An Open Letter to the NHL

So this is what it's come to. This little blog of mine started a while back under the Sports With Steve banner, and focused almost exclusively on the NHL. I went to college in hopes of one day being a beat-reporter for an NHL team. I stood by the NHL when its product was nearly unwatchable between lockouts. I stood by the league when time and again, they got it wrong. So wrong in fact, I don't even know which embarrassing episode to start with. Let's see: Losing their tv deal with ESPN? Every minute of the Phoenix Coyotes' existence? Not actually dealing with the Todd Bertuzzi incident, and just letting the lockout serve as discipline? Being the first major professional league to cancel a whole season (and the chance to be the first to do it twice is looming)? The way they've handled the ownership situations in Anaheim (criminal-but-not-really), Atlanta (who even knows?), Boston (Jacobs destroying the team), Buffalo (Comcast), Chicago (Wirtz destroying the team), Edmonton (the whole pre-Katz consortium), Hartford (team stolen), Los Angeles (criminal), Minnesota (team stolen), Nashville (criminal), New York (the Islanders will get the Seattle Supersonics treatment shortly), Ottawa (everything pre-Melnyk), Phoenix (literally, every minute of this team's existence), Pittsburgh (criminal, saved by Mario, rigged draft, etc), Quebec (team stolen), Tampa Bay (several times) and Winnipeg (team stolen)? Did I get them all? The Brett Hull goal (and alternatively, the Martin Gelinas goal)? The off-again, on-again-when-we-need-money World Cup? The transfer agreement with the KHL? The fact there's debate over whether or not to send NHL players to the 2014 Olympics? And that's barely even hinting at how happy the NHL is to make money thanks to the support of Canadian fans, and offer us nothing in return. But fear not, sports fans! NHL senior vice president of hockey operations Colin Campbell knows what fans want! And he is here to fix the problems. You see, among other things he handles supplementary discipline for the NHL, which is a fancy way of saying he hands out suspensions. Like the one Matt Cooke got this week for ending Marc Savard's career (if this concussion doesn't end his career, it'll easily take 10 years off his life, so you pick which hyperbole you like better). Oh, right, that didn't happen. You see, Campbell knows NHL fans want consistency in the discipline he hands out. Bruins fans certainly don't want to see their leading scorer. So because Campbell didn't have the guts to suspend Mike Richards earlier this season for a similar hit, he can't possibly suspend Cooke. Gotta stay consistent. And what of Campbell's self-imposed mandate to take a harder stance against repeat offenders (which is a category Cooke practically defines)? Let's turn it over to Mr. Campbell via TSN: "I know Matt Cooke is a repeat offender, he's been suspended twice in the last year. I can't suspend Matt Cooke for being a repeat offender, I have to find a reason. Right now our rules say that shoulders to the head are legal." Now I hate to let the rulebook get in the way or anything silly like that, but nowhere does it explicitly say "shoulders to the head are legal," or any variation of that statement. It's a tacit approval at best, with failing support. Let's go back to that bit about supplemental discipline-- specifically, what is it? Well, it's supposed to be used in times when a player goes a little too far. Would most agree that Cooke went too far here? I don't know if most would, but his teammate Bill Guerin (not exactly an altar boy) does. And from the quotes I've been reading, it sounds like most of the players that can afford to call the league out on this one also agree. But there's nothing in the rules, so Campbell's hands are tied. As a self-respecting human being, I can't accept that explanation. It's a slap in the face. And this time the league has gone too far. When Ron Artest charged into the stands, did the NBA step back and say "shucks, we just don't have a rule for this, so play on, Ron-Ron"? When Mike Vick was busted in connection with a dog-fighting ring, did the NFL take a couple days to think about it before deciding "well there's nothing here saying our players can't bankroll dog-fighting rings, so play on, Mike"? Those examples are obviously more extreme than this one, but hell, the NHL didn't even step in and temporarily remove Wayne Gretzky as Coyotes' head coach when his wife and assistant coach (now Tampa Bay's head coach) were being investigated for involvement in a gambling ring! This kind of head-in-the-sand cowardice wouldn't get a third grader out of show-and-tell, but we accept it from the grown men that control the most powerful hockey league in the world? No. Not anymore. So just like the Blue Jays and JP Ricciardi, it's come to this for me and the NHL. Until Gary Bettman and Colin Campbell are removed from their posts, I just can't continue to support a league that repeatedly kicks its fans in the teeth. Until Bettman and Campbell are gone, I'm breaking up with the NHL. We had a real good thing, NHL. But until that day, adieu.

If ever there was any, I'm sure the dust has settled

I was out for dinner last night with the incomparable Darell, and we talked a little about print media. We started down the path by talking about Stephen Brunt of the Globe and Mail, and his wonderful piece at the end of the Olympics (which is the same message I had here Monday morning, just y'know, way better). As the topic turned to more important matters, we agreed that perhaps the most damaging aspect of the modern 24-hour news cycle is that lack of time for reflection and lack of distance most stories can have now. Tiger Woods crashes his car in the wee hours of Thanksgiving? I got a text message before I was even awake breaking down the facts, offering theories and analysis, and generally creating the TIGER! TIGER! TIGER! we've been forced to digest ever since. So with that in mind, I decided to take some time to think about the 2010 NHL Trade Deadline before offering any commentary. It's this: that was probably the worst Trade Deadline ever. I just can't be bothered to peel back layers of Wojtek Wolskis and Dustin Boyds to offer up thoughts on winners, losers, or anything else. In the end, TSN's ratings were probably winners, hockey fans were losers, and no one team got either significantly better or worse yesterday. And if I'm a fan of any of the active teams, I'm not accepting whatever spin they're putting on their days. Lubomir Visnovsky doesn't make Anaheim particularly better, and Edmonton's only getting $1.4 million in cap relief by accepting Ryan Whitney in return. And that was honestly the biggest trade of the day. What a waste. The bad teams are still bad, the good teams are still good, and none of Pittsburgh, Washington or Chicago are particularly better today than they were Tuesday. So let's all just move on to writing letters to the NHL demanding NHl participation at the 2014 Olympics.

And then it was gone

After 17 breathless, heart-stopping days, the 2010 Olympics are over. What a run. To suggest the Vancouver Games went off without a hitch would be an inappropriate revision of history. But the Games certainly went out with a bang and made the uncertain first few days seem a distant memory. After all the hand-wringing over Canada's (perceived) poor early showing, after all the doubt (from this corner at least) the men's hockey team could compete for gold, after tragedy, this country stood Sunday afternoon in triumph. Maybe others have hosted the Games better, but nobody had more fun than Canada did. Even here in Calgary, we spent the last two weeks partying, celebrating and loving every minute of it. From Jenn Heil's silver, to Alexandre Bilodeau winning gold at home, to Moir and Virtue's brilliant skate, to Joannie Rochette's gutsy bronze, to the dramatic finishes in the curling and hockey (and 50 km cross country event on Sunday) and everything in between, this year's Games had a little something for everyone. And a story for everyone. So this is just a quick thank you to everyone that spent time enjoying the Games with me these last couple weeks. Thanks to those of you that didn't care much for the hockey, curling, or biathlon I forced you to watch. Thanks to the folks I kept touch with in Ontario during the Games-- even thousands of miles away, I felt closer to you than ever before. Thanks to you for sharing the memories and being the story. Thanks to our incomparable server, Kat, for never leaving us with empty glasses or empty bellies. But most importantly, thanks to all the athletes that gave Canadians a reason to come together in the past 17 days like never before. Things didn't go quite as planned, but we sure had a good time, and I wouldn't change it for anything.

Penalty shot!

I don't have much in the way of statistics to back this up, but it seems to me penalty shots are happening at a much greater rate since the end of the 2005 lockout than beforehand. Now don't get me wrong, they're exciting. And I'm all for seeing more. But I have to wonder about some of these calls. It came to a head for me tonight during the Canada-Germany game when the Canadians were awarded a penalty shot under what I will call "dubious" circumstances. Canada's Rick Nash was on a "clear breakaway," with less than half a step on the German players pursuing him when he took a shot, turned his back to the goal, and tripped over German netminder Thomas Greiss. I'm sorry kids, but that is not a play deserving of a penalty shot. Let's have a look at Rule 25.8 - ii, which states "the infraction must have been committed from behind." Right there this play goes out as a legitimate shot. On New Years Eve during the Canada-USA World Junior Championship game, an American player was awarded a shot on an infraction from behind-- but with a defending player between himself and the goal. Again we'll consult the rules: Rule 25.8 - iv says "the player in possession and control (or, in the judgment of the Referee, clearly would have obtained possession and control of the puck) must have had no opposing player between himself and the goalkeeper." I'm not the type to arbitrarily hate on the referees. Their job is not easy, and it's not a job I can do. And to try to do so from my seat in the stands or my couch is unfair to them. For the most part, I don't complain about calls either for or against my team. But getting penalty shot calls wrong can unfairly change the balance of a game, and that's not fair to the players. So they irk me. (Blown offsides calls, too). I don't want to be the Grumpy Gus that says we need to take this exciting play out of the game, but I do want to be the fan that stands up and says we need to see more consistency in the calls, within the framework of the rules. I don't think that's too much to ask.

Try, try again

Well I haven't been writing. Apparently the plan to get up early every morning to write was a little too ambitious. So here I am now, as the Olympics press on and I've decided I have something to say. Now it's not about the men's hockey team, and it's not even about the women's team. It's about Denny Morrison. This little twerp, a former world-record holder who fell apart at the oval this week says he lost because the Own The Podium program ... skated faster than he did? Right, sorry. He says he lost because Canadian coaches wouldn't let American Shani Davis train in Canada, out of deference to the scads of money Canadian corporations and government threw at the speed skating team (and every other program). I want to give him a free pass for making stupid comments in the heat of the moment, but I can't. It's one thing to bite the hand that feeds, and another altogether to dump a steaming pile of crap on it like Morrison did. Is Own The Podium a perfect program? Absolutely not. And the proof is in the mountain of gold the Americans, Chinese and Norwegians are mining while Canadians watch from the sideline. But is it the problem? Absolutely not. It's come under fire this week and the funding will almost surely be cut after Vancouver 2010 (which would be a horrible mistake). But the money and the program aren't responsible for the kinds of performances like Morrison's. He's the only guy that can go out there and skate. And ultimately, you don't build an Olympic-winning program inside of four years. It starts from the ground up. It starts when a young girl sees Jenn Heil, and all the class she carries herself with, and decides to try her hand at skiing. It starts when a young boy sees short-track speed skating for the first time and begs his parents take him to the oval. It continues when someone my age tells his grandkids about Alexandre Bilodeau's performance and grace while watching the 2054 Games. With stories like Jamie Sale and David Pelletier in 2002, Heil in 2006, and Bilodeau now, we'll start to really see our athletes take a leap in the next three Olympiads. And that's what Own The Podium is really about: trying to leap farther than we ever have. We didn't make it this time, but if sport teaches us anything, it's that we have to get up and try again when we fail. Here's hoping the folks behind Own The Podium remember that lesson moving forward.

Hitmen update

Oh look, a notepad. This has been one seriously long week. A bunch of us from work spent two days this week at a course that focused on coaching and how to best deliver feedback and ideas to the people we support. It was a really informative course, and having so little training/experience with formal coaching, it was really beneficial to me. It just meant earlier mornings than I normally like, and a whole lot of thinking. Otherwise, there was a Hitmen game, in which they finally played without their heads in their asses (second half only) and won a see-saw 7-5 battle with Lethbridge. Tonight they take on the Moose Jaw Warriors in what should be an epic clash. There was dodgeball, and there was a very brief trip to Boken City on Wednesday night. We'll stay with the Hitmen though. It's no secret I don't have a lot of confidence in the new coach, Mike WIlliamson. It's also no secret, at least the people sitting near me, that I don't appreciate the "efforts" of Giffen Nyren. As noted last time, by playing Jaynen Rissling and Peter (Chuck) Kosterman regularly, the team will see long-term benefit from the short-term mistakes they make. The team will also see long-term benefit from the confidence they gain by making positive contributions to the team in the short term. They were both in the lineup Tuesday night and we got a taste of what we can expect from these two youngsters. Rissling has some rover in him, we saw him below the offensive hashmarks a few times. Kosterman showed a mean streak we haven't really seen, and got his first WHL point, too. These are two seriously high-end young defensemen. Anyway, the point here is this: coach doesn't seem to be a strong leader himself, and he doesn't seem to know how to get the most out of his natural leaders. Ian Schultz and Tyler Fiddler have been pretty consistent all season, but Mike Stone, Kris Foucault and Joel Broda, the other leaders, by way of tenure, have all been inconsistent or seemingly unmotivated. Stone played as though the first half of the season was his own personal try-out for the Canadian junior team. Foucault is starting to score but isn't playing anywhere near full speed, or anywhere near the level we saw when the Hitmen acquired him last season. Broda just doesn't seem to bring it every night. I don't remember him actually hitting the net with a shot all season, and I get the feeling he's more focused on where he'll be plaing next season (Hershey, AHL) than where he's playing now. And then there's Brandon Kozun and Martin Jones. For their efforts with Team Canada, they were given a free pass for the last couple of weeks. Kozun seems to be finding the next level. He absolutely dominated the game against Lethbridge, seemingly willing the Hitmen to victory. He started taking the leap Brett Sonne took after last year's WJC, and the Hitmen need Kozun to get to that level if they're going to make a deep playoff run. Jones, on the other hand, seems as though he's still battling the demons of the overtime goal in the WJC final. It was a tough goal to give up, but he doesn't seem to have battled back from that just yet. And while there's a period of "let him play through it" you have to afford your veterans, there's also a time that period needs to come to an end. Jones looked really shaky on Tuesday night, coughing up some of the most awful rebounds I've ever seen. At one point, he gave up a rebound on a shot that was fanned on and rolled to him. He kicked it into the blue ice to his right where the Hurricanes quickly buried it in the net. It started off as three goals on nine shots. Here's hoping Jonesy gets a rest either tonight or Sunday. Hats off to Ben Wilson and Cody Sylvester for playing outstanding hockey Tuesday night. Wilson has a lot of rover in him, and he takes himself out of position too often for anybody's liking, but he usually finds a way to turn his mis-plays into positives. Notes on the new guys next week.

Kootenay doesn't suck

Another weekend in the books. Hardly seems fair the time should pass so quickly. Let's go for a quick run-down. I'll skip the FNM portion and go straight to karaoke at Bootleggers on Friday night. Good place, good vibe. It kinda reminded me of a much (MUCH) darker version of the ol' Boston Pizza on Upper James days. Of course, fewer schooners were consumed, but all in all it was a really good time. Saturday was the triumphant return of doing SFA. I barely made it out of my sweats, and it was pretty glorious, although the original Tubby Dog plan fell through. That was less awesome. Our newest floor hockey season started Sunday, and we lost. I think losing may be a recurring theme with this season's version of the team. But we have a pretty even number of guys and girls, meaning I can play defense more often this season. That was nice. I blocked a few shots and broke up some passes and even had an assist in the 4-1 loss. I followed that up by taking in the Hitmen game. It was the second game in the last 10 days against Kootenay, and while we all chanted "KOOTENAY SUCKS" at the right times, and often, for the second time in 10 days, the Ice proved they in fact, do no suck. One Kootenay defenseman really caught my eye in each game, Joey Leach. He played really smart hockey. He's not on Central Scouting's mid-term rankings, but he could turn into a late-round steal. One guy that won't turn into a steal of any sort if Giffen Nyren. The Hitmen traded for this overager earlier in the year to try to get a little more offense from the blue line. He's led to more offense alright. Just not for the Hitmen. At one point in the third period, he had a WIDE OPEN Rigby Burgart in position for a one-timer and elected to drill the puck into a defender's shin pads instead of passing. The whole arena could see the passing lane. Nyren was benched for a large portion of the period after that. While we're quite disappointed with this young man's play, BK had the best, and most level-headed idea: put Nyren on the bench and play both Jaynen Rissling and Peter Kosterman. It's the only way those two guys will learn how to play at this level, and while there may be some growing pains, at least they'll have a positive impact on the future. BK is reserving judgment of coach Mike Williamson, but I'm firmly entrenched in "I don't like the new coach" land.