From The Pressbox

Worst beats first...twice

It was all smiles when the Vancouver Canucks clinched the President’s Trophy for the first time in franchise history. However back to back losses to the bottom dwelling Edmonton Oilers has left a bitter taste in Canucks’ fans mouths.

While it makes perfect sense that the Canucks are finding it difficult to get motivated to play a game that means absolutely nothing to them in the standings, it is no excuse for the way they’ve performed over those 2 games.

Coach Alain Vigneault agrees, as he ripped his team apart during Monday’s practice, although it failed to spark the team as they went on to get shutout by the Oilers the next day.

The players claim they know the importance of playing hard and finishing the season strong so they’re sharp come playoffs. However many have to question that, after coming out flat for the rematch against the Oilers after being embarrassed by them on home ice. Henrik Sedin, the team’s captain, says the team will be ready for playoffs, as they will feel the urgency.

As everyone is already aware, Manny Malhotra will miss the remainder of the season as well as playoffs. His leadership both on and off the ice could be used right now to help dig the Canucks out of this mini slump they’re on.

Mikael Samuelsson made his return to the lineup on Tuesday night. While both Alexander Edler and Dan Hamhuis are expected to be back before playoffs. Andrew Alberts is also close to making his return, although it is unknown if he will be in the lineup come playoff time if he is healthy, as the Canucks have 6 defencemen that are likely ahead of him on the depth chart.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Getting Healthy

Just when you thought the defensive injuries couldn’t get any worse, Kevin Bieksa gets diagnosed with a fractured foot. With Bieksa out, the Canucks were without 5 of their top 6 defencemen, with Alexander Edler, Dan Hamhuis, Keith Ballard and Andrew Alberts as the others all out with injuries.

That prompted the Canucks defensive lineup to feature an almost AHL cast, with Yann Sauve, Evan Oberg and Chris Tanev all in the lineup. Sami Salo is still getting used to the pace of the NHL since his return from injury and was being forced into playing big minutes. Aaron Rome, was also playing a role outside of his capabilities. The only Canuck defenseman that was playing his usual role, was Christian Ehrhoff, who was playing increased minutes as a result of the teams’ lack of NHL experience on the back end.

Vancouver has gone 3-3 in their last 6 games, which if you ask any Canucks’ fan, is incredible considering the status of their blue line.

They are still first in the NHL, 1 point ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers, however the Flyers have a game in hand. The Canucks are still 5 points ahead of the Detroit Red Wings for first in the Western Conference, but Detroit also has a game in hand.

The Canucks are receiving some good news on defense though. All their injured defencemen are progressing along nicely, both Keith Ballard and Dan Hamhuis returned to the lineup for last night’s contest against the Montreal Canadiens, but were unable to help the team to the win.

With the Canucks defense slowly returning, it might take a few games for them get their legs back. The pace of the NHL is very fast and sitting out even a few games can make it difficult to keep up.

With the trade deadline fast approaching, the need of another defenseman is not as high now that Ballard and Hamhuis are back. However, don’t expect General Manager Mike Gillis to sit back and do nothing, with rumors of New York Islanders’ Zenon Konopka, among others heading west to Vancouver.

The next two games will have a strong effect on what, if any moves need to be made. Saturday nights’ clash with the juggernaut Boston Bruins squad is the last test for the Canucks before the deadline, and playing a top team is definitely a good way to gauge your team, whether completely healthy or not.

Look for the Canucks to regain their form this week as players get back into the swing of things and others compete for their jobs. The trade deadline is a stressful time for everyone, so players will be working extra hard in hopes they are not moved from the top teams’ roster.

Let us know what moves, if any, the Canucks have on the horizon, or should make heading in into the trade deadline.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Vancouver Canucks Mid Season + Beyond

It was a disappointing start to the season for the Vancouver Canucks. Which is hard to believe given their 35-11-9 record to date, sitting first place overall in the NHL.

Roberto Luongo looked shaky, as though he was on his way to becoming another casualty in whats known as Vancouver’s goalie graveyard. But is working his way back into the mix, has solid numbers and is beginning to challenge as a Vezina trophy candidate.

Emerging superstar Ryan Kesler was another Canuck to have a very slow start, and experts all over the NHL were stating that he had peaked last season where he scored 79 points. Now he sits 2nd in the NHL in goals. Kesler has not only been lighting the lamp, but he owns a +23 rating, kills penalties, is responsible for checking the top scorer’s on the opposing teams, and is a key face off man. All this being on Vancouver’s 2nd line, and dealing with a mix of underachieving line mates all season long.

The Sedin Twins are proving that they belong amongst the most elite of company in the NHL. They sit 2nd and 3rd in points. Daniel, who missed a large part of last season with an injury, leads his brother Henrik, reigning Art Ross Trophy Winner, in points. The Canucks top power play unit, which features Kesler and the Sedins up front, has been the league’s top power play for a good portion of the year. Alexander Edler and Christian Ehrhoff have been the 2 defensemen anchoring that unit from the back end.

Injuries have plagued the Canucks so far this year, making it even more impressive that they’re doing so well in the standings. They’re without Alexander Edler, Keith Ballard, and Dan Hamhuis on the back end alone to date. Sami Salo is scheduled to make his return to the lineup saturday night against the Calgary Flames, a time that can come no sooner to the ailing Canucks’ blue line.

The good news is that both Ballard and Edler are expected to be back in time for playoffs, which are almost a given, considering that they have a 15 point cushion, and two games in hand on the division, let alone the final playoff spot. The bad news is that Hamhuis is out indefinitely with a concussion. There is no timetable for his return. That could mean that the season is over for the veteran defenceman, but speaking optimistically, Mike Gillis and the Canucks organization believe the injury is not that severe, and he will return this season.

Although many would recall that Sidney Crosby’s concussion was considered to be a day-to-day injury, and he has been out for the past 16 games, with no guarantee he’ll be back this season. Concussions are a dangerous thing, and in today’s NHL, they are being treated seriously with the alarming amount of headshots.

Not only has Luongo turned his game around to be one of the best goaltenders in the NHL, but backup Cory Schneider is proving that is more than capable of playing at this level. He is generating a lot of attention with his extremely poised play and is helping the Canucks have arguably the best goaltending tandem in the league.

What the future holds in store for both Schneider and the Canucks remains to be seen, but if the Canucks do decide to move him, they should acquire some good assets in return thanks to his strong play and future potential. Those same characteristics could tempt Vancouver into keeping him to see how he develops, especially considering he is under contract until the end of the 2011-12 season, where he is set to become a restricted free agent.

Forecast for the rest of the season:

As the trade deadline approaches the Canucks have some questions they have to face. Is their team strong enough that they don’t make a move? Do the injuries to key defensemen make it necessary to acquire another defenseman? Do they risk the team chemistry by making a move?

There is no right answer. But the Canucks have already proven that they’re more than capable of dealing with the curveballs that have been thrown their way already. Should they acquire another defenseman, and all everyone becomes healthy, they would have 9 defensemen competing for 6 spots every night. They could use that cap room, plus whatever asset(s) they give up to acquire that defenseman, much more wisely.

When you look up and down the Canucks’ roster, you can’t see many holes. The struggles shown by the wingers on the 2nd line, have been overshadowed by Ryan Kesler, and as much as it would be nice to upgrade Mason Raymond, that is not likely given he contract and age. The only glaring hole one could perhaps see, is on the Canucks’ 4th line. They could use a 4th line centre, a veteran with playoff experience, maybe a Stanley Cup ring to his name, who can be a key face off man, play tough minutes, and provide leadership down the stretch. Look for Mike Gillis to make a move closer to the deadline as this is the best shot the Canucks have had, and likely will have to win the Stanley Cup for the foreseeable future. Not to say that this is now or never by any means, however.

Look for the Canucks to struggle at times while their defensive depth is challenged, but then finish the season strong as they become healthy. While the Presidents Trophy is not an impossible accomplishment, it will be hard to win considering the Philadelphia Flyers strong play as of late, and their teams’ health when compared to the Canucks. The Canucks should be able to hold off the Detroit Red Wings, who sit 7 points behind them, for 1st place in the Western Conference. Should the Canucks finish 1st in the conference, they will have a 1st round date with a team most likely on a roll, as there is fierce competition in the west for the final playoff spots.

There is arguably no team in the NHL that is stronger all the way down the lineup and should beat the Vancouver Canucks in a 7-game series. Luongo has looked lost at times in prior playoffs’ series, however, since he has given up his captaincy, and he is no longer tagged as the teams’ franchise player, there should be less pressure on him, which should translate into a much more successful post season for him. Not to mention, Cory Schneider can step in and play should Luongo show any signs of struggles.

If everything goes to plan, the Canucks should be the last team standing come June. However, every team can say that, but who else has as good a chance? And what are your predictions for the Canucks, and the rest of the playoffs as we wind down the regular season?

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Edmonton Oilers Mid Season

It started out looking so optimistic. Oilers fans left Rexall place all smiles after a 4-0 thumping of the Calgary Flames on opening night. But since then there has been little to celebrate for the Oilers, other than the bright future ahead of them. All the Oilers young guns have at times looked amazing, and all of them have been benched throughout the season.

Offense: D

Its pretty hard to give a good rating to a team that ranks 29th out of 30 teams in goals scored. As previously mentioned, they have shown flashes of brilliance, who can forget Jordan Eberle’s highlight reel goal on opening night? But they have failed to light the lamp with any consistency. Their leading scorer has 32 points in 49 games, and that honor belongs to winger Dustin Penner. Forwards Gilbert Brule and Andrew Cogliano have both failed to meet expectations for themselves and are a couple of the reasons the Oilers sit at the bottom of the standings.

Players to watch: Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Sam Gagner

Defense: D-

Edmonton has the second highest goals against in the NHL. Trailing the Atlanta Thrashers, who have played 4 more games. Which leads to believe that Edmonton would have the most goals against, had they played 4 extra games. Defenseman Ryan Whitney, the anchor of the blueline, has never had the recognition he deserved having previously played in Pittsburgh and Anaheim where the focus was on either Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, or any of the Ducks like Ryan Getzlaf and Scott Niedermeyer. However he is putting together a great year for the Oilers, amassing 27 points and a +13 rating despite being injured for a part of the season. Since Whitney’s absence, Tom Gilbert has been logging the most minutes and is clearly not able to handle that kind of workload, as he has seen his plus/minus rating drop to -13 and looks fatigued and prone to mistakes at times.

Players to watch: Ryan Whitney, Tom Gilbert, Kurtis Foster

Goaltending: C+

Edmonton needs to have more consistency in goal moving forward if they are going to be successful. Nikolai Khabibulin has looked shaky at times and at others looks like the goalie that led the Tampa Bay Lightning to their first ever stanley cup. Devan Dubnyk has played a fair share this year and has impressed, but one has to question whether he has the ability to carry this franchise deep into the playoffs when the rebuilding phase is further along.

Players to watch: Devan Dubnyk

The Oilers sure have a bright future ahead, and with their record so far this season they will likely acquire another blue chip prospect come draft day. There is far greater depth on the front end than the blue line and in goal, and the draft does not have a lot of good goalies to offer. Which leads to believe that if the Oilers are called to the podium with the 1st overall pick this summer, they will take stud defenseman Adam Larsson.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Calgary Flames Mid Season Report

The Calgary Flames have had a disappointing season thus far from their standpoint. They have suffered injuries, inconsistent and underachieving play, and a lack of production from their prospects. They are 14th in the conference, 8 points out a playoff spot.

Offense: C-

Jarome Iginla leads the team with 42 points in 47 games, well below a point per game pace. Free agent acquisition Alex Tanguay is second on the team with 33 points, and is having himeself a nice bounce back season after only managing 37 points in Tampa Bay last year. However, it ends there, as Brendan Morrison had a good start to the season, but is on a slump right now. Perhaps the only positive the Flames have is the play from blue liner Mark Giordano. He is on pace to score 37 points this season, a career high.

Players to watch: Jarome Iginla, Rene Bourque, Olli Jokinen

Defense: C

Jay Bouwmeester has not developed into the defenceman they thought he would be when they acquired him, but is providing the Flames with over 26 minutes played per night, and has a respectable +5 rating. Corey Sarich and Robyn Regehr are the only other defencemen to have plus ratings. Although defenceman Mark Giordano is having himself a nice offensive season, he sits at a -11 rating, worst among defenceman after putting up a +17 rating last season. The Flames gave up on Ian White, a large part of the much criticized Dion Phaneuf trade last season, sending White to Carolina as part of a package deal in return for Anton Babchuk. Babchuk is playing well as a Flame, and has a good hard shot from the point on the power play.

Players to watch: Mark Giordano, Robyn Regehr, Jay Bouwmeester

Goaltending: C

It's always good news for any hockey team when your backup goalie has better numbers than your starter, right? Well, Henrik Karlsson has a better goals against average, and a better save percentage than the extremely inconsistent Miikka Kiprusoff. Kipper has been highly criticized by his own organization for his shaky play as of late and coach Brent Sutter has been quoted saying he has lost faith in him right now. However, as anyone that has followed Kiprusoff knows, he can be a game changer, and is quite capable of bouncing back at anytime.

Players to watch: Miikka Kiprusoff, Henrik Karlsson

Overall team grade: C

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Crossing the Line?

There is an unwritten code that is understood around the league in the NHL. There are many understandings about what is tolerable and acceptable and what is not. When players break the code, they are introduced to the team’s tough guy when they face each other again. Where do we draw the line?

Carolina Hurricanes rugged defenceman Tim Gleason was involved in a scrum with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Nikolai Kulemin. Gleason was pushing and shoving when Kulemin approached him and proceeded to jab him in the face multiple times. Gleason responded by dropping his gloves and landing a haymaker punch to Kulemin’s face, flooring the Russian.

Kulemin is the furthest thing from a fighter in the NHL. He is a skilled forward and doesn’t like to mix it up. Gleason on the other hand, is a bruiser; he doesn’t shy away from the rough stuff and isn’t afraid to drop the gloves.

It is borderline whether the incident broke the code or not. Players around the league were asked what they thought of the situation. The overall consensus was that Kulemin got what he had coming to him for jabbing Gleason repeatedly.

The last time something like this happened was when New York Rangers’ superstar Marian Gaborik was dropped by Philadelphia Flyers tough guy Dan Carcillo last season. The incident caused the same questions being asked today to arise.

From Gleason’s perspective, he did nothing wrong and claims that if you’re going to be punching someone in the face, they are going to stand up for themselves and react in an aggressive way. In Kulemin’s defense, he never dropped the gloves, and never hit Gleason with much force on any of the punches.

Have your say on whether Gleason broke the code, or if Kulemin got what he had coming to him. Also tell us whether you think the Leafs will look for some revenge next time Toronto plays Carolina.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Another Rule Change?

There has been an unusual turn of events in the NHL over the past few weeks.

The birth of the KHL has once again caused confusion amongst the NHL, only now it is not over the debate of a transfer agreement between the two leagues. Three well-known players all started the year in the KHL and then were claimed off waivers when signed by an NHL team.

It all started when the St. Louis Blues signed free agent forward Marek Svatos. Svatos, a former 30 goal scorer, was claimed by the Nashville Predators off waivers and therefore, Nashville assumes his contract. This left hockey fans everywhere confused, they all wondered why a player must clear waivers if he is signed as a free agent. Well, according to the rules, a player must clear waivers in the NHL after beginning the season in a professional hockey league other than the AHL or the ECHL.

The St. Louis Blues handled this professionally and instead went out and signed free agent forward Kyle Wellwood, who began the season in the KHL. Once again, the Blues claimed off waivers, this time from the San Jose Sharks.

The third, and perhaps most bizarre situation, is happening in Long Island as we speak. Former superstar goalie Evgeni Nabokov, signed a 1 year deal with the Detroit Red Wings after being released from his KHL team for personal reasons. He, like Wellwood and Svatos, was claimed by another NHL team, the New York Islanders. However, the difference here is that Nabokov is reportedly not going to report to the New York Islanders.

The details of what is going on and what can happen to Nabokov are quite complex, but the Islanders are well within their rights to suspend Nabokov, and then he doesn’t get paid and just sits there for the remainder of the season. Should they choose to be bitter that he doesn’t want to play for them, they could appeal to the NHl to toll the contract. Should the NHL approve this, and in all likelihood would, it would push the contract to the following year. Then Nabokov would technically be considered a member of the Islanders and then be eligible to be suspended for the entire season, meaning he could not play hockey for the remainder of this year, and the following full season.

The upcoming days, maybe weeks, will tell what is going to happen here. Given that there is now a league that is more comparable to the NHL skill level, and is an alternative to players that have difficulty getting an NHL contract on opening day, should the NHL implement a new rule regarding clearing waivers for starting the year in another professional league? Or does this add “spice” to the mix and make things more interesting? Leave your feedback.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Goaltending, The Key To The Cup?

For as long as we can remember, we’ve all heard the saying, you need great goaltending to win in the playoffs.

Last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs is questioning that theory in its entirety.

Many NHL teams are reassessing the contracts offered to their goaltenders, in both length and compensation. All-star goaltender Evgeni Nabakov* was not offered a contract lucrative enough to entice him to stay in the NHL and he headed overseas for the KHL.

Last season’s Stanley Cup Finals featured the goaltending matchup of Chicago Blackhawks’ Antti Niemi versus Philadelphia Flyers’ Michael Leighton. It was unquestionably the worst goaltending performance of recent memory, perhaps off all-time, in the Stanley Cup Finals. Chicago went on to win the Stanley Cup in six games.

In the off-season, Antti Niemi was free agent, and filed for salary arbitration. He was awarded a 1 year, $2.75 million contract which the Blackhawks decided not to opt for. Instead they signed veteran goalie Marty Turco, formerly with the Dallas Stars.

Niemi had to wait to find work in the NHL, until eventually the San Jose Sharks came calling. He is now a part of a tandem with teammate Antero Niittymaki and both are fighting for the top spot.

San Jose, usually a powerhouse in the NHL, currently sits 11th in the conference, and the only major change, other than the retiring of future hall of fame defenceman and captain, Rob Blake, was the goaltending change from Nabokov to Niemi and Niittymaki. Both Niemi and Niittymaki have struggled for most of the year and have yet to develop any form of consistency, other than losing.

Michael Leighton was not offered another contract immediately either. He was retained by Philadelphia who also had goalie Brian Boucher and prospect Sergei Bobrovsky, who was pushing hard to become the Flyers number 1 goalie. Leighton lost the starting job to Bobrovsky, and lost the backup job to Boucher; he has been placed on waivers by the Flyers.

It is absurd to think that these two goalies, Leighton and Niemi, neither of which have a starting job in the NHL, competed for the Stanley Cup last season.

There are a number of goaltenders in the NHL making top dollars and are locked in for years. Vancouver Canucks’ Roberto Luongo, and New York Islanders’ Rick DiPietro, come to mind for the longest and highest paid contracts in the NHL, and likely, will finish their careers for their respective teams unless traded. Luongo is enjoying a great season with the first place Canucks after a slow start. He is also facing competition from the up and coming rookie Cory Schneider, who has better numbers than Luongo so far this season, at a fraction of the price. DiPietro however, has not had a successful season since signing this contract and has faced severe injuries which have kept him from playing consistently.

Other goalies in the NHL, like Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils and Jean-Sebastian Giguere, are making ridiculous amounts of money and have less than stellar numbers so far this season. They are not locked in for as long as the aforementioned Luongo and DiPietro, but still make enough money that it is difficult for teams to move the goalies when they are unsuccessful.

A lot of goalies are proving to be steals so far this season, such as Craig Anderson of the Colorado Avalanche, Ondrej Pavelec of the Atlanta Thrashers, Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens, Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings and many others equally impressive to note.

With all this in mind, could we be seeing a new trend in the NHL beginning to form? After all, it was proven last year that you don’t need great goaltending to win; sure, it helps. But would it be wiser to invest the potential $5 million plus that you save on a goaltender’s salary in another scorer, or added depth players so that if injuries strike, you don’t have to go fishing down to the minors to ice a roster?

*Evgeni Nabokov signed by Detroit, placed on waivers and claimed by the Islanders

Have your say on the topic, and whether or not you believe it is necessary to sign goaltenders to these monstrous deals that are becoming a bit too familiar in the NHL.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Canadian Teams East and West Face Similar, Un-Optimistic Future

When talking about Canadian NHL teams, most people tend to think of very strong hockey markets with passionate fans and an increasingly added pressure from a desire to win.

Aside from the Vancouver Canucks and, at times, the Montreal Canadiens, this season has fallen short of the expectations placed upon the Canadian teams. Two teams appear to be in trouble: the Calgary Flames and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Calgary Flames look as though they could have their backs up against the wall for the foreseeable future. A big part of their core of players are 30 years of age or older, and are seeing their production and effectiveness decrease. They have very few, if any, blue-chip prospects on the horizon, and most draft picks are not living up to the expectations they had when they were originally drafted. They also find themselves without all of their draft picks for the upcoming draft, and have not acquired any from other teams. Jay Feaster certainly has his work cut out for him after he took over the reigns from former GM Darryl Sutter, who stepped down during the 2010-11 season.

Maybe the Flames need to take a page from the Edmonton Oilers and rebuild. Although Flames fans would not admit it, they are not going to win a Stanley Cup with this group. They can still receive an excellent return on players like Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff. Adding a young, prosperous player and a draft pick or prospect will go a long way towards rebuilding for the future before players like Iginla and Kiprusoff, are too old and ineffective to either generate a decent return, or end up retiring.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have an underachieving team so far this year, but have a brighter future than the Flames.

Going into the season, many people expected the Leafs to make the playoffs, or at the very least contend for a playoff spot. Well, so far this season neither of those predictions have happened and there is likely too much ground to be made up for anything to change.

However, the Leafs have a very young team, and have an abundance of both prospects and draft picks (excluding two first round draft choices used to acquire sniper Phil Kessel, 1 of which the Boston Bruins selected highly-touted prospect Tyler Seguin).

The one area the Leafs have to make some decisions on is the back end. They have 3 experienced defensemen all of whom could be seeing their days in the hockey capital of Canada numbered. Francois Beauchemin, Mike Komisarek and Tomas Kaberle would all be a welcomed addition to any team, even if all it adds is depth. Kaberle is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the season’s end, meaning it would be ideal for the Leafs to acquire something for him to build towards the future from now until the trade deadline in March.

So....do you think the Calgary Flames should start the rebuilding phase, and what's the next move the Toronto Maple Leafs should make?

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

Should every team get to be represented in the NHL all-star game?

Originally, the all-star game was receiving a lot of hype about the new format which included a draft. Here we are, a couple months later, and we are staring controversy right in the face. Questions are arising as to whether or not every team should have a representative in the all-star game. Will the all-star game live up to all the pre-game hype?

When the all-star game announced that it was adopting Brendan Shanahan’s (among others) idea to have a draft style all-star game, fans raved at the idea. But now it is receiving some negative feedback.

Some of the best names in the NHL are being left out of the game, most notably, Detroit Red Wings superstar Henrik Zetterberg. Zetterberg is considered one of the best defensive forwards in the game today, and has amassed well over a point a game so far this season. Players that are being left out of the all-star game include the likes of Zetterberg, Ryan Getzlaf, Joe Thornton, and Dany Heatley to name a few, while roster spots are being taken by players that aren’t having spectacular years, like Phil Kessel, Patrick Elias and David Backes, among others.

This is perhaps the greatest number of star players being left out of an all-star game to date. When mixed with the largest number of questionable players being elected into the game, it's sure to stir up some debate.

From a marketing standpoint it is completely necessary to have a member of every team elected into the game to help produce the best ratings possible from every territory.

But from a fans’ standpoint, the all-star game is to showcase the league’s best talent. And when top players are being left off the list to make room for underachievers just because every team has to be represented, it starts to feel like it is not really an all-star game anymore, and is more a team all-star game.

Have your say on whether every team should have a representative, and whether you think that would dictate the ratings throughout the globe.

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods

2011 NHL All-Star Game

Remember when we were kids and it was time for a scrimmage at the end of practice? The coach would select two captains and they would get to choose their team in a draft style with the remaining players on the team. The NHL has adopted a different way to play the all-star game this year and we look at the all-star games for other major sports in North America.

We’ll fast forward to 2011 in Raleigh, North Carolina. The NHL is going to have a new format for the all-star game. Retired NHL superstars Brendan Shanahan and Rob Blake put this idea together with the help of others as a way to reach out and attract more fans and to make the game more exciting.

The fans will still have the opportunity to vote the starting 6 into the game (3 forwards, 2 defenceman and a goalie). There will also be a pool of 36 additional players to the starting 6 chosen by fan balloting as well as the NHL Hockey Operations Department. These 42 players will have a vote amongst themselves to decide who shall be the 2 teams captains.

Conferences have nothing to do with the all-star game this year.

There is certainly no doubt that the all-star games throughout major sports could all use an excitement boost, with the NFL Pro Bowl generating the worst audience of the four major sports in North America (hockey, baseball, basketball and football).

The MLB has input a format that the winning team between the National League and the American League will have home-field advantage for the World Series. This is the only incentive-based all-star game in major sports.

It could be argued that the MLB has the most competitive, and quite possibly, the most exciting all-star game. So is it just a matter of time before other sports follow suit and make the talent showcase count for something? Although the NHL is trying to make strides to improve their audience views and ratings, they still have some work to do. More details are to be released closer to the date of the all star-game.

Let us know if you think this will attract more people and make it more exciting, as well as any suggestions you may have.

Is the Shootout still desired around the NHL?

The National Hockey League introduced the shootout at the beginning of the 2005-06 season following the lockout as a way of attracting a broader spectrum of hockey fans over the world, especially in smaller hockey markets.

During its inaugural season, the shootout was craved by fans everywhere. People were excited to see the best players and goaltenders in the league going 1 on 1. Obviously, this was just during the regular season, as overtime in the playoffs was still continuous until a goal was scored.

However, the shootout was heavily criticized by many hockey experts and analysts over North America. They thought the shootout was tampering with the heart and soul of the NHL. They stated that one day the shootout (which was mainly inserted into the NHL for entertainment) would cost a team a playoff spot.

They were right. Last season the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers played their final game against each other with the winner moving on to the playoffs and the loser hitting the links. The game was tied after regulation and nobody could find the back of the net in the 5 minute, 4 on 4 overtime period that is played before the shootout. The Philadelphia Flyers went on to win the shootout and ended up making it to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they fell to the powerful Chicago Blackhawks in 6 games.

Experts believed, and to which I concur, the game between the Rangers and the Flyers should have been played with continuous overtime instead of going to the shootout, as the shootout was an unnatural way to eliminate a team from the post season.

Now here we are, less than a decade since the shootout was introduced to the NHL, and there is talk on how we can eliminate it from the game. The initial season’s hype for the shootout wore off quickly as many teams signed players that were specialists on breakaways, so they could play a trap game to get to the shootout, and have the best opportunity at the coveted extra point.

There have been many proposals as to how to eliminate it; the most popular seems to belong to Detroit Red Wings General Manager, Ken Holland. He suggested switching to an 8 minute overtime, 4 minutes of 4 on 4 hockey followed by 4 minutes of 3 on 3 hockey if there was still no winner. This would surely open the ice up during 3 on 3 play, and anyone that has ever played hockey knows that battling for both the puck, and position, is very fatiguing.

Another popular choice would be more likely to end the game in regulation, but once in overtime, would do nothing different to change how teams played. The winning team in this option was awarded 3 points for a regulation win. If the game was decided in overtime the winning team would get 2 points and the losing team 1. This option may not seem like it would eliminate the shootout to some people, but if there is a possibility of getting an extra point for deciding the game in regulation, you can bet teams would not be sitting back and waiting for overtime just so they get at least 1 point. Reasons against adopting this option is that it would ruin records set for points in a year if teams were consistently getting 3 points instead of 2.

I have an option that I myself thought would eliminate the shootout and have never heard suggested. Though it may not be popular amongst the league, it still is worth mentioning. Continue with the game the way it is being played. Still have 5 minutes of overtime, but instead of going to the shootout if it is tied after overtime, the game ends and both teams are awarded 0 points. You can bet that teams would not be trying to get to overtime just for a single point (which they would still receive for an overtime loss), for the fear of no one being able to score and receiving no points. You can also rest assured that if the game makes it into overtime, teams would not be playing the trap, they would be creating new offensive plays that they could use. Those creative plays, I can only imagine, would be extremely entertaining for the fans.

What choice the NHL decides to go with still remains to be seen, but there are viable options out there. Of course, there is no guarantee that there will be a change. There are people out there who like the way things are. However, the shootout is beginning to show signs of doing the opposite of what it was intended. The bottom line is, the NHL is going to do what's best for the fans, not what the players, coaches and GMs want, because the fans are what is keeping this game alive.

Let us know if you think the shootout needs to be removed, and what you think the best ways to eliminate it are.

On Thin Ice?

It's that time of the year again, and there are many surprises throughout the NHL as well as a couple coaches off to a slow start that find themselves in the hot seat.

NHL teams are approaching the 10 game mark and October is coming to an end. That means it's getting to the point that teams cannot say “it's still early” anymore. Teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders, Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens are off to great starts, putting speculation that their coaches are on a short leash to rest, at least for now.

Now let's look at the teams that have not lived up to expectations during the early stages of this NHL season. You have to look no further than the New Jersey Devils. Other teams to note include the Buffalo Sabres, Ottawa Senators and Phoenix Coyotes, all of which made the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and are at, or near, the bottom of their respective divisions.

Even teams like the Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, and Washington Capitals are off to what they would consider sluggish starts given their talent and depth. Veteran coaches in the NHL looking for work include Stanley Cup winner Ken Hitchcock, former Oilers player and coach Craig Mactavish, as well as a number of coaches that have proven themselves in the minors and deserve a shot in the big leagues.

Although it is in fact still early, the standings are starting to shape up and we are starting to get an idea of how the season will play out. The New Jersey Devils have rookie coach John MacLean behind the bench. Their play is showing that MacLean is just that, a rookie. They currently have a 3-9-1 record, and are tied for last place in the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers, who did not have very high expectations coming into this year. The Oilers also have 3 games in hand on the Devils.

I believe it is absurd to have a team like the New Jersey Devils, who had as high of expectations as anyone coming into the season, being coached by an inexperienced coach, let alone a rookie. MacLean has not been able to inspire either of his top players, Ilya Kovalchuk or Zach Parise. The Devils top off-season acquisition Kovalchuk, has just 6 points over his first 12 games, and all that while earning $6 million this year. Kovalchuk, 27, found himself in the coaches doghouse as well, getting healthy scratched for a game for undisclosed reasons, which was later reported as a result of missing a team meeting.

Parise, the man that scored the game-tying goal for team USA against team Canada goaltender, Roberto Luongo in the final minute of the mens Olympic Gold Medal game during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, has been equally disappointing. The Devils' sniper has not been himself, notching only 3 goals and 3 assists throughout his first 12 games. Not nearly good enough for someone tagged as a franchise player.

The number of teams off to surprising starts this year is definitely an increase over the past few years. The New York Islanders, who have gone through enough injuries to key players to last an entire season, have somehow managed a 4-3-2 start, good enough for 2nd in the competitive Atlantic Division.

The Toronto Maple Leafs sprinted out of the gate going 4-0-1 in their first 5 games. They have since cooled down but still sport a 5-4-1 record, which is 3rd behind the also surprising Montreal Canadiens.

The Canadiens made the Eastern conference finals last season stunning both Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals, as well as Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. They however made it that far thanks to the stellar goaltending of Jaroslav Halak, who they traded to the St. Louis Blues in the offseason, putting an end to the goaltender controversy that had been brewing for the past couple seasons. The move did not sit well with Montreal Canadiens fans. During the pre-season, it seemed as though they had made a terrible mistake trading their playoff hero away when Carey Price looked as though he couldn’t stop a beach ball. The crowd booed him on more than one occasion. As soon as the season started though, Price turned his game around, posting a 6-3-1 record, while arguably stealing a game or two.

The Calgary Flames are off to a 6-5 start leading the Northwest division. Calgary went through such scrutiny during the offseason for their signings of centre Olli Jokinen and winger Alex Tanguay. Both had previously been with the club and had not panned out as they had hoped.

The Buffalo Sabres, winners of the Northeast division last season, find themselves at the bottom of the division this year, trailing everyone including the Ottawa Senators. The Sens find themselves in a similar position to the Sabres, underachieving and looking to turn things around. Both teams need better performances from their players and should be able to turn things around.

The Phoenix Coyotes sit last in their division, and are looking for answers. Star goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov was the main reason the Coyotes found themselves playing hockey in the spring, instead of playing golf. He should have been a Hart Memorial Trophy finalist, as the award is supposed to go to the player judged to be most valuable to his team. Well, take away Bryzgalov, and the Coyotes are on the outside looking in.

All three finalists for the Hart Trophy, Henrik Sedin (who ended up winning), Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin, all had strong supporting players that played well all year, and likely would’ve found themselves in the playoffs even if they hadn’t had their best year. Bryzgalov is having a good year to date, but unfortunately, his Coyotes are struggling, possibly due to many players having career years last season. Or maybe it is because they have a number of players reaching the end of their careers? Whatever the reason, the Coyotes do not look like they have the jump this season to contend for the playoffs. Adding to the belief of many that last season’s success was a mere fluke, these teams' coaches have added pressure to win, or management may have no other choice, but to look for alternate coaching.

Off to a slow start as well, although with not as much reason to panic, are the Vancouver Canucks and Washington Capitals. Both teams are considered far too deep and skilled to continue playing the way they have been so far this year. Take into account, the Canucks are playing with injuries to key players. Alex Burrows, Sami Salo, Dan Hamhuis, and Keith Ballard are all out with injuries and all play a very important role.

The Philadelphia Flyers are sitting with a .500 record and are forcing people to ask the question; is this the team that went to the Stanley Cup Finals last season? Or the team that got into the playoffs on the last day of the NHL’s regular season with a must win shootout victory agains the New York Rangers? Ken Hitchcock’s coaching resume speaks for itself, he should find himself able to land work again in the NHL fairly soon. Craig Mactavish, is also a coach out there with experience and is well liked by his players.

Mike Keenan and Michel Therrien are two other coaches that are often brought up, along the never ending amount of minor league coaches hungry for an opportunity to prove themselves. Therrien however, does have work with the Minnesota Wild as a scout. With all this in mind, how long will it take before an NHL coach is fired? And who will it be?

NHL Salary Cap and the CBA

There was no hockey being played in the NHL during what would have been the 2004-05 season due to a lockout. That was the first time in North American sports history that a major professional sport had lost an entire season due to a labor dispute. Since then, the NHL and NHLPA have come to a collective bargaining agreement or CBA. The major component the NHL wanted was to instigate a salary cap. Prior to the lockout, the NHL was the only major sports league in North America that didn’t use a salary cap.

The NHL salary cap is intended to prevent teams in larger markets that generate more revenue, from attracting more top players with promises to pay them more than the smaller market teams can afford, thus having an unfair advantage.

The CBA was introduced as a way to prevent teams from being forced to relocate, sell, declare bankruptcy, or lose money. The purpose is to have every NHL franchise profiting from the service they provide to their respective NHL team’s markets. The NHLPA is more concerned with the care of the players in regards to the compensation they receive. The NHL is more concerned with the shape of the league and its 30 franchises and their markets. The CBA has many rules and restrictions, so many that it leaves the average person confused and uneducated.

Under the CBA, there is a term called the ‘cap hit’. This refers to the total salary the player will earn throughout the duration of his contract, divided by the number of years he is under contract. This is to prevent teams from paying a player more or less money in different years so they can load up his cap hit on years where they have the most cap room.

Cap room is the amount of money between the salary cap, and players total salaries. There is also a term known as the Mogilny rule. This term states that any player that signs a multi-year deal when he is 35 years or older, starting in the 2nd year of his contract, the amount of salary he earns will count against the team’s cap despite whether or not the player is on the active roster or not.

This is designed to prevent teams from signing players to front-loaded contracts that over-pay players significantly while both the NHL team and the player understand that there is a good chance he will not even play the duration of his contract before he retires.

There are penalties for violating these rules, both on the NHL team, and the player. The consequences depend on who was found at fault for the violation of the CBA. The consequences stem from individual player fines, to a forfeit of games and a loss of draft picks for the franchise.

The New Jersey Devils, who signed highly sought after free agent Ilya Kovalchuk, were recently punished by the NHL for salary cap circumvention, thus violating the CBA with the lucrative front-loaded contract that Kovalchuk and the franchise agreed upon. It was structured so that Kovalchuk would earn $102 million over 17 years, ending when he was 44 years old, at which point most players would have retired.

They ended up losing a first round draft choice, of which the Devils can choose to forfeit over the next 4 years. Kovalchuk and the Devils were also forced to restructure the contract to be compliant with the CBA. They ended up settling on a 15 year deal worth $100 million.

The initial contract that was rejected by the NHL caused questions to arise of whether or not other contracts that were already signed by different players and teams throughout the league, had violated the CBA as well. Numerous star players, of which had already had their contracts approved by the NHL, had already played a season or more under that current contract. The NHL decided to investigate this matter with threats of possible discarding and termination of the contracts.

Player’s lawyers and agents responded in a uproar, threatening to file lawsuits against the NHL if these contracts were voided. The investigation process is reported to still be underway, but is likely not going to take any actions, and is being used precisely as a scare tactic to put an end to contracts like Kovalchuk’s being offered.

The 2010-11 NHL season has a salary cap of $59.4 million, up $2.6 million from the 09-10 season. The minimum salary teams can pay their players is $43.4 million. Under the CBA that the NHL and NHLPA currently have, teams are allowed 1 player earning 20% of the team’s total salary cap per year, which is $11.88 million. This salary cap, and rightfully so, is being flirted with by many NHL teams worse than the prom queen at a high school graduation.

The New Jersey Devils are in the roughest of shape of NHL teams. During an NHL game, due to suspensions and injuries, they were unable to call up players from their AHL affiliate to ice a complete roster of 18 skaters. Instead of making a transaction to relieve their cap situation, they decided to play a game with only 15 skaters, essentially eliminating 1 of 4 forward lines. They ended up losing the game and from a spectators point of view, were lacking depth and energy that could have been resolved by having that extra line of forwards.

Fans and media all over the world that follow NHL hockey have their opinions of who they agree with, the NHL or the NHLPA.

Who are you behind?

Jordon Judge

HockeyGods