Wednesday Caps Clips
by J.P. on Sep 7, 2011 6:44 AM EDT
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Your savory breakfast links:
- The much-publicized big announcement? Alex Ovechkin will be a Bauer man for the foreseeable future, and he and the team are being rather charitable along the way. Oh, and he's not fat. [Capitals Overtime (video), 106.7 The Fan (audio from the presser, Ovechkin and Ted Leonsis), CI (El-Bashir), WashTimes (Whyno), NHL.com (Masisak), Puck Daddy, PHT, SB Nation DC (Vingan), RMNB, Caps News Network, Alex Ovetjkin, News From The Nosebleeds, HotH]
- (If you want to skip the endorsement stuff and get right to the AO-related substance, this bullet's for you.) [NHL.com (Masisak), WashTimes (Whyno), AP (White), CSN Washington (Gormley, who says farewell to his old gig here), WaPo (Carrera), CW (Whyno)]
- Whether it's the new gear or a general feeling that he's due for a big bounce-back season, folks are predicting big numbers from The Captain. [NHL.com (Cubeta), THN (Dobber), TSN (Cullen, with his projected top-300 scorers here)]
- In other news from out at Kettler (where the population of professional hockey players is increasing by the day), Tomas Vokoun met with local media and explained his decision to come to Washington... [CI (El-Bashir), CSN Washington (Gormley), Hockey Independent (Scriven)]
- ... while John Erskine revealed that he may not be ready to go at 100% when camp starts. [CI (Carrera)]
- A thought-provoking look at Nicklas Backstrom "in the Playoff Era." [Peerless]
- Matt Hendricks did a radio hit on The Junkies yesterday. [106.7 The Fan (audio)]
- Looking ahead, optimistically, to Michal Neuvirth's 2011-12. [RtR]
- Mike Green is "one of the very best five-on-five defensemen in the league, at least when it comes to generating offense." [Copper & Blue]
- When Dan Steinberg notes that a "certain sort of Caps fan just furrowed his brow in distress," it helps to create the visual of this piece being written. [OFB]
- Are there a dozen current NHL head coaches better than Bruce Boudreau? Are there 17 worse? [RLD]
- The panels for Caps Convention have been announced. [Capitals]
- Speaking of Caps Convention... PARTY! [Japers' Rink]
- Sometimes the games isn't just a game. Read up on USA Warriors hockey. [RMNB]
- Michael Nylander continues his comeback attempt (in Caps gear, no less). [Philly Sports Daily]
- Vote. [CBS Washington]
- Finally, happy 26th birthday to Eric Fehr and... it's Matt Cooke's 33rd birthday.
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Cullen’s projections look pretty reasonable. Ovechkin 77 GP 44-58-102 (Ross), Backstrom 79 GP 22-58-80, Semin 67 GP 31-30-61, Laich 81 20-29-49, Green 70 15-33-48, Brouwer 77 20-22-42, Carlson 80 8-31-39, Wideman 76 9-29-38, Knuble 76 20-16-36, Ward 77 15-18-33, Johansson 75 14-18-32. From these 11 players, that’s 218 goals. I’d go a little under for Laich and Brouwer and Carlson, a little over for Green and Johansson.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
I believe in next year.
Yeah, Johansson only getting 5 more points on the season seems a bit too modest. If he stays healthy that alone should be more than 5 points. And it’s realistic that his game will progress to some degree.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Personally, I’d base my projection for MoJo on his second-half – I’d throw out the first half entirely.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Today’s Noon Number polls those predictions, so save the discussion for that, if you’re so inclined.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Caught me just in time…..
"Shots aren't the important thing. Scoring chances are way more important than shots." - Bruce Boudreau
See my work on WaPo's Capitals Insider, ESPN Insider and Russian Machine Never Breaks (RMNB) Insider. I also log the Caps scoring chances. The 2010-11 summary spreadsheet is posted on Google Docs.
Follow me on Twitter @ngreenberg
Put the horse back in the barn, statboy.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Per THN:
Sjogren is best suited for a fourth-line role, which means Mathieu Perreault will not make this team.
Not quite sure about that. As we have said before, $ and waivers could be the deciding factor.
Despite being NHL ready, Perreault is best suited as a 35-point, third-line (energy line) player in the year ahead and then a second-line scorer two or three years down the line.
35 points? That’s if he is called up every other day.
"Shots aren't the important thing. Scoring chances are way more important than shots." - Bruce Boudreau
See my work on WaPo's Capitals Insider, ESPN Insider and Russian Machine Never Breaks (RMNB) Insider. I also log the Caps scoring chances. The 2010-11 summary spreadsheet is posted on Google Docs.
Follow me on Twitter @ngreenberg
I don’t see Matty P. being a 2nd line scorer two to three years down the road – at least not with the Caps.
Nice guys finish first, but sometimes the season is awfully long.
Follow me on Twitter.
If MP85 is a second line scorer on your team, then your team needs help on the second line. Matty is a decent player, but he’s best suited to a team as a third line guy who occasionally steps up to the second line. Problem is at his age he’s better off getting second line minutes in the AHL then 9 minutes or so at the NHL level.
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 10:27 AM EDT up reply actions
Per Cullen at TSN:
There are a few reasons to consider Ovechkin as a candidate for a bounceback season. First off, his shooting percentage of 8.7% was easily the lowest of his career, well below his average of 11.9%, so there’s a fair chance that he’ll score more goals this year.
Not so fast…… /teaser
"Shots aren't the important thing. Scoring chances are way more important than shots." - Bruce Boudreau
See my work on WaPo's Capitals Insider, ESPN Insider and Russian Machine Never Breaks (RMNB) Insider. I also log the Caps scoring chances. The 2010-11 summary spreadsheet is posted on Google Docs.
Follow me on Twitter @ngreenberg
Side note:
Cubeta’s NHL.com proj for Ovi is just a 4-year projection. Wouldn’t put too much stock in that, esp not for fantasy.
"Shots aren't the important thing. Scoring chances are way more important than shots." - Bruce Boudreau
See my work on WaPo's Capitals Insider, ESPN Insider and Russian Machine Never Breaks (RMNB) Insider. I also log the Caps scoring chances. The 2010-11 summary spreadsheet is posted on Google Docs.
Follow me on Twitter @ngreenberg
Not so fast
5v5 “total” (or “true”) shooting pct (goals / (shots + missed shots) )
07-08 8.7
08-09 7.1
09-10 10.3
10-11 6.0
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
I believe in next year.
by red army line on Sep 7, 2011 7:46 AM EDT up reply actions
I am not disputing his Sh% was the lowest of his career, just that I don’t expect a rebound in Sh% as much as others might. WaPo post on why coming prob next week.
"Shots aren't the important thing. Scoring chances are way more important than shots." - Bruce Boudreau
See my work on WaPo's Capitals Insider, ESPN Insider and Russian Machine Never Breaks (RMNB) Insider. I also log the Caps scoring chances. The 2010-11 summary spreadsheet is posted on Google Docs.
Follow me on Twitter @ngreenberg
Oh, my comment was meant to imply something similar (I think pct will rebound, but quantity needs to rebound in a big way, too)
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
I believe in next year.
by red army line on Sep 7, 2011 11:07 AM EDT up reply actions
OFB is just basically self-parody at this point
Why don’t we ever hear of a single Capitals player training with Roberts, as Tampa’s Steven Stamkos does, in the offseason?
These are young athletes in their 20s who are bazillionaires. I hate this moral superiority bullshit that people throw out there to justify how, in their opinion, these guys should be locked up and training 24/7. Give me a fucking break.
Now where's my hat? I'm going to the outhouse.
We don't have an outhouse
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 7:32 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs
I’m more impressed by this facet of Stamkos’ offseason regimen.
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
"This [job] would be so much easier if it wasn't for the fucking [customers]."
HE SHOULD NOT BE PLAYING BASEBALL AT ALL HE COULD SERIOUSLY INJURE HIMSELF AND I BET THEY HAVE BEER THERE HE SHOULD NOT BE DRINKING THAT. HE SHOULD BE SKATING RIGHT NOW BECAUSE SIDNEY CROSBY IS AND STEVE YZERMAN WOULD BE.
Now where's my hat? I'm going to the outhouse.
We don't have an outhouse
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 7:44 AM EDT up reply actions
"We’re good at stinking."
— Steven Stamkos
Well, we can hope that carries over to his day job.
If you've read this far...seek help.
by ThePeerless on Sep 7, 2011 8:59 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Yes and no. I don’t think you have to be with Gary Roberts to be training properly, Brooks Laich for example. And I don’t think anyone needs to be “locked up and training 24/7.” But as fans and financial providers for the league I don’t think it’s unfair to ask the players to make a commitment to being in proper shape for the season. There are just a lot of ways to do it without a) being with Roberts or b) developing the public reputation as a mad man in the weight room.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
I don’t disagree, and I also don’t think that you think there’s any problem with the boys going out for a fun reunion night two weeks before camp opens. Oh, and there’s also zippy indication that there was anything done in excess (other than the purchase of a Blue Moon, which is excessive upon first sip).
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
The whole piece just comes off as so condescending and smug to me. It reminds me of an old person writing a letter to the paper to complain about “kids these days”.
Now where's my hat? I'm going to the outhouse.
We don't have an outhouse
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 8:12 AM EDT up reply actions
That’s probably true as well, but I don’t click those links. I was responding to you on a philosophical level, not trying to defend the article.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Gotcha. My criticism was purely based on that article, which really rubbed me the wrong way this morning.
Now where's my hat? I'm going to the outhouse.
We don't have an outhouse
.....My tool shed!!!
Box Seats Blog
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 8:15 AM EDT up reply actions
Right, I can’t fault you for that. It’s why I stopped clicking those links.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
I have a 100% no OFB policy. Keeps my blood pressure to manageable levels.
by leacha on Sep 7, 2011 11:01 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
The whole piece just comes off as so condescending and smug to me.
In other words, you mean typical for OFB? I still can’t believe I used to read those guys regularly five or six years ago. What was I thinking?
Hey, they were the first blog I read when I became a caps fan. I could never figure out why there were hardly any comments till I came here.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
by WordsOnIce on Sep 7, 2011 9:23 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Exactly. I never complained about the social lives of any of the players until the questions about them being in shape came up. If you can take care of your business on the ice, I don’t care what you do.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Thoughts on working your way into shape so that you peak at the right time?
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
"This [job] would be so much easier if it wasn't for the fucking [customers]."
You didn’t ask me, but I’ll answer: it’s crap. Think about how many times you’ve told yourself, “Alright, I’ve got a physical on the calendar, so I’ll really buckle down for that last month and I’ll be fine when it rolls around.” Does that ever work?
To a large extent, I think being in adequate shape isn’t about peaking so much as maintenance, so I don’t think you run the risk of being in peak physical condition too soon – get there and stay there; it’s not rocket science.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Also, given the rigors of an NHL season, trying to either use the season itself to get into shape or to get in shape in addition to the demands of the season both seem somewhat unrealistic.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
It’s cool, the more the merrier. In terms of the genesis of this thread, it’s OFB. That said, the AP/ESPN piece with that quote kind of annoyed me.
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
"This [job] would be so much easier if it wasn't for the fucking [customers]."
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
"This [job] would be so much easier if it wasn't for the fucking [customers]."
So the quote isn’t what pisses you off, it’s what it conveys (that he was trying to play his way into shape)?
Obviously, this is all speculation.
That’s a bunch of spin, too. He tried something different because he came to camp out of shape. He wanted to work his way into shape so that he was peaking during the playoffs because it was his only option at that point.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
I personally think the way to have him at his peak in the playoffs is for him to come in to camp in top shape and then manage his minutes over the course of the season. I’m sure there were a lot of minutes that he didn’t need to be playing, certainly almost all the minutes he played after he hit 22 for the night. In games that aren’t in doubt, you could probably sit him more in the third period as well.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
I agree. I’m not sure I see it as “peaking” (as in something to work up to) as much as it’s minimizing the dings and maintaining a maximized endurance, etc. Peaking, to me, implies something unsustainable, and top physical condition (other than injuries) should be pretty sustainable for someone in his position.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
I’m with J.P. It’s crap. You need to be in great shape to start the season. It’s too long to think you are going to get in better shape all year. Maybe cardio-wise you can, but you’ll be losing muscle the entire time. You’re paid millions of dollars, you need to be in shape for all the games. It’s not Phil Esposito’s day, you don’t have half a season to get into game shape.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Cardio wise you definitely can. There is a reason top grand tour contenders are not in top shape for the first week of a three week cycling race. They come in planning to ride into shape. While a three week race is not an 82 game season, they do plan their entire training around peaking for a couple of races.
↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → b a (select) start
I would argue that working your way into shape is a bit easier, and a bit more logical, in an individual sport like cycling. “Peaking” is common in gymnastics as well (I won’t bore everyone with the details unless someone really wants to know), and I was trying to think if peaking and getting yourself into top competition shape and doing maximum difficulty has a parallel in hockey, but I can’t really come up with any connection.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
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Seems to me hockey is more like football: the players need to be in max physical shape right before the seasons starts, because it’s all downhill from there. The guys that hold out in training camp in NFL always get hurt.
yeah, that’s my thought, speaking strictly as a bleacher observer.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
Pledge Drive 2010-2011: SO KIDS CAN!! Help build a playground
It’s similar for dancers with long performance schedules. You must be prepared for the long-haul at the beginning, then it is maintenance with an occasional change in routine so your body doesn’t wear out doing the same thing every day, keep returning to the basics so you don’t fall into bad habits, and carve out downtime for physical and mental recuperation.
(Yes, I know about the avatar hounding - just pretend mine is invisible.)
I tried similarly for cycling. Both are long grinds, but with hockey there are far more frequent bouts of intensity required. It requires endurance, but is not an endurance sport, so the comparison probably is not the best.
↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → b a (select) start
with hockey you’re playing an intensely physical game for the entire season with rare breaks. In cycling it’s all cardio all the time. I was a swimmer and I’m sure the training theories are similar. You may have meets the whole year but you prepare for a couple ones specifically through out the year by having intense conditioning then easing up on the conditioning and focusing on faster shorter distances as the meet approaches.
You can’t expect to get in shape while playing because you don’t have enough time during the season to keep up the kind of cardio routine you would need to get into shape. You’ll spend most of your rest days recovering from the games. Practices during the season focus on team play and skills rather than cardio. A couple weeks of training camp isn’t enough to get you into shape from an “out of shape” condition. That’s not to say they don’t do cardio during the season, but you can’t get the kind of conditioning workouts that you’d need to get into shape initially and still expect to play during the season.
The physicality of the sport also plays into it. If you’re out of shape you’ll take short cuts, not play as hard as your opponent and you’ll get hurt. If you’re AO, you’ll take 2 minute shifts even while out of peak shape, be 3 steps too slow and cost your team a scoring opportunity and possibly a goal.
Suspend Colin Campbell!
Gary Roberts?...pffft
My training regimen starts every day with…
If you've read this far...seek help.
by ThePeerless on Sep 7, 2011 1:31 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I don’t know why I even read it. The players are tricklling in, they aren’t even “officially” in training camp yet, and they can’t go out one evening together and have a few drinks? Is OFB going to write such a post every time a Cap is seen somewhere with a drink? Clearly they don’t have enough substance to write about.
Are you not entertained?
Why don’t we ever hear of a single Capitals player training with Roberts, as Tampa’s Steven Stamkos does, in the offseason?
But look, they’ve got a point. Who you’re training with matters. Just once I’d like to see an article indicating that a Caps player is training with a former Olympic speed skating star. Or the head of a national track and field team. I bet those Olympic workouts would be pretty impressive.
Or how about the personal trainer who set up the training regimen for the 2008/09 Hart and 08/09/10 Pearson/Lindsay award winners. I bet that personal trainer knows what he’s doing. It’d be good to hear that a Caps player is working with that guy.
"Fais gros comme moi!" - Alex Ovechkin
by Gould Old Days on Sep 7, 2011 9:04 AM EDT up reply actions 12 recs
Um, I don’t know OFB, why don’t we? If only there was a computer based method for publishing such information for folks to read?
Why don’t we hear about Stamkos donating over 200 pairs of hockey equipment to local hockey programs? Since we don’t, we must conclude that he is a totally selfish a-hole.
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
It’s days like today that really hammer home just how important it is to write thousand-word blog posts about grown men responsibly enjoying adult beverages weeks before training camp.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Sep 7, 2011 4:04 PM EDT up reply actions 5 recs
Three players get that treatment.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
I’m not sure Jagr’s on the list… it might be four guys.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
000
?
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We don't have an outhouse
.....My tool shed!!!
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 9:12 AM EDT up reply actions
Wow, thought JJ was a slam dunk.
Cooke, Corvo…i’m at a loss…
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
I believe Esa Tikkanen is on JP’s list (he wouldn’t be on mine)
"Fais gros comme moi!" - Alex Ovechkin
by Gould Old Days on Sep 7, 2011 9:13 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah. Wow, talk about holding a grudge. Guy misses one open net to seal a series tying game (and the teams first ever SC Finals game win) which leads to the team getting swept in its first and only Finals and perhaps jinxes the team for ever, and the guy can’t even get a proper birthday wish. Harsh.
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
The guy can get a proper Bday wish when he can say “happy birthday” in an intelligible manner. And hit an empty net.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
by Rob Parker on Sep 7, 2011 9:18 AM EDT up reply actions 5 recs
Harsh indeed when you consider the Caps likely don’t make the finals that year without Tikkanen on the roster. And if he hits that empty net to tie the series at 1-1, we’d all be bemoaning that the Caps lost their only Finals appearance to date in 5 games. No way the 1997-98 Caps beat the 1997-98 Red Wings 4 out of 7 no matter what Tikkanen does on that play.
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 10:31 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
Yeah, let’s chill out on the Bill Buckner treatment. It’s not like the Caps were even remotely competitve throughout that series. Tikkanen scoring that goal maybe buys them one win, maybe.
Disagree. They clearly win that game and go home 1-1. Who knows what happens then? No one. Because Esa Tikkanen missed a gaping net.
Fuck that guy.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Sep 7, 2011 11:27 AM EDT up reply actions 5 recs
Be prepared, he’s guesting in next week’s Curb.
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
"This [job] would be so much easier if it wasn't for the fucking [customers]."
by Bald Pollack on Sep 7, 2011 11:28 AM EDT up reply actions
The only time I want to hear “Tikkanen” and “curb” together is with the word “stomp” added at the end.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Of course it is. But the punchline didn’t set up for “I hope someone hits him square in the back of the head with a big water balloon.”
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Sep 7, 2011 11:35 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
A distraction on a miserable day even if it’s not a happy memory either…I haven’t brought this up in a long time, but my memory of that game and another very important turning point was Chris Simon taunting the Red Wings bench after one of the Caps goals.
Never the brightest bulb in the chandelier, that Si.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Simon is the indisputable proof that Adam Oates should be a hall of famer. How else can you explain Simon scoring 29 goals one year?
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 2:38 PM EDT up reply actions
Eh, at the very least scoring that goal might have prevented the Wings from skating the Cup on our ice in front of our fans a bunch of Wings fans.
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
by dcsportsfan1 on Sep 7, 2011 11:47 AM EDT up reply actions
Couple of interesting Russian articles. One is the interview by Slava of Ovi yesterday. Most of it is the translation of stuff he said in English to other reporters, but a few things were new. He was asked about Kuznetsov.
You met this summer with Eugene Kuznetsov – with the happy circumstances. What say?
Kuzma asked me about Washington, about the difference between playing in the NHL. When we were at the recreation center, then took to the ice, and he showed me something that he can. I saw it as a really nice guy who loves hockey, and was sincere udovollstvie of communication.
Here’s another article also on Sport-Express about Kuz.
Full quote on Varly. Google trans version doesn’t make complete sense but I am not convinced Ovi was insulting Varly.
How to exchange seeds Varlamov apprehended?
On the one hand, it is not a man who spoke in Russian. But again, it’s hockey, a business of us do not depend on. Three years later, I finished the action of the relevant item of the contract and the club will be able to trade in any me too. Well, from this exchange, we came up with a great goalie Vokounom and first and second numbers draft. It’s a pity that it will not have Varlamov, but it is the best option to continue a career. He will play in a team where he would not be such pressure, as here. And it will feel like number one.
Thanks for posting that. Didn’t know Ovi skated with Kuz when he saw him at his wedding. And I love that he was trying to impress him with his skills. Ballsy.
"You can want to get to April but when you get to April you may not like the answers you get, so you might as well enjoy the ride while it's going on." - Brian McNally on JRR, 8/29/2011
Hilarious how in the translation Steckel obviously = spectacles = glasses. Ovi may not have commented, yet, about Bradley/Steckel, and Katie said neither McPhee nor Leonsis would comment, but Jill Sorenson did have this little video of Leonsis somewhat addressing it.
Are you not entertained?
I like when athletes don’t realize that “don’t talk about it” includes “also don’t talk about us telling you not to talk about it.”
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
On JRR, Dmitry was very surprised that Ovi never called Varly after he was traded. Maybe this explains why.
Varly changed his phone number when he came back to the US at the end of June and apparently he didn’t share it with many people. Varly saw Ovie and Semin in Turkey in June on vacation (along with Orlov). In July when Varly went to CO for the press conference, Ovi was in Denver that day as well and Slava and Chesnokov asked him about it. Varly said he didn’t know Ovi was there, but he would have called him if he did. Later in August Varly parked his car in Ovi’s driveway while he flew back to Russia for a few weeks. Ovi has said a few nice things about Varly since the trade, he thinks it’s a good thing for Varly and wishes him well. I think his point here is being misunderstood. At the very least it would be nice if Slava had followed up on that.
Varly had said multiple times that he was looking forward and not to the past, maybe that includes moving on to new friends as well. I think Ovi and Semin are BFFs, and while Varly spent a lot of time with them (his own words), perhaps he wasn’t quite as close to them.
I just recalled something Slava said on a radio interview on the Fan about the 3 Russians on the Caps. He said Varly was different than the other two in that he didn’t go out as much and liked a quieter lifestyle.
Quieter than Sasha “I don’t speak English”? Impressive.
Proud member of the Popsicle Division of the Cupcake Conference.
quieter as in stay home more or whatever, can’t recall the details although I am sure someone could dig up the interview on the Fan. He also said in the same interview that he thought Ovie and Semin should be separated to different teams, one reason was because their close friendship made others feel excluded.
Mike Green’s alright, but he’s no Mike Weaver.
I’m not really sure what to make of these numbers. Obviously you should probably throw out the guys with fewer games played, but it doesn’t seem clear to me that these numbers are indicative of too much. There’s a lot of moving parts going on, and I think it’s especially difficult for D to control these numbers; it seems highly dependent on who you get to play with (though I’m not entirely sure which direction the teammates cut). It’s an interesting number, but not something I’m prepared to bank too much on going forward.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
My thoughts precisely. I have to imagine the year-to-year random variation is very high. The Carolina paragraph, which notes that good players are at the bottom of these lists, captures some of that for me. But bad players are also at the tops of some of these lists. So what good are the lists?
"Fais gros comme moi!" - Alex Ovechkin
by Gould Old Days on Sep 7, 2011 9:07 AM EDT up reply actions
I thought Sloan was interesting in that regard. Sure, he had a 50% IPP – but he was only on for 10 goals in 33 games. That seems to be an indictment to me.
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
Well that’s why I said to throw out the sample size. Lovejoy is in the same boat for PIT.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
No way to utilize the numbers to compare players on different teams either.
Just curious, but why bring up Mike Weaver? Not ‘zactly in 52’s class.
It’s a running joke. Earlier this year BB talked about how he moved AO to the right side against FLA because he wanted to get AO away from Mike Weaver. Seemed to me that when AO is on all cylinders it doesn’t matter who is against him, and I’ve seen him eat better D alive. But now he needs to be matched away from Mike Weaver…
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Really? I understand if you play with ultra-talented players, you may get fewer% (like on the power play), but guys who have a well above-average ability to play offense show up near the top year after year.
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by red army line on Sep 7, 2011 12:01 PM EDT up reply actions
And guys with lesser ability are up there as well. If you play with guys that can create something out of nothing, you may see your % drop, and it has nothing to do with how good you are. Or if your job is to just give the puck to the talent on the line, your % may increase (what did Zubrus’ and Clark’s numbers look like with AO?).
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Not really…? Maybe the order is a little messed up, and certainly among guys that are close you could go either way depending on contextual factors, but seems like good PMDs rise to the top.
I understand your logic, but I don’t think that players tend to see enough time in those situations to really make it significant. My thinking is along the lines of QoT: if Mike Green took every shift in 2009-2010 with AO-19-22-55, he’s have a Corsi Rel QoT of 10.575, but he “only” got 2.114, meaning he spent a lot of time with other players as well. Not sure that
play with guys that can create something out of nothing, you may see your % drop, and it has nothing to do with how good you are.
happens enough for a guy like Volchenkov to come to the top. Also not sure that enough people play with Ovechkin-Backstrom types (who can score off the rush with regularity, needing only one additional touch) for
Or if your job is to just give the puck to the talent on the line, your % may increase
to happen.
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by red army line on Sep 7, 2011 1:57 PM EDT up reply actions
So basically, then, the list is telling you what you already know, but in a very rough manner? You say “good PMDs rise to the top” but that’s because you already think those guys are good PMDs. There is plenty to dispute on that list. You think anyone has Jovo in their top 5 PMD? Or even Montador, for that matter?
Obviously, this is all speculation.
So basically, then, the list is telling you what you already know, but in a very rough manner?
Kind of? If you pay attention to breakdowns (PP vs ES scoring) and to things like GFON/60, that’s really all there is to it. Pts/60 relative to GFON/60.
You think anyone has Jovo in their top 5 PMD? Or even Montador, for that matter?
How much of that is a function of not playing in a huge market? Jovo has 135 pts over the last four seasons. And linked to in the comments:
As one can see from the chart, Montador’s 5-on-5 numbers compare favourably to some of the game’s best-known offensive defenceman. Since 2007-08, just three defencemen have managed to record one point or more for every 60 minutes of even-strength ice-time they play in every single season: Montador, Green, and Andrei Markov. That’s rarefied air.
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by red army line on Sep 7, 2011 4:25 PM EDT up reply actions
JP – wondering which part of my Neuvy prediction you thought was optimistic. Games played? Thanks.
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Nope, I think that’s right in the ballpark. But I think everything else – the record, the GAA, the SV% – might be a smidge on the optimistic side. More than anything, though, “Looking ahead, optimistically, to Michal Neuvirth’s 2011-12” gets you more page views (a not insignificant goal, right?) than “Looking ahead to Michal Neuvirth’s 2011-12” because it teases the post better.
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ah, touche. with the predictions, I just looked at this year and thought they should be a little bit better than last, especially in fewer games. Thanks!
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by hankthetank5503 on Sep 7, 2011 8:23 AM EDT up reply actions
Via Chesnokov and others
A charter carrying members of Lokomotiv (KHL) crashed at takeoff. 37 on board, 1 survived.
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
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OMG
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Recognizable names to me: Pavol Demitra, Karel Rachunek, Ruslan Salei, Karlis Skrastins, Josef Vasichek,
Just terrible.
Nice guys finish first, but sometimes the season is awfully long.
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And, of course, if things this summer had gone differently, there was a chance that Semyon Varlamov would have been playing for them instead of in Colorado.
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by Gould Old Days on Sep 7, 2011 9:13 AM EDT up reply actions
Oh yes, I read an article from July where Varly said he talked with Lokomotiv before SKA and was considering going there (also there was interest from other KHL teams), he was mainly drawn to SKA to work with Jussi Parkkila. Another problem was he didn’t know how long the disagreement between Lokomotiv and SKA would drag on, so that was a reason for giving up the KHL idea, besides the fact he really wanted to play in the NHL anyway. So if GMGM hadn’t traded him, he could have been on Lokomotiv team.
Just horrible news. How sad.
I had Pavol on many a fantasy team. Always was a big fan of his.
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by Alz in the family on Sep 7, 2011 9:26 AM EDT up reply actions
How horrible. My condolences to all.
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by Backeez Got Back on Sep 7, 2011 10:12 AM EDT up reply actions
___
Skrastins daughter (via HFBoards):
Just… an unimaginably awful day.
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That’s how I felt when I saw that picture of Wade Belak on the ice blowing a kiss to his daughter in the stand, who was blowing a kiss to him.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
Yep. Well on our way to the saddest Tumblr ever…
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Wow. That’s jaw-dropping terrible news.
"Fais gros comme moi!" - Alex Ovechkin
by Gould Old Days on Sep 7, 2011 9:10 AM EDT up reply actions
Lokomotiv’s roster, per Wiki.
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A bit more news. Warning – there’s some graphic, vivid language in it that may be disturbing.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20110907/166504776.html
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
I saw another story that said
Witnesses are reporting that the plane was reduced to a pile of charred metal. It is reported that the plane broke off in two and one half fell into water and another one on the ground.
Thoughts and prayers. Just terrible.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 9:13 AM EDT up reply actions
wow, this is stomach punch news.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/09/07/international/i060201D06.DTL
A Russian jet carrying a local ice hockey team crashed Wednesday while taking off in western Russia, killing 36 people and leaving one critically injured, officials said.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8295691
Emergency ministry officials were quoted as saying one person survived the crash.
Chesnokov now tweeting that lone survivor was a crew member. No word yet on who exactly was on the plane, but it dawned on me, that we also haven’t heard any players speaking up to say “I’m not on the plane.”
Nice guys finish first, but sometimes the season is awfully long.
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It’s just been one terrible, tragic story after another.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 9:31 AM EDT up reply actions
I can’t imagine how I’d feel if our entire team was in a crash like this…
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Or how our team themselves feels.
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I’ve been wondering that. I was just thinking about how the RinkRebel was tweeting how happy they all were on the ice yesterday or so…
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I wonder who from our team will be going back for funerals….
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by bilspacecadet on Sep 7, 2011 9:42 AM EDT up reply actions
the whole thing just makes me numb. An entire team.
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Just awful, awful news….
Come on, October, get here so this horrible offseason can end already!
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 10:37 AM EDT up reply actions
Pure tragedy. Ugh.
"...what're you gonna do?"
by Rainbow, Kitty, Beer on Sep 7, 2011 12:23 PM EDT up reply actions
Wyshynski RT’d that Stefan Liv, a Wings G prospect, is one of the confirmed passed.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 9:49 AM EDT reply actions
This makes me wish I could hug Varley, and be glad it wasn’t him.
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Oh Christ.
Via Chesnokov
Lokomotiv official tells Sovetsky Sport "everyone from the main roster was on the plane + 4 players from the youth team.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 9:54 AM EDT up reply actions
Possibly Colby Armstrong’s brother Riley as well.
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DGB says Riley not on flight.
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by Alz in the family on Sep 7, 2011 10:17 AM EDT up reply actions
Me too.
I can’t wrap my head around this disaster. Unbelievably shocking.
by capsyoungguns on Sep 7, 2011 9:56 AM EDT up reply actions
Nicklas Bäckström talked to Hockeysverige about Liv. They were friends and had played for Tre Kronor together.
I heard about the accident and I can’t say anything other than what happened today is just awful. First, Stefan was a very good friend of mine, and then that the whole team was killed in the accident. You can say nothing bad about Stefan as a friend. He was a very happy and positive person and he always had a smile on his face. The news was awful to receive and hard to comprehend.
Horrible. Pretty difficult to find any team in the hockey world that’s untouched by this, I’d wager.
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Absolutely.
From youth and junior hockey to international teams to pro teams, plus camps.
I was just looking at an NHL.com story with only 6 players plus McCrimmon listed and at least 2/3 of the current NHL teams were listed in that story alone.
Horrible.
I can’t even really process the scale of this. We say every loss of someone in the hockey community touches everyone else, but this is so far beyond.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
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Isn’t that Kuz’s KHL team?
Tu ne cede malis
by _Skullduggery_ on Sep 7, 2011 9:56 AM EDT via iPhone app reply actions
*growls*
Yet again, I am reminded why I should NEVER READ THE COMMENTS on Puck Daddy. Especially for an article about the Lokomotiv crash.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
Hi everyone – After being away for a bit, this wasn’t the news day I was hoping for knowing I was going to be able to be online today. Horrible news.
Awassers Alex Wasserstrom
CNN is reporting that the plane collided with the antenna of the airport beacon upon take off. #Lokomotiv
You perhaps knew me better as "Your Nation's Capital." Same great commentary, now with 100% more transparency!
I know this is supposed to be an offhand remark, but there is a long list of reasons an aircraft would be unable to gain altitude in a timely fashion. Off the top of my head, an overweight aircraft, an aircraft out of it’s certified center of gravity, taking off with a tailwind, trying to force the aircraft off the runway before gaining sufficient speed(perhaps due to lack of available runway), etc. etc. We don’t know where the beacon was, how high it was, or what the ATC commands given to the pilots.
I’m a private pilot, and we’re trained on this stuff. The guys who fly the big iron are drilled even more, and yet mistakes still happen. Pilots are human. It also doesn’t have to be a Russian aviation issue – the Comair Flight 191 crash in Kentucky comes immediately to mind.
Air Florida Flight 90 came to mind personally.
I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.
by iwearstripes on Sep 7, 2011 12:13 PM EDT up reply actions
Rumor round the campfire is that it was overloaded.
Comrades, leave me here a little, while as yet 't is early morn:
Leave me here, and when you want me, sound upon the bugle-horn
My top three completely uninformed guesses would be 1) Overload 2) Engine problem leading to lack of airspeed or 3) Taking off with a tailwind. Apparently an eye witness said the plane was wobbling, which would be an indication of an impending stall(the wing ceasing to create lift).
As a pilot who listens to enough “Your airplanes are dangerous” these really get to me. They are preventable, and are human error, not machine induced. If you ask an aircraft to do something outside its performance envelope, it will fail.
more details from CNN
An aviation agency spokesman, Sergei Izvolsky, told CNN the crash occurred around 4 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) during take-off because the plane couldn’t reach a safe altitude fast enough.
The aircraft collided with the antenna of the airport beacon, fell to the ground and broke into several pieces and caught fire, Izvolsky said.
According to a google translate of this, only one player survived
↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → b a (select) start
@SlavaMalamud Alexander Galimov, the only confirmed player to survive, is in the critical condition with burns and broken bones.
Nice guys finish first, but sometimes the season is awfully long.
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An unconfirmed report (read: tweet) on Galimov says he’s in a coma, for what that’s worth.
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by Bald Pollack on Sep 7, 2011 10:26 AM EDT up reply actions
Everything is unconfirmed, but if he did survive the initial crash as has been reported from multiple sources, it could be medically induced; regardless sounds like horrible injuries and hope he makes it.
Newest updates indicating Salei may not have been on the plane.
Thoughts and prayers to all involved!
I saw that update re: salei, but even the article that brought it forth calls it an unconfirmed rumor.
↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → b a (select) start
SlavaMalamud Slava Malamud
by SWhyno
The authorities are currently treating the crash as a criminal investigation.
Am I missing something? Or is this just due to how soon afterwards it is?
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
standard operating procedure in Russia, I believe. criminal investigation until the evidence says otherwise.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
Pledge Drive 2010-2011: SO KIDS CAN!! Help build a playground
Same in the USA… when a plane crashes it’s treated as a crime scene until they can determine it wasn’t a crime.
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions
Slava also said the plane was an older, obsolete model that the government ordered retired but Slava said, “It is a standard plane for mid-range flights among KHL teams, though it’s uncertain how many teams use it.” (Wash Times)
one of the russian sites said
The crashed plane Yak-42D by “Yak Service” was released on October 1, 1993. It made its first flight 18 years ago
I’ll see if I can find it again
Makes for a nice distraction, though. On the Caps site?
by DrinkingPartner on Sep 7, 2011 10:44 AM EDT up reply actions
From SB Nation (Adam V):
31 Philipp Grubauer………. G
33 Mattias Sjogren………… C/RW
40 Steffen Soberg………….. G
47 Scott Wietecha…………. D
49 Stanislav Galiev……….. C/LW
50 Cody Eakin………………. C/LW
54 Danick Paquette……….. RW
61 Mitch Elliot……………….. LW
63 Garrett Ross…………….. LW
65 Samuel Carrier………….. D
66 Dustin Stevenson……… D
68 Brett Flemming…………. D
73 Luke Lockhart…………… RW
76 Garrett Mitchell…………. RW
78 Brandon Anderson…… G
81 Dmitry Orlov…………….. D
87 Samuel Henley………….. LW
88 Reid Edmondson……… F
89 David De Kastrozza…… RW/LW
94 Jimmy Oligny…………… D
95 Thomas Frazee…………. C
96 Taylor Stefishen……….. LW
97 Tyler Ludwig…………….. D
98 Nick Tabisz………………. D
Schedule:
Sunday, September 11: 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. – Practice
11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. – On-ice testing
Monday, September 12: 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Practice
Tuesday, September 13: 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Practice
Wednesday, September 14: 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Practice
11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. – Scrimmage
Thursday, September 15: 5:00 p.m. – Rookie Game v. Philadelphia at Wells Fargo Center
"You can want to get to April but when you get to April you may not like the answers you get, so you might as well enjoy the ride while it's going on." - Brian McNally on JRR, 8/29/2011
Yea!!!! I can’t wait to see Paquette again.
(Yes, I know about the avatar hounding - just pretend mine is invisible.)
Just trying for some levity on this gloomy day.
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gotcha
Here are my notes on the roster as released:
3 goalies:
78 Brandon Anderson contract
31 Philipp Grubauer contract
40 Steffen Soberg Caps pick/unsigned
8 dmen:
68 Brett Flemming contract
81 Dmitry Orlov contract
66 Dustin Stevenson contract
98 Nick Tabisz SC contract
65 Samuel Carrier Caps pick/unsigned
97 Tyler Ludwig FA invite signed with Tyler Americans
94 Jimmy Oligny FA invite
47 Scott Wietecha FA invite
13 forwards:
50 Cody Eakin contract
49 Stanislav Galiev contract
76 Garrett Mitchell contract
54 Danick Paquette contract
33 Mattias Sjogren contract
89 David De Kastrozza Hershey contract
96 Taylor Stefishen Caps rights/ unsigned
88 Reid Edmondson FA invite
61 Mitch Elliot FA invite
95 Thomas Frazee FA invite
87 Samuel Henley FA invite
73 Luke Lockhart FA invite
63 Garrett Ross FA invite
by sk84fun_dc on Sep 7, 2011 11:13 AM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
Thanks for this.
He's a better skater than Nick, but he's big in the back[side]...BB
by Backeez Got Back on Sep 7, 2011 11:33 AM EDT up reply actions
Sure; looks like with the exception of Ludwig (and de K who is under contract with Hershey) all of the FA invites were in attendance at the development camp in July. Also, it looks like all of the junior/pro free agent (not NCAA for obvious reasons) invites from development camp are returning except for the Q goalie, Gervais-Chouinard.
Mirtle just posted news from Demitra’s agent that he was among the victims.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 11:04 AM EDT reply actions
SWhyno Stephen Whyno
#Caps goalie Tomas Vokoun was too distraught to talk. Spokesman said his best friend was on board, needs a few days before talking.
I wonder what other Caps had friends on the plane.
Also, Demitra’s agent confirmed that he was on the flight.
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
Also reports that Galimov’s injuries are fatal.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 11:12 AM EDT up reply actions
Chesnokov:
Young Urychev and Sobchenko who won the recent WJHC were also on board
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 11:26 AM EDT up reply actions
Good god…
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/08/world/europe/08russia.html
The Yak-42 is a three-engine, 120-seat jet that first entered service in 1975. There are currently about 90 of the planes in service, most of which are operated by Russian airlines, though several are operated by abroad in countries like Cuba, Iran, Armenia, Tatarstan and Kazakhstan. The model has suffered a total of eight crashes involving 570 fatalities.
According to Russia’s Interstate Aviation Committee, the plane involved in Wednesday’s crash had the tail number RA-42433, a Yax-42D, the most recent build of the plane, which ceased production in 1999.
So far, 2011 has been a terrible year for air safety in Russia, with eight crashes that have killed 120 people. Six of those crashes have occurred since June.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
We’re going to go ahead and post our Noon Number at, um, noon today, but please don’t take our “business as usual” approach as insensitive to the events of the day – I’ve just got nothing to add but thoughts and prayers.
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Leslie Nielsen isn’t invited to the conversation.
Bruce Boudreau when asked about Brooks Laich's return to the lineup, he said: "He just adds another dimension to our team. If it was puzzle, he just fits that thing. He completes us."
Brooks Laich completing everything from teams to tires and everything in between.
Still in shock about today’s news even though it’s always a worry with sports teams and how much they travel.
I’m surprised the KHL as of now plans for tomorrow’s games to be played, perhaps that will change.
Very OT so early after the news and thoughts and prayers to anyone who knew someone involved, but I assume there will be some non-Russian (and maybe some Russian) KHL players who may consider leaving the KHL given travel concerns.
Slava tweeted that he thinks the decision to keep the KHL schedule going is due to them not having time yet to wrap their minds around this tragedy. I can see that. Sort of automatic pilot until it all sinks in.
I just hope Crosby and the Penguins postpone his presser.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
Yeah, but then ESPN will have no hockey news to report on today. This is sadly only a grain of snark.
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
Wisco tweeted that sportscenter hasn’t mentioned it at all.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
A friend is watching religiously, and he says it was mentioned almost in passing.
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
yeah there’s been one “breaking news” mention in the past hour, but there’s been several more “breaking news” mentions of the latest conference maneuvering of Texas A&M.
The showcase on the front page of ESPN.com for the last few hours has been an OTL piece on Junior Johnson.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:31 PM EDT up reply actions
I hate being “this guy,” but it makes sense. College Football is massive in the scheme of USA Sports. Russian hockey, not so much. It’s a pretty niche group. ESPN probably realizes that most hockey fans are already hearing this from other sources, and the story is so depressing why put it out to a market that really doesn’t get it?
Note: As I type this and turn on sports center, the next blip is “Tragedy in Russia.”
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
I get what you mean, but any football fan who knows about Marshall can sympathize with this.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
Yeah, for sure, it’s tragic. But there’s stories that “affect things that the target audience cares about,” and stories that are worth knowledge and, despite how tragic they are, should be told.
If this were 10 years ago, we probably don’t hear about it for a couple of days in terms of how bad it is.
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
Some of the ESPN anchors agree with this:
@LindaCohn:
Athletes in every sport at every level are in shock over KHL tragedy. One moment your flying to your season opener, the next you’re gone.
"You can want to get to April but when you get to April you may not like the answers you get, so you might as well enjoy the ride while it's going on." - Brian McNally on JRR, 8/29/2011
Considering what’s come out about Russia’s pretty miserable track record in terms of flight safety, along with a giant soccer star like Samuel Eto’o signing a big deal to play there (where among other things, he’ll have to fly to every home game he plays), and the fact that NBA stars could be headed there to play if the season falls on its ass, this should be a really big story.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:41 PM EDT up reply actions
But at least 43 athletes are dead. It certainly should matter more at this point than an update on Peyton Manning’s injury (now the lead story, bumping the crash story to third), and Texas A&M’s moving to the SEC. I’d feel the same way if it were 43 basketball players or 43 figure skaters or 43 of any other sport I don’t really “care” about.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:38 PM EDT up reply actions
I may be terrible for saying this, but I wouldn’t feel anywhere near as bad. I’d probably have that gut grab of “Oh shit, dude, that sucks.” But in the end, I think I’d be over it pretty quick. This will probably take a while, and it’s entirely due to my having familiarity with some of the players on the plane, it being a sport I care about, etc. No way do I feel the same way if the Bosnian Rugby team goes down.
Also, ESPN will report it soon, I think. I think they’re putting the video together now and details keep changing, so they aren’t putting it out yet (Sportscenter is anything but live). I really hope Karl Ravech doesn’t deliver it. Please.
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
I don’t think it’s terrible, I think it’s human nature. It’s a tragedy that happened to individuals that were part of something you loved, persons perhaps you were familiar with, and with it affected individuals who you yourself care about (Ovechkin, Voukon, list is endless).
The stronger the perceived connection to the tragedy, the more it’s going to affect you. That’s not unnatural at all.
by Charlie Foxtrot on Sep 7, 2011 1:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Depends on how the KHL media will spin it No idea what Lokomotiv will do as far as…the season…though. A bit early to be wondering but I just can’t think of protocols for such a thing to occur.
Bruce Boudreau when asked about Brooks Laich's return to the lineup, he said: "He just adds another dimension to our team. If it was puzzle, he just fits that thing. He completes us."
Brooks Laich completing everything from teams to tires and everything in between.
I can’t find the article right now, but a Lokomotiv spokesman said that they literally do not have a team anymore. All the stars and most of the support personnel were on that plane.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
Ya I know that’s what I mean. No idea how that franchise can move forward from this point its just insurmountable to begin from 0.
Bruce Boudreau when asked about Brooks Laich's return to the lineup, he said: "He just adds another dimension to our team. If it was puzzle, he just fits that thing. He completes us."
Brooks Laich completing everything from teams to tires and everything in between.
I’ve always wondered what a team/league would do in this situation. Of course, I never actually wanted it to happen.
Typically there are plans in place for this sort of thing. Special drafts and such.
We're Hüsker Dü and we're on MTV. Who are you, and what are you on?
by bilspacecadet on Sep 7, 2011 12:09 PM EDT up reply actions
I think the NHL’s plan, which God-willing will never actually have to happen, is akin to an expansion draft, but called “emergency draft,” and you hopefully still have some AHL players to call up. It’s a terrible situation, and after the Marshall incident I think I read reports where people suggested teams don’t have a team plane so that this kind of thing just doesn’t happen.
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
I found this on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disaster_draft/
Disaster draft sounds horrible.
This came up on Twitter from Chesnokov"
Lokomotiv official: “At first we didn’t want to believe it. But right now there is no hope. The team is gone.”
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
The team is gone.
Horrible, horrible thing to hear and hopefully nothing we have to ever hear again.
I don’t want to turn what happened today into merely a statistic, but the concerns over travel in Russia are nothing new (as noted above). Air travel in that country has been a disaster (literally) forever.
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Yes, I know. I don’t want to turn it into a statistic either. Just a thought I was having given some of the concerns one hears both officially and through the rumor mill even before this latest horrible news.
Yep. Certainly didn’t mean to imply that you were.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
There has always been some pretty pointed criticism about their air industry. This will only spur more debate. Maybe something positive comes from it, as terrible as that is to think about.
by Charlie Foxtrot on Sep 7, 2011 11:58 AM EDT up reply actions
Perhaps the K will (should) mandate charters. Then again, it sounded, from the articles, partially like pilot error, which is sometimes unavoidable.
by DrinkingPartner on Sep 7, 2011 11:59 AM EDT up reply actions
Pretty sure this was a charter. Only the team and crew were aboard.
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
by dcsportsfan1 on Sep 7, 2011 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Two years ago I flew from St. Petersburg to Moscow. I won’t go into details but the term “White Knuckler” was used more than once by the group I was with. After that flight, I’ve never complained about US airlines again.
You gotta be shitting me
KHL will hold an additional meeting tomorrow morning in Moscow to discuss the sched. As of now, all games are on, w/o music in intermissions
(Slava Malamud)
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We don't have an outhouse
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 11:57 AM EDT up reply actions
I don’t understand the decision at all really. I don’t think many will.
by Charlie Foxtrot on Sep 7, 2011 11:59 AM EDT up reply actions
I do. I think it’s the right call, and I think cancelling destroys what these guys stand for. Hockey is not bigger than life, but for a lot of the guys on that plane, hockey WAS life. And I think to have games cancelled/postponed isn’t what they would have wanted, albeit, I don’t know any of them personally, and that’s a cliche. But dedication time.
I might be different than some people, but when I was working my ass off in a terrible job that paid little that I loved, one morning last year I was told two of my students had been shot, and one was in critical condition. I didn’t know what else to do. I cried until school started, and then I went out and I had one of my most memorable days because I just kinda pushed through. I’d rather just keep going and mourn on my own, and I think it would have been harder to just completely remove myself from the situation and then come back.
"Don't mind WM...he's an all-around jerk."
by Whiter Mage on Sep 7, 2011 12:24 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
It seems awfully hard on the team that was to be Lokomotiv’s opponent, though.
Lacking specific evidence to the contrary, I shall blame this on Chemmy and Two Line Pass.
by CapitalCentre on Sep 7, 2011 3:34 PM EDT up reply actions
Thank God it’s not our situation to try and figure out.
Lacking specific evidence to the contrary, I shall blame this on Chemmy and Two Line Pass.
by CapitalCentre on Sep 7, 2011 5:57 PM EDT up reply actions
It is the right decision. They should play and celebrate the game, and celebrate by doing what the Lokomotiv players loved doing. Sure, there should be tributes, there should be moments of silence, but they should play.
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 2:47 PM EDT up reply actions
Here’s the thing — if this happened mid-season, I could see them going on. But it’s the beginning of the season, and schedules may be easier to adjust.
It’s a difficult decision and any one they make is going to have their defenders and detractors.
I don’t think it’s about the schedule… it’s about mourning and healing. The players in those games I’m sure want to play if only for the fact that it gives them something to think about other than the tragedy for a few hours.
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 2:56 PM EDT up reply actions
I read earlier today that a KHL game was underway when the accident was reported, and they stopped the game, and called it off because the players were too upset to carry on. I’m sure in a few days, there will be a desire to carry on as usual, but tomorrow? I don’t see guys being up for it quite yet.
I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.
Gotta believe they change that after tomorrow. Sounds like a quick decisions by folks who are quite obviously stunned and not thinking things through. Understandable.
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
by dcsportsfan1 on Sep 7, 2011 12:00 PM EDT up reply actions
Malamud just tweeted that Galimov has passed.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:01 PM EDT reply actions
He was a flight crew member, and I’ve seen nothing about him other than mentions in articles.
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
SalvaMalamud just tweeted that he has burns on 30% of his body.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
Crew member Alexander Sizov has suffered burns on 30% of his body. No additional news, yet. As of now, the only survivor.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:10 PM EDT up reply actions
or not
Neurosurgeon says Galimov’s burns “almost incompatible with life”. Not dead yet, though. Fight, kid.
and this, SlavaMalamud Slava Malamud
Doctor: “Galimov is alive and will be alive short-term, at least. His condition extremely critical. Had several surgeries” (Sport-Express)
44 minutes ago
burns (presumably severe) over 80% of the body are almost always fatal. part of me agrees, fight, and another part wishes that he can slip quietly and not suffer any more. (and I know the guy from a single picture, but i’m really choked writing this)
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
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More details, proving this is a world story, not just a Russian story:
@ John Buccigross
The Czech Embassy in Moscow has confirmed the death of three Czech players: Joseph Vašícek, Karel Rachunek and Jan Marek
"You can want to get to April but when you get to April you may not like the answers you get, so you might as well enjoy the ride while it's going on." - Brian McNally on JRR, 8/29/2011
He was, as was former NHLers Igor Korolev and Alexander Karpovtsev.
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by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:11 PM EDT up reply actions
Malamud:
LifeNews has published what it claims “the verified list” of passengers. Salei is not on it. Treat this news with caution.
Now where's my hat? I'm going to the outhouse.
We don't have an outhouse
.....My tool shed!!!
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:14 PM EDT reply actions
This link has a list of passengers from Russian news sources. I’m not sure how accurate it is though.
http://blogs.edmontonjournal.com/2011/09/07/khl-club-yaroslavl-lokomotiv-wiped-out-by-plane-crash/
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
Evidently not totally accurate, because goalie coach Jorma Valtonen is listed there, and he’s in Finland right now.
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
I know a lot of folks are wondering, “What if…?” Here’s how the NHL would deal with a similar tragedy, apparently: http://t.co/Kt0sdJS
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Also, if you’re looking for a distraction, the Nooner is up.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Hospital is now denying report that Galimov has passed according to Malamud.
Now where's my hat? I'm going to the outhouse.
We don't have an outhouse
.....My tool shed!!!
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Ron and Fez 11 to 3
by YvonLabresMoustache on Sep 7, 2011 12:24 PM EDT reply actions
On a lighter and unrelated note, I watched Ovechkin’s debut on GameCenter live last night. A couple of observations:
1) A grand total of nine guys from both teams (Caps/Columbus) are still taking a regular shift in the NHL (Ovechkin, Zubrus, Halpern, Bradley, B. Gordon from the Caps, and Nash, Beauchemin, Brule, and Malhotra on the Jackets). You could probably also count in Shaone Morrison and Steve Eminger, but both are no higher than the #7 defensemen on their respective teams these days.
2) Ovechkin played on the penalty kill. Adam Foote played on the powerplay. WHAT ALTERNATE UNIVERSE DID THIS GAME COME FROM.
3) Both Ovechkin and Dan Fritsche scored two goals. Ovechkin followed that performance up with a string in which he scored 15 points in his next 15 games. Fritsche followed up with a string in which he scored one point in his next fifteen games.
Tortorella: Can I get another question? I went in here in a pretty good mood today, too.
Larry Brooks: So did I.
Tortorella: Well, you obviously f***ed that up, didn't you?
I was at that game, and the second Caps home game that season (when they played Nashville, who were a very good team back then with some goalie named Viking or something…). My daughter (age 17 at the time) also attended both games, watched the first with excitement, then watched the second game and saw the Caps get beat pretty bad and asked “Is Nashville in a different league?”
The Caps were pretty bad back then, ditto for the Jackets….
Winnipeg? Winnipeg??? Oy! (And now it's official...)
by MikeL-Pivonka on Sep 7, 2011 3:01 PM EDT up reply actions
2) Ovechkin played on the penalty kill. Adam Foote played on the powerplay. WHAT ALTERNATE UNIVERSE DID THIS GAME COME FROM.
It’s the Hanlon Universe, includes the solar system Backstrumus Wingerus.
Ovi was pretty close to a hat trick in that game too…
Just trying to capture the spirit of the thing...
It’s the Hanlon Universe, includes the solar system Backstrumus Wingerus.
As well as Powerplaypointus Motzkovium.
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I feel like someone slipped me an hallucinogen, because suddenly nothing makes sense.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
It didn’t then, either.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Sep 7, 2011 4:30 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
In retrospect, it is now so obvious that Hanlon had been promoted to his level of incompetence.
Rocking the Red for teams on the banks of the Potomac and at the Gateway Arch and Singing the Blues about Hockey.
Credit where it’s due, Hanlon did a lot of good things with the team and I personally would like to see some more of that “shows up every night and never an easy out” type of effort from the current incarnation. Just think what these guys would look like if Hanlon didn’t hammer on focus in the defensive zone and attention to detail when these guys were real young.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
I totally disagree with this statement. Hanlon was a great fit for that team at that time. He just took them as far as he could and it was time for someone to take it from there. I think a very similar argument could be made about the current bench boss…
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by J.P. on Sep 8, 2011 7:34 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
I’ll admit I was arguing based on the results, given that the team had performed relatively poorly with Hanlon and did an immediate turnaround that was actually sustained for 3 1/2 years over the regular season.
I also had wondered about Hanlon as a coach since his next gig of coaching one of the National teams in Europe didn’t work out too well. I can’t recall the details.
The boys probably did play more disciplined under Hanlon.
Rocking the Red for teams on the banks of the Potomac and at the Gateway Arch and Singing the Blues about Hockey.
In the commentary, Al Koken talked about how great it was to have a veteran presence on the team like Jamie Heward so that he could mentor Steve Eminger.
To that point, Jamie Heward was a veteran of 239 NHL games, and had spent the previous three years in Switzerland.
Tortorella: Can I get another question? I went in here in a pretty good mood today, too.
Larry Brooks: So did I.
Tortorella: Well, you obviously f***ed that up, didn't you?
just heard about what happened
holy shit. this is just tragic. what a tragedy for the city of yarosavl.
never fly on russian aircraft…
Yep (read through the thread – most all of what we know is in there).
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Anyone suspect that the league might alter scheduling to allow players the time to grieve, fly to Russia for the funerals, and get themselves in order?
Perhaps eliminating a preseason game or something?
I suspect those decisions will be made on a team-by-team basis for the player who wish to take some time.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
Pledge Drive 2010-2011: SO KIDS CAN!! Help build a playground
The NHL? Not likely at all. Not enough Russians in the League and really no scheduled games – preseason or otherwise – for weeks.
Even if this had happened in the middle of the NHL season, I highly doubt the League would alter its schedule, though I do think players would be allowed to take leaves of absence as needed.
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what i had in mind was eliminating a preseason game or something to allow teams to push back the starting dates of training camp so that players can have some more time
I really don’t think that would be necessary or, frankly, appropriate. If certain players need to take time, I’m sure their teams will grant them that.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
If a player, for example, someone expected to attend a rookie camp/tournament needs time due to this, I’m sure time will be given on an individual basis.
i’m just thinking that with the Caps at the very least, Ovie, Orlov, Galiev, Vokoun, perhaps Neuvirth and Sasha, will all likely be leaving for Russia in the next few days.
I suppose you’re right, though
What makes you say that those players will be leaving?
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I was just wondering if you’d seen something from those guys saying they were going. I have no idea who might or might not be.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
As noted, it’s the rookie camps not the training camps, which are starting up around this time. Players are in town for informal and some captain skates. I am sure if a player scheduled to attend rookie camp needs to take leave under these circumstances that they will be accommodated.
training camp for the Caps (and I imagine most teams are right around this date as well) starts on the 17th, still 10 days away. Teams invite enough players to camp that even if they wish to take a leave during the time that early pre-season games are going on, their absence will not handicap the team.
I have no doubt that teams will be extremely accommodating of those players who have lost friends today.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
Pledge Drive 2010-2011: SO KIDS CAN!! Help build a playground
a hockey-related light-hearted story JP will appreciate:
New guy starts at work today, turns out he’s a huge Wings fan and excited to have a fellow devout hockey fan in the office. As these things do, the conversation turned to a certain moment from 1998. And he says “If I were a Caps fan, I’d never forgive Esa Tikkanen.”
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
Pledge Drive 2010-2011: SO KIDS CAN!! Help build a playground
"Lokomotiv official: "At first we didn’t want to believe it. But right now there is no hope. The team is gone.
Lokomotive tribute video It’s a tear jerker.
“I read a stat that there were 50,000 hits a year. We’re talking about 50 head shots. To take those out, the game’s not going to change. As professionals, the odd time maybe there’s accidental contact, but for the most part you can control what’s going on out there,” he said.
“If a guy’s gotta be responsible with his stick, you have to be responsible with the rest of your body. Whether it’s accidental or not accidental, you have to be responsible out there.”
So even in the accidental cases, someone has to pay? Is that just the “loser” in the collision? What if both guys are knocked out? Do both get suspended?
And, as we all know, there are carve outs for when you don’t get penalized for a high stick, so I don’t know how apt that comparison is. It’s hard for me to envision any carve out that wouldn’t include the Steckel collision.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
If you run into a guy’s elbow with your head because he’s taller and you’re not paying attention as you both skate up ice, he should be martyred.
J.P.: You might be the king of all geeks here…
by Alz Well That Ends Well on Sep 7, 2011 4:43 PM EDT up reply actions
Sigh. This isn’t going away any time soon, is it? Frankly, the only thing that burns me about Crosby saying anything is that it matters to him now, because he’s the one who got hurt. And just because he annoys me, that doesn’t make me pleased that he’s injured.
Don’t try to figure Sasha out. Just ride the wave.
No, I’m not pleased that he’s injured at all. And at this point I’m not even concerned with the Steckel hit. The game’s over, Caps won, nothing can change that. But if the hype and hysteria around the incident yields a bad rule, that’s what will upset me. Who knows who will be hurt by a bad rule going forward. Sure, maybe only 50 hits are truly head-targeted hits, but how many have incidental contact? How many are close enough that the refs might think there was incidental contact (Letang on Comeau or Bailey earlier last season)? What are the other consequences that will flow from the rule (diving, passive play, etc.)? That’s why I’m discussing this now.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
This is definitely a concern of mine. Stuff like this has already happened in the NFL, with rules like the Brady Rule and other ones that go too far in an effort to protect QB’s. The NHL needs to simply refine Rule 48 and get it applied correctly – that will do plenty.
My mind is all twisted like a peanut.
not even his elbow. His shoulder. All because someone lackadaisically skated into his way.
Look, I’m sorry his brain got so rattled he’s been unable to play hockey for 9 months and counting. I really am. Injuries like that suck. But Sidney Crosby put himself into harms way and refuses to accept that and it’s going to result in innocent guys, like David Steckel, getting tossed and suspended and it just pisses me off.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
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by RedBirdie on Sep 7, 2011 4:55 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
The high-sticking rule is ambiguous. Applying similar logic to head shots would lead to even more interpretation problems.
From the NHL rulebook:
The definition:
A "high stick" is one which is carried above the height of the opponent’s shoulders.
Minor Penalty:
Any contact made by a stick on an opponent above the shoulders is prohibited and a minor penalty shall be imposed.
That seems okay, until you have a situation like earlier this year, where Marty St. Louis was hit in the face with a stick, but his face was around the bottom of the glass. Contact was made above the shoulder of St. Louis, but one could argue his head wasn’t at shoulder height.
The on-ice officials didn’t call a penalty on the play. Kerry Fraser on TSN said a high-sticking penalty should have been called (ironic, considering Fraser’s most notable missed call was a high-stick).
Rules like that are subject to so much interpretation, that enforcement will be totally inconsistent. Something needs to be done about head hits, but the NHL really needs to think it through carefully. This is a really tough rule to get right.
I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.
And the follow-through exception, that one is what I was explicitly thinking about, but you’re definitely right.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Indeed. The follow-through exception is obviously necessary, but doesn’t make much sense contextually if you’re still guilty of high sticking by striking a guy who’s head is 2 feet off the ice.
But the point remains… a rule clearly needs to be in place to prevent head hits, but it needs to be a good rule. The new Rule 48 seems pretty okay on the surface, but we’ll see how it plays out in practice.
I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.
My God
I just saw Youtube of Galimov being wheeled into the hospital and its excruciatingly tough to watch.
Aw Stas
Galixon_97 Stanislav Galiev
Mother of died in a plane crash player HC “Lokomotiv” Sergey Ostapchuk died … She suffered a heart attack …..
You perhaps knew me better as "Your Nation's Capital." Same great commentary, now with 100% more transparency!
Sergey was one of Stas’ WJC teammates.
You perhaps knew me better as "Your Nation's Capital." Same great commentary, now with 100% more transparency!
*Correction – Orlov and Kunetsov’s teammate. Galiev didn’t play in that one.
You perhaps knew me better as "Your Nation's Capital." Same great commentary, now with 100% more transparency!
Stas was one of the last cuts, right? He played with them right up until a couple days before the tourney, iirc.
Caps fans aren’t on the ledge; they’ve already jumped, and are merely trying to drag others into a mournful descent with them..--Stienz
Pledge Drive 2010-2011: SO KIDS CAN!! Help build a playground
Stas was ultimately going to get in only if there was an injury. The coach liked him but preferred to go with the kids who had been playing together all along.
Give Galiev credit though – getting cut from Team Russia really fired up his competitive juices and his production in Saint John took off like a rocket. The second half of his season was markedly improved over the first half.
I’m fairly certain Stas won’t get left off the team this year.
You perhaps knew me better as "Your Nation's Capital." Same great commentary, now with 100% more transparency!
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