zach parise is a fucking star.

a fucking star.

Sorry Oiler fans, I started watching this game a few minutes ago.

Well, it looks like Niedermayer coming back fired up the Ducks tonight. Won the battle on the scoreboard and did a great job of sticking up for each other. Best performance of the year IMO.

I was just looking at Mark Recchi's career after it was announced he was placed on re-entry waivers. A few things struck me:

1. I have absolutely no recollection of Mark Recchi ever playing for Montreal. None. But apparently he was there for parts of 5 years.

2. In 1992-93, while with the Flyers, Recchi scored 53 goals and had 70 assists for 123 points. He was a +1. In 90-91, he had 113 points and had an even +/-, he had 97 points in 91-92 and was a -21, and in 93/-94 he had 107 points and was a -2. That's a a lot of power-play points.

Tell me about it...I was there watching it unfold right in front of me. In all honesty, we didn't deserve to be up 2-0 after two but to lose in that way after everything had gone "right" up until about the 10 minute mark of the third period really felt cruel. Oh well.

That was my first time seeing Crosby in person and boy, that kid is fast. Guys liken him to Gretzky but Gretz didn't have anywhere near the speed that Sid has. Also, when Malkin hits puberty he is going to be absolutely huge. We were sitting right at the glass behind the Pens' net (1st and 3rd periods) and I think Whitney on defense and Laraque were the only guys bigger than him on the ice...and that is saying something for a kid his age with the skill set he has. Boy, if they can keep those kids together in Pittsburgh they are going to be scary good!!!

One other note...Fleury just missed scoring a goal at the end of the game...puck came to him at the side of the net and he reared back and just couldn't quite get it over the last Oiler at their own blue line as he got enough of it to slow it down. All of this after Fleury "tripped" on the blue line coming out onto the ice after the second intermission...fans were on him about that and I'm sure he would've liked to score that one to shut them up.

Hasek brings the pain

Holy crap.

It's like he instinctively puts his hands out to break his fall, but he's too high up and just keeps going.

[quote=Suburban Rhythm;1608554]And he's cleared...I doubt he is actually sent to WBS in the AHL. He'll be recalled soon, with hopes someone grabs him on re-entry waivers. I can't imagine who would. He's due $1.75M this year...so whatever the prorated portion of that is now... [quote]

Clearly your imagination has underestimated Don Waddell's penchant for overpaying guys who are well past their prime.

The Atlanta Thrashers claimed right winger Mark Recchi off re-entry waivers from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday. The former all-star veteran had signed a one-year deal with the Penguins but received little ice time on a team dominated by younger players. He is scheduled to report to the Thrashers on Sunday. The Thrashers do not need to make a roster move, but are expected to do so in a few days.

Chicago lost its 4th straight by 2 or less :(

SI

A trip to Detroit would cure what ails them

Not trying to belittle your pain, but you realize by far most NHL games are won or lost by 2 or less.

I enjoyed watching Friday night's game. It was a fun up and down, high-scoring game.

the Avs beat St Louis 9-5 tonight.
They have one line - Stastny, Hejduk and Smyth - and that's it. The trio combined for 14 points this evening (Hejduk led the way with 6 points).

It was 6-2 after two periods, and Andy Murray pulled Toivonen and put in some guy up from Peoria (Marek Schwarz). The Blues score two goals in the first minute or so and suddenly it's a 2-goal game. So Murray puts Toivonen back in...Colorado scored 3 more to put the game away. Toivonen got pulled again after the Avs made it 8-4. And really, very few of the goals were really on him - the Blues looked awful on defense.

Chris Osgood is 14-1-1. Unreal.

In tonight's 8-2 Flyer victory over the Pens...The Flyers had 58 minutes of penalties and the Pens had 98.

Playoff series with those 2 would be fantastic...there'd be nobody left by game 4.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07346/840983-61.stm


Highlight of the game is Gary Roberts pummeling Ben Eager, who wouldn't go with Big Georges.

Eager is a joke. But what is a real joke is that Laraque is not going to get suspended for what he did to Biron. If a Flyer would have done that, everyone would be all over them.

Suburban...did you read Starkey's article on Recchi today in the Trib? All I can say is wow. I also heard an Edzo interview on XM radio. Edzo asked where he thought Recchi would go after being waived. Edzo said "I dont care about Mark Recchi...he is of no concern of me...I'll leave it at that." Recchi must be a real cancer in the locker room.

It was nice to see Pittsburgh native RJ Umberger get a hat trick. I really like him, but he didn't even get a star of the game.

1. Lupul...2. Richards...and 3. Crosby. Crosby had an assist and a -3 and he was a star. Give me a break.

I'm going to the game tomorrow against Ottawa in my company's box. Wonder how much stuff I would get thrown at me if I showed up with my Flyer hat on :)

How fast can you get an Eager jersey made? That would be classic.

I haven't read the Starkey article...but now I'll have to check it out.

And agree, Laraque was stupid. But, had the refs not lost control of that game, none of that happens.

They take Eager off the ice for the elbow...that I admit was not THAT bad, but the intent was there...and while it would be chippy, it wouldn't have turned into what it did. Instead, they sit Georges for 4 mins, and leave Eager out there. I guess we can thank them for the entertainment that was Roberts-Eager.

I do have to ask...as a Flyers fan, do you think Biron was trying to teach Crosby (diver-extraordinaire according to Hitchcock) the proper way to execute a dive? ;)

Roberts deserved to be the 3rd star...after Lupul and Umberger, Roberts put on the best show of the night.

Oh Biron dove, big time. But he can't do it as good as Sid. Sid throws his head back like an old pro. Eager should've sat too. I agree it wasn't that bad...but the officials needed to restore order.

Did you see Biron call out Laraque after he slide tackled him? Biron is about 165lbs soaking wet. But if it was Ron Hextall he would've went after Laraque with his stick.

The best hit of the night is when Colby face planted into the boards when he missed a check. He was all bloodied up...then proceeded to get into a fight in the 3rd. He is by far my favorite Penguin.

This has to be one of the best rivalries in hockey right now. Too bad they don't play again till Mid-January.

You mean like Hartnell (I believe) crumpling to the ice from the brush burn he got from Roberts stick? ;)

Yeah..Biron was killing me...yelling, from behind his mask, and 2 refs!
We need someone out there doing the Rob Brown fist pump, and then have Biron attack.

Do you think anything will come out of this, with Bettman putting the Flyers 'on watch' last week? The Pens initiated all the battles, and deserved all the penalties they got from the 10 minute point of the 3rd on...but I still contend it all stems from Eager's elbow.

Yeah I noticed that too but Hartnell was bleeding (a little) from the stick. I am all for the refs calling diving penalties. And none of this crap where a guy gets 2 mins for hooking and the other gets 2 mins for diving. Just call the diver.

I think if the Flyers do anything dirty, whoever does it will get a extended vacation plus the team will get fined heavily. They showed the hits last night and there is no place in hockey for what Bolerice or Downie did.

The other ones, I don't think the intent to injure was there but just like with high sticking, you should have your body under control enough to avoid hits like that. Honestly, I'd love for the Flyers to get rid of Eager. He takes stupid penalties and is a liability on the ice in both zones. And you're right...that elbow started it all. Right then and there both of them should've been thrown out, or at least been given matching penalties. The refs needed to send a message.

Agree, both go off the ice right then, about 90% of what happens afterwards never occurs.

I saw Hartnell bleeding, and 100% agree it was a correct call, Roberts wasn't in control of his stick. But, same play, and that's Crosby, people would be all over him.

Sadly, Crosby has to do that to get some calls, and players like Hartnell are going to embellish, too, to get the call. I don't think there is anything wrong with that. Just that if players knew the refs arm would go up as soon as it happens, no need to try and draw a call.

Damn. Sounds like I picked a poor night to skip TV/hockey and catch up on some reading.

I'm glad to see the rivalry get some life. Hockey is always at its best when it has strong rivalries.

I have to say, however, there is far too much agreeing going on between Bsak and Suburban Rhythm. Come on, fellas. Get in the spirit of things!

One last interesting tid bit from the game. For the rest of the season neither team (Pens or Flyers) have to leave the Eastern Time Zone to play a game.

I figure he knows the Cryers are trash...do I really need to repeat that to him? ;)

They should've moved your team to KC. :p

Just FWIW, Mark Recchi scored two goals in a 61 second span tonight in his Atlanta debut.

Just about matching his prior 52 game span.

So the Flyers sign Mike Richards to a Rick DiPietroesque 12 year, $69 million contact, which averages $5.75 a year against the cap.

If Richards continues to play like he has thus far this year, he'll end up being one hell of a bargain for the Flyers over the next decade or so.

I dont like it at all, takes away their motivation...

Damn, 12 years eh? I dread the idea of that length of a contract becoming the "norm" in the NHL. The league is just not solvent enough anymore to handle too many of those, especially if they are guaranteed contracts. I know the NFL does not have guaranteed (except the bonus), and the idiotic NBA does have guaranteed contracts. I believe baseball is guaranteed contracts as well, right? Not sure about the NHL though. Can anyone enlighten me?

:p

HAHA!

what happens with all these deals when the cap goes down?

I can't quote the specifics, but from my understanding, if the cap ever goes down, there is language in the agreement where all player contracts roll back (assuming by a similar percentage to that of the cap reduction) to keep everything in sync.

They are guaranteed.

Yeah, the Isles got a little nervous when DiPietro was having problems with concussions. Stupid to be going to this length for deals.

Amen. These deals are ridiculous. What's driving this weird trend?

SI

Well if they have a career ending injury (ie Rajthe)...they can be put on a list (sort like PUP in the NFL) where they don't count against the cap. But they still get paid.

Oilers beat the Wings in yet another shootout...I believe that's the Oilers' 9th win via the shootout. Despite Roloson's great game...the first goal and the last goal were both TERRIBLE.

some interestin stuff from cnnsi about the ducks:




Maybe that "do the right thing" speech that Anaheim GM Brian Burke gave about putting goalie llya Bryzgalov on waivers had more than just a good-heart motivation.

Shortly after Burke said he had no takers in a trade (what, was Tampa Bay sleeping?) and needed to let the Ducks' No. 2 goalie go because Bryzgalov had been a "good man" who deserved a "chance to play" and all that, All-Star defenseman Scott Niedermayer announced that he was returning to the Ducks. And there lies the rub:

Though numerous media outlets reported that the Ducks would have to free up some $3 million in cap space for Niedermayer, it's not exactly true. The NHL has a complicated subplot in the 600-plus page Collective Bargaining Agreement called "tagging" -- a method by which clubs can act like corporations that sell off their surplus pollution credits or get tax deductions for unused debt.

In this case, it has to do with "tagging" expiring contracts and contracts that are moved (like Bryzgalov's). It's far too complicated to explain here, but the Ducks, who have a full-time "capologist" in Dave McNab (who also happens to be an outstanding hockey man), apparently have done the math and the tagging and need only to eliminate some $880,000 from this year's budget to get Niedermayer on the ice.

There's nothing illegal or even immoral in what the Ducks did, but if Burke knew that Niedermayer was coming back before it was announced (and that's a logical conclusion), the mysterious goalie waiver makes a whole lot more sense than just giving Bryzgalov a chance to play. But Burke may have a problem when he tries to re-sign some of the players whose contracts expire at the end of this season. For now, it appears he can accommodate an All-Star defenseman with just a little bit of cost cutting.

In financial circles and hockey arenas, that's called exploiting an opportunity, otherwise known as a job well done.

St Louis - Anaheim:

Ducks get Doug Weight, prospect and pick

Blues get Andy MacDonald

BUT...Weight is a UFA at the end of the year, MacDonald had another year at $3.3M. So as Pyser describes above, they've opened cap space for next season, allowing them to bring back Niedermeyer this year. And I guess negotiate with Corey Perry.

Weight for MacDonald, terrible trade for Anaheim.
Weight and Nieds for MacDonald, good trade. All depends on how you look at it.

McDonald has been terrible this year. I would have rather moved a package of Marchant and O'Donnell, but no GM in the league is going to take on salary to pick up those two.

If McDonald gets a couple of good linemates in St. Louis he could turn out really well for them, but at this point honestly it looks like Selanne and Kunitz made McDonald look good and not the other way around.

Getting Weight back is a bonus IMO. He's not great anymore, but I'd have expected to get nothing in return. Birner might be a decent player at some point as well. Ultimately, I'm pretty happy with the deal.

Macdonald has been far from great this season.....i know this because i have him on my fantasy team :(

Dola.....Break up the Leafs!!

There really isn't anything tricky or tough to understand about this.

You have 'x' number of players on your 23 man roster. They count towards your cap. If you move out of them, his remaining salary is removed from the cap.

The more tricky part is playing with future seasons - the Ducks can't have more salary signed than what the cap is for next season (i.e. if the cap is $50 million, they can't have $55 million of salary on the books for next season right now).

That's why the Ducks moved MacDonald. He's signed for next season, while Doug Weight isn't. Since Niedermayer is still under contract for next season, adding his salary would have put the Ducks over the cap for next season, so they had to remove him.

This could make the Duck's off season even more tricky - Niedermayer will have to retire (assuming he does) just about as soon as the season is over, otherwise the Ducks risk losing Perry to free agency.

I understand the MacDonald deal gives the Ducks easily enough room to renegotiate with Perry, which was another big reason why it was MacDonald and his 2008 contract that had to go.

For us here on the other coast-What's Selanne's status? Is he without a contract at all? Then they'd only need enough room for this season, depending on his demands. And is he even considering coming back?

Unless you're the type who doesn't have to be in a contract year to be motivated to do your job.

Very little risk, as long as you have the money to cover the deal if they stay healthy but start to suck. Bury them in the minors and they get paid while being off the cap sheet. If they don't show up, they don't get paid. If they get a long term injury, or a career ending injury, insurance probably picks up the rest of the salary or some substantial portion of it. These deals are nowhere near as risky as they might seem.

He is considering coming back in the new year. He's a UFA as well, so in theory could sign for the league minimum and they would only have to deal a Huskins or Miller to fit him in. I have no idea whether that is realistic or whether he will want to get paid what he is worth.

Trading McDonald and moving Kunitz full time to the Perry/Getzlaf line makes me lean towards he isn't coming back, but we will see.

About 6 mins remaining in the Pens - Isles game tonight, play stopped along the boards, in front of the benches. Jarkko Ruutu on the ice-literally-and starts rolling around grabbing his leg. You can't really tell anything, camera angle too close.

After commercial, they show the replay from a different camera.

Before heading to the bench, Chris Simon trips Ruutu...no big deal. But then STOMPS on Ruutu's ankle with his skate! He got a match penalty, Pens hade a 5 min PP, and hold on to win 3-2. But can we get this trash out of the league? I thought last year with the Holleweg offense, he was 'dazed' but the prior hit, what will the excuse be this time?

Canes finally break their losing streak with a win the hard (and somewhat strange) way in Philly. Blew a 3-1 lead in the second period, kept getting all manner of bad breaks on Philly goals (heroic efforts by skaters bailing out Graehme who had to make some kind of sprawling save, only to have the puck just break the goal line or other such event), went oh-fer on the power play, but ultimately won the shootout 3-2. The somwhat strange part is that Brind'Amour was last skater in the shootout and ripped a shot at Biron that Biron deflected straight up into the air. Naturally, the arena goes nuts as everyone thinks Biron stopped the shot. However, Biron has lost the puck in the air, so while he's trying to locate it, he's drifting ever so slowly back into his goal. The puck comes straight down onto his back and he reacts by batting it with the back of his arm into the goal. Absolute fluke, but after the recent skid, I'm taking anything I can get.

Quite true, but their taking a damn big risk that this guy is one such player. Dipietro at least still has the starting US goalie spot to motivate him, im not sure what the motivation here will be if he is a player who is not easily motivated.

I just read about this. Un-fucking-real. He needs to be out. Banned. Gone. Playing in the league is a privilege. His NHL privileges should be revoked.

No excuse. He's a thug. I was embarrassed when we re-signed him and am more embarrassed now.

Still uncertain about the McDonald trade, but given what it's allowing, I can't be too unhappy about it. Tonight's game will be interesting, with Niedermayer, Weight and Bobby Ryan all playing.

I saw the Simon replay last night, that is insane. I can often find plausible excuses for the stupid things players do, but not this time. I hope this clown is officially D-U-N done.

Pretty interesting game between Detroit and Florida last night. The Wings scored 7 goals in their win against the Panthers. The only downside being that Lidstrom's and Chelios' goals were each against Osgood.

The Wings had two penalty shots in about 5 minute span. Datsyuk missed his, but Val Filpula burried his second penalty shot in three games.

Simon is a worthless pile of bile. His entire career is based upon cheap shots and thugism. BAN HIM!!!! :mad:

I miss watching Wings games since I moved away 3 years ago.....:(

So, Simon should be banned from the league. Goon.

Ha, good to see Crosby show a little grit by fighting Ference last night.

Watching the Kings-Sharks game tonight, and I think I realise why the Kings are such a shitty team. Nagy gets flattened by Matt Carle late along the boards and can barely stand, and his four "teammates" stand around with their fingers up their ass. Way to stand up for your teammate chumps.

heh... now Nagy just got cross-checked in the neck by Rivet, and again the rest of the team just looks down and skates away. LA has some pretty skillful players, but it ain't going to do much good if they are scared for their lives everytime they get on the ice.

If half the friggin team wasn't injured, I'd say the Blackhawks have a good shot to make the playoffs, and sweep the Red Wings in the first round. Even if it doesn't happen, the future appears to be very bright. Jon Toews is pretty much 10x better than I expected him to be at this point in time. And where the hell did Dustin Byfuglien come from? it's funny watching him charge down the ice as all the defenders scurry away...

:eek: What makes you think ANYONE can sweep the Wings the way they're playing this year?

yeah, it's really not likely that the Wings would dominate in the regular season and then fold in the postseason. right?

Why do you hate freedom?

Well, the Blackhawks are 4-0 against the Wings this year...this has to mean something, eh? :cool:

I watched about 10 minutes of the game, but I didn't see the stuff you mentioned. Really, all I got out of the 10 minutes I watched was that the Kings are horrible. My goodness, I can't believe that people actually pay to get into the arena to watch them play.

You hit the nail on the head, bhlloy. I went to the Kings-Ducks game at Staples last month, the second of a home-and-home in which Pronger just went off on someone at the end of the first game (forgetting who, but it was his usual edgy, instigator style). My brother, a diehard Kings fan, was just waiting for the gloves to drop the second the puck dropped. Well, didn't happen. Kings just played their game, and the Ducks blew them away, 6-2, clearly outmuscling them the whole night. Which is sad really, because as much as they are our regional rivals and they hate us like Paris Hilton's eyes hate sunlight, I would love for them to be good again. I can't stand any of the other Pacific Division teams, and I just know a seven game playoff series between the Kings and Ducks would just go off in this town.

My brother is resigned to how bad they are, and that sucks.

Wow, there is a stat!

Chicago should sell their secrets to the rest of the league. That's pretty impressive.

indeed. Detroit is 22-1-1 against non-Central teams.

Well, one of those losses was an overtime loss. The Wings are 28-3-1 against the rest of the league. It's just Robert Lang and the Blackhawks they can't seem to figure out.

And what's their record against teams from Colorado this year? :)

Very nice 2-1 road win for the Ducks tonight, and twice as nice that it was against the Oilers, after last summer's dealings, and the smackings they handed us in that home and home last month. This doesn't make up for that, but it helps.

The winning goal was scored by Weight off of an incredible pass by Bobby Ryan. Man, that kid's gonna be good when he's ready. I guess there was a reason the Ducks made him the first player not named Crosby in the Crosby draft.

Pens almost have to pick up some D now, or at the deadline. Mark Eaton out indefinitely with a torn ACL. He played 35 games last season before multiple injuries, and 36 to this point before his knee. I don't know the exact record anymore, but there is a pretty noticeable difference in Pittsburgh's record when he is in the lineup.

Problem is, they only have spare parts to move.

heh. Detroit has a really good team. I was pleased that we were able to stay in the game (thanks Rafalski). We had chances to tie it, but fucking Hasek was great. Eyebrowski Filppula is pretty darn good.

From the Interesting Only To Me Category: After Cody McLeod scored his first NHL goal against Hasek, he skated to the bench and sat down next to Ben Guite. Last year, Guite scored his first NHL goal against...Dominik Hasek.

(I'm just happy people are talking a little bit about the Blackhawks and it's not about having the worst record in the league)

SI

Well, after Montreal not only swept both Florida teams, but scored 10 goals, had 5-0 and 4-0 leads and saw all four goaltenders, they are suddenly 4th in the East... How the Hell did this happen? I've watched every game this year, and they don't seem like a team that should have home-ice advantage in the first round...

...Then I realized that they are five points from missing the playoffs entirely. Makes more sense now.

I think Eaton is going to try and play on it. I read that in the PPG yesterday.

Looking forward to the Winter Classic tomorrow. I'm happy to have hockey on New Year's..even if it is on NBC.

Yes, yes...

I will be there tomorrow at the game and I'm pretty pumped. We're heading over the border a little after 8:30am and will be tailgating and the whole bit.

I'll bring my camera and try to get a couple pictures while I'm there.

NBC means Pierre McGuire and Mike Milbury, right?

gag

Nah, apparently Bob Costas is hosting some sort of show. Dunno if he's doing the PbP tho.

I hear Gary Roberts wants to break his other leg, fly to Chicago, and grant Ben Eager a re-match. ;)

That would be welcome news with Eaton!

The Penguins broadcasters on Saturday night against the Sabres said Eaton was going to undergo surgery for what it's worth...

Man, what a spectacle. Too cool.

I don't know that any other sport could pull something like this off convincingly. Among the major sports, anyway. I think it owes to the fact that hockey plays in relatively small arena, so the huge crowds are the big draw as much as the whole outdoor thing.

The NHL apparently decided to replace the national anthem with God Bless America after singing the Canadian anthem. Hmm...interesting.

I wish their sound was better, because it's difficult to really get the full brunt of the crowd with the way they're doing this now. But I guess they don't exactly have a lot of practice doing this.

I like the Pens' jerseys a lot. Are they new just for this game?

And seriously, is this rink regulation size? Probably just looks weird because of what's surrounding it, but it looks much narrower to me.

The Pens are just wearing these for this game. Those were their old jerseys and colors before they switched to the Black and Gold.

I am a little pissed I didn't go but this is my favorite day of the year for college football.

Exciting 1-0 game so far, which is good because the NHL needs this game to be successful for the sake of the game's future in the US. It isn't make or break, but every little bit helps!

Damn, I forgot that the game started at 1:00. I missed the first period. Oh, well. I'll watch most of the rest.

Too much college football on today for this to mean anything to the game's future in the US. Maybe that says something.

Having been to the Heritage Classic...I don't know what's worse...sitting in -30 degrees Celsius or sitting in the rain.

The NHL surely did screw things up by scheduling this on Bowl Day if their intent was to try and strengthen the U.S. market. I even find myself watching the Michigan/Florida game more often than not.

NBC hasn't necessarily impressed me with their presentation, to be honest. I don't know if ESPN would've been "better", though.

They could have Mike Emrick doing commentary on a constipated dog trying to lick himself, and I would watch it, and I would be riveted.

I love Mike Emrick.

What a surprise to see this one after the Mizzou game. Too cool is right!