The Ottawa Senators are on the road for a 2 game trip to Florida. The player's fathers are along for the trip. This is not the first fathers trip for Ottawa and in fact almost every team now does this each year. It never gets old.
When you watch the fathers in the stands watching practice it still seems like they are watching their boys the same way they did when they were 10. Little groups of different fathers together, sipping coffee, and talking about drills, games, the league and life.
Hockey rinks are meeting places as the kids grow up. They are still meeting places when they are all grown up and playing in the NHL. The only difference is the coffee is better and you need a pass to get into practice.
How proud these men must be to continue to watch their sons. They spent so much time in cold rinks watching them chase their dreams and now they sit in warmer rinks watching them live their dreams.
The feeling is the same for every father. Watching the pursuit is what draws the pride not the capturing of it. Could Daniel Alfredsson's father be any prouder of his son than Matt Carkner's father be of his? Not a chance. Both chased it and caught it. In very different ways and from very different paths but both have made their fathers very proud because of the pursuit.
When I watch my son play I feel the same way. I don't care if he ever earns a paycheck playing hockey. I love watching him pursue it. He plays on a minor midget team of 15 and 16 year olds even though my son has just turned 13. Watching him compete and fit in with young men older than he is makes me very proud on many levels. It makes me thankful for the parenting done with all of his team mates who have welcomed him and made him part of their team. He has learned lessons about life which can only make him a better man as he grows.
The Senators fathers trip is a gushing of pride you can't help but feel and it reminds us that the pursuit is the most important lesson for all of us.
See you at the rink.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Thursday, February 2, 2012
No Power Plays, Impossible.
There has been a great deal of conversation about the recent Senators/Boston game in which the Bruins were awarded 4 power plays in the game and the Senators received none. Since there has never been an NHL game played in the history of hockey where one team didn't commit at least one foul, there can be only 3 reasons for this.
The officials had or have a personal axe to grind with the Senators or its GM or its coach or one, some or all of its players. The officials are not competent enough to call a game correctly or fairly. The third possibility is that the Boston Bruins are the cleanest team in the history of hockey and actually did not commit a single foul in that game. That seems completely unlikely since they do average more penalty minutes per game than any other team in the NHL. It also seems completely unlikely since there are TV cameras at the game. Those cameras caught Lucic hitting Condra from behind, Marchand chopping the stick out of Kuba's hand, Kelly hitting Neil in the neutral zone 40 feet away from the puck and Alfredsson being tripped 15 feet away from an official. Any one of the four were easy calls for any official to make.
Debating the reasons is a waste of time. What should be automatic from the NHL standpoint is, an automatic review of the officials performance on any night when one or both teams do not receive a penalty. As we all know there is no chance any team has or will ever play a foul free NHL game, so when no penalties are called, the officials should have to answer why they either did not see the infractions or chose not to call the infractions.
Ottawa fans are all churned up right now about this, but they are not alone. The New York Islanders have far more reason to be angry. In back to back games with the Leafs, the Islanders didn't receive a power play in either game. That's right, the Leafs played over 120 consecutive minutes of NHL hockey (one game went to overtime) without giving up a single power play. How is that possible? Its possible because of one of the 3 reasons stated at the top of the blog.
Recently former NHL ref Kerry Fraser wrote in his column on the TSN website that after reviewing the game he thought Boston in fact should be more upset than Ottawa since he spotted many more Senator's fouls which went uncalled. I am sure that is absolutely true, but that is a debate about quantity. My debate is about absence. The complete absence of the officials ability to see or willingness to call penalties on one team over another. I will not challenge Kerry on matters of officiating since his resume is long and mine is non-existent in this area, but I contend we have different arguments.
Refs are human and not robots. The are subject to anger, empathy, bias, contempt and vengeance just like any other human. I believe if you look at the way the Ottawa games have been officiated since coach Paul McLean publicly called out Dan O'Rourke after he called Erik Karlsson a "diver", you will see a pattern. Insult and dis-respect one ref, you disrespect and insult all of them and the brotherhood will make you pay for that. The NHL and every single ref will tell you they carry complete neutrality into every game. That is not possible nor reasonable to expect from any human.
The NHL should be very concerned each and every time any team in any game does not receive a single minor penalty. That is a clear indication there is something seriously wrong with the officiating job done that night.
See you at the rink.
(Note-before I get all the nit-picking comments, yes I am aware the Bruins did receive 2 fighting majors in the game. Neither produced a power play for either team.)
The officials had or have a personal axe to grind with the Senators or its GM or its coach or one, some or all of its players. The officials are not competent enough to call a game correctly or fairly. The third possibility is that the Boston Bruins are the cleanest team in the history of hockey and actually did not commit a single foul in that game. That seems completely unlikely since they do average more penalty minutes per game than any other team in the NHL. It also seems completely unlikely since there are TV cameras at the game. Those cameras caught Lucic hitting Condra from behind, Marchand chopping the stick out of Kuba's hand, Kelly hitting Neil in the neutral zone 40 feet away from the puck and Alfredsson being tripped 15 feet away from an official. Any one of the four were easy calls for any official to make.
Debating the reasons is a waste of time. What should be automatic from the NHL standpoint is, an automatic review of the officials performance on any night when one or both teams do not receive a penalty. As we all know there is no chance any team has or will ever play a foul free NHL game, so when no penalties are called, the officials should have to answer why they either did not see the infractions or chose not to call the infractions.
Ottawa fans are all churned up right now about this, but they are not alone. The New York Islanders have far more reason to be angry. In back to back games with the Leafs, the Islanders didn't receive a power play in either game. That's right, the Leafs played over 120 consecutive minutes of NHL hockey (one game went to overtime) without giving up a single power play. How is that possible? Its possible because of one of the 3 reasons stated at the top of the blog.
Recently former NHL ref Kerry Fraser wrote in his column on the TSN website that after reviewing the game he thought Boston in fact should be more upset than Ottawa since he spotted many more Senator's fouls which went uncalled. I am sure that is absolutely true, but that is a debate about quantity. My debate is about absence. The complete absence of the officials ability to see or willingness to call penalties on one team over another. I will not challenge Kerry on matters of officiating since his resume is long and mine is non-existent in this area, but I contend we have different arguments.
Refs are human and not robots. The are subject to anger, empathy, bias, contempt and vengeance just like any other human. I believe if you look at the way the Ottawa games have been officiated since coach Paul McLean publicly called out Dan O'Rourke after he called Erik Karlsson a "diver", you will see a pattern. Insult and dis-respect one ref, you disrespect and insult all of them and the brotherhood will make you pay for that. The NHL and every single ref will tell you they carry complete neutrality into every game. That is not possible nor reasonable to expect from any human.
The NHL should be very concerned each and every time any team in any game does not receive a single minor penalty. That is a clear indication there is something seriously wrong with the officiating job done that night.
See you at the rink.
(Note-before I get all the nit-picking comments, yes I am aware the Bruins did receive 2 fighting majors in the game. Neither produced a power play for either team.)
Thursday, January 26, 2012
The Great Thomas Divide
There is a great divide right now in opinions about the actions of Boston's Tim Thomas in deciding to boycott the team's visit to the White House.
I have not heard anyone say they don't respect his right to have an opinion and to act or abstain based on his belief's. But if he thought other Americans would agree with him he was mistaken.
I am not an American citizen, so my opinion is meaningless but none the less , here it is.
He should have gone.
You don't like the president, you don't like what government in your country has become, this was not the place to make that statement. This was a team event and you are a member of the team. If Tim wanted to make his statement to the media about his feelings its easy. They are the people with mics and note pads gathered around your locker each day. Just speak and they will communicate that to the world.
If you can't step into a government building because of your belief's, then try the hypocrisy hat on for size. There are many, many government buildings you have already been in I am sure. Ever renewed a drivers license?
Tim Thomas is an outstanding goaltender and from all accounts a great guy. But admitting that his favorite TV show was Fox's now fired right wing nutbar Glenn Beck made people raise an eyebrow and now this snub of the President and the White House makes people wonder even more.
See you at the rink.
I have not heard anyone say they don't respect his right to have an opinion and to act or abstain based on his belief's. But if he thought other Americans would agree with him he was mistaken.
I am not an American citizen, so my opinion is meaningless but none the less , here it is.
He should have gone.
You don't like the president, you don't like what government in your country has become, this was not the place to make that statement. This was a team event and you are a member of the team. If Tim wanted to make his statement to the media about his feelings its easy. They are the people with mics and note pads gathered around your locker each day. Just speak and they will communicate that to the world.
If you can't step into a government building because of your belief's, then try the hypocrisy hat on for size. There are many, many government buildings you have already been in I am sure. Ever renewed a drivers license?
Tim Thomas is an outstanding goaltender and from all accounts a great guy. But admitting that his favorite TV show was Fox's now fired right wing nutbar Glenn Beck made people raise an eyebrow and now this snub of the President and the White House makes people wonder even more.
See you at the rink.
Great 8 is 8 years old.
Alexander Ovechkin is known as the "Great 8" for his work on the ice. Right now he is behaving like he is 8 years old.
Alexander gets suspended for 3 games for an illegal check. Its long overdue because he has committed many suspendable offences in the past, but was always given a pass because he is one of the stars of the game. The NHL can argue that no player gets preferential treatment, but we all know that part of the game has, is not and will never be changing.
But Alex obviously doesn't see it that way. If they want to suspend me of all people, a star, then don't expect me to come to the All Star game and help the league promote itself. Its classic pouting like you would see from an 8 year old.
The "I don't want to be a distraction" reason is a sad and failed attempt to turn himself into a martyr. The league's willingness to allow him to do it, is even more sad. Players in the past like Nicklaus Lidstrom have been suspended for refusing to go to the All Star game when healthy enough to play. Crosby went to the game even when he was injured and wasn't playing, only because the NHL asked him to for the good of the league and he did it. One superstar behaves like a man the other like a child.
Only Tim Thomas has damaged his own reputation more this week than the 8 year old Ovechkin.
See you at the rink.
Alexander gets suspended for 3 games for an illegal check. Its long overdue because he has committed many suspendable offences in the past, but was always given a pass because he is one of the stars of the game. The NHL can argue that no player gets preferential treatment, but we all know that part of the game has, is not and will never be changing.
But Alex obviously doesn't see it that way. If they want to suspend me of all people, a star, then don't expect me to come to the All Star game and help the league promote itself. Its classic pouting like you would see from an 8 year old.
The "I don't want to be a distraction" reason is a sad and failed attempt to turn himself into a martyr. The league's willingness to allow him to do it, is even more sad. Players in the past like Nicklaus Lidstrom have been suspended for refusing to go to the All Star game when healthy enough to play. Crosby went to the game even when he was injured and wasn't playing, only because the NHL asked him to for the good of the league and he did it. One superstar behaves like a man the other like a child.
Only Tim Thomas has damaged his own reputation more this week than the 8 year old Ovechkin.
See you at the rink.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Ban fighting? Ban the word Ban first.
The debate continues about "banning" fighting in the NHL. New words are needed here. There is only one way to "ban" fighting in the NHL. If you fight you never play another game in the league. That will never happen.
The only thing that can change is stiffer penalties. If you fight you are gone for the rest of the game or gone for the rest of the game and suspended or whatever. There will always be fighting in hockey to some degree.
If you look at the leagues which don't allow fighting you may notice there are still fights. Baseball, Football, Basketball, NASCAR. They all have fighting "bans" but yet there are still fights.
Lets at least start using the correct verbiage in this debate and ban the use of the word ban when talking about fighting in the NHL.
See you at the rink.
The only thing that can change is stiffer penalties. If you fight you are gone for the rest of the game or gone for the rest of the game and suspended or whatever. There will always be fighting in hockey to some degree.
If you look at the leagues which don't allow fighting you may notice there are still fights. Baseball, Football, Basketball, NASCAR. They all have fighting "bans" but yet there are still fights.
Lets at least start using the correct verbiage in this debate and ban the use of the word ban when talking about fighting in the NHL.
See you at the rink.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Burke weeps for Orr
Leaf GM Brian Burke was both enraged and sorrowful that he was "forced" to send fighter Colton Orr to the minors. His claim was that the NHL has moved too far away from on ice player enforcement, thus making Orr an un-playable player.
I agree with Brian on many of his points about the NHL becoming a league where weasels prosper (a term I prefer over "rats"). But I think Brian may have used the wrong example in Orr to make his point. Colton Orr is with the Marlies now because he isn't a good enough hockey player to play in the NHL and his worth is nowhere close to the 1 million dollars a year that Burke pays him.
Now if there comes a time in the NHL when there is no place for guys like Chris Neil, Shawn Thornton, Travis Moen, Matt Bradley, Brandon Prust, Tim Jackman, Ben Eager, Aron Asham, Chris Thorburn, David Clarkson and many many others....then we have a problem.
The NHL will not be a lesser league without Colton Orr or Jody Shelly or Steve MacIntyre or any of the other players who simply cant play and only wear a jersey to fight.
I agree with Burke's point, just disagree with his example. There are too many weasels in the NHL now, who don't have to adequately answer for for the dangerous and sneaky things they do. Matt Cooke has proven that a weasel can change his ways, but right now why would the likes of Brad Marchand, Patrick Kalleta or Alex Burrows consider changing? The penalties against those who seek to control their weaselery on the ice are far greater than the penalties for being a weasel, thus sadly, the weasel method works.
The NHL needs some new anti-weasel rules to control this type of scourge or at the very least a more stringent use of the unsportsmanlike rule and the intent to injure rule.
see you at the rink.
I agree with Brian on many of his points about the NHL becoming a league where weasels prosper (a term I prefer over "rats"). But I think Brian may have used the wrong example in Orr to make his point. Colton Orr is with the Marlies now because he isn't a good enough hockey player to play in the NHL and his worth is nowhere close to the 1 million dollars a year that Burke pays him.
Now if there comes a time in the NHL when there is no place for guys like Chris Neil, Shawn Thornton, Travis Moen, Matt Bradley, Brandon Prust, Tim Jackman, Ben Eager, Aron Asham, Chris Thorburn, David Clarkson and many many others....then we have a problem.
The NHL will not be a lesser league without Colton Orr or Jody Shelly or Steve MacIntyre or any of the other players who simply cant play and only wear a jersey to fight.
I agree with Burke's point, just disagree with his example. There are too many weasels in the NHL now, who don't have to adequately answer for for the dangerous and sneaky things they do. Matt Cooke has proven that a weasel can change his ways, but right now why would the likes of Brad Marchand, Patrick Kalleta or Alex Burrows consider changing? The penalties against those who seek to control their weaselery on the ice are far greater than the penalties for being a weasel, thus sadly, the weasel method works.
The NHL needs some new anti-weasel rules to control this type of scourge or at the very least a more stringent use of the unsportsmanlike rule and the intent to injure rule.
see you at the rink.
Fight for the sake of fighting.
The NHLPA's recent rejection of the NHL's new realignment and playoff structure is nothing more than posturing by the Association. With the current CBA set to expire on September 15th, 2012, the players union simply wants the league to know, they are not going to easily agree to anything, including things they actually want.
That is the great irony here. The past executive director of the players association Paul Kelly has admitted that what the owners had proposed is pretty much what the players had asked for during his tenure as the union boss.
The players purported concerns of increased travel, playoff inequities and the league's inability to provide a mock schedule for them to inspect, are nothing more than obstructionist dithering.
Everyone knew that any system which involved every team playing every other team at least twice a year would involve more travel for some and less for others. But its what the players had asked for.
Everyone knows that playoff inequities will be solved once one or two troubled franchises are eventually moved (insert Phoenix, Florida, Columbus or anyone of 5 or 6 teams here) and a wildcard system is installed after the system is up and running.
Everyone knows, that unlike baseball Mr. Fehr, NHL teams do not have total control of their buildings and most NHL buildings are multi-purpose with shows and concerts to contend with and many have another tenant such as basketball, indoor lacrosse, football or indoor soccer to schedule around. Providing an iron clad mock schedule is simply impossible and everyone knows it.
The Players Association could have started this march towards a new CBA with a positive, collaborative gesture, but instead they erected the first road block.
Is it any wonder that public opinion during pro sports labour disputes never favors the players. They too often appear to be greedy, delusional and seemingly oblivious to current market and worldwide economic conditions.
In a league where you have some players making 8, 10 or 12 million dollars a season, its tough to get the average working man to feel their pain.
See you at the rink.
That is the great irony here. The past executive director of the players association Paul Kelly has admitted that what the owners had proposed is pretty much what the players had asked for during his tenure as the union boss.
The players purported concerns of increased travel, playoff inequities and the league's inability to provide a mock schedule for them to inspect, are nothing more than obstructionist dithering.
Everyone knew that any system which involved every team playing every other team at least twice a year would involve more travel for some and less for others. But its what the players had asked for.
Everyone knows that playoff inequities will be solved once one or two troubled franchises are eventually moved (insert Phoenix, Florida, Columbus or anyone of 5 or 6 teams here) and a wildcard system is installed after the system is up and running.
Everyone knows, that unlike baseball Mr. Fehr, NHL teams do not have total control of their buildings and most NHL buildings are multi-purpose with shows and concerts to contend with and many have another tenant such as basketball, indoor lacrosse, football or indoor soccer to schedule around. Providing an iron clad mock schedule is simply impossible and everyone knows it.
The Players Association could have started this march towards a new CBA with a positive, collaborative gesture, but instead they erected the first road block.
Is it any wonder that public opinion during pro sports labour disputes never favors the players. They too often appear to be greedy, delusional and seemingly oblivious to current market and worldwide economic conditions.
In a league where you have some players making 8, 10 or 12 million dollars a season, its tough to get the average working man to feel their pain.
See you at the rink.
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