It's BACK! The 2005-2006 NHL Season

[Draft Dodger]

speaking of new rules, an interesting event occured in the Kings/Avs game last night. it was late in the game, Avs had their goalie pulled since they were down a goal and Sakic iced the puck.
Colorado put Aebischer back on the ice, since the faceoff would now be in their own zone, but the Kings were arguing that, with the no line change rule, Colorado shouldn't have been able to make that substitution.

I'm so-so on the new rules. I love the elimination of the two-line pass - that's been awesome to watch. I think the goalie trapezoid is useless - the goalies learned on day one that they could go out in front of the goal line and handle it just the same. and, frankly, giving them free reign just opens things up more anyway, which is a good thing; it cuts down on the dump and chase and forces teams to carry into the zone more. plus, there's nothing goofier than a goalie going behind the crease and having the puck bounce into the delay-of-game area and then having the goalie stuck in no mans land, an inch away from a puck he can't touch.

I'm torn on the crackdown. on one hand, I like players are getting more room to move. on the other, I see a lot of penalties called where a stick gets up around the midsection or touches a guys skates and BOOM it's a penalty, even if the player wasn't impeded a lot. I think that there needs to be some common sense here. Also, the diving is becoming ridiculous. I swear, against Anaheim the other night, Alex Tanguay spent so much time diving, I figured he was probably wearing speedos under his uniform.

the calls for Aebischer to be replaced in Colorado are heating up. It just doessn't look like he's going to be that guy that you can count on. Peter Budaj has outplayed him, but I'm doubtful Pierre Lacroix will put this team in the hands of a goalie with all of 7 NHL games under his belt. I raised the possibility of a trade for Luongo a while ago on the Avs boards and got blasted. A week or two later, Luongo rumors started appearing elsewhere on the web, and suddenly everyone there is salivating to get Luongo.

[Cards4ever]

I agree that we all have degrees of what we find more entertaining. From what most people are saying though is, they do prefer the game of skill and like that the clutching and grabbing is being enforced. I don't see people skating around unmolested, checking is still part of the game, would you prefer to see more knee on knee hits? More checking from behind? Bring back the Broad Street Bullies?

[Tekneek]

Since the puck is rarely, if ever, floating in the midsection of a player, there is no reason to have your stick poking around up there. This gets me to a problem I have. When somebody's stick is up in a player's midsection and he closes his arm down on it and gets a "holding the stick" minor, why isn't there a penalty on the first guy? Unless the stick holder grabbed the stick and put it in his armpit, how the hell did it end up there? They should both go.

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

Since the puck is rarely, if ever, floating in the midsection of a player, there is no reason to have your stick poking around up there. This gets me to a problem I have. When somebody's stick is up in a player's midsection and he closes his arm down on it and gets a "holding the stick" minor, why isn't there a penalty on the first guy? Unless the stick holder grabbed the stick and put it in his armpit, how the hell did it end up there? They should both go.

I agree 100% with everything above.

[RPI-Fan]

By the way, just wanted to reiterate how absolutely fucking stupid this new goddamn schedule is.

[Maple Leafs]

The new rules aren't perfect, and the implementation has been shaky. I hate the gimmicky shootout, the diving is out of control, the automatic delay of game rule is dumb and I still can't figure out what that "forbidden zone" behind the net is supposed to accomplish.

But I really have a hard time seeing the new NHL as anything but a vast improvement. I'm as much of a knuckle-dragging, Cherry-worshipping thug of a fan as you're ever likely to find -- I'm the only person on the planet who still has a Craig Berube Maple Leafs jersey. But if a few less scraps is the price you have to pay to get some actual skating, skill and flow back into the game, then sign me up.

It sounds dumb, but I'd actually forgotten how much fun watching hockey could be. I like knowing that a game isn't over once a team has a two-goal lead. I like that a guy like Kyle Wellwood now deserves to get more ice time than Clarke Wilm. This stuff is great, and I wish they'd made these changes years ago.

[Maple Leafs]

Wow, the Wings/Preds game is cancelled after Jiri Fischer collapses during play. He has a heart condition, and they performed CPR for several minutes after clearing the benches.

He's apparently now OK.

[Schmidty]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

Wow, the Wings/Preds game is cancelled after Jiri Fischer collapses during play. He has a heart condition, and they performed CPR for several minutes after clearing the benches.

He's apparently now OK.

I was watching it and it was very scary. The guys on the telecast talked to a Red Wing official on air, and he said that Jiri had a seizure. I literally saw then giving him CPR and using the defibrilator next to the bench. I think that was what saved his life.

I hope and pray that he ends up being ok. This stuff scares me, since I have epilepsy myself and take medicine everyday.

[Joe Canadian]

Just saw the story on Jiri on TSN's site... that's some scary stuff. Hopefully he makes a full recovery and they figure out what exactly happened!!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Wow. I was checking box scores yesterday and saw that Shane Doan had 27 pims at the end of the game last night against the Ducks.

Apparently quite a bit happened:

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=144237&hubname=nhl


Canadian Press

11/23/2005 2:05:09 PM

Phoenix Coyotes head coach Wayne Gretzky was not fined $10,000 US for Shane Doan's late-game instigator penalty Tuesday night, The Canadian Press has learned.

Part of the new NHL rules call for an automatic $10,000 fine to the head coach and a one-game suspension to the player who gets an instigator fighting penalty in the last five minutes of a game, a rule the competition committee put in to discourage late-game brawls.

But NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell, who pushed for the new rule, also reserves the right to determine whether the rule applies on a case-by-case basis.

The spirit of the rule was to get rid of coaches putting out their tough guys with a minute left in the game to settle a score.

In this case, Doan is the captain and top player on the Coyotes, not a goon, so Campbell decided not to fine Gretzky and not to suspend Doan.



''It's something I crafted and fought for to get with the competition committee and the general managers,'' Campbell said Wednesday. ''The key to the whole rule was that it would be automatic, no appeal by the team, but I would review every instigator in the last five minutes to see if it would pass the litmus test.

''And that would be, is this guy a two-shift guy who was out to send a message? Was it a tough guy doing his thing and leaving his calling card? Obviously, when you're talking about Doan, he played the most minutes in the game, you're not sending him out to send a message. So I'm going to assess each and everyone when it happens.''

Doan, who still faced a possible fine from the league, punched Ducks defenceman Vitaly Vishnevski in the face at the end of Tuesday's 2-1 Anaheim victory over the Coyotes. Doan received instigator, fighting, misconduct and game-misconduct calls.

It came at the end of a game that had other incidents, one that saw Ducks winger Joffrey Lupul and Phoenix centre Petr Nedved both suffering apparent concussions after separate, borderline hits.

Coyotes defenceman Denis Gauthier, who earlier had taken down Ducks centre Todd Marchant with a high hit, pounded Lupul early in the third period with questionable hit but did not get a penalty for it.

Ducks tough guy Todd Fedoruk later retaliated, leaving his feet to hit Nedved with a dirty hit. He got a match penalty for intent to injure.

''It was something that had to be addressed,'' Fedoruk told reporters after the game. ''There was a guy out there with a visor on running around like he's King Kong (Gauthier). He's not going to back it up. If the refs aren't going to call stuff like that, it falls on the players. You can only take so much, watching your teammates get late hits, high hits.

''In my eyes, it's an eye for an eye. I don't ever want to see anybody get hurt, but when my players get hurt, I feel obliged to send a message that I'm not going to let this happen. I think Nedved can thank his teammate for what happened.''

Gretzky was fuming at Fedoruk's hit on Nedved.

''The guy jumped eight feet in the air,'' said Gretzky. ''But we'll leave that to the National Hockey League to rectify.''

Campbell held a hearing with Fedoruk on Wednesday morning and was to decide on a suspension later in the day.

-----------------------------------------------------

This brings up quite a few interesting things.

1. While I don't like this new "5 minute" rule, it's good to see the NHL can exercise some discretion when enforcing it.

2. This is the second time this year Gauthier has been accused of being a dirty player hiding behind a face-shield (Avery yapped about this, and threw in all Gauthier's French Canadian brothers, after Gauthier gave Roenick a nasty hi in the pre-season).

3. Fedoruk's reaction was not surprising at all. What I found surprising and refreshing is how blunt Fedoruk was about the whole thing after it happened. This is the way it has been in hockey for a long time. You hit one of our guys, we hit one of yours. The policing happens on the ice. Unfortunately, with instigator rules and guys not willing to stand up for themselves (see, Gauthier) instead of settling things in a fight, you have players flying around the ice, leaving their feet with ridiculous checks, and causing concussions. I know this is a knuckle-dragging Don Cherry-like argument for fighting in the league, but there's some truth to it.

[Tekneek]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

You hit one of our guys, we hit one of yours. The policing happens on the ice. Unfortunately, with instigator rules and guys not willing to stand up for themselves (see, Gauthier) instead of settling things in a fight, you have players flying around the ice, leaving their feet with ridiculous checks, and causing concussions. I know this is a knuckle-dragging Don Cherry-like argument for fighting in the league, but there's some truth to it.

I agree with you totally. I wish the instigator rule would be thrown into the trash, so we wouldn't have to talk about this nonsense anymore and guys that hide behind it can get their asses properly kicked.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Well the rivalry has long since passed, but it's always fun to put a 7-3 whoppin' on the Avs.

[klayman]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Well the rivalry has long since passed, but it's always fun to put a 7-3 whoppin' on the Avs.

Now if only your guys can figure out a way to beat the real teams from that division

[Fidatelo]

I have a Fantasy Hockey question for all you guys. I've been offered a trade and need to decide tonight. I'll be away from my computer between now and when I have to accept, but if anyone wants to post their opinions I'll check 'em before I do accept just to get some outside opinions. In all of this, keep in mind that I badly need a good goalie.

My Aebisher, St. Louis, Niedermayer, and Pitkanen

- for -

His Kipprusoff, Iginla, M.A. Bergeron, and Aucoin

It seems pretty even to me, I'm getting hosed on the defense but I win on the goalie/forward combo. I'm just not sure if I win *enough* on that end to make it worth it.

Thoughts?

[TazFTW]

The Malik Marek goal in the Rangers/Caps shootout was sweet.

[Draft Dodger]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Well the rivalry has long since passed, but it's always fun to put a 7-3 whoppin' on the Avs.

just saw the game last night when I got back into town. my only question is this: how many gin and tonics does Mickey Redmond drink before going on the air?

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Draft Dodger

just saw the game last night when I got back into town. my only question is this: how many gin and tonics does Mickey Redmond drink before going on the air?

I would have to say at least 4-5 before going on air and a steady stream during the game. The man loves his ginger ales!

[Logan]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

The Malik Marek goal in the Rangers/Caps shootout was sweet.

I hope more people saw that. Ballsy move to pull by a defenseman in front of a full MSG crowd, in the 15th round of a shootout.

And Lundqvist is unreal.

[Tekneek]

Originally Posted by Logan

I hope more people saw that. Ballsy move to pull by a defenseman in front of a full MSG crowd, in the 15th round of a shootout.

And Lundqvist is unreal.

Kelly Hrudey made a point that the move is technically illegal by the rules. NHL needs to clean the rule up a bit that says the puck must stay in motion toward the goal line. Currently, anytime on a penalty shot/shootout where the puck is moving away from the goal line it is technically breaking the rules. Of course the refs aren't calling it anyway, so it may be a moot point.

Still, the move was incredible and I doubt ANYBODY thought he would do something like that. Malik doesn't even have a goal this season!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Wow.

Waiver wire madness, EMH-style...

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=144967&hubname=nhl
It's a busy day on the NHL waiver wire.

The Columbus Blue Jackets claimed defenceman Ron Hainsey from the Montreal Canadiens on re-entry waivers.

The St. Louis Blues claimed forward Simon Gamache from the Nashville Predators.

And the New York Rangers claimed forward Colton Orr from the Boston Bruins.

Boston’s Shawn McEachern has cleared waivers.

http://adcounter.theglobeandmail.com...pg_nhl_300x250

The Pittsburgh Penguins have put netminder Jocelyn Thibault on waivers as have the Florida Panthers with Kristian Huselius and the Chicago Blackhawks with Mikhail Yakubov.

The Canadiens recalled Ron Hainsey from the minors, but had to clear re-entry waivers by noon et Tuesday today in order to play for Montreal.

Because he's on a contract that pays him $550,000, and he's a young player with some potential, it was very possible Hainsey could be picked up by another team. The Habs are on the hook for half of his salary and it will count against Montreal's cap.

More to follow.

[riz]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Wow.

Waiver wire madness, EHM-style...

*sings* Sometimes truth, is stranger than fiction

[bronconick]

Speaking of EHM trades.......


http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=145158&hubname=

Joe Thornton is headed to the West Coast.

The Boston Bruins shipped the superstar forward to San Jose for forwards Wayne Primeau and Marco Sturm and defenceman Brad Stuart.

Thornton, 26, is a three-time all-star who had nine goals and 24 assists in 23 games this season for the Bruins. The six-foot-four, 223-pound power forward is due to make $6.66 million US this year.

"He is a leader who scores points and makes other players around him better," Sharks general manager Doug Wilson said in a statement. "To get a player of this calibre, you have to give up something to get something. You would make this trade last month, this month or next year. It follows our philosophy of making our team better for this year and next year."

Thornton, the first overall pick in the 1997 NHL entry draft, adds instant scoring punch to a struggling Sharks offence that ranks near the bottom of the league with just 62 goals scored. Thornton, the cousin of Sharks forward Scott Thornton, has 169 goals, 285 assists and 617 penalty minutes in 532 career games. The London, Ont., native had a career-high 101 points (36-65) in 2002-03.

http://adcounter.theglobeandmail.com...pg_nhl_300x250

Sturm, a six-foot, 195-pound left-wing, has six goals and 10 assists in 23 games for San Jose. The native of Germany was one of the more consistent forwards for the Sharks, scoring 20 or more goals over the past three seasons.

Sturm has 128 goals and 145 assists in seven-plus seasons with the Sharks, and has represented Germany in two Olympics and three World Cups.

Stuart, of Rocky Mountain House, Alta. has two goals and 10 assists in 23 games this season. The 26-year-old defenceman was selected by San Jose in the 1998 NHL entry draft in the first round, third overall. He has 36 goals and 117 assists in 377 career games with the Sharks.

Primeau, the younger brother of Philadelphia Flyers forward Keith Primeau, had five goals and three assists in 21 games.

The Bruins will save over $1.5 million in the deal, with Sturm making $2 million, Stuart set to make $1.9 million and Primeau earning $1.1 million.

[sachmo71]

Holy smokes!

[TazFTW]

WTF!

[sachmo71]

Also...not excited about the prospect of seeing Thorton in a Sharkies uniform. I used to like him, too.

[Joe Canadian]

WOW!

[Draft Dodger]

man, that's a shocker.

Boston replaces 1 player with 3 and saves money, but how do you trade Joe freaking Thornton and not get someone better than Sturm? Or maybe I'm pissed because I just bought a Thornton jersey for my wife for Christmas. Oops.

should work out pretty well for San Jose. I imagine you'll be seeing a lot of "Cheechoo assisted by Thornton" in the box score.

[Tekneek]

This trade does not happen quite like this if there is no salary cap. We will see strange sorts of deals as long as there is a cap.

[st.cronin]

*sob*

[Draft Dodger]

no, really, what the fuck am I supposed to do with a Thornton jersey?

[vtbub]

The Bruins are the cheapest team in sports. Trust me, they could afford Joe Thornton.

[kingfc22]

Hopefully the Sharks can turn this thing around now because it's been a really crappy run so far.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by Draft Dodger

no, really, what the fuck am I supposed to do with a Thornton jersey?

Tell her it's a throwback. They're all the rage now.

[bbor]

Wow...What an unbeleivably horrible deal for the Bruins.


It is like shockingly bad.If i was a Bruins season ticket holder i'd be flipping over cras and setting them on fire.

[Booj]

Well... at least I can like Thornton now without gagging myself.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by bbor

Wow...What an unbeleivably horrible deal for the Bruins.

It is like shockingly bad.If i was a Bruins season ticket holder i'd be flipping over cras and setting them on fire.

I'm just gonna stop being a Bruins fan. I don't think I've ever done this before, even with the Celtics who have been poor to mediocre since I've been old enough to root for them, but screw Jeremy Jacobs and Mike O'Connell and Sinden or whoever else had a say in this deal. We'll see if I can actually start rooting for another NHL team (I've always like Vancouver and Edmonton) or just stick with college. Go UMass.

[riz]

Originally Posted by riz

*sings* Sometimes truth, is stranger than fiction

Dola.

What more can I say ?

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

This trade does not happen quite like this if there is no salary cap. We will see strange sorts of deals as long as there is a cap.

I wouldn't blame this deal on the cap. We saw plenty of stranger sort of deals back in the pre-cap days. Remember the Jagr to Washington deal? The Kovalev to the Rangers deal? Lang to Detroit? They were far stranger and less balanced from a hockey perspective than this trade.

Still, a bad trade for Boston. Primeau is a great 3rd/4th line guy. Stuart is a solid, but not great defenseman. I have never been sold on Marco Sturm.

[Tekneek]

According to the numbers at nhlpa.com, the Bruins were currently bumping up against the cap. This trade brings in 3 players while only shipping out 1, and frees up an additional $1.6 million for it. Are you *sure* it has nothing to do with the cap?

[Tekneek]

And thinking about it further, they only have 21 points. That is 12th in the Eastern Conference at this point in the season. When you are a team bumping up against the cap and not able to even hold down a top 8 slot, changes are inevitable.

[sachmo71]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

And thinking about it further, they only have 21 points. That is 12th in the Eastern Conference at this point in the season. When you are a team bumping up against the cap and not able to even hold down a top 8 slot, changes are inevitable.

Yes, but Thorton was not the problem. He's the guy you build the team around.

Maybe this means the Pengins will trade Crosby in 5 years. I think he might be a decent replacement for Modano.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Tekneek

According to the numbers at nhlpa.com, the Bruins were currently bumping up against the cap. This trade brings in 3 players while only shipping out 1, and frees up an additional $1.6 million for it. Are you *sure* it has nothing to do with the cap?

I didn't say that this deal had nothing to do with the cap. Any time a trade is made both teams have to mindful of their cap situation, I am just saying that the strangeness of this deal is not a direct result of the cap. These types of deals (worse deals from a hockey perspective IMHO) were happening well before the cap. If anything the cap sort of forces deals to make a little more hockey sense than before. I go back to the Jagr to Washington example. That trade would likely not be feasible under the cap. The Penguins would have to at least received something more than a few prospects for him.

[Draft Dodger]

Originally Posted by sachmo71

Maybe this means the Pengins will trade Crosby in 5 years. I think he might be a decent replacement for Modano.

nah. I don't really think Crosby is overrated.

[Draft Dodger]

btw, I gave my wife the jersey this morning. she's wearing it at work right now.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

I'm just gonna stop being a Bruins fan. I don't think I've ever done this before, even with the Celtics who have been poor to mediocre since I've been old enough to root for them, but screw Jeremy Jacobs and Mike O'Connell and Sinden or whoever else had a say in this deal. We'll see if I can actually start rooting for another NHL team (I've always like Vancouver and Edmonton) or just stick with college. Go UMass.

i've gotta agree. i havn't watched MUCH this year, but i definately won't be watching anymore. And O'Connell had the gal to go on WEEI earlier today and say that he actually thought this trade made the team better and that they were "still a Stanley Cup contender." don't insult my intelligence. fuck you mike o'connell.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

I'm just gonna stop being a Bruins fan. I don't think I've ever done this before, even with the Celtics who have been poor to mediocre since I've been old enough to root for them, but screw Jeremy Jacobs and Mike O'Connell and Sinden or whoever else had a say in this deal. We'll see if I can actually start rooting for another NHL team (I've always like Vancouver and Edmonton) or just stick with college. Go UMass.

Forget about Edmonton and Vancouver. They are far away, their games always start late, and they are in Canada. Besides, Vancouver has Todd Bertuzzi and and Edmonton has Chris Pronger. He's big and funny looking.

Come to us, esteemed man of the cloth. Come to us, all you poor, suffering Bruins fans. Come into the warm, welcoming bosom of the Detroit Red Wings. We will welcome you with open arms. Come learn what hockey and goodness are all about.

Say it with me now:
"Let's go, Red Wings!'
*clap* *clap* *clap clap clap*
"Let's go, Red Wings!'
*clap* *clap* *clap clap clap*
"Let's go, Red Wings!'
*clap* *clap* *clap clap clap*

This is written on the doors of Joe Louis Arena:

"Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning for great hockey, The wretched refuse of your once teeming arenas. Send these, the bored, frustrated fans to me, I lift my hockey stick beside the golden door."

[sterlingice]

"But beware. Anger, fear, aggression. The dark side are they. Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny."

SI

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

"But beware. Anger, fear, aggression. The dark side are they. Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny."

SI

Agreed. It is best to avoid the Blackhawks. Years of suckitude have made their fans angry, fearful, and full of agression. But even after all that, Wings fans are like the Luke to their Vader, we still feel there is some good in them and we will always be willing to take them in.

[sterlingice]

I don't see many people running around these days calling the Hawks evil. Might want to look in the mirror, bucko

SI

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

I don't see many people running around these days calling the Hawks evil. Might want to look in the mirror, bucko

SI

Heh!

Evil? Come on!

Perhaps you would find suppoerts to your cause in this thread:

http://www.letsgokings.com/bbs/showthread....?t=13660&page=2

The thread above is hilarious. The thread was started before the Wings/Kings game a few days ago, with the Kings fans talking all kinds of smack about how much they hate Wings fans and how miserable they were gonna make it for anybody in a Wings jersey. Scroll down about 1/4 of the way down on the second page (which is post-game discussion,) and they start absolutely ripping each other apart for not shouting us down enough. Some hilarious, classic, sig-quality quotes here.

My personal favorite: "I AM GODS GIFT TO STAPLES CENTER, BITCH! You have a problem with that? Call me a pussy to my ****ing face you ****ing tool."