when your learning curve comes in a tough division and conference. Grabbing Zdeno Chara from Ottawa
improves the defense, though I'm not quite sure how he's going to be more than a Hal Gill surrogate with more scoring punch. I'm also uncertain how putting the "C" on his jersey will impact the leadership void that existed after late November last season. With the departure of Andrew Raycroft to Toronto, you're left with the equally enigmatic Hannu Toivonen and Tim Thomas in the crease. The Bruins won't be near the bottom of the league in goals against, but they won't be tough enough to pull close enough to even be in the race for the postseason.
Prediction: Last place, but that's no shame in the always tough Northeast.
Buffalo - The "Goat Lord Logo" is Gone! The "Goat Splash Logo" is here! It's a new day for the city on the Niagara!
The Sabres are another sexy pick to reach the Cup finals from the Eastern Conference, and I'm close to being convinced they have a legitimate shot to make the push through this year. Other than having to ditch J.P. Dumont and trade Taylor Pyatt due to salary cap issues, Buffalo's roster is untouched - which is fantastic for team chemistry. Head Coach Lindy Ruff is approaching Master Motivator status, and he will use the lessons learned from last year's surprise second-place finish to crack the whip this year. Even if the tandem of Martin Biron and Ryan Miller don't turn in an equally stellar performance this time around, they are still the best one-two punch in goal in the entire conference. Ruff would do well to create a starter-backup system that's about a 55-45 split to maximize both men's potential.
The Senators proved to be the only barrier to Buffalo in 05-06. Not so this year. Prediction: First place, second playoff seed.
Montreal - The Canadiens had their first round series against Carolina well in hand, up 2-0 coming back home with a chance to sweep. Then, they flat out stopped scoring, dropped four straight, and went home early while Carolina won the Cup.
The script has been the same for the Habs every year since 1994 - doing enough to get to the postseason, but not doing enough to push through to the next round. Every season Montreal has won a playoff round since 1993, hot goaltending was the sole factor in their advance. There's no reason to think it won't be the case again this year. That's a very sad fact of life for the most dominant franchise in NHL history, that over-expansion has watered down rosters to the point that even the mighty Habs are constantly on the bubble. Mike Ribeiro and Richard Zednik are gone, replaced by Sergei Samsonov and Mike Johnson. The defense has improved offensively, now that Janne Niinimaa will join Sheldon Souray as guns from the point on the power play. Everything else is in place from the end of last season. You can expect a solid but unspectacular season from Alex Kovalev, yeoman's work and at least 20 games lost to injury from Saku Koivu, and veiled threats leveled at the head of the vicious Alexander Perezhogin. David Aebischer should feel as comfortable as he's going to be wearing the bleu, blanc et rouge and being the anointed next link in the Roy-Theodore goalie-savior chain.
It's another year when the Montrealers will be on the edge of their seats, wishing, hoping, praying the Canadiens will squeak into the postseason. Prediction: 4th place, no playoffs, but a .500 record.
Ottawa - Nobody in the 30-team NHL can duplicate a 52-win, 113-point, 300+goal season. However, the Sens seem to have no problem doing the above, then confounding expectations by turning soft in the playoffs.
Ottawa won't be winning many 8-1 games this season, and they may not be winning many one-or-two goal games this year, either. Losing your spiritual leader on defense to a division rival, and keeping two less-than-stellar goaltenders will do that. As long as Alfredsson, Heatley, and Spezza are healthy, they will put up numbers, make the game exciting, and carry the Sens to quite a few wins this year. However, with the loss of Bryan Smolinski, the second line has a HUGE hole in production potential. Dean McAmmond is more of an interchangeable part than bona-fide threat or replacement. The departures of Chara to Boston and Vaclav Varada to Europe will be devastating to a defensive corps that at one time could steamroll forwards and shoot the puck with deadly precision. Like Akeem Olajuwon without Ralph Sampson, Wade Redden without Chara will be a lonely Tower struggling to stay upright against the offensive rush. Ottawa will have a surprising amount of toughness, with Denis Hamel, Brian McGrattan, Chris Neil and Christoph Schubert - but that only means more games will be knock-down, drag-out struggles than last year's routine goal splurges.
Expect at least a 40-goal drop on offense, but expect ScotiaBank Place to be a rougher place to play this year. Knowing what it is to leave everything on the ice in the regular season may be the final piece to the puzzle of advancing in the East. Prediction: 2nd place, 42-45 wins.
Toronto - Fans in Toronto should be cautiously humming The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" quietly to themselves as they pack the Air Canada Centre. Meet the new boss! Same as the old boss?
Paul Maurice has been given a blank check and blank slate to remake the Leafs in his image. Gone are the Pat Quinn years of flashy offense bolstered by the Domi-Tucker riot act. Here, is the preacher of defensive responsibility locked inside a framework that makes the game fun for the kids. Also gone are Ed "The Billion Dollar Man" Belfour and Eric "This Space For Rent" Lindros. What's on the ice is a mixed bag. Mats Sundin, Darcy Tucker, Michael Peca, Bryan McCabe and Jeff O'Neill will do exactly what we've come to expect. Stajan, Steen, Wellwood, and Ponikarovsky are the young fulcrum around which the Leafs will turn. How they fare individually and as a group will determine how well Toronto does in the 72-game Eastern gauntlet. Wade Belak and Hal Gill won't be skating, they'll look like they're playing defense on stilts. Jean-Sebastien Aubin and Andrew Raycroft will play net like Angels one week, and like Demons the next. Either Toronto will go through the season never winning or losing more than 3 or 4 in a row, or they'll be winning 10 and losing 10 at various points.
I give the edge to Toronto over Montreal, because the Leafs have more veterans capable of better production and leadership than the Habs. Prediction: 3rd place, just above Montreal, maybe an 8th seed.
There's no question now that the three-for-one Joe Thornton trade set the Bruins back at least four years. That deal robbed the city of its only marketable icon, and robbed the on-ice product of its greatest hope. True, the number three overall pick from 1997 was never going to be an Orr, Esposito, Bourque, or even Oates, but for whatever he was, his presence on Causeway Street was the lynchpin that held the team together. Leaving a core of Glen Murray, Patrice Bergeron, Mark Mowers, and Marco Sturm to carry the offense is not much to build upon. Adding Marc Savard as a free agent is a big step forward, but he's nowhere close to providing the assists and creating the space Thornton did. Young bucks Phil Kessel and Brad Boyes, Paul Mara and Yan Stastny possess nothing more than tremendous potential, which is a shaky thing when your learning curve comes in a tough division and conference. Grabbing Zdeno Chara from Ottawa
improves the defense, though I'm not quite sure how he's going to be more than a Hal Gill surrogate with more scoring punch. I'm also uncertain how putting the "C" on his jersey will impact the leadership void that existed after late November last season. With the departure of Andrew Raycroft to Toronto, you're left with the equally enigmatic Hannu Toivonen and Tim Thomas in the crease. The Bruins won't be near the bottom of the league in goals against, but they won't be tough enough to pull close enough to even be in the race for the postseason.
Prediction: Last place, but that's no shame in the always tough Northeast.
Buffalo - The "Goat Lord Logo" is Gone! The "Goat Splash Logo" is here! It's a new day for the city on the Niagara!
The Sabres are another sexy pick to reach the Cup finals from the Eastern Conference, and I'm close to being convinced they have a legitimate shot to make the push through this year. Other than having to ditch J.P. Dumont and trade Taylor Pyatt due to salary cap issues, Buffalo's roster is untouched - which is fantastic for team chemistry. Head Coach Lindy Ruff is approaching Master Motivator status, and he will use the lessons learned from last year's surprise second-place finish to crack the whip this year. Even if the tandem of Martin Biron and Ryan Miller don't turn in an equally stellar performance this time around, they are still the best one-two punch in goal in the entire conference. Ruff would do well to create a starter-backup system that's about a 55-45 split to maximize both men's potential.
The Senators proved to be the only barrier to Buffalo in 05-06. Not so this year. Prediction: First place, second playoff seed.
Montreal - The Canadiens had their first round series against Carolina well in hand, up 2-0 coming back home with a chance to sweep. Then, they flat out stopped scoring, dropped four straight, and went home early while Carolina won the Cup.
The script has been the same for the Habs every year since 1994 - doing enough to get to the postseason, but not doing enough to push through to the next round. Every season Montreal has won a playoff round since 1993, hot goaltending was the sole factor in their advance. There's no reason to think it won't be the case again this year. That's a very sad fact of life for the most dominant franchise in NHL history, that over-expansion has watered down rosters to the point that even the mighty Habs are constantly on the bubble. Mike Ribeiro and Richard Zednik are gone, replaced by Sergei Samsonov and Mike Johnson. The defense has improved offensively, now that Janne Niinimaa will join Sheldon Souray as guns from the point on the power play. Everything else is in place from the end of last season. You can expect a solid but unspectacular season from Alex Kovalev, yeoman's work and at least 20 games lost to injury from Saku Koivu, and veiled threats leveled at the head of the vicious Alexander Perezhogin. David Aebischer should feel as comfortable as he's going to be wearing the bleu, blanc et rouge and being the anointed next link in the Roy-Theodore goalie-savior chain.
It's another year when the Montrealers will be on the edge of their seats, wishing, hoping, praying the Canadiens will squeak into the postseason. Prediction: 4th place, no playoffs, but a .500 record.
Ottawa - Nobody in the 30-team NHL can duplicate a 52-win, 113-point, 300+goal season. However, the Sens seem to have no problem doing the above, then confounding expectations by turning soft in the playoffs.
Ottawa won't be winning many 8-1 games this season, and they may not be winning many one-or-two goal games this year, either. Losing your spiritual leader on defense to a division rival, and keeping two less-than-stellar goaltenders will do that. As long as Alfredsson, Heatley, and Spezza are healthy, they will put up numbers, make the game exciting, and carry the Sens to quite a few wins this year. However, with the loss of Bryan Smolinski, the second line has a HUGE hole in production potential. Dean McAmmond is more of an interchangeable part than bona-fide threat or replacement. The departures of Chara to Boston and Vaclav Varada to Europe will be devastating to a defensive corps that at one time could steamroll forwards and shoot the puck with deadly precision. Like Akeem Olajuwon without Ralph Sampson, Wade Redden without Chara will be a lonely Tower struggling to stay upright against the offensive rush. Ottawa will have a surprising amount of toughness, with Denis Hamel, Brian McGrattan, Chris Neil and Christoph Schubert - but that only means more games will be knock-down, drag-out struggles than last year's routine goal splurges.
Expect at least a 40-goal drop on offense, but expect ScotiaBank Place to be a rougher place to play this year. Knowing what it is to leave everything on the ice in the regular season may be the final piece to the puzzle of advancing in the East. Prediction: 2nd place, 42-45 wins.
Toronto - Fans in Toronto should be cautiously humming The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" quietly to themselves as they pack the Air Canada Centre. Meet the new boss! Same as the old boss?
Paul Maurice has been given a blank check and blank slate to remake the Leafs in his image. Gone are the Pat Quinn years of flashy offense bolstered by the Domi-Tucker riot act. Here, is the preacher of defensive responsibility locked inside a framework that makes the game fun for the kids. Also gone are Ed "The Billion Dollar Man" Belfour and Eric "This Space For Rent" Lindros. What's on the ice is a mixed bag. Mats Sundin, Darcy Tucker, Michael Peca, Bryan McCabe and Jeff O'Neill will do exactly what we've come to expect. Stajan, Steen, Wellwood, and Ponikarovsky are the young fulcrum around which the Leafs will turn. How they fare individually and as a group will determine how well Toronto does in the 72-game Eastern gauntlet. Wade Belak and Hal Gill won't be skating, they'll look like they're playing defense on stilts. Jean-Sebastien Aubin and Andrew Raycroft will play net like Angels one week, and like Demons the next. Either Toronto will go through the season never winning or losing more than 3 or 4 in a row, or they'll be winning 10 and losing 10 at various points.
I give the edge to Toronto over Montreal, because the Leafs have more veterans capable of better production and leadership than the Habs. Prediction: 3rd place, just above Montreal, maybe an 8th seed.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Nothing Cute To Say About the Southeast
Atlanta - A million tongues have grown tired over the years, always picking those young but plucky underdogs to "take the next step" every year since 2003 and grab that elusive playoff spot. Somehow, there are always different voices trumpeting the cause. I just don't see it.
At their heart, the Thrashers are a team with an explosive offense that can have fans on the edge of their seats, always thin on defense, and porous for any number of reasons in net. This year is no different. Ilya Kovalchuk will threaten the 50-goal plateau, while Marian Hossa and Slava Kozlov will flit around the ice almost at will to put up their points. However, after Jon Sim, you can't expect a lot of production from the third or fourth lines. Marc Savard's departure to Boston will be sorely missed. The addition of Steve Rucchin as a free agent from the Rangers complements Scott Mellany in the "gritty veteran looking to provide leadership to a young team" department, but you have to wonder how both will hold up. Furthermore, if your best defenseman is named Greg DeVries, you've got problems. In net, new signee Johan Hedberg is living his seventh or eighth life, and Kari Lehtonen is like that sign in the Wawa deli department displaying the number of days between accidents.
Even though the defending champs won't be as dominating this year, there are three teams who will take advantage of Atlanta's freewheeling ways. Even though the supposed hallmark of the new NHL is an emphasis on offense, you still need defense and goaltending to make the playoffs. The Thrashers are in danger of becoming the NHL's version of the Chicago Cubs. Prediction: 4th place, 35 wins
Carolina - The trouble with winning the Cup one year, is that a certain segment of fans and analysts immediately seize on the previous year's winners to repeat, always shaking heads in disbelief when it inevitably does not occur. With 30 teams, more parity, and 16 teams in the postseason with winning records, it is virtually impossible for one team to repeat its run to the Cup.
Still, the Hurricanes are a very talented team with the right balance of veteran experience (especially on the backline, where experience tends to shine through), exciting forwards who should all hit their peak at the same time, and a goaltender with a tremendous upside. Aside from losing Aaron Ward (Rangers), Mark Recchi (back to Pittsburgh) and Doug Weight (back to St. Louis) the lineup remains unchanged. There are a few cracks in the armor, though. One is the Cup hangover. Another is that there are two other talented teams in the division (Florida and Tampa Bay) out to prove last year's struggles were mere flukes. What could cause a problem is, how can Cam Ward possibly repeat last year's performance? He's been to the highest of the high so early in his career, how can he deal with the pressure of such early success without a sophomore or junior year slip? Ward now has to bear the burden of being a starting goaltender, since Martin Gerber left and John Grahame is simply not a viable starter.
The 'Canes won't repeat, and they won't put up a 50-plus win season this year, but they're one year older and one year wiser. They won't need to push the pedal to the metal to prove themselves. Prediction: 1st place.
Florida - Discounting the front office turmoil, the Panthers pulled off the double take moments of the summer by swapping Roberto Luongo for Todd Bertuzzi and Alex Auld, then bringing in Ed Belfour.
Looking at this lineup, it's hard to believe the 2005-2006 edition had trouble scoring for most of the year, ending up in fourth place. The addition of Bertuzzi is a huge step in the right direction - he should effectively cover for reluctant big man Chris Gratton's five-year, four-team zombie act. I have no reason to believe Olli Jokinen can't repeat his goal-scoring frenzy from a year ago, or that Gary Roberts, Joe Nieuwendyk and Martin Gelinas won't contribute the same brilliant mixture of veteran savvy which has kept them in the league this long. Florida's defense is a good mixture of the hulking and the smooth, exemplified by Steve Montador and Ruslan Salei. As it is for most teams, goaltending will be an issue. Alex Auld is a competent backup, but with the move to a more offensive-oriented Eastern Conference, the likelihood of turning in a stinker increases. Ed Belfour...yeeaaahh, Ed Belfour...he'll turn in 10 great games, 10 horrific ones, and the rest will be dispassionate. If ever there was a player stealing a paycheck, Belfour is the prime suspect.
A lot of upside for the team who plays on the edge of the Everglades. Who knows if it will all come together?
Prediction: 2nd place and a low playoff seed.
Tampa Bay - Over the last two seasons, the Lightning have seen the peak and the valley, all at Ludicrous Speed. They aren't the first team to win it all one year and drop out of sight the next, and they won't be the last.
2006-2007 is the moment of truth for this resurrected franchise. They can either take the lessons learned from the last two campaigns and grow from it, or they can collapse under the malaise and discontent that an abrasive coach like John Tortorella can breed after too long. I'm going on a limb to say the Lightning will not be anything close to the world-beaters they were in 2003-2004, or even the team who bowed out in the first round last year. They've lost a key forward in Fredrik Modin to Columbus, and saw John Grahame move to division rival Carolina. Nikita Alexeev and Vinnie Prospal are pale substitutes for Modin and the retired Dave Andreychuk, but all is not lost with Lecavalier, Richards and St. Louis prowling in the offensive zone. Defensively, Tampa has young if unproven talent in Doug Janik and Paul Ranger to back up Dan Boyle, Cory Sarich, Nolan Pratt and Filip Kuba. Signing Luke Richardson, limping along in his 19th season, was not wise. He would serve the team better by sitting in the press box most games and relaying his observations to the young defense. Prediction: 3rd place, fighting for the final playoff spot.
Washington - The horror show in the nation's capital that marked Washington Capitals hockey from 1974 to 1982 has returned full force.
Alex Ovechkin is the only reason anyone in Maryland, DC, or Northern Virginia should venture into the Verizon Center to watch a game. If I were in charge of the Caps, it would be a team regenerated by a huge funeral pyre. By a slim margin, Dainius Zubrus, Richard Zednik, Donald Brashear and Olaf Kolzig will survive the firy purge, but everyone else on the ice and in the front office shouldn't wear any flammables. The flames will be stoked by the current home, road, and third jerseys, and rise until they've consumed Ted Leonsis, who still treats this hockey team like a cute little afterthought from the center of his technological empire. There's no place to go but up, but who knows how long it will take for these Phoenix to rise from the ashes? I feel bad for Olie the Goalie, whose professional loyalty won't allow him to cut and run after years of abuse propping up a second-class team. He'd probably shave off half a goal from his average if they just pour the bronze casting right over him while in uniform, letting him guard the crease in petrified form.
There will be a lot of cheering in downtown DC this year - because Rangers, Islanders, Devils, and Flyers fans will buy a majority of tickets and make the trip, filling about half the Caps home games with passionate, interested customers. Prediction: 5th place. Will fight the Penguins and Islanders for dead last in the conference.
At their heart, the Thrashers are a team with an explosive offense that can have fans on the edge of their seats, always thin on defense, and porous for any number of reasons in net. This year is no different. Ilya Kovalchuk will threaten the 50-goal plateau, while Marian Hossa and Slava Kozlov will flit around the ice almost at will to put up their points. However, after Jon Sim, you can't expect a lot of production from the third or fourth lines. Marc Savard's departure to Boston will be sorely missed. The addition of Steve Rucchin as a free agent from the Rangers complements Scott Mellany in the "gritty veteran looking to provide leadership to a young team" department, but you have to wonder how both will hold up. Furthermore, if your best defenseman is named Greg DeVries, you've got problems. In net, new signee Johan Hedberg is living his seventh or eighth life, and Kari Lehtonen is like that sign in the Wawa deli department displaying the number of days between accidents.
Even though the defending champs won't be as dominating this year, there are three teams who will take advantage of Atlanta's freewheeling ways. Even though the supposed hallmark of the new NHL is an emphasis on offense, you still need defense and goaltending to make the playoffs. The Thrashers are in danger of becoming the NHL's version of the Chicago Cubs. Prediction: 4th place, 35 wins
Carolina - The trouble with winning the Cup one year, is that a certain segment of fans and analysts immediately seize on the previous year's winners to repeat, always shaking heads in disbelief when it inevitably does not occur. With 30 teams, more parity, and 16 teams in the postseason with winning records, it is virtually impossible for one team to repeat its run to the Cup.
Still, the Hurricanes are a very talented team with the right balance of veteran experience (especially on the backline, where experience tends to shine through), exciting forwards who should all hit their peak at the same time, and a goaltender with a tremendous upside. Aside from losing Aaron Ward (Rangers), Mark Recchi (back to Pittsburgh) and Doug Weight (back to St. Louis) the lineup remains unchanged. There are a few cracks in the armor, though. One is the Cup hangover. Another is that there are two other talented teams in the division (Florida and Tampa Bay) out to prove last year's struggles were mere flukes. What could cause a problem is, how can Cam Ward possibly repeat last year's performance? He's been to the highest of the high so early in his career, how can he deal with the pressure of such early success without a sophomore or junior year slip? Ward now has to bear the burden of being a starting goaltender, since Martin Gerber left and John Grahame is simply not a viable starter.
The 'Canes won't repeat, and they won't put up a 50-plus win season this year, but they're one year older and one year wiser. They won't need to push the pedal to the metal to prove themselves. Prediction: 1st place.
Florida - Discounting the front office turmoil, the Panthers pulled off the double take moments of the summer by swapping Roberto Luongo for Todd Bertuzzi and Alex Auld, then bringing in Ed Belfour.
Looking at this lineup, it's hard to believe the 2005-2006 edition had trouble scoring for most of the year, ending up in fourth place. The addition of Bertuzzi is a huge step in the right direction - he should effectively cover for reluctant big man Chris Gratton's five-year, four-team zombie act. I have no reason to believe Olli Jokinen can't repeat his goal-scoring frenzy from a year ago, or that Gary Roberts, Joe Nieuwendyk and Martin Gelinas won't contribute the same brilliant mixture of veteran savvy which has kept them in the league this long. Florida's defense is a good mixture of the hulking and the smooth, exemplified by Steve Montador and Ruslan Salei. As it is for most teams, goaltending will be an issue. Alex Auld is a competent backup, but with the move to a more offensive-oriented Eastern Conference, the likelihood of turning in a stinker increases. Ed Belfour...yeeaaahh, Ed Belfour...he'll turn in 10 great games, 10 horrific ones, and the rest will be dispassionate. If ever there was a player stealing a paycheck, Belfour is the prime suspect.
A lot of upside for the team who plays on the edge of the Everglades. Who knows if it will all come together?
Prediction: 2nd place and a low playoff seed.
Tampa Bay - Over the last two seasons, the Lightning have seen the peak and the valley, all at Ludicrous Speed. They aren't the first team to win it all one year and drop out of sight the next, and they won't be the last.
2006-2007 is the moment of truth for this resurrected franchise. They can either take the lessons learned from the last two campaigns and grow from it, or they can collapse under the malaise and discontent that an abrasive coach like John Tortorella can breed after too long. I'm going on a limb to say the Lightning will not be anything close to the world-beaters they were in 2003-2004, or even the team who bowed out in the first round last year. They've lost a key forward in Fredrik Modin to Columbus, and saw John Grahame move to division rival Carolina. Nikita Alexeev and Vinnie Prospal are pale substitutes for Modin and the retired Dave Andreychuk, but all is not lost with Lecavalier, Richards and St. Louis prowling in the offensive zone. Defensively, Tampa has young if unproven talent in Doug Janik and Paul Ranger to back up Dan Boyle, Cory Sarich, Nolan Pratt and Filip Kuba. Signing Luke Richardson, limping along in his 19th season, was not wise. He would serve the team better by sitting in the press box most games and relaying his observations to the young defense. Prediction: 3rd place, fighting for the final playoff spot.
Washington - The horror show in the nation's capital that marked Washington Capitals hockey from 1974 to 1982 has returned full force.
Alex Ovechkin is the only reason anyone in Maryland, DC, or Northern Virginia should venture into the Verizon Center to watch a game. If I were in charge of the Caps, it would be a team regenerated by a huge funeral pyre. By a slim margin, Dainius Zubrus, Richard Zednik, Donald Brashear and Olaf Kolzig will survive the firy purge, but everyone else on the ice and in the front office shouldn't wear any flammables. The flames will be stoked by the current home, road, and third jerseys, and rise until they've consumed Ted Leonsis, who still treats this hockey team like a cute little afterthought from the center of his technological empire. There's no place to go but up, but who knows how long it will take for these Phoenix to rise from the ashes? I feel bad for Olie the Goalie, whose professional loyalty won't allow him to cut and run after years of abuse propping up a second-class team. He'd probably shave off half a goal from his average if they just pour the bronze casting right over him while in uniform, letting him guard the crease in petrified form.
There will be a lot of cheering in downtown DC this year - because Rangers, Islanders, Devils, and Flyers fans will buy a majority of tickets and make the trip, filling about half the Caps home games with passionate, interested customers. Prediction: 5th place. Will fight the Penguins and Islanders for dead last in the conference.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Central Standards
Chicago - Let's start by saying you won't find any stupid jokes about how the only real hockey team in Chicago are the Wolves. It's just a fact of life, like death and taxes, that as long as the Wirtz family owns the team, the players and the fans will be shortchanged living in such a great city with such a great (former) hockey tradition.
That said, the Blackhawks did manage to upgrade their offense, netting Martin Havlat and Bryan Smolinski in that three way deal with Ottawa and San Jose. Havlat's automatically the best scoring threat on the team, and Smolinski the best center. Even with the steadily improving Rene Bourque, gritty winger Martin Lapointe, and Michal Handzus adding some depth, there's not enough there beyond two lines to compete with the rest of the division. Defensively, there's no way after years of playing 30-plus minutes a game in Vancouver and Long Island that Adrian Aucoin can keep up the pace. Jassen Cullimore and Jim Vandermeer will make opposing forwards look over their shoulder in the offensive zone, but there's no depth and no toughness before you get to the men in the crease. Speaking of which, there's automatically a problem when the three goalies a team carries have been starters at one time in their respective careers. Either Brian Boucher or Patrick Lalime will be disgruntled and asking for a trade sometime before the All-Star break, and after last season, Nikolai Khabibulin probably thought he was back in Winnipeg facing so much rubber.
Sad to say, but this will be yet another lost year in a lost era for a once proud franchise. Prediction: Last place, though Havlat's skill and the goaltending carousel may make a few games interesting.
Columbus - Let's get this straight. Rick Nash misses a good chunk at the start of the season, Sergei Fedorov arrives and plays like he's on Xanax, and the Jackets manage to post their best season since arriving in the league in 2000? That won't happen again, now that Chicago, St Louis and Nashville have upgraded their teams. Nash is the sniper, Fedorov is the passer, while David Vyborny, Nikolai Zherdev and Fredrik Modin will add more scoring punch - and that's all, folks. Anson Carter will be a valuable addition for depth on the third line, but it's unrealistic to expect a 33-goal year like he had in Vancouver. Aside from Adam Foote and Bryan Berard, this team is a sieve on the backline, and without even Marc Denis to throw in five or six excellent games in net, the Jackets will once again be near the bottom of the league in goals against. Prediction: 4th place. Good thing the Blackhawks are there in the basement to cushion a fall.
Detroit - Since the creation of the new Central as part of the six-division alignment starting in 1998-99, the Red Wings have finished first every year except for 1999-2000, when the Blues won the Central and the Presidents' Trophy as the best team in the NHL. 2006-2007 will be the second year.
Hockeytown has lost so much in the offseason with the retirement of Stevie Franchise, and the departure ofd Brendan Shanahan to the Rangers. It's not just the goals, assists and points - the heart and soul of three Stanley Cup winners vanished in a summer of discontent. A 58-win team that utterly failed in the postseason is now a battered husk of itself. Sure, everyone else will be along for the ride this year, led by 44-year-old captain Chris Chelios. Dominik Hasek is even taking his place on the goalie-go-round with the perennially maligned Chris Osgood as his back-up. Still, this team reminds me of those early 80's Flyers - too old and too young at the same time. They'll put together a decent regular season, then hit a wall when fresher legs and deeper rosters confront them in the playoffs.
Second-year man Mike Babcock will have to break out of autopilot this time around, and actually have to coach this Red Wing team. He'll have his hands full trying to manage the babes and massage the old folks.
Prediction: 2nd place. Detroit is on an elevator operating only with a "down" button.
Nashville - Congrats, you capital of that hockey hotbed of Tennessee. This is your time. Carpe diem.
You've got the smooth professionalism of Paul Kariya. The manic speed of Steve Sullivan. The swift hands of Jason Arnott. The shifty and crafty J.P. Dumont. The durable goaltending combo of Tomas Vokoun and Chris Mason. The weakening of the Red Wings' gerontological Empire. Two teams in your division you can easily rip off 14 wins against. There are no more excuses. Prediction: First place.
St. Louis - All is smiles and sunshine in the city by the Mighty Mississip'. New ownership, new lease on life, new commitment to exciting the crowds and putting a competitive product on the ice. Wait...didn't we hear this out of Pittsburgh last year?
This team left a trail of paper from all the signed and discarded contracts that would make Republicans envious. Bill Guerin, Radek Dvorak, Doug Weight, Martin Rucinsky, Jay McKee, Dan Hinote, and Manny Legace have the task of turning a bunch of sour notes into sweet, sweet music. All Mike Kitchen has to do is keep Keith Tkachuk away from the pastry aisles, and the Blues are all set, right? Wrong. While signing a bunch of name players to infuse your shiny new plaything with an element that sells tickets is a brilliant marketing strategy, it does not mean automatic winning chemistry when the puck drops. See "Penguins, Pittsburgh" for reference. The Blues are yet another team that is too old and too young, and that spells a maddening inconsistency that may turn St. Louis into a seller come the trading deadline. Are the Blues a vastly improved team over the one that finished 14th in the West? Absolutely. However, I don't buy into the belief that signing players in a blizzard of ink guarantees anything.
Things are looking up in the Arch City, but there's still a long way to go. Prediction: 3rd place, a playoff spot just out of reach.
That said, the Blackhawks did manage to upgrade their offense, netting Martin Havlat and Bryan Smolinski in that three way deal with Ottawa and San Jose. Havlat's automatically the best scoring threat on the team, and Smolinski the best center. Even with the steadily improving Rene Bourque, gritty winger Martin Lapointe, and Michal Handzus adding some depth, there's not enough there beyond two lines to compete with the rest of the division. Defensively, there's no way after years of playing 30-plus minutes a game in Vancouver and Long Island that Adrian Aucoin can keep up the pace. Jassen Cullimore and Jim Vandermeer will make opposing forwards look over their shoulder in the offensive zone, but there's no depth and no toughness before you get to the men in the crease. Speaking of which, there's automatically a problem when the three goalies a team carries have been starters at one time in their respective careers. Either Brian Boucher or Patrick Lalime will be disgruntled and asking for a trade sometime before the All-Star break, and after last season, Nikolai Khabibulin probably thought he was back in Winnipeg facing so much rubber.
Sad to say, but this will be yet another lost year in a lost era for a once proud franchise. Prediction: Last place, though Havlat's skill and the goaltending carousel may make a few games interesting.
Columbus - Let's get this straight. Rick Nash misses a good chunk at the start of the season, Sergei Fedorov arrives and plays like he's on Xanax, and the Jackets manage to post their best season since arriving in the league in 2000? That won't happen again, now that Chicago, St Louis and Nashville have upgraded their teams. Nash is the sniper, Fedorov is the passer, while David Vyborny, Nikolai Zherdev and Fredrik Modin will add more scoring punch - and that's all, folks. Anson Carter will be a valuable addition for depth on the third line, but it's unrealistic to expect a 33-goal year like he had in Vancouver. Aside from Adam Foote and Bryan Berard, this team is a sieve on the backline, and without even Marc Denis to throw in five or six excellent games in net, the Jackets will once again be near the bottom of the league in goals against. Prediction: 4th place. Good thing the Blackhawks are there in the basement to cushion a fall.
Detroit - Since the creation of the new Central as part of the six-division alignment starting in 1998-99, the Red Wings have finished first every year except for 1999-2000, when the Blues won the Central and the Presidents' Trophy as the best team in the NHL. 2006-2007 will be the second year.
Hockeytown has lost so much in the offseason with the retirement of Stevie Franchise, and the departure ofd Brendan Shanahan to the Rangers. It's not just the goals, assists and points - the heart and soul of three Stanley Cup winners vanished in a summer of discontent. A 58-win team that utterly failed in the postseason is now a battered husk of itself. Sure, everyone else will be along for the ride this year, led by 44-year-old captain Chris Chelios. Dominik Hasek is even taking his place on the goalie-go-round with the perennially maligned Chris Osgood as his back-up. Still, this team reminds me of those early 80's Flyers - too old and too young at the same time. They'll put together a decent regular season, then hit a wall when fresher legs and deeper rosters confront them in the playoffs.
Second-year man Mike Babcock will have to break out of autopilot this time around, and actually have to coach this Red Wing team. He'll have his hands full trying to manage the babes and massage the old folks.
Prediction: 2nd place. Detroit is on an elevator operating only with a "down" button.
Nashville - Congrats, you capital of that hockey hotbed of Tennessee. This is your time. Carpe diem.
You've got the smooth professionalism of Paul Kariya. The manic speed of Steve Sullivan. The swift hands of Jason Arnott. The shifty and crafty J.P. Dumont. The durable goaltending combo of Tomas Vokoun and Chris Mason. The weakening of the Red Wings' gerontological Empire. Two teams in your division you can easily rip off 14 wins against. There are no more excuses. Prediction: First place.
St. Louis - All is smiles and sunshine in the city by the Mighty Mississip'. New ownership, new lease on life, new commitment to exciting the crowds and putting a competitive product on the ice. Wait...didn't we hear this out of Pittsburgh last year?
This team left a trail of paper from all the signed and discarded contracts that would make Republicans envious. Bill Guerin, Radek Dvorak, Doug Weight, Martin Rucinsky, Jay McKee, Dan Hinote, and Manny Legace have the task of turning a bunch of sour notes into sweet, sweet music. All Mike Kitchen has to do is keep Keith Tkachuk away from the pastry aisles, and the Blues are all set, right? Wrong. While signing a bunch of name players to infuse your shiny new plaything with an element that sells tickets is a brilliant marketing strategy, it does not mean automatic winning chemistry when the puck drops. See "Penguins, Pittsburgh" for reference. The Blues are yet another team that is too old and too young, and that spells a maddening inconsistency that may turn St. Louis into a seller come the trading deadline. Are the Blues a vastly improved team over the one that finished 14th in the West? Absolutely. However, I don't buy into the belief that signing players in a blizzard of ink guarantees anything.
Things are looking up in the Arch City, but there's still a long way to go. Prediction: 3rd place, a playoff spot just out of reach.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Northwest Passages
Calgary - The Flames have done much to improve their situation, the smartest move of all being the removal of Darryl Sutter from behind the bench. Seriously, Calgary was one of the teams that just refused to buy into the New NHL, and paid for it dearly with a first round flame-out against Anaheim.
There must be something in the cool, crisp, clean Calgary water when it comes to dealing with the Avalanche. First, they steal Chris Drury. Now, they've fleeced the 'Lanche by taking Alex Tanguay who should now be hitting his prime, for a middling defenseman in Jordan Leopold. Along with Tony Amonte, Kristian Huselius, Chuck Kobasew, and Jarome Iginla, the top two lines are forces to be reckoned with. On defense, Dion Phaneuf, a Calder Trophy candidate, shouldn't suffer a sophomore slump, even though his numbers may dip a bit. He'll be the brightest star on a defense that is solid but unspectacular. In net, Miikka Kiprusoff and Jamie McLennan will steal a couple games when the offense stalls.
With a revamped frontline, and new coaching philosophy from Jim Playfair, there should be no excuses for why the Flames can't score in excess of 240 goals this year, even in an ultra-competitive division. It remains to be seen just how much influence Sutter wields from the front office, and if he suggests more backchecking and physical presence, the Flames will be stuck in the same old rut. Prediction: 2nd place.
Colorado - Finally, fans in the Denver Metro area will get a dose of what every other hockey market has seen - a team in the early stages of a rebuilding process. ESPN, Yahoo, and the Denver Post are all treating the Avalanche's youth movement like the fall of the Roman Empire. It's hard to remember that, even before the arrival of Patrick Roy, the Nordiques moved to Colorado in 1995 with a team ready-made for stardom, and maintained a level of excellence far longer than most teams in this hyper-expansion era.
Joe Sakic is the lone remaining player from both Cup seasons, and he'll have his toughest assignment ever, being the face of the franchise, and the only dependable veteran leader and scorer. Steve Konowalchuk would have filled a leadership void, but with his unexpected retirement, it is a huge blow to the team's character. The rest are question marks: Can Andrew Brunette come close to his career year? Which Milan Hejduk will show up this season? Are Marek Svatos, Wojtek Wolski, and Paul Stastny the equivalents to the young Sakic, Sundin, and Nolan? The backline is a mixed bag at best, and significantly weaker without the presence of Rob Blake. John-Michael Liles will have a steep learning curve without his veteran mentor, and you've got to figure some late-season fatigue with the ageless Ken Klee and unreliable Patrice Brisebois. Jose Theodore and Peter Budaj are wild cards - they'll most likely cost the Avs as many games as they'll steal.
This is the first year of what could be a long climb back to prominence. Colorado won't disappear like a feather in the wind, but they aren't nearly as dangerous as even last season. Prediction: 3rd place, 38-40 wins.
Edmonton - Your 15 minutes of fame are up. I know there is a contingent of fans, analysts and broadcasters who are wishing for a return to the glory days in the wake of Edmonton's surprise run to Game 7 of the Finals, but the window of opportunity dried up when that clock hit all zeros in the RBC Center in June.
Even if Chris Pronger's wife had liked the frigid tundra of northern Alberta to let her husband stay, teams like the Oilers who make runs one year become also-rans the next. With no Pronger, no Samsonov, no Radek Dvorak, who's going to provide the speed and spark? Hopefully, Joffrey Lupul who came in the Pronger deal. Other than that, it's basically the same team from last year. The Oilers should be an exciting regular season team, playing 41 games on that beautifully fast ice surface, but they'll take a huge step backwards in the postseason. Prediction: 4th place
Minnesota - The sexy pick on everyone's list to challenge the rest of the Northwest for the division title. They have Marian Gaborik, Brian Rolston, and new acquisitions Pavol Demitra and Mark Parrish, plus two Flyer castoffs in Branko Radivojevic and Kim Johnsson.
But really, that's all. Martin Skoula and Keith Carney on defense? Manny Fernandez has no proven back-up in the crease, either.
I guess Jacques Lemaire has a plan to try to outscore the opposition instead of lulling them into a trap-induced coma. Sometimes I wonder if he even remembers the years he spent as one of the era-defining Flying Frenchmen in Montreal. This team isn't going anywhere unless Lemaire removes the shackles for good...This is a recording... This message will self-destruct in 8 seconds...
Prediction: 5th place. I'd bet everything I own that Minnesota won't score more than 220 goals and won't give up more than 210.
Vancouver - While the Flames pulled off the best move of the off-season within the division, the Canucks pulled off the gutsiest. Trading their behemoth power forward Todd Bertuzzi to Florida in a deal that brought them their best goaltender since Kirk McLean, in Roberto Luongo. Bertuzzi's psychological wounds will heal in the South Beach sun, and Luongo will play well even if he's not facing 45 shots a night.
The biggest losses for Vancouver occurred on defense, where Brent Sopel left for Los Angeles and Ed Jovanovski fled for Phoenix. Still, Sami Salo and Mattias Ohlund are more than prepared to carry the load, along with Willie Mitchell who is a suitable Jovo substitute. Up front, the subtraction of Bertuzzi means less room for Markus Naslund and friends to roam around the net, however, the forwards are skilled enough to create room for themselves with their skill (Naslund, Morrison, Jan Bulis) and chemistry (Sedin twins). The x-factor in how the Canucks fare will be this new lawsuit brought against Trevor Linden and the player's union rep Ted Saskin.
As if Vancouver didn't already have enough on their plate with the lingering Bertuzzi-Moore situation, and breaking in a new head coach, one of the city's most beloved players will be embroiled in this lawsuit drama as long as it lasts. All the more reason to make them my sleeper pick. Prediction: First place, edging out Calgary.
There must be something in the cool, crisp, clean Calgary water when it comes to dealing with the Avalanche. First, they steal Chris Drury. Now, they've fleeced the 'Lanche by taking Alex Tanguay who should now be hitting his prime, for a middling defenseman in Jordan Leopold. Along with Tony Amonte, Kristian Huselius, Chuck Kobasew, and Jarome Iginla, the top two lines are forces to be reckoned with. On defense, Dion Phaneuf, a Calder Trophy candidate, shouldn't suffer a sophomore slump, even though his numbers may dip a bit. He'll be the brightest star on a defense that is solid but unspectacular. In net, Miikka Kiprusoff and Jamie McLennan will steal a couple games when the offense stalls.
With a revamped frontline, and new coaching philosophy from Jim Playfair, there should be no excuses for why the Flames can't score in excess of 240 goals this year, even in an ultra-competitive division. It remains to be seen just how much influence Sutter wields from the front office, and if he suggests more backchecking and physical presence, the Flames will be stuck in the same old rut. Prediction: 2nd place.
Colorado - Finally, fans in the Denver Metro area will get a dose of what every other hockey market has seen - a team in the early stages of a rebuilding process. ESPN, Yahoo, and the Denver Post are all treating the Avalanche's youth movement like the fall of the Roman Empire. It's hard to remember that, even before the arrival of Patrick Roy, the Nordiques moved to Colorado in 1995 with a team ready-made for stardom, and maintained a level of excellence far longer than most teams in this hyper-expansion era.
Joe Sakic is the lone remaining player from both Cup seasons, and he'll have his toughest assignment ever, being the face of the franchise, and the only dependable veteran leader and scorer. Steve Konowalchuk would have filled a leadership void, but with his unexpected retirement, it is a huge blow to the team's character. The rest are question marks: Can Andrew Brunette come close to his career year? Which Milan Hejduk will show up this season? Are Marek Svatos, Wojtek Wolski, and Paul Stastny the equivalents to the young Sakic, Sundin, and Nolan? The backline is a mixed bag at best, and significantly weaker without the presence of Rob Blake. John-Michael Liles will have a steep learning curve without his veteran mentor, and you've got to figure some late-season fatigue with the ageless Ken Klee and unreliable Patrice Brisebois. Jose Theodore and Peter Budaj are wild cards - they'll most likely cost the Avs as many games as they'll steal.
This is the first year of what could be a long climb back to prominence. Colorado won't disappear like a feather in the wind, but they aren't nearly as dangerous as even last season. Prediction: 3rd place, 38-40 wins.
Edmonton - Your 15 minutes of fame are up. I know there is a contingent of fans, analysts and broadcasters who are wishing for a return to the glory days in the wake of Edmonton's surprise run to Game 7 of the Finals, but the window of opportunity dried up when that clock hit all zeros in the RBC Center in June.
Even if Chris Pronger's wife had liked the frigid tundra of northern Alberta to let her husband stay, teams like the Oilers who make runs one year become also-rans the next. With no Pronger, no Samsonov, no Radek Dvorak, who's going to provide the speed and spark? Hopefully, Joffrey Lupul who came in the Pronger deal. Other than that, it's basically the same team from last year. The Oilers should be an exciting regular season team, playing 41 games on that beautifully fast ice surface, but they'll take a huge step backwards in the postseason. Prediction: 4th place
Minnesota - The sexy pick on everyone's list to challenge the rest of the Northwest for the division title. They have Marian Gaborik, Brian Rolston, and new acquisitions Pavol Demitra and Mark Parrish, plus two Flyer castoffs in Branko Radivojevic and Kim Johnsson.
But really, that's all. Martin Skoula and Keith Carney on defense? Manny Fernandez has no proven back-up in the crease, either.
I guess Jacques Lemaire has a plan to try to outscore the opposition instead of lulling them into a trap-induced coma. Sometimes I wonder if he even remembers the years he spent as one of the era-defining Flying Frenchmen in Montreal. This team isn't going anywhere unless Lemaire removes the shackles for good...This is a recording... This message will self-destruct in 8 seconds...
Prediction: 5th place. I'd bet everything I own that Minnesota won't score more than 220 goals and won't give up more than 210.
Vancouver - While the Flames pulled off the best move of the off-season within the division, the Canucks pulled off the gutsiest. Trading their behemoth power forward Todd Bertuzzi to Florida in a deal that brought them their best goaltender since Kirk McLean, in Roberto Luongo. Bertuzzi's psychological wounds will heal in the South Beach sun, and Luongo will play well even if he's not facing 45 shots a night.
The biggest losses for Vancouver occurred on defense, where Brent Sopel left for Los Angeles and Ed Jovanovski fled for Phoenix. Still, Sami Salo and Mattias Ohlund are more than prepared to carry the load, along with Willie Mitchell who is a suitable Jovo substitute. Up front, the subtraction of Bertuzzi means less room for Markus Naslund and friends to roam around the net, however, the forwards are skilled enough to create room for themselves with their skill (Naslund, Morrison, Jan Bulis) and chemistry (Sedin twins). The x-factor in how the Canucks fare will be this new lawsuit brought against Trevor Linden and the player's union rep Ted Saskin.
As if Vancouver didn't already have enough on their plate with the lingering Bertuzzi-Moore situation, and breaking in a new head coach, one of the city's most beloved players will be embroiled in this lawsuit drama as long as it lasts. All the more reason to make them my sleeper pick. Prediction: First place, edging out Calgary.
Monday, October 02, 2006
Pacific Specifics
Round One of the 2006-2007 Division Predictions underway...
Pacific Division
Anaheim - Coming off yet another unexpected post-season run that was only ended by the equally feel-good story of the Edmonton Oilers' Finals appearance, there are high expectations for this club. Adding mega-defenseman Chris Pronger in an offseason trade and ditching the plum and green color scheme and "angry duck" logo only heightens them.
However, I'm not going to anoint them ready to take their place among the Dallases and San Joses for the division title. Teemu Selanne, while a valuable veteran forward, and very happy to be back in SoCal, won't have another 40 goal season. The Pronger trade cost them a great young forward in Joffrey Lupul, and Ilya Bryzgalov will most likely follow the path of Jean-Sebastien Giguere into mediocrity then obscurity. That's not a rip, but in a 30-team league, one team that makes a surprise run one year goes back to the middle of the pack in the next.
Aside from the Niedermayers, Pronger, Todd Marchant and Selanne, the roster is stocked with young talent who will have to prove their worth in-season. Not a recipe for disaster, but nothing to hang your hat on, either. Prediction: Third place, slightly above .500, fighting for a playoff berth.
Dallas - Last season's shootout darlings, the Stars used that travesty of a game-decider to wring 53 wins and 112 points out of the 05-06 season. However, when faced with a real team with real veteran presence and youthful energy in the first round of the playoffs, the Stars wilted to the Avs in five.
This is a team in more flux than at any time since Ken Hitchcock took the reins from Bob Gainey in 1995. They've subtracted the aging Bill Guerin, and added the circus that is Matthew Barnaby, the sullen Patrik Stefan, the solid if unspectacular Jeff Halpern, and the China Doll that is Eric Lindros - and over the weekend jettisoned Janne Niinimaa to Montreal for the young but struggling shooter, Mike Ribeiro. Let's not forget the passing of the "C" to Brenden Morrow, demoting long-time "face of the franchise" Mike Modano. If Modano's reaction to the move is anything like his tantrum after Team USA's ouster in Turin, the Stars are in for a long six months.
The Stars will remain a solid club with solid veteran talent able to teach the young kids how to be successful. Now, if someone could tell Jussi Jokinen that he maybe shouldn't save his energy and best moves for the shootouts, that would be great. Prediction(s): First place, but no more than 44 wins. Also, I'm setting the over-under on the number of games Lindros dresses for at 55.5.
Los Angeles - If ever there was a team facing unrealistic expectations because their foundation was ripped to its very core, it would be the Kings.
Marc Crawford, while a great coach with an established reputation for taking young teams (Quebec/Colorado and Vancouver) and rebuilding, is not the magic immediate solution to the Kings' woes of the past three seasons. Gone are Luc Robitaille, Jeremy Roenick, and Pavol Demitra. Coming in are Rob Blake for a last gasp, Brent Sopel, Scott Thornton and Brian Willsie. Throw in that mysterious trade that nets them prize defensive prospect Jack Johnson and veteran throw-in Oleg Tverdovsky for Eric Belanger and Tim Gleason, and the Crown Royals will be shored up on defense while the young offense takes time to jell.
Yet another team with so much youth up front. You have to have a few proven snipers up front to provide some balance, and the Kings don't have it with the departures of the three wizened vets. Trial by fire is a funny thing for unknown talent, so I see the Kings as a team hanging in until the end on the back of experienced defense. Goaltending is mediocre at best. They probably won't score much early on when chemistry is an issue, and late in the year as other teams feast on them in the playoff hunt. It may be two years before we can say the Kings have officially arrived. Prediction: Last place, 28-32 wins. With Sean Avery still around, they'll be the most interesting last-place team in the NHL.
Phoenix - This team is like a game of 20 Questions. Can Phoenix break the ceiling to the division title created for so many years by the Stars and Sharks? Will the Coyotes ever shake off the bad karma that comes from being the descendent of the Winnipeg Jets NHL franchise? Will they play a game in the new arena where it's so hot that a fog envelops the ice on a 100 degree Arizona day? How many chances will lifetime friends and business partners Wayne Gretzky and Mike Barnett get before the jig is up?
They've got as solid a combo in net with Curtis Joseph and the newly-signed Mike Morrison as anyone in the Western Conference. They have braun with Ed Jovanovski and Mike Comrie, toughness with Georges Laraque and Shane Doan, and skill with Nagy, Saprykin, Reinprecht and this year's Methuselah, Jeremy Roenick. Still, something always seems to prevent the 'Yotes from reaching their potential. This year, that something may be "Will Owen Nolan be of any value after not playing a single minute for two and a half years?"
The Great One seems to be Competent Enough behind the bench, but he's gotta come up with some different looks and adjustments to get the most from his team. I suggest bringing in Mark Messier as an assistant coach in charge of "providing a foot in the rear of any player who needs it at any time." Prediction: 4th place, edged out by Anaheim.
San Jose - This season was the Sharks' time to seize the moment, and take advantage of a weaker Dallas Stars club. They have Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo for a full season, and while they won't be putting up gaudy numbers like 125 points or 56 goals, even 85 percent of those totals this year will make a difference.
You have to wonder about an acquisition like the one over the weekend for Vladimir Malakhov. He was once marked for deletion by the Rangers, then a valuable add for the Flyers, then cut by the Devils for "subpar play" last year. If that pattern holds, he'll be a solid acquisition. Also, adding Curtis Brown and Mike Grier for grit and depth are at best neutral moves. This team has two too many goaltenders, too (four in all), and there has to be something worked out between the former darling Nabokov and the new-jack hero Toskala for the number one job. Aside from the Terrible Twosome on the top line, Patrick Marleau will have to pick up more offensive slack now that the surprising Nils Ekman has departed.
The Sharks should be setting the world on fire, ready to chomp down on the Stars and an unspectacular division. Instead, they made lateral moves to add depth but not punch. They'll be in the middle of the playoff pack once again. Prediction: Second place, 40-42 wins.
Pacific Division
Anaheim - Coming off yet another unexpected post-season run that was only ended by the equally feel-good story of the Edmonton Oilers' Finals appearance, there are high expectations for this club. Adding mega-defenseman Chris Pronger in an offseason trade and ditching the plum and green color scheme and "angry duck" logo only heightens them.
However, I'm not going to anoint them ready to take their place among the Dallases and San Joses for the division title. Teemu Selanne, while a valuable veteran forward, and very happy to be back in SoCal, won't have another 40 goal season. The Pronger trade cost them a great young forward in Joffrey Lupul, and Ilya Bryzgalov will most likely follow the path of Jean-Sebastien Giguere into mediocrity then obscurity. That's not a rip, but in a 30-team league, one team that makes a surprise run one year goes back to the middle of the pack in the next.
Aside from the Niedermayers, Pronger, Todd Marchant and Selanne, the roster is stocked with young talent who will have to prove their worth in-season. Not a recipe for disaster, but nothing to hang your hat on, either. Prediction: Third place, slightly above .500, fighting for a playoff berth.
Dallas - Last season's shootout darlings, the Stars used that travesty of a game-decider to wring 53 wins and 112 points out of the 05-06 season. However, when faced with a real team with real veteran presence and youthful energy in the first round of the playoffs, the Stars wilted to the Avs in five.
This is a team in more flux than at any time since Ken Hitchcock took the reins from Bob Gainey in 1995. They've subtracted the aging Bill Guerin, and added the circus that is Matthew Barnaby, the sullen Patrik Stefan, the solid if unspectacular Jeff Halpern, and the China Doll that is Eric Lindros - and over the weekend jettisoned Janne Niinimaa to Montreal for the young but struggling shooter, Mike Ribeiro. Let's not forget the passing of the "C" to Brenden Morrow, demoting long-time "face of the franchise" Mike Modano. If Modano's reaction to the move is anything like his tantrum after Team USA's ouster in Turin, the Stars are in for a long six months.
The Stars will remain a solid club with solid veteran talent able to teach the young kids how to be successful. Now, if someone could tell Jussi Jokinen that he maybe shouldn't save his energy and best moves for the shootouts, that would be great. Prediction(s): First place, but no more than 44 wins. Also, I'm setting the over-under on the number of games Lindros dresses for at 55.5.
Los Angeles - If ever there was a team facing unrealistic expectations because their foundation was ripped to its very core, it would be the Kings.
Marc Crawford, while a great coach with an established reputation for taking young teams (Quebec/Colorado and Vancouver) and rebuilding, is not the magic immediate solution to the Kings' woes of the past three seasons. Gone are Luc Robitaille, Jeremy Roenick, and Pavol Demitra. Coming in are Rob Blake for a last gasp, Brent Sopel, Scott Thornton and Brian Willsie. Throw in that mysterious trade that nets them prize defensive prospect Jack Johnson and veteran throw-in Oleg Tverdovsky for Eric Belanger and Tim Gleason, and the Crown Royals will be shored up on defense while the young offense takes time to jell.
Yet another team with so much youth up front. You have to have a few proven snipers up front to provide some balance, and the Kings don't have it with the departures of the three wizened vets. Trial by fire is a funny thing for unknown talent, so I see the Kings as a team hanging in until the end on the back of experienced defense. Goaltending is mediocre at best. They probably won't score much early on when chemistry is an issue, and late in the year as other teams feast on them in the playoff hunt. It may be two years before we can say the Kings have officially arrived. Prediction: Last place, 28-32 wins. With Sean Avery still around, they'll be the most interesting last-place team in the NHL.
Phoenix - This team is like a game of 20 Questions. Can Phoenix break the ceiling to the division title created for so many years by the Stars and Sharks? Will the Coyotes ever shake off the bad karma that comes from being the descendent of the Winnipeg Jets NHL franchise? Will they play a game in the new arena where it's so hot that a fog envelops the ice on a 100 degree Arizona day? How many chances will lifetime friends and business partners Wayne Gretzky and Mike Barnett get before the jig is up?
They've got as solid a combo in net with Curtis Joseph and the newly-signed Mike Morrison as anyone in the Western Conference. They have braun with Ed Jovanovski and Mike Comrie, toughness with Georges Laraque and Shane Doan, and skill with Nagy, Saprykin, Reinprecht and this year's Methuselah, Jeremy Roenick. Still, something always seems to prevent the 'Yotes from reaching their potential. This year, that something may be "Will Owen Nolan be of any value after not playing a single minute for two and a half years?"
The Great One seems to be Competent Enough behind the bench, but he's gotta come up with some different looks and adjustments to get the most from his team. I suggest bringing in Mark Messier as an assistant coach in charge of "providing a foot in the rear of any player who needs it at any time." Prediction: 4th place, edged out by Anaheim.
San Jose - This season was the Sharks' time to seize the moment, and take advantage of a weaker Dallas Stars club. They have Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo for a full season, and while they won't be putting up gaudy numbers like 125 points or 56 goals, even 85 percent of those totals this year will make a difference.
You have to wonder about an acquisition like the one over the weekend for Vladimir Malakhov. He was once marked for deletion by the Rangers, then a valuable add for the Flyers, then cut by the Devils for "subpar play" last year. If that pattern holds, he'll be a solid acquisition. Also, adding Curtis Brown and Mike Grier for grit and depth are at best neutral moves. This team has two too many goaltenders, too (four in all), and there has to be something worked out between the former darling Nabokov and the new-jack hero Toskala for the number one job. Aside from the Terrible Twosome on the top line, Patrick Marleau will have to pick up more offensive slack now that the surprising Nils Ekman has departed.
The Sharks should be setting the world on fire, ready to chomp down on the Stars and an unspectacular division. Instead, they made lateral moves to add depth but not punch. They'll be in the middle of the playoff pack once again. Prediction: Second place, 40-42 wins.
Friday, September 29, 2006
Who Cares?
Judging by the reaction in the locker room during post-game interviews, it looks like the Flyers were crestfallen after losing 5-4 to the Devils in a shootout last night.
They scored first. They led 4-1. They still lost (Tied, actually, since your humble author refuses to accept shootouts). The script is a familiar one in New Jersey in those rare times the Flyers have wrested control of the game early at the Meadowlands.
All hands and feet inside the bus during the ride home, boys. Don't want anyone taking a header off the Pulaski Skyway or the Delaware River Bridge.
This loss is hardly a time for handwringing. The Blackhawks are 6-0 in the preseason, and does anybody expect them to contend for a playoff spot? Half the teams in the league still don't have their rosters set, who feature a slew of minor leaguers desperately trying to prove their worth or contract players trying to prove they aren't trade bait. Has this rivalry become so one-sided, and the wound so deep over past dominance, that even exhibition losses carry the full weight of disappointment?
The Devils are no different - they have to decide who to keep between Sergei Brylin, Alexander Mogilny, and the unsigned Brian Gionta. The Flyers are an exception. They have maybe one spot in contention (on defense) and one spot open (the eternal goaltender question) with one game to go before the curtain goes up for real.
Maybe that's the precise reason for the gloomy navel-gazing - that a Flyers team damn near to the one which will make the 82-game trek blew a three-goal lead on the road to a team with major issues. Still, baseball, football and hockey are littered with teams who exceeded or confounded expectation, based on lamebrained predictions gleaned from preseason performance and record.
So, my only two words to reference last night's game are: Who Cares? Who cares if the Flyers blew a three-goal lead in September? Who cares if they go out and lose tomorrow night in Washington? The Caps won't finish with a record anywhere close to Philly come next April.
Please, reserve all judgment beginning on the night of October 7th. The opener, which I suspect the Flyers could lose, is a wash. Openers should only set the tone for the NFL with only 16 games on the slate. Start the suicide watch should the Orange and Black lose their home opener to the Rangers.
They scored first. They led 4-1. They still lost (Tied, actually, since your humble author refuses to accept shootouts). The script is a familiar one in New Jersey in those rare times the Flyers have wrested control of the game early at the Meadowlands.
All hands and feet inside the bus during the ride home, boys. Don't want anyone taking a header off the Pulaski Skyway or the Delaware River Bridge.
This loss is hardly a time for handwringing. The Blackhawks are 6-0 in the preseason, and does anybody expect them to contend for a playoff spot? Half the teams in the league still don't have their rosters set, who feature a slew of minor leaguers desperately trying to prove their worth or contract players trying to prove they aren't trade bait. Has this rivalry become so one-sided, and the wound so deep over past dominance, that even exhibition losses carry the full weight of disappointment?
The Devils are no different - they have to decide who to keep between Sergei Brylin, Alexander Mogilny, and the unsigned Brian Gionta. The Flyers are an exception. They have maybe one spot in contention (on defense) and one spot open (the eternal goaltender question) with one game to go before the curtain goes up for real.
Maybe that's the precise reason for the gloomy navel-gazing - that a Flyers team damn near to the one which will make the 82-game trek blew a three-goal lead on the road to a team with major issues. Still, baseball, football and hockey are littered with teams who exceeded or confounded expectation, based on lamebrained predictions gleaned from preseason performance and record.
So, my only two words to reference last night's game are: Who Cares? Who cares if the Flyers blew a three-goal lead in September? Who cares if they go out and lose tomorrow night in Washington? The Caps won't finish with a record anywhere close to Philly come next April.
Please, reserve all judgment beginning on the night of October 7th. The opener, which I suspect the Flyers could lose, is a wash. Openers should only set the tone for the NFL with only 16 games on the slate. Start the suicide watch should the Orange and Black lose their home opener to the Rangers.
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
A Low Down, Dirty Shame
Need any more proof that preseason games shouldn't be dress rehearsals for the regular season?
Here you go:
Goodbye, Columbus
There's too much at stake anymore to have players going full-tilt at ANY time before the first game. I don't recall Tie Domi, Rob Ray, Dave Manson, Bryan Marchment, or Darius Kasparaitis being suspended for hits before the drop of the puck in October. This guy's a known thug, but now he's gotta be put in that category of "dangerous to the opposition, more dangerous to his own team."
Here you go:
Goodbye, Columbus
There's too much at stake anymore to have players going full-tilt at ANY time before the first game. I don't recall Tie Domi, Rob Ray, Dave Manson, Bryan Marchment, or Darius Kasparaitis being suspended for hits before the drop of the puck in October. This guy's a known thug, but now he's gotta be put in that category of "dangerous to the opposition, more dangerous to his own team."
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Policia de la manera, parte dos!
That's a little Espanol for ya, in "honor" of the Rangers-Panthers game in that hockey hotbed of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
That's right. You heard me. Moving on.
I'm going to work my way up to a Crash Davis style monologue about all the things I think hockey should still be, but for now, I wanna break down the jersey situation.
Three years ago, the league decided it would be better for all involved if the home team would wear either their third jersey or road uniform, and the road team wear their home whites or (if they have one) the lighter colored third jersey. The logic behind it was to prevent certain teams from having to pack all three jerseys on long road trips, since the choice of apparel is up to the home club, and the visiting team realistically couldn't predict what home team would wear which jersey when, so...every night in every arena now becomes a vicious kind of Opposite Day.
First - I'm not a big fan of third jerseys anyway. 1A - I think the Bruins have the most clever (brown bear, gold color), and the Blackhawks the most pragmatic (black base with red and white trim, not altering logo or color scheme or design).
Second - I'm for the third jersey making, at the most, five or six appearances a year. Break 'em out only for your squad's first OLN or NBC game, keep 'em in the rotation for afternoons on national telecasts. Don't bombard the senses and keep fans guessing which monstrosity their players will show up wearing game-to-game.
Third - I thought King Bettman and the Knights of the Square Boardroom Table wanted to hook more casual fans into watching. How proactive can it be to have new fans them questioning their local papers after they read their team is home, yet seeing them wearing the road darks?
Used to be that arenas were distinct enough that fans could tell where the game was played just by looking at the size, the boards, or, most obviously, the logo of the team prominent at center ice. Now, every rink is 200 by 85, bearing some kind of corporate name, with ads surrounding the boards. If a casual fan happens to catch some action on TV not near center ice, no wonder they'd be confused if there were no markers to let them know who's playing where. My parents, who aren't hardcore Flyers fans, but who have been watching since the early 70's, have asked me about 20 times over the past three seasons if the Flyers were home while glancing at the TV every so often. I've asked them multiple times, "would you think the Flyers were always on the road, if you didn't happen to notice the scoreboard at the top of the screen?" Their answer is either "yes," or, "I can't tell what the hell is going on, but I do know I don't like these new orange uniforms." There you have it, from people who were partying hard circa the 1974 Stanley Cup parade.
The league wised up for television in the early 1970's by making teams wear white at home, dark on the road, and eventually forced names above numbers. The whole jersey-switch thing was kinda cute after the 1992 All-Star Game, as the league celebrated its 75th year - but that experiment returned to normal once the regular season ended. This trial is now entering its third full season, and fourth overall, and I know I'm not alone in hoping it will end.
Maybe the mad, mad minds of upper Madison Avenue should hire Mike Keenan as a uni consultant, instead of having him force his tired old management act to every bench in North America. Keenan, thus far, has been the only independent thinker to refuse that his team wear a third jersey design. The Blues had a blue, red, and yellow "triple trumpet and note" design, set to debut in January, 1996. Keenan took one look at these affronts to nature, and vehemently declined the offer for his club to don the duds. I only wish the 20 other clubs who trotted out their very own pastel colored daymares had half the brainpower of the man dubbed "The Teflon Coach."
For my hometown club, I wish their black jerseys (now the road/home?) colors are relegated to the merchandising kiosk at the center - only to be whipped out come January's NBC Game of the Week. I hope their current third unis, a sickly pairing of bright orange, black, white, silver, and cutout shapes a third grader could be proud of - are modified again to become home/road? colors.
For the rest of the league, I don't care what mega-multi-millionaire comic book creator comes along, don't be suckers. Teams create a logo as part of a tradition, maybe now even to launch a brand. Why muddy the waters for revenue's sake by creating a totally different design scheme, when certain teams have built up 10,20,30, 40-plus years of tradition with colors and crest? Even Montreal's poor excuse for a third uniform sullies the bleu, blanc et rouge and the distinctive "CH" crest.
To steal a phrase from Bill Conlin, "When I'm King of the World," only these teams (besides Boston and Chicago) would be allowed a third uniform: Buffalo (who have embraced their past), Florida (whose blue unis aren't much worse than their real jerseys), Vancouver (we've never been able to distinguish anyway), Philly and Toronto.
Everyone else, build a huge bonfire, preferably before the home opener. Let people in the parking lots 90 minutes before game time. Charge a buck, serve orangeade, give everyone a match apiece, and set those designs aflame!
That's right. You heard me. Moving on.
I'm going to work my way up to a Crash Davis style monologue about all the things I think hockey should still be, but for now, I wanna break down the jersey situation.
Three years ago, the league decided it would be better for all involved if the home team would wear either their third jersey or road uniform, and the road team wear their home whites or (if they have one) the lighter colored third jersey. The logic behind it was to prevent certain teams from having to pack all three jerseys on long road trips, since the choice of apparel is up to the home club, and the visiting team realistically couldn't predict what home team would wear which jersey when, so...every night in every arena now becomes a vicious kind of Opposite Day.
First - I'm not a big fan of third jerseys anyway. 1A - I think the Bruins have the most clever (brown bear, gold color), and the Blackhawks the most pragmatic (black base with red and white trim, not altering logo or color scheme or design).
Second - I'm for the third jersey making, at the most, five or six appearances a year. Break 'em out only for your squad's first OLN or NBC game, keep 'em in the rotation for afternoons on national telecasts. Don't bombard the senses and keep fans guessing which monstrosity their players will show up wearing game-to-game.
Third - I thought King Bettman and the Knights of the Square Boardroom Table wanted to hook more casual fans into watching. How proactive can it be to have new fans them questioning their local papers after they read their team is home, yet seeing them wearing the road darks?
Used to be that arenas were distinct enough that fans could tell where the game was played just by looking at the size, the boards, or, most obviously, the logo of the team prominent at center ice. Now, every rink is 200 by 85, bearing some kind of corporate name, with ads surrounding the boards. If a casual fan happens to catch some action on TV not near center ice, no wonder they'd be confused if there were no markers to let them know who's playing where. My parents, who aren't hardcore Flyers fans, but who have been watching since the early 70's, have asked me about 20 times over the past three seasons if the Flyers were home while glancing at the TV every so often. I've asked them multiple times, "would you think the Flyers were always on the road, if you didn't happen to notice the scoreboard at the top of the screen?" Their answer is either "yes," or, "I can't tell what the hell is going on, but I do know I don't like these new orange uniforms." There you have it, from people who were partying hard circa the 1974 Stanley Cup parade.
The league wised up for television in the early 1970's by making teams wear white at home, dark on the road, and eventually forced names above numbers. The whole jersey-switch thing was kinda cute after the 1992 All-Star Game, as the league celebrated its 75th year - but that experiment returned to normal once the regular season ended. This trial is now entering its third full season, and fourth overall, and I know I'm not alone in hoping it will end.
Maybe the mad, mad minds of upper Madison Avenue should hire Mike Keenan as a uni consultant, instead of having him force his tired old management act to every bench in North America. Keenan, thus far, has been the only independent thinker to refuse that his team wear a third jersey design. The Blues had a blue, red, and yellow "triple trumpet and note" design, set to debut in January, 1996. Keenan took one look at these affronts to nature, and vehemently declined the offer for his club to don the duds. I only wish the 20 other clubs who trotted out their very own pastel colored daymares had half the brainpower of the man dubbed "The Teflon Coach."
For my hometown club, I wish their black jerseys (now the road/home?) colors are relegated to the merchandising kiosk at the center - only to be whipped out come January's NBC Game of the Week. I hope their current third unis, a sickly pairing of bright orange, black, white, silver, and cutout shapes a third grader could be proud of - are modified again to become home/road? colors.
For the rest of the league, I don't care what mega-multi-millionaire comic book creator comes along, don't be suckers. Teams create a logo as part of a tradition, maybe now even to launch a brand. Why muddy the waters for revenue's sake by creating a totally different design scheme, when certain teams have built up 10,20,30, 40-plus years of tradition with colors and crest? Even Montreal's poor excuse for a third uniform sullies the bleu, blanc et rouge and the distinctive "CH" crest.
To steal a phrase from Bill Conlin, "When I'm King of the World," only these teams (besides Boston and Chicago) would be allowed a third uniform: Buffalo (who have embraced their past), Florida (whose blue unis aren't much worse than their real jerseys), Vancouver (we've never been able to distinguish anyway), Philly and Toronto.
Everyone else, build a huge bonfire, preferably before the home opener. Let people in the parking lots 90 minutes before game time. Charge a buck, serve orangeade, give everyone a match apiece, and set those designs aflame!
Friday, September 22, 2006
September 21st or February 21st?
Here's a trick.
Grab a hockey fan. No. Grab 20 of 'em.
Doesn't matter if they are casual or rabid, as long as these people know the history between the Flyers and Devils. Show the box score of last night's Flyers-Devils game, doing your best not to tip off the time or date, or year in which the game took place.
See if they can guess if the game is preseason or regular season, and if it's from this year or any year since 1995.
I bet a bunch of them couldn't guess any of the above correctly.
How do I know this?
Because I watched the game, and, resting stars aside, couldn't tell if it was an exhibition contest or a late February snooze fest where both teams are trying to wring every point from every game they can.
I switched channels frequently between commercials, and lulls in the action. Found last season's final rerun episode of "Grey's Anatomy" to be more compelling. Found the season premiere of "ER" packing more punch and featuring more collisions, explosions, and violence than half a season's worth of games last year. I think the NHL should sponsor re-enactments of television's dramatic scenes at your favorite local arena, just to cover the bases. Having Linda Cardellini recreate her final scene in last night's 10 PM NBC show would have given the proper punctuation the Flyers game desperately needed.
Don't give me "it's only the preseason," or "the Devils were playing their third game in three nights."
It was all of seven years ago the Flyers and Devils once had a 10-2 preseason game. Jersey used to wait until the season actually began to put the brakes on the offense. Wouldn't you expect a tired team that's undermanned to give up a couple, 5, 6 goals? Wouldn't you expect the Flyers to not only turn on the juice for their first home game, but to work at converting more chances, and maybe taking more chances on the rush or the backcheck?
Guess not, because I saw a system already being played. Endless cycling followed by ordered line changes and mechanic puck movement (when there weren't fumbles or missed chances), followed by more endless cycling followed by rote by-the-numbers power play and penalty kill situations. I saw neither team taking advantage of the two-line pass, or making creative plays with more open ice. I did see two teams playing a looser game of Ice Chess than they would in the regular season - and this without both teams skating some of their top talent.
Of 30 teams welcomed back for the first season of the New NHL, the Flyers and Devils made my top five list of "Teams Who Won't Take Full Advantage of the New Rules." They're still in my top five, and it doesn't look like things will change. I already suspect goal scoring will be down by about three-tenths of a goal from last year because coaches have had a year to figure out how to circumvent the rules, but to have a 2-1 game where one team hasn't unloaded on another, or where the game is so sloppy and listless, is ridiculous.
Let it all hang out boys. An 8-6 preseason game may draw more interest than you'd expect.
Grab a hockey fan. No. Grab 20 of 'em.
Doesn't matter if they are casual or rabid, as long as these people know the history between the Flyers and Devils. Show the box score of last night's Flyers-Devils game, doing your best not to tip off the time or date, or year in which the game took place.
See if they can guess if the game is preseason or regular season, and if it's from this year or any year since 1995.
I bet a bunch of them couldn't guess any of the above correctly.
How do I know this?
Because I watched the game, and, resting stars aside, couldn't tell if it was an exhibition contest or a late February snooze fest where both teams are trying to wring every point from every game they can.
I switched channels frequently between commercials, and lulls in the action. Found last season's final rerun episode of "Grey's Anatomy" to be more compelling. Found the season premiere of "ER" packing more punch and featuring more collisions, explosions, and violence than half a season's worth of games last year. I think the NHL should sponsor re-enactments of television's dramatic scenes at your favorite local arena, just to cover the bases. Having Linda Cardellini recreate her final scene in last night's 10 PM NBC show would have given the proper punctuation the Flyers game desperately needed.
Don't give me "it's only the preseason," or "the Devils were playing their third game in three nights."
It was all of seven years ago the Flyers and Devils once had a 10-2 preseason game. Jersey used to wait until the season actually began to put the brakes on the offense. Wouldn't you expect a tired team that's undermanned to give up a couple, 5, 6 goals? Wouldn't you expect the Flyers to not only turn on the juice for their first home game, but to work at converting more chances, and maybe taking more chances on the rush or the backcheck?
Guess not, because I saw a system already being played. Endless cycling followed by ordered line changes and mechanic puck movement (when there weren't fumbles or missed chances), followed by more endless cycling followed by rote by-the-numbers power play and penalty kill situations. I saw neither team taking advantage of the two-line pass, or making creative plays with more open ice. I did see two teams playing a looser game of Ice Chess than they would in the regular season - and this without both teams skating some of their top talent.
Of 30 teams welcomed back for the first season of the New NHL, the Flyers and Devils made my top five list of "Teams Who Won't Take Full Advantage of the New Rules." They're still in my top five, and it doesn't look like things will change. I already suspect goal scoring will be down by about three-tenths of a goal from last year because coaches have had a year to figure out how to circumvent the rules, but to have a 2-1 game where one team hasn't unloaded on another, or where the game is so sloppy and listless, is ridiculous.
Let it all hang out boys. An 8-6 preseason game may draw more interest than you'd expect.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
The Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins...in Moncton?
Flyers' preseason opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins is tonight.
Peter Forsberg won't play vs. Pittsburgh, or tomorrow night at home against New Jersey. Honestly, I wish he'd sit out all but the last couple preseason games. Captain that he is, the team really doesn't need him to be wholly fresh and ready for Game #1, especially coming back from injuries to both ankles. The most important thing is that he can keep up with the speed and motion of practice and scrimmages, not that he's busting off the bench like an angry mustang, ready to lead the troops from the first second of action.
I'm happy the NHL is scheduling more preseason games away from teams' home or minor league affiliates' home. The AHL's abandoning of so many former tiny-market Atlantic Canadian and American cities opens up a world where these die-hards can see top-flight action at least once or twice a season before the Q and the O return to the ice.
It wasn't that long ago that the league would throw in a random match-up in a random location, as when the Flyers played Detroit in Orlando in the early 90's. Even though it makes me cringe that the league will throw only a small bone to Quebec and Winnipeg, having the Avalanche and Coyotes play in their former homes, it's at least comforting that the Home Office hasn't totally written off these cold-weather hockey hotbeds in favor of sunny Southern climates where interest is tepid at best.
Peter Forsberg won't play vs. Pittsburgh, or tomorrow night at home against New Jersey. Honestly, I wish he'd sit out all but the last couple preseason games. Captain that he is, the team really doesn't need him to be wholly fresh and ready for Game #1, especially coming back from injuries to both ankles. The most important thing is that he can keep up with the speed and motion of practice and scrimmages, not that he's busting off the bench like an angry mustang, ready to lead the troops from the first second of action.
I'm happy the NHL is scheduling more preseason games away from teams' home or minor league affiliates' home. The AHL's abandoning of so many former tiny-market Atlantic Canadian and American cities opens up a world where these die-hards can see top-flight action at least once or twice a season before the Q and the O return to the ice.
It wasn't that long ago that the league would throw in a random match-up in a random location, as when the Flyers played Detroit in Orlando in the early 90's. Even though it makes me cringe that the league will throw only a small bone to Quebec and Winnipeg, having the Avalanche and Coyotes play in their former homes, it's at least comforting that the Home Office hasn't totally written off these cold-weather hockey hotbeds in favor of sunny Southern climates where interest is tepid at best.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Surprise!
So, the NHL began their exhibition schedule last night. I have to admit, I had no idea things got under way so quickly after the start of training camp.
Thanks to the ESPN-clone website of Our Hockey Mad Neighbors to the North, we diehards can get the fix we need, as America continues their morbid fascination with the NFL's version of the Morning After:
tsn.ca/nhl/scores/
Thanks to the ESPN-clone website of Our Hockey Mad Neighbors to the North, we diehards can get the fix we need, as America continues their morbid fascination with the NFL's version of the Morning After:
tsn.ca/nhl/scores/
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Fashion Police
The Buffalo Sabres finally (mercifully) revealed their new uniforms yesterday, ending the terrible nine-year reign of the Goat Lord logo. Their primary colors are back to basics, deep blue and sharp yellow, and they're even bringing back the old purple-and-gold unis and logo for their third jersey.
However, the new uniforms themselves bear the mark of a corporate partnership with Reebok. The fit is not unlike the jerseys worn by the ice hockey nations in the Turin Olympics.
Take a look: sabres.com
Tell me these things don't remind you of football jerseys. They're high and tight in the shoulders against the shoulder pads, and slender down the torso, just like an NFL uniform which is designed to be snug to prevent linemen holding onto them to get good positioning. The logo itself, "reminiscent" of a buffalo, and the color scheme, are intended to look sleek to the television viewer. I think these monstrosities would look like nothing more than a splotch of blue and gold paint whizzing by. The jerseys even have the numbers prominent on the chest, because I'm sure the jersey designers realized that it'll be hard to identify a number on any player due to the haphazard coloration placement.
It wasn't that long ago that the actions of the players, not the style of the sweater, defined what looked sleek and bold and attention grabbing on a broadcast. Even as Gretzky, Lemieux, Yzerman, Gilmour, Kerr and dozens of others blazed around the rink, their names and jerseys were simple, vibrant, two color designs that caught the eye.
Take this new avant-garde Sabres logo and design, and place it up against these old style unis:
We'd better get used to it though. The Reebok partnership with the Sabres is just the first step toward the league bringing these new jerseys to every team. Sure, there will be a painful period in a couple years where you'll have about half of the teams in the league opting for the new hotness, and the rest stubbornly clinging to the old ways. Funny to think, how, 30 years ago, it was a big deal to switch from sweaters with the drawstring at the neck, to closed neck jerseys with color.
However, attrition, the promise of tons of merchandising capital, and the plans of the league office to put the NHL on par with the other three sports by converting to these slick duds, will eventually win out. Prominent and identifiable logos will be replaced by impressionistic doodlings that amount to little more than a cross between a Madison Avenue board room and the accidents of your garden variety kindergarten art class.
It's time to lead a revolution, folks. Don't shell out $50 for the new design, just to outdo your friend and neighbor, and look cool in your seat. Go buy a retro jersey, or take an existing one and put the name and number of an old-time player on the back. Like the Sabres fans have since the 90's, write and call team management to request your traditional colors and logo. Demand your current players be schooled in that tradition, which may inspire them to achieve while wearing a crest they can be proud of.
However, the new uniforms themselves bear the mark of a corporate partnership with Reebok. The fit is not unlike the jerseys worn by the ice hockey nations in the Turin Olympics.
Take a look: sabres.com
Tell me these things don't remind you of football jerseys. They're high and tight in the shoulders against the shoulder pads, and slender down the torso, just like an NFL uniform which is designed to be snug to prevent linemen holding onto them to get good positioning. The logo itself, "reminiscent" of a buffalo, and the color scheme, are intended to look sleek to the television viewer. I think these monstrosities would look like nothing more than a splotch of blue and gold paint whizzing by. The jerseys even have the numbers prominent on the chest, because I'm sure the jersey designers realized that it'll be hard to identify a number on any player due to the haphazard coloration placement.
It wasn't that long ago that the actions of the players, not the style of the sweater, defined what looked sleek and bold and attention grabbing on a broadcast. Even as Gretzky, Lemieux, Yzerman, Gilmour, Kerr and dozens of others blazed around the rink, their names and jerseys were simple, vibrant, two color designs that caught the eye.
Take this new avant-garde Sabres logo and design, and place it up against these old style unis:
- The bright green, gold and white of the Minnesota North Stars circa 1985, with the iconic "N" logo
- The blue, orange, and white of the Edmonton Oilers circa 1985, with their large oil drop logo
- The star-spangled Washington Capitals jersey, in deep then lighter shades of red, white, and navy blue
- The fireball red and gold of the Calgary Flames, before their own art department went certifiably nuts
- The simple, traditional designs, colors and logos of the Montreal, Chicago, Detroit, Boston (mid 70's to 1995), Philadelphia, and NY Islander (pre-Gorton's mishap) teams.
We'd better get used to it though. The Reebok partnership with the Sabres is just the first step toward the league bringing these new jerseys to every team. Sure, there will be a painful period in a couple years where you'll have about half of the teams in the league opting for the new hotness, and the rest stubbornly clinging to the old ways. Funny to think, how, 30 years ago, it was a big deal to switch from sweaters with the drawstring at the neck, to closed neck jerseys with color.
However, attrition, the promise of tons of merchandising capital, and the plans of the league office to put the NHL on par with the other three sports by converting to these slick duds, will eventually win out. Prominent and identifiable logos will be replaced by impressionistic doodlings that amount to little more than a cross between a Madison Avenue board room and the accidents of your garden variety kindergarten art class.
It's time to lead a revolution, folks. Don't shell out $50 for the new design, just to outdo your friend and neighbor, and look cool in your seat. Go buy a retro jersey, or take an existing one and put the name and number of an old-time player on the back. Like the Sabres fans have since the 90's, write and call team management to request your traditional colors and logo. Demand your current players be schooled in that tradition, which may inspire them to achieve while wearing a crest they can be proud of.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Forsberg, The Choice of a New Generation
I sincerely hope Peter Forsberg has kept open eyes and ears during his 11-year career.
He is now the fifteenth captain in Flyers history, and will have to exert that much more energy to become the ultimate team leader - the man who is the best player on the ice AND the go-to guy with the coaches, players, and officials.
Yesterday, in the Daily News, Rich Hofmann, while a great writer and veteran of the Philly sports scene, can't be confused with Al Morganti in terms of knowing the essence of the sport, said Forsberg's selection "just makes too much sense, unless he doesn't want it."
A couple things to mull here: First, how can anything logically make "too much sense," and why would Forsberg, who has spent all of 66 games in a Flyer uniform, be the best choice? And why would Hofmann frame the question in such a way as to imply Forsberg would be ducking responsibility which may not even fit him in the first place?
OK, we're done with Derian Hatcher. Mike Richards is too young. Simon Gagne turned it down last year, and enjoyed the kind of adulation Forsberg enjoyed in Colorado while Joe Sakic took the heat. Usually a typically reserved Finn, Sami Kapanen (10 years service, 2 1/2 with Philly) even gushed that be honored to have it offered to him. That leaves Mike Knuble, who, like Forsberg, has played only one season here. But, but...he has played for Detroit, the Rangers, and Boston before coming here, so he's seen how guys like Yzerman, Gretzky, Guerin and Thornton take control. Plus, Knuble has built a reputation not unlike John LeClair - tough but skilled, a guy you'd grapple with but give enough respect not to fight. Remember, the captain usually isn't the best or most skilled player on the team - just someone who can balance the load of on-and-off ice responsibilities adeptly.
I'm not sure Forsberg is that guy. And if you are certain, you're either one of his last remaining fans in Denver, a non-beat Daily News guy, or looking at the Flyers through orange-tinted glasses.
Foppa had ample time to soak in the glamour of two Cup rings. His reputation was that of the player with the most promise, potential, then the most concrete ability among all the players who suited up for the Quebec/Colorado franchise since the days of the Stastny brothers. As a member of Team Sweden, he became a God-like figure with his Gold-medal winning shootout goal in 1994, then again this year as the Tre Kronor won in Torino. It's worth noting, that there was no letter sewn onto his jersey during those championships.
So, with this move, Bob Clarke and Ken Hitchcock have boosted Peter's job description from "best player in NHL who will be major piece in Stanley Cup puzzle," to "best player in NHL who not only has to prove he's durable, but also that his skill can lead the Flyers to the Cup, and also be the man who acts as the bridge between coach and player, responsible for the attitude of the team at all times." Also worth mentioning is, nobody stops to ask if HE wants the challenge, or is ready to accept it, as they strut and fret over the implications of Gagne's outright refusal and Hatcher's absolute failure.
Only two captains in team history have fallen under the mantel of "best player as captain." One has two Cup rings, is in the Hall of Fame, and has a job for life with the organization. The other is trying to reclaim the shards of a shattered career in a Northeastern Texas metroplex.
Getting to the heart of the issue means asking the right questions:
Why were the Flyers so quick to install Forsberg as the chosen?
Who else can fit the bill equally as good, or better than our fragile superhero?
Will Peter lose anything in the exchange with the captaincy?
Is it fair, or even right to ask another top-flight talent to lead so soon after the melodrama of the last one?
He is now the fifteenth captain in Flyers history, and will have to exert that much more energy to become the ultimate team leader - the man who is the best player on the ice AND the go-to guy with the coaches, players, and officials.
Yesterday, in the Daily News, Rich Hofmann, while a great writer and veteran of the Philly sports scene, can't be confused with Al Morganti in terms of knowing the essence of the sport, said Forsberg's selection "just makes too much sense, unless he doesn't want it."
A couple things to mull here: First, how can anything logically make "too much sense," and why would Forsberg, who has spent all of 66 games in a Flyer uniform, be the best choice? And why would Hofmann frame the question in such a way as to imply Forsberg would be ducking responsibility which may not even fit him in the first place?
OK, we're done with Derian Hatcher. Mike Richards is too young. Simon Gagne turned it down last year, and enjoyed the kind of adulation Forsberg enjoyed in Colorado while Joe Sakic took the heat. Usually a typically reserved Finn, Sami Kapanen (10 years service, 2 1/2 with Philly) even gushed that be honored to have it offered to him. That leaves Mike Knuble, who, like Forsberg, has played only one season here. But, but...he has played for Detroit, the Rangers, and Boston before coming here, so he's seen how guys like Yzerman, Gretzky, Guerin and Thornton take control. Plus, Knuble has built a reputation not unlike John LeClair - tough but skilled, a guy you'd grapple with but give enough respect not to fight. Remember, the captain usually isn't the best or most skilled player on the team - just someone who can balance the load of on-and-off ice responsibilities adeptly.
I'm not sure Forsberg is that guy. And if you are certain, you're either one of his last remaining fans in Denver, a non-beat Daily News guy, or looking at the Flyers through orange-tinted glasses.
Foppa had ample time to soak in the glamour of two Cup rings. His reputation was that of the player with the most promise, potential, then the most concrete ability among all the players who suited up for the Quebec/Colorado franchise since the days of the Stastny brothers. As a member of Team Sweden, he became a God-like figure with his Gold-medal winning shootout goal in 1994, then again this year as the Tre Kronor won in Torino. It's worth noting, that there was no letter sewn onto his jersey during those championships.
So, with this move, Bob Clarke and Ken Hitchcock have boosted Peter's job description from "best player in NHL who will be major piece in Stanley Cup puzzle," to "best player in NHL who not only has to prove he's durable, but also that his skill can lead the Flyers to the Cup, and also be the man who acts as the bridge between coach and player, responsible for the attitude of the team at all times." Also worth mentioning is, nobody stops to ask if HE wants the challenge, or is ready to accept it, as they strut and fret over the implications of Gagne's outright refusal and Hatcher's absolute failure.
Only two captains in team history have fallen under the mantel of "best player as captain." One has two Cup rings, is in the Hall of Fame, and has a job for life with the organization. The other is trying to reclaim the shards of a shattered career in a Northeastern Texas metroplex.
Getting to the heart of the issue means asking the right questions:
Why were the Flyers so quick to install Forsberg as the chosen?
Who else can fit the bill equally as good, or better than our fragile superhero?
Will Peter lose anything in the exchange with the captaincy?
Is it fair, or even right to ask another top-flight talent to lead so soon after the melodrama of the last one?
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Another "C" Change
After a star-crossed sixteen-year NHL tenure, Keith Primeau finally admitted the inevitable, and, in a largely unemotional farewell this morning, called it a career.
Primeau acknowledged that it was time based on two conversations: a blunt sit-down meeting with Flyers trainer Jim McCrossin, who said Primeau stood no chance of being cleared to play, and a meeting with Flyers brass, who impressed upon him, finally, that a decision needed to be made quickly so that the start of training camp would not be clouded by continuous question marks about a comeback.
I'm sure others will have opinions, and they're by and large correct ones, but the two moments that seemed to define Primeau as a player in the Flying "P" crest are:
A trade to Hartford, which then became the Carolina Hurricanes, allowed Primeau to stretch out, find his game, and become both a scoring and locker-room leader on a rebuilding squad. Then came the contract squabble in 1999 which dragged on through the new millennium, forcing a deal to Philadelphia in exchange for Rod Brind'Amour and Jean-Marc Pelletier in January, 2000. The next year, with Lindros' absence, John LeClair's injuries, and a virtual clean slate, #25 scored a career high 34 goals. Following that, the ignominy of being identified as the point person for the players' mutiny against then-head coach Bill Barber after an abysmal first round loss to Ottawa. After a season and a half under the tutelage of Ken Hitchcock, his potential was finally, fully realized.
Whoever gets to step into that void of leadership, now that the captain has unfortunately gone down on dry land, will have to put his own stamp on the office. It is a demanding job for any player, and a great honor, made even more demanding as Hitchcock's M.O. has always been to use the captain as the chief messenger of the head coach's ideas, strategy, and attitude. In an unexpected twist, one of the Flyers' veteran Europeans, Sami Kapanen, said it would be "an honor" to be asked to assume that role. The finalists for the position appear to be narrowed to Simon Gagne, Peter Forsberg, and Mike Richards, an underdog who may eventually be groomed precisely for that role.
The man who gets to wear that "C" must be able to withstand the harsh light of the media, as well as the cold, piercing stare of the main man behind the bench. Due to his lingering concussion symptoms, Keith Primeau can no longer withstand any light, harsh or otherwise, for very long. Whoever follows in his footsteps would do well to use him as an advisor, since the embattled center plans to remain in Philadelphia, awaiting the next phase of his hockey life.
The fifteenth captain in team history has a unique opportunity - to be the uniting force in what may turn out to be a fresh, young, speedy squad. An historic parallel exists: back in 1984, upon Bobby Clarke's retirement, Clarke had major input into selecting Dave Poulin as the leader of what was then the youngest team in professional sports. That 1984-85 team, without Clarke, Bill Barber, or Darryl Sittler, won 53 games, sported the best record in the league, and advanced to the Finals.
Expectations being a funny thing in the sports-crazed Eastern megalopolis, thousands of Flyers fans will no doubt be dreaming that the bearer of the "C" will lift that Cup high come June. Short of that, a timely overtime winner, and some key plays in wins over the Devils and Rangers will fit the bill just fine.
Primeau acknowledged that it was time based on two conversations: a blunt sit-down meeting with Flyers trainer Jim McCrossin, who said Primeau stood no chance of being cleared to play, and a meeting with Flyers brass, who impressed upon him, finally, that a decision needed to be made quickly so that the start of training camp would not be clouded by continuous question marks about a comeback.
I'm sure others will have opinions, and they're by and large correct ones, but the two moments that seemed to define Primeau as a player in the Flying "P" crest are:
- Game 4, 2000 Eastern Conference Semifinals, Pittsburgh, 2:30 AM. The future captain's electrifying top-shelf shot deep into overtime number five, tied the series at 2 and sent all the momentum swinging back the Flyers way. Facing a 2-0 series hole, the Flyers come back to win four straight.
- Game 6, 2004 Eastern Conference Finals, Philadelphia. His goal with 90 seconds left in regulation completed a hard-fought game where the Flyers led, lost it, and clawed back to win in overtime. The miraculous behind-the-crease stuff-in, which began as an errant pass off his skate, signalled the unison of luck, skill, and seizure of the critical moment fans had been waiting for since the end of the fractured Eric Lindros Era.
A trade to Hartford, which then became the Carolina Hurricanes, allowed Primeau to stretch out, find his game, and become both a scoring and locker-room leader on a rebuilding squad. Then came the contract squabble in 1999 which dragged on through the new millennium, forcing a deal to Philadelphia in exchange for Rod Brind'Amour and Jean-Marc Pelletier in January, 2000. The next year, with Lindros' absence, John LeClair's injuries, and a virtual clean slate, #25 scored a career high 34 goals. Following that, the ignominy of being identified as the point person for the players' mutiny against then-head coach Bill Barber after an abysmal first round loss to Ottawa. After a season and a half under the tutelage of Ken Hitchcock, his potential was finally, fully realized.
Whoever gets to step into that void of leadership, now that the captain has unfortunately gone down on dry land, will have to put his own stamp on the office. It is a demanding job for any player, and a great honor, made even more demanding as Hitchcock's M.O. has always been to use the captain as the chief messenger of the head coach's ideas, strategy, and attitude. In an unexpected twist, one of the Flyers' veteran Europeans, Sami Kapanen, said it would be "an honor" to be asked to assume that role. The finalists for the position appear to be narrowed to Simon Gagne, Peter Forsberg, and Mike Richards, an underdog who may eventually be groomed precisely for that role.
The man who gets to wear that "C" must be able to withstand the harsh light of the media, as well as the cold, piercing stare of the main man behind the bench. Due to his lingering concussion symptoms, Keith Primeau can no longer withstand any light, harsh or otherwise, for very long. Whoever follows in his footsteps would do well to use him as an advisor, since the embattled center plans to remain in Philadelphia, awaiting the next phase of his hockey life.
The fifteenth captain in team history has a unique opportunity - to be the uniting force in what may turn out to be a fresh, young, speedy squad. An historic parallel exists: back in 1984, upon Bobby Clarke's retirement, Clarke had major input into selecting Dave Poulin as the leader of what was then the youngest team in professional sports. That 1984-85 team, without Clarke, Bill Barber, or Darryl Sittler, won 53 games, sported the best record in the league, and advanced to the Finals.
Expectations being a funny thing in the sports-crazed Eastern megalopolis, thousands of Flyers fans will no doubt be dreaming that the bearer of the "C" will lift that Cup high come June. Short of that, a timely overtime winner, and some key plays in wins over the Devils and Rangers will fit the bill just fine.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Upcoming Updates
The first order of business is to address Keith Primeau's impending retirement announcement, his career, and his impact to the Flyers.
To kick off the 2006-2007 season, I will post my team-by-team previews based on their respective divisions, beginning Sunday, October 1st.
I realize that, with six divisions, the previews will run smack into the first games of the regular season, but it's not going to be worth a whole lot to dissect and analyze Games 1 and 2 of 82. Give me until the first week is finished to whip up something worth reading.
To kick off the 2006-2007 season, I will post my team-by-team previews based on their respective divisions, beginning Sunday, October 1st.
I realize that, with six divisions, the previews will run smack into the first games of the regular season, but it's not going to be worth a whole lot to dissect and analyze Games 1 and 2 of 82. Give me until the first week is finished to whip up something worth reading.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Gagne, He Win
He's back in Black...and orange, folks.
Simon Gagne (or his agent rather) finally wised up and got a deal done with General Manager Bob Clarke.
All it took was for Clarke, who had thus far made all the overtures in this summer-long process, to get on a plane and meet #12 and his agent (former career back-up goaltender Bob Sauve) way up in Montreal. Ca-larkie apparently wasn't worried one bit that Gagne would sign before the start of training camp, and I'm sure he really thought one bit about it while he sat on his deck in Ocean City, New Jersey, sinking beers while the Nights in Venice floats rode by his place on the bay.
Anyway, the deal is five years, 26.25 million. According to the Daily News, it's a full $250,000 more than Clarke's last overture. So Gagne played his cards right, tuned Clarke like a grand piano, and wrung a hell of a lot more money than I'm sure he wanted to give for more years than he wanted to give.
In case anyone might think otherwise, it's a damn good thing this got wrapped up at the 10th hour, with training camp set to open on Friday.
Take a look around the league, there ain't anyone who'd come close to Simon's age (26) and his production last year (47 goals, 79 points) for a discount - certainly not a discount Flyers organ-eye-zation has been whimpering for now that cost certainty and a soft salary cap has forced the club to be frugal with their ducats. And since Peter Forsberg has a slight problem with shooting at the net, the sum total of anyone Hitch could put on that front line with Foppa couldn't add up to that explosive chemistry from last year when both were healthy.
Flyers fans, lift up your glasses in triumph. We've got a full house, with the preseason opener eight days away.
Simon Gagne (or his agent rather) finally wised up and got a deal done with General Manager Bob Clarke.
All it took was for Clarke, who had thus far made all the overtures in this summer-long process, to get on a plane and meet #12 and his agent (former career back-up goaltender Bob Sauve) way up in Montreal. Ca-larkie apparently wasn't worried one bit that Gagne would sign before the start of training camp, and I'm sure he really thought one bit about it while he sat on his deck in Ocean City, New Jersey, sinking beers while the Nights in Venice floats rode by his place on the bay.
Anyway, the deal is five years, 26.25 million. According to the Daily News, it's a full $250,000 more than Clarke's last overture. So Gagne played his cards right, tuned Clarke like a grand piano, and wrung a hell of a lot more money than I'm sure he wanted to give for more years than he wanted to give.
In case anyone might think otherwise, it's a damn good thing this got wrapped up at the 10th hour, with training camp set to open on Friday.
Take a look around the league, there ain't anyone who'd come close to Simon's age (26) and his production last year (47 goals, 79 points) for a discount - certainly not a discount Flyers organ-eye-zation has been whimpering for now that cost certainty and a soft salary cap has forced the club to be frugal with their ducats. And since Peter Forsberg has a slight problem with shooting at the net, the sum total of anyone Hitch could put on that front line with Foppa couldn't add up to that explosive chemistry from last year when both were healthy.
Flyers fans, lift up your glasses in triumph. We've got a full house, with the preseason opener eight days away.
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