No kidding. Only the Oilers could make Oliwa look so good. He almost got another mins later. :(

Karim: I think Iggy is one of the elite wingers in the league just for the reasons you mentioned. He has no support, yet can put up very good numbers.

Oliwa put a move on...oh. It's Salo. I get it.

Bertuzzi got $27.9 over 4 years. The last year of his previous contract was ripped up and he got a bump in pay this year along with a couple million signing bonus. What it works out to is around $8 million/year over the last three years of the contract.

Isn't Vancouver painting themselves into a corner with Bertuzzi, Naslund, Morrison, Jovanovski and Cloutier? That alone will break a $35 million salary cap.

Although, I don't really think they had much choice. Letting an impact player like Bertuzzi go would have been devastating for the franchise.

Stars come back from two miserable periods of play to win over Calgary 4-3. Goals by Guerin, Guerin, Guerin, and Arnott. Way to earn that pay, boyos!

I'm a bit concerned about the Stars lack of cohesion, though, and Turco was pulled for the second time this season. :eek:

BLUUUUUUUUUUUES, OHHHHH BAAAABBYYYY!!!!!
6-5 winners over the Wings!

The way Hasek is playing i think he should have stayed retired.

Interesting happenings in Anaheim, if you guys didn't notice.

The Ducks have won four of their last six games and have only lost once (last Friday, in a sloppy game against the Sabres where they were leading 2-1 in the third and then sabotaged Jiggy by playing turnover-prone sloppy defense and gave up four goals in the third period) in that time.

But the big news is that backup goalie Martin Gerber has been doing so well (and Jiggy so hit and miss this season so far) that Gerber is now starting until he cools off. Babcock is basically playing the hot hand, while repeatedly assuring the media that Jiggy's job is safe, he's just playing out Gerber's hot streak and give Jiggy a little more time to get acclimated.

This actually makes sense for Jiggy, who has historically been a slow starter.

Nonetheless, I love having Gerber around. I think he's the best backup in hockey myself, but I am biased. :)

CR

Hrmmm...

6-5 versus St. Louis and Hasek get chased...

5-3 versus Nashville, CuJo is poo.

Not good. Not good at all.

I guess the team misses Hatcher more than they think.

What the hell is up with Yzerman getting 34 pims? All these fights? Fucking Belgium and the time difference. I have to go figure out exactly what happened there...

The season is long. The ship will be righted.

CuJo actually didn't play that badly. He made a great save early on in the game on a 2 on 1. Most of the goals were from tip ins or defensive breakdowns where he didn't have a chance.

Nashville had a 5 on 3 for two full minutes and CuJo and the wings stopped them from scoring. I thought we had the game at that point.

Yzerman complained to the referee about a very, very questionable holding call on Lidstrom and received a couple of misconduct penalties. The commentators were insinuating that Yzerman even destroyed the camera in the penalty box. He was pissed!

The defense is playing horribly right now, especially Dandenault. He keeps getting caught up in the rush causing odd man rushes on the other end. That and we don't clear anybody out from the front of the net.

This is probably stating the obvious, but one of the Flames' owners publically stated that the Flames will fold if there is no hard salary cap in the next labour agreement.

http://www.canoe.ca/CalgarySports/cs.cs-11-01-0088.html

Although he didn't actually use the words "salary cap" like Boston owner Jeremy Jacobs, it's clear what was meant.

Calgary is actually in a better situation than many US-based franchises because they've only lost roughly $20 million over the past five years. Without a US network TV contract, that's several hundred million dollars that can't be found elsewhere. $10 million dollar contracts and $60+ million dollar payrolls are just not sustainable.

There are about 15 teams that will be in serious trouble without a hard salary cap. Relocation isn't an option as all the potential markets are taken.

Meanwhile, you have players like Shanahan who are trying to couch the players' position as taking a "moral" stance for a future generation of players. He needs to remember that for every team that contracts, there's 25 lost jobs, and increased competition for the jobs that remain. Not everyone can go and play in Europe.

I've never experienced a loss of a franchise like the Quebec Nordiques or Winnipeg Jets but I can completely understand how it leaves a bitter taste in the fans' mouths.

The entire league and its member associations need to think long and hard about the potential ramifications of not recitifying the out of control finances.

Karim- it's baseball all over again. Hopefully the owners can win some legitimate consolations in this CBA as opposed to baseball.

SI

You know the pending CBA negotiations are a big story when Maclean's has an article on it. They usually do not cover any sports.

http://www.macleans.ca/topstories/sp...03_68551_68551

To show the ludicrous bonus structure for entry-level players, check out Marc-Andre Fleury's contract:

He will receive $500,000 this year if he hits one of the following milestones: 20 victories, 3.25 goals-against average, .890 save percentage, 1,800 minutes played (the equivalent of 30 games), four shutouts and a top-five finish in rookie-of-the-year voting.

If he hits two of those plateaus, he gets $3 million.

Basically he's got to be a mediocre to absolutely atrocious goalie to strike it rich. Now, he's had a fabulous start and should shatter the above marks, but shouldn't bonuses be for solid play?

Next season, Fleury would have to reach three of those standards to receive a $4 million bonus and four of those milestones in the final year of the deal for a $4 million bonus.

While he can't earn more than $8 million in bonuses, he can earn $11.72 million before he turns 22.

"I'm not proud of myself," Penguins GM Craig Patrick said. "The stuff that he has to achieve isn't that [difficult]. He's going to do it."

Ricky DiPietro is playing GREAT right now for the Isles - well under a 2.00 GAA with a defense that's not been playing well. Granted, Hamrlik-Aucoin-Niinima-Jonsson is, without much question, the best 4-man defense combo in the league, but Ricky has played well. Addind the aspect of a "3rd defender" (with his puckhandling skills) has been a huge asset.

If the forwards would only start to hussle back to play some D, we'll be a dominating team in the East.

Oh, and how's that Niiniima trade working out Oilers fans?:D

Mad Mike finally got the best of another team.

Yeah, Isbister is a bust. They were hoping for another "Bertuzzi-like" breakout after leaving the Island. :rolleyes:

Buried on page 6! :eek:

Here's an article on Sidney Crosby. Excuse the broken english. He's draft eligible in 2005 and hopefully all the CBA mess will be fixed for the betterment of the game.

http://www.hockeysfuture.com/article...readed&order=0

Regardless of the sport, we can never stop looking for the "Next One".

He will be a Leaf:)

I'm sorry, could you repeat that?
Thanks.

Signed,
Several other teams.

:p

lol, DD, I had the same thought when I read that. :)

CR

There's a good chance. After the lockout, the Leafs will probably be the worst of the handful of teams that remain in the NHL :D

Are'nt they now? :D

Ugh. Stars are having some serious problems. 1 goal in the last 8 road periods. Not good.

Yeeeeah, not everyone can be the defending Stanley Cup champs. Devils go for five in a row tonight!

Can't wait to see what Crosby does in the NHL. So far this season in 21 games he has 19 goals and 26 assists for 45 points (8 more than the guy who is 2nd in scoring)... averaging over 2 points per game as a rookie in the Q is unheard of. Even Mario only scored 96 points in his rookie year.

BTW... for those of you in Canada who get Rogers Sportsnet, you should check out the CHL vs Russia Juniors challenge later this month. The two QMJHL games (Nov 20th and Nov 24th) will feature Sidney Crosby for the Q, and Alexander Ovechkin for Russia. Should be a good couple of games.

That is just a beautiful sight isn't it?

Dola,

On a sad note however Osgood is still our fucking goalie. Why me?

Heck, I'm happy with *this* stat


Hawks fans don't get to see that very often in the standings and more :D

SI

Good point. I am equally happy to see Chicago below St. Louis as I am Detroit. :)

Live it up while you can... :mad:

The Wings have just not been sharp. Not at all. I think losing Hatcher really crushed the psyche of the team. You want desperate, they just signed 40 year old Steve "Stumpy" Thomas.

That being said, it's no time to panic. I think the ship can be righted. Hopefully Hasek will regain form, things will calm down, and the Wings will go on a winning streak and get things back in order in the Central Division.

No I think it is time to panic. Grab your Octopi and run!!!!! The sky is falling!

Seriously though. I have been so busy at work I have unfortunately not seen many hockey games outside of Blues games. However despite the fact they scored 5 goals I thought the Red Wings looked old and slow against the Note. And it's about damn time too.

And on another note what kind of deal did Yzerman make with the devil to still be playing hockey at a high level at this point in his career. I am shocked the man can even stand anymore let alone still putting up close to a point a game.

Steve Yzerman. There is none higher. I have said this for years and he never proves me wrong. :D

The team is old. The team is slow. Losing Fedorov really hurt. Even though he isn't setting the world on fire in Anahiem (not that they need any more fires down there), he gave the Wings an important dimension they sorely lack now. He could really fly and carry the puck from end-to-end when necessary. That doesn't exist on the team anymore. Losing Zetterberg for 4-6 weeks wont help.

The Wings really do need another forward (under 40), but it doesn't look like they will get one.

They also need to resolve this goalie thing. Hopefully someone will take poor CuJo off their hands.

It could be worse. You could still have fucking Osgood as your goalie. Everyone in St. Louis is in love with Osgood at the moment. (Except me obviously) His good start has blinded them to the fact that 1) the goals he has been giving up have been awfully soft, 2) despite the fact that the Blues have had a large number of injuries on defense they are still one of the stronger defensive teams in the nhl, and 3) Ozzie always gets off to a fast start. Looking at his career numbers his wins, gaa, and sv% are by far the best in October than any other month.

And the fact remians he just isn't a guy who is going to steal a game for you in the playoffs. And that is what we have been missing all these years. Unless you are a team like the Dead Wings were when he was in goal for them you have to have a goalie who can win a game or two for you in the playoffs that you shouldn't have won. Ozzie isn't that guy. Why me?

Dola,

BTW I think the reason we haven't heard from Double A in a long time is because he threw himself off the top of the arch after we traded for Osgood. :)

I miss old A2. I am sure the Osgood thing pushed him over the edge.

I like Ozzie. He seems a decent fellow. I don't really blame the last two play-off series (when he was in net) losses on him at all. The team sort of flamed out collectively.

That being said, he isn't reliable. You never feel comfortable while he's manning the pipes. He will give up a soft/bad goal on occassion and just always seems to let a goal in at exactly the wrong time. The worst example was, of course, that 80 footer he let in during a play-off series against the Blues. The Blues were down 3-2 (or 2-1) with under a minute to go and MacInnis shot it from almost center ice. Bam. Game tied. (Note: I was watching this game during a timed, 24-hour take home exame during my first year of law school. Luckily, for me, Shanahan scored the OT winner in the 2nd overtime and I was happy and able to finish my exam.)

Whenever Osgood is in net, I rarely, if ever, felt confident that the Wings had the better goalie in a game. That sort of confidence goes a long way.


I am glad he isn't playing goalie for the Wings right now.

Wow! I could never have gotten through an exam while watching that game. I was actually at that game. Mac connected with 32 seconds left to be exact. :) What a roller coaster game that was. Going from the high of MacInnis burying the red line shot and then even higher when everyong in Kiel thought Hull had put in the game winnerin the first OT. To the low of having that goal called back and then Shanny sending us home losers. And to top it off remembering that we were still paying Shannahan from his priginal contract with us. Nothing like paying the guy who beats you in double OT.

I forgot about the Hull "goal"! It went from post to post or something like that. It was ridiculously close to being a goal. Horribly never-wracking game.

That was the problem, I couldn't take the exam. I had to take it that day and started too. I made good progress in the morning and afternoon and when the game started I was like "Ok. I will have the game in the background, but keep on working." After 10 minutes I realized that wasn't working, so I took a "break" and went to a friend's house to watch the game.

I had my freaking coat on and everything, ready to walk out the door and head right back to the final when MacInnis scored. I couldn't believe it. I had but 24 precious hours to write everything I knew about US Constitutional law and Osgood cost me 2 of them!

I also forgot Shanny was still getting paid by the Blues. Ouch. That must really hurt.

Poor Blues. Though I can never justify hatred of the beloved Wings, I can almost see it from a Blues fan's perspective. Almost....

I don't really see the problem, sounds good to me ;)

The way Hasek is playing, maybe you guys should dump him instead.

Not when you have Modano and Zubov on your fantasy hockey team. :)

That's more like it.

ROTF!!!:D

Can someone tape these games for me? I'd be happy to pay for costs and/or trade Minnesota Gopher games, Vanek is worth watching for you future NHL star fans(Buff #5 overall pick), they are playing North Dakota this weekend and they have Parise who is the NJ 1st round pick. Both teams have a numerous amount of NHL picks.

And to think the QOTM is gone :(

Ok, and could you arrange for something to happen to Osgood? I can't wait for his yearly meltdown since I have Johnson on my fantasy team.

SI

Wow! Ok, so I go to check on my fantasy team earlier in the day. Dallas got rocked again but it was Tugnutt instead of my slumping Turco that got shellacked so no big deal. Then I go check on Vokoun for Nashville. He's down 3-0 to Detroit in the 3rd period (he's been a pretty good backup goalie for me so far- I love that pick and I forget who howled at me but apparently he was right). So I go back and check tonight and see I have one win for goalies and did a double take. I could have sworn I had zero earlier- Turco has continued to suck this week while Vokoun lost a 2-1 heartbreaker to my Hawks. Then I see Nashville 4, Detroit 3. Oops, CoJo imploded and gave up 4 goals in less than 15 minutes while Vokoun, on the other hand, stopped 20 shots in the period and got the win! Too bad, I'm going to lose the wins column 2-1 this week. Just felt like relating a story gloating about Detroit. Resume your daily lives :cool:

Oh, wait, in a Colombo-esque manner: "One more thing".


I may not be able to do this for long, but I'm going to take it as long as I can :D

SI

What's up with the Wings?

Do they miss Feds this much?Or is the Cujo/Hasek thing getting to them?

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=59972

Mike Keenan has been fired... which makes no sense to me as (despite their record) I thought their team has played well so far this season.

Or is it that they are really old?

Or is it that they loss Hatcher for the year?

Or is it "E" All of the above.

I reckon it's "E" and then some...

They definitely miss Feds. He was really the only player on the team who could carry the puck from end to end with any kind of speed and skill. He was fast and when on, was really on. They lack that zip and punch now offensively.

The CuJo/Hasek thing has gotten ugly. Apparently there are rumors that it is dividing the locker-room and that Hasek gets pissed whenever any player talks nice with CuJo. I am sure that is an exaggerated take on the situation, but I bet it aint great. Hasek has been known to be a bit of a headcase. Remember when he was staying at some Ottawa Senator's house while the Sabres were playing them in the play-offs? There was something weird like that going on, he had a groin injury. Who the hell knows.

People are begining to see the Hasek as a selfish, in it for himself type of guy. This, of course, would not be the situation if he actually played well. If he does start playing well, people will think the opposite. Right now, sucking as he has, people are claiming he came back for the money, to avoid legal troubles in the Czech Republic, and to promote his struggling line of clothing. Who knows...

Losing Hatcher was a big blow to the psyche of the team, I think. They were all set to become this defensive-minded team with big, bruising Hatcher at its core. Hatcher goes down, the center cannot hold... It all gots to sh*t. The Wings weren't all that sound in their defensive end last year during the play-offs. It's carried over.

Also, Legace is interesting. He's never had any real success has a #1 goalie and seems to be good one year and not so great the next. It's odd and based off only my thinking with no current statsitcal data to back it up with.

The Stars miss Hatcher as much as the Wings do. :(

Aw, nothing like a game against the Hawks to get the Wings healthy again. And then they go and beat the Stars silly by hanging a 6 spot on my fantasy goalie. *sigh*

SI

Nice to see the Wings put together a nice little winning streak, especially against the upstart Hawks and villainous Stars.

Way to go Stumpy! A goal a game pace. Keep it up, old man!

F the Wings....

Anyone want some of my grapes? :D

Well there goes your hockey season down the drain :p

Interesting that the Pens have decided to keep Fluery with the big club all season.I wonder if they will let him go to play in the world JR championship.

Well... they can still send him back to Junior. They've just used up the first year of his contract.

I highly doubt they'll let him play in the World Jr's unless they decide to send him back.

Ok, we've established that the Stars are taking the New York Rangers approach to hockey...great on paper, shit on the ice. But to go and trade on of the few guys who shows up and plays hard every night is downright evil!
F-ING STARS!!! GHAAAAAAAAA!

John Klemm was everyone's hero a few years back. The most unheralded free agent signing of the year. The stablizing force of the Chicago blue line. The +/- leader on the team. He's a winner. Been on Stanley Cup teams. A leader. A worker. He's got two "Ms" in his name when one would suffice. His first name and last name are both one sylable long. The Stars called up Rob Valicevic. That's a pretty cool name, Valicevic. Then again, so is Antti Miettinen. Looks like a wash now...

Nice...

After the bad start, the Ducks have finally gotten things together somewhat and have moved into a tie with the first place Kings. Of course, we're still a game or two ahead of most teams in the NHL, and I am sure that will eventually come to bite us. Hopefully, we have a good run coming here. Giguere still hasn't really heated up yet the way he can (although he has been playing much better).

And we stopped the Blues' win streak. :)

CR

Don't forget that the Heritage Classic will be played this weekend. First outdoor NHL game...ever? Anyway, looks like hockey doesn't rank high enough for this sporting extravaganza to be shown on regular TV, so it's CBC or Center Ice for you. Unless someone knows something that I don't?

Also, the Oilers went out and signed ex-Red Wing Adam Oates. Not a bad pick-up by all accounts. Clearly at over 40, he isn't the same player he once was, but he's still a threat. A great, great playmaker, especially on the power-play. It's interesting because he doesn't fit the "skating" mold of your typical Oiler team. He was never fast and is even less so today. Still, he wont hurt and steps in on the 1PP and can fill the role of the 2nd/3rd line center. He's also ace on faceoffs.

There was some talk of Oates ending up back in Detroit. The Wings went with Stumpy which isn't too surprising. Oates was traded years and years ago because (allegedly) he didn't get along with Steve Yzerman. It was really the worst trade in Red Wings history (since I've been following them) Adam Oates and Paul MacLean for Bernie Federko (an aged Bernie in his last year in the league) and Tony McKegny. It sucked.

Oh, that sucks. I really wanted to see the game. Sounded like a very cool idea.

SI

Tonight, the Ducks play the Avalanche in Colorado. Of course, Kariya is hurt and won't play. :(

Oh well...next possible meeting is one I have circled on the ole calendar: Dec. 19, Colorado at Anaheim, Kariya's return home.

CR

Ok, boys and girls. We have some serious issues here. I found this all the way down on page 18. I know hockey takes on an unreal significance in the post season and I tend to watch a game or two every single night then (if possible) but the regular season has its moments, too. Plus, I keep seeing hockey threads but nothing in here. Shape up, folks

(The preceeding was brought to you in sarcasm-vision)

SI

It's panic time here in Ottawa. Apparently the fans have realized that the league doesn't plan to just hand the Cup over the Sens, and that maybe just maybe the team was overrated heading into the season.

My inside sources (cough) are telling me that Bonk and Havlat have become cancers on the team. Apparently Bonk is the last guy in and the first guy out for practices and games. The team would love to move him, but can't find anyone who wants to give up anything for him.

Meanwhile, Havlat is still pulling a suck routine after the contract negotiations and aborted hold out. He apparently tried to pull himself out of the Rangers game with a phantom injury, forcing Alfreddson to slap him in the head and tell him to smarten up. Unlike Bonk, there are still some teams out there who haven't figured out that Havlat is a passenger, so he's likely the one to get moved.

The rumor now, for whatever it's worth, is that Havlat will go to the Coyotes for Shane Doan.

Havlat for Doan sounds like a decent deal for the Senators if Havlat is the turd he seems to be. Doan is tough, big, strong which is exactly what the Sens seem to be missing.

On the Wings front they are back in first place in the Central Division where they belong. They beat Blues in St. Louis 2-1 and have played decent, but by no means great, hockey. Stumpy Thomas has been a godsend. Playing really well so far.

We had a Stanley cup parade last nigth here in Toronto.It was nice.....although i choked on some rice:)

Seriously,it seems the closed door players only meeting the Leafs had after the loss to the Oilers has turned some things around.Still need a big D-man in Toronto,but a rumour swirling around herenow is the Leafs kicking the tires on the Isle to see what it would take to get peca in the blue and white.

Nice move by Barnaby last night to nod to the linesmen during a fight that he was ready to end it,so Nolan drops his hands and Barnaby labels him with a haymaker.Look for retrebution tonight when the rematch is played in Toronto,unless Barnaby gets a mysterious *illness* .

Branaby is a punk, he was when he was in Buffalo and he always will be.

I'm happy with the Sabres season so far, they are hanging around .500 and 7th/8th place in the conference and Miro seems to have gotten his head out of his ass (for now). All we need is to trade a goalie for some more O :)

When he came to Chicago, I thought Thibault was overrated and a liability. A couple of years ago, I decided he was neutral- an average goalie who didn't hurt the team but also didn't win games. Two years ago, he finally won me over. Now, I'm starting to think he's invaluable.

I don't think it's any coincidence that the Hawks have an 11 game winless streak and that the last game Jocelyn played in was 12 games ago. That 6-5-3-0 record was so long ago as they are now 1 point ahead of the Blowjackets for last in the conference with 2 more games played.

SI

Good to see the NHL is trying to get the Cup to Toronto anyway it can. :D

Out in the Pacific Division, everything is screwed up. All five teams are hovering at or just above .500, including the Stars. The division lead and the entire set of standings seems to change daily. I have no idea when someone is finally going to put it together and pull away. Right now, the Sharks are listed in second, ahead of both the Stars and the Ducks (although they all have the same number of points).

The Ducks have been playing this maddening game. Maybe you noticed. It's called "let's see how many overtime losses we can have this year!" We have 5 overtime losses, far more than anyone else. It's extremely annoying to see the team come so far in a game, only to lose it in overtime. Yes, we get a point, but the other team (usually a key Western Conference foe) gets two points.

I am loving having Federov around right now. He is playinbg very well now after a slow start. The entire offense is clicking pretty good. Andy McDonald is showing the playmaking skills I said he would. Guys like Neidermayer and rookie Lupul are being more offensive. Rucchin is staying on the ice (albeit barely). I am annoyed that Chistov can't find a way to score a goal (although he has a ton of assists...as a winger), and we really need Petr Sykora to get on track--he hasn't been the goal scoring machine we need. And then there's Jiggy, who still hasn';t really gotten into the full flow of the season yet, although he's playing much better now than he was earlier in the season. He is developing a reputation as a slow starter.

Big game coming up on Dec 19. Avalanche vs Anaheim at Anaheim. Paul Kariya's return home. I just hope he doesn't get hurt again...at least before he gets to Anaheim. Just kidding. ;)

CR

I think Barnaby could take as many free shots as he needed at Nolan and not do much damange. He always has been more sizzle than steak.

Although it was hilarious to watch Nolan laugh at him, continually asking him if he was done. You could read Nolan's lips... "Are you done?" (weak Barnaby punch) "OK, now are you done?"

I went to the Canucks/Flames game on Saturday. OMFG! Sold out, playoff atmosphere. It was freakin' awesome! I can only imagine the atmosphere if we had a team like Ottawa, but Sutter definitely has them on the right track. Even with Iginla only having four goals, and Conroy only 1 or 2, everyone else is picking up the slack, especially Donovan and Lombardi.

One of the chants heard at the game:

Who ate all the pie?
Who ate all the pie?
Todd Bertuzzi, you fat bastard,
You ate all the pie.

:D

The Anaheim Mighty Ducks are in Detroit tonight. On any other night, this wouldn't be newsworthy. However, the Ducks unceramoniously dumped the Wings in the first round of the playoffs last year, sweeping them 4-0. And, much more importantly, this marks the return of Sergei Fedorov to Detroit.

There has been some debate as to how the fickle fans of Hockeytown will respond to his return. Well, to use Jim Rome lingo, here is my take:

Being in Brussels, I certainly wont be at the game. But I will be seriously, no, SERIOUSLY disappointed if Fedorov is jeered or receives anything less than a standing ovation for this 12 glorious years in Detroit. What did he do for the team? Lead the team, nay, the league in play-off scoring during that time? Check. Win a Hart Trophy? Check. Win a Selke? Check. Help bring three Stanley Cups to a city who hadn't seen one in 42 years? Check. Check. Check.

He may have taken games off from time to time, he may have been a bit flighty, he may have had a most unfortunate obessession with a certain Russian tennis star. All these things may be true. That being said he was at the core of perhaps one of the greatest runs in Red Wings history, the winningest team of the decade, and the beforementioned three Cups.

He didn't bolt the town for money. He bolted the town to get out from under Yzerman's shadow and try his shot at being "The Man." It's a perfectly understandable human response after being #2 for over a decade.

The mercurial forward played his heart out (the best he knew how, I think) for this team and brought results (THREE FREAKING CUPS) and some very, very good and exciting times for us all.

Shame on all those who boo the man when he returns tonight.

It's time to put wounded pride behind us all, reflect back on the last twelve years and realize much of the success would not have been possible without good, ole #91.

Oh, but who in the NHL hasn't? I believe Jim Rome calls her "the NHL Pegboard" or something like that.

SI

Poor girl. It's been what? Two players? (Bure and Fedorov) who have gone out with her and all of a sudden she's "the NHL Pegboard"? That's nice. That's real nice. I guess there's a reason I don't listen to Rome.

And I would have thought it's because he's a pompous ass.

SI

Eh, that too. I would imagine that goes without saying though.

well, I'm happy with my Avs

WHo's winning the bet...I think it was between CR and...??? Who?

I forget...iknow last year it was DD....who is CR's victom this season?

Jim Lynch. :)

It's borderline right now, though. The Ducks are on the fringe of the playoffs, and I need them to make the playoffs to win the bet. :)

Go Ducks!

CR

Well, looks like Mr. Domi paid Mr. Barnaby back the old fashioned way...

Looks like Fleury make give up his bonuses in order to remain in the NHL...

http://www.herald.ns.ca/stories/2003/12/03/fSports171.raw.html

Twice. Three ass-kickings for Barnaby in two games, not bad.

P.S. Didn't Chris Simon used to be a tough guy? Since when does he go with midcard guys like Marchement while his teammates are getting smoked by Domi? Did he decide he was too good for the job after he had his 20 goal season, or did he just lose his superpowers when he cut his hair?

I think it's the latter.

Simon was one of the most feared tough guys for a short spell. He had that breakout 20 goal year in Washington when he became all the rage. Then he suffered numerous shoulder injuries. I think that hurt his physical style of play and toughness. He was critized earlier in the year for not taking on his roll as team "enforcer". Seems like that's still the case.

Have you seen Simon recently?

They interviewed him last night......he looks like a nancy-boy now...hair all coloured and stuff...Bring back the hockey hair Simon...you pussy:)

All hockey players should have hair like Mike Ricci :D

Sergei back in Detroit...ETA 1 hour. Looking forward to the fans' reaction as much as H_B is.

CR

6-1 after 2. ouch.

so, what was the reaction like?

Can you believe I got a phone call and had to turn the TV off for a minute? And wouldn't you know it was that minute where they finally did introductions? Ugh. I turned it on again and it was just over a minute into the game. :(

And then I watched the Wings take my Ducks apart. Ouch.

CR

7-1 now,Federov has the Ducks goal. Federov gets booed everytime he touches the puck. :D

that's too bad. similar to the Rob Blake in LA thing.

except that Detroit fans have a clue about hockey and really should know better.

But then they wouldn't mate, and we would have no hockey for our childrens! :eek:

bbor, when we start our EHM:FE league, I am going to trade Simon to you for a first round pick. Would you take it?

He probably deserves better, but it isn't really a suprise. Hell, there were many times during his Red Wings career the fans wanted to boo him.

*cough*
*cough*
*sputter*

LOL@Sach


CR....Jiggy is a shadow of himself.What is going on with him?

Does he miss Kariya or something?

Every now and then, Jiggy has a night like this. He got blown out by Dallas last year, for instance. The guy just picks a night every now and then to implode. I saw Roy do it a few times, too (Jiggy's bad nights remind me of Roy's bad nights).

Jiggy has actually been playing very well for the past month or so after a poor start. The only time recently he has been bad is in overtime (five overtime losses? God Lord...). So I don't know what got into him. I would normally say nerves, but after last year's playoffs, I don't think nerves affect this guy. I think he just had a bad night.

I know he doesn't miss Kariya. Kariya's absence means he has a better fedensive group in front of him most of the time. Kariya was simply too small and offensive-minded to be as much of a factor as he needed to be on the defensive end (although I think for what he is, Kariya does a decent job defensively).

CR

Anyone besides me think that the Penguins are slowly shutting down operations and will cease to excist after this season?

May be a good bargaining chip for the owners to retract a team as they go into the cba negotiations.

Well, I am very happy with the result. 7-2. Very happy. This doesn't make up for the first round sweep, but it's a start. We must pay them back tenfold!

As for the reaction Fedorov got. Bah! It's ridiculous. It just goes to further lower my opinion of Joe Average Red Wing fan, which, to be honest, was pretty freaking low to begin with. I have never been more enraged watching a hockey then being at Joe Louis Arena or a Detroit sports bar. The things I hear from the people around me... Rage.... building.....

Uh oh...Chief is comparing Jiggy to Roy...

:D

Pittsburgh looks like the first team to go. I know Winnipeg people are really hoping for a team after a new CBA. There were actually quite a few Winnipeg fans in Jets gear at the Flames' game the other night.

I miss the Jets and Nordiques.

i would love to add another Canadian team,but i just don't see it happening.

Why is Winnipeg so big for hockey yet they could'nt support their team?

Phew, thanks to a four goal third period, I can rest easy.

Hasek. This word. You keep saying it. I do not think it means what you think it means...

Well, he still hasn't shaken off the rust, that's for certain. The groin injury didn't help, but he needs to improve. Hopefully he will.

Datsyuk has been on fire. Playing exceptionally well right now. He's got good chemistry with Hull. I remember watching him in an NHL prospect tournament many years ago. I pegged him as a potential NHL regular very quickly. Outside of Heatley and Kovalchuk he was by far the best player in the tourney. Can't say enough about Stumpy either. The guy's been just fantastic since coming aboard. Solid acquisition.