First it was Redwings owner Mike Ilitch, now it's Richard Peddie, President of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd, coming out in support for change to the NHL schedule.
Ilitch didn't go into specifics, but wanted to see more games against Eastern teams. Richard Peddie however, wants to see the NHL have a schedule similar to that of the NBA. This would include every team in the NHL playing home and away against each other.
I believe the premise of trying to breed divisional rivalries, by playing each divisional rival 8 times was flawed. Rivalries are built on the battles that count and those battles are found in the playoffs. Rivalries cannot be artificially created, if anything they lead to boredom.
I think I speak for most fans, when I say I whole heartedly agree with Mr. Peddie. I would love to see less games against divisional rivals, especially if it means I get to see my team play every team in the NHL home an away.
This is my solution, each team plays their divisional rivals 6 times, the rest of their conference 3 times alternating the 3rd game's location each year and finally they play every team in the other conference twice. This would result in a 84 game schedule, that's an increase of only 2 games per team.
I feel the extra 2 games would be very beneficial, not only the teams and the fans, but more importantly for the popularity of the league.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Friday, September 14, 2007
Bold Predictions!
Yesterday, Paul Maurice, head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, boldly predicted not only would the Leafs make the playoffs, but they would also compete for the Stanley Cup. Was this a brash chest beating rally cry or the makings of another Bob Hartley?
The Leafs made two big moves in the off-season, they acquired the starting goalie their fans had been crying out for in Vesa Toskala and also signed scoring left winger Jason Blake.
I believe goaltending was not their problem last season. Andrew Raycroft proved he was more than capable of starting for the Leafs. It wasn't Raycroft's fault that the Leafs seemed incapable of killing a penalty.
The Leafs also overworked Raycroft, relying on him to carry them for 71 starts. Raycroft by no means is the type of goalie that can start more than 60 games and that was where the Leafs made their biggest mistake.
All that being said, Toskala on the surface seems to be an upgrade. However, he still has much to prove, this will be the first year he will be the legitimate starter for a team. He unlike Raycroft, will have a more than capable backup to help carry the burden.
For years now the Leafs have lacked scoring wingers, while carrying an abundance of centers. Jason Blake will provide them with one scoring winger, but his ability to match or come close to his 40 goals 69 point from last season, is debatable.
The Leafs still lack two legitimate top six wingers and potential wingers in their system like Jiri Tlusty are a year or two away.
The Leafs may have added to their offense and solidified their goaltending, but they still have to improve their horrendous penalty killing that had them in the bottom four of the league last year.
If the Leafs are to even make the playoffs this year, Blake and Toskala will have to live up to expectations and they will also have to find some way to turn around their penalty killing.
So will Maurice become the next Bob Hartley? Cover your eyes now Leafs fans, because not only will the leafs not be contenders for the Stanley cup, but they will struggle to even make the playoffs and could quite conceivably miss the playoffs all together.
The Leafs made two big moves in the off-season, they acquired the starting goalie their fans had been crying out for in Vesa Toskala and also signed scoring left winger Jason Blake.
I believe goaltending was not their problem last season. Andrew Raycroft proved he was more than capable of starting for the Leafs. It wasn't Raycroft's fault that the Leafs seemed incapable of killing a penalty.
The Leafs also overworked Raycroft, relying on him to carry them for 71 starts. Raycroft by no means is the type of goalie that can start more than 60 games and that was where the Leafs made their biggest mistake.
All that being said, Toskala on the surface seems to be an upgrade. However, he still has much to prove, this will be the first year he will be the legitimate starter for a team. He unlike Raycroft, will have a more than capable backup to help carry the burden.
For years now the Leafs have lacked scoring wingers, while carrying an abundance of centers. Jason Blake will provide them with one scoring winger, but his ability to match or come close to his 40 goals 69 point from last season, is debatable.
The Leafs still lack two legitimate top six wingers and potential wingers in their system like Jiri Tlusty are a year or two away.
The Leafs may have added to their offense and solidified their goaltending, but they still have to improve their horrendous penalty killing that had them in the bottom four of the league last year.
If the Leafs are to even make the playoffs this year, Blake and Toskala will have to live up to expectations and they will also have to find some way to turn around their penalty killing.
So will Maurice become the next Bob Hartley? Cover your eyes now Leafs fans, because not only will the leafs not be contenders for the Stanley cup, but they will struggle to even make the playoffs and could quite conceivably miss the playoffs all together.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Blues Ready to Play!
The once proud St. Louis Blues have been stuck in the basement of the NHL standings for several years now, but they are ready to make a dramatic return to the playoffs this year.
The Blues were once a perennial playoff team, but had a fall from grace since the lockout. Some dramatic changes have happened since then, the Blues have changed ownership and have a new direction and captain at the helm, in John Davidson.
Several excellent draft years, key trades and surprising free agent signings, have the Blues ready to compete for their first playoff spot since 2003-2004.
The Blues defense is going to be their strength. They a strong core, lead by veterans Jay McKee, Eric Brewer and Barret Jackman. Their defense is also about to get a huge shoot in the arm with 2006 draft pick Erik Johnson joining the fold. Johnson is one of those once in a decade type defenceman, who has the physical presence to punish his opponents, while possessing the finesse to be a powerplay quarterback.
St. Louis has a much improved offense, with the surprise addition of veteran point machine Paul Kariya. Additionally, right winger Lee Stempniak is ready to have a breakout year. He will be looking to take on more responsibility after scoring 27 goals and 52 points last season. The acquisition of Brad Boyes should bring some much needed punch to the Blues second line. They were also able able to bring back fan favourite Keith Tkachuk, who should be revitalized by the incoming Kariya.
The goaltending situation in St. Louis, is going to be very interesting to watch this year. The addition of Hannu Toivonen from Boston, should provide the Blues with insurance should Manny Legace become injured. Toivonen and young goalie Marek Schwarz, hope to be more than just insurance policies and thus should provide interesting competition for the starting job during camp.
Although the Blues are not a polished team, their chances of making he playoffs, were helped by the implosion of the divisional rivals the Nashville Predators.
The Blues feel they are ready to make th push for the playoffs and in this humble blogger's opinion, they dark horse of this season and are ready to upset the apple cart and steal that 8th spot in the west.
The Blues were once a perennial playoff team, but had a fall from grace since the lockout. Some dramatic changes have happened since then, the Blues have changed ownership and have a new direction and captain at the helm, in John Davidson.
Several excellent draft years, key trades and surprising free agent signings, have the Blues ready to compete for their first playoff spot since 2003-2004.
The Blues defense is going to be their strength. They a strong core, lead by veterans Jay McKee, Eric Brewer and Barret Jackman. Their defense is also about to get a huge shoot in the arm with 2006 draft pick Erik Johnson joining the fold. Johnson is one of those once in a decade type defenceman, who has the physical presence to punish his opponents, while possessing the finesse to be a powerplay quarterback.
St. Louis has a much improved offense, with the surprise addition of veteran point machine Paul Kariya. Additionally, right winger Lee Stempniak is ready to have a breakout year. He will be looking to take on more responsibility after scoring 27 goals and 52 points last season. The acquisition of Brad Boyes should bring some much needed punch to the Blues second line. They were also able able to bring back fan favourite Keith Tkachuk, who should be revitalized by the incoming Kariya.
The goaltending situation in St. Louis, is going to be very interesting to watch this year. The addition of Hannu Toivonen from Boston, should provide the Blues with insurance should Manny Legace become injured. Toivonen and young goalie Marek Schwarz, hope to be more than just insurance policies and thus should provide interesting competition for the starting job during camp.
Although the Blues are not a polished team, their chances of making he playoffs, were helped by the implosion of the divisional rivals the Nashville Predators.
The Blues feel they are ready to make th push for the playoffs and in this humble blogger's opinion, they dark horse of this season and are ready to upset the apple cart and steal that 8th spot in the west.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Nashville Madness
The Nashville Predators have come up with a new plan to raise revenue and season ticket sales.
My question is, isn't this the same plan that failed miserably last season? On closer inspection, it's almost exactly the same variable ticket pricing plan they had last year, with a couple of major differences.
The Predators plan is to raise the price of single-game tickets by an average of 25%, while retaining 22 games at regular price. That is 14 less games at regular price for this coming season.
The team makes no apologies for raising ticket prices, despite giving their fans little to be excited about, including trading away or failing to re-sign fan favourites like Paul Kariya, Kimmo Timonen and Tomas Vokoun.
They believe the price hike will bring their pricing up to the league average, while helping to increase revenues and season ticket sales. The Predators hope to force the fans' hands into buying season tickets, because season tickets work out cheaper on a per game basis.
The problem with that is, those who tend to buy single game tickets , purchase them because they either don't have the money or the time to commit to a full season of hockey.
This new pricing scheme may bring them up to the league average, but they are hurting those loyal fans whom want to take their whole family to a game, but now won't be able to afford to.
It would be understandable if they had come off a great year and done a lot in the off-season to give fans hope of increased success, but it's exactly the opposite in this case.
There is a time and a place for ticket price hikes and this is not one of them. They struggled to fill the arena last year with an infinitely more marketable team. What makes them think that now their team has suffered in the off-season, that more people will want to come to the games? Let's not forget the fans will have to pay more to do so.
In the end, the Predators will see an increase in season ticket sales, but that might go hand in hand with less single game ticket sales. They could be alienating their next generation of fans, because it's going to games with the family, that has borne many a future season ticket holder.
For a team that was on the brink of being moved out of town, this could be a public relations disaster and a slap in the face for those fans who fought to save them.
My question is, isn't this the same plan that failed miserably last season? On closer inspection, it's almost exactly the same variable ticket pricing plan they had last year, with a couple of major differences.
The Predators plan is to raise the price of single-game tickets by an average of 25%, while retaining 22 games at regular price. That is 14 less games at regular price for this coming season.
The team makes no apologies for raising ticket prices, despite giving their fans little to be excited about, including trading away or failing to re-sign fan favourites like Paul Kariya, Kimmo Timonen and Tomas Vokoun.
They believe the price hike will bring their pricing up to the league average, while helping to increase revenues and season ticket sales. The Predators hope to force the fans' hands into buying season tickets, because season tickets work out cheaper on a per game basis.
The problem with that is, those who tend to buy single game tickets , purchase them because they either don't have the money or the time to commit to a full season of hockey.
This new pricing scheme may bring them up to the league average, but they are hurting those loyal fans whom want to take their whole family to a game, but now won't be able to afford to.
It would be understandable if they had come off a great year and done a lot in the off-season to give fans hope of increased success, but it's exactly the opposite in this case.
There is a time and a place for ticket price hikes and this is not one of them. They struggled to fill the arena last year with an infinitely more marketable team. What makes them think that now their team has suffered in the off-season, that more people will want to come to the games? Let's not forget the fans will have to pay more to do so.
In the end, the Predators will see an increase in season ticket sales, but that might go hand in hand with less single game ticket sales. They could be alienating their next generation of fans, because it's going to games with the family, that has borne many a future season ticket holder.
For a team that was on the brink of being moved out of town, this could be a public relations disaster and a slap in the face for those fans who fought to save them.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
The Price is Not Right!
According to a story on TSN Carey Price is hoping to make the Canadiens out of camp. Well, if that happens it could be the worst thing to happen to Price and the Canadiens.
There is no doubting Price's talent, his junior record speaks for itself, as does the way he helped the Hamilton Bulldogs to win the Calder Trophy.
The problem is, the Canadiens are not a team in great shape to win. They are not a team that could carry a young goaltender, in fact it's a team that could break one. Cover your eyes now Habs fans, but they are going to be fighting for their lives just to compete for the last playoff spot.
Last season, Montreal gave up the 3rd most shots against per game and were in the bottom third of the the league in goals against per game. Lets face it, the goalies were facing a shooting gallery.
This off-season they have done little to upgrade their defense, so unless there is a dramatic turn around in fortunes, it looks like it's going to be more of the same.
If you want an example of what not to do, you only have to look at the way the Penguins almost destroyed Marc-Andre Fleury in 2003-2004, by throwing him into the fire with little help. A young goalie needs to be given the tools around him to win. Now of course the Habs are better than that horrible Penguins team, but the principle is the same.
There is no need for Price to make the team this year, the Canadiens have Christobal Huet and Jaroslav Halak who are both more than capable NHL goalies. Let them carry the work load, while Price spends a full year in the AHL, he still have much to learn about the pro game.
Price needs to experience the rigors of the pro game, he has only experienced the highs of winning at the pro level for a few games, he needs to learn from the losses and how to overcome them.
It's a big step up from Juniors to the AHL and an even bigger leap to the NHL. For the future of the franchise, the right thing for Price is to serve his time in the AHL. A year from now he will be truly ready to make a long term impact.
There is no doubting Price's talent, his junior record speaks for itself, as does the way he helped the Hamilton Bulldogs to win the Calder Trophy.
The problem is, the Canadiens are not a team in great shape to win. They are not a team that could carry a young goaltender, in fact it's a team that could break one. Cover your eyes now Habs fans, but they are going to be fighting for their lives just to compete for the last playoff spot.
Last season, Montreal gave up the 3rd most shots against per game and were in the bottom third of the the league in goals against per game. Lets face it, the goalies were facing a shooting gallery.
This off-season they have done little to upgrade their defense, so unless there is a dramatic turn around in fortunes, it looks like it's going to be more of the same.
If you want an example of what not to do, you only have to look at the way the Penguins almost destroyed Marc-Andre Fleury in 2003-2004, by throwing him into the fire with little help. A young goalie needs to be given the tools around him to win. Now of course the Habs are better than that horrible Penguins team, but the principle is the same.
There is no need for Price to make the team this year, the Canadiens have Christobal Huet and Jaroslav Halak who are both more than capable NHL goalies. Let them carry the work load, while Price spends a full year in the AHL, he still have much to learn about the pro game.
Price needs to experience the rigors of the pro game, he has only experienced the highs of winning at the pro level for a few games, he needs to learn from the losses and how to overcome them.
It's a big step up from Juniors to the AHL and an even bigger leap to the NHL. For the future of the franchise, the right thing for Price is to serve his time in the AHL. A year from now he will be truly ready to make a long term impact.
Atlantic Battle Lines Drawn
There is going to be a long drawn out battle this year in the Atlantic. The Atlantic is going to be the toughest division in the Eastern Conference if not the NHL.
New Jersey Devils:
The New Jersey Devils look to be weakened with the loss of Brian Rafalski and Scott Gomez. However, they have replaced them with Karl Rachunek, Vitaly Vishnevski and Danius Zubrus.
These acquisitions alone may not seem enough to earn the Devils a playoff spot, but they also have some strong prospects in their system primed to step in. The likes of David Clarkson, Niklas Bergfors and Barry Tallackson are ready to contribute at the NHL level.
You can never count out the Devils with Martin Brodeur in net and Patrick Elias rallying the forwards. Brodeur can carry a team on his back and he will have a heavy work load this year if the Devils are to make the Playoffs.
It is a testament to the work of Devils GM Lou Lamoriello and Director of Scouting David Conte, that the Devils are able to compete year in and year out and have a nice pipeline of NHL caliber talent.
Let us not forget that the Devils also hired one of the most coveted coaches outside of the NHL, Brent Sutter and will undoubtedly bring his winning pedigree to his new job.
New York Islanders:
The Islanders are obviously hurting with the loss of Ryan Smyth and Jason Blake. They may have added Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie and finally bought out the cancer that was Alexie Yashin, however, they just don't seem to have enough talent to make the playoffs.
Mike Comrie just isn't good enough to be a first line center and might end up being replaced by Mike Sillinger when all is said and done. The Islanders have an obvious lack of top end talent in all areas of their team.
They will undoubtedly play with more grit in their second year under Ted Nolan's system, but it is unlikely that they will be able to compete with the All-Star level of talent in their division.
They are still suffering as a result of the years under Mike Milbury. Bad signings, one sided trades and poor drafting has resulted in little depth in the system to help right away.
It would be shocked if the Islanders finished any higher than the basement of the division and the bottom five of the East.
New York Rangers:
The Rangers not only improved their chances to return to the playoffs, but also made themselves a strong candidate to win the Stanley Cup.
They were very aggressive in free agency. They acquired a legitimate first line center in Scott Gomez to replace the departing Michael Nylander and added a clutch playoff contributor in Chris Drury.
The Rangers also re-signed important members of last year's playoff run, Brendan Shanahan, Henrik Lundqvist and Sean Avery.
Tom Renney continued to get the best out of the volatile personality Jaromir Jagr, but will Jagr get over the loss of his good friend Michael Nylander. Jagr can sulk when things don't go his way and he has already voiced his disappointment that Nylander wasn't retained.
The Rangers' defense is still their biggest weakness and they did nothing in the off-season to upgrade it. They did however, let Karl Rachunek leave. This opens up a spot in the lineup for a player with excellent bloodlines, Marc Staal. If he can finally transfer his play in junior into the NHL, he will be an instant upgrade to their defense.
The Rangers' offense is as strong as any in the league, as is their goal tending with the ever strong Henrik Lundqvist. This makes them a strong contender for the division title and more importantly the Stanley Cup.
Philadelphia Flyers:
There is no other team in the NHL that overhauled their roster like the Philadelphia Flyers and boy did they pay out some cash to do it.
No one can question that the Flyers will be the most improved team in the NHL after bringing in top end talent in Daniel Briere, Kimmo Timonen, Jason Smith, Scott Hartnell and more importantly re-signed Marty Biron.
The one problem that might result from all this change, is that they may have hurt their ability to retain some of their young guys in the future. The big money, long term contracts they handed out this off-season could become a burden around the Flyers' neck, if any of those players fail to produce. Their one saving grace is if the cap continues to rise (which recent predictions suggest) that will become less of an issue.
The Flyers will have a potent offense with their new additions plus an ever improving Jeff Carter and a returning Simon Gagne ready to feed off Briere.
Their defense has been improved immensely, the addition of Timonen and Smith will bring leadership and top end talent to a previously stale and slow defense.
They also have some excellent young talent almost ready to step in. Claude Giroux, Ryan Parent and Steve Downie to name a few.
The Flyers will go from the NHL's worse team to a safe bet for the playoffs.
Pittsburgh Penguin:
The Penguins are one of the most exciting teams to watch, lead by one of the most talented players in the game, Sidney Crosby.
The Penguins are still a team of kids, that include current NHL MVP Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, Ryan Whitney and Marc-Andre Fluery. However, they have added veteren Petr Sykora to the fold, to give them a proven goal scorer and past Stanley Cup winner.
They were also surprisingly able to re-sign Gary Roberts who proved invaluable to the Penguins in the stretch run. Roberts returns to the Penguins and brings his strong work ethic, tenacious checking and wealth of experience to a very young team.
The Penguins also signed another past Stanley Cup winner, Darryl Sydor. He may not be the player he once was, but he brings more veteran experience that was desperately lacking from last year's team.
The Pens have an offense to match any in the NHL. However, their defence still leaves something to be desired, even with the addition of Sydor and the up and coming Kristopher Letang.
There is still some glaring holes in this team, they are lacking a stay at home, tough as nails defender and one top six scoring winger, which might limit how far they can go into the playoffs.
This team is obviously a playoff caliber team and will be looking to get past the first round. They will also push the Rangers all the way for the Division title, but a Stanley Cup contender they are not.
Predicted Final Division Standings:
1.Rangers
2.Penguins
3.Devils
4.Flyers
5.Islanders
New Jersey Devils:
The New Jersey Devils look to be weakened with the loss of Brian Rafalski and Scott Gomez. However, they have replaced them with Karl Rachunek, Vitaly Vishnevski and Danius Zubrus.
These acquisitions alone may not seem enough to earn the Devils a playoff spot, but they also have some strong prospects in their system primed to step in. The likes of David Clarkson, Niklas Bergfors and Barry Tallackson are ready to contribute at the NHL level.
You can never count out the Devils with Martin Brodeur in net and Patrick Elias rallying the forwards. Brodeur can carry a team on his back and he will have a heavy work load this year if the Devils are to make the Playoffs.
It is a testament to the work of Devils GM Lou Lamoriello and Director of Scouting David Conte, that the Devils are able to compete year in and year out and have a nice pipeline of NHL caliber talent.
Let us not forget that the Devils also hired one of the most coveted coaches outside of the NHL, Brent Sutter and will undoubtedly bring his winning pedigree to his new job.
New York Islanders:
The Islanders are obviously hurting with the loss of Ryan Smyth and Jason Blake. They may have added Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie and finally bought out the cancer that was Alexie Yashin, however, they just don't seem to have enough talent to make the playoffs.
Mike Comrie just isn't good enough to be a first line center and might end up being replaced by Mike Sillinger when all is said and done. The Islanders have an obvious lack of top end talent in all areas of their team.
They will undoubtedly play with more grit in their second year under Ted Nolan's system, but it is unlikely that they will be able to compete with the All-Star level of talent in their division.
They are still suffering as a result of the years under Mike Milbury. Bad signings, one sided trades and poor drafting has resulted in little depth in the system to help right away.
It would be shocked if the Islanders finished any higher than the basement of the division and the bottom five of the East.
New York Rangers:
The Rangers not only improved their chances to return to the playoffs, but also made themselves a strong candidate to win the Stanley Cup.
They were very aggressive in free agency. They acquired a legitimate first line center in Scott Gomez to replace the departing Michael Nylander and added a clutch playoff contributor in Chris Drury.
The Rangers also re-signed important members of last year's playoff run, Brendan Shanahan, Henrik Lundqvist and Sean Avery.
Tom Renney continued to get the best out of the volatile personality Jaromir Jagr, but will Jagr get over the loss of his good friend Michael Nylander. Jagr can sulk when things don't go his way and he has already voiced his disappointment that Nylander wasn't retained.
The Rangers' defense is still their biggest weakness and they did nothing in the off-season to upgrade it. They did however, let Karl Rachunek leave. This opens up a spot in the lineup for a player with excellent bloodlines, Marc Staal. If he can finally transfer his play in junior into the NHL, he will be an instant upgrade to their defense.
The Rangers' offense is as strong as any in the league, as is their goal tending with the ever strong Henrik Lundqvist. This makes them a strong contender for the division title and more importantly the Stanley Cup.
Philadelphia Flyers:
There is no other team in the NHL that overhauled their roster like the Philadelphia Flyers and boy did they pay out some cash to do it.
No one can question that the Flyers will be the most improved team in the NHL after bringing in top end talent in Daniel Briere, Kimmo Timonen, Jason Smith, Scott Hartnell and more importantly re-signed Marty Biron.
The one problem that might result from all this change, is that they may have hurt their ability to retain some of their young guys in the future. The big money, long term contracts they handed out this off-season could become a burden around the Flyers' neck, if any of those players fail to produce. Their one saving grace is if the cap continues to rise (which recent predictions suggest) that will become less of an issue.
The Flyers will have a potent offense with their new additions plus an ever improving Jeff Carter and a returning Simon Gagne ready to feed off Briere.
Their defense has been improved immensely, the addition of Timonen and Smith will bring leadership and top end talent to a previously stale and slow defense.
They also have some excellent young talent almost ready to step in. Claude Giroux, Ryan Parent and Steve Downie to name a few.
The Flyers will go from the NHL's worse team to a safe bet for the playoffs.
Pittsburgh Penguin:
The Penguins are one of the most exciting teams to watch, lead by one of the most talented players in the game, Sidney Crosby.
The Penguins are still a team of kids, that include current NHL MVP Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, Ryan Whitney and Marc-Andre Fluery. However, they have added veteren Petr Sykora to the fold, to give them a proven goal scorer and past Stanley Cup winner.
They were also surprisingly able to re-sign Gary Roberts who proved invaluable to the Penguins in the stretch run. Roberts returns to the Penguins and brings his strong work ethic, tenacious checking and wealth of experience to a very young team.
The Penguins also signed another past Stanley Cup winner, Darryl Sydor. He may not be the player he once was, but he brings more veteran experience that was desperately lacking from last year's team.
The Pens have an offense to match any in the NHL. However, their defence still leaves something to be desired, even with the addition of Sydor and the up and coming Kristopher Letang.
There is still some glaring holes in this team, they are lacking a stay at home, tough as nails defender and one top six scoring winger, which might limit how far they can go into the playoffs.
This team is obviously a playoff caliber team and will be looking to get past the first round. They will also push the Rangers all the way for the Division title, but a Stanley Cup contender they are not.
Predicted Final Division Standings:
1.Rangers
2.Penguins
3.Devils
4.Flyers
5.Islanders
Monday, September 10, 2007
Tom Barrasso Hired as Canes Goalie Coach!
This past Friday the Carolina Hurricanes hired Tom Barrasso as their new director of goaltender development.
Tom Barrasso is a Hall of Fame goalie with two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vezina Trophy on his resume. On the surface this looks like an fantastic move by the Hurricanes.
However, there may be reason to pause. It is a well known fact that Barrasso wasn't the best communicator during his career, in fact some would have called him outright stand-offish.
His attitude alone wouldn't worry most prospective employers, because NHL goaltenders have the well deserved tag of being some of the most eccentric people on the planet.
The one problem with hiring Barrasso to work with developing goaltenders is his alleged poor treatment of a young Penguins goalie called Jean-Sebastien Aubin. The story goes that Barrasso would berate Aubin constantly and at one point failed to even talk to him for a whole season.
Is this really the kind of guy who you want in charge of developing your young goaltenders?
Well the answer is yes!
Many things could have contributed to the events surrounding Aubin and Barrasso and you can't take away the fact that Barrasso is arguably the best American goalie in history.
If he can pass on even a sample of his knowledge to the Hurricanes goalies, they will be undoubtedly better off for it.
Tom Barrasso is a Hall of Fame goalie with two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vezina Trophy on his resume. On the surface this looks like an fantastic move by the Hurricanes.
However, there may be reason to pause. It is a well known fact that Barrasso wasn't the best communicator during his career, in fact some would have called him outright stand-offish.
His attitude alone wouldn't worry most prospective employers, because NHL goaltenders have the well deserved tag of being some of the most eccentric people on the planet.
The one problem with hiring Barrasso to work with developing goaltenders is his alleged poor treatment of a young Penguins goalie called Jean-Sebastien Aubin. The story goes that Barrasso would berate Aubin constantly and at one point failed to even talk to him for a whole season.
Is this really the kind of guy who you want in charge of developing your young goaltenders?
Well the answer is yes!
Many things could have contributed to the events surrounding Aubin and Barrasso and you can't take away the fact that Barrasso is arguably the best American goalie in history.
If he can pass on even a sample of his knowledge to the Hurricanes goalies, they will be undoubtedly better off for it.
First blog ever!
Well, where to start? I might as well start with myself. I have been a long time hockey fan, so much so that I moved from England to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
You may ask, why would I do such a thing? Well the answer is simple, I moved so I could become a Penguins season ticket holder, Crazy eh!
Since moving to the States, I have spent most of my free time either reading, talking or watching hockey, it has become my life's passion.
After much encouragement, I have decided to do a daily hockey blog. I will be talking about hockey news, trades and rumours. I encourage you to participate by leaving comments, I will try to respond whenever possible.
I hope you all enjoy my blog and hopefully this will be a debate filled season!
You may ask, why would I do such a thing? Well the answer is simple, I moved so I could become a Penguins season ticket holder, Crazy eh!
Since moving to the States, I have spent most of my free time either reading, talking or watching hockey, it has become my life's passion.
After much encouragement, I have decided to do a daily hockey blog. I will be talking about hockey news, trades and rumours. I encourage you to participate by leaving comments, I will try to respond whenever possible.
I hope you all enjoy my blog and hopefully this will be a debate filled season!
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