#boston toronto for the hockey fans of the world of course

[muirneach]

a series of pins im putting together to start a richer and nuanced dialogue on my bags

[madlori]

Lori Explains Hockey Teams

For prior Hockey Infodump posts, please see:

Lori Explains Hockey Numbers

Lori Explains Hockey Players

So hockey players are basically large ice gremlins who just want to slap the pucks and skate rlly fast and occasionally punch each other. Guess we better organize them into groups, dress them alike, aim them at each other and call it a sport!

Hence, hockey teams. Or what we like to call “torturing the fans.”

So! The premiere organization of the sport of men’s ice hockey is the National Hockey League, or the NHL as we gremlin groupies like to call it. It is not, repeat not, the only professional hockey league in the world. The KHL, or Kontinental Hockey League (formerly known as the Russian Superleague) is probably the #2 and consists of mostly but not entirely Russian teams. There are also European leagues and additional pro minor leagues in North America, not to mention pro junior leagues. And of course, women’s professional hockey is also an awesome thing. But the NHL is what everyone talks about, and it’s where everyone ultimately wants to play.

The NHL consists of 31 teams (soon to be 32) organized into two conferences of two divisions each. Most people tend to pay the most attention to their division, because your divisional standing is what determines whether or not you get into the playoffs.

Here, I maded you a map! WHICH CONTAINS A GRIEVOUS ERROR IN THAT IT PLACES THE RED WINGS IN CENTRAL WHEN THEY BELONG IN ATLANTIC PLEASE EXCUSE MY BRAIN FART.

The teams are as follows:

Eastern Conference

Atlantic Division

Toronto Maple Leafs

Buffalo Sabres

Ottawa Senators

Montreal Canadiens

Boston Bruins

Florida Panthers

Tampa Bay Lightning

Detroit Red Wings

Metropolitan Division

Carolina Hurricanes

Columbus Blue Jackets

Pittsburgh Penguins

Washington Capitals

Philadelphia Flyers

New Jersey Devils

New York Islanders

New York Rangers

Western Conference

Central Division

Chicago Blackhawks

Winnipeg Jets

Minnesota Wild

St. Louis Blues

Nashville Predators

Dallas Stars

Colorado Avalance

Pacific Division

Edmonton Oilers

Calgary Flames

Vancouver Canucks

San Jose Sharks

Los Angeles Kings

Anaheim Ducks

Arizona Coyotes

Vegas Golden Knights

You may also hear the term “Original Six” bandied about. The NHL started in 1917 with a few teams - the Montreal Canadiens are the longest continuously-operating team in the league, they started back then - but by 1942 they’d settled into a league of six teams: Montreal, Toronto, Boston, New York Rangers, Detroit and Chicago. These six teams are sort of the NHL OGs and the rivalries are pretty fierce. Then in 1967 the league doubled in size by adding six teams all at once - five out of the six of those teams still exist (Flyers, Penguins, Blues, Stars (which began as the Minnesota North Stars before moving to Dallas) and Kings). The post-1967 era really ushered in what we know now as the NHL and is sometimes referred to as the Post-Expansion Era. [Another “era” you’ll see referenced is the post-cap era, referring to post-2005 when they instutited the salary cap]

Of the 31 NHL teams, eleven of them have never won the Stanley Cup. You could almost include the Leafs, who haven’t won in the expansion era. Montreal likes to brag about their million Cup wins but a lot of them came pre-expansion when there were only five other teams to beat, so make of that what you will (the last time they won the Cup in the post-expansion era was 1993).

Teams also have nicknames. The one that brings the most puzzlement is that the Canadiens are often called the “Habs” which is short for “Les Habitants,” just the Frenchified version of their name. Also the Lightning are often called the Bolts (one of their jerseys even says that) but that’s less of a leap.

All the NHL clubs are privately owned. Each club has a General Manager (GM) who is the person in charge of running everything to do with the team. He himself is hired and fired by the ownership. In addition to the players, teams employ publicists, marketing people, social media staff, medical staff, coaching staff, ice maintenance, logistics, equipment management (that’s a big deal in hockey, which has a lot of gear that seriously affects performance - a player’s skate maintenance is hugely important) plus all the stuff like ticket sales, finance, yadda yadda. Along with the GM the other visible member of staff is the head coach. Teams also employ defensive coaches, goalie coaches, strength and conditioning coaches, skating coaches, and a variety of other coaching staff.

The NHL season is 82 games long with 6-7 games in the preseason. The regular season begins in early October and ends in early April. Teams play 41 games at home, 41 away. They play every single other team at least twice, once at each team’s arena. They play the most games against the other teams in their division, then in their conference. The teams in the other conference only get played twice. Teams usually play 3-4 games per week. They often play games back-to-back, but other times they’ll have three or four days break between games. Their road games are grouped together geographically - for example most East Coast teams play the three California teams in a single road trip, sometimes tossing in Arizona or Vegas on top.

Ironically the state of California is tied for the most hockey teams with three (New York also has three). The only other states that have more than one are Florida and Pennsylvania. The provinces of Alberta and Ontario also have two teams each (there are 7 total Canadian teams).

That ought to do it for teams! As always shoot me questions. The playoffs will be a separate post.

In conclusion, please watch this AMAZING video the NHL produced for its 100th anniversary. It tracks all the teams from 1917, their movements, even the logo and color scheme changes. It’s oddly mesmerizing. And the music is cool.

[spine-buster]

Alone, Together | Chapter 22 | Morgan Rielly

A/N:  Thanks again for all the positive feedback!  We’re already at Chapter 22 and only in February.  I would like to say that there isn’t going to be any more drama, but the whole ~incident~ happens in March and, of course, Boston happens in April.  So…yeah.  For now, at least, happy times ahead! This chapter didn’t end up AT ALL where it was supposed to go, but I’m actually happy about that.  Some might call it filler (because it technically doesn’t contain any Morgan/Bee interaction) but I see it as pretty important.  

Hockey Night in Canada was quickly becoming favourite night of the week, especially when the Leafs were playing at home.  She had never been a hockey fan before Morgan, but now that she was – at least partly – she could feel the energy in Scotiabank Arena pulse through her veins.  She could feel it outside on the streets, walking past fellow Torontonians going to watch the game at a bar, at a friend’s place, or anywhere else.  She could even feel it within fellow fans, buzzing around the arena and getting close to the glass during open skate.  

Tonight, in particular, was a big one – Leafs vs. Canadiens.  Morgan had explained to her enough about the historic rivalry between the two teams, and even Aryne pitched in with a “Now they hate us even more because John wouldn’t grant them an interview.”  The energy was palpable.  And if Bee knew anything about Habs fans, it was that they were everywhere in Canada – even where you least expect it – and that they always travelled to support their team.  Even tonight, in prime enemy territory, she spotted a lot of Habs jerseys.  It was going to be a great Saturday night.  

But right now, all she cared about were babies.

Briony loved babies.  She loved them.  And she loved one baby in particular: Henry Gardiner.  He was the cutest, chubbiest, most perfect baby in all of Toronto and when any opportunity to hold or play with him came up, it excited her to no end.  Bee wasn’t going to have babies anytime soon, so when the opportunity arose to do literally anything with babies, she was the first to volunteer.  So when Bee saw Lucy had brought him to the game wearing and a cute, custom-made onesie that looked like a Gardiner jersey with hockey pants, she was over the moon.

“He was being really fussy…is being really fussy tonight,” Lucy said as she tried to bounce him in her arms.  

“You want me to hold him for a bit?  At least while we go down to the ice to say hi to dad?”

“Yeah, that could work,” Lucy agreed, handing her five-month-old over to Bee.  “What do you think, Hank?  Wanna stay with Auntie Bee?” she cooed.

Bee balanced his chubby body on her hip.  He looked up at her with his big blue eyes and she almost melted right then and there.  “Hi Henry!  Are we gonna be best friends tonight?  Are you gonna give Morgan a run for his money?”

“Henry you wanna go see Dada?  Wanna go see Dada?” Lucy smiled as Henry smiled at the word ‘Dada’.  Lucy slipped on his blue pair of baby headphones to protect his ears from all the noise before setting her diaper bag on the chair.

As the pair slowly made their way down the steps of the lower bowl, they eventually got to the glass in the corner, which was already surrounded by fans taking pictures of the team.  They stood back for a while, watching the team skate and shoot pucks as Bee bounced Henry in her arms and pointed out all the players to him.  He obviously couldn’t hear a thing, but he followed her points and let out happy noises the more she bounced him.  Eventually, some fans noticed them and made way for them to go right against the glass.  Bee held Henry close to the window, pointing at Jake.

Jake took a few more shots at the net before he saw them, quickly making his way over.  Like clockwork, a cameraman and photographer appeared beside them and started snapping pictures of Henry and Jake smiling at each other.  Bee thought it was out-of-this-world adorable, but also thought it was slightly awkward since she was neither Henry’s mom or Jake’s wife.  “Maybe you should take him,” she giggled, handing back to Lucy with open arms.  

“Yeah, let me hold him until they leave,” she agreed, bringing Henry a bit closer to the glass.  Jake continued to smile and wave, and the fans around them practically awed in unison.  Morgan came skating behind him, stopping briefly to wave at Henry and smile at what was transpiring.  He pulled a silly face to try to get Henry to laugh.  Instead, Henry looked at him, his little baby eyebrows furrowing, before he began to fuss and cry slightly.  Jake hit Morgan and Morgan made a dramatic ‘oops’ face before winking quickly at Bee.  She shook her head at him as he skated away.  

“Ooookay, that’s enough of Dada and his friends,” Lucy said, trying to calm him down.  “You want to go back to Auntie Bee?  Seems like you liked when she held you,” she said, handing him back into Bee’s arms.

Like previously, Henry began to calm down as Bee held him and bounced him on her hip.  Lucy began to thank the fans for making room for them, and as she did, Bee noticed a group of three young girls – they couldn’t have been older than 21 – recording them on their iPhones.  Bee tried not to look their way or give them any mind, but when she overheard one of them say to the other, “That’s Morgan Rielly’s girlfriend,” her breath couldn’t help but hitch in her throat.  

“Let’s get back to our seats before the Zamboni comes out,” Lucy said, unaware of the girls filming.  “Hank’s really scared of them and Jake’s still upset about it.”

As they made their way back to their seats, they saw Aryne and waved, Penny following close behind her.  They nestled into their seats – Lucy near the aisle, then Bee, then Aryne, then Penny – as Bee turned Henry to face forward to look out onto the ice, bouncing him slightly on her knee.  

“Are you girls ready for a shit show?” Penny asked.  “I don’t know if you saw, but Max Domi has already been chirping a few of the boys.”

The girls rolled their eyes, but Bee had no idea who Max Domi was.  “Who is Max Domi?”

Penny cringed.  “Don’t ask.”

Aryne looked over at her.  “Max is a player on the Habs.  His dad Tie used to play for Toronto from the mid-nineties to the mid-2000s,” she explained.  Bee was so grateful that Aryne and the other girls were still patient enough to explain things to her.  “He just crawls under people’s skin.  He likes to play dirty.  And ever since he got traded to Montreal and became a Hab, he’s been shitting on Toronto – literally the city he grew up in – every chance he gets.”

Bee furrowed her brows.  “So you’re telling me he’s a dumbass.”

The girls burst out into laughter at Bee’s deadpan delivery.  “Exactly,” Penny snorted.

“If he so much as touches one of our guys tonight I’ll go down there and fight him myself,” Lucy warned.  “I haven’t slept in two days and I’m surviving on cereal and smoothies.  I’m a ball of rage.”

Henry seemed content to stay on Bee’s lap during the first period, despite the constant grimacing, flailing of arms, screaming, and general scowling from the ladies.  By the end of the period, the Leafs were down 3-0, and Bee got the gift of seeing first-hand what kind of a player Max Domi was.  Though he hadn’t scored any of the goals, he was being an asshole, completely targeting Freddie and riling up Johnsson – of course, the referees called nothing.  Bee knew she always had to be mad at the referees.  

As Lucy left with Henry to change his diaper, Bee spent the intermission on her phone catching up on the day’s news events.  She was pretty busy at work these days, and throughout all the meetings Mark liked to spontaneously plan and the working lunches they’d have, she wasn’t able to catch up on anything during the day like she used to be able to when she was in-between classes.  She was nervous for the second period too – a lot of the fans that had made their way out into the concourse were grumbling about the lacklustre period and 3-0 score.

“The boys better make a comeback,” Aryne said almost to herself.  “I’m not putting up with any gloating Hab fans, and I’m sure as hell not putting up with a gloating Max Domi.”

Bee snorted at Aryne’s words as she opened Instagram, scrolling through her feed and liking pictures.  She had made it private back when Angie called her in Vancouver, but that didn’t stop people from somehow stealing her pictures – like Aryne showed her on Valentine’s Day – or stop them from trying to tag her in videos or send her DMs.  The tags were relentless – every picture someone stole from her profile, they’d tag her in it again, as if they wanted her to see that they stole it.  And now, there were more tags to sift through.  The girls who had recorded them at the glass had of course already uploaded the video to Instagram, and it was making the rounds.  She was tagged four times from four different accounts.  She watched the video, and obviously it was cute because of Henry, but the girls were in prime position to catch Morgan winking at her before skating away.  Perfect position.  She could only imagine what people were saying about it, and she didn’t want to read the comments.  Instead, she went to her Instagram DMs to clear her inbox.

So what, are you Lucy’s BFF now or something?

LMAOOOO now ur trying to get mo to have a baby with u U R PATHETIC!!!

R u pregnant

I know it’s your man’s jersey and all but it’s really doing your body no favours.  Have you gained weight?

“Whatcha reeeeading?” Penny asked.

Bee sighed dramatically.  “Well Penny, apparently I’m forcing Morgan to have a baby with me,” her voice was deadpan.

Penny snorted at the delivery.  “Oh how I just love Instagram DMs,” she giggled, shaking her head.  “Don’t worry, I’m only with Will for his money.”

“Oh, of course!  Morgan’s my sugar daddy!” Bee exclaimed, causing Penny to laugh even more.  “These girls see one video and think I’m pregnant.  It’s so weird,” she focused back on her phone.

Maybe Lucy should give you some yoga lessons so you can lose some weight.  She looks better than you do and she’s had a baby.

I told u we’d find pics of u and mo.  You’re not sneaky.

You guys looked really cute in Vancouver!!!!!  Can’t believe you met his parents already does that mean you’re getting married?????

You and Mo are rly cute

You’d look better with a nose job and some upper lip filler.  Just saying.

How kind of them to suggest a nose job and lip fillers.  Like women around the world weren’t already insecure with themselves.  She deleted everything, not bothering to read anymore.  She deleted the list of them until she heard a crying baby, bringing her back to reality and what really mattered.  When she finally looked up, she saw Lucy coming back with a crying Henry, and more fans filing back into the arena for the start of the second period.  

“He is being so incredibly fussy it’s driving me insane,” Lucy’s voice was exasperated as she sat back into her seat.  “The entire time he was wailing.  Just wouldn’t stop crying.”

“Awww, come here my chubby prince,” Bee cooed as she took Henry from a tired Lucy’s arms.  “You gotta let mommy rest.  Why’re you being so fussy?”

It took a few moments, but he eventually stopped crying and settled down, again looking up at Bee with his big blue eyes.  He even gave her a smile and giggled at her smiling down at him.  Lucy put her hands up in dramatic frustration.  “You’re like the baby whisperer tonight!  Seriously!” she exclaimed in astonishment.  “I can’t believe this!”  She even took out her phone to snap a quick picture of Henry smiling up at Bee, and Bee smiling down at him.  “You’re stuck with him the whole night if he’s going to be like this with you.”

“I’ll hold him the whole game if I have to,” Bee smiled.  “I’m not joking.  You want me to rock him to sleep?  Tuck him into bed?  I’ll do it.”

“Don’t tempt me.  I might take you up on your offer.”

As the second period started, Lucy fetched Henry’s bottle from her bag, and Bee fed him.  Auston scored early in the period, with Morgan getting the primary assist, and Bee hoped that the goal was a kick in the ass for the whole team to start scoring.  When Tyler scored a powerplay goal near the end of the period, she was confident they would come back.  And as always, Max Domi was being a pest, but because the boys were answering back, he didn’t have that much to say.

Then Willy scored in the third period to tie it and Penny went crazy.  Henry fell asleep and was snug in his carrier when Zach tied it and everybody in the arena went crazy.  Then the Habs got upset.  Four unanswered goals.  On the jumbotron, they showed Morgan and Max going back and forth, chirping one another with a body in between them, holding them apart.  God, Bee hated fighting, but if Morgan had slapped the smirk off Max’s face, she would have had no problem riding him across the Pacific Ocean.  She even fanned herself as the girls pointed it out to her and had a laugh about it.  A fifth goal by Johnsson, getting his payback on Max.  A sixth goal by Zach, again.  Six unanswered goals.  One hell of a comeback.  Sweet sweet revenge.

This is the hockey Bee could get used to.  

As fans began leaving the arena after the 6-3 win, the ladies took their own way to the locker rooms.  In the elevator, Bee took out her phone and saw she was tagged in yet another photo – but this one she would definitely keep.

@lucygardiner_: Henry loves his Aunt Bee! <3  Uncle Morgan has to work on his funny face game though…

It was the photo she had taken earlier of Henry looking up at her smiling.  With both of them smiling and the sea of blue jerseys behind them, it did make for a very cute picture.  Bee liked it immediately and decided to comment.

@brionymctavish: Heart eyes for my chubby prince!  Uncle Mo’s baby blues ain’t got nothing on Henry’s

***

“Listen, I know you have work tomorrow but can I please come over?  I don’t want to watch this alone.”

Thus began the night of February 28th, the dreaded day – the day John Tavares returned to Long Island.  The media had been hyping the return for days, and truth be told, Bee thought they were making a bigger deal than what needed to be made.  They kept stressing the fan reaction, the videos they posted online of them burning John’s jerseys, which was absolutely ridiculous.  They kept asking John annoying questions about it, and they kept asking players on the Islanders annoying questions about it.  Bee wished it could all just end, but they needed to get through the game first.  

Aryne showed up to Bee’s apartment with takeout Greek food.  They didn’t even bother setting it up in the dining table – they just took their spots on the floor and spread everything out on the coffee table in front of the TV.  Coverage was already on, and the guys on Sportsnet were blabbering on about something.  Judging by the time, Bee knew the boys would be on the ice soon for the pre-game skate.  She didn’t need to wonder what the reception for John would be since she was being told for an entire fucking week that it “wasn’t gonna be good”.  

“Are you looking for places?” Aryne asked as she sat down on a pillow, looking at Bee’s laptop screen of apartment listings.  

“Oh.  Yeah,” Bee nodded her head.  “I can’t live off of Naz and Ashley forever.”

“It’s not like they’re going bankrupt,” Aryne quipped.

“Yeah, but I’m earning decent money now.  They can at least get the income back from leasing out this place,” she shrugged her shoulders, wanting to drop the subject.  “Have you talked to John?”

Aryne nodded her head, opening the takeout container to reveal her gyro.  “He’s fine.  At least he seems to be.  He’s seen some of his old teammates already and they caught up, which was nice.”

“That’s good,” Bee offered gently.  “Does it feel weird for him being back there?”

“I don’t think so,” Aryne said.  “I mean…he spent nearly ten years of his life there.”  She looked at the TV and they both noticed the teams making their way on to the ice.  The camera was focused solely on the Leafs.  “Can you turn it up?” she asked.  

The more Bee turned up the volume, the more boos could be heard.  The arena wasn’t even at full capacity but they were deafening.  Between keeping the focus on John, the camera also panned to people and signs in the crowd.  People who had taped up their Tavares jerseys and re-wrote ‘Traitor’; people who made a sign saying ‘We don’t need you’; people standing and booing and giving the middle finger with one hand while a beer was in another.  It was gross.  

“How could they be so awful,” Bee said more so to herself than to Aryne.  Seeing person after person with toy snakes and throwing them on to the ice was not funny.  It was not amusing.  This was a person that was their captain, and here they were disrespecting him and treating him like shit when he did so much for their team.  Bee looked over at Aryne, who didn’t seem to blink as she watched the clown show in front of her.  “We can change the channel if you want.”

“No,” Aryne answered.  As much as it pained her to watch, she couldn’t.  “I promised John I’d watch the whole thing no matter how bad the fans were.  I’m watching it for him, not for them.”  She worded it perfectly.  This wasn’t about them, no matter how much they wanted to make it about them.  Aryne knew that.  Bee knew that.

They watched in silence as John made his way back to the tunnel.  All of the sudden, something flew across the TV screen heading towards John’s head, narrowly missing him, making both women gasp in fear.  They held their breath as the replay occurred, Bee’s hands over her mouth.  “It’s a jersey.  It’s a jersey,” she said quickly, noticing the colours on the object being thrown.  The distinct blue and orange couldn’t be mistaken for anything else.  

When she looked over at Aryne, she could see tears welling in her eyes.  “Aryne…Aryne it’s okay,” she said, crawling over to her side of the table before giving her a quick hug.  “It didn’t even hit him.  The guy missed.  It didn’t hit him.”

“Why do they hate him so much?” she asked, her voice shaky as she continued to look at the screen.  “He was the backbone of that team for years.  He moved there alone when he was eighteen years old to play for them and this is how they repay him?”

“Aryne, they’re being dumb.  They’ve been amped up by the media and this is just theatrics,” Bee tried to calm her down.

“I don’t get it,” she shook her head.  “You just…you spend nine years of your life somewhere, building your life and career, and they just turn on you at the drop of a hat…just because you want to go home.  Just because you want to play for your childhood team.  Because you want to be close to your family and start a family of your own,” she lamented.  “My God.  I don’t even know why I’m crying.  This…this is definitely pregnancy hormones,” she was embarrassed as she wiped away the tears.  

“It’s okay to be emotional about this Aryne,” Bee said softly, rubbing her back.  

“He’s just so happy to be home, Bee.  Why can’t they see that?”

“They’re blinded by their anger, but that’s not your problem,” Bee said.  “He was a UFA Aryne.  What was he supposed to do?  Stop playing hockey just to make them happy?  Play somewhere he wasn’t truly happy?  Play for his childhood team when he only had a half a tank of gas left?  That’s not far to him and his goals.  Even if hockey wasn’t a part of it at all.  He made the best decision for himself and for you both and they don’t want to see that.”

Aryne didn’t say anything.  She wiped the remaining tears from her cheeks before laying her head on Bee’s shoulder.  After a while of silence, she finally said in a soft voice, “I think the reason I like you so much is because you just…you see things outside of hockey.  Sometimes I forget what it’s like.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You just have this perspective the rest of us don’t have,” she said without elaborating.  “Never lose it, okay?”

The boys played like shit.  They didn’t show up for one of the biggest games of the season – there was no other way to put it.  They let John down.  After Zach opened the scoring and got another goal taken away (because of the “offside” rule, which Bee still thought was a completely made up call), the team was sucker-punched to a 6-1 loss.  It was brutal.  Every time John touched the puck, the crowd booed so loudly it almost drowned out the announcers.  Bee hated it.  She never wanted to experience another game like this again.  

This was not the hockey she wanted to get used to.  

“Are you sure you don’t want to just crash here tonight?  You must be exhausted,” Bee asked as Aryne was packed up to leave, taking most of her uneaten gyro with her.

“I’ll be okay, don’t worry.  At this time of night the drive is nothing.  Plus, John will probably call and want to talk,” she explained, putting her Styrofoam container into a plastic bag.

Bee kept ruminating over what Aryne had said to her earlier.  ‘You see things outside of hockey.  You have this perspective the rest of us don’t have.’  She wondered what Aryne meant by that.  She knew it wasn’t super invested in hockey.  She knew that Morgan had only ever played for the Leafs and he had never switched teams, been a UFA, signed an offer sheet, demanded a trade, any of that.  She knew she was only getting one perspective, especially since Morgan wanted to stay a Leaf forever.  Despite being from Vancouver, they were his childhood team.  His dad fist-pumped on camera when the Leafs drafted him.  Aryne had been through so much more than she had, yet she was the one telling Bee ‘You have this perspective the rest of us don’t have’.  “Hey Aryne…” she began, unsure if she should bring it up.

“Mhmm?”

“You know…you know before…before the game started.  How you said I see things outside of hockey and that I have a perspective the rest of you guys don’t have?  What did you mean by that?”

Aryne stood still.  “I didn’t offend you did I?”

Bee shook her head vehemently.  “No no.  Not at all.  I just want to know what you meant.  I’m wracking my brain trying to figure it out.”

“Do you promise not to hate me if I explain it?”

“I could never hate you.  The only reason I could hate you is for telling me who Max Domi is.”

Aryne smiled before getting more serious.  “A lot has happened to you this year, with the break-in and with your mom dying.  A lot has happened to you in your life.  And somehow, you’re still…it never seems to phase you.  And…I don’t know.  It brings me back down to earth a little bit.  When I get stressed over John or hockey or whatever else, I just think about all you’ve been through and how you’ve overcome it all with such grace and a good head on your shoulders and I just think ‘Man, this girl’s got it all figured out.’”

“I don’t have it all figured out,” Bee shook her head.  “Far from it.”

Aryne bit her lip.  “Listen, you just prioritize the right stuff in your life.  You prioritize yourself, your relationship with Mo, your job…not a lot of girls your age that we know can say the same thing.  That’s why Sydney reacted the way she did when you mentioned having a career and the fact that Morgan liked you having one.  A lot of people lose sight of what is supposed to matter and all they end up caring about is their boyfriend or their wedding or how they look on Instagram.  But despite all this new stuff around you, all this money and all this privilege, you’ve never lost sight of what truly matters.  Even the way you brush off all the DMs you get on Instagram.  And I don’t want to patronize you and tell you I’m proud of you, even though I am, and I’m not saying that you’re a saint, but it makes me think about the priorities in my life,” she absent-mindedly put a hand over her baby bump.  “Hockey is there but it’s John’s priority more than it is mine.  I care about my husband, my family, our growing family, our friends who are like our family.  And in the grand scheme of things, stuff like what happened tonight…it doesn’t matter.  You get that.  Somehow, without having been involved in hockey for years or without being involved in the wag lifestyle that so many girls think is an absolute dream when it’s really not…you get that.”

“I don’t know what to say Aryne.”

Aryne shrugged her shoulders.  “I just think we can all learn a little from you, that’s all.  Remember where our real priorities are.  Because it’s not with the Chanel bags, or the gala events, or the mingling with Toronto socialites, or the Instagram feed showing off your new lip fillers and the picture perfect way your boyfriend has proposed.  It’s with each other.”

[shhhhyoursister]

omg OKAY i think i’m like the last person to do this but i was tagged by @navollidiot, @bagels-and-seagulls, @stazyros, and @chaotic-tender so thank you all WOW i love going off about myself!!!!!!!

1. the fact that will probably surprise people the most is that i’m a secret jock!!!! for hockey!!!!!! but mostly for 2 teams, the toronto maple leafs and the boston bruins!!! just ask @theyellowcurtains i get so annoying when i watch games like i text him so much shit that he doesn’t understand or care about but hockey is!!!! such a fun sport to watch!!!!!! i never thought i’d like a sport but my roommate of 3 years was a fan and they got me WAY into it so!!! if you’re a hockey fan come talk to me!!!! i also play in a fantasy hockey team so......major jock disorder (i play no sports myself although i’m surprisingly great at physical stuff for a gay nerd i’m a jock in my passion for hockey alone)

2. i’m nonbinary!!! i use he/him pronouns and generally just say that i’m a trans guy but i’m!!! nonbinary!!! gender is fake!!!!! but also i’m gay because i love boys but ya know it’s all fake just be and love whoever you want y’all!!!!!

3. i’m like,, a very involved person?? y’all know how busy i am but it’s cause on top of being a senior in college i’m on the executive board for one of the 2 biggest organizations on my campus and my job is taking pictures at our big events we throw and it’s so much fun but holy fuck y’all it’s also so much work!!!! cause i also have at least 5ish hours of meetings a week for just this org!!! and i’m doing even MORE next semester i’m gonna die :) just ask harri :))

4. my mom is my fave person in the world???? shes just amazing and so supportive and we’re honestly best friends and we talk about everything together??? she opened a queer camp and keeps bragging that she has more trans friends than me and she’s really just a big reason i’m a good person i think!!! my whole family is pretty amazing but my mom really just.......wow i love her!!!!! i one time mentioned writing fanfiction to her and now she always asks if i’m still writing and she’s like,, weirdly proud of me and finds it hilarious that i’m like lowkey popular in the fandom akdkakdk

5. i’m autistic!!!! this is something that i’ve been figuring out over the course of a couple years tbh and it just explains like,,, my entire existence?? and every friend my age who has autism who i’ve talked to has p much been like “oh yeah dude you totally are” and idk having that label just feels super right and good and it’s been a really wild time looking back on my life and being like “oh....Oh......OH yeah that explains that!!!!”

6. i love music!!! i am a musician i think?? i’ve been involved in music my entire life because my whole family is obsessed (my brother is in 3 bands, my dad was in an opera company for like half my life, i live close to broadway so i’ve seen a crazy amount of shows)!!! i’ve played the clarinet for like 12 years and a few of those years were in a (very successful) competitive band, and i can play ukulele and guitar and piano a bit and ocarina kind of!!! and i sing!!!! if you see me without headphones or earbuds that probably means that they broke and i’m freaking out!!! music is like top 5 things i need in my life!!!!!

i think literally everyone i usually tag has been tagged so i’ll go with some mutuals who i don’t know super well and idk if theyve done this yet!!! @davidskam @druck-in-love @potter-paws @lilbasthet

[tysonbearie]

this weeks newsletter is late because i wanted to let all-star weekend actually close out and also because i was out of town

This week there’s a special spotlight on the Edmonton Oilers and whatever is going on with the water there. Also All-Star Weekend happened so there’s that.

Weekly Recap:

On Wednesday, the Edmonton Oilers officially announced that GM/President Peter Chiarelli had been fired. Earlier this season the Oilers also fired their coach and brought in Ken Hitchcock.

There was slight concern that Erik Karlsson might miss the All-Star Game due to injury, but luckily he was able to participate.

Hockey legend Pavel Datsyuk is coming up on the end of his KHL contract and his agent says he’s not ruling out an NHL return.

In a somewhat unexpected turn of events, Tyler Seguin (Dallas Stars) has made a surprising change is his pregame routine with Mark Scheifele (Winnipeg Jets) by exiting the ice without putting up a fight. Both Scheifele and Seguin prefer to be the last player off the ice after warm-ups which has, in the past, led them to rock-paper-scissors and, most recently, trickery. More on this next week.

Connor McDavid won Fastest Skater for the third year in a row at the All-Star Skills Competition. All Skills Comp results can be found at nhl.com.

Brianna Decker of the US National Women’s Team was among those who demonstrated for the All-Star Skills Comp and her time was faster than that of Leon Draisaitl, who won the competition. This prompted fans to tweet #PayDecker, as the winners of Skills Comps get paid for winning them and fans felt that Decker, who had the fastest overall time, had been cheated. CCM announced they would #PayDecker the full amount.

The NHL announced that they would pay $25,000, the amount of the prize money for competition, to all four demonstrators from the US National Women’s Team; Kendall Coyne Schofield, Brianna Decker, Renata Fast, and Rebecca Johnston. The money will go to the charity of their choice.

The All-Star MVP Award was given to Sidney Crosby for his performance in the All-Star Game.

Additional All-Star coverage and news can be found at nhl.com.

AHL All-Star Classic results can be found at theahl.com.

Play of the Week:

Kendall Coyne Schofield of the US National Women’s Team became the first women to compete at All-Star Weekend. She replaced Nate Mackinnon in the Fastest Skater Competition on Friday.

Players to Watch:

Forward Taylor Hall of the New Jersey Devils currently has 11 goals and 37 points in 33 games played this season. He has a career total of 202 goals and 511 points in 562 games played. Hall was drafted first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2010; he played six seasons in Edmonton before being traded to New Jersey in exchange for Adam Larsson.

Forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins of the Edmonton Oilers currently has 16 goals and 46 points in 50 games played this season. He has a career total of 135 goals and 359 points in 507 games played. Nugent-Hopkins was drafted first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2011.

Forward Jordan Eberle of the New York Islanders currently has 11 goals and 23 points in 45 games played this season. He has a career total of 201 goals and 464 points in 633 games played. Eberle was drafted 22nd overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2008; he played seven seasons in Edmonton before being traded to the Islanders in exchange for Ryan Strome.*

(*Ryan Strome was recently traded to the Rangers in exchange for Ryan Spooner, who was sent down to the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League.)

Prospect Watch:

Forward Kailer Yamamoto, drafted 22nd overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2017, has 2 points in 17 games this season in the NHL; he has 5 points in 26 games played in the NHL. He has 4 goals and 8 points in 13 games played with the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League this season. Before being drafted, Yamamoto played with the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League where he tallied 105 goals and 291 points in 230 games played.

Forward Ryan McLeod, drafted 40th overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2018, currently plays for the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League; he previously played for the Mississauga Steelheads, also of the Ontario Hockey League. McLeod has 14 goals and 46 points in 41 games played this season between the two teams. He has a career total of 56 goals and 178 points in 239 games played.

Team of the Week**:

The Edmonton Oilers, who are currently 7th in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, were founded in 1971 but didn’t play their first game until 1972 as one of the founding teams in the World Hockey Association and were originally supposed to be one of two Alberta teams along with the Calgary Broncos, who relocated to Cleveland, Ohio before the WHAs first season. Because the Broncos relocated, the Edmonton Oilers were renamed the Alberta Oilers, though they did return to their original name the following season. The Oilers joined the NHL in 1979 when the two leagues merged. The Oilers have won five Stanley Cups, most recently in 1989-90. The Oilers very famously played from Rexall Place (Northlands Coliseum) from 1974-2016. They now play from Rogers Place. Notable alumni include Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Grant Fuhr, Adam Oates and Jacques Plante.

Outside the NHL:

The National Women’s Hockey League All-Star Weekend will take place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville February 9-10.

The American Hockey League All-Star Classic was hosted by the Springfield Thunderbirds January 27-28. Results can be found at theahl.com.

Weekly Thoughts:

The Edmonton Oilers have been struggling this season, which has been a theme for the franchise for this decade. The Oilers have had four first overall picks in the last 9 years; in addition to this they have had Top Ten picks four separate years in the same span. Many blame former GM/President Peter Chiarelli for the poor state of the franchise, despite the fact that his career with the franchise started in 2015, which is long after their struggles began.

Prior to be hired by the Oilers, Chiarelli worked for, and was fired by, the Boston Bruins. In his time with Boston, he drafted Tyler Seguin second overall in 2010, but traded him to the Dallas Stars in July of 2013. Seguin became one of the top producers in Dallas as well as a fan favorite; there are those who view this as a bad trade, and those who do not.

While working for the Oilers, Chiarelli drafted Connor McDavid first overall in 2015. He also worked out a trade with the Islanders which resulted in them gaining the draft pick that gave them Mat Barzal, who won the Calder this summer. Chiarelli also dealt Jordan Eberle to the Islanders in exchange for Ryan Strome.

Chiarelli also traded defenceman Justin Schultz to the Pittsburgh Penguins, who went on to win the Stanley Cup two seasons in a row.

The summer after drafting Connor McDavid, Chiarelli dealt Taylor Hall, the first overall pick from 2010, to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Adam Larsson. This is still a hotly debated trade.

Chiarelli has also signed several frankly outrageous contract extensions. Milan Lucic at 28 was given a seven year, $42 million extension. Goaltender Mikko Koskinen, 30, was recently signed to a three year, $13.5 million extension after only appearing in 31 NHL games.

While Peter Chiarelli made mistakes and ultimately harmed the franchise, he is not the source of all their struggles. The franchise has been on a decline for a very long time and it might be time to just toss the whole front office and start fresh. This would, of course, steal even more time from Connor McDavid who honestly deserves a team that is doing well, seeing as he already carries the weight of the franchise on his back.

Weekly Vocabulary:

Toe Drag: Dragging the puck along the ice with the end (toe) of the stick blade on the ice as opposed to pushing with the bottom edge.

Poke Check: Using the stick to poke the puck away from an opponent.

Deke: When a player handles the puck or himself in such a manner to fool the opponent into moving out of position, allowing the player to get past. Originated from the word decoy.

Dangle: When a player does a series of dekes in a row to get around the opposing players.

Wheel: Typically referred to when there is time and space to skate with the puck, sometimes is said to tell someone to skate faster.

Snipe: A powerful, accurate shot used to finish plays.

Celly: Short for celebration. A player may celly after scoring a goal.

Weekly Trivia:

The first NHL All-Star Game was held at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto on October 13, 1947. The Maple Leafs played against a team of All-Star players from other teams in the league. The All-Star team won 4-3. The idea of the game originated from the Player’s Committee and was approved on May 23, 1947. The proceeds from the game were divided between Toronto charities and the Player’s Emergency (Benevolent and Disability) Fund. At a meeting in September, players agreed to set up a pension fund, to which players gave $900 each and 25 cents per every playoff ticket sold and two-thirds of the All-Star Game proceeds.

Weekly Standings:

Eastern Conference

Metropolitan Division

New York Islanders -- 63 points

Washington Capitals -- 60 points

Columbus Blue Jackets -- 59 points

Atlantic Division

Tampa Bay Lightning -- 76 points

Toronto Maple Leafs -- 62 points

Montreal Canadiens -- 61 points

Western Conference

Central Division

Winnipeg Jets -- 64 points

Nashville Predators -- 64 points

Minnesota Wild -- 55 points

Pacific Division

Calgary Flames -- 71 points

San Jose Sharks -- 65 points

Las Vegas Golden Knights -- 62 points

*Note: All information was obtained prior to 12pm on Saturday January 26. Information occurring after the 12pm deadline will feature next week.

** Previously the featured teams have been from the Original Six Era and I had planned on finishing those six teams out before I featured any of the other 25 teams but Edmonton is just such a hot commodity in news right now that I felt it best to feature them this week.

[hockeytexts]

18- Auston Matthews

“I mean I can’t just go up to him, he’s pretty popular here in Switzerland” You tried to convince your friend to leave you alone. You two were at a place called the Einstein cafe and you both had just spotted a guy you recognized as Auston Matthews. 

You were a hockey fan and exchange student in Switzerland, it seemed like your circle was always talking about the boy near the two of you. “(Y/N) he’s perfect looking go up to him” Your friend and another exchange student, Bobbi, was encouraging you as she definitely checked him out too. 

“Fine but only because he seems to be alone” You said before getting up and walking over to his table. Soon sitting down at his table to get his attention, which worked. Soon, you felt bad because he was reading a really long text on his phone and it looked important.

“Hi can I help you?” Auston asked kind of rudely, which you got honestly. He probably didn’t like random people just looking at him and interrupting his personal time. “Hi sorry, you’re kinda just sitting here all alone and I thought I’d join you?” You said unconvincingly. 

Auston soon quirked an eyebrow up at you as he waiting for you to continue and when he didn’t, he just looked at you weirdly. “Thanks but I’m meeting my mom here for lunch and she’s running late is all” Auston said before turning back to his phone.

“Can I join you until she gets here then?” You asked before Auston just shrugged and clicked the button on his phone before looking at you. “So what do you want to talk about, we don’t actually know each other at all” Auston pointed out as he looked at you. 

“Well what were you talking about on your phone? It looked pretty important” You asked Auston, hoping to get an answer out of him. “Do you really want to know?” Auston asked you before you nodded your head and leaned in to listen. 

“It’s my sister, she’s just asking how I’m doing before explaining boyfriend troubles she’s having” Auston explained before getting into details and soon the two of you getting into a deep conversation. The two of you learning that you two kind of clicked in a way, which was great because it seemed like the risk was worth it.

“Hey I just got a text from my mom, I have to go even though she was supposed to meet me here. I think she got caught up talking to one of her friends but if you want to hang out sometime, here’s my number” Auston said before typing his number in your phone and leaving.

“Okay your place is so nice!” You exclaimed as you took in his place, Auston was so nice and you kind of felt bad you pretended to not know who he was in order to talk to him. “Thanks my mom decorated in, sadly she’s not here” Auston explained as he walked you into his living room where he had a movie night set up.

There was a fort, various snacks, and an assortment of movies ready as you both sat down. “Oh my god awww” You said as you pointed out he had a few baby pictures scattered around his apartment. You soon saw family pictures and a few group photos of friends, it was a very nostalgic apartment. 

“Stop, it was my mom’s idea” Auston admitted, embarrassed that he forgot to take those down before you got to his apartment. He had remembered everything but that small little detail but you were loving every moment of seeing these photos.

“So what movie are we even watching?” You asked Auston in order to calm down his embarrassment, especially since his face was turning slightly red. “Oh yeah well I kind of don’t know but maybe we can find something” Auston suggested as he gave you the remote. 

You just shrugged before looking for something to watch but soon getting distracted by the cold air in his apartment. “It’s freezing in here oh my god” You said as you started to shiver in his apartment before looking for a blanket. 

“Oh my mom kind of knows where we keep all the blankets really... ummm here” Auston said before wrapping his arms around you. You hoped that he noticed his arms fit perfectly around you, as if they were made for you and you only. “Oh thanks Aus” You mentioned while realizing you let a nickname you two haven’t discussed slip out of your mouth.

You were about to apologize but he just smiled and looked on at the movie you had picked.You just leaned more into his arms, the both of you noticing that comfort was kind of natural for you guys. Something you had hoped would stay because before the other day you were strangers.

You had followed Auston back to America, to follow him to his draft days and watch him get drafted first overall. Then he became Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, a damn good player so you were excited to see how far he’d come. You had the utmost faith in someone you took a chance on, and you were glad the rest of the world were taking a chance on him.

You weren’t feeling easy at all though as he was playing for the Stanley Cup in his sophomore year. The Boston Bruins were the favorite to win the cup as it seemed, and of course that’s who the Leafs were playing in the first round. You knew Auston would be uneasy so you took him out to Lunch so that maybe it could calm him down.

“So are you coming down for the first game or...?” Auston asked you as he took a bite of the steak he was consuming. You were stuffing your face with mashed potatoes while he asked that so you had to swallow everything before you answered him, making him laugh. “Oh yeah what day is it?” You asked him before giving him your full attention.

“We’re leaving tomorrow, I’m staying with Mitchy but I could always tell him to leave” Auston suggested to you before taking another bite of his food. You rolled your eyes at your friend, he was the same guy you’d know forever inside but on the outside. Everything about him on the outside made you slightly weak, and you hated that he made you feel that way.

“No don’t kick Mitchy out for me” You answered him, causing him to frown and look at you. “I’d rather have you there than Mitchy” Auston muttered before continuing to eat, making you wonder why he had said that.

“Auston I said don’t kick me out for Mitchy” you said as Auston opened his door, the sign of a roommate being nowhere in sight. Auston just smiled at you before letting you in and helping you with your bags in order to room with him. “It’s fine, Babs probably isn’t going to be happy you’re here but you help me concentrate” Auston tried reasoning with you.

You just looked at him made before the two of you got into a staring contest with Auston, a short lived one due to Auston not being able to concentrate. “You kind of suck at that Aus” you pointed out before hugging him, embracing the warmth he gave.

“I’m glad we never had anything riding on those competitions because I don’t know how bad I could’ve lost” Auston admitted before letting you fully in and taking your bags. You just smiled and sat down on the bed next to his, Auston soon joining you on the same bed. 

“So is the Auston Matthews admitting defeat?” You asked Auston with a smirk before he rolled his eyes at you and smiling. “Never but I’m excited to have you here” Auston said before playing with your hand and soon intertwining your hands together. Laying next to you as he smiled, your face matching his and you guys laid next to each other.

This being interrupted when a knock was heard at the door, Auston soon getting up and answering it. “Willie what are you doing here?” Auston questioned his teammate as William came into the room. William looking around before finding you laying on the bed and telling you to come with him.

“What?” You asked William before he just looked at you and motioned his hand out for you to hold his hand. As soon as you took his hand, William lead you out of the room before Auston could protest properly. “Willie where are we going?” You asked your friend on the Leafs before he looked back at you.

“Trust me, you’ll be back with Auston” William said before leading you into a room where there where it was set up with candles and various romantic things. William sitting you down before leaving you in the room to sit and look around, checking out the various things set up around the room.

“Willie what the fuck and where is (Y/N)-” Auston paused when he saw you, a visual sigh of relief was taken by Auston before he was sat down in front of you. “Now that you guys are here, you can finally admit some things and the whole team can stop being apart of your longing” William almost demanded and then leaving the room.

“Admit some things” Auston repeated before his eyes flickered back to you as he stared at you for a moment. You turned to him, your breath getting caught in your throat as you met his eyes. “Auston, Willie is right” You admitted as you grabbed his hand across the table. 

You smiled until you heard a “(Y/N)! (Y/N)! (Y/N)!” and Auston soon  and disappearing your roommate appearing in your line of vision.

[hockeyknowitall]

i live in australia and i recently got into the sport and want to watch games- which are the most idk famous? or world wide? teams i can get into and watch despite being so isolated from the game

Have you watched AIHL games? They stream on youtube for free and they’re australian based so it might be easier for you to access! 

There’s also this facebook fanpage for australian NHL fans (thanks @tahaiga) 

I would say the most popular teams are always going to be the Original 6 teams and the last team to win the stanley cup. 

The Original 6 teams are:

The Montreal Canadiens - This team basically made the NHL like i;m not joking they decided to leave the previous NHA because they didn’t like one of the teams Owners and started their own league which is now the NHL. They’ve been around since 1909 so they’re the oldest hockey team in the league by far. Currently though their future is very bleak. They have the best goaltender in the world (who’s currently out injured) and absolutely no one else. They don’t have any good players who are about to break into th elineup anytime soon either. Plus they have a few players known for saying slurs. Once the team has done a rehaul they might be fun! and going through a struggle with a team makes seeing them succeed more fun! so you might want to jump on this wagon now before they get good again?? maybe??

The Toronto Maple Leafs - the Leafs are the biggest canadian team in the NHl if not the biggest team. They have the benefit of being in the biggest metropolitan area in Canada but that also means most of the other canadian teams hate them for it. The leafs are at the opposite end of the cycle from the Canadiens, They currently have a bunch of really good young players who are only going to get better in the next few years, plus some elite players who have not made the team just yet. They play a really fast and high scoring game, but sometimes this means the high scoring goes against them. But if you want an exciting team to watch and enjoy, the leafs are probably up there but they have a history of being bad to mediocre so be prepared for the “history repeats itself” thing.

The Boston Bruins - The Bruins are my team so I’ll try to keep this as objective as possible. But the bruins were the first american team in the NHL, and because of that have a pretty big following. They were known as the big bad bruins and because of that have a reputation. the stereotypical view of hockey is usually what people think the bruins are. I don’t really know what to tell you about this teams prospects. There’s a lot of pressure on them to be one of the best even when they aren’t even close. But it’s always up in the air. They were supposed to be terrible this year and are one of the best teams. They’re unpredictable I don’t know what they’ll look like in the next two years but in at least 5 they should be stable and good again. 

The New York Rangers - This team I don’t have much of a scouting report on because I just don’t follow them that closely at all. But I do know that they’re not doing well this year. They have a goalie who for a long time was considered the best in the NHL but he’s getting older like a lot of the team. However, they seem to be in transition right now which usually means they’re getting worse to ultimately be better. So that could be a good thing for the same reasons you’d follow the habs (their nickname). If you get on while they’re bad and they succeed it’ll feel like you battled through it with them. They have a few really good young players and if the leafs aren’t the most popular team in the NHL It’s these guys.

The Chicago Blackhawks - I’m gonna be honest. I barely recognize these guys as part of the NHL because personally I believe some of the decisions they’ve made in regards to how they handle their players and the fans are despicable. Basically, do your research on them. They haven’t been good this year and their morals are questionable. That’s what i’m going to leave you with. 

The Detroit Red Wings - The wings are iconic. They were one of the most consistently good teams in the NHL for my whole life until these past two years. They had the longest playoff streak in the NHL, now they didn’t win the cup that much in that time, but at that point it doesn’t reallymatter because they had the opportunity to win the cup every time they made the post season. Now recently they seem to be in the same boat as the habs. There’s not a lot of hope for them in the future. They have some really godo players but because of the way the salary cap works i personally have no idea how they’re going re-sign a guy like Larkin who is supposed to be their future. But who knows. This may be a team you have to wait out a little while. Because while I know how a team like the rangers can get out of their predicament. I have no idea how the wings are going to fix their mistakes.

So those are the Original 6 teams and tend to have the biggest world wide following but the recent stanley cup champions also tend to be big so those are going to be two main teams I haven’t mentioned yet.

The Pittsburgh Penguins - They won the stanley cup the last two years. They’re the only team to repeat since the game almost completely changed. So even though I’m not penguins fan I can’t in good faith say they’re not the best team in the NHL. They have the best player in the NHL and probably the world, Sidney Crosby and on top of that they also have maybe the best Russian NHL player, Evgeni Malkin. You’re tallking a team that’s made up of some the best NHL players currently. I don’t think they’re unbeatable, i’ve seen my team beat them quite a bit this year. But if you like the monsters this team is the current monster. the only problem is if you’re in it for the long haul, general trends say what goes up must come down and the penguins rae peaking right now after being abysmal for a while. So just be aware that they probably can’t go much higher at this point.

The LA Kings - Last time they won was in 2014 which is pretty long ago now but they won in 2012 too and are big because they were one of Gretzky’s team. This was the team that basically brought hockey to california (sorry ducks and sharks fans). Again I don’t have a good scouting report on this team. You might also want to do your research into this team because of some of the problematic things they’ve done in the past. And they tend to be a very controversial team becuase a lot of people just hate the LA Kings. And i can’t really tell if they’re going down or up at this point. 

And finally:

The Washington Capitals - While not a Original 6 team or a recent champion I would also include them because of their general world wide popularity. They have probably the best goal scorer in the world and probably one of the most popular hockey players of all time, Alexander Ovechkin. He just scored 600 goals which is a major milestone and he did it in under 1000 NHL games and I believe that makes him the 4th player ever in history to do that. He’s a beast. In my opinion he’s the best goal scorer in nhl history. On top of that they have some amazing players to support him like Nicklas Backstrom who is consistently considered the most underrated player in the NHL, Braden Holtby who is basically a Vezina candidate each year (MVP for goalies), Tom Wilson who is a rough and tough big player who also happens to just be a great player as well, and TJ Oshie who got the nickname TJ Sochi after he went multiple times in the shootout at the Sochi Olympics during the Russia/USA game that made him an american hero basically.  But similar to the penguins being at the top now means there’s more room to fall than there is to grow. But I do know the Caps are pretty big in Australia. 

I of course couldn’t go through every NHL team so I’m sure there’s some guy from Alberta who’s pissed I didn’t mention his favorite team. But from what I can tell these are the teams that are generally the most popular and therefore if you’re looking for a huge fan base, the teams that are going to be easiest for you to get into!

[freenewstoday]

New Post has been published on https://freenews.today/2021/02/19/an-outdoor-hockey-game-that-for-once-is-in-the-great-outdoors/

An Outdoor Hockey Game That for Once Is in the Great Outdoors

STATELINE, Nev. — The N.H.L.’s previous 30 outdoor games have been played across the United States and Canada in football and baseball stadiums, with pageantry fitting of Fenway Park and Wrigley Field, and the triumphant ticket revenue of the Cotton Bowl and the University of Michigan’s Big House.

But with the coronavirus pandemic keeping fans away, the league returned to an idea it has had for many years: a game where the scenery becomes the star.

On Saturday and Sunday at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort on the state line between Nevada and California, the N.H.L. will stage a pair of outdoor games on consecutive days on the same site for the first time. Also for the first time, the ice rink will be set against a backdrop of North America’s largest alpine lake, snow-capped mountains and an endless sprawl of pine trees, on the lakefront 18th fairway of a golf course.

“It’s one of the purest forms of the game that we could play, being outdoors,” said left wing Gabriel Landeskog, whose Colorado Avalanche will face the Vegas Golden Knights Saturday at 3 p.m. Eastern time. “Most of us grew up skating on lakes and outdoor rinks.”

“This is a drop-the-mic type of outdoor rink,” said Golden Knights Coach Peter DeBoer. “It’s the nicest I’ve ever seen.”

Even beyond the near-total absence of fans at games, the N.H.L. has not been spared the impact of the pandemic. It suspended play last March, then resumed in July with a reconfigured playoff format and all games held in two “bubbles” in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta. The Stanley Cup was awarded on Sept. 28, and this season began in January, more than three months later than usual. Team valuations declined last season for the first time in 20 years, according to Forbes.

Events have been canceled, including this year’s All-Star Weekend and two outdoor events, the Winter Classic and Stadium Series, leaving the league in need of a signature moment.

The N.H.L. scouted sites such as Lake Louise in Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies, and others in the United States, but ultimately settled on Tahoe, a site that met the criteria for both scenic beauty and logistical needs, topping a pandemic-permitted event with an alluring bow.

“With everything that’s going on, everyone’s trying to find the best way to stay sane and do the things that they love to do. Fortunately we are able to play hockey and do our jobs,” said left wing Brad Marchand, whose Boston Bruins play the Philadelphia Flyers Sunday at 2 p.m. Eastern time. “It does kind of tie it all together, being able to have these games played right now and also to be able to do it outside.”

The outdoor games were based on the romantic notion that nothing beats hockey played on a wintry day on the pond, said Steve Mayer, the N.H.L.’s chief content officer. While the games have been played in packed stadiums since they began in 2003, the pandemic has forced a return to the original spirit.

“Here, this is what it was like: no fans, in the great outdoors surrounded by mountains and water and the beautiful tree line,” Mayer said. “I do think once the puck is dropped the players will feel a little like they’re playing back when they were kids, for the love of the game.”

And without spectators in the stands, how the game will be seen on TV became the focus.

Bobby Sloan of Populous, a sports architecture firm that has designed venues for the Olympics, World Cup, Super Bowl and Major League Baseball, said the Tahoe game was a classic exercise in architecture, looking at the form of nature’s breathtaking serenity and the function of a regular-season hockey game. He likened the experience to a combination of set design and cinema direction, with the game’s presentation being exclusively for television.

Mayer, who headed the creation of the playoff bubbles, said that condensed timelines, a frantic pace, the made-for-TV presentation and an emphasis on player health and safety all carried over from the bubbles to the regular season and now to this outdoor event.

Planning an outdoor game usually takes about a year. This one came together in two months.

“We learned a lot in the bubble and in that environment that we’ve transferred to this environment,” Mayer said.

“There’s no blueprint to do this. You’re making it up sometimes as you go along,” he added.

Dan Craig and Derek King, the N.H.L.’s ice gurus, have to adapt when creating the rink.

From a command center inside their truck, they pump thousands of gallons of water and coolant to make the ice. The markings are made with a textile material rather than paint to better hold up to the elements. Also particular to this event is a thicker sheet of ice (approximately two inches), even relative to past outdoor games, which all used a sheet double the thickness of a standard indoor rink.

Sun, rain, wind and cold — too much or not enough — can make the ice conditions dangerous. Recent temperatures in Tahoe have been all over the weather map, from the high teens to the low 50s. Calls for bright sun on Sunday already pushed the start time up an hour.

“We’ve been looking ahead to the weekend and we’ll just deal with whatever Mother Nature gives us,” King said. “We have the ability to make changes on the truck, if we have to put less water down or maybe shave more ice.”

As for the final product in Tahoe?

“I am in awe,” Sloan said. “I turned to Steve the other day and stopped him and said, ‘Take time out and realize where we’re at,’” Sloan said. “From our first visit out here, just standing out, looking at the lake and the mountains behind it, it gets the hairs on the back of your neck standing up.”

Sloan said the inventiveness of the N.H.L. was inspiring him in projects for other sports, as pop-up venues become increasingly sought-after. He said plans for Major League Baseball’s game at Fort Bragg, N.C. in 2016, and its upcoming “Field of Dreams” game in Iowa were both shaped in some part by his experience with the N.H.L.

“Fans want that once-in-a-lifetime memory, that they were there for that Instagrammable moment,” he said. “What gets me excited is creating that once-in-a-lifetime moment and knowing that will never happen again,” he added, citing the first Winter Classic, in 2008 at the Buffalo Bills’ Ralph Wilson Stadium, as another favorite memory.

“It’s not just for the fans, it’s for the players,” Sloan said. “To see the smiles on their faces is always amazing.”

The concept of an outdoor regular-season game began as something of a novelty. Nearly five years passed between the first Heritage Classic in 2003 and the first Winter Classic in 2008. In 2014, coming out of a lockout-shortened year, the N.H.L. staged six outdoor games, including one at Dodger Stadium. In more recent years three or four outdoor games have been held each season.

They have mostly been a wild success for the N.H.L., both from a revenue standpoint and in growing fan interest in hockey in the United States. The 2011 Winter Classic at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh was the most-watched regular-season hockey game in 36 years.

Without spectators, the commercial success of this weekend’s matches remains to be seen. The pandemic will continue to cut into revenue for the foreseeable future. The N.H.L.’s U.S. television contract, a 10-year deal with NBC worth $2 billion, is set to expire at the end of the season, but Mayer offered a hope.

“Some of the most iconic places that could probably do this might not necessarily be in North America,” Mayer said. “I hope that we have such success that we are sitting there with that adult beverage going, ‘What’s next?’”

Source

[mitchbeck]

CANTLON'S CORNER: HOCKEY NEWS AND NOTES OFF SEASON VOLUME 12

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The world is slowly approaching normalcy. Sports news is becoming more and more prevalent as ALL sports are moving closer and closer towards returning into the daily lives of its fans. AHL AWARDS The American Hockey League announced that forward Gerry Mayhew of the Iowa Wild has been voted the winner of the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL’s Most Valuable Player for the 2019-20 season. Mayhew scored a league-best 39 goals – the most by an AHL skater since 2011-12 – and finished third with 61 points in 49 games, leading Iowa to the team's best regular-season record in franchise history. 10 of Mayhew’s goals were game-winners and logging 11 multiple-goal performances, including a natural hat trick in a 3-0 win over the San Diego Gulls on Feb. 14. Mayhew tied a franchise mark with a ten-game scoring streak from December 12th to January 10th. Mayhew earned CCM/AHL Player-of-the-Month honors for January after he totaled 12 goals and 19 points in 11 contests. Among Mayhew’s 39 tallies were 13 power-play goals and two shorthanded markers. He also led the Wild in plus/minus rating at plus-16. Iowa was 26-7-1-2 in games when Mayhew registered a point. Mayhew represented Iowa at the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic in Ontario, CA, and was voted a Second Team Left-Wing AHL All-Star for 2019-20. He also made his National Hockey League debut this season, notching two goals in 13 games with Minnesota – including a goal in his first appearance on October 15th in Toronto. 2020-21 SEASON When it starts, where it starts still remains to be seen at the NHL or AHL level. The NHL has agreed-upon a framework to return to play, but several major details are still being worked out. While questions remain how it will all play out, signs point to a resumption of hockey sometime this summer. The AHL season start will not be in October, with the most likely start being some point in November. The October 9th scheduled date for the home opener for the Hartford Wolf Pack is almost certainly going to be rescheduled. One of the many side issues is the pending expiration of player contracts at the end of June but of the contracts of teams' hockey staff at the end of the month. “They’re running out of runway here and a lot of people are in limbo,” one source said. "It isn’t only players, its all the hockey ops people, GM, Assistant GM, Head Coaches, assistants, equipment managers, trainers, and scouts are all sitting around wondering a lot about this. What I’m hearing is the likelihood is that they will slide contracts forward say 60-90 days, then, announce a Draft Day and then a free agency period. The other big issue is, of course, the salary cap and what we're hearing is a freeze on the cap at this year’s level ($82.1M) for the next two-to-three years until the economy recovers. In principle, both sides are happy. They have areas of interest they want to clarify moving forward, but a ten-year extension for the CBA is being bandied about. It's in discussion but nothing's finalized.” The business of hockey is a large and expansive one with many pieces of the financial puzzle still to be resolved. PLAYER MOVEMENT A big coaching opportunity has opened up after the Los Angeles Kings announced on Saturday that they will not renew the contract of Ontario Reign head coach, Mike Stothers, whose contract is set to expire on June 15th. Stothers has led the Kings’ affiliate for the last six seasons, including five with the Reign (2015-20) where he earned the Louis A.R. Pieri Award as the AHL’s outstanding coach and won a Calder Cup championship with the Manchester Monarchs in 2014-15. “We appreciate everything Mike has contributed to the organization,” said Rob Blake, Vice President and General Manager of the Kings in a press release. “He has played an important role in helping develop our players and we want to thank him for his years of service and guiding us to a Calder Cup Championship in 2015." San Diego's Chris Wideman heads to the Torpedo Novgorod (Russia-KHL) and Frank Corrado of the Belleville Senators signs with MODO (Sweden-Allsvenskan). Lukáš Radil, who split the year in San Jose between the AHL Barracuda and the NHL Sharks signs with Spartak Moscow (Russia-KHL) while Carter Camper of the Utica Comets has his eyes on Sweden or perhaps Russia for next year. 23 players have now signed in Europe. 16 of the 31 AHL teams have lost at least one player to a European signing. Ex-Pack, Kodie Curran, turned down a KHL deal with Avangard Omsk (Russia) to sign a two-year, one-way deal at a $1M/year with the Anaheim Ducks. He will likely be in San Diego to start the season. He played with Rogle BK (Sweden-SHL) last year earning high marks as the top defenseman in the SHL and the Golden Helmet Award as the regular season MVP. Nice story on Curran in the Calgary Herald. Read it HERE. A pair of ex-Wolf Pack players were swapped for one another in a two-for-one deal in Russia. Defenseman, Alexei Bereglazov, winner of two Gagarin Cup titles, and forward, Ilya Kablukov, depart Mettallurg Magnitogorsk (Russia-KHL) for Avangard Omsk. Going back the other way in the deal is right-wing, Taylor Beck, an ex-Sound Tiger. Ryan Verbeek, the nephew of former Hartford Whaler and New York Ranger, and current Detroit Red Wing Assistant GM, Pat Verbeek, returns to France to play with Elite Magnus League HC Briancon next season. He split this season with Pensacola and Huntsville of the SPHL. Calvon Boots of the American International College (AHA) leaves the Springfield, MA school for the Rochester Institute of Technology (AHA) in the fall. AIC goalie, Zacharias Skog completes his four years and signs a pro deal back home with Vasterviks IK (Sweden-SHL). His movement makes 31 college players signing in Europe. Goalie, Ryan Edquist, after just 21 games in four years with the Boston College Eagles (HE) has grad transferred back home to the Minnesota State-Mankato Mavericks (NCHC). He will be the backup to next season's likely Hobey Baker finalist, Dryden McKay, who had a 1.31 GAA, tops in the nation in his sophomore year. He is the son of one-time Whaler, Ross McKay. Edquist's transfer makes for 16 Division I grads moving to new schools. Andrew Mancini, (Canterbury Prep-New Milford) drafted as the first-ever draft pick by the Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks in the NAHL Supplemental Draft has opted to sign with the P.A.L. Islanders (NCDC) which is closer to his Long Island home for next season. Cam MacDonald (Selects Academy of South Kent Prep) who was a Boston College (HE) commit for 2022-23 has elected to head home and signed with the Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL). He spent last season with the Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL). Max Coyle becomes the fourth University of Alabama-Huntsville (WCHA) player to transfer from the program that was slated to be eliminated. He heads to Bowling Green (NCHC). Read that story, next. TALBOT, A SAVE AND A BEAUTY The University Alabama-Huntsville Chargers were on the verge of extinction until a former Wolf Pack goaltender got involved. In just ten days' time, the Chargers' program received an astounding $500K in donations allowing the University to continue to have their team play in the WCHA conference. The conference formally reinstated the program on Wednesday. The conference is losing seven schools after the 2020-21 season as they form the new CCHA conference. UAH may apply so they have a more travel-friendly schedule according to now-former head coach Mike Corbett, who stepped down on Wednesday, along with Assistant Coach, and long time AHL player, Gavin Morgan. The other assistant coach Lance West was named Interim Head Coach. West played at UA-H in the early 1990s, three-of-the-four years at Division II. He was an assistant coach for ten years after graduating before spending the next eleven seasons at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks (WCHA), the first ten of them as an assistant coach. He returned to the program two years ago. A fundraising campaign to support the continuation of the Alabama-Huntsville hockey program was successful in raising the critical monetary gifts from numerous individual donors, according to UA-H Athletic Director, Cade Smith in a story on AL.com. The dollars were matched by two separate gifts of $125,000 each. The gifts came from long-time hockey supporters, Taso Sofikitis, and Sheldon Wolitski, who played on the school’s Division II national championship team. The total amount of more than $750,000 in private dollars will allow the Chargers to continue to compete at the Division I level during the 2020-21 season. This total philanthropic contribution is the largest athletic campaign contribution in the history of UA-H. One of the school's biggest program supporters and who helped spearhead the drive was its most famous former Charger, and current Calgary Flames and ex-Wolf Pack netminder, Cam Talbot. He took to his own Twitter page to express why people should donate to the cause. “This program gave me a chance that nobody else would. Without my time spent @UAHuntsville, I would not have got the opportunity to be where I am today. I want those opportunities to continue for more young players for years to come!” Talbot was named to the advisory board. In addition to the private dollars, UAH president, Darren Dawson, committed money from the university to cover the balance of the hockey team’s operational costs during the upcoming season. “We are thankful from the loyal support that has been demonstrated this week by the fans and alumni of Charger hockey,” said Dawson in a press release statement. “We are hopeful that this support will translate into a sustainable funding model that will allow the UAH hockey program to rise again to high levels of success,” “The university is fully committed to the upcoming season,” Smith added. “The university will work with the supporters of the UAH hockey program and a newly formed hockey advisory board to develop a plan that will allow the Chargers to thrive in the 2020-21 season and beyond. UAH is committed to building a world-class Division I hockey program with a permanent conference home that will allow the Chargers to continue past the 2020-21 season.” The school has already allocated money and cleared space for a brand-new, on-campus arena before the pandemic hit looking to take the Chargers from the larger, off-campus site, the Van Braun Center, which is the home of the local SPHL team, the Huntsville Havoc, to a more manageable facility. The WCHA conference will be strengthened and could become the first fully functioning West-Coast-based Conference as they are likely to add Arizona State, whose brand new on-campus arena is expected to be ready in 2021. The two Alaska schools in Fairbanks and Anchorage are likely to merge in the near future because of state budget cuts. The conference will likely then add other major West Coast Division I colleges and universities such as Los Angeles-based USC, and UCLA, Colorado-based, Air Force, who will likely switch from the AHA conference, and perhaps UNLV, and Utah, who are currently ACHA Division I club programs. Despite the good financial news, the Chargers program lost another player to transfer when Bailey Newton announced he will leave after his sophomore season and head back to Canada and the University of Western Ontario Mustangs (OUAA) QMJHL The last Canadian major junior Draft is this weekend. The QMJHL Draft will be done remotely for the first time with the first round scheduled for Friday on the league’s YouTube channel. Rounds 2-14 will be on Saturday starting at 9 am with selection results on the league website. The QMJHL U.S. Draft will be held on Monday, June 8th with results on the league's website. The states with eligible players in the US Draft are from are; Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. A strong rumor is that the QMJHL will start it's 2020-21 season on October 1st, regardless of what the other two major junior leagues, the OHL and WHL, do. In part, it will be because they have no US-based franchises. The only issue will be European players' participation based on provincial and directives from Ottawa regarding COVID-19 and the US border for American players which of course by mutual consent is still closed. “The feeling is they want to get back to a regular order of business starting a month later is OK, but they want to get back on track,” commented a reliable hockey source with knowledge of the situation. Having fans in the buildings are necessary for franchises to survive, but Health Canada will have the final say on when the puck is dropped. The NAHL has pushed its Draft Day to July 21st. The CHL Import Draft that normally takes place after the NHL Draft and no date has been set for either. COLLEGE HOCKEY The Dartmouth head coaching opening was filled with a familiar name to followers of Connecticut college hockey as Reid Cashman, who spent four years as a defenseman with the Quinnipiac Bobcats (ECACHL) in their rise to national prominence, was named the new head coach for the Dartmouth Big Green (ECACHL) on Monday. He becomes the 22nd coach in school history and replaces the all-time winningest coach, Bob Gaudet, who stepped down after 23 years year in the top spot. “I feel like I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime to be the head coach of the Dartmouth men’s hockey program,” Cashman said in a press release statement. “For 114 years, Dartmouth has competed at the highest level and has produced Olympians, All-Americans, and NHL players. Along with the great history on the ice, Dartmouth College has been one of the finest institutions in the world for more than 250 years. It is truly an honor to be given this prestigious opportunity.” Cashman has been on a fast track professionally. He was an assistant coach for two years with the Hershey Bears (AHL) and has spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach with the Washington Capitals, with his portfolio being the Caps powerplay and defense. He also coordinated their development camps and participation in the Traverse City, MI annual prospects tournament. He won’t start this new position until the NHL playoffs for the Capitals concludes, whenever that may be. Cashman played 151 games for the Hamden-based university. In 151 career games, Cashman tallied 23 goals and still holds the school record of 125 assists for 242 total points. He was an NCAA (East First-Team, All-American in his senior year in 2006-07. He was a second-team honoree in his junior in 2003-2004. In Quinnipiac’s last season in the AHA conference, he was named to the First Team and led the conference in scoring. He was named Player of the Year. In addition, Cashman was a Hobey Baker Top 10 finalist before the Bobcats were elevated to the ECACHL conference. Cashman played five years of minor professional hockey with his last year in North America winning an ECHL Kelly Cup championship with the Cincinnati Cyclones in 2010. Cashman’s last pro year was spent in Austria skating for EHC Linz in Erste Bank Eishockey League (EBEL). The Red Wing, MN native was undrafted but played in the AHL for Toronto, Wilkes Barre/Scranton, and Milwaukee. In the ECHL, he played for Columbia, Wheeling, and Cincinnati After retiring from active playing, he returned to Quinnipiac and became an assistant coach to Rand Pecknold for five years (2011-2016) and went to two Frozen Four Finals. Quinnipiac lost to first to their conference, and in-state rival, Yale University, in a 4-0 shutout in 2013 and again in 2016 losing 5-1 to North Dakota. Thomas Maia is another Division I player heading to the Canadian Junior A ranks while still retaining his NCAA eligibility. Maia, who suffered a broken fibula without playing a game for R.I.T. (AHA), heads to the Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL) after he was traded from the Oakville Blades (OJHL). Speaking of Yale University, they announced its 2020 freshmen class of seven which includes head coach Keith Allain's son, Nik (North Branford/Taft Prep) from Boston (NCDC). He was a UCONN commit at one point. Ryan Stevens joins his brother Luke who is already with the Bulldogs. The boys' father is Kevin Stevens, the former NHL'er with the New York Rangers. Stevens, the elder, won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The other announced players include Reilly Connors (Madison/Loomis Chaffe), and goalie Nathan Reid, from Sioux Falls (USHL). LIU named its first head coach last week, and this week their first batch of LIU Sharks recruits with the first-ever recruit signed being Jordan DiCicco of the Brooks Bandits (AJHL). He was followed by nine others including, Connor Szmul, from the Chippewa (WI) Steel (NAHL), Daine Dubois of the Bonnyville Pontiacs (AJHL), Robert McCollum Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL), no relation to ex-Wolf Pack Tom McCollum. Also, Nolan McElhaney, who missed all of last year with an ACL injury, transfers from the University of New Hampshire Wildcats (HE), and a second Division I transfer, Mitch Meek, from Michigan Tech (WCHA). Madoka Suzuki of the Kemptville 73’s (CCHL), Marty Westhaver of the Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL), Aaron White of the Amarillo Bulls (NAHL), and Gustav Muller of the Madison Capitols (USHL). TRIVIA What was Wayne Gretzky's last non-99 uniform number? He wore number 26 for three games with the Peterborough Petes. Last month was the 25th anniversary of the Quebec Nordiques' last game. It was at MSG against the Rangers in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Rangers won the series in six games with the last goal in Nordiques history was scored by Peter Forsberg. The Nordiques were the first WHA team that merged with the NHL that was moved. Read the full article

[andrewuttaro]

New Look Sabres: GM 25 - CGY - Thanksgiving Playoffs

3-2 OT Loss

Last year the month of November went considerably different for the Buffalo Sabres. The ten-game winning streak was a religious experience and as family flew to town for Thanksgiving Buffalo beat the Philadelphia Flyers in a contentious but dominating affair. The Sabres were in a playoff spot on American Thanksgiving, which matters to pundits in this sport for an analytically irrelevant reason, and the wheels proceeded to come off. This season the wheels have already come off. That awful March with two wins we had last season is November this season. Last year however I had this postgame called Thanksgiving Playoffs. I did a fun little activity speculating what it would be like if the Sabres made the playoffs after that torrid two month stretch to start last season. The post wasn’t actually on Thanksgiving and you’re probably rightfully watching a much more worthwhile Bills game right now, or idk hanging out with your family, but I thought we’d do it again this season. Let’s for a second pretend that the 20-25 game Thanksgiving mark in the NHL is an indicator of 100% certainty of whom makes the playoffs. In this world of the Thanksgiving playoffs the picture is… well let’s just take a look: Boston has been the most consistent team in the division so far locking up the division lead by ten points at the moment. They are followed by a shockingly good Florida Panthers squad and a Toronto Maple Leafs team that has risen from the dead since Mike Babcock’s firing last week. The Sabres are only two points back from that last divisional spot but already the two wildcards five points off. I like many others predicted the wildcards would be dominated by Atlantic teams this season and so far that’s very wrong. We Buffalo Sabres fans find ourselves in a familiar position of needing to jump five teams to get into a playoff spot, two of which are DEFINETLY better teams. Disclaimer, after we did the Thanksgiving playoffs check-in last season the Sabres took over the top spot in the league the following week winning ten games in a row before a legendary tumble that saw them miss the playoffs. I’m not convinced the Sabres will DEFINETLY miss again this season, but I am yet to see a commitment from the organization to getting there or some convincing wins… you know in the entire month of November. It’s Thanksgiving, let’s not bore with more pessimism, let’s get to the game last night!

The first period saw a slow start as the home team locked down one shot in the first ten minutes. It was frightful considering I was sitting next to a small Seal Team of Calgary Flames fans. Evidently one of them was dating number 88, Andrew Mangiapane, which is pretty rad. Having an honest-to-God professional hockey player in the family has to be a real talking point. They told me they were not from Calgary, but they packed a sign and we’re all covered head to toe in Flames gear. The Sabres did come alive. They closed the shot gap and eventually edged out a 9-8 first period lead in that metric. They did not edge out a lead in the goals metric. After they finally had started wracking up some sustained zone time Calgary got a run-of-the-mill cycle back into Buffalo’s defensive zone. TJ Brodie took a shot from the point that made a distinct thud sound on Linus Ullmark’s pad but nonetheless trickled in behind him. We went to the first intermission tied. It looked like it was only going to get worse in the second period when Marcus Johansson, newly back on the roster, got called for a penalty against the specific flame one of my neighbors in section 305 was dating. What actually transpired was a thing of miracles. Rasmus Asplund broke up a flames attempt to clear the zone and suddenly Jimmy Vesey was on the breakaway. He went top cheddar to tie it up like he’s some kind of all-star now. Don’t you ever tell me this sport isn’t 50% confidence. Vesey has two goals in two games, his first two of the season, both on the breakaway. Crazy world we’re living in right now, eh?

The rest of the middle frame was not boring. I got hiccups on a sick Eichel chance sandwiched between two Skinner slappers that almost put the home team ahead. There was excitement for all our family back in town for the holiday. Nonetheless it was the third period before more movement in the score occurred. That top line we may never see broken up for good and bad reasons finally got on the scoresheet when Reinhart and Eichel both assisted on a Victor Olofsson goal at even strength from right in front of the Flames net on a rush. Those are the kinda goals we need more of. Just as soon as we got it, it was gone. Matthew Tkachuk slapped home an equalizer and as hard as the pushing was this one went to overtime. Per usual the Sabres couldn’t maintain possession in 3-on-3 overtime where it matters the most and… because of course it was… Rasmus Ristolainen botched the defensive play that allowed Elias Lindholm to score the deciding 3-2 goal. That was it. One overtime point… the loser point… NO MORAL VICTORIES. It sucked to watch happen and my wife said this is the saddest I’ve looked after a Buffalo loss this season. That was the moment I realized my wife doesn’t pay attention to me. LOL, well the overtime went just long enough for us to leave the game out into the driving wind and rain and eventually our soggy asses found our way home all the way to good old Rochester, NY. That disappointing result on a good effort doesn’t inspire confidence going into *checks notes* a home and home series with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Oh joy, this is going to be a whole new level of hurt.

Before I wrap up and let you get back to the most important Buffalo Bills game in a generation… or you know… your family on Thanksgiving, we should really talk about something that’s been concerning lately. Nothing on the ice, no, this is a fan blog and the fans of this team are frustrated right now. We’re totally justified in being frustrated in this terrible November stretch, even downright angry at the organization. But on this important Buffalo Bills gameday I’d like to dispel a little bit of this idea the Pegulas are apathetic owners. I just wrote a whole article yesterday on the apathetic owners of the Rochester Rhinos. Y’all don’t know nothing about apathetic owners. You thin Terry doesn’t care about the Sabres since he bought the Bills in 2014? Three coaching hires and one huge GM move since then begs to differ. Say what you will about his success picking personnel, I’ll probably agree with you, it’s been rough. But don’t tell me the Sabres need new ownership to get better. There are far too many shitty owners in professional North American sports for you to tell me this guy is indifferent. Get over yourselves. On that cheerful note, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I am thankful for you as a reader and I hope you enjoy this holiday with family and friends! Like, share and comment your thoughts and I am not even ashamed anymore I’m more excited about the Bills then the Sabres. Let’s Go Buffalo!

Thanks for Reading.

P.S. Here is my mandatory comment on the Bill Peters situation. Shocked. I mean, not really: you think the whitest, rich-kid sport out there isn’t going to have a racial problem? Cute. I hope this situation is the start of the shit getting called out more.

[atlanticcanada]

Loyalties of Canadian hockey fans divided entering next round of NHL playoffs

MONTREAL -- With just two Canadian teams standing after the first round of the NHL playoffs, not everyone is rooting for a Stanley Cup final showdown between the Ottawa Senators and the Edmonton Oilers.

Take Dan Fougere, for example.

The manager of Halifax's Bubba Ray's Sports Bar Too would like one-half of that matchup in the final -- the Oilers.

From the Eastern Conference, however, Fougere is pulling for the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins -- and a Sidney Crosby-Connor McDavid clash.

"I think that's what a lot of people would love to see," he said in an interview Tuesday. "If you somehow get those two facing off for the Stanley Cup final I don't think it could get any better than that."

Fougere has even changed the bar's Facebook cover photo to include images of the two superstars.

Crosby is, of course, the local favourite, hailing from nearby Cole Harbour, while the 20-year-old McDavid has been one of Canada's top talents since entering the league in 2015.

Not surprisingly, the Edmonton Journal's editorial board has a firm opinion about where Canadian fans should direct their attention now.

"For so many reasons, the choice for the national team is obviously the Oilers," the paper wrote Tuesday, the day before the team was scheduled to open second-round play against the Anaheim Ducks.

"The team is led by captain Connor McDavid, a homegrown superstar-in-the-making and at 20, already the league's most exciting player. Unlike Sidney Crosby, who patriotic fans have obligingly supported over the last decade in some measure because of his citizenship, McDavid plays for a team on the right side of the border.

"Make no mistake. Ottawa is a fine team but its best player is Erik Karlsson -- from Sweden."

In Montreal, one of the three Canadian cities whose team was eliminated in the first round, the editor of a website dedicated to all things Canadiens says the locals aren't feeling that great.

"Passionate fans were devastated with the first-round loss," said Rick Stephens. "Montreal finished first in their division, has a world-class goaltender in Carey Price and was generally expected to go further this season.

"The fans are angry. They are calling for big changes; there was talk of trading Carey Price. They want to win now."

Montrealers will have to wait and, in the meantime, their choices for the playoffs aren't obvious, Stephens said.

His readers have divided loyalties, he explained, and not necessarily between the two teams left.

"Ottawa is going to be a tough team for Canadiens fans to cheer for," Stephens said. "There is a budding rivalry there. Not at the level of Boston or Toronto, but it's getting there."

Edmonton, he said, is more likely to be the Canadian team of choice for Habs fans.

"But we can't forget that down in Nashville, there is a former Canadien there who still has the hearts of many fans, P.K. Subban," who was traded in summer 2016.

The Predators swept their first-round series against the highly regarded Chicago Blackhawks and could be a formidable presence in the Western Conference.

In Toronto, the co-owner of a hockey website says the elimination of the Maple Leafs means "everyone switches and puts their baseball hat on but hockey is still front of mind."

Declan Kerin, co-owner of the Maple Leafs Hot Stove site, said some people like to stick to the Canadian teams, but many don't care."

"Most of the NHL players are Canadian anyway so they just want to watch hockey," he added.

And despite the first-round loss, Kerin said, "it's all positive."

Since Brendan Shanahan was named president of the Maple Leafs after the 2013-14 season, "you'd be hard-pressed to say they've made a mistake since then," he said.

"It doesn't even feel like it's the Maple Leafs (this year)," he said. "It feels like Detroit or Chicago or New Jersey of yesteryear."

Back in Eastern Canada, Fougere said the traditional teams fans cheer for are Montreal and Toronto -- and the latter is making a comeback.

"In the past, Toronto wasn't having a great go, but now it's getting more 50-50," Fougere said, regarding the percentage of Habs-Leafs fans in his bar.

Fougere, a Toronto fan, said his adopted team is "exciting and young."

"Montreal's got some work to do I think," he said.

from CTV News - Atlantic http://ift.tt/2phMv15

[actutrends]

NHL Talking Points: Free agency and John Tavares, James van Riemsdyk sagas

NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 30: James van Riemsdyk #25 of the Toronto Maple Leafs and John Tavares #91 of the New York Islanders battle for the puck during their game at the Barclays Center on October 30, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

NHL Talking Points is a weekly column highlighting 10 stories that have been circulating around the league. This week, we take a look at speculation surrounding the John Tavares sweepstakes, James van Riemsdyk’s future, trades, contracts and more.

The past week in the NHL has seen countless stories come and go, as the talk circuit of the hockey world was flooded with information. Future stars were drafted, trades were made and speculative assertions loomed larger than ever.

Let’s explore 10 stories that have been circulating around the National Hockey League.

1. Barry Trotz has been announced as the next coach of the New York Islanders.

The former recipient of the Jack Adams Award (2016) and the pilot of the NHL’s most recent Stanley Cup victory (2018), Trotz is an established winner who shall aim to maintain success heading into Long Island. His new contract is reportedly worth approximately $4 million on an annual basis and he’s set to hold the position for five years.

Naturally, the move is heavily speculated to have been a major stepping stone in the ongoing John Tavares saga. Trotz had the opportunity to speak with the Islanders’ captain about the future of the franchise, remarking, “John has been a big piece for a long time, right? He wants to be a part of that as well.”

2. Artemi Panarin’s future in Columbus is becoming a tricky topic.

The 26-year-old, who led the Blue Jackets in scoring in 2017-18, is apparently reluctant to sign a long-term extension at the moment. Nonetheless, the team’s administrators remain confident in their ability to extend the Russian winger.

Said GM Jarmo Kekäläinen:

Artemi has done everything right for us, is a great player. We love him. We want to have him for eight years, have made it clear to him that we want him to be a big part of our future, we want build our team around him. That doesn’t change.

We will keep trying until it’s too late, if it is too late. Hopefully not.

3. Could Craig Anderson be on his way out of Ottawa?

These are certainly crazy times to be a member of the Ottawa Senators, aren’t they?

According to a report from the Ottawa Sun, the story surrounding the future of the Senators’ netminder is complicated. Bruce Garrioch writes:

[Anderson’s agent, Justin] Duberman wouldn’t confirm Anderson, who has been with the Senators for eight seasons, had asked for a trade, but the goalie has been around long enough to know the club is in a difficult position to fulfill such a request.

There was a report that Duberman had been asked by general manager Pierre Dorion to help facilitate a trade, but Duberman indicated that wasn’t so and he hasn’t had any discussions with any teams regarding Anderson.

“Ottawa has never asked me for help,” Duberman said. “They’re going to do whatever they can to improve their team. If that means they’ll trade Craig Anderson, they’ll trade Craig Anderson.”

4. Tyler Bozak is a subject of interest heading into free agency.

According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, a wide range of calls have already been made about the possibility of signing the veteran forward, with the Toronto Maple Leafs remaining in the running to extend the fan favorite.

Strong interest in Tyler Bozak with the interview period now open. Newport Sports fielding several calls on the vet centre.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 24, 2018

5. Philipp Grubauer has a new home in Colorado.

The Washington Capitals traded their backup goaltender, along with veteran defender Brooks Orpik, to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. Grubauer has since signed a contract extension, worth $10 million over a period of three seasons.

The move is surely a bit of a gamble, but nevertheless serves as a sign that Joe Sakic’s men have faith in the 26-year-old, who amassed 15 wins, three shutouts, a 2.35 goals against average and a .923 save percentage in 35 contests this past season.

6. Ilya Kovalchuk is officially set to return to the NHL.

And he’ll do so as a member of the Los Angeles Kings.

The 35-year-old and the Kings’ administration have agreed to a three-year deal — reportedly with a cap hit of $6.25 million.

What does this mean for both the forward and the organization?

On the one hand, Kovalchuk sees himself as a player who warrants Patrick Marleau-esque money. On the other, the Kings regard themselves as legitimate contenders for Lord Stanley’s trophy. They’ve shown that they’re willing to bite, so expect Kovalchuk & Co. to put up a heck of a fight in the 2018-19 campaign.

7. The Calgary Flames and the Carolina Hurricanes made a trade for the books.

It’s tough to predict at the present moment, but the aforementioned deal may wind up being the trade of the summer. Even more difficult to ruminate on is the question of who shall end up winning the exchange.

What will the fallout of the trade look like? Is this a sure sign that Justin Faulk is on the move? By extension, which of the Flames’ up and coming talents shall be required to step up on the blue line?

8. John Carlson has agreed to a deal with the Washington Capitals.

The talented defender finally got what he was looking for, locking up an eight-year deal that shall allow him to stay with the Stanley Cup winners. Throughout this period, the 28-year-old will make $64 million — fitting, as he outperformed his last contract, which paid him slightly below $4 million.

9. Where will James van Riemsdyk end up?

For a player who is rated so highly on various “best of” UFA boards, the future of van Riemsdyk, known for being one of the league’s finest net-front threats, has certainly been a relatively quiet subject over the course of the summer. But some pundits have recently claimed that the Boston Bruins are interested in the 29-year-old winger, whose penchant for goal scoring has been central to the Toronto Maple Leafs’ recent success.

Maple Leafs’ GM Kyle Dubas has already stated that he is not opposed to entertaining an offer for the veteran forward. Whether van Riemsdyk has priced himself out of Toronto, however, is another matter altogether.

Look for his name to gain traction as we get closer to July 1.

10. The John Tavares sweepstakes are about to get interesting.

Far and away, the most discussed player of the 2018 free agency period is the Islanders’ 27-year-old captain. The veteran center is the face of his franchise — a special talent whose two-way gifts promise to bring his future club straight to the edges of legitimate contention.

Now, we finally have an answer regarding the way in which the Tavares proceedings shall work.

According to Islanders reporter Arthur Staple, Tavares shall meet with five to six teams as of Monday. The Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Dallas Stars, San Jose Sharks and New York Islanders are believed to be among his shortlist. The Tampa Bay Lightning and/or Nashville Predators may enter into the ranks of competition, too.

Tavares list just about finalized, it appears.

Leafs, Sharks, Stars are in, as mentioned a couple days ago. Believe the Bruins are in as well.

Canadiens and Vegas not on the list as of now.#Isles will get in there too, of course.

— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) June 25, 2018

Sounds like Tampa and/or Nashville could round out Tavares’ list of visitors starting Monday. Might end up being six teams instead of five, plus #Isles.

— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) June 25, 2018

Whatever the case, Tavares’ eventual destination promises to be one of the most important stories of the summer. Expect to learn more in the days to come.

The post NHL Talking Points: Free agency and John Tavares, James van Riemsdyk sagas appeared first on Actu Trends.

[paradoxicalca]

r/hockey NHL Power Rankings Week 8: First Blood Edition

/r/Hockey NHL Power Rankings Week Nov 18, 2019 - Nov 24, 2019Thank YouThank you to all of the volunteers doing the power rankings. Each ranker has their own system and have their own reasonings and analyis. It truly is a lot of work.RankersSpoilerOrganizersSpoilerVisualizationThe visualization contains historical data, so you can see how your team has done over time. Hopefully, we can run this for many years in hopes that we can see the rise and fall of teams by /r/hockey opinion.It automatically updates so feel free to bookmark. You can find it hereProcessHow does this work? Throughout the course of the week rankers are able to access an app that will allow them to rank teams. At the end of the period we calculate the average ranking for every team and collate all of the analysis provided by rankers.The app then generates a post that is first proofread and then posted to /r/hockey!Rankings (27/31 Rankers Reporting)Ranking (avg)TeamDeltaOverall RecordRecord This WeekComments1 (1.9)New York Islanders116-3-22-0-1To use the words of another commentator. "Best team in the league, full stop." Brocktober carried into November as Nelson potted two OT winners, and his line is on absolute fire as Beauvillier is scoring and Brassard is dishing. They've started to get Powerplays after being on pace to have less PP's than some teams did in the 48 game season. Franchise has a new point-streak record, and it's still alive.2 (2.34)Washington Capitals-116-4-51-1-13 (2.59)Boston Bruins-15-3-53-0-0The Bruins have a 3-game win streak. They also have a 7-game point streak and continue to show why they are the best team in the Atlantic. The Bruins also the only team left in the NHL not to lose in regulation at home. Depth started to show up in the win over the Devils with Grzelcyk potting 2 biscuits. The Pasta Rocket continues to lead the League in goals. Minnesota kept that game Wild with Krejci scoring 2 goals in 43 seconds with Rask pulled. Then Scorey Krug goes coast-to-coast in OT and walks it off.4 (5.55)Edmonton Oilers116-7-33-1-05 (5.59)St. Louis Blues-114-5-52-1-0the Blues have been winning a lot despite relatively poor play for a while now, and this week they finally had some down games. Just from the eye test, they look good but not good enough. If they don't rebound in the next week expect them to severely drop6 (7.76)Carolina Hurricanes115-8-13-1-0Carolina had a loaded schedule this week pulling out a couple wins against some struggling teams. Doing what dominant teams do the Canes were able to push out their patented high volume high quality possession hockey. Brett Pesce is logging big minutes and holding down a very active D group. Martin Necas is slowly entering the Calder debate as he currently sits third in rookie scoring behind Makar and Quinn Hughes and Necas does the bulk of his work 5v5. Dougie Hamilton continues his tear on opposing goalies racking up his consistent shot counter. Leading NHL defensmen in goals and taking care of his own end leading the league in High Danger Chances%. Svechnikov extended his point streak to 8 games. Edmunson's 6-game point streak ended last night. Reimer earned his first shutout with the Canes, stopping all 19 shots he faced last night. The Canes are 14-1-0 when their starter has a SV% over .875, and 1-7-1 otherwise. Maintaining the consistency from this point will be key as the Canes have had an issue staying at the top of their game from week to week.7 (7.83)Colorado Avalanche-113-8-21-2-0As good a week as could be had for a team that lost twice in regulation. Did not play the whole game in the losses. The good news: Grubauer and Francouz are back, and only at 4 or 5 injuries now. Rantanen is practicing. The bad news: The defense has not been getting better it has been a rough 10 or so games. Everyone beside Makar has not been great, Zadorov has been the second best. Bit of an odd week coming up probably thanks to the holiday. A Game Wednesday vs the Oilers and then a home and home with the Hawks Friday-Saturday. Makalder Watch: Cale had a quiet week with just 3 points in 3 games. Capped with two goals vs the Wild. He also hit a few posts. He is shooting more and playing more, his defensive play was great this week. He logged nearly 28 minutes vs the Leafs.8 (8.24)Arizona Coyotes-14-8-32-1-1The Coyotes attained 4 of 6 possible points this week, going 2 for 2 against the Kings, and 0 for 1 against Toronto. They started the week off strong, posting a 31-save shutout against the Kings, thanks in part to fantastic goaltending from Raanta, who appears to have the King's number, based on his previous 6 games versus the LA kings, in which he has 3 shutouts. He would go on to save 43 of 45 from the Kings on Saturday afternoon. It wasn't all Raanta though; while LA has some of the highest shot totals in the league, their shot quality is near the bottom, and the Coyotes rock-hard defense did not make quality shots any easier for them. During the matchup against Toronto in the middle of the week, the Coyotes seemed to have no answers. Toronto, playing their first game since the firing of their coach, came out hard and fast, and maintained that throughout the game. As has been the case all season, the real crux of the Coyotes came in the form of offense, or rather, lack thereof.9 (8.38)Dallas Stars214-8-23-0-0Dallas in their current 13-1-1 streak has been nearly unbeatable. Strong goaltending has been critical but after many maligned seasons with only the top line producing dependably we have something that we haven’t experienced in a while. Depth.10 (10.9)Pittsburgh Penguins-112-7-41-0-2I’m still in shock that the 6-1 game against Toronto did not lead to Babcocks demise. He should have never made it out of the city but I guess they needed to have a losing record in order to justify the move. Loses this week came from playing the best team in the league so all in all not too much to complain or be worried about.11 (12.38)Winnipeg Jets214-9-12-1-012 (14.31)Montreal Canadiens-211-7-50-2-1Last week, the Canadiens honoured their great captain (and freshly minted Hall-of-Famer) Guy Carbonneau with a touching tribute at the Bell Centre. For those 20 minutes, it felt great to be a Habs fan. You could probably say the same for the first period against the Rangers, too. That was nice. But otherwise it was a painful, humbling week in what is becoming a wild season for Montreal. Since that big win in D.C., the Habs have lost 4 in a row and the Bruins are up next. Let's go, les boys! In the words of the medieval French philosopher Comte Drou, Abbé de la Rossrhea: "Grosse game à soir."13 (14.41)Tampa Bay Lightning111-7-22-1-0Great week for Tampa. Starting to get that even strength scoring back, scoring 3 at 5v5 against both Chicago and Anaheim. Pat Maroon is becoming an amazing asset on the PP, taking up space in front of the net, effecting the play even when he isn't listed on the score sheet. Our lord and savior Brayden Fucking Point has looked awesome, scoring 3 goals in the last 2 games. Curtis McElhinney has also been very good (outside of the NJD game). If you take out the NJD game, he's posted a .922SV%. Still hate the new jerseys, should've been these.14 (15)Vancouver Canucks112-8-42-1-0The Canucks went 1-1-1 this week, finishing off a four game home stand with a total of 3 points. Underlying numbers remain promising, but results are sporadic and it appears we are seeing the Canucks settle closer to what can be expected out of a young team. I've seen people discussing the DJ again, which usually says more about dissatisfaction with the on-ice product than it does about whatever cheesy tunes are being played. That said, the Canucks still potted 11 goals in their last 3 games, Hughes had 2 assist Saturday night, Demko remains solid (and at times brilliant), and the hockey is fun as hell for a bubble team. The power-play remains inconsistent, because this is ice hockey and nothing is consistent. After a too-good-to-be-true start, fans may need to re-calibrate expectations in order to enjoy the grind as the season wears on.15 (16.21)Vegas Golden Knights211-10-41-1-1Even Marc-Andre Fleury's stellar play can't save this team from their really long slump. Vegas has not won more than two games in a row this season. Vegas has all the talent to be a top contending team but the results are not showing up. The team are currently paper tigers until they figure out how to finish most of the high danger chances they're getting and not make crucial defensive mistakes at the worst times.16 (16.38)Florida Panthers412-7-52-2-0The slumpbusters are back! It is definitely a bad way to end the week, but it started well at least. It feels like this team never plays a full game and that is not something I would have expected from a team playing under Q.17 (17.21)Nashville Predators-110-9-31-2-0The Preds finally won a game! :D ... Arvidsson is out for 4-6 weeks :'( ... Bortuzzo got 4 games >:(18 (17.28)Buffalo Sabres-611-9-31-2-0This team needs some center depth in the worst way possible. A veteran behind Eichel or even on the third line would make a world of difference on this lineup.19 (17.34)San Jose Sharks312-11-12-1-0The Sharks finally completed their long climb back to .500 this week with two nice OT wins over division rivals Vegas and the league best Islanders. The team is finally back to what everyone expected before the season started. The D has stopped making multiple bad turnovers every game, and the offence is looking coordinated. Really happy with the D pairings and lines right now, I hope PDB doesn't blend them, and gives the lines time to develop more chemistry. I hope to see Gregor back in the lineup soon, but the team is playing well and that's good enough for me.20 (17.86)Philadelphia Flyers-211-7-51-1-1So like I'm really conflicted cause we have taken a lot of points from our games but by the same token we lost to the Flames who we probably should have beaten. Lost to the panthers, which was a game we needed to win imo. But we did beat the hurricanes which was nice. Frost has been popping off since coming up from the AHL, and with the juggled lines we are seeing different potentials. The best news that we got was that our murder man Scott Laughton is back which helps add to our center depth. Its a shame I worked on most days that there was a game on so I didn’t get to see too much of the performance of the team, but the highlights were...certainly something. Let us all pray to Gritty, that we may have success and our playoff dreams may be realized. Praise Gritty.21 (19.28)Toronto Maple Leafs211-10-42-1-0So ya. It happened. You know what I'm talking about, unless you've been living under a rock this week. It was Andreas Johnsson's birthday. Happy Birthday Mango! Jokes aside, the happiest man regarding Babcock's firing has to be Tyson Barrie, who's contract season is now back on track to make him a ton of dough. Sheldon Keefe (the best coach in NHL history, obviously) is playing him on PP1 and is also putting him in a couple extra shifts with Morgan Rielly to fully utilize his offensive capabilities, and he's now on a 4-game point streak. Pierre Engvall made his NHL debut this week and scored his first goal shorthanded against the Coyotes on Thursday, but the team choked Andersen's chance at his first shutout of the season by letting one up with 15 seconds to go. On Saturday night, the Leafs fell behind 1-0 thirty seconds in against Kadri's Avalanche, but answered back by scoring 4 consecutive goals in the first to knock Grubauer out of the game, and in the end won 5-3. All is well in Leafs land.22 (21.72)Calgary Flames-111-12-31-2-0Oof. The Flames scored 1 goals in 3 games this week, and conceded 12. They have not led at any point in about 220 minutes. In short... the Flames are a bad hockey team right now.23 (22.24)Anaheim Ducks-410-11-30-2-1This team is almost ready to call it a season. Will most likely finish near the second wildcard spot. It’s a learning experience and we knew the younger players would struggle. RIP Sam Steel Calder hype. September-October.24 (24.03)Ottawa Senators511-11-13-0-0Another rough week for all of us with our hearts set on seeing Alexis Lafrenière in a Sens sweater next year. Led on by Pageau going ultra-beastmode through the month of November, Nilly Nilly looking like a legitimate starting goaltender between the pipes, Craig Anderson standing on his head as he always does versus the Habs, and some desperate depth call-ups suiting up well versus the Rangers this team is taking their unpredictability to strange new heights. Things are getting weird as they've reached the 0.500 mark on the season, somehow, in a year where they were predicted to firmly stay 31st overall. Will this magic (or voodoo sorcery on the part of DJ Smith) continue through December? Only the hockey gods know...25 (24.41)New York Rangers-10-9-22-1-026 (25.07)Chicago Blackhawks-29-9-50-2-1Duncan Keith joined Stan Mikita (1396) and Brent Seabrook (1103) as the only players to play 1100 games with the Blackhawks. Patrick Kane extended his point streak to 12. The Hawks' PP has gone 1 for the last 17. The Hawks are getting elite goaltending from Lehner and Crawford. Per Corsica, they are 1st and t-2nd in SV% above expected (min 7 GS). And have 8 goals from defensemen in their last 6 games.27 (25.17)Columbus Blue Jackets-19-9-42-1-0The Jackets score 6 PPG in 3 games this week. They were 9/62 (14.5%) and end the week 15/74 (20.3%) -- good enough to jump from 25th to 12th. Paul MacLean mustache must have had the missing talent to fix the PP. Seth Jones and Cam Atkinson finally potted some goals this week, too. The Jackets currently sit 5 points outside of a playoff spot with 1 game in hand. This week is the biggest test of the season so far -- all four teams are teams above them in standings.28 (27.14)Minnesota Wild29-11-32-0-1Minnesota has played better of late and a 2-0-1 stretch could have been 3-0-0 but, you know, overtime. There's flashes of brilliance from Kevin Fiala, the GEEK Squad (Greenway, Eriksson Ek, Kunin), but collectively the Minnesota roster just doesn't seem to 100% click on any given night. Some nights the age on Staal, Koivu, Suter, and Parise really shows. Iowa is looking pretty good this year but the Parise/Suter contracts make it impossible to go for a total youth movement, and there's the upcoming expansion draft to think about. GM Bill Guerin will have to do some creative juggling to prevent another draft fiasco after Vegas got Erik Haula and Alex Tuch. Speaking of Iowa, it sounds like goalie Kappo "Big Kahk" Kahkonen will make his NHL debut in the coming days. With Kahkonen, Matt Robson, and Hunter Jones all in the pipeline, you have to think one of those three will take up Dubnyk's mantle when his time with the Wild is over.29 (28.07)Los Angeles Kings-29-13-11-2-0Another lackluster week for the Kings. One highlight was Jeff Carter playing his 1000th game. The other teams in the Pacific did relatively well overall which puts the Kings in an even deeper hole.30 (28.86)New Jersey Devils-28-10-41-2-0This team just isn't playing up to our expectations and their talent level, it's really as simple as that. The Good: Hall has figured out how to score again, thank all that is holy and good in this world. Coleman may have gotten the scoring monkey off his back last game as well. Despite only really getting time vs the Red Wings, Domingue looked decent in net. The Bad: Blackwood faltered in his 2 starts against the Bruins and Pens, and got pulled vs the Pens. Despite finally racking up some shots, Boqvist can't find the net or any points for that matter. The Ugly: J E S U S C H R I S T our entire special teams just sucks ass. We might as well just politely decline powerplays if we are never going to score on them. Our PK is figuring things out and starting to buildup our abysmal %, but 10% on the week and 14% overall? No bueno captain.31 (30.48)Detroit Red Wings-7-16-30-4-0Another week of losses, another week at the bottom. Lets try and take something positive out of the week eh? The Wings are going through some major injuries as per usual with Mantha getting his typical routine injury right on schedule allowing for Zadina to come up and get some playtime which is nice. Seider is scoring in the AHL and the Griffins are buzzing as they usually do. The Wings played four games this week and honestly they were pretty close games. Losing by one or two due to an empty net is not a bad place to be while trying to tank for great lottery odds. Everyday we get closer to the Wings getting mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, we get closer to seeing their best hockey as the last few years have shown that's when it decides to come out. Only a few months to go! r/hockey NHL Power Rankings Week 8: First Blood Edition Source

[writeme-andeluuu]

It’s horrendous.

Sportsnet and Rogers media really screwed themselves, and let a lot of people down. I mean over such a flimsy call by the social justice warriors too (I’ve been banned from Twitter for a week and Facebook for a month, because I said a bad word) The amount of respect that I have for anyone who supported the idea that Don Cherry was a racist, or that he said discriminatory things obviously grew up privileged.

At least that’s what I would think, because anyone who had to face adversities such as racial discrimination knows that when someone saying something is no where near as harmful as being treated differently because of your race. Most racists are passive aggressively racist, and what do you know; so are a lot of people in this “woke” culture,

Yet now, Grapes is talking about “the silent majority” in his corner, well I don’t believe that we should be silent. I think being silent like some monk is hurting people who get stomped on, while these seemingly good people get abused.

Have no idea what I’m talking about? Okay, I’ll do a recap.

Saturday, November 9th 2019, Hockey Night in Canada went on during the 1st intermission as usual. Don Cherry and Ron MacLean both donning poppies ahead of Remembrance Day. It was business as usual, a few hockey highlights, Canadian soldiers who had fallen in war, then Grapes said this:

“You people that come here, you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey, at least you can pay a couple of bucks for poppies or something like that,”

“These guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada, these guys paid the biggest price”.

Several new stations had played the coverage of the HNIC segment, which paints quite a different picture than the one most people of colour take offence to. I hear this one guy in New Brunswick say on his radio that Don Cherry is promoting an “Us vs. Them” mentality (I actually think he said a “We vs. Them” mentality, must be the B team).

Thousands of Canadians took to the internet to channel their passive aggression. #FireCherry soon became a trend on the social media platform, Twitter, and on Facebook people shared images and memes displaying outrage to Cherry’s discriminative message.

Here’s One that Jagmeet Singh posted;

  (From the first Trump Impeachment Hearing) Mr. George Kent – “You can’t promote principle to any kind of corruption action, without pissing off corrupt people”

Ron MacLean appeared on air, offering an apology for Don’s comments and how he had sat there and gave the thumbs up while not saying a word. Don Cherry found it quite disrespectful, as he says that MacLean had “buried him”. Joe Warmington of the Toronto Sun, found this to be an outrageous and despicable display from Rogers Media and Sportsnet.

Toronto Sun’s Joe Warmington on the firing of Don Cherry.

Okay, so I hope that awakens some curiosity. Global News has done an extensive covering of this whole Sportsnet debacle, looking at the mass of internet users who found this racist (including that radio host who didn’t speak proper English to begin with) and the president of Sportsnet who didn’t even take into consideration all the good Cherry has done; especially to support our soldiers fighting in various parts of the world.

Don Cherry is no nonsense kind of guy, he is a straight up talker that walks the walk. I can’t tell you how many people just love to jump on the bandwagon, but then again it’s Toronto. Full of fakes, someone will call the leafs a waste of time to watch, yet grab beer and wings with buddies as they chant “GO LEAFS GO” when they’re in the playoffs. Then this happens, and I bet you every single fair-weather fan just became an expert on how Don Cherry has always been racist.

Don is not going to apologize, nor should he; now he says he’ll go as far as to say it was a mistake to refer to everyone as “you people”. Watch the tapes, that’s how Don Cherry talks, especially when referring to people. How could you not see this lynching as blatant racism, masked as being “conscientious” about advocating for some marginalized group. My stance is that this statement makes sense for people, who are coming to Canada or in Canada for whatever reason, to at least pay some respect to the people who gave their lives for us to have these discussions.

But of course, it wasn’t perfectly articulated and people just lost their minds, and it caused one of Canada’s biggest icons to anyone who watches hockey to get forced to step down? Disgraceful you kids, if you’re are going to be like this, crying about your planet like Greta, and yelling how the older people ruined it for the younger people…

You know they still live here as well.

Why didn’t NDP leader Jagmeet Singh just buy a bunch of poppies and give them out to whomever he thought Grapes was discriminating against; instead of talking about himself and his family over social media?

It was clear Cherry wasn’t trying to be racist when I saw the segment, although I anticipate Cherry being brought back on (my problem is that you had this guy on for this reason, and then you just fire as soon as it’s deemed “too far”? He isn’t part of a suicide squad). I swear to the Flying Spaghetti-Monster, if Brian Burke replaces Don in HNIC, I’m shipping to Boston.

By the time you read this, I’ll have already ordered my Marchand jersey. After the traded Kadri, I already had one foot out the door; I don’t even want to get into how the media played a monumental role in that.

You people, I swear.

Losing Grapes. It's horrendous. Sportsnet and Rogers media really screwed themselves, and let a lot of people down. I mean over such a flimsy call by the social justice warriors too…

[marilynngmesalo]

Oh Baby! Legendary broadcaster Bob Cole set to make one final call

Oh Baby! Legendary broadcaster Bob Cole set to make one final call Oh Baby! Legendary broadcaster Bob Cole set to make one final call https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Bob Cole still remembers the butterflies flapping in his stomach as he walked into the old Boston Garden in the spring of 1969.

Calling games for “Hockey Night in Canada” was his dream. This was the opportunity, one he wasn’t about to let pass him by.

“Nervous as heck,” Cole recalled this week. “It was radio on the CBC network. Playoffs. It was something I always wanted to do. Now you’re asked to step up and you’re front and centre. If you’ve never done something like this, it’s hard to understand — you really wanted to do it, and here you are given a chance.

“You better do it. It’s a crazy world, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

A half century later, the legendary play-by-play man — the iconic voice millions of viewers in this country associate with hockey — will hang up his microphone after calling Saturday’s regular-season finale between the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens.

Cole knew this moment would eventually come. The timing, though, isn’t his choice. That makes it tough.

“Mixed feelings, I guess,” the 85-year-old broadcaster continued in an interview from his hometown of St. John’s, N.L. “It’s starting to sink in. It’s hard to get my head around it, you know?

“It’s difficult.”

Cole, who moved to TV in 1973, saw his workload scaled back in recent years by Sportsnet and Rogers Media, which took over national television rights in 2013 — a deal that included a sub-licensing agreement to allow the CBC to continue airing HNIC.

He didn’t call any playoff games last spring for the first time in his career, and got 16 dates on the 2018-19 schedule.

There will be tributes Saturday on TV and at the Bell Centre in Montreal, but as always, Cole would prefer the focus remains on the ice.

“It’s going to end. Let it end,” Cole said. “The players are the game — not me.”

The memorable calls, however, are almost too many to count.

Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1996 as a recipient of the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award for broadcasting excellence, his personal highlights include the 1972 Summit Series on radio and the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City — “It’s going to be a break! It is Jooooooe Sakic … scores!” — when Canada won gold to snap a 50-year drought.

And then there’s his signature phrase, one that nearly every Canadian hockey fan associates with Cole.

“Ohhhh baby!”

“I used that many times, I’m told, at home growing up,” said Cole, who got his start with VOCM radio in St. John’s. “If you spilled some milk and your mother found out that you’ve made a mess, it’s: ‘Oh baby.”‘

Players and coaches across the league got to know him over the years, and like the man, have mixed feelings about his exit.

“An unbelievable gentleman,” Leafs head coach Mike Babcock said. “If you let him, Bob would probably work another 10 years.

“I’m privileged to call him a friend.”

Ottawa Senators interim head coach Marc Crawford was behind the bench for Toronto’s farm team in St. John’s in the early 1990s.

“He’d always come down to our office and I thought it was such a cool thing,” Crawford said. “Little did I know that he was there because it was the only place in the rink he could smoke.

“Didn’t matter to me. I was happy to share any moments I could with him.”

Leafs centre John Tavares fell in love with his hometown team during Toronto’s 1993 playoff run. Cole provided the soundtrack to some of his earliest hockey memories.

//<![CDATA[ ( function() { pnLoadVideo( "videos", "sqdBVxMre7k", "pn_video_675143", "", "", {"controls":1,"autoplay":0,"is_mobile":""} ); } )(); //]]>

“He made the game even more special than what it was,” Tavares said. “He brought you into the game, to be a part of it.”

“He had a way of calling games that just captivated you,” Canadiens winger Brendan Gallagher added.

Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said he’ll cherish getting to know Cole during informal chats before games.

“A living legend,” Stamkos said. “His voice is iconic. It’s all I associated with watching hockey growing up. Bittersweet for sure, but a great man.

“He has a close spot in a lot of Canadians’ hearts.”

Outside the inner circles of the hockey world, Cole has received plenty of support on this final professional journey.

“A lot of people have stopped me at airports,” he said. “It’s quite humbling when all these people you’ve never met take time to say hello and talk about how they enjoyed your work.”

He hopes he added something to their hockey experience.

“It’s always the game,” Cole said. “If you enjoyed the game and you had a good time watching the game — and I happened to be working — that’s a compliment.”

Asked if there’s any animosity with how his broadcasting career is coming to an end, Cole said that’s not the word he would choose.

“I respect what my superiors are doing,” he said. “There’s a lot of great talent working on our games now, but of course I’m disappointed. I always wanted to be involved.

“I’ve given it my best shot. I’m going to miss it.”

But just in case someone changes their mind, his phone number and email address are staying the same — “You never know your luck.”

“I have no plans. I hate to even think about plans because I don’t have any. It’s going to be strange. I’m going to need some help to get through it all.”

//<![CDATA[ ( function() { pnLoadVideo( "videos", "4uovR9VYxq8", "pn_video_705854", "", "", {"controls":1,"autoplay":0,"is_mobile":""} ); } )(); //]]> Click for update news Bangla news http://bit.ly/2UFf62w world news

[crashingthenet]

1/20-1/26

Weekly Recap:

On Wednesday, the Edmonton Oilers officially announced that GM/President Peter Chiarelli had been fired. Earlier this season the Oilers also fired their coach and brought in Ken Hitchcock.

There was slight concern that Erik Karlsson might miss the All-Star Game due to injury, but luckily he was able to participate.

Hockey legend Pavel Datsyuk is coming up on the end of his KHL contract and his agent says he’s not ruling out an NHL return.

In a somewhat unexpected turn of events, Tyler Seguin (Dallas Stars) has made a surprising change is his pregame routine with Mark Scheifele (Winnipeg Jets) by exiting the ice without putting up a fight. Both Scheifele and Seguin prefer to be the last player off the ice after warm-ups which has, in the past, led them to rock-paper-scissors and, most recently, trickery. More on this next week.

Connor McDavid won Fastest Skater for the third year in a row at the All-Star Skills Competition. All Skills Comp results can be found at nhl.com.

Brianna Decker of the US National Women’s Team was among those who demonstrated for the All-Star Skills Comp and her time was faster than that of Leon Draisaitl, who won the competition. This prompted fans to tweet #PayDecker, as the winners of Skills Comps get paid for winning them and fans felt that Decker, who had the fastest overall time, had been cheated. CCM announced they would #PayDecker the full amount.

The NHL announced that they would pay $25,000, the amount of the prize money for competition, to all four demonstrators from the US National Women’s Team; Kendall Coyne Schofield, Brianna Decker, Renata Fast, and Rebecca Johnston. The money will go to the charity of their choice.

The All-Star MVP Award was given to Sidney Crosby for his performance in the All-Star Game.

Additional All-Star coverage and news can be found at nhl.com.

AHL All-Star Classic results can be found at theahl.com.

Play of the Week:

Kendall Coyne Schofield of the US National Women’s Team became the first women to compete at All-Star Weekend. She replaced Nate Mackinnon in the Fastest Skater Competition on Friday.

Players to Watch:

Forward Taylor Hall of the New Jersey Devils currently has 11 goals and 37 points in 33 games played this season. He has a career total of 202 goals and 511 points in 562 games played. Hall was drafted first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2010; he played six seasons in Edmonton before being traded to New Jersey in exchange for Adam Larsson.

Forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins of the Edmonton Oilers currently has 16 goals and 46 points in 50 games played this season. He has a career total of 135 goals and 359 points in 507 games played. Nugent-Hopkins was drafted first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2011.

Forward Jordan Eberle of the New York Islanders currently has 11 goals and 23 points in 45 games played this season. He has a career total of 201 goals and 464 points in 633 games played. Eberle was drafted 22nd overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2008; he played seven seasons in Edmonton before being traded to the Islanders in exchange for Ryan Strome.*

(*Ryan Strome was recently traded to the Rangers in exchange for Ryan Spooner, who was sent down to the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League.)

Prospect Watch:

Forward Kailer Yamamoto, drafted 22nd overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2017, has 2 points in 17 games this season in the NHL; he has 5 points in 26 games played in the NHL. He has 4 goals and 8 points in 13 games played with the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League this season. Before being drafted, Yamamoto played with the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League where he tallied 105 goals and 291 points in 230 games played.

Forward Ryan McLeod, drafted 40th overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2018, currently plays for the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League; he previously played for the Mississauga Steelheads, also of the Ontario Hockey League. McLeod has 14 goals and 46 points in 41 games played this season between the two teams. He has a career total of 56 goals and 178 points in 239 games played.

Team of the Week**:

The Edmonton Oilers, who are currently 7th in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, were founded in 1971 but didn’t play their first game until 1972 as one of the founding teams in the World Hockey Association and were originally supposed to be one of two Alberta teams along with the Calgary Broncos, who relocated to Cleveland, Ohio before the WHAs first season. Because the Broncos relocated, the Edmonton Oilers were renamed the Alberta Oilers, though they did return to their original name the following season. The Oilers joined the NHL in 1979 when the two leagues merged. The Oilers have won five Stanley Cups, most recently in 1989-90. The Oilers very famously played from Rexall Place (Northlands Coliseum) from 1974-2016. They now play from Rogers Place. Notable alumni include Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Grant Fuhr, Adam Oates and Jacques Plante.

Outside the NHL:

The National Women’s Hockey League All-Star Weekend will take place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville February 9-10.

The American Hockey League All-Star Classic was hosted by the Springfield Thunderbirds January 27-28. Results can be found at theahl.com.

Weekly Thoughts:

The Edmonton Oilers have been struggling this season, which has been a theme for the franchise for this decade. The Oilers have had four first overall picks in the last 9 years; in addition to this they have had Top Ten picks four separate years in the same span. Many blame former GM/President Peter Chiarelli for the poor state of the franchise, despite the fact that his career with the franchise started in 2015, which is long after their struggles began.

Prior to be hired by the Oilers, Chiarelli worked for, and was fired by, the Boston Bruins. In his time with Boston, he drafted Tyler Seguin second overall in 2010, but traded him to the Dallas Stars in July of 2013. Seguin became one of the top producers in Dallas as well as a fan favorite; there are those who view this as a bad trade, and those who do not.

While working for the Oilers, Chiarelli drafted Connor McDavid first overall in 2015. He also worked out a trade with the Islanders which resulted in them gaining the draft pick that gave them Mat Barzal, who won the Calder this summer. Chiarelli also dealt Jordan Eberle to the Islanders in exchange for Ryan Strome.

Chiarelli also traded defenceman Justin Schultz to the Pittsburgh Penguins, who went on to win the Stanley Cup two seasons in a row.

The summer after drafting Connor McDavid, Chiarelli dealt Taylor Hall, the first overall pick from 2010, to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Adam Larsson. This is still a hotly debated trade.

Chiarelli has also signed several frankly outrageous contract extensions. Milan Lucic at 28 was given a seven year, $42 million extension. Goaltender Mikko Koskinen, 30, was recently signed to a three year, $13.5 million extension after only appearing in 31 NHL games.

While Peter Chiarelli made mistakes and ultimately harmed the franchise, he is not the source of all their struggles. The franchise has been on a decline for a very long time and it might be time to just toss the whole front office and start fresh. This would, of course, steal even more time from Connor McDavid who honestly deserves a team that is doing well, seeing as he already carries the weight of the franchise on his back.

Weekly Vocabulary:

Toe Drag: Dragging the puck along the ice with the end (toe) of the stick blade on the ice as opposed to pushing with the bottom edge.

Poke Check: Using the stick to poke the puck away from an opponent.

Deke: When a player handles the puck or himself in such a manner to fool the opponent into moving out of position, allowing the player to get past. Originated from the word decoy.

Dangle: When a player does a series of dekes in a row to get around the opposing players.

Wheel: Typically referred to when there is time and space to skate with the puck, sometimes is said to tell someone to skate faster.

Snipe: A powerful, accurate shot used to finish plays.

Celly: Short for celebration. A player may celly after scoring a goal.

Weekly Trivia:

The first NHL All-Star Game was held at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto on October 13, 1947. The Maple Leafs played against a team of All-Star players from other teams in the league. The All-Star team won 4-3. The idea of the game originated from the Player’s Committee and was approved on May 23, 1947. The proceeds from the game were divided between Toronto charities and the Player’s Emergency (Benevolent and Disability) Fund. At a meeting in September, players agreed to set up a pension fund, to which players gave $900 each and 25 cents per every playoff ticket sold and two-thirds of the All-Star Game proceeds.

Weekly Standings:

Eastern Conference

Metropolitan Division

New York Islanders – 63 points

Washington Capitals – 60 points

Columbus Blue Jackets – 59 points

Atlantic Division

Tampa Bay Lightning – 76 points

Toronto Maple Leafs – 62 points

Montreal Canadiens – 61 points

Western Conference

Central Division

Winnipeg Jets – 64 points

Nashville Predators – 64 points

Minnesota Wild – 55 points

Pacific Division

Calgary Flames – 71 points

San Jose Sharks – 65 points

Las Vegas Golden Knights – 62 points

*Note: All information was obtained prior to 12pm on Saturday January 26. Information occurring after the 12pm deadline will feature next week.

** Previously the featured teams have been from the Original Six Era and I had planned on finishing those six teams out before I featured any of the other 25 teams but Edmonton is just such a hot commodity in news right now that I felt it best to feature them this week.