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JEST FOR FUN: MOVE NHL DISCIPLINE OFFICE TO NEUTRAL COUNTRY?

LOS ANGELES -- JUNE 4, 2007 -- Take today's blog with a grain of salt...it's fun to consider:

Now that Chris Neil whacked Chris Drury of Buffalo and didn't get suspended; Now that Daniel Alfredsson drove Sabre Henrik Tallinder's head into the boards in a major boarding that wasn't called, and for which he wasn't suspended; Now that Daniel Alfredsson has kicked a puck in only to have the ref's calls reversed by the Toronto office; Now that Chris Neil went headhunting on Andy McDonald of the Ducks and wasn't suspended, after all that, only one question remains.

Why is it that the Canada-based Ottawa Senators are immune from all prosecution?

Am I hallucinating here? You tell me.

Am I being a Ducks' homer (I host the postgame road show)? You tell me.

Go ahead, I can take it. I'm a big boy.

Before you answer, consider: In all the cases above, no one from the Canadian media has recommended that Dean McAmmond should have "kept his head up," as they did in the case of Drury. No one from the Canadian media seems to think that Alfie should have been suspended for his hit on Tallinder. Almost no one from the North Country seems to think that Neil should be suspended--ever, no matter what he does. As for TSN.ca, well, they're at least honest about their bias: "Canada's Sports Leader" tells us to follow "Ottawa's Cup Drive." So much for objectivity. Extra weird it all is, considering that the Ducks probably have more Canadians playing than do the Sens!!!

Tell me, just look me right in the eye and tell me that the Canadian media is doing anything but cheerleading for the Sens' and their faithful. And tell me you're not the least bit suspicious regarding who gets suspended and who doesn't.

Damn! I just wish I had some malfeasance evidence...call Bob Woodward!!!

But Brian Burke and Randy Carlyle are smart. They know that whining about the refs is a loser's game.

Maybe another country could mete out punishment more objectively: Switzerland (they say they're neutral but never were)...scratch. Germany...nah. England...not enough hockey. Sweden...Alfie fans on one side of the room, Sammy fans, the other. United Nations...too opposed to Western Civilization for us to get a break. Czech Republic...hmmm.

GAME TWO

OTTAWA'S STRATEGY BACKFIRES

MAY 31, 2007 -- ANAHEIM -- Ice Capades vs. Physical play. Which to choose? In game two last night, the Senators came out banging in the first period, a normal reaction from a club that needs to rebound from a game one loss. In this instance, it's a move that backfired. Believe it or not, an Ice Capades-style skill exhibition would have yielded better results.

The Sens' choice of looking for big hits, maybe a thrown elbow here and there, is the exact opposite of what a club needs to do to beat these Ducks. Any club that does that awakens a giant in Anaheim. A better choice would have been, and continues to be, for Ottawa to play a highly skilled, fast-skating puck possession game and make the Ducks chase them. They should concede the physical battle to a degree, because most NHL clubs would lose that one to the Ducks.

"They're keeping the puck on the outside very well," Murray said of Anaheim after Game Two. "They stagger their D real well. If you do put it in, the forecheck - we had some good forechecks but we didn't get plays to the net off them."

To do that, Murray should go a little more Ice Capades/Buffalo Sabres style and take a chance on speed and skill. The banging game is the Ducks' domain, and the Sens' plan for game two backfired. The shots are now 63-36 over two games, and that has made all the difference.

How are the Senators going to establish a puck-possession game? The Ducks are clearly winning on that count.

"When you start with the puck, you're allowed to execute your forecheck or you regroup and whatnot. It's a puck-possession game," said Ducks Coach Randy Carlyle. "I'm sure every coach would like their team to be 75 percent and above. And that's always a huge factor in where territorially the game is being played. If you start with the puck more often, that means the other team has got to do something to get it back."

For the Ducks, the answer is in bruising hits; they are now dictating the style of play and it's been vital to shot production. The Sens? It's time to dangle, twirl, twist, pass and just be generally swift and nifty. Banging with the Ducks doesn't do it.

DESIRE?

Not a matter for the coach. It's a matter of the hearts ticking inside Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza.

Sorry for the lack of a technical explanation here, but that's what's happening with the Sens' top line. They simply need to decide that they want, need, must have that Cup more than Pahlsson and crew. It's not happening so far, and as I've mentioned in previous entries (below), Spezza and crew seemed almost blase about facing the Pahlsson line. They can tell themselves that their failures in games one and two are the result not of what the Ducks did, but what the Sens "didn't do," as Spezza told this reporter, but that's just a stiff upper lip.

The answer's not in the lip. It's in the heart. Does the Sens' top line have it?

DANCE WITH WHO BRUNG YA!

MAY 30, 2007 -- ANAHEIM -- You knew this would happen. With a one game series deficit at hand, some are suggesting that the Senators should break up the Dany Heatley/Jason Spezza/Daniel Alfredsson line.

Don't count on it.

That it only took one loss to start hearing these questions is no surprise, but the Sens should dance with the partner that got them to the Big Dance.

Ottawa should consider what happened to the Minnesota Wild in round one when Pavol Demitra and Marian Gaborik were split from a potential first line trio with Brian Rolston. The Wild would have been better off keeping their most talented together for the best bang for their buck. In fact, when the Wild's top dogs were intact, in game four, they had a pretty good outing and managed a win, fending off elimination. Not a few critics wondered aloud (including this one) whether Coach Jacques Lemaire had erred in splitting them apart at the start of the series.

Spreading the most talented throughout the lineup sounds good, but often it's best to let the best feed off each other, rather than trying to get top talent to lift the lesser lights.

No surprise the question is out there, but does it really make sense to split the most productive postseason line? Don't think so. Not yet.

As for Jason Spezza, it's about the Sens, and he'll have an opportunity to prove that tonight in game two.

"We're confident that we're a pretty good line when we're going, and there's no need for rash changes now. It's what we did to ourselves and not what they did to us," said Spezza, who will have a chance to prove that much this evening.

LAZY HOCKEY WRITERS ASK ABOUT TIME ZONE

Stop asking about the time zone. Please.

I can't tell you how many lazy writers there are (and there are many) who can't stop asking Cup Final participants what effect jet lag is having on either club, or could have on either club, and whether the clubs have to resort to different practice schedules, etc.

Color me bored by your boring questions. At 1.3Mil per annum on average, and chartered flights everywhere, today's players shouldn't have any trouble waking up, smelling the coffee, and playing like they mean it in the Cup Final. In fact, come to think of it, even if they were playing for free they should be capable of bucking up and making sure they're bright-eyed and bushy tailed.

So enough of the stupid questions please, it's not like these guys have never been on a plane.

UNDERESTIMATED

MAY 28, 2007 -- ANAHEIM -- A very wise hockey writer mentioned to me that Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley looked a little complacent at the press conferences in Anaheim the day before the game.

After Sammy Pahlsson, Travis Moen and Rob Niedermayer managed twelve shots on net and Moen got the game winner late in the third, I'd say my friend is a visionary.  The Senators' top line should consider that the Ducks' shutdown line is far better than even the one belonging to New Jersey's Jay Pandolfo.  They  seemed to shrug in saying, Sunday, that they're used to facing tough shutdown lines. 

I'm thinking that after the beating they took in game one, the Senators' will awaken Tuesday morning well aware of what Pahlsson's line can do.  The Alfredsson/Spezza/Heatley line took only five shots, and were physically dominated by the Ducks' shutdown line.

Round one goes to Sammy Pahlsson and crew in the game-within-a-game that's going on with re the Senators dominant first line.

Jason Spezza spoke of what the Sens didn't do after the game, but that entire line must address the shutdown capabilities of the Ducks if they're going to win game two.

As for the battle of the fourth lines, the Ducks assembled a trio of Todd Marchant, Brad May and rookie Shawn Thornton, that gave the Sens fits, pinning them in their own end for over a minute in the first period. Brad May's game right now is as good as any in his career.

Look out for Ryan Getzlaf's backhand, but look out for his heart, too.  After committing a stupid cross-checking penalty which led to the Sens taking a 2-1 lead, Getzlaf scored the game-tying goal on a backhand, which has been a successful shot for the second-year pro.  Getzlaf is a budding star, a big center who likes to hit, kills penalties, plays on the power play, too.  Bryan Murray, GM of the Sens, sure knows what he can do.  He drafted him. 

Ottawa should take solace: Wade Redden and Chris Phillips played excellent shutdown games on Monday, and Antoine Vermette, Mike Comrie, Mike Fisher and Peter Schaefer offer a good chance for the Senators to get some points from the second and third lines. Take solace in your two power play goals, as well. Once some even strength goals come, the Sens will be in good shape with a power play operating at over 20% capacity. Finally, the Sens must address the failure to convert a five-on-three which would have put the game out of the Ducks' reach.

Predators May Fly Where Penguins Couldn't

MAY 24, 2007 -- According to Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger at TSN, Co-Chief Executive Officer of Research In Motion Jim Balsillie is setting up a bid for the Nashville Predators franchise, presumably with the intention of moving the club to Hamilton or Kitchener/Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

Predators owner Craig Leipold will soon announce the agreement to sell.

When NHL commissioner Gary Bettman worked to save the Pittsburgh and Buffalo franchises in the U.S., and helped to ensure the Senators' survival in Canada, the "commish" did the right thing for the game of hockey and rightly won some friends around the league.

Now, he's confronted with a stark reality. That is, it will be much easier for Bettman to oversee the transfer of the Preds to a Canadian city, which is certainly Balsillie's intention. What will he choose? What will his bosses, the owners, choose?

It says here that regardless of all of the legalese offering Nashville a chance to keep the club, the attendance numbers (roughly 12,000 paid on average) dictate that a full, 18-20,000 seat arena in Canada would be an attractive alternative, and a natural one, since it's Canada we're talking about here.

The NHL could save face if the team moves by pointing to other southern U.S. cities where hockey draws far more fans than Nashville (Tampa, Atlanta, Carolina), as proof that the NHL's southern expansion has been a success. Attendance, coupled with two Stanley Cups in the region courtesy Carolina and Tampa buttress the argument that the NHL is a success down south, and these successes might provide enough grease to smooth the transition, which is certainly on the horizon.

Balsillie will be vilified in Nashville, but hey, he lives in Canada, and there's more than enough sentiment around the league that Winnipeg, Kitchener/Waterloo or Hamilton are welcome additions/returns to the NHL fold.

Surely, the Leafs and (especially) the Sabres would have to be paid handsomely for a Hamilton move.

Best of luck to our friends at the Nashville Predators, because Hockeytalk has always loved the city of Nashville (more cosmopolitan than most realize). We hope that increased attendance can make the move as difficult to achieve as possible. In fairness, though, it's up to Nashville's corporate community to embrace the club; it's underachieved at the box office and in the corporate support department over the franchise's history, and now the drama begins.

There will be much shouting before Balsillie's move is done. Here's hoping that Nashville can meet its goals, and make as strong an argument against relocation as possible.

US Frontrunners: Kansas City (building built, awaiting tenant) / Dark Horses: Houston, Las Vegas

The "Lucky" Rover and Mr. Hull

May 22, 2007 – ANAHEIM -- As the late football coaching legend Vince Lombardi said, "Luck is the residue of design."

When Brian Burke signed Scott Niedermayer in the Summer of 2005, the Ducks got lucky. Other clubs felt it around the league. Sunday in Detroit--as he had the previous Sunday in Detroit--Scott Niedermayer took the Ducks from good to lucky, and it's better to be lucky than good.

Luck isn't hard to come by when one of the best defensemen in the league likes to join the fray as not only a puck-rushing defenseman, but as a rover of sorts. Rover was the seventh position that was eliminated from the game in the early twentieth century. At times, Niedermayer is exactly what the Rover was meant to be: A buzzing force at every inch of the ice. A defender who can morph into a forward in an instant. When Scott Niedermayer brought his Rover tendencies to the Ducks, and coach Randy Carlyle gave a green light, the Ducks were lucky often this season. In game five, when the Rover forced a Nick Lidstrom tip that eluded Dominik Hasek, fortune shined on the Rover, just as it had when his shot eliminated the Canucks; when it ended game two against these same Wings.

If lucky means that they had limited Detroit to just one goal (especially after four second period power plays, including a 5-on-3), putting themselves in position to tie, then yes, the Ducks are lucky.

Apologies to Brett Hull, who claimed that the Ducks were "terrible" against Detroit Sunday. The Ducks' defense did a lot of little things right, and frustrated the Wings all day. While the Wings would have surely deserved a victory, remember that the Ducks outshot the Wings 15-11 in the third period and overtime, resulting in a "lucky" bounce or two. Also remember that Teemu had to make that brilliant move to the backhand in an instant, and as big-time players do, he did it at the right moment.

Game six tonight in Anaheim.

Give Hull credit, though: He lit up the phones on Duck Calls, Anaheim fans charging him with bias. But Hull's just what hockey needs: Someone who'll blurt stuff out and get people talking. Hockeytalk looks forward to Hull's pairing with Hockey Night in Canada's Don Cherry in the Cup Final.

Replacement Costs for Briere Strong Argument for Staying in Buffalo

As we know well, the "experts" are often wrong. The immediate gratification, bandwagon-jumping crowd is often wrong, too. The experts have Daniel Briere marked for a ticket out of Buffalo, and it says here they may be very wrong in this case. Nucleus players are more than stars, they define the club, and it costs heavy dough to replace them. Briere is one of those.

Will Daniel Briere become a sacrificial lamb at the altar of the NHL's salary cap, or will he take a "hometown discount" to stay in Buffalo? According to the Canadian Press, the 95-point scorer and NHL All-Star is open-minded, and money isn't the only concern.

"I like it here. We like the community. We've made it our home, even in the off-season," he said. "Yeah, that's worth some money to stay here. But I'm just looking for it to be fair."

So, will the Sabres show patience in the matter of their club having fallen short again? Or will GM Darcy Regeir stay the course?

Playoff losses in the conference finals are tough, but the Sabres could use some more muscle, and it's not Briere's fault that he's small. It's his job to put the puck in the net and make plays. On that count, he's worth a hefty contract. But the issue of identity is one that the Sabres should not take lightly. Chemistry, loyalty, production, all of these go into making Briere a nucleus player, like the tough Chris Drury. It's the club's responsibility to remember that come negotiation time.

If the Sabres let Briere walk, how much will they spend trying to replace his production, devotion and leadership? In the end, it might cost more money trying to replace him, no matter how expensive Drury or Briere become.

Food for thought for Regeir and Owner Tom Golisano.

Pronger Suspended for Collaboration on Holmstrom

May 16, 2007 -- Sometimes, we get what we deserve, sometimes we don't, sometimes it's not clear, as in the case of Chris Pronger's one-game suspension for the hit that he and Rob Niedermayer collaborated on against Detroit's Tomas Holmstrom during the second period of a hopelessly lost (for the Ducks) game three.  It wasn't a dirty hit, but it's not a surprise that one of the two was suspended for a game, which Pronger was.  The hard hit did result in Holmstrom being hit from behind, even if the intent wasn't vicious.  The Ducks will just have to endure this one, it's not unreasonable that one of the two will sit out for a game.

Pronger and/or Niedermayer were expected to get something, but interestingly, it wasn't the player on whom the penalty was called. Niedermayer got the major boarding in this case, and with it a game misconduct. But in the end, it was the Pronger half of the collaboration that got it. Sorry, Duck fans, but it's just too risky for the league to avoid sending a message in this case. One game should be just fine, considering that Holmstrom returned to action in the third to contribute an assist to go along with his two goals.

As Mike Babcock put it, it's understandable to finish checks, but the guys have got to look out for each other a bit out there.

Enter Ric Jackman, who had better wind up that big shot of his; the Ducks are scoreless in 16 power play opportunities.

Brian Burke empathized with Colin Campbell's position (Burke occupied the role of chief disciplinarian previously), but disagreed with the ruling. 

STANLEY CUP FINAL GAME RECAPS

Notable Quotables from the Cup Final

MEDIA DISRESPECT FOR CALIFORNIA HOCKEY IRRESPONSIBLE

by Josh Brewster, www.hockeytalk.biz

MAY 31, 2007 -- LOS ANGELES -- Now that the Canadian media has written many sniveling, obnoxious articles slighting us Southern Californians and our passion for hockey or lack thereof, maybe some facts might help illuminate just how irresponsible so many Canadian writers have been recently. In fairness, we have real knuckleheaded American writers dissing hockey here in the good ol' USA, but for now, let's focus on our neighbors to the north, who deserve a response.

Fact: The Ducks registered a 1.7 rating for game one on Versus, equivalent to about 95,000 households, including between 300,000 and 400,000 people. In a town of 10 million people, that's a better number than you think.

For example, when Buffalo recorded a 24 rating in its market (roughly 1 million people), that same 24 rating would translate to (approximately) a 2.6 here in SoCal, considering the population difference.

Fact: The Ducks have gone from 6,700 season ticket holders nearly two years ago to what the team says will soon top 14,000. The club just enjoyed its 34th consecutive sellout, and tickets to the Cup Final are going for as much as $2,000, reports indicate. Ticket brokers have had to hire security to fend off hockey fans.

Fact: The Ducks' Wild Wingers Kids Club has 6,000 members. That's second in the league as far as kids clubs are concerned. Tell me there's no grass-roots interest here.

While it's not Canada here and it never will be, nor is it Detroit or Buffalo, there is an unprecedented level of support for the club here and some folks are likening the Ducks' Cup Final appearance to anything the Lakers or Dodgers have done in terms of importance in SoCal, and I agree. This is not to be compared only to the Kings' 1993 Final appearance, or the 2003 then-Mighty Ducks Final vs. New Jersey. This is big news here, and on a personal level, I've had five to ten people a day coming up to me asking about hockey and the Ducks.

Don't forget: The Kings have been here for 40 years. The Ducks, fourteen. There are many educated hockey fans in our midst here. Maybe some of the Canadian reporters should factor the population size into their always-negative stories about SoCal hockey. Maybe they should get off their butts and walk down into the crowd; ask the people about hockey. Find out just how much they know. Ask about what they think and feel, and who they are. Ask them how many people in their neighborhoods are watching hockey, because it's more than the Canadian press is willing to admit.

To sit there in the press box and write bitchy articles about how the place doesn't look like Canada, well, hey, you're a freakin' genius aren't you? It's about as intelligent as saying that the surfing sucks in Ottawa.

The Canadian media is not only slighting American fans down here in SoCal, they're slighting the many Canadian expatriates here, too, with their lazy and biased reporting.

Check out the movie "In the Crease" some time (featured here on Hockeytalk Audio Features). It's a movie about the California Waves hockey program, a team which has won a national title at the Under-18 level. Or the Junior Ducks, who won the Pee Wee World Championship in Quebec this year.

No, we don't care about hockey, not at all.

The Canadian media has also suggested that Pro Beach Volleyball is more popular here. Baloney. Get 18,000 people per night to go watch. Yeah, right.

TV NUMBERS: DON'T WAIT UNTIL JUNE TO GIVE OUT THE CUP:

The U.S. TV ratings numbers are low as usual in some key hockey markets.

Game one on Versus saw these ratings. 0.7 in Chicago, 0.6 in Boston and 0.3 in New York. Better responses were found in Buffalo (3.9), Denver (2.2) and Pittsburgh (2.0).

Just as the sun can obscure hockey interest in SoCal, the NHL should consider the impact it has in "traditional" hockey markets. The Cup should be given out in late April or early May at the latest. The weather is still iffy at that time in those places (especially near the Great Lakes, like Buffalo, Rochester, NY, Cleveland, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit). Get the Finals on the air when the weather is still keeping people indoors. Once the sun shines in many "traditional" hockey markets (and its now in the 80 degree range in beautiful Buffalo), many fans tune out if their club is no longer in the running.

None other than Buffalonian Scotty Bowman has said as much, and I agree. Give out the cup while winter is still messing with spring in the MidWest and Northeast, and the ratings will jump.

NHL Award Candidates:

CALDER MEMORIAL TROPHY(outstanding rookie): Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins; Jordan Staal, Pittsburgh Penguins; Paul Stastny, Colorado Avalanche.

FRANK J. SELKE TROPHY (outstanding defensive forward): Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina Hurricanes; Samuel Pahlsson, Anaheim Ducks; Jay Pandolfo, New Jersey Devils.

HART MEMORIAL TROPHY (most valuable player to his team): Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils; Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins; Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks.

JACK ADAMS AWARD (outstanding coach): Lindy Ruff, Buffalo Sabres; Michel Therrien, Pittsburgh Penguins; Alain Vigneault, Vancouver Canucks.

JAMES NORRIS MEMORIAL TROPHY (outstanding defenseman): Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings; Scott Niedermayer, Anaheim Ducks; Chris Pronger, Anaheim Ducks.

LADY BYNG MEMORIAL TROPHY (sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct): Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings; Joe Sakic, Colorado Avalanche; Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lightning.

LESTER B. PEARSON AWARD (most outstanding player as voted by fellow members of the NHLPA): Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins; Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning; Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks.

VEZINA TROPHY (outstanding goaltender): Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils; Miikka Kiprusoff, Calgary Flames; Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers; Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks.
 

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