Friday, January 28, 2005
Jackman Rumored to Sign With River Otters
According to Hadley on Sports, Barret Jackman is close to signing a deal with the United Hockey League’s Missouri River Otters:
If Jackman is capable of dotting the I’s and crossing the T’s with his insurance immediately he could see action this weekend. The River Otters have two home games this weekend, playing Quad Cities on Friday and Port Huron on Saturday.
Well, at least as long as there’s no magical CBA signed soon. So I’d say if the rumors are true, Jackman’s as good as there.
Say It With Me: January 2006
Fresh out of my inbox is a “new” statement from the NHLPA’s Ted Saskin:
“We continue to have significant philosophical differences. No meetings are scheduled and we will not make further comment at this time.”
From the Canadian Press and TSN:
NHL talks adjourned in New York
I’m not sure what’s irking me more, the fact that both sides are tossing the season away, or the fact that this line has to be in every wire article:
Should the season be cancelled, the NHL will become the first of the four major professional sports in North America to not have a single game played from beginning to end.
Yeah, yeah, we get it already, we’ve been reading that for months now, let it go.
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
Angela Ruggiero to Become First Woman to Play Non-Goalie Pro Hockey
Ok, so it’s a bit of a long title, but I wanted to give credit where credit’s due. First of all, Angela Ruggiero deserves to have her name in the headline. Then, she’s becoming the first woman to play pro hockey as a positional player. I wanted to fit that all in, it’s a big deal.
She’ll be playing for the Tulsa Oilers of the Central Hockey League, Ruggiero’s older brother Bill is the goaltender for the Oilers.
Ruggiero will be playing one game, this Friday, January 28th, against Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees. She will take part in two to four shifts according to the Oiler’s press release. The team will donate proceeds from the game’s ticket sales to the American Red Cross’ tsunami relief efforts.
That last part there cancelled out any reservations I was having about this event. Obviously, when you sign a player for terms like these it’s a PR move. However, there are good PR moves (as opposed to being referred to as a “stunt”), and I think this is one of them. Besides attracting attention to the sport, the league and the team, money is going to charity. Not only that, but they didn’t just pick some player’s sister, Ruggiero won the Patty Kazmaier Award last year; think of it as the woman’s version of the Hobey Baker award (top college hockey player). In other words, she’s a damn good hockey player. The brother-sister combo will be a first in North American professional hockey.
I inquired to find out if anything special had to be done about her contract, specifically insurance-wise. I was told it’s the standard CHL contract and coverage policies.
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
WHA Spring Tournament
Scott Burnside, on espn.com, is reporting that the WHA will host a tournament this spring in order to draw some interest towards it’s league that is supposed to start up next fall.
Several high-profile National Hockey League players are expected to play in the tournament, which will feature six to eight teams, WHA president and CEO Ricky Smith said. The event has also secured a “major television deal” and significant corporate sponsorship, he added.
There’s a league meeting scheduled for Friday and Saturday, and more details should be announced at that time.
The WHA’s website mentions nothing about the tournament.
I have little doubt no one is holding their breath at this point, but it is an interesting concept nonetheless.
Saturday, January 22, 2005
Sasha Lakovic Interview
I just posted: Q & A: Sasha Lakovic on hockeyfights.com along with clips on the videos page.
Friday, January 14, 2005
The Hockey News Scales Back
From the Ottawa Sun:
The Hockey News will be going from a weekly to a twice-monthly publication until the NHL has a new CBA in place. An announcement will be made in the next issue.
Word is new subscriptions and subscription renewal have been very light ever since the end of Tampa Bay’s Cup run. Of course, there’s no NHL, and there’s no end to the owner-labor situation in sight (unlike 94-95 where there was always some hope), so the decline in readers is understandable.
Thursday, January 13, 2005
Warming Up to Russia
ESPN’s Outside the Lines had a good piece last night about NHL players going overseas, specifically to Russia to play.
It was pretty much what you think it would be: some players are over there making a good amount of money almost tax-free. The big-spending teams are primarily owned by oil companies; the crowds are good, and happy to see the talent. It’s damn cold, and there are communication issues. Many have stayed there, a few have come home - and who knows if they’ll all be willing to do it again next season - but it is a decent alternative to those used to making millions (they can keep making millions, just a couple less in an environment they may or may not like).
Nothing new was really reported, but it was interesting to hear the players speak about it on camera and it was fun to see Russian arenas and other possible places a player may work/stay. I wasn’t familiar with ESPN Reporter Rachel Nichols before, and between seeing this piece and another segment on SportsCenter later on I think ESPN may have added a good reporter to their staff who doesn’t scream and use the same cliché over and over again. Shocking. Seeing her in Hempstead and hearing her use the word “chachkas” (referring to the only type of souvenirs you can get at a Russian hockey game) makes me think she may be a NY local. Either way, I’m always a fan of the Outside the Lines-Bob Ley style of reporting as opposed to the overly-done, trying-too-hard comical routines we’ve been getting over on ESPN (small doses).
Also on OTL was Michael Farber, a Sports Illustrated Senior Writer, who spoke briefly about what-if scenarios. He mentioned something I’ve been thinking of for a while now: what if the NHL and NHLPA can get a late agreement done? In other words - it’s done, but there’s no time for a regular season anymore - as a fan, would you accept a tournament for the Stanley Cup? I know some diehards may say no, but the Cup (as Farber also pointed out) was originally a tournament prize. I think for the most part it would be fun for just one season and just having some hockey back would be enough for most people. If done right, the sheer nature of the tournament and “every game meaning something” (World Cup/NFL-style) could make the games very exciting and could draw interest back into the game faster than just saying “we’re back, here’s a regular season”.
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
ESPNHL
I want to congratulate the crew at ESPN for coming up with one of the worst “new league” proposals I’ve seen yet. I’ll throw in this mandatory thought: I like reading a lot of what the hockey people have to say on espn.com, but what they’ve basically done is say: besides new teams and new players - we’re getting new fans too, because their proposal would certainly kill off a large percentage of the fan base with the assumption that they’ll attract new fans.
The main concepts:
- Smaller team - smaller roster, 3 less dressed players (they specifically single out forwards), and coaching limited to coach and two assistants
- Bigger, pushed back nets
- Limited goaltender movement, smaller goaltender equipment
- Mandatory visors
- Shootout added, helmet may be removed during it
- Automatic icing
- No fighting
- 20 team league, 60 game schedule
- Tiered-luxury tax economic model
Some of my favorite parts:
- There’s a team back in Hartford. I understand they said it’s where the “ESPNHL offices” would be (as they’re based in Bristol, CT), but having Hartford there just takes away from a city that should have a team from their model. No one’s saying Carolina is better - but if Nashville outdraws you…
- Oh, there’s also a team in Jersey, where they can barely draw a crowd when winning the Stanley Cup. There’s a team in Miami, but not Tampa; one in LA, not San Jose. The premise being for most: big cities, not whether or not they’ll have a good fan base.
- Having just 20 teams, they still have 16 making the playoffs. This is one of the ways hockey, and hockey’s regular season, used to be mocked in the past. Good way to bring that back.
- Despite having 55% of people in a previous poll telling them to get rid of the instigator rule, they’ve banned fighting. At this moment 48% of people said they wouldn’t watch the game anymore because of their ban. Hosting a SportsNation chat, Sherry Skalko of espn.com told a fan that said he’d no longer watch that they’d bring in 5 more and that he’d come back too. Sure.
I have some more “bah"s about some of their other rule changes, but I’m running short on time.
As to not be totally critical, let me point out a few things I do like:
- Putting a team in Vegas. Let’s forget about the gambling - most players who have any impact on the game make so much money that throwing a game by being paid off shouldn’t be much of a concern, especially since betting on hockey isn’t that popular and something like that would probably stand out. It’s a growing city and still a major tourist attraction. You could probably make a lot of new fans with a team there. Oh, I don’t think they’ll have a problem with fighting in Sin City by the way.
- Teams only supply wooden sticks. Composites are too costly and break too often.
- Automatic icing and tag-up offsides
- Moving the nets back (although I wouldn’t make them bigger)
Kiss That Season Goodbye
According to Carolina Hurricanes Owner Peter Karmanos, the NHL season is lost.
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Reffing Prep
Liz at Breakfast of Losers shares her experience as a first-time ref.
Found via Off Wing.