Ponds and Pucks

I’ve been away and I apologize. Regular posts will be back post All-Star Game, since there’s always plenty to rant about this time of year, particularly when it comes to Canadian media and the Maple Leafs. Sigh.

Until then, enjoy these highlights (?) from the Skills competition:

So after yesterday’s revealing of the Official Mascots of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, a story began circulating that the NHL is considering skipping the 2014 Olympics.

Thank God.

and

It’s About Freakin’ Time.

There’s something about professional athletes competing in Olympic events that always rubbed me the wrong way — especially since most countries carry a National Team anyway. Those guys get royally screwed, playing for four years without getting to play in the big show.

NHL players always handled it a lot better than say, the NBA players and their “Dream Team” did (I’m ignoring the room-trashing story from Nagano). But there was still something that stank about the pro-athletes coming in and taking the spotlight away from the people who live in near poverty to be able to compete at this level.

Not to mention, stopping the season for the handful of players who get to compete, while hundreds of other players wait for games to start up again is just insane and brings way too many factors into the season. Teams get a break to heal, but the best players do not get a break, resulting in tired play and a higher likelihood of injury when they return. The playoffs are usually a joke. And God forbid any player gets hurt in the Olypmics. You can’t tell me players aren’t pressured to skip the Games entirely.

I can’t argue the excitement of a Canada/US Gold medal game and the near chaos it created in…. well Canada. The rest of the world didn’t care.

One thing that worries me is Gary Bettman’s stance on addressing it year by year. I almost read that as: Olympics in North America, we’re in. Olympics overseas, we’re out.

The NHL should be out. For good.

Wow, I was WAY off when it came to Scott Hartnell — dude has a nasty streak. While perusing YouTube I found a selection of Hartnell’s hits and fights worthy of any NHL tough guy.

Hartnell smokes Boyd Gordon and Chris Clark takes exception (Chris Clark is the Caps captain?):

Hartnell chops Vincent Lecavalier with his stick, Lecavalier chops Hartnell with his fists:

I don’t know the French word for “ass-kicking”, but it must be in there somewhere, as Komisarek beats the living snot out of Hartnell:

Here it is in English (I just thought the French was more fun, but the TSN announcers are good too):

This is the first video that’s not from the current season. A brief duker between Hartnell and Sami Hell-on-Ice:

Hartnell versus Dan Fritsche — this one we’ll call a draw:

Even Jiri Fischer had a go at Hartnell. No audio on this one:

Those were all from Page One of a search for Hartnell on YouTube. Check out YouTube for more…

Scott Hartnell, Boyd Gordon, Chris Clark, Vincent Lecavalier, Komisarek, Jiri Fischer

I figured the Boston/Philly game could go any number of ways, however the one thing I didn’t expect was that Philly would rough up yet another Boston Bruin.

Here’s the hit for anyone who hasn’t yet seen it:

I never thought Scott Hartnell was that kind of player. What are the Philly coaches putting in the water bottles?

Hartnell has been suspended (2 games of course). I’m glad the NHL is taking shots to the head seriously again (is my sarcasm clear enough?). I’d love a count of Flyers’ suspensions compared to every other team in the league. The Jesse Boulerice suspension alone probably totals more than all the other teams in the NHL combined. But those Flyers, they keep on trucking…. top of the division and no sign of stopping now.

Scott Hartnell, Jesse Boulerice

Some link love after the long weekend for our friends down south:

NHLPA.com has a nice feature on Vincent Lecavalier and his charity work in the Tampa area, specifically with the Children’s Hospital. Lecavalier is donating $3 million dollars to a pediatric cancer and blood disorders center.

Going Five Hole has a post on the dearly missed “Badger” Bob Johnson on the anniversary of his death in 1991. Has it really been that long? While many remember his amazing work with the Penguins, Johnson coached here in Calgary for many years and brought the Flames to their first Stanley Cup final. He is still highly regarded around here, and there is a tribute to him in the Saddledome. I can’t hear “It’s a great day for hockey” without getting a little tear in the eye…

James Mirtle looks at the instigator rule and why the NHLPA should maybe find out things to fight about.

On Frozen Blog checks out some of the worst arenas in the NHL. I’m glad someone else dislikes the Air Canada Centre, though I might be biased towards a classic arena like Maple Leaf Gardens.

FastballFans dug up this news story on some White Sox 1919 World Series memorabilia to be auctioned off. There’s a lot of fascinating history to the documents and that particular World Series, so it’s worth a look. It’s not hockey, but if any sport tops hockey in history and nostalgia, baseball is it.

I’ve dropped the Mike Keenan watch recently (fish… barrel), but Barry Melrose Rocks has been staying on top of it.

Vincent Lecavalier, “Badger” Bob Johnson, instigator rule, NHLPA, Mike Keenan

During last night’s game between the Colorado Avalanche and the Calgary Flames, Ryan Smyth went for the puck along the boards behind the net. Seeing a red jersey rapidly heading his way, he turned to protect the puck, and took a brutal hit into the glass, cutting his nose.

We could debate the legality of the hit for pages (”It was a hit from behind” “He turned toward the glass as he saw the skater coming”), but Smyth fell to the ice, knew he’d likely hurt his nose, got up, skated to the bench and went to the locker room for repairs.

No rolling around on the ice, no crying to the ref for a penalty, no accusations of dirty play. Even the announcers treated it as a typical play that Smyth would be involved in: No analysis of how he purposely turned away from the hit, no debate of poor play. This was simply Ryan Smyth playing his brand of hockey.

Smyth returned just a few minutes later, with a repair done to the bridge of his nose, some cotton in one of his nostrils and a decidedly crooked looking schnooze.

God, I love this guy. (more…)

To be honest, I haven’t really been giving the NHL All-Star ballot a lot of thought. All-Star weekend seems pretty far off (and as always, rather insignificant), and while hockey is always Number One in my heart, I’ve been enjoying the CFL playoffs (I still crack up when I hear the phrase “The Banjo Bowl”). This is also the time of year I start watching the NFL with one eye, wondering if the Pats are really going to pull it off and if the Dolphins will win a game this season.

But thank goodness not everyone is distracted as I am. NHL.com has a story on Sidney Crosby leading the balloting, but Sportsnet.ca is covering it a little differently (gotta find that Canadian angle, or is that Canadien angle?). Apparently Andrei Markov is leading the eastern defensemen in voting.

In any case, I have say I haven’t really been following Markov much. I still remember his rookie year when he played here. He was on the point on the power play, and he couldn’t hit the net to save his life. It was so comical, even the home fans were yelling “hit the net” every time he teed up. That’s sorta stuck with me. (more…)

Sidney Crosby, Andrei Markov

Mike Keenan watch update:

Flames managed to stop their losing skid at 5 after beating the Wild 3-2 last night, so Mount St. Keenan may have cooled off a tad.

Here’s something odd about the Flames’ streaks this season: They started slowly, then hit their stride around the time they first played Minnesota — and broke Minnesota’s unbeaten in regulation streak. Minnesota then hit a rough patch, played the Flames again, and beat them soundly. Since then Minnesota has regained previous form and the Flames went on a downward spiral.

Now the Flames have beaten the Wild again…. be curious to see if this sets off another reversal of fortunes…

***

I was always taught that if I can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all. I’m not sure how well that applies to hockey OR blogging, but to play it safe, I’ll just link to Going Five Hole’s photos of the NHL All-Star jerseys.

Mike Keenan, NHL All-Star jerseys

The always great Eric Duhatschek has a fun piece on Mike Keenan and the woes of the Calgary Flames, touching on the well-anticipated meltdown of Keenan himself.

I swear, half of the sport in Calgary is waiting for Keenan to lose his mind. If he hasn’t after back-to-back-to-back 4-1 losses, then when?

In all seriousness, how long can the Flames ride the talents of Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff? As Duhatschek points out, only 5 forwards are scoring regularly (regularly being more than 2 goals), and even some of those are starting to cool.

Where is the Keenan eruption? There’s no way he’s reformed that much. Just ask Roberto Luongo.

Is Keenan waiting for Iginla to stand up and call out his teammates? That might never happen, Iginla has never been the type of player to publicly blast his teammates — he’s much more likely to suck it up and try to do it all himself.

Maybe that’s what will finally set Keenan off.

Eric Duhatschek, Mike Keenan, Jarome Iginla, Miikka Kiprusoff, Roberto Luongo

ESPN’s Power Rankings are out. Some notes:

• I love parity. The Canes, the Habs and the Islanders all in the top 10. The Flyers shining again after such a dismal season. Columbus finally making some noise!
• Conversely, seeing the Devils scraping the bottom alongside the Coyotes is something I will never get used to.
• Detroit and Ottawa at the top? Ho hum.
• Who knew the Habs had the league’s best power play?
• Who knew the Blue Jackets had the best PK?
• (Best Seinfeld voice) And what’s the deal with the Sharks?
• Did I just read the phrase “Central heavyweights Detroit, St. Louis and Columbus.” Seriously, I love parity.
• Maybe I’m crazy, but did anyone really think the returns of Mark Bell and Kyle Wellwood was really going to help the Leafs that much?

Every year around this time I start ranting about the All-Star voting. We’re right on schedule so far, and at first glance at the ballot released today….. yes, I’m already annoyed.

Olaf Kolzig? Really?

I realize the All-Star ballot is hardly worth even debating. Players are nominated and selected for their years of service, not any recent streaks or current play (we’re not going to mention Jim Carey).

But that same limitation is how you get campaigns like “Vote For Rory”. Fans see the same names year after year — including players who haven’t been relevant for years. I’ve fully disclosed my fandom of Mike Modano many times on this blog, but seriously, Mike Modano?

The All-Star selection was actually less of a joke when every team was required to have a player. Who could forget Wendell Clark representing….. Tampa?

I’m not even sound to sound off on the skills competition (anyone else remember the goalie scoring drill? I was there and got to see the look of disgust on the goalies close up!), or the god-awful game, or the fact everyone just watches American Idol instead, according to TV ratings. No, that’s fodder for another post.

Is it not too much to ask for the actual players to be relevant? I realize there’s no way in hell Tomas Vokoun or Ales Hemsky are making it to the team (wait, if there’s still a one-player per-team requirement, Hemsky might have a shot), so why not throw a couple of guys on there that are having good seasons? Patrick Kane has more points than Rick Nash, Alex Ovechkin, Joe Thornton and Paul Kariya. Want a non-rookie, ok Rod Brind’Amour, Cory Stillman, Alex Tanguay and Matt Cullen are all in the top 30 scorers and well ahead of MIA players such as Brendan Shanahan (8 points!), Jonathan Cheechoo, Andy McDonand, …. hold on, KEITH TKACHUK is on the ballot?

‘Nuff said.

Olaf Kolzig, Jim Carey, Mike Modano, Wendell Clark, Tomas Vokoun, Ales Hemsky, Patrick Kane, Rick Nash, Alex Ovechkin, Joe Thornton, Paul Kariya, Rod Brind’Amour, Cory Stillman, Alex Tanguay, Matt Cullen, Brendan Shanahan, Jonathan Cheechoo, Andy McDonand, KEITH TKACHUK

Am I the only one not feeling a ton of love for the Toronto Maple Leafs‘ Mark Bell?

Having completed his 15-game suspension for drinking and driving, Bell is full of vim and vigor and ready to take on the league powerhouse Ottawa Senators.

It’s not like I want to see the guy crying in the corner or crippled by guilt, but it seems like his only comments on the whole affair have been about how rough it’s been on him.

Nothing about letting his past or present teammates down, nothing about, oh you know, the person he hit while drinking and driving, and the fact he fled the scene, albeit only a few blocks.

Bell still has a jail sentence to serve, and he’s got many legal challenges stemming from the accident as well. He says he has not touched a drop of alcohol since the accident and there’s no reason not to believe him. He’s right to focus on hockey right now.

But I’m not so sure he’s right to pretend his woes in San Jose only affected him.

Toronto Maple Leafs, Mark Bell, Ottawa Senators

Many online outlets are reporting that Peter Forsberg is close to retirement.

Forsberg has reportedly pulled out of the Karjala Cup after only an hour of skating, saying his ankle didn’t “feel good.”

Forsberg later allegedly told reporters everything from “I just can’t do it” to saying he “made a fool of himself.”

TSN has more retirement comments.

The Globe and Mail article has some more info as well.

According to ESPN, Detroit, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Dallas, Vancouver, Los Angeles and Colorado are all interested in Forsberg.

All my Forsberg issues aside (and there are many), I just don’t see why Ottawa, Detroit or Philly would be interested in a pricey, injury-prone player who is nearing the end of his career (and likely wants a lengthy contract). Vancouver, LA.. ok, I totally get why they’d be willing.

Either way, it may never happen. And that really sucks. No matter what you think of the guy, this is never a cool way to end your career, especially if you were looking for a Jeremy Roenick-type resurgence.

Peter Forsberg, Karjala Cup, Jeremy Roenick

I’m not one to mix hockey and politics — especially Quebec politics — but I gotta sound off on this whole crazy French language saga going on in the eastern side of the country.

In case you’re not up to speed, the leader of the Parti Quebecois, Pauline Marois, has stirred up language debate in Quebec by saying reasonable accommodation for non-French speakers (notably religious and ethnic minorities) has gone too far, and to “protect” francophone culture, Quebec must restrict the rights for people who haven’t demonstrated an “appropriate knowledge” of the French language.

This has little to do with hockey of course, until the debate brought a high-profile Quebec lawyer to comment that Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu doesn’t speak workable french after living in the province for over 10 years. Marois agreed and took it even further by saying the Habs should force their players to learn French if they want to play for the Bleu Blanc et Rouge. And the debate exploded in the media.

Not even getting into the political details of sovereignty and culture and French vs English in Canada — such as pointing out that Marois has not yet managed to acquire an “appropriate knowledge” of the English language — the hockey angle alone is stunning.

Could you imagine GM Bob Gainey trying to solidify deals while having to ensure the new players would take the time to learn French? Can players specify certain teams in a no-trade clause, because I’m guessing they might start.

Due to the international nature of hockey, many players are already struggling with having to learn English once they’re drafted. Try telling a player from Russia or Sweden that he’s got to make sure to have French under his belt as well.

Do the CFL Montreal Alouettes need to sign their players up for French lessons too? Could you imagine American college football players trying to reconcile the nuances of the CFL game and learn French on top of that?

Koivu has handled this with a lot of class, first by admitting that in a perfect world his French would be better, and then last night by recording a message for Canadiens fans that was broadcast before the game. In French. The fans went wild.

The recording was actually made over a week ago — long before he was brought into this debate.

A comment from a fan on one of the news stories absolutely nails why this is only an issue for those who are more interested in making headlines and causing trouble than any real concern for Quebec culture. He mentions that when he goes to a hockey game, everyone there — Francophone, Anglophone, immigrant, black, white, whatever — is there to cheer on the Habs, and there are no differences between them.

That says more about Quebec culture than any French lesson could.

Pauline Marois, Montreal Canadiens, Saku Koivu, Bob Gainey, Montreal Alouettes

• In case anyone is still paying attention to the Nashville ownership saga, ESPN has an article saying the drop dead date for this purchase to happen to approaching quickly, and things better get moving pronto. Of course, this date is only for “exclusive” negotiating rights, and from what we’ve seen the odds of anyone else being permitted to enter into the deal is slim. Just ask Jim Balsillie.



• Let the Modo-watch begin: With just three more points, Mike Modano will become the leading US-born points scorer in NHL history. Joe Mullen currently holds the record at 1232.

  Even more impressive is that Modano has managed to do it all with the same franchise.

• Canucks still can’t win at home, and are 2-5 in their last seven. In other news, I never would have guessed Henrik Zetterberg was the current leading NHL scorer.
• Toskala gets positive press coverage. Ok that shouldn’t be a headline in itself, but maybe for Toskala it was a nice change of pace. I guess at this point, people should be more concerned with the Rangers. If your team can barely manage one goal against the most scored on team in the league, with possibly the most maligned goaltender…. something is very wrong on Broadway.
• Niklas Backstrom is out with a groin strain. The Wild have been faltering lately, is this just another minor setback or the breaking point?

Jim Balsillie, Mike Modano, Joe Mullen, Henrik Zetterberg, Niklas Backstrom