Hockey

double post

Hi Rebecca.  You've put into words what I can only feel.

If you ever tire of that Tommy guy...

I don't mind the expansion, and the league parity thing is a great idea. No more Canadiens or Islanders and Oilers dynasties owning the Stanley Cup. I think we've had enough of political dynasties as it is without maintaining that theme in sports. I think the league should work to cut down on head and other injuries in the NHL though. Concussions might occur at whatever small rate that is across all games played, but when the money players start going down, then that's not good for the game. Maybe they should think about playing fewer games a year and not driving players for the sake of profit. Or perhaps biggy-size the rink to European standards for a faster game. Players can't run out of bounds like football players sometimes do whenever a bone crushing tackle is imminent. And there are enough athletes in that game suffering concussions and career-ending injuries as it is. We already have one sport where play is 90 percent mental and measured on the field. Why duplicate it on ice for the sake of appealing to southern sports fans who probably won't appreciate winter sports at any rate? Hockey players, OTOH, should be able to skate free as the wind and strutting their skills without fear of being clotheslined or broad-sided by some jerk who can barely skate.

Fidel wrote:

I don't mind the expansion, and the league parity thing is a great idea. No more Canadiens or Islanders and Oilers dynasties owning the Stanley Cup. I think we've had enough of political dynasties as it is without maintaining that theme in sports. I think the league should work to cut down on head and other injuries in the NHL though. Concussions might occur at whatever small rate that is across all games played, but when the money players start going down, then that's not good for the game. Maybe they should think about playing fewer games a year and not driving players for the sake of profit. Or perhaps biggy-size the rink to European standards for a faster game. Players can't run out of bounds like football players sometimes do whenever a bone crushing tackle is imminent. And there are enough athletes in that game suffering concussions and career-ending injuries as it is. We already have one sport where play is 90 percent mental and measured on the field. Why duplicate it on ice for the sake of appealing to southern sports fans who probably won't appreciate winter sports at any rate? Hockey players, OTOH, should be able to skate free as the wind and strutting their skills without fear of being clotheslined or broad-sided by some jerk who can barely skate.

Although I admit there is a great possibility of injury in the NHL game today all those involved know that when they sign up, same for the NFL. If you are going to step on the ice you should be prepared to get hit. I'm not saying we should open up hits from behind or high sticking but penalties and suspensions for a clean, open ice hit just cause a guy wants to look at the puck instead of who's gonna crush him, how soft are these frickin millionaires.

Its the same with fighting, where are the good old days when we had few bench clearing braws every month and there was some passion in the game. I find the league today to be very generic and bland. I miss the Broad Street Bullies, I miss Tiger Williams, and I miss the style of rough/tough hockey that was played back then. It was a MANS game, not this sissified spectacle we have today.

Sympathy to Rebbecca - I hear the Leafs have already lost their first 4 games next season.

Go Canucks

Remember - HOCKEY WITHOUT HITTING IS FIGURE SKATING WITH STICKS!!!!

And what has this got to do with his induction, of political (gone in the) nick (of time)?

Rebecca West wrote:

politicalnick wrote:

Remember - HOCKEY WITHOUT HITTING IS FIGURE SKATING WITH STICKS!!!!

This remark is sexist.  Please review rabble policy before posting again

Really? Given my exposure to the sub-culture of hockey fans and hockey players, I would have thought it more properly characterized as homophobic than sexist. Of course I have a much more jaundiced view of the hockey cult than the average Canadian.

[ETA: oh, and I may be misinterpreting the the general societal attitude towards figure skating]

I guess it seems to me that nick's comment belongs to the sexist-homophobic paradigm which privileges traditionally masculine or macho traits over feminine traits. The latter are weaker, non-violent or non-aggressive, "artsy," and therefore less valued. It's also the kind of thinking that thinks a gay man is more female than a straight man. It's not logical, but that's the thinking used. So, yes, the comment is sexist, homophobic, masculinist, but mostly unacceptable. At any rate, politicalnick is taking a break from babble right now.

Speaking of Mike Milbury, on HNIC last week he was visibly angry at the number of hired goons in the NHL right now. Trevor Gillies, who had a disgraceful performance against Pittsburgh where he mocked a player after he had concussed him (cowardly) while the victim was still getting treatment on the ice, has played 33 minutes of hockey this season (I think--I'm going from memory) and over 100 penalty minutes. He got a 9-game suspension in the Pittsburgh game, came back and had played one period before he hit another player, receiving a 10-game suspension. Milbury wanted to know why these guys were in the game. I didn't expect myself to ever agree with that guy but I found myself nodding to everything he said.

For chrissakes, Sidney Crosby may never play again and we have guys like this, 6'8", 270 lbs, lining the bench in teams across North America? It's f'd.

[url=http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2011/03/09/sp-chara-ruling.html?re... avoids suspension for Pacioretty hit[/url]

Fractured vertebra, severe concussion. Will it take a death on the ice before something is done?

Get well, Max.

I had that "I hate hockey" thread running through my mind while playing tonight's game.  It must have been inspirational, as babble's favourite wily veteran notched a hat trick tonight, and I'm a defenceman.

I'll be looking for more raging hockey controversy on babble next weekend; it psychs me up.

Quote:

I find a lot of these hockey discussions frustrating, as a lot of those for whom hockey is a little more than a TV show starring a guy in outrageous costumes feel they have to make pronouncements on something I've been doing since I could walk.

From the aforementioned, I hate hockey thread. AlQ, you're not the only babbler who has and continues to play hockey at a high level. Funniest thing, I was actually a bit of what I'd like removed from the game. I got the hardest shoulder pads, elbow pads. Never got injured playing beyond the odd scars from playing maskless in ball hockey.

These hits are starting to become numbing. Fucking Crosby could be done. Dude, you know neither you nor I have the skill to appreciate what a fast game it is now on the postal stamp ice they have.

Something needs to be done, be it allowing defencemen to slow up the forechecker, no touch icing, big suspensions for head hits. The ostrich approach isn't going to work. My sister's thinking about pulling my nephew.

Due to the bashing I got above I must refrain from further participation on this topic.

politicalnick wrote:

Its the same with fighting, where are the good old days when we had few bench clearing braws every month and there was some passion in the game. I find the league today to be very generic and bland. I miss the Broad Street Bullies, I miss Tiger Williams, and I miss the style of rough/tough hockey that was played back then. It was a MANS game, not this sissified spectacle we have today.

The broad street bullies were a bullshit team. Their toughness was no match for skill at the end of their two-year mini-dynasty. The Flyers were out skated and out-gunned by the 1976 Montreal Canadiens, arguably the best NHL hockey team ever assembled. Habs weren't just better athletes then, they were better period.

Bettman's 5 point concussion plan.

http://video.canadiens.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=66&id=102835

Inadequate at best!

NHL general managers have decided to tighten up existing boarding and charging rules rather than creating new ones.

The league's 30 GMs wrapped up their second day of meetings hoping to see standards increased.

They also delivered a message to hockey operations that they would like supplementary discipline doled out more strictly.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2011/03/15/sp-gmmeet-tues.html#ixzz1Ggkwp8z7

Quote:

Boudreau also questioned the motives of Tuesday's protesters, saying they would likely not be so upset if it had been a Boston player who was injured.

"I don't want to get into a controversy, but what if that was (Montreal's) Hal Gill that hit (Boston's) David Krejci?" he asked. "I don't think there would be a protest going on here today."

Bruce Boudreau on sports partisans

Sure; and what did the Montréal press have to say about Eric Lindros being cranked by Scott Stevens?

It's the same point: that Habland wouldn't be so strident over this issue had a Montréal player clobbered someone.

Coyotes captain Shane Doan says the fact that the league is getting doctors involved means the players should take concussions seriously.

Still, hits to the head will always be a part of the game, he added.

"It's going to be impossible to eliminate [hits to the head]. There's no way. Unless you make the game so you can't hit anybody. Then you're going to end up watching rec hockey and that's not what people like to see," Doan said as the Coyotes prepared to face Calgary on Tuesday night. "That's the way the game is."

"We understand they have to take care of us, but at the same time, we choose to go out there and get hit and hit people. You understand it's just the way it is."

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2011/03/15/sp-nhl-players-reaction.html#ixzz1GmqMqJsI

Doan doesn't think hits to the head can be eliminated. I think he's right. As long as hitting is allowed, the head will take some hits.
I think the solution is a 5 minute penalty for a hit to the head, whether intentional or non-intentional. Anyway the ref can't be expected to judge intent. Its either a hit to the head or it isn't. At least this way, the more talented players will learn to avoid hitting the other guys head. A 5 minute major can be disastrous. That's 5 minutes where the other team has a power play and can score as many goals as they want. Doctors addressing potential concussions on the spot is a good idea too.
I think there is hope here but people also have to be realistic. As long as finishing one's check is a necessary part of the game, the head will take some hits. Task I think is to convince the players that they can't afford to be reckless in this regard.

My last ever comment about the Pacioretty hit (I'm quite over it)

Last night Bruins forward Marchand deliberately elbowed the CBJ's Umberger in the back of the head.

Any wagers that there'll be no suspension?

Heatley delivered a nice wallop to the other guy's brain with his elbow last night and caught [color=red]RED[/color] handed on broadcast video. Oops! What do I care? I'm just a commie Habs fan! At $10 million a year, he's earned the right to deliberately elbow guys in the brain. Real class act that Heatley. And Marchand's shot to the back of the opposing team's player was pretty good, too. I think I saw about half a dozen dangerous plays on replay from games last night. Yep, I'm a Habs fan for sure.

al-Qa'bong wrote:

It's the same point: that Habland wouldn't be so strident over this issue had a Montréal player clobbered someone.

Yes those Francophones have had it all their way for too long in hockey. Their team wins 24 Stanley Cup championships, and they think they have a right to speak up about the game. We should all listen to Don "I'm a xenophobe" Cherry, and Don "I could never win a cup with the Bruins for some reason" Cherry a lot more often. All the bigots come out of the woodwork to prop-up perpetual losers like Cherry and Gary "I'm impotent to do anything" Bettman. GO Laffs! Trade some more talent away for another Phanoof! Kessel's scored way too many goals and deserves to be on the third line. Get rid of him! Losers!@

6079_Smith_W wrote:

I am sorry to say I think this is the same attitude that lets some people think it is okay to snoop through others' hospital records to see if they have offended the lord. 

Ya lost me there.

Which attitude, and what are the prayer meetings supposed to be about?

al-Qa'bong wrote:

It's the same point: that Habland wouldn't be so strident over this issue had a Montréal player clobbered someone.

You've repeated this garbage a few times already. Care to go toe to toe over this idiotic claim that it's only Habs fans squawking about hits to the head? Or are you going to TURTLE as usual?