The Official 2008/2009 NHL Thread

[Malcolm]

BURKE: NO TRUTH TO RUMOUR ABOUT DRAFT NEGOTIATIONS WITH TAMPA

Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke appeared on Toronto radio station AM 640 on Wednesday afternoon to dismiss rumours he was looking to move up in the NHL Entry Draft by making a deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In recent days, there had been much speculation that involved Tampa receiving Toronto's seventh pick in exchange for the Lightning's second pick and forward Ryan Malone, who has four years and $17 million remaining on his existing contract.

Burke flatly denied the rumours.

"First off, Malone's under contract to the Lightning," Burke told TSN's Darren Dreger on AM 640. "If a team had interest in him, they're not at liberty to discuss.

"I would ask our fans to say, 'okay, does it make sense for anyone to acquire $17 million in salary to move five places in the entry draft?' And the answer is no. That's a trade that has never been discussed."

There had also been talk that the Leafs would be willing to part with defencemen Luke Schenn and Tomas Kaberle in order to flip picks.

Burke said he spoke with Lightning GM and executive vice president Brian Lawton, who said he had nothing to do with either rumour, and Burke again stressed that such a move would not be practical for the Maple Leafs.
 
"Luke Schenn and Tomas Kaberle - two top-two defencemen - to move five places...does that make any sense to anybody? The answer is no. It's a lot of noise, it's a lot of aggravation and when you actually analyze what's proposed or what's available or what the rumour is, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, either one of them."

Burke then reiterated that the odds of Schenn leaving town are extremely slim, as the team will be looking to build around a younger core of players like the 19-year-old blueliner.
 
"I see Schenn as a vital part of everything that we're trying to do here and I told him that," Burke told the radio station. "I said, 'Luke, you don't have to sit around and worry about getting a phone call from me that you're going anywhere because that's a very remote possibility.'"

The Leafs GM then bristled playfully at all the attention that is already being put on potential dealings.
 
"It's only May," Burke added with a laugh. "I can't imagine what this will be like once it gets closer."
 
Schenn and Lightning centre Steven Stamkos were at a Nike training event in Toronto on Wednesday and shared how the news of the trade rumour surfaced.

''Steven called to say he heard on the radio that I was coming to Tampa Bay, and he made a gem saying his general manager (Brian Lawton) just called to ask what type of guy I was,'' laughed Schenn. ''Then Brian (Burke) literally called me two minutes later and said I'm not getting traded and if anyone asks, tell them I told you that.''

Stamkos viewed Schenn as someone Toronto needs to hold on to.

''They were just rumours and I was trying to give Luke grief that I had a place ready to go (and that) he was coming to Tampa. But I think they'd be wise to keep him in Toronto,'' Stamkos stated. ''He's a guy that you can build a team around and if I was a betting man, I'd bet that he stays in Toronto.''

[AxlsMainMan]

Penguins over 'Canes in 5

Blackhawks over 'Wings in 6

[Mal Brossard]

Hope so.  I love Pittsburgh, I hate Detroit with a passion.  But unfortunately I see Canes in 6, Wings in 5, and Wings over the Canes in the least-watched Finals in history.

[AxlsMainMan]

Me and my Dad were hopin' for a Blackhawks vs. Bruins showdown for the Cup

[chineseblues]

Detroit schooled Chicago yet again today with a 6-1 win. Gotta love those Red Wings! 

[Malcolm]

Wings/Penguins Finals rematch again it looks like, should be a bit more fair this time

[AxlsMainMan]

Detroit schooled Chicago yet again today with a 6-1 win. Gotta love those Red Wings! 

2 cheap hits in a row on Havlat..yeah, I love cheap assholes

[Mal Brossard]

Power Plays were 9 to 4 in favor of Detroit.  Now, I had to miss the game.  Was this a legitimate discrepancy, or some shit concocted by the refs?  Especially the two called together, both against Chicago, at the 7:06 mark of the second.

Three misconduct penalties against the Blackhawks?  You've got to be kidding me.

[CheapJon]

Detroit schooled Chicago yet again today with a 6-1 win. Gotta love those Red Wings! 

2 cheap hits in a row on Havlat..yeah, I love cheap assholes

luv u 2

[AxlsMainMan]

Power Plays were 9 to 4 in favor of Detroit.  Now, I had to miss the game.  Was this a legitimate discrepancy, or some shit concocted by the refs?  Especially the two called together, both against Chicago, at the 7:06 mark of the second.

Three misconduct penalties against the Blackhawks?  You've got to be kidding me.

The penalty on Matt Walker at 7:06 was probably one of the worst calls in the history of sports, pretty much all the other penalties against the 'Hawks were justifiable and largely the result of them losing their composure due to a ridiculously cheap hit on Havlat in Game 3, and again yesterday.

[chineseblues]

Detroit schooled Chicago yet again today with a 6-1 win. Gotta love those Red Wings! 

2 cheap hits in a row on Havlat..yeah, I love cheap assholes

Your joking right? Granted Havlat never touched the puck before the hit on Friday (though it damn sure looked like he did and I'm fairly sure Kronwall thought the same), but the hit on Sunday was 100% legit. Which is why there was no call against the wings.

None of that really matters now anyway because there is no way in hell they would have won those games even if the hits didn't happen. The wings are too good a team and the hawks are not disciplined or good enough to beat them.

[Mal Brossard]

The first hit on Havlat was cheap: while Havlat did touch the puck with his skate and therefore technically had possession, it was a textbook charge and used the forearm.  The Sunday hit was clean.

By the rulebook, the Kronwall hit was clean, but if you go back 25 years or more in the game, those kinds of hits didn't happen anywhere near as much.  You didn't steamroll a player just because you could.  Why?  You didn't want it to happen to yourself.  The players respected each other more back then.  They knew they could cause injury with even a clean hit.  Now with the insane amount of protective equipment they're required to wear, they figure it's almost impossible to get hurt by a clean hit and in a lot of cases, players go out and try to hurt others with clean hits.

Granted, 25 years ago, someone would have kicked Kronwall's ass a few times after those hits.  But the rulebook prevents that now.

And say all you want about how Kronwall didn't leave his feet, but if he didn't, then Steve Downie didn't either on the hit he put on Dean McAmmond that got a 20-game suspension in the 2007 preseason.  Downie's skate was still in contact with the ice when he hit McAmmond.  Ditto on Kronwall's.  Both made contact with the person they were hitting and proceeded to go up in the air.  If you suspend Downie for leaving his feet, you have to call Kronwall too.  It's something Kronwall has done on a ton of hits in his career and rarely gets called on.

You can send a message and deliver a clean hit without putting someone out.

[AxlsMainMan]

Penguins over Red Wings in 6 (for the love of Gawd)

[Mal Brossard]

Hal Gill is composed 100% of suck.

Marc-Andre Fleury is composed of 100% fail.

That was probably the most boring, uninspired playoff game I have ever watched.

[Malcolm]

Penguins come back with a hard earned win tonight...lets see if they can do it again in game 4

[Malcolm]

While the National Hockey League believes Jim Balsillie's plan to move the Phoenix Coyotes to Hamilton is circumventing their rules, Tom Wright - who helped prepare the relocation application filed Monday - disagrees.

In a conference call held the day after Balsillie filed his relocation application with the league, the former CFL commissioner gave his own insight on the Canadian billionaire's bold moves.

"I was retained to do this project, to provide an objective and fact-based presentation of the information available to support an application to transfer a franchise," explained Wright. "I believe the process that has been undertaken is consistent with the rules and regulations that are set forth in the constitution of the NHL. The information and evidence is quite compelling that the franchise is not successful and financially viable in Phoenix and clearly it has every opportunity and perspective to be successful [in southern Ontario]."

Wright pointed to market size, fan interest and Hamilton's history with regards to hockey as the reasons the proposed move would be a success.

"When you look at all those factors, when you look at how the cit of Hamilton has traditionally been a sports town, if you look at the new arena in which the games will be played, there is every indication and prospective the team will actually be profitable," he said. "But in the event that in its initial years it is not, Mr. Balsillie has expressed his willingness and ability to cover those losses."

The co-CEO of Research In Motion has said he will cover the club's losses following a move. But according to spokesman Bill Walker, Balsillie is certain the club will turn an immediate profit in Hamilton and that the prospects of a financial turn-around in Phoenix are slim.

Wright added that the Coyotes' financial records paint a grim picture of the clubs past, present and future if the franchise were to remain in Phoenix.

"We had access to all of the financial records of the Phoenix Coyotes through Mr. Moyes," he said. "We were able to look at the most recent financials as well as throughout its 13-year history, when you look at those financials they are quite revealing, in 13 seasons the club has never posted a profit."

The records showed $360 million in losses over the franchise's history.

Wright went on to explain he felt that when compared to the two other reported bids, Balsillie's is the only one that would satisfy creditors.

"One was a reported submission that never made it through the NHL to Mr. Moyes," he said. "And the other submission I believe had some conditions on it including an escrow payment in the neighbourhood of $30 million that would have had the bid in the $80 million to 90 million range, so I think as it relates to bids that would be sufficient to take care of a significant portion if not all of the liabilities, none have been received by Mr. Moyes."

As far as the Balsillie camp is concerned, their plan covers every need the NHL set out in their application. They contend the team is currently in financial trouble and that the proposed market in southern Ontario would give them the best chance to become profitable. 

"What we know that this team is bankrupt, what we know is by the criteria of the NHL - owner, market, arena - we have unquestionably an accomplished businessman committed to being the best NHL owner he can be," said Walker. "We have a top tier market-place of seven million people that has already shown great exuberance ... and the arena itself is being designed by one of the top sports architecture firms in the world that has renovated several NHL facilities."

Judge Redfield T. Baum has scheduled a June 9 hearing where the sides in the Coyotes dispute will make their arguments. Baum has stated he will make a prompt ruling on the issue of relocation.

[Loaded NightraiN]

If they move to Hamilton, the Sabres get very hurt by this, as that area provides many fans.... Buffalo is not a strong economic figure, but the Hockey team is... If the NHL loses the Sabres, they lose one of the biggest ratings markets in their league... They know this, and I think this is one of the reasons they are fighting it...

I say bring back the Jets!!!

[Mal Brossard]

Phoenix goes bankrupt.

Atlanta lost the Flames and really don't care about the Thrashers.

The Panthers and Lightning can't draw worth a damn.

Good to see Southern expansion has worked out so well.

Can't believe we lost the Jets, Nordiques, and Whalers while getting this shit.

[Mal Brossard]

While I'm at it, some numbers on the first 4 games of the SCF...

Overall
Scoring: 10-10
Shots: 124-117 Detroit
Hits: 141-127 Pittsburgh
Blocks: 56-35 Pittsburgh
Power Plays: Pittsburgh 4/9, Detroit 1/10 with a SHGA
Giveaways: 51-44 Detroit
Takeaways: 30-23 Pittsburgh

Games In Detroit
Score: 6-2 Detroit
Shots: 64-56 Pittsburgh
PP: Pitt 1/3, Detroit 0/4
Hits: 77-72 Detroit
Blocks: 24-21 Pittsburgh
Giveaways: 41-25 Detroit
Takeaways: 20-17 Detroit

Games In Pittsburgh
Score: 8-4 Pittsburgh
Shots: 68-52 Detroit
PP: Detroit 1/6, Pitt 3/6
Hits: 68-50 Pittsburgh
Blocks: 32-14 Pittsburgh
Giveaways: 19-10 Pittsburgh
Takeaways: 13-3 Pittsburgh

[Mal Brossard]

So... Who saw this series going seven games after the total fail of the first two?