The sports media is fraught with entrenched companies, reporters, press relations and marketing gurus. Internet sports writers came along and broke every rule in the book. Sports teams’ good-old-boy network of those who played the “game,” had to scramble as the blogosphere suddenly had the inside information — or suddenly threw player X, Y and probably Z into a vat of flaming vitriol. Opinion and writing out of the dry wall of the typical article suddenly had teeth. It had new life. Online had the bite, and gripped on like a Rottweiler.

People were reading the blogosphere faster than teams could coordinate press releases. Fans sought online what they were simply not getting from papers, or even radio, which soon became heavily marketed and  narrowly aimed at specific demographics. Most sports shows repeat the same things these days. Aimed at the lowest common denominator, it is mostly about sowing anger and dissent to attract the angry or frustrated fan. Insight or unique takes seem far gone from this venue, especially for US-based markets when people look for hockey.

From fan pages, message boards, and email lists came a new sort of digital entry… the blog. A sports blogosphere of all sorts blew up, creating a new path for fans to seek succor away from team, corporate, or the consumer machine. The old guard, using pads, pens, and old ways found themselves side-by-side with Internet writers, pod-casters and vloggers who were younger, more technologically savvy and constantly beating them to the punch. Some were bitter. Some simply woke up. Others fell by the wayside.

Alongside the new regime, came concern…. and well founded. How does one –if we cannot control their actions — at least keep the Internet writer from being irresponsible, ignorant, wrong, flaming, hateful, etc, etc etc? This has been a conundrum for many, and mostly inaction and argument has ensued rather than any answers. The depersonalization and disconnection that the Internet provides leaves an abyss of issues in the middle. It is very easy, in the lieu of no set structure, to take things too far, be inaccurate, or take advantage.

Nobody seems to have stepped up to address this. Not the previous generation of sports writers, many of whom still do not include Internet writers in their professional landscape, nor the teams or leagues that would like to see guidelines and rules, yet have done nothing to set standards themselves. The NHL’s blog rules takes no ownership of the bloggers or sets standards. It merely places control on each team.

Nor have the Internet writers stepped up, despite empty words on the subject when they notice that are not included along with the regular press. Instead, many bloggers seem to in-fight more than actually come to some sort of accordance. While sports print writers seldom call out other sports writers, unless in a bar after a bottle of Wild Turkey, it is a common thing to see one blogger bitch about another on the web. The pettiness is at almost a high school level of back and forth, and many media personnel cite that issue itself as one of the biggest reasons why bloggers and Internet writers are not fully embraced.

There are many questions as to how some on the web operate. With the lack oversight provided by an editor, some bloggers say or do anything they want to control perception. The murkier they operate, the more they set back the own efforts. Transparency and clear standards is the only answer here. The businesses of many are a fog or something very ad hoc and unprofessional, and their operations are going to start to come into question soon. Web stats, demographics, vision, business guidelines and contracts might start to peek between some of the smog that surrounds the digital ether. This should be a wake-up call to some others who persist arms akimbo in self-induced shadow and faux-mystique.

The clear path, at least to me, is the clear creation and definition of what sports internet writing is, and more important, the setting of guidelines. Of course, rules concern many people who are operating well without the wing or prayer. Yet there is a bigger issue at stake than inhibition and a fear of losing freedom of expression. If one seeks entry to a press box and recognition as some sort of journalist, then there simply is no other recourse. What is needed is some universal inclusion, not old-mindset exclusion.

We all want in to the legendary press box, the holy grail, unattainable to just about all bloggers. It is easy for some, a chimera for others to attain some sort of credentials. Teams seems terribly reticent to allow bloggers, some, if NOT many ,that might actually get far more readers than many beat writers online, into their “sacred place”. This seems very backwards, if not completely nonproductive. The Press Box is a prime way of establishing relationships with the media relations groups and internet writer. It forces writers to truly have a stake in their product. Once there, internet writing will have a slight learning curve to keep its unique, independent,and ground-breaking texture while adhering to some basic journalistic precepts. Plus, of course, the blogger might have to invest in a sports jacket. However at least there is a give-and-take process in working out of what the internet writer can be, as well as creating a new dynamic perception rather than knee-jerk judgments and assumptions by all involved parties.

The old school vs. new school arguments are really getting tired. Every time I hear a sports media type is “old school”, my eyes roll. Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt. It is alive and well as the old guard cling to something that fell years ago. It is time to invite them in and see what they are about, boys. Add to this, even if teams do not roll out a carpet for the blogger in-house, why aren’t they at least going out there and introducing themselves to what are powerful voices that connect with fans? For all shrill complaint of lack of control and standards, very few media relation staff have made an attempt to open communication lines. Pro-activity here could bridge the gap and breach of understanding and misunderstanding.

Yet, when some do get inclusion into some press facilities or some half-bred “blogger” press box that some old guard still construe, sadly, as a “fan box”, there is still a deep disconnect between sports and the new breed of writer who might or might not be a fan, yet transcends the labeling that sports organizations seek to constantly apply.

Since sports organizations are a business first, they must address the internet writer, whether they want to or not. Business, eventually, needs to get with the times. In hockey, this has reached a crescendo of need. They need to reach fans, and internet writers have subverted many print and radio people who were representatives to fan bases looking for an undiluted or independent look outside the talking heads that are collecting a paycheck. Even the NHL went out their way to create a Director of Social Media Marketing and Strategy.

Old school is long gone. Didn’t you get the memo? It’s been up on the web for a year or two now.

The print industry is dying, falling in a last gasp of starvation of ad dollars and demographic markets that have seeped away. Meanwhile, the didactic and stagnant style of “print” still appears online, as if somehow the web server is the new printing press. Not a chance. Soon, more dynamic and enthralling websites will take those few still reading those away.

PR flaks must develop new relations with a new class between them and their team’s consumer base. Once headway is done here, as PR looks to invite in the blogosphere…bloggers must then avoid be sucked into “the game”.

What is the “game”? It is an age-old give-and-take mindset. Once access is granted, how long before your working blogger hears”Do me a favor, run this story?” It is almost a pay for play mentality. Media relations and PR people however are using it as bait to hook some of the more “positive” blog press in. But we can’t let them take it too far.

Perhaps it is time for some of that back-rubbing to die too as favors and favorites don’t exactly correspond to circulation, drinks, nor result in extra ticket sales anymore. The game of “exclusive” and “access” seems to be more a game of favorites. All press, and thus all bloggers, are not treated equally. The buddy system does not just equate to swimming or snorkeling. It also is alive and well in the offices of these teams and the press they deal with at times. It might be time for a new mindset here.

What also needs to go is the new breed of VIP fan that is developing alongside the effective blogosphere. There are those in the blogosphere who have zero desire to be independent, or even a writer, but instead to be a team employee sans the paycheck. This new form of groupie talks about themselves habitually, seeking their own “ins”, entranced by a new hobby of figuring out sports peoples email addresses. Teams seem apathetic or even encouraging these personalized booster clubs; even if individuals might be creeped out by the “stalk” factor. However, it seems to be the active attempt to take advantage of addicted personalities and “social-o-paths”. Some teams, based on ticket sales and reach, encourage and even invite some of these fans to pressers, meetings and have blurred the line between fan, access and information. Anything for that ticket sale, it seems.

So we get all sorts of extremes. Those looking to eke out their niche and perches, need to navigate tricky waters. Admittedly, some teams and leagues do too as they too struggle in the new media and team needs.

How does one keep to some rule set and self-control? It isn’t easy. As a print atmosphere seems to skew and warp their own journalistic notions regularly and the media becomes a hodgepodge of curious and malleable integrity, that isn’t the focus of attention. Instead, many look for the miscue or mistake of the internet writer instead, since that is easier.There is a short rope on the internet sports writer. Yet, if they are a high paying fan, the rope is far longer.

It is all a narrow divide. For those who barely pay attention in a very A.D.D. news and information overloaded world, readers these days tend only to focus when there is a fiasco or situation. Judgment reigns in short bursts instead of careful measurement. As a result, there is little room for error. I know this well, for I have broken rules and caused some problems myself. It took months to get past the stigma it and other pre-conceived notions created…for myself and for others.

So, does all this just continue? Will the chips fall where they may? It’s been several years now, and still it is like the Wild West at times in the sports blogosphere landscape. Many are left to their own devices to sink or swim. As a whole, it still mostly lies disorganized and scattered. Something has to break here. To me, the only answer is to be a major push to get those involved in Professional Writers Associations. Standards need to be set, and headway needs to be made on all areas, lest, the struggle of all writers, internet and otherwise, will feed itself into an unending circle of standing still as the world changes around them. If sports teams and leagues will not sit down and apply some sense of standards and guidelines, it is incumbent on us to come together and create some.

There are sordid tales about many hockey vets or post-NHL players having brushes with the law. But a young hockey star? Especially a young hockey all-star? Not so much. This is why most have read about Patrick Kane and perhaps had any mix of reactions: Incredulous. Laughter. Shake of the head, not quite believing. Wondering if the cab driver was from Detroit. Writing to favorite teams to not put favorite players on the cover of an EA sports title.

Patrick Kane, Buffalo’s favored son, forward for the Chicago Blackhawks, was arrested along with his cousin for beating up and robbing a Buffalo cab driver.

It gets better.

It was over 20 cents of change.

Even the recession seems to be hitting the young stars of the NHL. I mean, 20 cents is at least the price of a wing at Duff’s.

What has been terribly telling was Patrick Kane’s public apology to fans and the team. Kane used Michael Vick as a descriptive, making those who are already shaken take pause, even if they want  to believe his innocence or that it was all a big misunderstanding that bruised up a cabbie’s face and broke his glasses.

By the way…there was no apology to the cabbie.

That in itself implies guilt and impending legal prostration. One has to think — unless the Vick remark was Kane riffing, causing his handlers to puke in a corner at the gaffe — it is more likely a peek at their upcoming legal stance.

A Buffalo grand jury who heard the case late last week agreed with most who were perplexed from the outside. Charges were made.

When this goes to court, I believe that the two things telegraphed earlier will come into play….

No apology came to the cabbie because they will paint him with a hard brush.

Kane will plead not guilty of the charges, but be assured that the Vick mention might mean some offset of guilt if it was a planned naming by his people.

Kane’s cousin could have been a hot tempered so-and-so. Did fists fly as Patrick Kane put on his cape, holding the cousin back from causing more damage and doom?

Possible.

The fact is, there are quite a bit of rumblings as to Kane’s attitude when “rolling” with his boys. Some have alluded that this was inevitable, as Kane is not only EA’s NHL 10 poster boy, but also the poster boy for millionaires that still haven’t grown up. There are many examples of this in other sports. But hockey players are rarely annoying petulant clods who get a large ego and poor social skills.

Some wonder if Kane’s fame attracts hucksters looking for a quick buck. Perhaps the  cab driver might have known who was in the cab.

To be fair, the driver who has changed is story a few times for the press. Kane has plead not guilty, and his lawyer read the following statement on ESPN radio:

“[Patrick Kane is] devastated that anybody would accuse him of a crime. He’s not that sort of person. He wanted nothing to do with the cab driver in any way, shape or form. He simply wanted to get out of the cab. It’s been revealed today that the cab driver admitted he locked these two guys in the car and wouldn’t permit the one guy to stand up and simply reach for his wallet. There’s more and more being developed about this.”

It is common practice for Buffalo cab drivers, whose passengers are often drunken college kids, to lock riders in until they pay for their fare.  This is nothing new, despite the mock outrage and spin from Kane’s lawyer. Kane grew up in Buffalo. I am sure he was familiar with this practice. What is more a question is what is two underage kids doing in the city drinking district. How much alcohol was involved? Unless Patrick Kane was buzzed off some pop.

Yeah, fat chance is right.

What is stone-cold clear here is Patrick Kane does not know how to conduct himself publicly. Rumblings of immaturity and obnoxious behavior come out of Chicago by some who have seen him with his “boys.” That said, some feel that Kane is not as bad as he was made out to be, and was not smart about the situation. But is that just wishful thinking?

Was his trip home further regression into teenage misbehavior?

Hockey players get out of cabs every day. How many drivers carry a load of bruises and call the cops? Plus, this couldn’t have been his first time in a cab in downtown Buffalo.

Since he was indicted, “20 cent” has been “coined” as Kane’s new NHL 10 handle. This is after Chicago’s front office shuffle, signing Hossa to a 12-year deal, and letting the team MVP, Havlat, go elsewhere. The Blackhawks could use a break, but simply have not gotten it.

Fans, teams and lawyers have their spin….but as I read the tea leaves here, and as we watch each coddled star march to jail lately, one has to wonder if Plaxico Buress might have company. Probably not. Kane will probably get a slap on the wrist or settle out of court (don’t forget the impending personal lawsuit). But whatever happens, rest assured that some behavior modification will be applied in Chicago, no matter what the spin. Patrick Kane did not hire the preeminent lawyer in Buffalo, Paul Cambria Jr. for nothing. A lawyer who, incidentally, had old friend Larry Flynt to his home in suburban Buffalo for a birthday party just this past weekend.

The legal “zoom” on this should be amazing to watch.

]]> http://thefastertimes.com/hockey/2009/08/24/the-nhl-kane-mutiny-patrick-kane-accused-of-beating-and-robbing-cabbie/feed/ http://thefastertimes.com/hockey/2009/07/20/the-state-of-hockey-toronto-maple-leafs-gm-brian-burke-talks-shop/ http://thefastertimes.com/hockey/2009/07/20/the-state-of-hockey-toronto-maple-leafs-gm-brian-burke-talks-shop/#comments Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:18:08 +0000 The Faster Read http://thefastertimes.com/hockey/?p=108

It is the night before the NHL 2009 Entry Draft. Brian Burke enters the room with the press waiting to assault him before he can speak at a Sports Management Conference.

They surround him like a pack of ravenous wolves, while Burke twirls steak. Brian Burke is one of the most blunt, no-nonsense hockey types you will find in this business. He says what he thinks and doesn’t care one whit if you agree or not.

His ruddy complexion and furrowed brows make me wish that Michelangelo would be reborn to chisel this man’s stoic visage mid-sentence.

Burke is what you call a throw back. A man who does not buy into politically correctness, the outrageous leaps of the Canadian press, nor prevailing opinions which change with the wind direction.

Burke’s style works. He has two turned around franchises and one cup to prove it. He has even been the NHL’s VP of Hockey Operations. His teams tend to be as tough and no-nonsense as he is. He and longtime assistant GM David Nonis are now working for their third team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, which is at the epicenter of all Canadian press and attentions as this long-storied team falls from grace.

Thus, this is why he is followed at every step here in Montreal before the draft as he sits at pick #7 unable to move up to the coveted top 3 or two after. Burke faces this aforementioned press in his usual nonplussed, if not slightly sour expression, and shoots from his hip with whatever is on his mind.

While the new school of GMs try to play games, or try ploys like applying disinformation or playing the paranoid game of capping all that goes on in the inner circles, Burke plays no game. You get what is on his mind and what is on the table with no second-guessing, apologies or showmanship.

To the press, he’ll speak about being close to a trade and unable to move up. Then he walks onward, to speak to a new school of men and women who are learning the sports business, along with his son, a scout for the Philadelphia Flyers. In that forum, he gives a very blunt and surprising assessment on NHL hockey, which I caught on a shaky camera.

Link to video 1: STATE OF HOCKEY VIDEO WITH BRIAN BURKE

Link to video 2: TORONTO DRAFT AND FREE AGENCY

It is a dull Tuesday in the Twitterverse. There is a hockey blogger snit from the night before over scoops. One says he had it first. The other stipulates it was on Chicago TV, and tries to denigrate the whole idea of scoops. It is the same old personal discord between two bloggers who communicate via blogs than anything else.

But the story they are bitching about is what this article is really is about. It is about the sudden dumping/reassignment of the Chicago Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon. For what played out yesterday was some dirty laundry that fell within twitter in the mid-afternoon.

It was when a former player from that team lights off a couple of shots that reverberate through the dull din and awaken the hockey fans and writers from the doldrums of a quiet Tuesday afternoon.

When Martin Havlat was a free agent this past July 1st, he was pretty set on returning back to Chicago. With several injury-plagued seasons and some issues in Ottawa, in Chicago he found a home. Last year he had the most productive of his career with almost 30 goals and 77 points with a whopping +29. He wanted a longterm deal to stay in Chicago.

Chicago’s GM was Dale Tallon. He was brought in 2005 to raise what was considered the NHL Titanic. Chicago has fallen from grace and was basically rolling into an abyss. With Tallon at the helm, they made draft picks that reaped quick dividends. This past season, they knocked out Calgary from the playoffs, only to be beaten by a powerful former champion in Detroit.

All seemed on its way, and this summer would be just retaining that successful collection plus some to fill some other roles.

Enter a former Chicago Cubs Executive, John McDonough. Installed as Blackhawks president in 2007, with the task of making money for a franchise that was in the dumps, he has changed the interior body-politic. Some are saying it is McDonough who put forth that ridiculous $58.6 million contract for Brian Campbell last season.

In fact, it is said that this free agency’s burn of Havlat for Marian Hossa is also courtesy the new regime, who basically de-fanged the GM who got them to this successful juncture and now is trying to take the reins.

Evidently it was Havlat and his agent Allan Walsh that first put together the constructs of a deal that Chicago then took and offered to Marian Hossa instead. One can firmly project on who that person might be when not a bad word is said about Dale Tallon, who Havlat calls: “a father figure”.

Per Walsh’s own twitter account: “Havlat received multi year offers from several teams…except Chicago. After 3 months of negotiating a long term contract, Chicago would……not offer anything more than a 1 year deal. So much for taking care of the team MVP.”

Yesterday, he added his opinion on the Chicago move: “Dale Tallon is a stand up guy and I have unqualified respect for him. He is honorable and loyal to a fault. Huge loss for Chicago. What happened betwwen Marty and Chicago had nothing to do with Dale Tallon. Dale is a friend and will always be a friend.”

Dale Tallon is reassigned, as the man who handles the faxes, contracts and CBA issues, Stan Bowman is made GM. Curiously enough, this is the same man one would assume would be responsible for taking care of RFAs (restricted free agents). You know, the ones Chicago screwed up and had to pony up larger contracts to hold Kris Versteeg and Cam Barker, and the NHLPA filed a grevaince over.

So, as we all scry forward trying to read, conjecture and decipher all that is going on beneath the Blackhawk vaneer, Martin Havlat and his agent’s tweets throws out some interesting notions into the digital ether of hockey fans, bloggers, writers and other interested parties. Far more juicy that the usual banal and promotion that Conan O’Brien skewers on his Twitter Tracker on the Tonight Show.

For those tweets might be the only thing laid bare to this internal strife in Hawk Country. Dale Tallon is reassigned. Scotty Bowman’s son sits as the new GM. And McDonough sits with blood on his hands as the team sits over the cap with several RFAs to deal with for next season. But we will never get the real story by Tallon,  when he is still retained by the organization.

A young team on the rise might be affected by the oldest issue in the book…ego and hubris. It remains to be seen if the talent can offset some of the questionable issues that seem to be striking a chord like a Chuck Barris gong to those watching from afar.

But, for a hour in the twittersphere, there seemed to be a peek to what mechanics are in motion. Though, to be fair, there was some open conjecture to those I spoke to that the Twitter version with the name Martin Havlat, is not him at all, but his agent or someone at his agency. His agent denies this. Per Walsh to me this morning: “…Havlat(s) twitter account is Marty’s personal account and we (as his agents) play no role in it’s contents.”

Either way, it gives a look to what might be an internal battle on who wants to take credit “The Greatest Sports-Business Turnaround Ever”, coined by Forbes Magazine as they sit poised with a slew of large contracts and a cup-run or BUST.

Today, much more comes out, as Darren Dreger from TSN has the story with far more there.

“My negotiation with Chicago was not between Dale and my agent, it was between Dale and McDonough. Why? Because McDonough couldn’t stand that Dale was so successful and getting the credit for building the Hawks from a last place team to making the Conference Final in three short years. Remember, we were also the youngest team in the NHL last year.”
Darren Dreger, TSN.ca

Some seedy linens were laid bare just for a moment, and they were clearly a Blackhawk uniform.

To show you how I got to this column is a fine example to how the sports world has changed substantially.

I used to post on a hockey messageboard. Then, as the blog revolution took place, I decided that my posts were very blog-like and chose to give it a whirl. I did an amateur go on it on a large hockey site who had the novel idea of allowing any fan to make a blog. By my third blog, I was asked by professional bloggers to join them with some satirical whimsy.

Two months later I was credentialed by my local NY hockey team and amassing a loyal following on Long Island. Since then I have broken news, rubbed elbows with those I write about, and even got in some hot water in the NHL blogosphere.

The walls between fans and the sport have faded or at least bent in odd ways and directions. At the same time, sports journalism has changed to be a more fluid and organic notion than what was once just straight didactic journalism.

Sports news comes from all angles, opinions, ways and means. Newspapers shrink and companies are either rapidly changing or rapidly dying in this new digital ether that has been forced down many lungs and into our news-purveying bloodstream.

The walls have tumbled, Jericho is no more, and here I can give you my take on what interests me and what I am passionate about.  I now welcome you to check out my unusual, irreverent, sometimes creative, but hopefully insightful and unique take on the NHL hockey.

It is a new world, and in it, the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria just got shot through by a puck and just sank with your stock portfolio. Happy reading.

B.D. Gallof is a published writer and hockey blogger. He is also one of the charter members of the NY Islander’s Blog Box program. This was a first of its kind in professional sports: an official press box for bloggers. He has also been the NY Islanders blogger for one of the top US hockey websites for two years.

BD has been written up in Sports Illustrated, TSN.ca, the NY Times hockey blog, Yahoo’s Puck Daddy blog and many others. He currently runs an Islanders indie blog: Islanders Independent.

The NHL Free Agency period began at noon on July 1st.

The following is a list of NHL Free Agents, and I have highlighted and notated some possible key targets for teams looking for a good value or buy.

ATLANTA THRASHERS
F Eric Perrin

BOSTON BRUINS
F PJ Axelsson
F Mark Recchi
F Stephane Yelle
F Peter Schaefer
D Shane Hnidy
D Steve Montador Bottom pairing kind of guy with some offensive upside and hits.
G Manny Fernandez

BUFFALO SABRES
F Maxim Afinogenov
F Dominic Moore
F Andrew Peters
D Teppo Numminen
D Jaroslav Spacek Very underrated and more affordable and offensive than the other Dmen
G Mikael Tellqvist

CAROLINA HURRICANES
F Ryan Bayda
F Erik Cole
F Chad LaRose
D Dennis Seidenberg
D David Tanabe

FLORIDA PANTHERS
F Radek Dvorak
F Ville Peltonen
F Richard Zednik
D Karlis Skrastins Savvy and underrated
D Nick Boynton
D Jason Cullimore
D Jordan Leopold
G Craig Anderson

MONTREAL CANADIENS
F Saku Koivu leader
F Tom Kostopoulos
F Alex Kovalev
F Robert Lang
F Alex Tanguay underrated scorer
F/D Mathieu Dandenault
D Francis Bouillon
D Patrice Brisebois
D Mike Komisarek
D Mathieu Schneider

NEW JERSEY DEVILS
F Brian Gionta
F Bobby Holik retired
F John Madden
F Michael Rupp Has great size, but will just just be a bowling pin on the wrong team
F Brendan Shanahan
D Niclas Havelid went to Sweden
G Scott Clemmensen
G Kevin Weekes

NEW YORK ISLANDERS
F Dean McAmmond
F Mike Sillinger
F Andy Hilbert
G Yann Danis
G Joey MacDonald

NEW YORK RANGERS
F Nik Antropov wonderful size and if he can learn to score more, lookout.
F Blair Betts
F Colton Orr lower cost, high value in fists.
D Paul Mara
D Derek Morris

OTTAWA SENATORS
F Mike Comrie
F Chris Neil

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS
F Mike Knuble
D Andrew Alberts
G Martin Biron
G Antero Niittymaki

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS
F Ruslan Fedotenko
F Miroslav Satan
F Petr Sykora
D Philippe Boucher
D Hal Gill
D Rob Scuderi value went up due to key playoffs for Stanley Cup champs, Pitt
G Mathieu Garon

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
D Marek Malik

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
F Boyd Devereaux
F Brad May
G Martin Gerber
G Curtis Joseph
G Olaf Kolzig

WASHINGTON CAPITALS
F Donald Brashear the true heavyweight champ
F Sergei Fedorov (KHL)
F Viktor Kozlov  (KHL)
G Brent Johnson

ANAHEIM DUCKS
F Todd Marchant
F Rob Niedermayer
D Francois Beauchemin
D Bret Hedican
D Scott Niedermayer

CALGARY FLAMES
F Todd Bertuzzi
F Mike Cammalleri
F Jamie Lundmark verstile and might look for key opportunity with a team that can use him more
F Andre Roy might be a key target for physical guy where he can actually skate amd play regular shifts
D Adrian Aucoin
D Jay Bouwmeester signed in Calgary after trade
D Andrew Pardy
D Rhett Warrener

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
F Martin Havlat
F Samuel Pahlsson
D Matt Walker
G Nikolai Khabibulin

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS
F Chris Gratton
F Manny Malholtra
F Michael Peca
F Jason Williams
D Christian Backman
G Wade Dubielewicz
G Fredrik Norrena

COLORADO AVALANCHE
F Tyler Arnason
F Ben Guite
F Ian Laperriere
F Joe Sakic
D Daniel Tjarnqvist
G Andrew Raycroft

DALLAS STARS
F Steve Begin
F Brendan Morrison
F Mark Parrish
D Darryl Sydor
D Sergei Zubov

DETROIT RED WINGS
F Marian Hossa
F Darren McCarty
F Mikael Samuelsson
D Chris Chelios
G Ty Conklin

EDMONTON OILERS
F Ales Kotalik  I see this a key depth target for his speed. In right system, could bloom.
G Dwayne Roloson

LOS ANGELES KINGS
F Derek Armstrong
F Kyle Calder
D Denis Gauthier

MINNESOTA WILD
F Marian Gaborik
F Stephane Veilleux
D Marc-Andre Bergeron
D Kurtis Foster
D Martin Skoula

NASHVILLE PREDATORS
F Radek Bonk
F Vernon Fiddler
F Scott Nichol
F Steve Sullivan
F Joel Ward
D Greg de Vries
D Ville Koistinen PP and offensive puck mover
D Greg Zanon

PHOENIX COYOTES
F Brian McGrattan
D Dmitri Kalinin
D Ken Klee

SAN JOSE SHARKS
F Mike Grier
F Travis Moen good 2 way role player
F Jeremy Roenick
F Marcel Goc his speed and defensive play and potential make him a key target
D Kent Huskins
G Brian Boucher

ST. LOUIS BLUES
D Jay McKee
F Dan Hinote
G Manny Legace

VANCOUVER CANUCKS
F Taylor Pyatt
F Daniel Sedin With their cap space, they’ll give it a shot, but within reason, and not likely.
F Henrik Sedin RESIGNED WITH CANUCKS
F Mats Sundin can an old Isles fan sign with a team that needs years to rebuild. Not likely, but sure could use a leader besides Weight.
D Mattias Ohlund Great vet who should be swept up by a playoff team
D Ossi Vaananen
G Jason Labarbera
G Curtis Sanford

This year’s NHL draft number one pick came to town earlier this afternoon. Long Island has been electrified since his selection by the NY Islanders only a few weeks ago. Then, over 10,000 fans actually crowded into a draft party. Let that sink in a moment. A draft party. The draft was being held all the way in Montreal.

This might give you an idea how big this really was for Long Islanders.With names like Ovechkin, Malkin, and Crosby, the bar has been set high for first picks. Unfortunately this was the case for last year’s #1 pick, Stamkos, who had a rough and tumble year with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Long Island, once the land of a NHL dynasty of 4 Stanley Cups in a row in the late-70’s and early 80’s has been anything but in the later 90’s and onward. Local fans were put on a rollercoaster ride of owner fiascos, one of the worst GM’s to ever run a team…and he actually ran it into the ground FOR YEARS, and the complete loss of that dynasty fanbase.

It is crazy to think about the buffoonery and circus that Long Island hockey fans have been stuck with over the years. Almost mind-numbing. And, if you can glean this from my blog, I am indeed a Long Islander. I lived it.

Not only did I live it, I hung on. Somehow. Someway. Just as those fans who screamed and cheered on Long Island when John Tavares was named by the Islanders as their number one pick.

You can not believe the pressure, anxiety or drama that went through fans this offseason. It was there, branded on their faces. The pressure building. The final crescendo flashing across each face, as suddenly a vent of steam rushed forth and came out of each Isles fans mouth.

So as the basking glory of that draft fades, suddenly we are left with the introduction of this branded savior to Long Island. Earlier this afternoon, John Tavares met Long Islanders in a press conference that was put as a live feed on their website.He met face to face the expectation and pressure that he is considered part of the solution to all that ails the Long Island hockey fan.

Here’s a LINK if the live feed doesn’t work.

Luckily, since being a 14 year old wunderkind that has been fawned over and scrutinized for over 4 years in the OHL, he is used to that pressure. This is why he is such an ideal fit.

Welcome to Long Island, Mr. John Tavares. We hope to grow up with you and climb up together from the ditch of over 15 years. Hopefully that’s not pressure. That’s just the challenge.

Photo by Glory Rumours Photos

Photoshop by B.D. Gallof

The first thing that was a shock to my system stepping off the plane in Montreal was the heat. This strangeness of a Canadian summer is startling to the non-initiated. Especially when my New York’s skies have been cast-iron colored and puring rain all through June.

The summer sun was cooking a city filled with hockey personnel, aspiring players, scouts and media.

Make no mistake about it, the NHL draft is a big deal. Sure, some players may not even see the NHL’s light of day, but there are few other opportunities for the hockey world to converge on one place. Montreal just a mere week ago  was a whirlpool of hockey types all converging on seven rounds of selections.

I defy those who follow baseball, football, soccer or even tennis to find a more rabid and loyal fanbase than those who live and breathe hockey. This nation’s third or fourth sport, depending on trends, still requires the most advanced skill-set and effort. North of the border, it is no contest. Hockey is number one with a bullet, or at least with a well shot puck.

What is the NHL draft?

Basically, it is a systematic entry by those amateur hockey players who meet the requirements to play professional hockey. Kids who are 17, 18 and a few who are older, are available for selection by the best hockey league in the world. Most have been followed and scrutinized for a mere two years leading to the culmination of assessments for this draft day. Others, like John Tavares, come with a buzz and have been followed since their mid-teens.

About a month back in Toronto, was a dog-and-pony show called the NHL Combine. Each potential draftee was put through the combine to assess health, physical fitness and given facetime with teams to work out psyche profiles and personality tests. Measuring these kids heads is the new school of trying to determine who will get better or have what it takes to operate at the high level the NHL demands.

Thirty teams’ scouting departments, sophisticated computer programs and good old-fashioned debate is raging in hotel rooms across this city all week. Somehow each of these groups will have hammered out, likely with the aid of Internet, video, and some good old fashioned canadian suds, the order of over 200 potentials.

The air is ripe with anxiety. This draft was full of all sorts of stories. The NY Islanders hadthe number one pick, and they need all things since they are in a rebuilding phase. Their General Manager, a former NHL goalie, Garth Snow has kept the pick choice silent. The reason: all three top draft picks are so well regarded, they’d take any of the three. Snow kept dropping hints to different members of the press and interviews, trying to make the Tampa Bay Lightning and Colorado Avalanche, who had second and third pick, respectively, blink. Would they offer the Islanders something to swap spots?

In the end, neither teams did blink, and John Tavares was called out by Garth Snow. Back on Long Island, a stunning 10,000 fans showed up to cheer at their draft party. They went berserk.

You see, even in hockey, the fans are all about the future. Hockey, to some, might have lost some luster, but it is in the middle of Montreal, in the Bell Centre and also on Long Island with 10,000 screaming fans where it shows a fine stout heart still beating beneath.

More on my draft weekend experience in  Montreal in some future blogs.

The owner of the Blackberry still finds himself blackballed by the NHL

It was a bold strike and forced the NHL into a defensive posture . . . a position they are just not used to. Jim Balsillie’s plan to snatch the Phoenix Coyotes and move them to Hamilton Ontario was met with a fat flat denial when his own smooth moves ended up backfiring. By putting the issues and auction of the team so quickly, forcing everyone to scramble, it gave the Arizona courts reason to deny. They deemed it that 14 days to rush through issue and arguments was not feasible.

Per the AZCentrel article: Hat-tip to Yahoo’s Puck Daddy
“Judge Redfield T. Baum issued a 21-page ruling late Monday afternoon, concluding that the June 29 deadline imposed by Balsillie did not allow enough time to resolve the complex case.”

Baically, the RIM owner is undone by his own boldness, handing victory to the NHL, who argued that Balsillie was attempting to dance around league rules of ownership.

Per TSN.ca: Phoenix remains in the desert, despite, as per court documents, over 300 million in losses since they moved there in 1996.

The league argued that they felt Phoenix was still viable. However, that argument is beginning to fall apart, despite the court win today.Balsillie managed through this attempt of pressed sale and move, open those books and embarrass the league in the process. Though he has lost once again for an attempt to own a NHL team, he has shown a willingness to question the way the NHL does business in a public display.

No matter the outcome, the NHL still gets dinged in the process.

The NHL has stated it had 4 possible interested parties willing to buy and keep the Coyotes in Phoenix. Hopefully for the NHL, one of those will actually turn to be viable, lest they take even more lumps over the entire escapade.

Chances are, though Balsillie’ gambit to pull the Coyotes from the desert to colder air failed, the issues of the Phoenix Coyotes are far from over.

Photos by kimberlyfaye, Marvin Kuo
and Mr. I

There is nothing better than debuting a hockey column…right after the very last game of the season. Timing, however, is out of my hands as The Faster Times crack team of programmers work through the kinks and quirk of the new site.

As you might read this, Steeltown hockey players smoke fat cigars and might be shaving those ragged and motley playoff beards. The hefty weight of the Stanley Cup sits in the hands and arms of the Pittsburgh Penguins players who left a Detroit dynasty and arena silent in their dust.

When this series between the Penguins and the Detroit Red Wings went to seven games, it was already leaning towards a changing of the guard. Detroit’s unstoppable aura was flickering as they were facing a team who had met them last year and had lost their wide-eyed visage this second time around.

Each team won in front of their own home crowd, but as game seven began in Detroit, the home arena was not such an advantage. Why? Because suddenly, the pressure was on them. They were left in a precarious position where in this one game, if the Pens broke the streak, it was all over. It was like giving them the plans to the Death Star and sending X-Wings.

Eventually, someone was going to toss a puck into the hole.

They did, twice.

Now Steeltown celebrates as Hockeytown feels like their auto industry.

Just like that, new beat old. The storied Detroit dynasty must now face an off-season of hard choices. The cup champ Penguins sit pretty with their core intact and signed. The tandem of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were the engines to the buzzsaw that chopped down the old regime.

Both were in the running for the Conn Smythe, but there could be only one playoff MVP, thus Malkin took it with whopping 36 points. He led all playoff scorers, and it was the most since the Great One himself, Wayne Gretzky had 40 in 1993.

Those who think this will be the Penguins’ final visit are much mistaken. No cup is assured past this one, but not many teams have two of the top three players in the world. What makes this even more daunting for the rest of the league is that they are young and locked up longterm.

Pens are here to stay.

Photo by Dan4th