Bob Cole, the superannuated play-by-play man the CBC doesn't realize is still on its payroll, since he just keeps showing up to work, a decade at least since he should have retired, is feebly, foggily aware that his days are numbered. Maybe some with-it quadragenarians, all up on their newfangled technology, have gently let on that the MySpacers are Yahooing about his Flipper, and he's tumblering as a result.
In any case, he's not about to give up his perch so easily, so when he blows a call, and the realization seeps into his consciousness, he goes into Self-Justification Mode, like an instant George W. Presidential Library/Absolution Mausoleum & Grill. Especially in this series, faced with his very own Axis of Bewilderment (Desharnais, Bouillon and Diaz, players with somewhat similar jersey numbers and stature, never mind that one is a righty defenceman, one is a lefty defenceman, and one is a forward who shoots left) he's constantly flubbing the play and mangling the calls.
His response has been to waste airtime trying to explain away his botcheriness.
"At first one linesman wasn't signalling icing, but the other did, so they changed their mind, that's why it's now icing."
"Now there's a too-many-men penalty call?... Is there!?... The crowd is reacting... They didn't open the right penalty box door... That's why everybody is confused..."
No Bob, you're confused, and confusing everyone else. The whistle clearly blew when the Senators gained control of the puck. If it's a penalty, it's going to Ottawa. Clear as day.
The announcers who work sports programs are putatively there to tell the viewers what is going on, to explain and clarify. Bob Cole no longer serves that purpose.
Some argue that the announcers add to the spectacle, they're central to the viewing experience, and Bob Cole gives long-time viewers warm and fuzzies, bringing back fond memories from childhood. I personally don't respond to his warbling the same way. I think the only memory Bob Cole evokes for me, and it's not one that was created at the time, but by the constant replays shown in the nineties, is the shameful call of the Red Army-Flyers game when the Soviet team, very reasonably, retreated to the dressing room mid-period and considered not finishing the game and exposing themselves to further mugging, and he spluttered: "They're going home!" As if this was an apex of sorts, as if North American hockey had vanquished a foe, as opposed to ambushed them.
I grew up on René Lecavalier on Radio-Canada, a titan of broadcasting and a true professional. With the aid of colour man Gilles Tremblay, he brought magic and class to our Soirée du Hockey. Samedi soir was something we looked forward to, it was an event. We had the best team in the league, and the best broadcast team. I didn't know any others, except for the abysmal crew that worked on TVA, "le dix", and those jokers didn't hold a candle. Monsieur Lecavalier was incisive, erudite, objective, but still conveyed enthusiasm to a starstruck kid. He insisted on pronouncing every player's names correctly, with the correct or preferred inflection, whether the player was Russian, Czech, Swedish, or even anglophone. When a Canadien committed a gaffe or took a bad penalty, he called it as it was, foregoing the cheap homer call.
Yet as Monsieur Lecavalier reached retirement age, he was let go by Radio-Canada, to his great regret and mild recrimination. He felt he had at least a couple good years left in him. So did we. We wondered why he wasn't retained, he hadn't really lost a step we felt. But waiting in the wings was Richard Garneau, who had paid his dues, who was ready to go, and who seamlessly picked up where Monsieur Lecavalier left off, and built on his legacy of probity and excellence. We never missed a beat, and new memories were made. And we never had to endure the slow fade of a legend.
CBC has allowed Bob Cole to tarnish his legacy with a decade of ineffectiveness. They have also clogged up a seat that should have been filled by Chris Cuthbert, who eventually gave up and bolted to the competition, a great loss to the public institution. There are young broadcasters who are plying their trade in the minor leagues and deserve to move up the ranks and have a shot at the plum job. Mr. Cole may still have that sonorous voice, but it's not focused properly, like a loose cannon. It's long past time to take Ole Yeller behind the barn.
Thursday, 9 May 2013
Tuesday, 7 May 2013
Round 1, Game 4: Canadiens 2, Senators 3 (OT)
The Canadiens played up to expectations for fourty minutes, generally skating well with the puck, and being first on loose pucks, with Carey Price doing what he's been drafted and being paid to do. So far so good.
Then in the third, very quickly, we were transported back to the Jacques Martin-era, with the team collapsing back into its zone, not challenging the opposition but playing rope-a-dope. We didn't forecheck, we didn't provide opposition at our blue line. We clung to a slim lead as if they were the last two goals we'd ever score. And the Sens came back. And tied it. And won it in overtime.
Cue the excuses. It was a kicking motion. They were in our crease, the bad meanie in red threw Josh Gorges on Carey. Carey got hurt. Peter was cold coming off the bench. That guy with the nicotine-yellow moustache behind the bench was kind of offputting.
But it was our fault. We all saw it coming. We turtled and hoped Carey would Halak us out of Ottawa with a win. But a Senator held on to his stick, what are you going to do. The refs refused to call a penalty, interference, in the third period of a playoff game. Unheard of.
The Canadiens players and coaches put themselves in the position where the refs could decide the game. If they'd kept playing, instead of sheltering in place and letting the Sens storm the ramparts, Michel Therrien wouldn't be harping on the location of a faceoff. "Pas d'excuses" indeed.
Then in the third, very quickly, we were transported back to the Jacques Martin-era, with the team collapsing back into its zone, not challenging the opposition but playing rope-a-dope. We didn't forecheck, we didn't provide opposition at our blue line. We clung to a slim lead as if they were the last two goals we'd ever score. And the Sens came back. And tied it. And won it in overtime.
Cue the excuses. It was a kicking motion. They were in our crease, the bad meanie in red threw Josh Gorges on Carey. Carey got hurt. Peter was cold coming off the bench. That guy with the nicotine-yellow moustache behind the bench was kind of offputting.
But it was our fault. We all saw it coming. We turtled and hoped Carey would Halak us out of Ottawa with a win. But a Senator held on to his stick, what are you going to do. The refs refused to call a penalty, interference, in the third period of a playoff game. Unheard of.
The Canadiens players and coaches put themselves in the position where the refs could decide the game. If they'd kept playing, instead of sheltering in place and letting the Sens storm the ramparts, Michel Therrien wouldn't be harping on the location of a faceoff. "Pas d'excuses" indeed.
Monday, 6 May 2013
It's the Bruins vs. the Leafs, and my base emotions vs. my baser emotions
How conflicted am I watching this series? No-good-for-nothing talentless shouldn't-be-in-the-NHL Colton Orr runs a player when he no longer has the puck? Boooooo! Wait, it was on Zdeno Chara, the NHL's greatest villain, Mister "I never try to hurt someone"? Attaboy Coltie, hit him again!
Oh no, the Leafs scored.... But isn't great seeing Tuukka Rask lose his excrement again, and Zdeno Chara looking ungainly and ineffective as he so often does.
Crap, that guy straight got nailed from behind! But it's a Bruin, and pretty mild for a hit, so no harm done really. Oh, it's that rat Kadri who ran him. What a dirty play! To the bench you scumbag!
Ha ha ha, Reimer let in a huge softie from the blue line, I can feel the air being let out of that balloon right now. Nice. Except, it's that horrid plug McQuaid who scored. Bummer.
The only positive to come out of this matchup is how much better behaved Dion Phaneuf is. No matter who he's facing, whether it's Scott Thornton or Milan Lucic or Greg Campbell or Zdeno Chara, when the whistle blows and the play is called, he stops, that's it, no face washes or crosschecks or slashing or pushing or shoving or nothing. Glad to see he's reformed now, last time I saw him play against the Canadiens, I thought he was a lost cause, an irredeemable bully. So we got that going for us, which is nice I guess.
It was also nice to hear Craig Simpson comment at the start of the second period on the great hunger for all things Leafs in Toronto, how much desire there is for them to succeed, while the camera showed nothing but empty club seats behind the player benches. I guess the thirst for beer was the greater and won out for this Toronto crowd.
Canadiens in tough against the Senators
Before the series started, the consensus was that the Senators would struggle to score goals, but would do okay defensively and might have the edge in nets with the 'hotter' goaltender. Conversely, the Canadiens might be at a disadvantage size-wise, but had three lines that can score and the powerplay might serve to keep Chris Neil honest.
Unfortunately, Carey Price has still not worked his way out of his funk, so the Sens are indeed holding the stronger hand in that regard, and it's also providing them with all the offence they need.
Meanwhile, the David Desharnais and Tomas Plekanec lines are underperforming, to describe it charitably, and with Lars Eller out, there go our three scoring lines.
The powerplay is not clicking, so Chris Neil has free rein to grab on to Brendan Gallagher's head as if it was a coconut and he were a baboon (not a big stretch).
For the Canadiens to win, they have to return to their gameplan and play to their strengths. They need to skate and apply pressure together as a team, bury their chances, and make the Sens pay for their transgressions on the powerplay. Carey has to perform. No excuses.
Unfortunately, Carey Price has still not worked his way out of his funk, so the Sens are indeed holding the stronger hand in that regard, and it's also providing them with all the offence they need.
Meanwhile, the David Desharnais and Tomas Plekanec lines are underperforming, to describe it charitably, and with Lars Eller out, there go our three scoring lines.
The powerplay is not clicking, so Chris Neil has free rein to grab on to Brendan Gallagher's head as if it was a coconut and he were a baboon (not a big stretch).
For the Canadiens to win, they have to return to their gameplan and play to their strengths. They need to skate and apply pressure together as a team, bury their chances, and make the Sens pay for their transgressions on the powerplay. Carey has to perform. No excuses.
Sunday, 5 May 2013
Round 1, Game 3: Canadiens 1, Senators 6
If tonight's game was an example of the Canadiens' team toughness concept, can we go back to the speedy skillful Canadiens of two seasons ago please? We saw a Canadiens team that tried to goon it up against a bigger, meaner Senators team and come up short. Ryan White is a gamer, I love the kid, but his bout against Jared Cowen reminded me of his fight against Erik Gudbranson which ended his season last year. Good on him for hanging on, but he was getting ragdolled there, while Zach Kassian took pity on Colby Armstrong, and Francis Bouillon again showed lots of heart in a long, long fight against Zach Smith.
If Travis Moen won't use his 225 lbs. to knock other guys senseless with his fists, I'm okay with that, but he at least has to use them to 'finish his checks'. Tonight was a perfect opportunity for him to throw his weight around, the refs were letting the Senators take two strides to crash into a Canadien who had already moved the puck to someone else, so he could have had the same latitude. If he was this playoff season's John Druce, we'd allow him to operate under his apparently self-declared Non-Aggression Pact, but since he's not filling the net, he needs to contribute in the manner that was envisioned when he was signed last summer. We thought that he, Brandon Prust and Ryan White would provide the grit and toughness while also playing a regular shift, but too often Brandon has been alone out there, and it should embarrass Travis. Last season, we saw Ryan White spell off Brad Staubitz, notably when he was playing against his ex-teammates from Minnesota, we wish that Travis would do the same for Brandon.
If René Bourque wants to continue to play a tough, physical but clean game and contribute offensively with shots on goal and some points, I'm fine with that, but if he's going to be dealing out elbows and crosschecks, he better be ready to drop the gloves. He's big and strong and we saw him do well last season against Matt Hendriks when called to account by the Capitals for a prior incident. So we know he can go. Of course, he may not want to fight, due to his recent concussion, which we're fine with, but then cut out the crap. You can be Michael Ryder or Max Pacioretty, or you can be Wayne Simmonds or Steve Ott, but you can't be both types of player at once.
If P.K. Subban has come a long, long way since early last season, he's not fully-formed and perfect yet. The pressure and frustration got to him tonight, and we're not just talking about his verbal altercation with Max on the bench, but also of how he took himself out of the game with his meaningless fight with Kyle Turris. If not quite a size mismatch, certainly we had a stronger player taking on another who doesn't usually fight and was not expecting to have to fight. Again, as has been pointed out in the past, P.K. dropped the gloves very quickly and went for the knockout punch right away, conduct which verged on sucker-punch territory. After getting in a few good licks, P.K. ended up on top of Mr. Turris, who was clearly overmatched, the fight was over since both players were down, yet P.K. kept trying to punch his defenseless opponent. Not cool. Only the linesman trying to separate the two prevented what could have been something more regrettable. For his troubles, P.K. was tossed from the game, for instigating while wearing a visor. The gutsy, character thing for P.K. to do at that juncture would have been to stay in the game and help out his undermanned teammates, not go for an early shower. Or, at least, get tossed for picking on someone his own size.
If Michel Therrien is going to harp on "class" and worry about one team or coach "humiliating" another, his conduct should be above reproach. There was already a lot of tension in the air, and after the Sens put the game away with their fourth goal, with lots of anger still bubbling due to the Eric Gryba assault on Lars Eller, Mr. Therrien put a match to the powder keg, putting his fourth line on the ice. They started the free-for-all. It was humiliating, it was embarrassing, and it was self-inflicted. The way players like Josh Gorges and Brendan Gallagher, who we like to think of as the good guys, acted like cheap thugs by, respectively, firing a puck intentionally at Kyle Turris, and assaulting Corey Conacher with a near sucker-punch, it made me feel shame, as if I was sitting in the penalty box with Denis Lemieux. If we're going to act like that, why do we hate the Bruins and now the Leafs again?
If after the second period I formulated the thought that Carey Price was again performing at peak efficiency, I was justified because he was making key saves, looking confident and acting like a third defenceman back there, the anti-thesis of Jonathan Quick, effortlessly, artfully moving the puck around and helping his teammates clear the zone. Instead of feeling trepidatious, I was glad that we had him in goal, in charge, a strength and asset for the team. Then Jean-Gabriel Pageau fired a puck past him a minute into the third period, a shot which wasn't easy, but also not difficult. At his payscale, and at the level he's now expected to play due to his pedigree and experience, he has to make that save. Craig Anderson is making tough saves at the other end, Carey has to keep pace, at least. I'm not too concerned about the .800 save percentage, the end of the game queered that stat, but I am that Carey again guessed wrong and dropped to his knees, and got beat up high, when he should have been a fortress. These are big games, he needs to come up big, we shouldn't be allowing that yeah, Jarred Tinordi was kind of in the way, and it was a precise wrister, blah blah blah.
If the refs can't catch the clear crosscheck by Erik Condra to the face of P.K. Subban while they have the puck between them, they might as well get out of the business entirely and let's just roll with video judges.
If the refs won't call that clear crosscheck because it's the playoffs, we, as we kind of suspected, were never going to get very far anyway.
If Travis Moen won't use his 225 lbs. to knock other guys senseless with his fists, I'm okay with that, but he at least has to use them to 'finish his checks'. Tonight was a perfect opportunity for him to throw his weight around, the refs were letting the Senators take two strides to crash into a Canadien who had already moved the puck to someone else, so he could have had the same latitude. If he was this playoff season's John Druce, we'd allow him to operate under his apparently self-declared Non-Aggression Pact, but since he's not filling the net, he needs to contribute in the manner that was envisioned when he was signed last summer. We thought that he, Brandon Prust and Ryan White would provide the grit and toughness while also playing a regular shift, but too often Brandon has been alone out there, and it should embarrass Travis. Last season, we saw Ryan White spell off Brad Staubitz, notably when he was playing against his ex-teammates from Minnesota, we wish that Travis would do the same for Brandon.
If René Bourque wants to continue to play a tough, physical but clean game and contribute offensively with shots on goal and some points, I'm fine with that, but if he's going to be dealing out elbows and crosschecks, he better be ready to drop the gloves. He's big and strong and we saw him do well last season against Matt Hendriks when called to account by the Capitals for a prior incident. So we know he can go. Of course, he may not want to fight, due to his recent concussion, which we're fine with, but then cut out the crap. You can be Michael Ryder or Max Pacioretty, or you can be Wayne Simmonds or Steve Ott, but you can't be both types of player at once.
If P.K. Subban has come a long, long way since early last season, he's not fully-formed and perfect yet. The pressure and frustration got to him tonight, and we're not just talking about his verbal altercation with Max on the bench, but also of how he took himself out of the game with his meaningless fight with Kyle Turris. If not quite a size mismatch, certainly we had a stronger player taking on another who doesn't usually fight and was not expecting to have to fight. Again, as has been pointed out in the past, P.K. dropped the gloves very quickly and went for the knockout punch right away, conduct which verged on sucker-punch territory. After getting in a few good licks, P.K. ended up on top of Mr. Turris, who was clearly overmatched, the fight was over since both players were down, yet P.K. kept trying to punch his defenseless opponent. Not cool. Only the linesman trying to separate the two prevented what could have been something more regrettable. For his troubles, P.K. was tossed from the game, for instigating while wearing a visor. The gutsy, character thing for P.K. to do at that juncture would have been to stay in the game and help out his undermanned teammates, not go for an early shower. Or, at least, get tossed for picking on someone his own size.
If Michel Therrien is going to harp on "class" and worry about one team or coach "humiliating" another, his conduct should be above reproach. There was already a lot of tension in the air, and after the Sens put the game away with their fourth goal, with lots of anger still bubbling due to the Eric Gryba assault on Lars Eller, Mr. Therrien put a match to the powder keg, putting his fourth line on the ice. They started the free-for-all. It was humiliating, it was embarrassing, and it was self-inflicted. The way players like Josh Gorges and Brendan Gallagher, who we like to think of as the good guys, acted like cheap thugs by, respectively, firing a puck intentionally at Kyle Turris, and assaulting Corey Conacher with a near sucker-punch, it made me feel shame, as if I was sitting in the penalty box with Denis Lemieux. If we're going to act like that, why do we hate the Bruins and now the Leafs again?
If after the second period I formulated the thought that Carey Price was again performing at peak efficiency, I was justified because he was making key saves, looking confident and acting like a third defenceman back there, the anti-thesis of Jonathan Quick, effortlessly, artfully moving the puck around and helping his teammates clear the zone. Instead of feeling trepidatious, I was glad that we had him in goal, in charge, a strength and asset for the team. Then Jean-Gabriel Pageau fired a puck past him a minute into the third period, a shot which wasn't easy, but also not difficult. At his payscale, and at the level he's now expected to play due to his pedigree and experience, he has to make that save. Craig Anderson is making tough saves at the other end, Carey has to keep pace, at least. I'm not too concerned about the .800 save percentage, the end of the game queered that stat, but I am that Carey again guessed wrong and dropped to his knees, and got beat up high, when he should have been a fortress. These are big games, he needs to come up big, we shouldn't be allowing that yeah, Jarred Tinordi was kind of in the way, and it was a precise wrister, blah blah blah.
If the refs can't catch the clear crosscheck by Erik Condra to the face of P.K. Subban while they have the puck between them, they might as well get out of the business entirely and let's just roll with video judges.
If the refs won't call that clear crosscheck because it's the playoffs, we, as we kind of suspected, were never going to get very far anyway.
Friday, 3 May 2013
Round 1 Game 1: Canadiens 2, Senators 4
Who really wants to dwell on this game? I guess even Ottawa fans will want to move on.
Briefly, Carey Price needs to be better. He made some good saves last night, but again failed in his mission. We can argue about which goal was weak and which he couldn't have stopped, but the save percentage he finished the game (.871) with is not acceptable. If this was a one-game blip we'd understand, but his cumulative season save percentage had been falling precipitously in April, and the trend may not be over.
Some people argue that save percentage isn't an accurate stat, in that some goalies face mostly floaters from the periphery and their defence does a good job of clearing out rebounds, so they would have a higher percentage than goalies who are constantly under siege. I'd agree with that statement as a thought experiment, but practically, it's a number that's very useful in determining who's doing a better job of stopping pucks. Eventually, it's like a salesman's monthly totals or a waitress' total sales. You can argue that you have a poor territory or that you had a bad section with the old ladies from the church group, but in the end, your sales tell the story.
The powerplay had a chance to seal this win in the second, with a five-minute advantage which included a 5-on-3, and didn't get the job done. We see it too often, when a team has a four or five-minute powerplay, there's a lack of urgency in gaining the offensive zone, you think you have a lot of time to work with and it leads to lazy skates down to your zone to pick up the puck, and then a lazy skate back up ice with tricky little dekes and drop passes, and before you know it you've wasted half the penalty and lost your rhythm. The Canadiens aren't the only team to fall victim to this, but last night it cost them.
As far as the Lars Eller injury, a lot of analysis and commentary has been generated by experts in the field, so I don't know how much I have to add, except that scary incidents like this aren't necessarily 'accidents', a cumulative chain of events with an unhappy outcome that couldn't have been foreseen. If we look at Eric Gryba's hockeydb.com page, we find that he's 6'4", 220 lbs, but has never, at any level, had more than five goals in a season or more than 20 points. His penalty minutes totals are very healthy however.
And this is where the game is headed. Clueless, mendacious shill Gary Bettman bleats constantly that the "product" has never been better, and that player safety is primordial, but the players get bigger and stronger and faster, the ice surface gets smaller and more crowded, the collisions grow more violent, and there is no concerted effort to shift the game in a new direction.
Players like Eric Gryba should be fringe players who barely get a sniff of the NHL, but the trend is for big regardless of talent. The Canadiens were shopping for such players at the deadline, predicting that their smaller, more mobile defenceman weren't going to cut it in the playoffs. Every team was looking for a big, tough defenceman with a mean streak for a potential Cup run, nobody seemed to be in the market for a puck mover or powerplay quarterback.
Now this is a reasonable reaction to the state of NHL rule-making and officiating. If the big player who is constantly a step behind the action and can't do much with the puck was penalized for every transgression, he would find himself as rare as a dodo bird, and the focus of teams would be on skill instead of size at all costs. The game would be radically different, much more fan-friendly, and safer for the players.
An incident which caught my eye last night was in the third when Chris Phillips drove Brendan Gallagher maxilla-first into the crossbar for the sin of being near the net and trying to score a goal. The net was dislodged, the puck was immobilized by Craig Anderson, the refs blew the whistle, the play was over. Then, completely unrelated to this play, in defiance of twenty-five or so sections of the NHL rulebook, Chris Neil approached Brendan from the side and put his smelly glove in his face and his other hand on the back of his neck and, ... I'm not sure. He was holding his head like it was the Holy Grail or something, like it was something valuable that he wanted to take home, if he could find a way to detach it from this other bigger part he wasn't so keen on. The linesmen swooped in and squawked like the ineffectual seagulls they are, and intervened bodily, and separated Chris Neil from his prize after a few seconds. And that was that. There was no infraction on the play according to the officials, "Play on!" they enjoined the players. And that is how Chris Neil is allowed to infest the NHL, and to attempt to nullify a talented player because he outweighs him by fifty pounds and scowls a lot. From Neil to Gryba to Lars Eller to Marc Savard in a couple of easy steps.
Watching the Kings play the Blues, I was struck by how both teams have huge players who crash and bang each other, and how they have gone all in with this trend, like Bob Gainey went all in with speed and skill in 2009. They sensed the way the wind was shifting and were proven right, whereas Mr. Gainey lost his job as a GM.
We're often driven to exclaim, as Canadiens fans, involved as we so often are in a navel-gazing exercise in our insular little world, that Trevor Timmins is a genius, and we hold up his "steals" in the fifth round as proof of this. It's much more clear to me now that other teams weren't blind to how good Brendan Gallagher or Charles Hudon were, or didn't wrongly evaluate whether they could be successful as pros. Rather, they are making the very deliberate decision to make do with a much less talented player with greater size. They're comfortable in the knowledge that the Brian Burkes and Mike Milburys and Colin Campbells who control the league will not change their world view, will not be convinced by medical research or regrettable incidents like last night, and will pay lip service to the concept of player safety but mash the accelerator down a little harder to get to the rock wall a little faster.
Briefly, Carey Price needs to be better. He made some good saves last night, but again failed in his mission. We can argue about which goal was weak and which he couldn't have stopped, but the save percentage he finished the game (.871) with is not acceptable. If this was a one-game blip we'd understand, but his cumulative season save percentage had been falling precipitously in April, and the trend may not be over.
Some people argue that save percentage isn't an accurate stat, in that some goalies face mostly floaters from the periphery and their defence does a good job of clearing out rebounds, so they would have a higher percentage than goalies who are constantly under siege. I'd agree with that statement as a thought experiment, but practically, it's a number that's very useful in determining who's doing a better job of stopping pucks. Eventually, it's like a salesman's monthly totals or a waitress' total sales. You can argue that you have a poor territory or that you had a bad section with the old ladies from the church group, but in the end, your sales tell the story.
The powerplay had a chance to seal this win in the second, with a five-minute advantage which included a 5-on-3, and didn't get the job done. We see it too often, when a team has a four or five-minute powerplay, there's a lack of urgency in gaining the offensive zone, you think you have a lot of time to work with and it leads to lazy skates down to your zone to pick up the puck, and then a lazy skate back up ice with tricky little dekes and drop passes, and before you know it you've wasted half the penalty and lost your rhythm. The Canadiens aren't the only team to fall victim to this, but last night it cost them.
As far as the Lars Eller injury, a lot of analysis and commentary has been generated by experts in the field, so I don't know how much I have to add, except that scary incidents like this aren't necessarily 'accidents', a cumulative chain of events with an unhappy outcome that couldn't have been foreseen. If we look at Eric Gryba's hockeydb.com page, we find that he's 6'4", 220 lbs, but has never, at any level, had more than five goals in a season or more than 20 points. His penalty minutes totals are very healthy however.
And this is where the game is headed. Clueless, mendacious shill Gary Bettman bleats constantly that the "product" has never been better, and that player safety is primordial, but the players get bigger and stronger and faster, the ice surface gets smaller and more crowded, the collisions grow more violent, and there is no concerted effort to shift the game in a new direction.
Players like Eric Gryba should be fringe players who barely get a sniff of the NHL, but the trend is for big regardless of talent. The Canadiens were shopping for such players at the deadline, predicting that their smaller, more mobile defenceman weren't going to cut it in the playoffs. Every team was looking for a big, tough defenceman with a mean streak for a potential Cup run, nobody seemed to be in the market for a puck mover or powerplay quarterback.
Now this is a reasonable reaction to the state of NHL rule-making and officiating. If the big player who is constantly a step behind the action and can't do much with the puck was penalized for every transgression, he would find himself as rare as a dodo bird, and the focus of teams would be on skill instead of size at all costs. The game would be radically different, much more fan-friendly, and safer for the players.
An incident which caught my eye last night was in the third when Chris Phillips drove Brendan Gallagher maxilla-first into the crossbar for the sin of being near the net and trying to score a goal. The net was dislodged, the puck was immobilized by Craig Anderson, the refs blew the whistle, the play was over. Then, completely unrelated to this play, in defiance of twenty-five or so sections of the NHL rulebook, Chris Neil approached Brendan from the side and put his smelly glove in his face and his other hand on the back of his neck and, ... I'm not sure. He was holding his head like it was the Holy Grail or something, like it was something valuable that he wanted to take home, if he could find a way to detach it from this other bigger part he wasn't so keen on. The linesmen swooped in and squawked like the ineffectual seagulls they are, and intervened bodily, and separated Chris Neil from his prize after a few seconds. And that was that. There was no infraction on the play according to the officials, "Play on!" they enjoined the players. And that is how Chris Neil is allowed to infest the NHL, and to attempt to nullify a talented player because he outweighs him by fifty pounds and scowls a lot. From Neil to Gryba to Lars Eller to Marc Savard in a couple of easy steps.
Watching the Kings play the Blues, I was struck by how both teams have huge players who crash and bang each other, and how they have gone all in with this trend, like Bob Gainey went all in with speed and skill in 2009. They sensed the way the wind was shifting and were proven right, whereas Mr. Gainey lost his job as a GM.
We're often driven to exclaim, as Canadiens fans, involved as we so often are in a navel-gazing exercise in our insular little world, that Trevor Timmins is a genius, and we hold up his "steals" in the fifth round as proof of this. It's much more clear to me now that other teams weren't blind to how good Brendan Gallagher or Charles Hudon were, or didn't wrongly evaluate whether they could be successful as pros. Rather, they are making the very deliberate decision to make do with a much less talented player with greater size. They're comfortable in the knowledge that the Brian Burkes and Mike Milburys and Colin Campbells who control the league will not change their world view, will not be convinced by medical research or regrettable incidents like last night, and will pay lip service to the concept of player safety but mash the accelerator down a little harder to get to the rock wall a little faster.
Thursday, 2 May 2013
Milan Lucic playing for the Montréal Canadiens? It's not anathema.
Contrary to some other Canadiens fans, I have to say that Milan Lucic would definitely have a place on the Canadiens' top 9. A big, tough forward with good hands is a big area of need on our team.
Good teams have a good mix of people with different skills and attributes. The skillset that Mr. Lucic brings would be very welcome on our team. Conversely, he may not be as easy to fit on a roster like the St. Louis Blues, that already has a lot of big physical forwards, they might prefer a player like David Krejci or Brad Marchand to round out their roster.
I know a lot of Canadiens fans can't stand him but they have to realize that the 'big jerk' and 'cheap bully' aspect of Milan Lucic's game would be toned down if he was wearing bleu blanc et rouge. The organizational culture is historically that of a fast, skilled team that plays tough but fair, whereas Boston wallows in its reputation of the Big Bad Bruins. So while his outrages in a Bruin uniform are lionized by a troglodytic fan base and violence-shill Jack Edwards, they wouldn't be applauded in Montréal, and his conduct would be coached in a Mike McPhee or Yvon Lambert direction, as opposed to a Nick Kypreos or Craig Bérubé.
Sunday, 28 April 2013
Don Cherry takes on the very settled matter of women reporters in the dressing room
What does Don Cherry have to do to demonstrate that he needs to be put out to pasture? How much longer does the CBC and Hockey Night in Canada put up with his puerile antics and antediluvian values in the cynical quest for ratings, no matter what rock has to be upturned to find viewers? Again, HNIC does some things well, but must be blown up and rebuilt before it's too late.
We have in the past opined that if we must have a jokey segment in the first intermission, that comedians knowledgeable on hockey like Brent Butt and/or Norm MacDonald could fill that that role effectively. Don Cherry might have had shock value decades ago, in that he roared while others would pussyfoot around issues, but he's well past his optimal retirement age, much like Bob Cole.
In this specific instance, Mr. Cherry tried to stick up for Duncan Keith of the Blackhawks for a neanderthal reply to a question posed by a woman reporter. No matter that Duncan Keith was completely at fault for the incident in question, and how he handled the question from the reporter. Mr. Cherry inexplicable twisted the issue to one of women in the dressing room, one that has been settled twenty years ago, but apparently he's unable to move past it. Meanwhile the world has passed him by.
The NHL is a business, a cash cow for the monopolists who run it, and they've decided, like other major league sports, that the dressing room is not a sacrosanct refuge for the players who perform a holy rite, but rather an opportunity to sell more by allowing reporters to enter it and give their product even more free coverage and advertising. They've long ago decided to trade away the need for privacy and a cooling-off period for their players in return for more column inches.
If this business relies on reporters capturing the rote banalities of the workers minutes after an emotional game, there can be no discrimination on the gender of these reporters. Women must have access to the room as freely as men do. They must have equal opportunity to do their job. That's the law of the land.
This doesn't mean that reporters can poke their nose in the showers and medical rooms, these are off-limits. The modesty of the players is protected, and that has evolved as the practice of women being able to enter the room has. There is no need to be prudish about the thought of a lady being aghast at the sight of a naked man and being taken with the vapours.
Decades ago, forward thinking organizations just bought robes for all their players, and dedicated a certain area for undressing and showering. This is now common, accepted practice in major league sports, you'd think Don Cherry would have noticed, but maybe he's too busy weeping at fallen soldiers. Or kissing Nazem Kadri.
As long as we don't allow stunt reporters like Inez Sains to cloud the issue, and as long as pro team sports value the free advertising they receive from 'news' organizations like ESPN, there is no controversy here, only the feeble ramblings of a decrepit old man.
We have in the past opined that if we must have a jokey segment in the first intermission, that comedians knowledgeable on hockey like Brent Butt and/or Norm MacDonald could fill that that role effectively. Don Cherry might have had shock value decades ago, in that he roared while others would pussyfoot around issues, but he's well past his optimal retirement age, much like Bob Cole.
In this specific instance, Mr. Cherry tried to stick up for Duncan Keith of the Blackhawks for a neanderthal reply to a question posed by a woman reporter. No matter that Duncan Keith was completely at fault for the incident in question, and how he handled the question from the reporter. Mr. Cherry inexplicable twisted the issue to one of women in the dressing room, one that has been settled twenty years ago, but apparently he's unable to move past it. Meanwhile the world has passed him by.
The NHL is a business, a cash cow for the monopolists who run it, and they've decided, like other major league sports, that the dressing room is not a sacrosanct refuge for the players who perform a holy rite, but rather an opportunity to sell more by allowing reporters to enter it and give their product even more free coverage and advertising. They've long ago decided to trade away the need for privacy and a cooling-off period for their players in return for more column inches.
If this business relies on reporters capturing the rote banalities of the workers minutes after an emotional game, there can be no discrimination on the gender of these reporters. Women must have access to the room as freely as men do. They must have equal opportunity to do their job. That's the law of the land.
This doesn't mean that reporters can poke their nose in the showers and medical rooms, these are off-limits. The modesty of the players is protected, and that has evolved as the practice of women being able to enter the room has. There is no need to be prudish about the thought of a lady being aghast at the sight of a naked man and being taken with the vapours.
Decades ago, forward thinking organizations just bought robes for all their players, and dedicated a certain area for undressing and showering. This is now common, accepted practice in major league sports, you'd think Don Cherry would have noticed, but maybe he's too busy weeping at fallen soldiers. Or kissing Nazem Kadri.
As long as we don't allow stunt reporters like Inez Sains to cloud the issue, and as long as pro team sports value the free advertising they receive from 'news' organizations like ESPN, there is no controversy here, only the feeble ramblings of a decrepit old man.
Game 48: Canadiens 4, Leafs 1
1) Is the ship righted? The Canadiens skated, and forechecked and pressured the statuesque Leafs defencemen and made them cough up the puck and look downright AHL-quality. Surprising, we all thought that Mike Kostka was a prodigious treasure found on the scrap heap, TSN was agog that this guy never had a shot at the NHL. Hmmm....
2) So is the ship righted? Powerplay? Check. Penalty kill? Check. Discipline? Check. Team toughness, but not losing our marbles and trying to fight the enemy on their own terrain? Check. Goaltending? Well....
3) Kid line!
4) Is this the final nail in the Coach's Corner? I mean, what else does this guy have to do to lose his job? Never mind the onion-on-the-belt stories, and how his analysis has no beginning or end, just a self-referencing mish-mash of a middle, where you have to try to divine what he is trying to say about blocking shots, is he fer it or agin' it? Or was that a rant against College players?
5) And the Hot Stove panel needs to be blown up. Have a pre-game roundtable, fine, but cut it down to one or two people and the host. The 2nd intermission Satellite Hotstove used to be my favourite, because it brought a different, fresh view to the proceedings, with Al Strachan and John Davidson and other outsiders, from different locales than just Toronto. We'd get perspective from American teams, external to the HNIC hype machine. That needs to be re-established. Besides, how long does PJ Stock have to be on camera before he runs out of things to say? Is the over-under one minute? These guys have yammered at us since the start of the game, how eager are we to hear what they have to say once the Hot Stove rolls around.
6) Really, is the ship righted? Tomas Plekanec's line didn't do much, and neither did David Desharnais', althought they both are still working hard. René Bourque just seems snakebitten, he's getting and even generating opportunities, but nothing is going in for him. Let's hope he goes on a ten or twelve-game Michael Ryder-style scoring streak beginning Tuesday.
7) As far as the ship being righted, Jarred Tinordi seems to be earning the trust of the team and coaches. Again, I'm not sure that he's better right now than the defencemen he's replacing, but his skillset complements the others better. Yannick Weber wasn't doing badly, but he was bringing to the team more of what it already had, Jarred adds to the toolbox. Let's play it by ear. If he slows down or has a hiccup or two, we can mix in someone else and see what happens.
8) And the Michel Therrien magic touch struck again, shuffling up his lines, and seeing his decision to play the backup goalie quickly validated. I may have to revise my contention that only Patrick Roy was a suitable choice for head coach.
9) How farcical can Randy Carlyle and his orangutans get? What a ridiculous showing by Colton Orr and Frazer McLaren. The refs actually didn't allow them to turn the game into a sideshow, giving them verbal warnings multiple times until Frazer McLaren tried to goon it up with the game out of reach. They rightly gave him a double minor, and didn't automatically give Ryan White a minor for being assaulted and having to defend himself, which is the usual practice in the NHL. They also gave Mr. McLaren an immediate game misconduct and removed him from the equation, which should be the standard operating procedure with guys like that.
10) Leo Komarov, really? The HNIC crew yukked it up about how he's got the biggest curve of any Maple Leafs, yet could play with a ringuette stick for all he does with the puck. He's the king of the late hit, the worst of the 'finish your check' squad, getting to the play a second after it's over. If the League really wants to grow and thrive and showcase its stars and wow its fans and reduce injuries and care for the safety of its players, the low-hanging fruit is the removal of Leo Komarov, and others who fulfill his 'role' for other teams. How many Martin St. Louis and Pavel Datsyuks never make the NHL because they're weeded out on the way up or displaced by Leo Komarovs? How is that smart? I'll say again, does the NFL allow thugs to take out its Tom Bradys? Does the NBA let opponents hack on LeBron James or Kevin Durant? Am I the only one who sees the Bettmanperor has no clothes? How is this so hard to figure out?
11) And Dion Phaneuf, don't think we didn't see your end-of-game dirty, sleazy crosscheck in the back of Ryan White, while he's already engaged in an assault by Colton Orr. And we also saw your tremulous backpedal and head on a swivel after the fact. We know all about facilitated aggression, and how you and Nazem Kadri are great example of china dolls who become tough guys when they're in the bully pack. You're awesome Dion. Leaf fans have reason to be proud. Again.
2) So is the ship righted? Powerplay? Check. Penalty kill? Check. Discipline? Check. Team toughness, but not losing our marbles and trying to fight the enemy on their own terrain? Check. Goaltending? Well....
3) Kid line!
4) Is this the final nail in the Coach's Corner? I mean, what else does this guy have to do to lose his job? Never mind the onion-on-the-belt stories, and how his analysis has no beginning or end, just a self-referencing mish-mash of a middle, where you have to try to divine what he is trying to say about blocking shots, is he fer it or agin' it? Or was that a rant against College players?
5) And the Hot Stove panel needs to be blown up. Have a pre-game roundtable, fine, but cut it down to one or two people and the host. The 2nd intermission Satellite Hotstove used to be my favourite, because it brought a different, fresh view to the proceedings, with Al Strachan and John Davidson and other outsiders, from different locales than just Toronto. We'd get perspective from American teams, external to the HNIC hype machine. That needs to be re-established. Besides, how long does PJ Stock have to be on camera before he runs out of things to say? Is the over-under one minute? These guys have yammered at us since the start of the game, how eager are we to hear what they have to say once the Hot Stove rolls around.
6) Really, is the ship righted? Tomas Plekanec's line didn't do much, and neither did David Desharnais', althought they both are still working hard. René Bourque just seems snakebitten, he's getting and even generating opportunities, but nothing is going in for him. Let's hope he goes on a ten or twelve-game Michael Ryder-style scoring streak beginning Tuesday.
7) As far as the ship being righted, Jarred Tinordi seems to be earning the trust of the team and coaches. Again, I'm not sure that he's better right now than the defencemen he's replacing, but his skillset complements the others better. Yannick Weber wasn't doing badly, but he was bringing to the team more of what it already had, Jarred adds to the toolbox. Let's play it by ear. If he slows down or has a hiccup or two, we can mix in someone else and see what happens.
8) And the Michel Therrien magic touch struck again, shuffling up his lines, and seeing his decision to play the backup goalie quickly validated. I may have to revise my contention that only Patrick Roy was a suitable choice for head coach.
9) How farcical can Randy Carlyle and his orangutans get? What a ridiculous showing by Colton Orr and Frazer McLaren. The refs actually didn't allow them to turn the game into a sideshow, giving them verbal warnings multiple times until Frazer McLaren tried to goon it up with the game out of reach. They rightly gave him a double minor, and didn't automatically give Ryan White a minor for being assaulted and having to defend himself, which is the usual practice in the NHL. They also gave Mr. McLaren an immediate game misconduct and removed him from the equation, which should be the standard operating procedure with guys like that.
10) Leo Komarov, really? The HNIC crew yukked it up about how he's got the biggest curve of any Maple Leafs, yet could play with a ringuette stick for all he does with the puck. He's the king of the late hit, the worst of the 'finish your check' squad, getting to the play a second after it's over. If the League really wants to grow and thrive and showcase its stars and wow its fans and reduce injuries and care for the safety of its players, the low-hanging fruit is the removal of Leo Komarov, and others who fulfill his 'role' for other teams. How many Martin St. Louis and Pavel Datsyuks never make the NHL because they're weeded out on the way up or displaced by Leo Komarovs? How is that smart? I'll say again, does the NFL allow thugs to take out its Tom Bradys? Does the NBA let opponents hack on LeBron James or Kevin Durant? Am I the only one who sees the Bettmanperor has no clothes? How is this so hard to figure out?
11) And Dion Phaneuf, don't think we didn't see your end-of-game dirty, sleazy crosscheck in the back of Ryan White, while he's already engaged in an assault by Colton Orr. And we also saw your tremulous backpedal and head on a swivel after the fact. We know all about facilitated aggression, and how you and Nazem Kadri are great example of china dolls who become tough guys when they're in the bully pack. You're awesome Dion. Leaf fans have reason to be proud. Again.
Thursday, 25 April 2013
Game 47: Canadiens 4, Jets 2
The Canadiens win home-ice advantage for the opening round, securing at least fourth place and giving themselves a chance at second in the Conference. Huzzah.
Not necessarily a strong, convincing win, they capitalized on a crestfallen team that learned in the second intermission that they had been eliminated by virtue of the wins by the Rangers and Senators.
Carey Price was solid, seemingly coming out of his funk. He was aggressive in net, coming out far to challenge shooters on a couple of noticeable occasions. His puck handling was superb, as it usually is, and he helped out his defencemen in clearing out the zone quickly.
If anyone had any doubts as to how big and strong Dustin Byfuglien is, the way he ragdolled Josh Gorges a couple of times should remove and doubt.
Kid line! Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher play beautiful music together, let's keep them on the Lars Eller line, and maybe dial up the ice time a touch. Max and David aren't back yet, but maybe pairing them with René Bourque or Michael Ryder will spark something.
Jarred Tinordi didn't do anything outstanding, except bringing his very particular set of skills to the table. He hit and got hit, played physically, but didn't embarrass himself with the puck like Mark Stuart, the Human Stick Foul Machine, did.
So let's win the game on Saturday against the guys who try to pretend they have a rivalry with us to bask in our reflected glory, and watch the Bruins fumble away second place on Sunday.
Not necessarily a strong, convincing win, they capitalized on a crestfallen team that learned in the second intermission that they had been eliminated by virtue of the wins by the Rangers and Senators.
Carey Price was solid, seemingly coming out of his funk. He was aggressive in net, coming out far to challenge shooters on a couple of noticeable occasions. His puck handling was superb, as it usually is, and he helped out his defencemen in clearing out the zone quickly.
If anyone had any doubts as to how big and strong Dustin Byfuglien is, the way he ragdolled Josh Gorges a couple of times should remove and doubt.
Kid line! Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher play beautiful music together, let's keep them on the Lars Eller line, and maybe dial up the ice time a touch. Max and David aren't back yet, but maybe pairing them with René Bourque or Michael Ryder will spark something.
Jarred Tinordi didn't do anything outstanding, except bringing his very particular set of skills to the table. He hit and got hit, played physically, but didn't embarrass himself with the puck like Mark Stuart, the Human Stick Foul Machine, did.
So let's win the game on Saturday against the guys who try to pretend they have a rivalry with us to bask in our reflected glory, and watch the Bruins fumble away second place on Sunday.
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