Well after a rough weekend I'm back, a company Christmas party and the flu has decided to hit me. Luckily not a lot has happened except some more injuries surprise surprise.
-> Montreal's Mathieu Dandenault is out for up to 2 months with a broken arm after being hit to the ice. The hit looked fairly harmless except he landed akwardly and clearly breaks. after he gets up he stayed on the ice with his arm dangling to finnish the play. Although Dandenault is not even close to being one of my favorite players it shows alot of heart that he actually tried to finnish his shift.
->Another Montreal injury in that Calgary game, it looks like Chris Higgins will be out again indefinatly has he appears to have injured his wrist. Higgins is expected to have an MRI tommorow morning.
->Pittsburgh's Hal Gill will miss two to 4 weeks after suffering a shoulder injury in Ottawa this weekend.
->Canucks traded D James Sharrow to the Hawks for a conditional draft pick. Sharrow was originally drafter by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 4th round of the 2003 entry draft.
->Rumour has it that the Panthers are preparing to shop goaltender Tomas Vokoun. One of the usual top goalies in the league before this season and now he has taken the backseat to Craig Anderson. I hear Ottawa again as a possible trading partner but I really don't believe his 5.5 mil salary would go down well, not unless Martin Gerber was part of the package. Los Angeles is another possible destination which would make sense but I'm pretty sure that La is wants in on the Tavares sweepstakes. Also they believe next season Jonathan Bernier will be their Carey Price.
Well thats it for tonight, I need some rest but I'll be back tomorow with the KHL all star teams I keep putting off. Hopefully some OJ and bed will get rid of this so I can finally feel normal.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
The Avery Affair
In the last few years you'd blind deaf, blind or dumb not to notice Sean Avery's on and off ice antics. From waving his stick in elite goaltender Martin Brodeur's face to apparently making racial slurs to at the times Pittsburgh's Georges Laroque to calling out the NHL brass for not marketing the game properly. In recent days Sean Avery has once again been in the spotlight with his mouth getting him in trouble again. Last week Sean Avery before a Dallas vs Calgary game not only defended his comments against the Flames captain Jarome Iginla but also took shots at Dion Phaneuf who is currently dating Avery's ex Elisha Cuthbert. Avery claimed that "it's a common thing in the league for players to fall in love with my (his) sloppy seconds." Not only is it a direct shot at Dion Phaneuf and also Mike Komisarek but also to Jarrett Stoll of the L.A Kings who is currently engaged to Avery's other ex Rachel Hunter. After being suspended indefinatly by the NHL it was revealed that he would be suspended for 6 games by the NHL but also disaplined by his current team the Dallas Stars. Everyone from Marty Turco to the Dallas managment are also sick of his antics and it seams like Brett Hull is the only one willing to defend him
Now I cannot defend all of his actions including possible racial slurs but Sean Avery is doing his job and the suspension is a little unfair. Sure Sean did say "sloppy seconds" and it may not be a family friendly term but really how many 5-12 year olds really know what that means? With movies and television getting progressively worse contentwise kids these days are subjected to far worse than a simple comment. How many kids really watch Sportscenter daily? I highly doubt very many. Besides that wouldn't you say fighting is far worse (I personally wouldn't because its part of the game but still) ? Or how about showing Richard Zednik get his throat cut by a skate blade over and over? Is that what you want your kids to see? I blame the media for over blowing this whole thing. Within twenty minutes almost every sports station was replaying the incident over and over. Kid's wouldn't see or hear his comments if it wasn't for the huge media push but no Gary Bettman chooses to ignore that fact. He also chooses to ignore the fact that far worse things are said on the ice. Mathew Barnaby claims thats not even close to the worst hes said or even heard players chirp each other with. This is really not about family friendly though this is about egos.
Sean Avery has taken direct shots at the leagues big guns for years and they had to just sit back and take it because they knew they had no grounds. Now that the media has exploded over this and listed "sloppy seconds" as on the most heinous phrases of all time, they had their oppertunity to try and put Avery back in his place. Although I don't agree with Avery on Jarome Iginla I do believe he is right about the NHL not marketing the right players. Why doesn't guys like Alexander Semin, Jonathan Toews, Ilya Kovalchuk, Martin Hanzal and Carey Price get pushed the same way we see Sidney Crosby get pushed? I'm personally sick of Sid the kid's crybaby mug all over the media. Just put a mic in his hand and he say what ever you want him to say. Hes simply the NHL's puppet. It's guys like Brett Hull, Jeremy Roenick, Ryan Smyth and Sean Avery who speak their mind and offer way more to the game even though it may offend some. The NHL should be happy about this incident because Sean Avery is marketing the game. It may be contraversial but it is still selling hockey to the world. Television stations like Fox who normally don't give two cents about hockey was showing Avery's clip. TMZ a celebrity based show did a piece on it and and helped push. Bettman ever heard of the saying "Bad headlines are better than no headlines"?
All in all it could have been worse and if it wasn't for the media it could have been alot better as well. Ether way it's selling hockey to non hockey markets and pushing other sports out of the headlines. Sean Avery may be annoying, crude and irratating but whatever he does seams to work. He might as well coined the term superpest because he is the best there ever was even if it means his teamates even hate him..... but I really think they just need something, someone to hate since their season has be a disapointment. Sean Avery is the NHL's scapegoat and only because they need somebody to take the fall and the chance to get the upperhand. In the end Bettman needs to put ego's aside and realize like it or not Avery's just doing his job and like it or not it's good for the game.
Now I cannot defend all of his actions including possible racial slurs but Sean Avery is doing his job and the suspension is a little unfair. Sure Sean did say "sloppy seconds" and it may not be a family friendly term but really how many 5-12 year olds really know what that means? With movies and television getting progressively worse contentwise kids these days are subjected to far worse than a simple comment. How many kids really watch Sportscenter daily? I highly doubt very many. Besides that wouldn't you say fighting is far worse (I personally wouldn't because its part of the game but still) ? Or how about showing Richard Zednik get his throat cut by a skate blade over and over? Is that what you want your kids to see? I blame the media for over blowing this whole thing. Within twenty minutes almost every sports station was replaying the incident over and over. Kid's wouldn't see or hear his comments if it wasn't for the huge media push but no Gary Bettman chooses to ignore that fact. He also chooses to ignore the fact that far worse things are said on the ice. Mathew Barnaby claims thats not even close to the worst hes said or even heard players chirp each other with. This is really not about family friendly though this is about egos.
Sean Avery has taken direct shots at the leagues big guns for years and they had to just sit back and take it because they knew they had no grounds. Now that the media has exploded over this and listed "sloppy seconds" as on the most heinous phrases of all time, they had their oppertunity to try and put Avery back in his place. Although I don't agree with Avery on Jarome Iginla I do believe he is right about the NHL not marketing the right players. Why doesn't guys like Alexander Semin, Jonathan Toews, Ilya Kovalchuk, Martin Hanzal and Carey Price get pushed the same way we see Sidney Crosby get pushed? I'm personally sick of Sid the kid's crybaby mug all over the media. Just put a mic in his hand and he say what ever you want him to say. Hes simply the NHL's puppet. It's guys like Brett Hull, Jeremy Roenick, Ryan Smyth and Sean Avery who speak their mind and offer way more to the game even though it may offend some. The NHL should be happy about this incident because Sean Avery is marketing the game. It may be contraversial but it is still selling hockey to the world. Television stations like Fox who normally don't give two cents about hockey was showing Avery's clip. TMZ a celebrity based show did a piece on it and and helped push. Bettman ever heard of the saying "Bad headlines are better than no headlines"?
All in all it could have been worse and if it wasn't for the media it could have been alot better as well. Ether way it's selling hockey to non hockey markets and pushing other sports out of the headlines. Sean Avery may be annoying, crude and irratating but whatever he does seams to work. He might as well coined the term superpest because he is the best there ever was even if it means his teamates even hate him..... but I really think they just need something, someone to hate since their season has be a disapointment. Sean Avery is the NHL's scapegoat and only because they need somebody to take the fall and the chance to get the upperhand. In the end Bettman needs to put ego's aside and realize like it or not Avery's just doing his job and like it or not it's good for the game.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Saturday Afternoon New Hits + Corey Murphy?
Well I'd figure I'd get this one out while watching the Pittsburg/Ottawa game this afternoon. I don't know if anybody else was watching but they had curling on before and it ran late so they waited for curling to finnish. It was kind of a piss-off because curlings not exactly a main attraction sport and they've been pushing this afternoon game all week. They should have just split screened it but no we had to see each boring shot full screen. Oh well! Another slow day and nothing big going on but heres so fars new.
->Owen Nolan of the Minesota Wild has suffered an undisclosed upper body injury but is expected to miss atleast 2 weeks. I'll try and get more on this one as it comes.
->Yet another injury with Oilers Sam Gagner who suffered a mild concussion in Dallas Wednesday. The Oilers apparently are taking this very slow and don't expect him to be rushed back. My estimation is probably a week and a half.
->The final conclusion to the Sean Avery ordeal is in and the NHL has handed him a 6 game suspension. The Dallas Star's will not appeal the suspension but the NHLPA will. According to reports the NHLPA feels the suspension was a bit too harsh for a few selected words. Rumours have it that this season the NHL brass has had all eyes on Avery waiting for a moment like this to try and settle him down.
->The KHL has decided that they are going to try a familiar All-Star game format this year when they played their annual all-star game. On January 11th the game will be played outdoors in Moscow's Red Square in keeping with the outdoor game trend. The game's roster format has been chosen as well and will be a Russia vs the World format which is pretty interesting since alot of foreign players has now been lured to the KHL. Former Islander Alexei Yashin will be the team captain of the Russian side while a former Ranger Jaromir Jagr will captain the foreign teams squad. The rosters will be released mid-December. I'm personally excited for this one because I really do believe the KHL officials are playing this exactly how they should. Their marketing former NHL stars agains't their former league and using their name's which had been made popular in North America to stir a buzz and grab headlines in North America. Another interesting thing is that they are showing they can keep out with the lastest hockey fads by showing the NHL and North America that they arn't the only ones who can market an outdoor game. The KHL isn't budging, I truely believe this summer it could present another dangerous threat to the NHL. Especially if they expand to Europe like planned. I can wait to see how this is going to play out. Tomorow afternoon I will debut my Team Yashin (Russia) roster and who I expect to make the squad. There's alot of familiar faces, more than I expected. Tuesday I'll preview my prediction for Team Jagr and the Foreign side.
*Rumour*
->Last little thing is that Corey Murphy noise is starting to happen. There are a few teams that are trying to make something happen with the Florida Panthers for the offensive specialist. Corey Murphy is an extremely talented offensive defenseman and clearly can work a power play. Although he's undersized and a bit injury prone a few teams who are desperate to get things started have shown interest. Two that I've heard are the powerplay struggling Montreal Canadians and the well just struggling Sens. Montreal loves these kind of players, with Mark Streit being gone and nothing clicking on the point he could easily be a good fit for an already talented line-up who needs someone to set-up Kovalev and Markov. Ottawa on the other hand has been just plan struggling and all season have been pushing for an offensive defenseman to replace Redden. Alexander Picard is a complete bust and Brendan Bell clearly isn't made to play at this level. Kuba's good but he needs help. This could be a good fit and I know Bryan Murray is ready to start shopping Antone Vermette a Jacques Martin favorite. Stay -tuned on this one.
Well that's it for now but a final comment to anyone who watches CBC broadcast games. Has anyone else noticed that P.J Stock can barely get a sentence together? I enjoy his commentary because he's been through the grind of the NHL and really knows the players sides but he sounds like a punch drunk boxer sometimes. Today he took about 3 minutes to say "Maxime Talbot knows what hes doing and know he has two players....". they should use him more to his strengths and use him for their rumours and breaking stories instead of trying to break the game down sentence by sentence or more like word by word.
->Owen Nolan of the Minesota Wild has suffered an undisclosed upper body injury but is expected to miss atleast 2 weeks. I'll try and get more on this one as it comes.
->Yet another injury with Oilers Sam Gagner who suffered a mild concussion in Dallas Wednesday. The Oilers apparently are taking this very slow and don't expect him to be rushed back. My estimation is probably a week and a half.
->The final conclusion to the Sean Avery ordeal is in and the NHL has handed him a 6 game suspension. The Dallas Star's will not appeal the suspension but the NHLPA will. According to reports the NHLPA feels the suspension was a bit too harsh for a few selected words. Rumours have it that this season the NHL brass has had all eyes on Avery waiting for a moment like this to try and settle him down.
->The KHL has decided that they are going to try a familiar All-Star game format this year when they played their annual all-star game. On January 11th the game will be played outdoors in Moscow's Red Square in keeping with the outdoor game trend. The game's roster format has been chosen as well and will be a Russia vs the World format which is pretty interesting since alot of foreign players has now been lured to the KHL. Former Islander Alexei Yashin will be the team captain of the Russian side while a former Ranger Jaromir Jagr will captain the foreign teams squad. The rosters will be released mid-December. I'm personally excited for this one because I really do believe the KHL officials are playing this exactly how they should. Their marketing former NHL stars agains't their former league and using their name's which had been made popular in North America to stir a buzz and grab headlines in North America. Another interesting thing is that they are showing they can keep out with the lastest hockey fads by showing the NHL and North America that they arn't the only ones who can market an outdoor game. The KHL isn't budging, I truely believe this summer it could present another dangerous threat to the NHL. Especially if they expand to Europe like planned. I can wait to see how this is going to play out. Tomorow afternoon I will debut my Team Yashin (Russia) roster and who I expect to make the squad. There's alot of familiar faces, more than I expected. Tuesday I'll preview my prediction for Team Jagr and the Foreign side.
*Rumour*
->Last little thing is that Corey Murphy noise is starting to happen. There are a few teams that are trying to make something happen with the Florida Panthers for the offensive specialist. Corey Murphy is an extremely talented offensive defenseman and clearly can work a power play. Although he's undersized and a bit injury prone a few teams who are desperate to get things started have shown interest. Two that I've heard are the powerplay struggling Montreal Canadians and the well just struggling Sens. Montreal loves these kind of players, with Mark Streit being gone and nothing clicking on the point he could easily be a good fit for an already talented line-up who needs someone to set-up Kovalev and Markov. Ottawa on the other hand has been just plan struggling and all season have been pushing for an offensive defenseman to replace Redden. Alexander Picard is a complete bust and Brendan Bell clearly isn't made to play at this level. Kuba's good but he needs help. This could be a good fit and I know Bryan Murray is ready to start shopping Antone Vermette a Jacques Martin favorite. Stay -tuned on this one.
Well that's it for now but a final comment to anyone who watches CBC broadcast games. Has anyone else noticed that P.J Stock can barely get a sentence together? I enjoy his commentary because he's been through the grind of the NHL and really knows the players sides but he sounds like a punch drunk boxer sometimes. Today he took about 3 minutes to say "Maxime Talbot knows what hes doing and know he has two players....". they should use him more to his strengths and use him for their rumours and breaking stories instead of trying to break the game down sentence by sentence or more like word by word.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Thursday Late Night News Hits and Something To Sleep On
Another slow day today, not much actual confirmed news today except a few injury updates so I'll start with that.
->Joe Sakic of the Colorado Avalanche will be out up to six weeks with an undisclosed back injury.
->Chris Chelios will be back in action soon after recovering from a broken leg. This weekend he will be reporting to Grand Rapids of the AHL for a conditioning stint untill further notice. I really hope Chelios keeps going, I once read in an interview he wants to play till hes 50 or as long as he can physically.
->Raffi Torres of the Blue Jacket will have arthroscopic knee surgery friday and is set to be out for 3-4 weeks.
Thats it for news but heres a major rumour to think about before you sleep tonight.
->From what I've been hearing Don Waddell is starting to think about his major situation next year. By his major situation I mean Ilya Kovalchuk and his unrestricted free agent status at the end of the next season. Now I'm sure deep in his mind he knows that the Atlanta Thrashers cannot compete with the players they have now and it's definitely going to be a "ground-up" project. Come trade deadline really what do they have to offer this season? Todd White? Marty Reasoner? Not really anything that's gonna bring in change. Now what happens if he shops Kovalchuk at the deadline? Atlanta would definitely benefit greatly. I've seen reported on a few sites how Atlanta is shopping Kovalchuk right now. I hardly see that as Todd White's not exactly going to bring in the fans. Also does Waddell really want the image of him throwing in the towel already? The fans and players both would be upset so if he waits till deadline day when the Thrashers are already out of the picture it makes perfectly good sense. He still would get a higher than normal value because Ilya would be under contract for another year. The other team would still have an entire season to try and sign him plus 2 sets of playoffs. Not bad at all! I truly believe Kovalchuk could bring in a gold mine of prospects and draft picks. My guess would be 2 1st round draft picks, a support player and a prospect or Don Waddell could go the other way and aim for an impact player and two 1st rounders to try and improve the team right away. Like it or not Atlanta wont be in contention for at least another season and this deal could give the Thrashers a really big head start.
Who would be the possible trading partners? I'm sure almost every team in the league would be interested but 4 teams come to mind. The Ottawa Senators as they need that little extra offense to spread out. the only problem is they don't have very much room to move. They do have a few prospects to spare and a couple big guns to shop. Imagine a Kovalchuk Spezza combo. What about this?
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk and Todd White
Ottawa sends their 09 1st round, 2010 2nd round, Mike Fisher and Nick Foligno
The second team that could really be interested is the Chicago Blackhawks. Their a young core ready to take off. With that extra fire power they could be pretty deep and have that extra flair to edge their opponents. Kovalchuk - Toews - Kane ? That would be incredible. Their also a West coast team so Atlanta wouldn't have to look at Ilya that much after the deal.
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk and a 2010 3rd round
Chicago sends 09 1st round, Cam Barker, Martin Havlat and Ben Eager
The third team is another west coast team in the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks have nobody really to put the puck in the back of the net as sad as it is. The Sedins cant be counted on to do everything. What happens if they get that little extra offense to back up Luongo's stellar play? It would make a huge difference if teams were scared of them offensively and defensively.
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk
Vancouver sends 09 1st rounder, Mason Raymond and Micheal Grabner
My last team is once again another western conference squad. The Minnesota Wild. The Wild are on the cusp of having a really good team that can possibly contend. Their in a really tough pack though with Detroit and San Jose, both of those teams have incredible offensives while Minnesota's just average. Give them another big gun to play with and it might be a different story. Kovalchuk has that game breaking ability that could turn them into an instant cup favorite. They could go easily two ways about it. They could sign Gaborik to what ever he agrees then turn around and trade him to Atlanta for Kovalchuk and a 1st round. That gives the Wild Kovalchuk and Atlanta a star player back plus a bit of future in return. The second option is to say screw it and keep Gaborik but get Kovalchuk to compliment him.
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk and 09 5th round
Minnesota sends a 09 1st round, Benoit Pouliot, Chris Hickey and Martin Skoula
We'll see how this one plays out and I'll definitely keep my ear open for anything because as far as I'm concerned this would be the smartest move Waddell could make this year. Well that's it for now but more will come tomorrow. I waited on doing the Avery incident article because I really want to see the final results of it before I dissect it which i figured would be today but ya. I also have the KHL piece almost done about their version of the all-star game which brings back a few old faces. You'll have to wait till tomorrow night though. Peace for now and don't stay up all night thinking about that doozy.
->Joe Sakic of the Colorado Avalanche will be out up to six weeks with an undisclosed back injury.
->Chris Chelios will be back in action soon after recovering from a broken leg. This weekend he will be reporting to Grand Rapids of the AHL for a conditioning stint untill further notice. I really hope Chelios keeps going, I once read in an interview he wants to play till hes 50 or as long as he can physically.
->Raffi Torres of the Blue Jacket will have arthroscopic knee surgery friday and is set to be out for 3-4 weeks.
Thats it for news but heres a major rumour to think about before you sleep tonight.
->From what I've been hearing Don Waddell is starting to think about his major situation next year. By his major situation I mean Ilya Kovalchuk and his unrestricted free agent status at the end of the next season. Now I'm sure deep in his mind he knows that the Atlanta Thrashers cannot compete with the players they have now and it's definitely going to be a "ground-up" project. Come trade deadline really what do they have to offer this season? Todd White? Marty Reasoner? Not really anything that's gonna bring in change. Now what happens if he shops Kovalchuk at the deadline? Atlanta would definitely benefit greatly. I've seen reported on a few sites how Atlanta is shopping Kovalchuk right now. I hardly see that as Todd White's not exactly going to bring in the fans. Also does Waddell really want the image of him throwing in the towel already? The fans and players both would be upset so if he waits till deadline day when the Thrashers are already out of the picture it makes perfectly good sense. He still would get a higher than normal value because Ilya would be under contract for another year. The other team would still have an entire season to try and sign him plus 2 sets of playoffs. Not bad at all! I truly believe Kovalchuk could bring in a gold mine of prospects and draft picks. My guess would be 2 1st round draft picks, a support player and a prospect or Don Waddell could go the other way and aim for an impact player and two 1st rounders to try and improve the team right away. Like it or not Atlanta wont be in contention for at least another season and this deal could give the Thrashers a really big head start.
Who would be the possible trading partners? I'm sure almost every team in the league would be interested but 4 teams come to mind. The Ottawa Senators as they need that little extra offense to spread out. the only problem is they don't have very much room to move. They do have a few prospects to spare and a couple big guns to shop. Imagine a Kovalchuk Spezza combo. What about this?
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk and Todd White
Ottawa sends their 09 1st round, 2010 2nd round, Mike Fisher and Nick Foligno
The second team that could really be interested is the Chicago Blackhawks. Their a young core ready to take off. With that extra fire power they could be pretty deep and have that extra flair to edge their opponents. Kovalchuk - Toews - Kane ? That would be incredible. Their also a West coast team so Atlanta wouldn't have to look at Ilya that much after the deal.
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk and a 2010 3rd round
Chicago sends 09 1st round, Cam Barker, Martin Havlat and Ben Eager
The third team is another west coast team in the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks have nobody really to put the puck in the back of the net as sad as it is. The Sedins cant be counted on to do everything. What happens if they get that little extra offense to back up Luongo's stellar play? It would make a huge difference if teams were scared of them offensively and defensively.
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk
Vancouver sends 09 1st rounder, Mason Raymond and Micheal Grabner
My last team is once again another western conference squad. The Minnesota Wild. The Wild are on the cusp of having a really good team that can possibly contend. Their in a really tough pack though with Detroit and San Jose, both of those teams have incredible offensives while Minnesota's just average. Give them another big gun to play with and it might be a different story. Kovalchuk has that game breaking ability that could turn them into an instant cup favorite. They could go easily two ways about it. They could sign Gaborik to what ever he agrees then turn around and trade him to Atlanta for Kovalchuk and a 1st round. That gives the Wild Kovalchuk and Atlanta a star player back plus a bit of future in return. The second option is to say screw it and keep Gaborik but get Kovalchuk to compliment him.
Atlanta sends Ilya Kovalchuk and 09 5th round
Minnesota sends a 09 1st round, Benoit Pouliot, Chris Hickey and Martin Skoula
We'll see how this one plays out and I'll definitely keep my ear open for anything because as far as I'm concerned this would be the smartest move Waddell could make this year. Well that's it for now but more will come tomorrow. I waited on doing the Avery incident article because I really want to see the final results of it before I dissect it which i figured would be today but ya. I also have the KHL piece almost done about their version of the all-star game which brings back a few old faces. You'll have to wait till tomorrow night though. Peace for now and don't stay up all night thinking about that doozy.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Wednesday Late Night News Hits
Ok not really a busy night tonight but hey theres a few major news hits anyways..
-> The Carolina Hurricanes fire Peter Laviolette after being hired in 2003 to replace Paul Maurice. Now strangly enough guess who now is replacing Peter Laviolette? Paul Maurice! It's kind of a strange move but the Hurricanes were stale. I don't really see why Paul Maurice for a second run but he is a decent coach so maybe he can turn around the squad. He does know the city and know what the ownership expects so maybe he knows what they need to win. I have a feeling Laviolette won't be out of work for longer than a season.
->The Coyotes have aquired Joakim Lindstrom from The Ducks for Logan Stephenson. Joakim Lindstrom has 7 goals and 14 assists for the Iowa Stars this year while Stephenson has 1 goal and 1 assist in 19 games for San Antonio. I like this deal for the Coyotes as I'm not quite sold on Logan Stephenson's skill set. He seams to be more of a 9th D type of player.
->Stefan Legein has decided to return to hockey, in a recent interview he has announced he'll return to the Columbus Blue Jackets in January and hopes to report to Syracuse of the AHL. After some time off apparently Legein feels ready to resume his career. The main reason for quitting he cited was due to a lack of passion but after sitting out for a few months he began to miss hockey. The Blue Jackets are opptimistic and willing to give him a second chance as long as hes commited.
->Daniel Briere of the Fylers is out once again, due to a severe groin strain. 4 to 6 weeks is the estimated time on the shelf this time. He's already been out for 15 games with an "abdominal injury". He injured his groin on tuesday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. I have a funny feeling it's going to be a long season for Briere.
->Georges Laraque has a new column "Rock Talk" on http://www.sportsnet.ca and it's actually pretty cool. So far only one article but was actually pretty interesting and educated for a man many refer to as a "goon". Check it out it's worth the read.
->On other online hockey news, hockey monster David Frost has started a new website http://www.hockeygodonline.com . For all those who have been living under a rock the past year, Mr. Frost was Mike Danton's agent and one time coach. After changing his last name due to the request of David Frost in a bizarre turn of events apparently hired a hitman to kill his agent. Other than possibly brainwashing and home-wrecking Frost is also accused of engaging in many disturbing acts of sexuality, humiliation, and abuse to/ with many of his former players he coached.........anyways back to the website , he claims to have hockeys insider information and fantasy picks but so far its just a publicity stunt. Infact it's got nothing really useful unless you need Mike Danton photos and videos. I'm not an expert or anything but if someone tried to kill me I wouldn't have their pictures and videos plastered all over my website. A little creepy. Check it out just for water cooler conversation.
Well thats it for tonight. I'll have a KHL posting tommorow night and a column on the recent suspension of Sean Avery. Stay tuned!
-> The Carolina Hurricanes fire Peter Laviolette after being hired in 2003 to replace Paul Maurice. Now strangly enough guess who now is replacing Peter Laviolette? Paul Maurice! It's kind of a strange move but the Hurricanes were stale. I don't really see why Paul Maurice for a second run but he is a decent coach so maybe he can turn around the squad. He does know the city and know what the ownership expects so maybe he knows what they need to win. I have a feeling Laviolette won't be out of work for longer than a season.
->The Coyotes have aquired Joakim Lindstrom from The Ducks for Logan Stephenson. Joakim Lindstrom has 7 goals and 14 assists for the Iowa Stars this year while Stephenson has 1 goal and 1 assist in 19 games for San Antonio. I like this deal for the Coyotes as I'm not quite sold on Logan Stephenson's skill set. He seams to be more of a 9th D type of player.
->Stefan Legein has decided to return to hockey, in a recent interview he has announced he'll return to the Columbus Blue Jackets in January and hopes to report to Syracuse of the AHL. After some time off apparently Legein feels ready to resume his career. The main reason for quitting he cited was due to a lack of passion but after sitting out for a few months he began to miss hockey. The Blue Jackets are opptimistic and willing to give him a second chance as long as hes commited.
->Daniel Briere of the Fylers is out once again, due to a severe groin strain. 4 to 6 weeks is the estimated time on the shelf this time. He's already been out for 15 games with an "abdominal injury". He injured his groin on tuesday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. I have a funny feeling it's going to be a long season for Briere.
->Georges Laraque has a new column "Rock Talk" on http://www.sportsnet.ca and it's actually pretty cool. So far only one article but was actually pretty interesting and educated for a man many refer to as a "goon". Check it out it's worth the read.
->On other online hockey news, hockey monster David Frost has started a new website http://www.hockeygodonline.com . For all those who have been living under a rock the past year, Mr. Frost was Mike Danton's agent and one time coach. After changing his last name due to the request of David Frost in a bizarre turn of events apparently hired a hitman to kill his agent. Other than possibly brainwashing and home-wrecking Frost is also accused of engaging in many disturbing acts of sexuality, humiliation, and abuse to/ with many of his former players he coached.........anyways back to the website , he claims to have hockeys insider information and fantasy picks but so far its just a publicity stunt. Infact it's got nothing really useful unless you need Mike Danton photos and videos. I'm not an expert or anything but if someone tried to kill me I wouldn't have their pictures and videos plastered all over my website. A little creepy. Check it out just for water cooler conversation.
Well thats it for tonight. I'll have a KHL posting tommorow night and a column on the recent suspension of Sean Avery. Stay tuned!
I'm Back!
Well I'm back again folks! It's been a rough few weeks and I'm finally ready to start this thing up for good. The last few weeks I've been caught up at work and with personal matters so I was unable to forfill my hockey blogging obligations. Now that everythings been cleared up I'm really pumped to get this thing to take off. From this post on you can expect 2 posts gaurentied daily and a post as soon as any breaking news hits. Expect a weekly educated column related to a weekly top story. Expect frequent updates from the top leagues around the world. Expect a weekly fantasy hockey pool tips. I will gaurentie you'll hear rumours here first before anywhere else. I've got alot more ideas and plans for the future so make sure to stay tuned. You can e-mail me any suggestions or comments ! Prepare for the best damn hockey site people. If you like hockey then this will be your one stop I promise!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
In Memory Of Alexei Cherepanov
For all those who hasn't already heard the heart breaking news, Alexei Cherepanov the talented Russian prospect of the New York Rangers passed away Monday evening during a KHL game between his club Avangard OMSK and Vityaz Chekhov at the young age of 19. From what is understood Alexei collapsed on bench where he then was carried by teammate Jaromir Jagr and trainers to a medical station where they then attempted to use the defibrillator on him which wasn't working at the time. He then was rushed to where the ambulance should have been but it apparently left the game early and took over 20 minutes to get back and to bring him to the hospital.
It saddens me deeply especially because I was in the process of writing an article on how the KHL is really taking big steps to becoming a truly equal league to the NHL on Monday night. I'm shocked to hear the blatant negligence on behalf of both the league and the paramedics. Enough with that though because I'd really like to tribute Alexei Cherepanov from all his accomplishments and for being truly an exciting player to watch.
Alexei Cherepanov was born on January 15th 1989 in Barnaul Russia. The "Siberian Express" as he was nicknamed by his teammates and fans first broke through at the age of 15 for Avangard 2 the farm team of Avangard OMSK. That season he embarassed the competition by putting up 61pts in only 28 games. He was instantly put on the map and was recalled to the Russian Super League in 2006. He then broke the Russian Super League record for most goals scored by a rookie with 18 goals which believe it or not was set by NHL superstar Pavel Bure. In 2007 the spotlights were on him and he continued to shine in not only the Under 18 championships where he won gold, the World Juniors where he received a silver medal and also in his first full RSL season. Many scouts referred to him as the best player outside the NHL and he was said to be the best offensive player in the 2007 NHL entry draft. He was ranked in the top 6 all season but with no transfer agreement between the NHL and the RSL he slipped to 17th and was a huge steal for the New York Rangers. In the 2008 season Alexei was off to an impressive start with 13 points in 15 games with 8 goals on the season.
Alexei Cherepanov touched many people in his short life, including many coaches in a short period of time. Rangers coach Tom Renney was seen wiping tears from his eyes at the ceremony held by the New York Rangers when they learned about this horrific incident. Jaromir Jagr was said to have been in contact with the Rangers staff and consistently informed Glen Sather that not only was Alexei like a younger brother to him he thought the youngster had tremendous talent and thought he was one day going to be a real star in the NHL. Despite Alexei's cocky image portrayed on the ice, it was in fact self-confidence in his abilities not cockiness. I watched many Avangard games last season and Alexei was a lot like Pavel Bure but had a way better defensive game. I was in awe every time I watched him with the puck. I remember watching the draft and screaming at the TV and my buddies wondering when someone would take a "risk" on drafting him although it was hardly the case. He had a tremendous upside and the game will definitely be hurting because of it. What if the KHL had better medical staff? What if the paramedics had been there when they were supposed to? What if Alexei had played in the NHL? What if he could have been one the games greats? For all these "what ifs" there is something we do know and that is Alexei Cherepanov was robbed of his life by incompetence and poor planning. We also not only was Alexei a great human being but a tremendous hockey player who will be missed across the globe by many people on and off the ice and we will forever remember him...
Alexei Cherepanov
January 15, 1989 – October 13, 2008
For Alexei's full stats please check out Hockey Database or TSN
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)