Intent, malice, really??

Under NHL rules if your stick makes contact with a player's facial area it's a high-sticking penalty. Regardless of if the player "meant" to do it. You must be in control of your stick at all times. (Imagine that.)

Will someone please tell me why this appears to be the only rule that takes this sort of "you must be aware of your actions regardless of intent"?

Certainly swinging your stick around is dangerous. There's always the danger of contact with eyes, but many times a player gets clipped and it's a few stitches or no injury at all. But it's an automatic penalty.

Somehow a player can be irresponsible with everything except the stick and give a player a concussion that can stick with you forever -- and -- it's all good?

Everyone knows it's not "all good" but that's the message the NHL sent today when it decided not to hand out any further disciplinary action against Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara. 

I've seen a lot of comment about the hit on Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty. If you're one of the few people who haven't watched TV or been on the internet in the last 24 hours here it is.



Chara had his head up. The puck was long gone. He was called for interference and booted from the game.

In Mike Murphy's statement about the hit, the excuse is that Chara didn't leave his feet and he didn't "target" Pacioretty's head. In my opinion he absolutely targetted the head. Maybe he didn't put his elbow directly into his head but he certainly pushed Pacioretty into the glass in a way that his head would inevitably make contact with a solid object. 

"Oh but he didn't MEAN to do it".

Give me a break. I don't care what you say, Chara saw that glass coming. Besides, I could care less if he meant to do it. There are murderers who stand before a judge and say they didn't "mean" to do it. Too bad buddy, you're still going to jail.Why can't the NHL treat it's players like that.

Max Pacioretty is undoubtedly out for the season with a "severe concussion" and several broken vertebrae. He's lucky he's not paralyzed. The Habs are now without a player who's been putting up excellent numbers for an AHL call-up. That's not justice.

Then there's the fact the NHL is without it's star. Sidney Crosby was on a tear. Perhaps a record-breaking tear. They were without him at the All-Boring-Game. And they may be without him for the playoffs. Because some guy on the Capitals didn't "mean" to get his elbow up and hit him in the head.

Enough with this 'intent' bullshit.

I can't understand how the NHL can continually let this slide. The dysfunction is mindboggling. Absolutely mindf$^$ingboggling.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx or find her on her blog National Passtime

This All-Star soap opera is terrible... change the channel!

I have to say I'm a little surprised by the swirling mess surrounding Sidney Crosby's appearance at next weekend's All Star game in Carolina.

Crosby has been out since taking a sequence of hits to the head dating back to the January 1 Winter Classic. In that game he took a hit to the head from Dave Steckel near the end of the second period.

I was watching in real time and I absolutely thought Crosby was concussed. He looked confused and disoriented. However, he came back for the third period and then was in the lineup for the Penguins' next game against the Tampa Bay Lightening where he took another head shot -- this time a hit from behind by Victor Hedman.

The Penguins came out and said Crosby would be out for a week -- which was optimistic in my view. I would put good money on the fact that Crosby was injured in that first hit and the second hit ended up compounding the problem...one week was a BIG underestimation and I kind of doubt the Penguins ever believed he'd be back that soon.

So I had quite a laugh when I read David Shoalts' commentary on Crosby's situation in the Globe and Mail last night. Especially when I read the first paragraph:

"Even though Sidney Crosby is a shoo-in to be chosen Tuesday as one of the captains who will pick the teams for the NHL all-star game, do not be surprised if he declines to participate, even if he recovers from his concussion," Shoalts writes.

Shoo-in? I'm sorry Mr. Shoalts, but if the captains were picked in December -- certainly Crosby would be a shoo-in. However the NHL wasn't about to pick a captain who potentially might not play in the All-Star game. Let's not forget he has yet to be cleared to even practice. It's laughable to have thought on Monday that Crosby would be named captain.

This morning, Eric Staal and Niklas Lidstrom were named captains.

Shoalts then goes on to say that Crosby is 'angry' that the dishers of the head shots never faced any reparations from the league -- and because of that Crosby was going to refuse to play whether he was better or not.

Hogwash.

I have a feeling that Mr. Shoalts has never had a concussion. Head injuries are tricky things. They can linger. You can feel fine one minute and the next minute you're not. One minute everything is clear as water -- the next you're putting milk in the oven. And stepping back into physical activity too fast can turn you into ... well... Eric Lindros.

I also have a feeling the concussion is a little more than a 'mild' one as Shoalts described it in his article. I have a feeling the Penguins haven't been fully forthright with the severity of the injury.

I fully agree there should've been a suspension for both of the hits. The Steckel hit was deemed an accident by the NHL -- But WHY were his elbows up? To me it doesn't matter if you MEANT to hit someone in the head. You still did. Treat it like a high-sticking penalty. Even though you may not have meant to hit someone in the face with your stick, you're still expected to have control of it. It should be the same for elbows.

But do you seriously believe Crosby will forgo the All-Star game in protest?
If Crosby plays against the Islanders on January 25, which is the last game before the All-Star game, then he'll play the All-Star game. If he is ready for that Islanders game he isn't about to sit out. He's too competitive (remember, he still leads the scoring race after being out for two weeks), and the Penguins' play hasn't exactly been stellar since Crosby's injury.
Enough with this foolishness, okay?

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx or find her on her blog National Passtime

Way to kick a Wilson when he's down.

You've got to feel for Ron Wilson -- I mean seriously feel for the guy. Is there anyone that actually wants the job of being the coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs? Every day you come to work and about 300 reporters ask you why you haven't won a Stanley Cup. Nevermind the fact that stringing a few wins together is a near miracle.

It's a thankless job.

And so you'd think when the poor bugger had a bright spot... like... oh .... i don't know... getting his 600th win as a coach. The NHL would just let him have it.

If you haven't seen the story, the NHL has fined the Toronto Maple Leafs for a salary cap infraction after Wilson posted $600 on the dressing room bulletin board for whoever potted the winning goal.

The NHL is acting as if Ron Wilson stacked $6 million into a brief case and hung it from the front of the room. It was $600. For the NHL it's pocket change. This is a league where guys make millions a year and still get handed $91.56 a day for meals on the road.

If you think about it, if an NHL player really wanted $600, all he'd have to do was hoard his meal money for a week.


I like laughing at the Leafs just as much as the next non-Leafs fan, but does the NHL really have to make such a big deal out of absolutely nothing? Don't you have bigger problems, like, oh, i dunno... ridiculously low attendance in a quarter of your rinks?

It was Carl Gunnarsson that won the 600 smackeroos in case you were wondering.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx or find her on her blog National Passtime

The trouble in Moose Country

Boy oh boy, am I getting old? Do I sound old if i say "remember the good old days in Moose Country"? 

They were heady days. The days of 7,000 average, yes average, attendance. When the team iced a team with talented players, or at least a roster who resonated with the team motto of "Pride, Heart, Determination". 

The days when The Sign Lady (the late Sue Moore) graced the seats mid-section across from the players benches with messages of inspiration on rolled up window blinds. When Lorna the dancing queen wasn't the only one dancing in the aisles. The days when there was a line snaking outside the Metro Centre and around the corner to get ahold of playoff tickets. 


The days when Jody Shelley was a fan favourite, when Jamie Brown was named all three stars, when Jean-Sebastien Giguere marched the Herd to within one game of the Memorial Cup. When the team hosted the Memorial Cup in 2000. When the Parade Square was packed for a rally before that event. When the team had stability in it's staff. (ie: They've gone through three goalie coaches in three years) 

This is the third season in a row where the team on the ice... well... they're just not very good (and that's me being nice). Who wants to drop their hard earned Loons on watching a team who's going to lose every game. And because of that it's party understandable why the air is out of the sails of Moose Country. 


But I think it started before that. Four seasons ago when the team sold the farm to get Brad Marchand and try to make a run for it all. Despite the team on the ice, the fans didn't really seem into it.


The franchise needs some renewal. And right now it doesn't help that the team owner, Bobby Smith, decided to demote Head Coach Cam Russell in favour of putting himself at the helm. Under Smith the team is 3 and 7, which is hardly something to inspire hope. In fact I hardly expect the team to do much better and I think Smith needs to find a new, QUALIFIED head coach to take the helm of the young team. 


The fans understand that the Q is an ebb and flow league where you will have that rebuilding year (usually one not three) at some point in a franchises history. But the fans are also frustrated with the team, especially when they look to the west and see franchises MUCH younger than the Mooseheads (Moncton, Saint John) who are annual contenders. In fact just this week, the NHL's QMJHL prospects rankings came out and seven Saint John Sew Dogs were in the top 25. That tells me they have their scouting ducks in a row. Do the Mooseheads have their scouting ducks in a row? I'm not so sure. To me it almost seems like the organization isn't very organized as of late.


I had said early in the season if Cam Russell didn't get a team that produced he'd be shown the door, I didn't think he'd be replaced by the owner. I think if the team keeps down this road for the next month, the fans (the ones who are left) will be asking for Smith to exit stage left as well.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx or find her on her blog National Passtime

Does it really bother you that much?

Why has road hockey suddenly become a national debate?

Last week, some nutter in Enfield called in the big bad RCMP on a bunch of 12-year-olds playing road hockey. Apparently people have nothing better to do then scoff at children out their window.

Great -- let's encourage kids to stay inside and play computer games, become overweight, and wait until their health care bills become a burden on society until we complain that kids don't exercise enough.

Sound dumb to you?

Or perhaps you'd prefer them to use their free time to be spray painting grafitti on your fence.

Enfield resident Debbie Jefferies says her 12-year-old son Ryan and his friends had been out playing road hockey any chance they got.

But a neighbour called police and under the Motor Vehicle Act in Nova Scotia the games now have to stop. The kids were given the option to play at a dead end street, but the 10 minute strut would be difficult to haul all the gear to.

Jeffries says she doesn't know who complained, but says it's the first she's heard of the road hockey being a problem - and she wishes that person had come to her first.

Jeffries told the Chronicle Herald the ban on shinny games broke her heart.

Nova Scotia's transportation minister Bill Estabrooks called the complaint "frivolous" and says the RCMP have better things to worry about. Oh I don't know... maybe like all the recent SHOOTINGS in the city.
Many Canadian municipalities have by-laws banning street hockey, however they're rarely enforced.

But if you think the Halifax case is new, think again. One Montreal father is fighting a case in court. He says street hockey is part of Canadian culture.

During some of the fabulous weather we got in March, 42-year-old David Sasson was playing ball hockey with a group of neighbourhood kids that included his own children in the Montreal suburb of Dollard-des-Ormeaux. A neighbour called in the coppers.

Sasson told the Globe and Mail responding officers watched the game for 45 minutes and called the complaining woman twice to try to convince her to drop the matter. Apparently the complainer was tired of the noise -- so Sasson ended up with a $75 ticket. 

Again, the neighbour never bothered to complain directly.

“We live in Canada, we have the right to play hockey,” Sasson told the Globe and Mail.

Sasson even staged a protest game in the City Hall parking lot and local police and bylaw officers JOINED IN. What does that tell you?

The Wayne Gretzkys and Sidney Crosbys are born in street hockey games. Let's not let a few old bitties ruin a national pastime.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx or find her on her blog National Passtime

When players dish headshots to fans....

I am really surprised at the lack of attention this incident received.

Especially considered the amount of attention some other non-controversies received at the Olympics. But it appears to have been buried under Canadian victory jubilation.

This video was shot after Russia lost 7-3 to Canada in the Quarterfinals (and I'm sure Canadians remember that Ovechkin played not-so-good).

Okay so sure, maybe Mr. Ovechkin was a little upset after the loss. But he seems to have walked out of his way to push this fan. She wasn't following him, she wasn't yelling at him, she was just taping him. And apparently she wasn't wearing a team Canada jersey, because this fan was a Russian..... a female Russian who came all the way to Canada to see the Olympics.


For someone who is supposed to be one of the faces of the NHL, this behaviour is really unacceptable.

"That’s why even though I didn’t really like seeing Ovechkin forcefully push away that fan’s phone, I find it harder and harder to get upset about it. In this era of people refusing to respect others’ privacy, we’re going to see more and more of this." said Elliot Friedman in his blog.

Unfortunately I think Friedman's comments miss the mark. I'm not sure the fan refused to respect Ovechkin's privacy. If he really didn't want to be taped, he could just ask. If he asked and then she refused to stop taping -- then, and only then, would she be 'not respecting his privacy'.

But instead the big-shot -- too busy talking on his cellphone to converse with a lowly fan -- decides to push her out of the way.

Would he have done the same if the score was inversed? What if he scored a hattrick in a 7-3 quarterfinal win over Canada? I'm figuring that he probably would've been soaking up the love.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx or find her on her blog National Passtime

Classless.

Just yesterday Patrice Cormier made what I would consider a classy move:

"I fully respect the Quebec Major Junior League's decision regarding the Mikael Tam incident," Cormier said in a statement released by his Halifax-based agent Tim Cranston.

"I deeply regret the circumstances surrounding this event and wish Mikael Tam a speedy and full recovery."

Just over a week ago, Patrice Cormier laid out a vicious elbow on the Quebec Rempart's Mikael Tam. Tam was left convulsing on the ice and was taken to hospital with head trauma. The
QMJHL suspended Cormier for the rest of the season Monday.

After Cormier's statement we all thought this nasty incident had come to an end -- Patrice Cormier was going to accept his punishment from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Hold on a minute, gang.

The Rouyn-Noranda Huskies said Tuesday they will appeal the suspension.

Coach and GM Andre Tourigny calls it "excessive" and complains that if Rouyn-Noranda went the whole way in the playoffs, Cormier could serve up to 48 games.

I understand that the Huskies have been screwed in this affair.

They just gave up a boatload of high draft picks (17-year-old forwards Michael Beaudry and Alexandre Mallet, two first-round draft picks in 2010 and first- and second-round draft picks in 2012.) in return for Jordan Caron and Cormier.

But that is the risk this team took when they decided to go for a player like Patrice Cormier. They took the risk that he might do something untimely and stupid.

Many have complained that Cormier is being used as an example. GOOD. Hits to the head have to stop. And players don't appear to be getting the message. Someone needs to be made an example of.

To make matters worse, Cormier decided to change his statement slightly.

"I respect the decision of the QMJHL even if I find it too severe," Cormier told The Canadian Press.

The Rouyn-Noranda Huskies look silly. The entire hockey community knew that the QMJHL would serve Cormier no less than the rest of the season. An appeal just further drags hockey, the league, the team and Cormier through the mud.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx

Mike Danton is coming to town.

Merry freaking Christmas Halifax media.

Remember Mike Danton?

He was the guy who played for the St. Louis Blues who sorta, kinda, almost committed murder... well it was indirect really... clearly a smooth dude, he unknowingly hired a cop instead of a real hitman in a murder-for-hire plot against his agent and former coach David Frost. Of course some didn't really see a problem with this whole plot thingy after Frost was convicted of 12 counts of sexual exploitation related to acts on three females and four males between the ages of 14 and 16. I mean this guy sounds like a real Graham James (see: Sheldon Kennedy and Theoron Fluery).

Anyways, clearly when you hire a cop to murder someone you pretty much end up in jail. In 2009 he was transferred to Canadian prison where he was granted parole in September.

However, somewhere along the lines Danton is all like... oops, I actually meant to kill my dad... not David Frost. Dude, seriously? I was actually feeling kind of bad for you after hearing all that creepy stuff about Frost. (CBC's Fifth Estate did a doc on the controlling relationship Frost had over Danton. And backs up my theory this guy is another Graham James and a parasite on society.)

Okay now that you have the background. Mike Danton has decided to enroll at Saint Mary's University in Halifax. He's also going to play hockey for the Saint Mary's Huskies varsity hockey team.

"I'm very proud of the fact that Saint Mary's is standing behind this situation in the light that we are," says Saint Mary's athletic director Steve Sarty.

"I'm happy to be involved in the situation and Saint Mary's being the progressive university that we pride ourself on, has taken a very humane stance on this."

That's great, maybe this kid (not really a kid... he's 29) needs a second chance. Clearly he's been surrounded by crazy people his entire life. And really it's not like he's planning on heading back to The Show... he can't travel to the United States. And he did take correspondence courses through Queens while in the slammer.

So maybe this is just a guy trying to get his life in order.

And I guess he better, hockey coach Trevor Steinburg said it's good for him to have a second chance... but it's also his last. So basically: Smarten the F&^%$ up and I guess I'll keep ya around if I have to.

Anyways, from what I can tell the guy is a natural at making friends, so he should be fine in his new surroundings.

For example, those in Moose Country out there, perhaps you were around for the 2000 Memorial Cup when Mr. Danton went by the name Mike Jefferson.

Remember when he strolled into Halifax, said he wanted to spear Ramzi Abid (then the CHL's second highest scorer, and a Mooseheads fan favourite) in the face.

Then went on to taunt the QMJHL by saying the CHL's leading scorer Brad Richards was basically a pussy and wouldn't last three days in the OHL.

Like, I hated Brad Richards back then. He played for the dirty ol' Rimouski Oceanic. Despite the geographical distance between Halifax and Rimouski, I would've considered them a bitter rival at the time. Annnnnd they had just swept Halifax out of the playoffs a few weeks earlier. But HEY we were hosting the Memorial Cup so we still got to go to the tea party.

Anyways, point being, despite my hatred for Rimouski and Richards, suddenly I found myself cheering for them when they weren't playing the Mooseheads.

Why?

Mike Jefferson/Danton.

Oh did I mention Richards won the tournament MVP, and Jefferson/Danton refused to shake his hand afterwards.

Have fun with THAT one SMU. I mean, you've always been known as the school who recruits for... shall we say brawn, not brain? I can only imagine how you plan to top this one.

Jennifer Casey was born and raised in Halifax. She loves all sports but tries to stick to writing about hockey for sanity purposes. You can follow her on twitter @jenncaseyhfx

Olympic Torch Relay

It was nice to see SO many people out in Halifax last night to see the Olympic torch run by.

However, it could've used some better planning.

We showed up to Brunswick Street where Sidney Crosby was picking up the torch at Sackville Street. He would then run 300 metres to Carmichael street and pass it off to snowboarder Sarah Conrad.

There were thousands of people. People we're sitting on the wall surrounding the base of citadel hill, on walls and stairs on buildings lining the street. All up Citadel Hill. Thousands. They were everywhere you could think of. It was insanity.

No barricades along the route.

Someone tell me how that makes sense.

Anyway so Crosby jogs by and he's surrounded by this circle of security detail about 25 strong.

All you could see was an arm with a torch, and a little white toque. Then when he passed off the torch everyone tried to get closer to follow it down the hill. As soon as he passed a spot, people started walking in behind on the street.

Thumbs down.

The city's holiday parade is Saturday, I know there must be barricades that have been pulled out of storage. Did nobody think, "hey! let's use them for the part of the torch relay that days in advance we were predicting huge crowds to show up for."

Halifax Fail.

Scottie Upshall asks...

"We're here. We're not going anywhere," winger Scottie Upshall said referring to his embattled Phoenix Coyotes. "If we're winning games, why not come support a winning club?"

Answer: Because you're the Phoenix Coyotes.

In all seriousness, if I were one of the team's few fans last year, I probably wouldn't be back right now.

The summer shenanigans of "we're here", "we're gone", "we're in court", "okay the NHL is buying us", "oh wait, the NHL is buying us but has said they're going to move us next year", "maybe", would leave a bad taste in anyone's mouth.

Add in the fact Phoenix is already a fickle market, and most people in the desert would probably rather play golf then shell out for a hockey game -- you've got yourself a losing combination.

The summer's uncertainty and long, dragged out court battle has left fans saying "see ya, and good riddance"... and that means it's pretty much already signed and delivered that this team will not survive in this location. This isn't a fan base that is going to rally together and scoop up season tickets in record numbers to save the team (see: Calgary Flames 1990s).

Good.

Nothing but trouble.

So the Sergei Kostitsyn saga continues.

After being assigned to the AHL before the NHL season began, Kostitsyn had a hissy fit and said he wanted a trade. Bob Gainey stepped in with an intervention and the younger Kostitsyn brother decided to go where he was told. He played five games for the Canadiens affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs.

Then he decided again this week that, nope he didn't want to play in Hamilton.

So he packed up his gear and went dark. Nobody could find the kid. The rumour mill had it that Kostitsyn was entertaining at least three offers from KHL clubs.

However TSN is reporting Bob Gainey had a second intervention last night, and Kostitsyn has rejoined the club.

Why?

Why keep forcing him back. He is clearly not dedicated to the team. It's a bad precedent to set. And with all the work the Canadiens have done to remove the tumultuous environment within the dressing room, this puts them many steps back.

Let. Him. Go. Who cares if he goes to the KHL? He's clearly not doing the Canadiens much good on the ice, if he's in the AHL. And his diva behaviour is a distraction the team does not need.
Last season, it was the Russian-Montreal mob... now it's fights and missing the bus.

Backstory from TSN.ca:

"A French-language MSN article posted Wednesday reports that a physical altercation between Montreal Canadiens players Scott Gomez and Sergei Kostitsyn during the preseason was a motivating factor that contributed to the younger Kostitsyn being assigned to the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs.
The report, written by Mario Langlois, says that the incident took place just prior to Montreal's season-opening game in Toronto on Oct. 1, as the club was preparing to depart for a team-building excursion in Caledon, ON. Before leaving, the team went out for a night on the town and returned to Gomez's house. At some point in the evening, Gomez and Kostitsyn got into an altercation that was serious enough that other players had to jump in and separate them.
General manager Bob Gainey and head coach Jacques Martin were notified about it the next day and according to the report, Gainey didn't want another off-ice distraction like the many that the team dealt with last season. As a result, Kostitsyn was sent to the minors prior to the team's departure for Caledon.
Earlier last month, Kostitsyn missed a team bus during Montreal's preseason game in Quebec City. At one specific practice, the forward was blasted a couple of times by Martin for not paying attention."

It's like i've woken up in some sort of alter-world.

Quebec.

So the mayor of Quebec met Regis Labeaume, and former Nordiques owner Marcel Aubut met with Gary Bettman to discuss "hockey".

If I where Quebec I would run... fast. Because when you finally do attempt to get a team, there's good reason to believe you'll have a long and expensive court battle.

In all seriousness, it does appear that Quebec, amidst a strong Canadian dollar, and failing teams in the United States is putting it's hat in the three ring circus that is hockey North of the Border.

They need a rink. The aging Le Colisée was one of the reasons the the Nordiques left in the first place. There has been talk about a new 18,000 seat arena, which is promising.

I still believe that southern Ontario is the destination of a new team. At this point it appears this little meeting has usurped Quebec over Winnipeg as the #2 choice for a team in Canada. I guess.

Why are we surprised?

Can someone please tell me why you're all surprised that the Leafs are 0-5-1? Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, that's a surprise. The Chicago Blackhawks coming back from 5-0 to win 6-5, that's a surprise. Finding out that robots can play piano, that's a surprise (see: stephen harper). The L.A. Kings sitting atop the Pacific division, yup that's a surprise.

Getting my point.

It's the Leafs. They aren't very good. And just one Phil Kessel is not going to make you good. You probably need a whole line of Phil Kessels... and some actual defense.... and a goaltender who can at least stop a beach ball.

Stop being surprised. Stop asking the coach what is wrong with the team. There's nothing wrong. This is how they are supposed to be.

Globe and Mail "journalism".

I saw the commercial for this and immediately filled with rage.

It's called the Great Canadian Journalism Dream. The Globe and Mail is giving out prizes to a photographer and writer to cover the Olympics.

Are you kidding me.

So coming out of school, the market for jobs in this profession was pretty dire. I don't know why I said "was"... "is" is more appropriate. Most of my classmates are still not working. Many Canadian news outlets are replacing real jobs with free interns. Others have laid off hundreds (The CBC laid off 800 jobs nation-wide earlier this year).

I understand money is tight. Especially in the newspaper world. But LITERALLY taking people off the street to cover the Olympics makes people who have paid good money to learn how to do this job, and can't find a job, really really sad.

Why not make the competition for Journalism students? At least it would have slight credibility.

But to make it this competition that says the to general public, "hey you can do this with no school!", further de-values the trade. Something we don't need help with when entire news outlets are being run by free interns.

Is Preseason over yet?

What is it with the NHL and making everything super long?

The season is 82 games... the playoffs are a marathon...

I'M NOT COMPLAINING.

yet.

WHY OH WHY... do the teams have so much preseason. TOO LONG.

Play real games.

All signs point to JimBalls?

Over the duration of the Pheonix Coyotes ownership saga, Jim Balsillie has taken some lumps. And for a while there it wasn't looking good for JimBalls. It's clear Gary Bettman really hates the guy, so that doesn't help. The league's board of governors recently unanimously rejected Balsillie as a prospective owner.

But things have started to go his way.

Yesterday Ice Edge Holdings, the third party about to take part in Thursday's auction for the Pheonix Coyotes, has dropped out of the mix. That leaves Jim Balsillie's $242.5 million bid up against the NHL's bid of just $140 million.

There is the obvious reason Balsillie may get favourited by the judge. The judge has to choose the bid that is best for the owner Jerry Moyes -- who's lost millions during his time with the Coyotes.

I would say millions of dollars extra, are better for him.

Moyes has publically said the NHL needs to come to its senses in terms of their bid. He's says the NHL needs to add $80 million to their bid to bring it in line with Balsillie's original bid of $212.5 million.

Balsillie has put concessions in his bid package that gives $50 million to the city of Glendale, Arizona for losses incurred by the loss of the team.

Moyes is so outraged by the possibility of having to accept the NHL bid that his lawyers filed a motion to have the NHL's bid thrown out.

Another thing that should push the bidding in Balsillie's favour, is that the NHL, who despite arguing against Balsillie because he wanted to move the team, is willing to move the team themselves at the end of the 2009-10 season if the team is not making money.

I can't guarentee much. But I can pretty much guarentee that the Pheonix Coyotes will not make money this season.

I can't wait until Thursday and Friday to see what comes out of the process.

A new thing to blame on Hossa.

or at least it seems.

After his one-night stand with the Pittsburgh Penguins two seasons ago, leaving to join the defending stanley cup champions (who beat the penguins in the cup final).... only to have a rematch with the penguins this season and lose... it seems likely that Marion Hossa's body actually produces some form of intensely concentrated Stanley Cup repellent.

So when the Chicago Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon decided to sign Hossa to a 12 (YES... COUNT IT... TWELVE) year deal. I kinda thought, gee, that must be a fantastic drug he's on. He's taking a page right out of the Book of Garth Snow.

There are plenty of recent long-term contracts. But I would argue some of those are legit. Who doesn't want to lock down their Sidney Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin.... I would argue Marion Hossa is not a player you want locked down. In fact, I would argue you want him to be one of those player that is easily expendible for a draft pick or a few character players at trade deadline.... having a 12 year deal dangling behind him.... not so enticing.

Anyway, the whole point of this rant is to point out that the Blackhawks fired their General Manager. Most of the stories appear to be calling this a "surprise move" since indeed Tallon was "at the helm when the team drafted players such as Kane and Toews". Yes, he was at the helm when the Chicago Blackhawks were so bad that they got third and first overall picks. Picks so high up are usually no-brainers. Kane was ranked first and Chicago took him first. Toews was ranked third and Chicago took him third.

Hossa is a Stanley Cup repellent.... and Tallon signed him to a twelve year deal on a team that has promise to go far in the next few years.

Not so surprising any more?

BHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA......

.....sigh.... BHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH


phew, excuse me... this just came in over our wire services here at work:

"NHL: Canadian Press NewsAlert

OTTAWA _ Ottawa Senators sign Alex Kovalev to two-year contract.<"




..... HAHAHAH BRYAN MURRAY YOU FOOL!!! Good luck with that one...

Geez where do I even start.

I want to start with the aftermath of the Free Agent Frenzy, but instead I need to talk about the Team Canada summer selection camp. Can someone tell me why I am talking about this. This is one of those things that get announced and you're supposed to go "yah...makes sense".... especially after the 2006 squad that was.... not a good squad. Com'n folks let's make some good life choices.

NO. MARC. SAVARD. you kidding me. arg.

Now this camp is not the end of the line. The final decisions are made before December. So Savard could still make a case for himself. But it just became that much harder. I'm not going to rant about this much longer since this is something i've ranted a few times about. I'm just going to point out that these are Marc Savard's stats for the past three years:


Year --- Team - GP - G - A - Pts

2006-07 BOS - 82 - 22 - 74 - 96
2007-08 BOS - 74 - 15 - 63 - 78
2008-09 BOS - 82 - 25 - 63 - 88


here's a rundown of the invitees:

Goalies: Martin Brodeur, Marc-André Fleury, Roberto Luongo, Steve Mason, Cam Ward

Defense: François Beauchemin, Jay Bouwmeester, Dan Boyle, Brent Burns, Drew Doughty, Mike Green, Dan Hamhuis, Duncan Keith, Scott Niedermayer, Dion Phaneuf, Chris Pronger, Robyn Regehr, Stéphane Robidas, Brent Seabrook, Marc Staal, Shea Weber

Forwards: Jeff Carter, Dan Cleary, Sidney Crosby, Shane Doan, Simon Gagné, Ryan Getzlaf, Dany Heatley, Jarome Iginla, Vincent Lecavalier, Milan Lucic, Patrick Marleau, Andy McDonald, Brenden Morrow, Rick Nash, Corey Perry, Mike Richards, Derek Roy, Joe Sakic, Patrick Sharp, Ryan Smyth, Martin St. Louis, Eric Staal, Jordan Staal, Joe Thornton, Jonathan Toews

Canadiens.

O.K. so from under-rated (Marc Savard) to completely over-rated (see: Scott Gomez, post rookie season). At first glance when I saw the trade that sent Chris Higgins packing for overpaid, underachiever Scott Gomez I was furious. But after seeing some of the other moves Gainey made i'm a bit less likely to call for his head.... maybe just a leg??

A few people have asked me what I thought would fix the Canadiens after such a dismal attempt at making a go of their 100th season.

My answer: get a new team.

Ok my answer included a lot more expletives but it was along that train... besides the point anyways.

Get a new team is actually kinda what Gainey did. Now i'm not forgiving the dumbness of sending Chris Higgins who seems to always score a clutch goals, but at least it seems he did the rest of the task correctly.

He just let people go. He cleaned house. Doesn't matter how much it hurts, just rip that band-aid off. He let Saku Koivu go, which is sad, but it needed to happen. But also: Alex Tanguay, Tom Kostopoulos, Mathieu Schneider, Mathieu Dandenault, Francis Bouillon and Patrice Brisebois.

If that's not starting the eff over, I don't know what is.

They also lost Mike Komisarek to the Toronto Maple Leafs. That's a bit concerning since he's going to a rival. But after last years playoff performance, i'm ok with it.

The Canadiens still have to sign Kovalev, but they did sign Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta to contracts. Both small players, but very fast and exciting.

Overall the moves on Canada Day are a win, i guess, maybe...

Well it's a definitely a win if you're comparing it to....

The poor poor Ottawa Senators with their whiny sniper Dany Heatley who's got the team handcuffed with his long contract and no-trade clause that he's choosing to invoke when convenient for him.

"I want a trade... but not that one"

I think if a player walks into the General Managers room and says "I want a trade", that should null and void his no-trade clause. They gave him that clause because Heatley was making a long-term committment to the Senators and was saying "i don't want to move, and i don't want to be a rental player at the end of a season when my contract is up".

"If I'm not signed by July 1, I don't think I'll be back in Montreal"

So the rumour has it right now... (and let's be clear here, this is still classified as a rumour. Because I trust Russian sports newspapers about as much as I trust 2 month old milk) ... is that Alex Kovalev will be handed the captaincy of the Montreal Canadiens and that Saku Koivu will be sent packing.

TSN.ca reports on the details from the story:

A Russian sports newspaper reports that the Montreal Canadiens have offered the team's captaincy to pending unrestricted free agent Alex Kovalev and that Saku Koivu is no longer in plans for the team.

According to Sovietsky Sport, the Canadiens don't intend to re-sign Koivu and would opt to re-sign Kovalev to a one-year deal worth between $6 million and $7.5 million. The story also claims that Kovalev would be awarded the captaincy.

After the Canadiens epic failure of a season, followed by their inevitable playoff loss to the Bruins there was lots of rumours swirling around about big changes within the organization.

This is definitely not one of the things I anticipated.

The big changes I anticipated might have sounded more like "Montrealers have giant street party after Canadiens fire GM Bob Gainey"

But instead they've awarded the captaincy to someone who seems to be unable to lead a pack of lemmings over a cliff. Someone who has been rumoured to have been unable to play well unless he has a fancy "C" on his shirt.

Boy-oh-boy, if this rumour is true, the Habs are going to have to hire one helluva coach.

Oh my god, Gary, please just let him have a team.

This joke is getting kinda old.

Will someone please just let Jim Balsillie have a team. You realize the guy owns Crackberry. He's just going to get richer. And so he's just going to keep on trying. So really, just give up. (See, the Maritime defeatist attitude is good for something.)


I mean, look at him, he even wore a bowtie.

But in all seriousness: The team is bankrupt... and it's not like the "Pittsburgh Penguins... we had some bad management but there's lots of history here so if we rally the fans then we'll be okay" kinda bankruptcy. It's the "Phoenix Coyotes. You have a hockey team... in the desert. You moved it there... from Winnipeg. Why? Why does this exist. The fans in Phoenix don't care. Why are you propping up a failing team with transfer payments from the other teams and a massive NHL line of credit." kinda bankruptcy.

Gary Bettman, you're crazy. And you're delusional.

Give the team to Balsillie. How many people want a team that badly? How many people that want a team that badly have $212 mil to just drop down in suitcases of cash at NHL headquarters. Seriously. Just let him buy the team. Quit your grudge holding Bettman.

The NHLs main argument has to do with Balsillie's desire to move the team to Southern Ontario saying that there isn't enough population and that it will encroach on the Leafs and the Sabres. Wrong.

People who live in Southern Ontario outside of Toronto don't want to drive on the crazy Southern Ontario highways for over an hour and then pay for parking in ridiculously expensive Downtown Toronto and then have to buy food. Did I mention they have to drive in Toronto? I think i'd rather play with rusty razors.

Oh yah, and then there's the tickets. The Toronto Maple Leafs have no problem selling out their games even at the cost beginning at 35$ to stand in the nosebleeds. (Compared to tickets that start at 5$ in Tampa Bay). And usually unless you bought the tickets at the beginning of the season, they're impossible to get and you're stuck buying from scalpers, who sell tickets for a premium (Unlike in Tampa Bay). Tell me how the little guy living in Waterloo, Kitchener or Hamilton can afford that? But would they go to a game in Waterloo, Kitchener or Hamilton?

You bet ya.

Beware the drunken ramblings of an Irish kid on March 17.

It will happen.

We're going to 7am breakfast at a pub. And we won't be the only one.

Welcome to Halifax, where everyone joins in on irresponsible drinking habits!

There are 11 games tonight, including the epic showdown of Canadiens-Rangers. So i'll have lots of fodder that will seem completely genius to me by the time 11 p.m. rolls around.

See you later.

last year, 8am.