It's here! The NHL 2003-04 playoff thread

[Simms]

Some interesting info from the Fan 590 (Toronto Sports Talk), courtesty of Scott Taylor (of the Winnipeg Free Press) yesterday worth passing along....

1. Winnipeg has an ownership group in place, a new arena, and has had discussions with as many as 5 current teams about bringing a team back to Winnipeg. The city is vastly improved as a viable market since 10 years ago, and the return of the Jets is widely considered a mere formatlity at this point....not so much a question of if, but when. Quebec City is a significant possibility as well, but they have venue issues to deal with. Harold Baldwin is also working hard to return a franchise to Hartford. The consensus seems to be that the near future will see the league make a strong effort to move teams back into markets where people actually care about them (ie, northern U.S. and Canada). The only reason it's not happening already is because of the uncertainty regarding the future economic landscape...nobody's going to sell right now, but once everything's cleared up (whenever that is), things will likely happen quickly.

2. Taylor quoted, first-hand, one owner as saying their first offer to the players will involve a "cap" (or variation thereof) of $31 million. Should they reject it (which they will), they'll lock out the players. The owners' next offer will be $28 million. Following it's inevitable rejection, the next offer will be $25 million. The owners are collectively committed to this hard line (reportedly), and while there are no doubt a few owners who will start worrying after a period of time, Bettman only needs *8* votes of the 30 owners to maintain the lockout at any given time. The consensus is that he will have those 8 votes in his back pocket (ie, owners who will refuse to budge) for a significant length of time. Read into that what you will.

[Fidatelo]

Just a warning, Scott Taylor is an idiot and I wouldn't take his word as anything close to gospel. 6 months from now he could be writing an article stating there was never any chance of Winnipeg getting a team again and that he knew that owners would fold.

However, if he is even close to being right on these issues I'm the happiest person on this board right now (MikeVic could be tied)

[Cards4ever]

Very interesting info Simms.

I'd like to see Winnipeg back in the NHL, it's a crying shame they lost the Jets to Phoenix.

Harold Baldwin? Stay away from that carpetbagger Hartford, he's always announced as a player, but here in Minnesota he ended up being the Minority owner for the North Stars and didn't help at all when we lost the team to Dallas.

[Simms]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

Just a warning, Scott Taylor is an idiot and I wouldn't take his word as anything close to gospel.

Winnipeg's answer to Al Strachan, then?

[Karim]

I'd love to see the White Out return to the Jets or Brass Bonanza and the Whale or the Quebec/Montreal rivalry... sheer hatred there.

[Karim]

http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/04/Hi...ne_to_Li.shtml
"I don't really see the point in it. It's too barbaric," she said. "The red team . . . who's the red team?" she asked a co-worker, who shrugged and giggled.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news...0&refer=canada
In Ecclestone's bar, three of the 50 televisions were tuned to see Tampa Bay tie the series 2-2 with a 1-0 win in Calgary. Twenty other sets were tuned to ESPN, which was showing the women's college softball national championship game between UCLA and the University of California-Berkeley.

[Simms]

Originally Posted by Karim

http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/04/Hi...ne_to_Li.shtml
"I don't really see the point in it. It's too barbaric," she said. "The red team . . . who's the red team?" she asked a co-worker, who shrugged and giggled.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news...0&refer=canada
In Ecclestone's bar, three of the 50 televisions were tuned to see Tampa Bay tie the series 2-2 with a 1-0 win in Calgary. Twenty other sets were tuned to ESPN, which was showing the women's college softball national championship game between UCLA and the University of California-Berkeley.

That first article seems to convey more of a gender bias than a regional one. Notice that all the women quoted gave implications that their husbands were perfectly rabid about the series.

Given the full context of the second story, it's actually a pretty cool article. But losing to college softball 20 TVs to 3 is somewhat disheartening....especially in a bar owned by a former player.

[Karim]

I'm pretty sure you could have found a women's yoga class going on in Calgary during the game last night with women who didn't like hockey.... ok, maybe not.

Losing to women's softball sucks though...

Reports indicated that 60,000 were on the Red Mile last night...

[bbor]

Originally Posted by Simms

Winnipeg's answer to Al Strachan, then?

More likely closer to Damien Cox.

[Cards4ever]

``But we had enough Yankees that had moved here to make it work,'' Caldwell said.


Now, that I like!

I would like to see a Canadian quoted like this in the future concering Nascar:

"But, we had enough Rednecks that moved here to make it work," Lefluer said.

[Karim]

Interestingly, auto racing in Canada is very similar to hockey in non-traditional markets - a small but die-hard following.

[Cards4ever]

Well, then, I would start complaining to Nascar, asking for a track! If Atlanta can have a NHL team, then Calgary deserves a track!



Disclaimer: This is all in good fun, Personally, I think it's good for the sport to be in all major markets so it can grow and be enjoyed everywhere.

[Karim]

Our current track is probably "ECHL" level, if that, and that's all we can handle. They get some decent crowds and the drivers come from many different places.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by Cards4ever

Well, then, I would start complaining to Nascar, asking for a track! If Atlanta can have a NHL team, then Calgary deserves a track!

Dammit, Cards, I've had just about enough of your Canada/US rivalry crap in our Nascar threads.

[sachmo71]

I'm glad Cards is back.

[Cards4ever]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

Dammit, Cards, I've had just about enough of your Canada/US rivalry crap in our Nascar threads.

I is sorry



I'm glad we have hockey in the south, otherwise I would have never been able to strike up friendships with people like Satch.

[bbor]

Are we going to game 7?

Or is this the last hockey game we see for a year

[Karim]

I'm also glad Cards is back. I felt guilty when he left 'cause I was one of the more "vocal" people during that whole US/Canada hockey thing a while back. There was no harm intended though.

Don't forget the World Cup bbor...

This could be the greatest moment in Flames' history (underdog team winning it all) or it could be the start of one of the worst disasters (one game away only to lose Game 6 and 7).

[Karim]

Bob Probert in jail again.
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?ID=86404

[sachmo71]

Yikes. Poor Probert. "The Bad One" indeed.

[Karim]

Quote from Phil Jackson in the Ventura County Star:

"The one thing I hate is missing the hockey playoffs because of the basketball playoffs," he said. "It's alsmost as good a playoffs as the basketball is."

In this year's Finals, he said, "I'm kind of rooting for Calgary... I think Canadians deserve to have the Stanley cup back in Canada."

[Cards4ever]

I think tonight is the night! Get ready Calgary, cause you are going to party!

bbor, don't you have hockey in the summer? The U of M has a model camp(future college players) in 2 weeks with a weeks worth of games, and then in July we have our U16 and U17 camps and games.

WC is in September, some games are going to be here in the Twin Cities, I have tickets for those!

[Hurst2112]

In this year's Finals, he said, "I'm kind of rooting for Calgary... I think Canadians deserve to have the Stanley cup back in Canada."

I wouldn't think that Calgary fans would want the cup just because they're the only Canadian team left. They obviously are the best team in the NHL this year. If they were from Uraguay, they would still deserve the Cup for the way they played this year.

Iginla= Conn Smyth winner. That's my guess anyway.

[bbor]

Originally Posted by Cards4ever

I think tonight is the night! Get ready Calgary, cause you are going to party!

bbor, don't you have hockey in the summer? The U of M has a model camp(future college players) in 2 weeks with a weeks worth of games, and then in July we have our U16 and U17 camps and games.

WC is in September, some games are going to be here in the Twin Cities, I have tickets for those!

I am too busy preparing for my season to go watch any games..this summer there is an under 17 russian team touring through Toronto for 7 games or so...i would'nt mind seeing some of that.

I keep the kids i coach off the ice until September,i believe in burnout at a young age so i hope they would enjoy playing other sports in the summer.

Not only that but after going 8 months straight of 15-20 hours a week of coaching the only ice i wanna see in the summer is in my drink

[klayman]

Come on Flames! Lets get it done tonight!!!

[MikeVic]

As much as I would like to see an NHL team back in Winnipeg, I don't think it'll happen unless they really do have some sort of salary cap of $20M or something like that. I don't see Winnipegers paying $80 for a ticket just to keep a team here.

[Cards4ever]

Originally Posted by bbor

I am too busy preparing for my season to go watch any games..this summer there is an under 17 russian team touring through Toronto for 7 games or so...i would'nt mind seeing some of that.

I keep the kids i coach off the ice until September,i believe in burnout at a young age so i hope they would enjoy playing other sports in the summer.

Not only that but after going 8 months straight of 15-20 hours a week of coaching the only ice i wanna see in the summer is in my drink

I don't coach, but, I do skate with my 5yo daughter and she is off the skates too. We rollerblade once in awhile, but, that's about it.

What level do you coach at? Where at?

[bbor]

I coach a 10 yo rep team just outside of Toronto.I love teaching kids the game but i hate the polotics involved.Unfortunatly you can't have 1 without the other

I love to rollerblade...i go at least 3 times a week...it is a great stress reliever.I have no kids to rollerblade with....yet

[sterlingice]

Sorry to the Flames fans out there, but I was really jonesing for a game 7. This series is too good to end any sooner. I know I'll be glued to my tv Monday night.

SI

[Cards4ever]

I thought Calgary would win tonight, now I think the odds are against them, but, I'm still hoping they do it.

[sterlingice]

I'm pulling for the Flames because I have no particular preference towards either team. However, one of our little circle of hockey people here in Kansas (not a lot of us) is from Calgary so we're all rooting for them for his sake.

SI

[Karim]

Richards scores and Tampa wins...

No back-to-back wins all series...

Khabibulin wins after a loss...

First goal wins...

Flames can set a record with road victories if they win on Monday...

No team has won the cup with a losing record at home (Flames are 5-7)...

Iginla looks gassed...

Regehr left the game in a foot cast...

Kiprusoff looked bad tonight, fighting the puck...

It doesn't look good.

[Karim]

Is this a goal? Apparently ABC had a better picture but I can't find it anywhere...

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by Karim

Is this a goal?

Sure looks that way. You can see space between the puck and the line, and from that angle it's hard to imagine how the puck being in the air would influence anything.

[Simms]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

Sure looks that way. You can see space between the puck and the line, and from that angle it's hard to imagine how the puck being in the air would influence anything.

http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/~fof/for...4&postcount=56

[Simms]

Dola...

And even if the puck *is* over the line, that angle (I haven't seen any others) doesn't prove that it is conclusively...there's no way the refs could overturn that.

And fwiw, Sutter was asked about it after the game and was *very* quick to make it clear that he had no argument with the call (or lack thereof) whatsoever. He had seen the replays and agreed there was no conclusive evidence that the puck had gone in. Given his comments earlier this week, I can't imagine any circumstances under which he wouldn't at least take a passing shot at the refs if he really believed he had a case.

I'm pulling for Calgary as much as anybody on this board, but there's no way I can, in good conscience, insist that should have been a goal.

[Cards4ever]

It's done and over with anyway, time to move on and win Game 7. Last nights 2nd period was awesome huh?! I'd love to see 3 periods of that on Monday.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by Simms

http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/~fof/for...4&postcount=56

No, I understand the physics of it. I'm just looking at a play where the puck clearly hits the bottom of the goali'es pad along the ice and trying to figure out where all this "well, if the puck was three inches in the air" talk comes from.

As for Sutter, he's a smart guy. He's already going to get nailed by the league for his conspriacy talk, so he knows enough not to go to the well again. The games is done, so no point bashing the league and the officials right before a game seven.

[Karim]

Even if Sutter thought it was a goal, he had to get his team focused on the next game. I heard Gelinas' voice when it was first brought to his attention by a reporter and you could just hear the anvil of disappointment come over him. That's what Sutter is trying to avoid.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by Karim

Even if Sutter thought it was a goal, he had to get his team focused on the next game. I heard Gelinas' voice when it was first brought to his attention by a reporter and you could just hear the anvil of disappointment come over him. That's what Sutter is trying to avoid.

Last night on his HNIC interview Gelinas actually said something to the effect of "to have a missed call cost you the Cup is very hard to swallow". I know what he meant, but the fact that he's even thinking like that is a bad sign for Calgary.

[Maple Leafs]

The Sens have apparently picked their new head coach, and it's.... Bryan Murray???

Apparently so, according to TSN. This despite weeks of reports that it was down to Francis, Quenneville and Acton. (Yet another excellent job by the crack roster of Ottawa sports reporters.)

[bbor]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

The Sens have apparently picked their new head coach, and it's.... Bryan Murray???

Apparently so, according to TSN. This despite weeks of reports that it was down to Francis, Quenneville and Acton. (Yet another excellent job by the crack roster of Ottawa sports reporters.)

I almost fell out of my chair when i heard this.WTF are they thinking?

They have a Stanley cup worthy team and they hire a guy who has'nt coached in how many years?

Quennville was'nt good enough?....Tell you the truth i am surprised Quennville is still out there,is his health a problem?

Why did'nt Acton get this job as he was supposed too?

[sterlingice]

From ESPN.com

7) Who will win Game 7?
50.8%	Calgary Flames
49.2%	Tampa Bay Lightning
Total Votes: 10,362

SI

[Johnny93g]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

The Sens have apparently picked their new head coach, and it's.... Bryan Murray???

Apparently so, according to TSN. This despite weeks of reports that it was down to Francis, Quenneville and Acton. (Yet another excellent job by the crack roster of Ottawa sports reporters.)

I cant wait to play them in next years playoffs.....Theres no way he's better then Martin

[Johnny93g]

Oh....and GO FLAMES

[JonInMiddleGA]

Let's go Lightning

[JonInMiddleGA]

Interesting bit with the computer animation of the game 6 goal/no goal controversy.

I don't know if I believe the animation/simulation especially (even though it matches my own perception of the footage) but I thought it was interesting nonetheless.

[MikeVic]

Is it just me, or does it seem like players are losing their sticks a lot more today?

[Dr. Sak]

Damn you Bobby Clarke for trading Ruslan Fedotenko

[Philliesfan980]

Originally Posted by bsak16

Damn you Bobby Clarke for trading Ruslan Fedotenko

Ah, I love living near Philadelphia.