The team is stocked with some pretty big names in professional hockey, yet for the first two games of the World Cup of Hockey the Czech Republic has seemed to be disinterested in the calibre of hockey taking place. The biggest enigma on the Czech roster had been Jaromir Jagr who seemed to have no inclination to take part during the first two games. That changed slightly on Friday as Jaromir picked up his first goal in the tournament and was part of the charge as the Czechs topped the Germans 7-2 at Cologne, Germany.
Whatever happened in the dressing room over the last couple of days, the Czechs finally filled the net, as seven separate players in the Czech line-up received the chance to work on their stats. Featuring a burst of three goals in three minutes, with Olaf Kolzig taking the night off, the Czechs dominated the Germans in pretty well all aspects of the game. By the time the third period rolled around the game was more of an exhibition display rather than a competitive game. The win puts the Czechs into third place and drops the Germans down to fourth. The Czechs now wait to see how the standings shake out, so as to see if they face either the Finns or Swedes.
With seven goals finding the mark, confidence should start to flow through the Czech dressing room. With the number of distractions the Czech team has had prior to the tournaments start, it’s understandable that they may be a bit dysfunctional. Some of the players have been expressing their disappointment at having to play hockey during their vacations. Others never seemed to get untracked after the death of Coach Ivan Hlinka. But with the quarter finals beckoning, its time to decide if they want to make a run of things or just pack it up and pack it in for this years tourney.
Saturday, September 04, 2004
Message Received, Message Heard
Team USA coach Ron Wilson sat out Brett Hull on Friday night, the player becoming the highest profile of five changes to the American line up. The changes were seen as a wake up call to the team over the lethargic American play of late, a reminder that a work ethic is needed if they hope to advance in the World Cup of Hockey, and defend their title as World Cup champions.
So far, until Friday night, the American team had shown absolutely no jump in its first two games in the World Cup of Hockey. Thursday night’s match against the Russian team featured a flattering score and nothing but a frustrated and chippy American team, taking far too many penalties and not getting many chances in the Russian end. Theirs was a team relying far too much on goaltender Robert Esche, who had to bail them out of trouble time and time again. Two nights earlier, they sat back and watched the Canadians for almost two periods, surrendering much of the ice and a good portion of the play. They only got their game in gear in the third and at least made things a bit of a contest, thanks again to the stellar play of Esche, despite his play they would eventually go down to defeat against their arch rivals.
Both games highlighted a team that was showing its age a bit, with one of the older line ups in the tournament, the legs of the grey beards seem to be no match for the younger guns of the Canadian and Russian squads. Wilson chose to add some youth and put in the rested five to take the play to the Slovaks. The over worked Robert Esche got the night off from the nets as Rick DiPietro took over the goaltending duties for the night.
Now whether they were due for an outburst of offence or the moves by Wilson paid off, Friday night’s game against the Slovaks was a much better and more rewarding effort for Team USA. Brian Smolinski one of the additions to the USA game day line up paid back Wilson for his confidence with a goal in the first period, leading the Americans on to a much needed victory 3-1. Ladislav Nagy answered the Smolinski goal, to tie the game up in the first period. After that it was a rather close game, but by far the edge in play went to the Americans, Jason Blake on a controversial American goal, awarded after a lengthy review period. Bill Guerin finished off the scoring for Team USA in the third period.
This third game of the tourney for the Americans finally saw them take the play to the opposition. Slovakia which has been battered by injuries prior to the tournament and is one of the weaker entries, tried to get back into the game by the third, But the Americans with the prospect of their first win in their sights, never let up finally getting an insurance goal with four minutes to go in the third period.
With a win finally under their belt, the Americans will continue on with some renewed confidence as they move on in the Tournament. They have the weekend off now, as they wait for the Quarter finals to take place on Monday, with the win Friday, it’s their hope that they’ll be playing in St. Paul on Monday and not travelling to Toronto. The Americans realizing that they have to step up their game are hoping that Friday nights win will be just what they needed to get things untracked.
So far, until Friday night, the American team had shown absolutely no jump in its first two games in the World Cup of Hockey. Thursday night’s match against the Russian team featured a flattering score and nothing but a frustrated and chippy American team, taking far too many penalties and not getting many chances in the Russian end. Theirs was a team relying far too much on goaltender Robert Esche, who had to bail them out of trouble time and time again. Two nights earlier, they sat back and watched the Canadians for almost two periods, surrendering much of the ice and a good portion of the play. They only got their game in gear in the third and at least made things a bit of a contest, thanks again to the stellar play of Esche, despite his play they would eventually go down to defeat against their arch rivals.
Both games highlighted a team that was showing its age a bit, with one of the older line ups in the tournament, the legs of the grey beards seem to be no match for the younger guns of the Canadian and Russian squads. Wilson chose to add some youth and put in the rested five to take the play to the Slovaks. The over worked Robert Esche got the night off from the nets as Rick DiPietro took over the goaltending duties for the night.
Now whether they were due for an outburst of offence or the moves by Wilson paid off, Friday night’s game against the Slovaks was a much better and more rewarding effort for Team USA. Brian Smolinski one of the additions to the USA game day line up paid back Wilson for his confidence with a goal in the first period, leading the Americans on to a much needed victory 3-1. Ladislav Nagy answered the Smolinski goal, to tie the game up in the first period. After that it was a rather close game, but by far the edge in play went to the Americans, Jason Blake on a controversial American goal, awarded after a lengthy review period. Bill Guerin finished off the scoring for Team USA in the third period.
This third game of the tourney for the Americans finally saw them take the play to the opposition. Slovakia which has been battered by injuries prior to the tournament and is one of the weaker entries, tried to get back into the game by the third, But the Americans with the prospect of their first win in their sights, never let up finally getting an insurance goal with four minutes to go in the third period.
With a win finally under their belt, the Americans will continue on with some renewed confidence as they move on in the Tournament. They have the weekend off now, as they wait for the Quarter finals to take place on Monday, with the win Friday, it’s their hope that they’ll be playing in St. Paul on Monday and not travelling to Toronto. The Americans realizing that they have to step up their game are hoping that Friday nights win will be just what they needed to get things untracked.
Friday, September 03, 2004
Kiprusoff perfect again, as is Finland
Finland continued on its roll at the World Cup of Hockey, as they handed the Germans a 3-0 loss, claiming home ice advantage for the quarter finals next week.
Miikaa Kiprusoff continued with his extraordinary play in the nets, collecting his second shutout in as many games. In front of him the Finnish forwards kept the pressure on the Germans breaking down their 1-4 approach to hockey, putting the puck into the German end and getting their fair share of opportunities to score. Olaf Kolzig once again held his own, but with a team still getting its feet wet in International hockey the skill level of the Finns eventually dictated the flow of the play.
Scoring for Finland were Kimmo Timonen, Teemu Selanne and Jere Lehtinen, Finland made up primarily of NHL caliber players should be considered a favourite with the Swedes to make the trip across the ocean to North America for the playoff phase of the Tournament. The two arch rivals will meet in Helsinki on Saturday in a much anticipated match up by long time foes. When the tournament began earlier this week the Swedes and Finns were expected to be the most likely candidates to be traveling to the finals in North America. Their play thus far shouldn’t change anybody’s mind too quickly.
Germany will take on the Czech Republic, both teams have yet to win a game in the tournament and while on paper it should be a walk over for the Czechs, what happens on the ice may dictate otherwise. The Czech Republic has not looked very good or even very interested in this tournament thus far, if the Germans can continue to give the effort they have of late they may steal one from the Czechs. Very much still a work in progress, the German team is making more use of its homegrown players from the German league, adding the one or two NHLers who represent German Hockey in the big leagues.
The key for Germany will be goaltending, if Olaf Kolzig can hold the tide back, his forwards may sneak in a goal past some suspect goaltending. The Czechs who so far have disappointed most everyone at this tournament have a chance to regain some pride and show that they aren’t quite finished yet.
Miikaa Kiprusoff continued with his extraordinary play in the nets, collecting his second shutout in as many games. In front of him the Finnish forwards kept the pressure on the Germans breaking down their 1-4 approach to hockey, putting the puck into the German end and getting their fair share of opportunities to score. Olaf Kolzig once again held his own, but with a team still getting its feet wet in International hockey the skill level of the Finns eventually dictated the flow of the play.
Scoring for Finland were Kimmo Timonen, Teemu Selanne and Jere Lehtinen, Finland made up primarily of NHL caliber players should be considered a favourite with the Swedes to make the trip across the ocean to North America for the playoff phase of the Tournament. The two arch rivals will meet in Helsinki on Saturday in a much anticipated match up by long time foes. When the tournament began earlier this week the Swedes and Finns were expected to be the most likely candidates to be traveling to the finals in North America. Their play thus far shouldn’t change anybody’s mind too quickly.
Germany will take on the Czech Republic, both teams have yet to win a game in the tournament and while on paper it should be a walk over for the Czechs, what happens on the ice may dictate otherwise. The Czech Republic has not looked very good or even very interested in this tournament thus far, if the Germans can continue to give the effort they have of late they may steal one from the Czechs. Very much still a work in progress, the German team is making more use of its homegrown players from the German league, adding the one or two NHLers who represent German Hockey in the big leagues.
The key for Germany will be goaltending, if Olaf Kolzig can hold the tide back, his forwards may sneak in a goal past some suspect goaltending. The Czechs who so far have disappointed most everyone at this tournament have a chance to regain some pride and show that they aren’t quite finished yet.
Russians go to St. Paul to play, can't say the same of the USA!
The final score flattered the American team on Thursday night; Team USA suffered its second defeat in two games at the World cup of Hockey as the Russian squad put them away rather handily 3-1 at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Centre.
Hockey fans found a strong, young and fast squad in Russian colours, a squad that showed many who felt that Russian hockey was in turmoil, that this is a team not quite ready to just roll over and say maybe next time. The Russian contingent is made up of many younger players who as Alexi Kovalev said can skate for 120 hours, on this night they only really needed 60 minutes. They more than dominated the play for most of the game, showing glimpses of the high flying teams of years gone by.
Robert Esche the American goaltender was all that stood between the American team and complete disaster, as he battled off wave after wave of Russian skaters, keeping 42 shots out of the American net. The USA could only muster 21 shots in the Russian end of the rink with only one making it past Illya Bryzgalov in the Russian net.
For the Americans the game highlighted some of the concerns that people had about them from the beginning of training camp. Age may be catching up to the boys from the USA, for most of the game it appeared as though they were perpetually chasing the Russian skaters to all corners of the rink, not being able to control or catch them led to high levels of frustration during the game. The most undisciplined player of the night was Keith Tkachuk, how made more than one boneheaded play in this game, taking runs at Russians after the whistle, heading into the boards and hitting from behind and wielding his elbows at almost every opportunity. Tkachuk’s loss of composure resulted in more than a few short handed situations. And while Tkachuk did gain the only goal for the American squad, it was his selfish play at times, that cost them valuable time on the clock as he sat out minor and major penalties through the last half of the game, making Esche’s job in the nets that much harder.
For his hard work Esche is expected to be allowed to sit out the Americans next game against Slovakia on Friday night, a must win game if the Americans hope to recover some of their swagger. USA coach Ron Wilson says some key line up changes will be made, possibly leaving some rather well know American names up in the sky box, as he tries to find the combination that will not only score goals but help prevent the opposition from filling the net. To a man the Americans felt they were embarrassed and did not play up to their potential, with a record of 0 and 2 they need to find that potential rather quickly.
Scoring for Russia were Dainius Zubrus, who received credit for a goal from a pass that went off of Chris Chelios’ leg. Alexei Kovalev and Victor Kozlov rounded out the scoring for the victorious Russians.
They next go back to work on Saturday night when they take on Team Canada in Toronto at the Air Canada centre. A solid Russian performance in that game will serve up another two points for the Russian team, and will show Canada that Russian hockey is back and ready to resume the rivalry! As the Russians get their bearings in the tournament they may prove to be the more troublesome squads when we get to the final four candidates for the World Cup.
Hockey fans found a strong, young and fast squad in Russian colours, a squad that showed many who felt that Russian hockey was in turmoil, that this is a team not quite ready to just roll over and say maybe next time. The Russian contingent is made up of many younger players who as Alexi Kovalev said can skate for 120 hours, on this night they only really needed 60 minutes. They more than dominated the play for most of the game, showing glimpses of the high flying teams of years gone by.
Robert Esche the American goaltender was all that stood between the American team and complete disaster, as he battled off wave after wave of Russian skaters, keeping 42 shots out of the American net. The USA could only muster 21 shots in the Russian end of the rink with only one making it past Illya Bryzgalov in the Russian net.
For the Americans the game highlighted some of the concerns that people had about them from the beginning of training camp. Age may be catching up to the boys from the USA, for most of the game it appeared as though they were perpetually chasing the Russian skaters to all corners of the rink, not being able to control or catch them led to high levels of frustration during the game. The most undisciplined player of the night was Keith Tkachuk, how made more than one boneheaded play in this game, taking runs at Russians after the whistle, heading into the boards and hitting from behind and wielding his elbows at almost every opportunity. Tkachuk’s loss of composure resulted in more than a few short handed situations. And while Tkachuk did gain the only goal for the American squad, it was his selfish play at times, that cost them valuable time on the clock as he sat out minor and major penalties through the last half of the game, making Esche’s job in the nets that much harder.
For his hard work Esche is expected to be allowed to sit out the Americans next game against Slovakia on Friday night, a must win game if the Americans hope to recover some of their swagger. USA coach Ron Wilson says some key line up changes will be made, possibly leaving some rather well know American names up in the sky box, as he tries to find the combination that will not only score goals but help prevent the opposition from filling the net. To a man the Americans felt they were embarrassed and did not play up to their potential, with a record of 0 and 2 they need to find that potential rather quickly.
Scoring for Russia were Dainius Zubrus, who received credit for a goal from a pass that went off of Chris Chelios’ leg. Alexei Kovalev and Victor Kozlov rounded out the scoring for the victorious Russians.
They next go back to work on Saturday night when they take on Team Canada in Toronto at the Air Canada centre. A solid Russian performance in that game will serve up another two points for the Russian team, and will show Canada that Russian hockey is back and ready to resume the rivalry! As the Russians get their bearings in the tournament they may prove to be the more troublesome squads when we get to the final four candidates for the World Cup.
Thursday, September 02, 2004
Joy on the Ice, Venom in the boardroom
While the hockey fans of the world enjoy some entertaining play on the ice, a more serious game is heading close to the final minute of play, with seemingly no chance of a breakthrough expected. The Labour discussions between the NHL and the NHLPA continued in Montreal on Wednesday, but by the end of business Wednesday night neither side was talking nor giving much in the way of positive vibes. Neither side seems interested in accomodation and positions seem to be hardening rather than easing off.
The two sides meet again on Thursday, but many observers feel that it’s all just a tiresome charade now, the two sides resigned and prepared to take their hard drawn battle lines right to the September 15th deadline and much further beyond.
The consensus of the labor observers in this dispute is that both sides are prepared for a lengthy lock out, as the owners will cancel the season and let the chips and failed franchises fall where they might. Part of the plan for the league members is to have the stronger teams carry the weaker sisters through the winter and into the spring if necessary to provide “cost certainty” to a recalcitrant work force. With the two lead negotiators spending as much time dismissing each others serious interest in solving the problems, the chances of a joining of hands and a sing along of victory songs seems rather remote.
As they prepare to paint the players as greedy and not interested in the good of the game, the owners are willing to gamble that the public will land on their side of the great debate.
As Team Canada marches on through the tourney, the clock is running down on any hope for a breakthrough to salvage the season. As the World Cup teams continue their marches towards a championship, they may find that this short burst of intense action will be all that the players see for a rather long time.
The two sides meet again on Thursday, but many observers feel that it’s all just a tiresome charade now, the two sides resigned and prepared to take their hard drawn battle lines right to the September 15th deadline and much further beyond.
The consensus of the labor observers in this dispute is that both sides are prepared for a lengthy lock out, as the owners will cancel the season and let the chips and failed franchises fall where they might. Part of the plan for the league members is to have the stronger teams carry the weaker sisters through the winter and into the spring if necessary to provide “cost certainty” to a recalcitrant work force. With the two lead negotiators spending as much time dismissing each others serious interest in solving the problems, the chances of a joining of hands and a sing along of victory songs seems rather remote.
As they prepare to paint the players as greedy and not interested in the good of the game, the owners are willing to gamble that the public will land on their side of the great debate.
As Team Canada marches on through the tourney, the clock is running down on any hope for a breakthrough to salvage the season. As the World Cup teams continue their marches towards a championship, they may find that this short burst of intense action will be all that the players see for a rather long time.
Ryan’s grit one of the keys to Canadian success
He says it feels good to be making a contribution and with his two goal performance on Wednesday night, Ryan Smyth is putting his stamp on the Team Canada lineup. The Edmonton Oiler had a huge game against the Slovaks, leading Team Canada to a 5-1 victory over the understaffed Slovakian squad. A perennial favorite on Canadian teams for his determination on the ice, Smyth is finding his place on a line with Vincent Lecavalier and Dany Heatley as he takes his lumps in aid of the scoring chances.
Team Canada out shot the Slovaks 35-25 and outplayed them quite a bit despite the close margin on the shot board. It was the second start of the tournament for Martin Brodeur and he continued to hold dominance over his domain as he kept shot after shot out of the Canadian net. Only Martin Cibak could put a shot behind the New Jersey Devil’s goaltender as he scored off of a Lubas Baretecko rebound. The Slovaks were using a rather depleted line up in their debut performance, Michal Handzus, Zigmund Palffy, Peter Bondra and Ivan Majesky are all missing due to injuries and the trip to the infirmary continued on Wednesday as Richard Zednik missed the game due to food poisoning
When Smyth wasn’t potting goals, some other Canadians were getting in on the scoring. Included on the scorers sheet were; Martin St. Louis, Joe Thornton and Simon Gagne. The game proved to be yet another costly one for Canada, as Wade Redden left the game in the second period with a “lower body injury” his return status is questionable at the moment. Earlier in the day the Canadians received the disappointing news that Ed Jovanovski would be out of the line up for the rest of the tournament with a broken rib and serious knee sprain. With the already depleted defensive options in the Canadian camp well documented Pat Quinn will reach into the team Canada skybox for a replacement for Redden if necessary, Jay Bouwmeester may get his first taste of International hockey on Saturday against the Russians.
With the win, Canada has secured home ice advantage through the quarter finals of the tournament; the road is a little tougher for the Slovaks who next see action on Friday night against the Americans in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Team Canada out shot the Slovaks 35-25 and outplayed them quite a bit despite the close margin on the shot board. It was the second start of the tournament for Martin Brodeur and he continued to hold dominance over his domain as he kept shot after shot out of the Canadian net. Only Martin Cibak could put a shot behind the New Jersey Devil’s goaltender as he scored off of a Lubas Baretecko rebound. The Slovaks were using a rather depleted line up in their debut performance, Michal Handzus, Zigmund Palffy, Peter Bondra and Ivan Majesky are all missing due to injuries and the trip to the infirmary continued on Wednesday as Richard Zednik missed the game due to food poisoning
When Smyth wasn’t potting goals, some other Canadians were getting in on the scoring. Included on the scorers sheet were; Martin St. Louis, Joe Thornton and Simon Gagne. The game proved to be yet another costly one for Canada, as Wade Redden left the game in the second period with a “lower body injury” his return status is questionable at the moment. Earlier in the day the Canadians received the disappointing news that Ed Jovanovski would be out of the line up for the rest of the tournament with a broken rib and serious knee sprain. With the already depleted defensive options in the Canadian camp well documented Pat Quinn will reach into the team Canada skybox for a replacement for Redden if necessary, Jay Bouwmeester may get his first taste of International hockey on Saturday against the Russians.
With the win, Canada has secured home ice advantage through the quarter finals of the tournament; the road is a little tougher for the Slovaks who next see action on Friday night against the Americans in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Swedes edge Czechs, remain unbeaten!
Game two for Team Sweden was a bit more of a challenge than the ice breaker was. With the Czech Republic as the opponent the Swedes needed to get their much vaunted offence off and running quickly. While the Czechs took game one off with a very uninterested approach, they managed to put on a better display on Wednesday in Stockholm. Out shooting the Swedes by a total of 40-20, 18-2 in the third period alone, they turned things on in the final frame, clawing their way back into a game that seemed destined to be Sweden’s for an easy taking.
Stories persist that the Czech camp is not a happy place these days, grousing about conditions, time of the tournament and lack of application seemingly the work ethic of the Czechs. Coach Vladimir Ruzicka took the drastic move of benching Milan Hejduk and Radek Dvorak for game two in order to get a message across. And for a team that hasn't played very well for the first five periods of the tournament it seems the discord is taking its toll.
The Swedes controlled the first two periods scoring on Tomas Vokoun four times in the first fourty minutes. Marking goals for the Three Crowns included Fredrik Modin, Peter Forsberg, Mattias Ohlund and Henrik Zetterberg. Captain Mats Sundin came close to icing the game for the Swedes with an empty net goal, but it deflected just wide as the final period was winding down. While they were doubled in shots by the Czechs they made the most out of the shots they did take. The Swedes did their best in keeping Vokoun hopping for the first two periods.
With two quick goals Martin Rucinsky and Marek Zidlicky scored two minutes apart early in the third, setting the stage for an exciting finale to the game. Patrick Elias pulled the Czechs even closer with a shot that beat Swedish goaltender Michael Tellqvist at 14.25. A wild last six minutes saw the Czechs pull their goaltender with two minutes remaining, an exciting show but to no avail in the end.
Tellqvist stood tall for Sweden, holding the fort and securing the Swedes second straight win with some timely saves. Surprisingly NHL all star Jaromir Jagr has been held pointless thus far in the tournament, though he was far more involved in Wednesday’s game than in the opening night game.
For Sweden a third period slowdown nearly cost them dearly, but in the end it’s the final score that makes all the difference and on this night the 4-3 final would be the margin of victory. Swedish head coach Hardy Nillson admitted that the Swedes got sloppy and allowed the Czechs back into the game, but was still happy with the final result. With the win, the Swedes hold home ice advantage in the quarter finals. If the now 0 and 2 Czech Republic doesn’t get a better grip on the scoreboard in its remaining games, the quarter finals won’t be something they need to terribly concern themselves with.
Stories persist that the Czech camp is not a happy place these days, grousing about conditions, time of the tournament and lack of application seemingly the work ethic of the Czechs. Coach Vladimir Ruzicka took the drastic move of benching Milan Hejduk and Radek Dvorak for game two in order to get a message across. And for a team that hasn't played very well for the first five periods of the tournament it seems the discord is taking its toll.
The Swedes controlled the first two periods scoring on Tomas Vokoun four times in the first fourty minutes. Marking goals for the Three Crowns included Fredrik Modin, Peter Forsberg, Mattias Ohlund and Henrik Zetterberg. Captain Mats Sundin came close to icing the game for the Swedes with an empty net goal, but it deflected just wide as the final period was winding down. While they were doubled in shots by the Czechs they made the most out of the shots they did take. The Swedes did their best in keeping Vokoun hopping for the first two periods.
With two quick goals Martin Rucinsky and Marek Zidlicky scored two minutes apart early in the third, setting the stage for an exciting finale to the game. Patrick Elias pulled the Czechs even closer with a shot that beat Swedish goaltender Michael Tellqvist at 14.25. A wild last six minutes saw the Czechs pull their goaltender with two minutes remaining, an exciting show but to no avail in the end.
Tellqvist stood tall for Sweden, holding the fort and securing the Swedes second straight win with some timely saves. Surprisingly NHL all star Jaromir Jagr has been held pointless thus far in the tournament, though he was far more involved in Wednesday’s game than in the opening night game.
For Sweden a third period slowdown nearly cost them dearly, but in the end it’s the final score that makes all the difference and on this night the 4-3 final would be the margin of victory. Swedish head coach Hardy Nillson admitted that the Swedes got sloppy and allowed the Czechs back into the game, but was still happy with the final result. With the win, the Swedes hold home ice advantage in the quarter finals. If the now 0 and 2 Czech Republic doesn’t get a better grip on the scoreboard in its remaining games, the quarter finals won’t be something they need to terribly concern themselves with.
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Old Time Unis, Old Time Hockey
No matter the colour, you pull on a uniform with a Maple Leaf on its front and something special happens. Tuesday night’s debut for Canada and the USA at the World Cup of Hockey came as advertised, a hard hitting, competitive affair that saw both teams battle to the very end. Dressed in what was called an Antique Gold motif, Canada donned a uniform in tribute to the Winnipeg Falcons of the 1920’s who first competed internationally for Canada. For those collectors of Pepsi cans it would have been the first offering of their current advertising campaign, HockeyNation now wonders if we’ll be treated to a new sweater every game? For Memorabilia collectors, this could quickly become a very expensive series of hockey.
Back on the ice, Canada contained the veteran American line up for most of the game, out shooting the Americans 19-6 in the first period, and gaining a goal from Martin St. Louis on the power play in the first twenty minutes. Coming out fast again in the second, the Canadians added a second goal off the stick of Joe Sakic, the marker once again coming while an American player sat in the penalty box.
The two to nothing lead served as a bit of a wake up call for the Americans, who battled back in the second and third periods to keep things close and keep Canadians worrying. Bill Guerin brought them to within one goal with his second period goal, lifting the American spirit and giving them some new life and some new jump in their legs. In the end the two Canadian goals would be enough as the Canadians edged the Americans 2-1 in a thoroughly entertaining affair at Montreal's Bell Centre.
Both teams suffered potentially disastrous injuries in the game, the nature of which are being guarded as closely as any military secret. Canada’s Ed Jovanovski caused the Vancouver Canuck brass to swallow their hearts, as he left the ice in the first period after being wrestled to the ice at the side of the American net. Described as a lower body injury, it appeared it could be a knee or thigh injury. His departure left the Canadians a little shorthanded on the blue line, an area of concern before the Canadians even travelled to training camp.
Over in the American dressing room the loose lips; sink ships argument, was being used on the nature of Mike Modano’s departure from the game. Modano left the game with a knee injury and was last seen dressed in street clothes watching from the distance. Officials of the American team are not in any hurry to inform the media about the Modano situation, or if it will last for any length of time.
The game was intense and rough at times, a particularly rugged period was when Canadian goaltender Martin Brodeur was knocked to the ice in his crease area, as Steve Konowalchuk bowled him over. For his troubles Konowalchuk found himself on the receiving end of a few well placed shots by Mario Lemieux, the intensity of Lemieux’s reaction to the crushing of his goaltender, is a good indication as to the passion the Canadians are bringing to the series. At the other end of the rink the USA's Rober Esche had an amzing game, standing off the Canadian scorers time and time again. In a sport that depends on big time goaltending for a shot at a championship, the Americans may have their ace in the Flyers product.
With the series utilizing NHL size rinks and featuring the NHL rulebook as its bible, the physical nature of the games is more to the liking of the North American fan. So far even the European games have had a more North American feel to them, as the NHL refs in Europe keep the play flowing, allowing the pace of the game to move along quickly.
Canada plays again on Wednesday as the Slovaks provide the competition for Pat Quinn’s lads, the game once again taking place at the Bell Centre in Montreal. The USA heads back to St. Paul, Minnesota for a match up with the Russians on Thursday night. Not wanting to look too far ahead, they still no doubt will be hoping for a return match with the Canadians a little later in the tournament. As the defending champions of what became the World Cup of Hockey, they still want to show their northern neighbours that the road to victory will run through a uniform Red White and Blue.
Back on the ice, Canada contained the veteran American line up for most of the game, out shooting the Americans 19-6 in the first period, and gaining a goal from Martin St. Louis on the power play in the first twenty minutes. Coming out fast again in the second, the Canadians added a second goal off the stick of Joe Sakic, the marker once again coming while an American player sat in the penalty box.
The two to nothing lead served as a bit of a wake up call for the Americans, who battled back in the second and third periods to keep things close and keep Canadians worrying. Bill Guerin brought them to within one goal with his second period goal, lifting the American spirit and giving them some new life and some new jump in their legs. In the end the two Canadian goals would be enough as the Canadians edged the Americans 2-1 in a thoroughly entertaining affair at Montreal's Bell Centre.
Both teams suffered potentially disastrous injuries in the game, the nature of which are being guarded as closely as any military secret. Canada’s Ed Jovanovski caused the Vancouver Canuck brass to swallow their hearts, as he left the ice in the first period after being wrestled to the ice at the side of the American net. Described as a lower body injury, it appeared it could be a knee or thigh injury. His departure left the Canadians a little shorthanded on the blue line, an area of concern before the Canadians even travelled to training camp.
Over in the American dressing room the loose lips; sink ships argument, was being used on the nature of Mike Modano’s departure from the game. Modano left the game with a knee injury and was last seen dressed in street clothes watching from the distance. Officials of the American team are not in any hurry to inform the media about the Modano situation, or if it will last for any length of time.
The game was intense and rough at times, a particularly rugged period was when Canadian goaltender Martin Brodeur was knocked to the ice in his crease area, as Steve Konowalchuk bowled him over. For his troubles Konowalchuk found himself on the receiving end of a few well placed shots by Mario Lemieux, the intensity of Lemieux’s reaction to the crushing of his goaltender, is a good indication as to the passion the Canadians are bringing to the series. At the other end of the rink the USA's Rober Esche had an amzing game, standing off the Canadian scorers time and time again. In a sport that depends on big time goaltending for a shot at a championship, the Americans may have their ace in the Flyers product.
With the series utilizing NHL size rinks and featuring the NHL rulebook as its bible, the physical nature of the games is more to the liking of the North American fan. So far even the European games have had a more North American feel to them, as the NHL refs in Europe keep the play flowing, allowing the pace of the game to move along quickly.
Canada plays again on Wednesday as the Slovaks provide the competition for Pat Quinn’s lads, the game once again taking place at the Bell Centre in Montreal. The USA heads back to St. Paul, Minnesota for a match up with the Russians on Thursday night. Not wanting to look too far ahead, they still no doubt will be hoping for a return match with the Canadians a little later in the tournament. As the defending champions of what became the World Cup of Hockey, they still want to show their northern neighbours that the road to victory will run through a uniform Red White and Blue.
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Sweden shows the home folk a good time
For Germany the good news is that there are now more home grown players in the line up than ever before, gone apparently are the days where Canadian boys who had distant relatives in Germany, could don the colours of Deutschland without argument. The not so good news for Germany's head coach Franz Reindl is, that many of the homegrowns are not quite the Ready for Prime Time Players.
With seven NHL hands on the bench Germany gave it a valiant effort, but were outperformed by a star studded Swedish squad as game number two in the World Cup of Hockey took place in Stockholm. The one line that Germany could offer up as an offensive threat was Sturn, Goc and Hecht, key on them as the Swedes did and scoring ops are few and far between. To counter that short coming, Germany utilized a rather ugly defensive style of play, clogging up the centre ice area and hoping to keep the Swedes cooped up, but eventually Sweden found a way to break free of the desperation move. By the third period of this icebreaker for both teams the Germans were offering little in the way of resistance to the Swedish attack.
Hometown hero Mats Sundin figured prominently in the game, making some eye catching passes, gaining two assists and scoring one of those highlight style goals you watch with awe. This one a wicked backhander, that caught German goaltender Ollie Kolzig a bit unawares, Sundin’s goal broke a 1-1 tie and started the Swedes on to their eventual 5-2 defeat of the Germans.
Sweden controlled most of the flow of the game, spending a fair amount of the game peppering Kolzig with shots after shot. By the time the final whistle had blown and the teams had returned to their dressing rooms, Kolzig had faced 42 shots while Tommy Salo handled 19 German attempts. Salo raised a few eyebrows at times as he misplayed both German goals, the first a breakaway by Marco Sturm which saw Salo go down early and leave a fair amount of net for the San Jose shark to shoot at, the second goal a shot by Daniel Kreutzer was eerily similar to one Salo fluffed in the Olympics fluttering over his glove into the top corner. Fortunately for Sweden the Germans wouldn’t wander into the Swedish end all that often during the game.
Swedish marksmen included Tomas Holstrom, Kim Johnsson, Marcus Nillson and Frederik Modin scored in addition to Sundin. While they played a well rounded game, the Swedes were not overly happy with their performance, suggesting they need to tighten things up a bit if they hope to go any distance in the competition. Goaltending may become their Achilles heel before the 14th of September. It’s expected that Maple Leaf Mikael Tellqvist will get the nod on Wednesday, when the Swedes are home to the Czech Republic
For Germany one lesson to learn from the Swedish game will be to stay out of the penalty box. The Germans took too many penalties giving the Swedes far more chances than they really needed. Taking seven penalties in the game they were fortunate that Sweden could only convert one for a power play goal. If they give Finland that many chances on Thursday they may find themselves chasing Finnish forwards for most of the game.
With seven NHL hands on the bench Germany gave it a valiant effort, but were outperformed by a star studded Swedish squad as game number two in the World Cup of Hockey took place in Stockholm. The one line that Germany could offer up as an offensive threat was Sturn, Goc and Hecht, key on them as the Swedes did and scoring ops are few and far between. To counter that short coming, Germany utilized a rather ugly defensive style of play, clogging up the centre ice area and hoping to keep the Swedes cooped up, but eventually Sweden found a way to break free of the desperation move. By the third period of this icebreaker for both teams the Germans were offering little in the way of resistance to the Swedish attack.
Hometown hero Mats Sundin figured prominently in the game, making some eye catching passes, gaining two assists and scoring one of those highlight style goals you watch with awe. This one a wicked backhander, that caught German goaltender Ollie Kolzig a bit unawares, Sundin’s goal broke a 1-1 tie and started the Swedes on to their eventual 5-2 defeat of the Germans.
Sweden controlled most of the flow of the game, spending a fair amount of the game peppering Kolzig with shots after shot. By the time the final whistle had blown and the teams had returned to their dressing rooms, Kolzig had faced 42 shots while Tommy Salo handled 19 German attempts. Salo raised a few eyebrows at times as he misplayed both German goals, the first a breakaway by Marco Sturm which saw Salo go down early and leave a fair amount of net for the San Jose shark to shoot at, the second goal a shot by Daniel Kreutzer was eerily similar to one Salo fluffed in the Olympics fluttering over his glove into the top corner. Fortunately for Sweden the Germans wouldn’t wander into the Swedish end all that often during the game.
Swedish marksmen included Tomas Holstrom, Kim Johnsson, Marcus Nillson and Frederik Modin scored in addition to Sundin. While they played a well rounded game, the Swedes were not overly happy with their performance, suggesting they need to tighten things up a bit if they hope to go any distance in the competition. Goaltending may become their Achilles heel before the 14th of September. It’s expected that Maple Leaf Mikael Tellqvist will get the nod on Wednesday, when the Swedes are home to the Czech Republic
For Germany one lesson to learn from the Swedish game will be to stay out of the penalty box. The Germans took too many penalties giving the Swedes far more chances than they really needed. Taking seven penalties in the game they were fortunate that Sweden could only convert one for a power play goal. If they give Finland that many chances on Thursday they may find themselves chasing Finnish forwards for most of the game.
World Cup quest takes to the ice, Finns take Game Number One
With summer taking its last sunny (well in some parts of Canada) licks at August, we turned our attention to Hockey. A 10 am puck drop on the west coast, ushered in the 2004 edition of the World Cup of Hockey as Finland and the Czech Republic broke the ice on the much anticipated tournament. The Finnish team entertained the hometown fans in Helsinki with a convincing 4-0 victory over a rather disinterested looking bunch of Czech skaters.
Miikka Kiprusoff had a relatively easy time of things as the Czechs only managed to put 12 shots on net in the 60 minutes of hockey. Tomas Vokoun at the other end was facing a veritable barrage of shots. Vokoun was the lone stand out in a Czech uniform, as the Finns fired 30 shots at the Nashville Predator product. Despite his best efforts Finland scored four times, three of them in the final period of play.
Finland got the first goal of the tournament mid way through the first period, when Swiss league player Jukka Hentunen put the first puck past Vokoun, they held that 1-0 lead into the third when the floodgates opened with a vengeance. As the third period began the Finns scored on a goal from Montreal Canadien, Saku Koivu who wears the C in his duties with Team Finland, Niko Kapenen of the Dallas Stars scored shortly after that with goal number three and Mikko Eloranta, one of two Finnish league players on the Team Finland line-up wrapped up the scoring midway through the final period.
The Czechs who entered the tournament reeling from the tragic loss of their head coach Ivan Hlinka never seemed to get untracked. Sluggish, disorganized and exhibiting no interest in playing defence the Czechs looked relieved to be leaving the ice after 60 minutes of play, having hardly broken a sweat.
Vladimir Ruzicka who was pressed into the head coaching duties upon the death of Hlinka has the unenviable job of trying to get the Czech squads heads back into the game. With a rather deep line up, its surprising that the effort wasn’t there Monday, if the Czechs are going to make any kind of run in this tournament the likes of Jaromir Jagr, Milan Hejduk, Tomas Kaberle and Robert Reichel are going to have to take a more determined leadership role onto the ice and into the dressing room.
Game one was not a stellar debut for the Czechs, who seemed to surrender ice and opportunity at the first sign of opposition. Saku Koivu even mentioned the rather easy time his Finnish team had in this opening game. They get to test the ice again on Thursday when they travel to Cologne to take on the German squad. For the Czechs the road doesn’t get any easier, their next match is Wednesday at Stockholm when the face the Swedish team at the Globe Arena. A few more efforts like that on Monday and they won’t need to make any reservations for the trip to North America.
Miikka Kiprusoff had a relatively easy time of things as the Czechs only managed to put 12 shots on net in the 60 minutes of hockey. Tomas Vokoun at the other end was facing a veritable barrage of shots. Vokoun was the lone stand out in a Czech uniform, as the Finns fired 30 shots at the Nashville Predator product. Despite his best efforts Finland scored four times, three of them in the final period of play.
Finland got the first goal of the tournament mid way through the first period, when Swiss league player Jukka Hentunen put the first puck past Vokoun, they held that 1-0 lead into the third when the floodgates opened with a vengeance. As the third period began the Finns scored on a goal from Montreal Canadien, Saku Koivu who wears the C in his duties with Team Finland, Niko Kapenen of the Dallas Stars scored shortly after that with goal number three and Mikko Eloranta, one of two Finnish league players on the Team Finland line-up wrapped up the scoring midway through the final period.
The Czechs who entered the tournament reeling from the tragic loss of their head coach Ivan Hlinka never seemed to get untracked. Sluggish, disorganized and exhibiting no interest in playing defence the Czechs looked relieved to be leaving the ice after 60 minutes of play, having hardly broken a sweat.
Vladimir Ruzicka who was pressed into the head coaching duties upon the death of Hlinka has the unenviable job of trying to get the Czech squads heads back into the game. With a rather deep line up, its surprising that the effort wasn’t there Monday, if the Czechs are going to make any kind of run in this tournament the likes of Jaromir Jagr, Milan Hejduk, Tomas Kaberle and Robert Reichel are going to have to take a more determined leadership role onto the ice and into the dressing room.
Game one was not a stellar debut for the Czechs, who seemed to surrender ice and opportunity at the first sign of opposition. Saku Koivu even mentioned the rather easy time his Finnish team had in this opening game. They get to test the ice again on Thursday when they travel to Cologne to take on the German squad. For the Czechs the road doesn’t get any easier, their next match is Wednesday at Stockholm when the face the Swedish team at the Globe Arena. A few more efforts like that on Monday and they won’t need to make any reservations for the trip to North America.
Monday, August 30, 2004
World Cup Summaries
Follow the World cup game by game, as we post Game Summaries and Recaps nightly.
August 30, Finland 4, Czech Republic 0
August 30, Finland/Czech recap
August 31, Sweden 5, Germany 2
August 31, Sweden/Germany recap
August 31, Canada 2, USA 1
August 31, Canada/USA recap
September 1, Sweden 4, Czech Republic 3
September 1, Sweden/Czech Republic recap
September 1, Canada 5, Slovakia 1
September 1, Canada/Slovakia recap
September 2, Finland 3, Germany 0
September 2, Finland/Germany recap
September 2, Russia 3, USA 1
September 2, Russia/USA recap
September 3, Czech Republic 7, Germany 2
September 3, Czech Republic/Germany recap
September 3, USA 3, Slovakia 1
September 3, USA/Slovakia recap
September 4, Finland 4, Sweden 4
September 4, Finland/Sweden recap
September 4, Canada 3, Russia 1
September 4, Canada/Russia recap
September 5, Russia 5, Slovakia 2
September 5, Russia/Slovakia recap
September 6, Finland 2, Germany 1
September 6, Finland/Germany recap
September 7, Czech Republic 6, Sweden 1
Settember 7, Czech Republic/Sweden recap
September 7, USA 5, Russia 3
September 7, USA/Russia Recap
September 8, Canada 5, Slovakia 0
September 8, Canada/Slovakia recap
September 10, Finland 2, USA 1
September 10, Finland/USA recap
September 11, Canada 4, Czech Republic 3
September 11, Canada/Czech Republic recap
September 14, Canada 3, Finland 2 CANADA WINS THE WORLD CUP
September 14, Canada/Finland recap
August 30, Finland 4, Czech Republic 0
August 30, Finland/Czech recap
August 31, Sweden 5, Germany 2
August 31, Sweden/Germany recap
August 31, Canada 2, USA 1
August 31, Canada/USA recap
September 1, Sweden 4, Czech Republic 3
September 1, Sweden/Czech Republic recap
September 1, Canada 5, Slovakia 1
September 1, Canada/Slovakia recap
September 2, Finland 3, Germany 0
September 2, Finland/Germany recap
September 2, Russia 3, USA 1
September 2, Russia/USA recap
September 3, Czech Republic 7, Germany 2
September 3, Czech Republic/Germany recap
September 3, USA 3, Slovakia 1
September 3, USA/Slovakia recap
September 4, Finland 4, Sweden 4
September 4, Finland/Sweden recap
September 4, Canada 3, Russia 1
September 4, Canada/Russia recap
September 5, Russia 5, Slovakia 2
September 5, Russia/Slovakia recap
September 6, Finland 2, Germany 1
September 6, Finland/Germany recap
September 7, Czech Republic 6, Sweden 1
Settember 7, Czech Republic/Sweden recap
September 7, USA 5, Russia 3
September 7, USA/Russia Recap
September 8, Canada 5, Slovakia 0
September 8, Canada/Slovakia recap
September 10, Finland 2, USA 1
September 10, Finland/USA recap
September 11, Canada 4, Czech Republic 3
September 11, Canada/Czech Republic recap
September 14, Canada 3, Finland 2 CANADA WINS THE WORLD CUP
September 14, Canada/Finland recap
Sunday, August 29, 2004
Just like kissing your sister!
Team Canada’s final tune up game in the World Cup of hockey ended up as a draw, as the Canadians and the Slovaks played to a 2-2 tie in Ottawa Saturday night.
Jarome Iginla scored midway through the third, helping the Canadian squad to battle back and get the game even. Vincent Lecavalier had the other Canadian marker and Dany Heatley registered two assists in the Canadian cause.
Martin Brodeur worked the entire game facing nineteen shots in 60 minutes, giving up two goals one to Marion Hossa and the other to Vladimir Orszagh. The Slovaks featured Rastislav Stana in the nets; the Washington Capital faced 31 shots. As the Canadians pressured late in the game, he lifted his game a notch to hold off the attack and keeping the Slovak team in the game.
A sloppy first period almost proved deadly for the Canadian team as they found themselves guilty of standing still and watching the fast moving Slovaks travel up and down the ice. Pat Quinn again tinkered with his lines, juggling the first two lines regularly through the game. The movement of Iginla off of Mario Lemieux’s line worked in this game; it sparked Iginla onto that goal in the third. Lemieux himself had a golden chance to put the game away late in the third but missed the puck on a shot attempt on an open net.
Canada carried the play into the overtime, and found itself frequently in the slot or to the side taking a shot or making passes. A few breaks and they would have won the game in the OT.
The Canadians rest up on Sunday and then head for Montreal, they face the American team on Tuesday night as they get this World Cup underway with a game against their main rival these days. Considered to be the front runner in this tourney, there’s nothing like jumping into the competition right off the bat, no lesser skilled warm up teams to run up a score against. Instead it’ll be hard nosed North American hockey in game one. No doubt Pat Quinn wouldn’t have it any other way.
Jarome Iginla scored midway through the third, helping the Canadian squad to battle back and get the game even. Vincent Lecavalier had the other Canadian marker and Dany Heatley registered two assists in the Canadian cause.
Martin Brodeur worked the entire game facing nineteen shots in 60 minutes, giving up two goals one to Marion Hossa and the other to Vladimir Orszagh. The Slovaks featured Rastislav Stana in the nets; the Washington Capital faced 31 shots. As the Canadians pressured late in the game, he lifted his game a notch to hold off the attack and keeping the Slovak team in the game.
A sloppy first period almost proved deadly for the Canadian team as they found themselves guilty of standing still and watching the fast moving Slovaks travel up and down the ice. Pat Quinn again tinkered with his lines, juggling the first two lines regularly through the game. The movement of Iginla off of Mario Lemieux’s line worked in this game; it sparked Iginla onto that goal in the third. Lemieux himself had a golden chance to put the game away late in the third but missed the puck on a shot attempt on an open net.
Canada carried the play into the overtime, and found itself frequently in the slot or to the side taking a shot or making passes. A few breaks and they would have won the game in the OT.
The Canadians rest up on Sunday and then head for Montreal, they face the American team on Tuesday night as they get this World Cup underway with a game against their main rival these days. Considered to be the front runner in this tourney, there’s nothing like jumping into the competition right off the bat, no lesser skilled warm up teams to run up a score against. Instead it’ll be hard nosed North American hockey in game one. No doubt Pat Quinn wouldn’t have it any other way.
Tear it down, so as to start over?
Deny, Deny, Deny that seems to be the main approach to a prospect first voiced on 640 Mojo radio in Toronto. During a Saturday afternoon interview with Bill Watters on Mojo, the idea of shutting down the NHL and re launching it as a different entity was suggested. Watters going so far as to say that he had been told by one league owner that it was a very serious option being considered for January should the dispute last that long.
That concept was quickly shot down by the leagues Executive Vice President Billy Daly, who said that no such plan was under consideration. Daly stated that “I can unequivocally tell you that is not the case”
With the Mojo story taking on a life of its own, The Fan 590 in Toronto was quick to jump into the end of the Hockey World as we know it angle, with their own story stating much the same. They too based their story on an un-named GM, who had expressed the belief that a brand new league is very much a possibility.
Now HockeyNation is not sure exactly how that would work, for if it indeed were possible to just close your business and start over the country would be riddled with thousands of labour disputes solved simply by changing the name on the sign. Since it doesn’t happen regularly in the real world, it seems beyond belief that the NHL would be able to get it by the legal and governmental types of two separate nations. When Ford and GM have a labour dispute they don’t just close the plant, change the letterhead and reopen up a week later, somehow we assume there is some kind of labour legislation out there some place governing this kind of solution to labour woe.
One thing is certain though, this bit of rumour mongering means that Hockey fans are now officially in a vacuum, with nothing of substance to help us along the way, we’re left to listen to the rumours and the ravings of the conspiracy buffs. Most of who apparently have a direct line to Toronto radio stations.
That concept was quickly shot down by the leagues Executive Vice President Billy Daly, who said that no such plan was under consideration. Daly stated that “I can unequivocally tell you that is not the case”
With the Mojo story taking on a life of its own, The Fan 590 in Toronto was quick to jump into the end of the Hockey World as we know it angle, with their own story stating much the same. They too based their story on an un-named GM, who had expressed the belief that a brand new league is very much a possibility.
Now HockeyNation is not sure exactly how that would work, for if it indeed were possible to just close your business and start over the country would be riddled with thousands of labour disputes solved simply by changing the name on the sign. Since it doesn’t happen regularly in the real world, it seems beyond belief that the NHL would be able to get it by the legal and governmental types of two separate nations. When Ford and GM have a labour dispute they don’t just close the plant, change the letterhead and reopen up a week later, somehow we assume there is some kind of labour legislation out there some place governing this kind of solution to labour woe.
One thing is certain though, this bit of rumour mongering means that Hockey fans are now officially in a vacuum, with nothing of substance to help us along the way, we’re left to listen to the rumours and the ravings of the conspiracy buffs. Most of who apparently have a direct line to Toronto radio stations.
Saturday, August 28, 2004
A game of “charades” reaches the boiling point
For two sides that had planned on keeping a low profile during the World Cup of hockey, negotiators for the NHL and NHLPA have a funny concept of staying quiet.
The rancour of the most recent discussions, was dumped out into the media on Friday, as the NHL’s Executive Vice President Bill Daly blasted the NHLPA for “engaging in a charade”. Daly apparently at the point of total frustration voiced the opinion; “that the players association has no intention of bargaining in good faith towards any kind of agreement”. Daly looked into a crystal ball and predicted that the Union would come up with a “last ditch” window dressed idea just before the deadline, which would apparently be rejected sending us into a lock out situation.
The NHLPA for its side, issued its own release afterwards, suggesting that Mr. Daly’s outburst was the result of the realization that the league’s wish for a hard salary cap was not going to be met with anything resembling acceptance.
In addition to the rebuttal to Mr. Daly, the union has also provided an advisory to its members that the possibility of a labour disruption lasting the entire season is very real.
Daly’s suggestion that the players wished to force a lockout so as to win public support was dismissed by the unions as mere grandstanding. The players bargaining team stating that any such plan would be ludicrous.
The outburst of course does not bode well for any constructive bargaining between now and the deadline of September 15th. The two sides are slated to meet again next week in Montreal as the World Cup gets under way, but it seems hard to fathom how they can sit in the same city, let alone same hotel room considering the animosity that seems to be bubbling up.
Perhaps with a weekend to cool off, saner heads will return to the table on Monday, but judging by the accusations flying around publicly, the atmosphere around the table is probably not going to be conducive to any quick breathroughs.
The rancour of the most recent discussions, was dumped out into the media on Friday, as the NHL’s Executive Vice President Bill Daly blasted the NHLPA for “engaging in a charade”. Daly apparently at the point of total frustration voiced the opinion; “that the players association has no intention of bargaining in good faith towards any kind of agreement”. Daly looked into a crystal ball and predicted that the Union would come up with a “last ditch” window dressed idea just before the deadline, which would apparently be rejected sending us into a lock out situation.
The NHLPA for its side, issued its own release afterwards, suggesting that Mr. Daly’s outburst was the result of the realization that the league’s wish for a hard salary cap was not going to be met with anything resembling acceptance.
In addition to the rebuttal to Mr. Daly, the union has also provided an advisory to its members that the possibility of a labour disruption lasting the entire season is very real.
Daly’s suggestion that the players wished to force a lockout so as to win public support was dismissed by the unions as mere grandstanding. The players bargaining team stating that any such plan would be ludicrous.
The outburst of course does not bode well for any constructive bargaining between now and the deadline of September 15th. The two sides are slated to meet again next week in Montreal as the World Cup gets under way, but it seems hard to fathom how they can sit in the same city, let alone same hotel room considering the animosity that seems to be bubbling up.
Perhaps with a weekend to cool off, saner heads will return to the table on Monday, but judging by the accusations flying around publicly, the atmosphere around the table is probably not going to be conducive to any quick breathroughs.
Is this the beginning of the Unravelling?
As the labour negotiations in NHL continue along their rancid path, the NHLPA may have one less card to play. It seems that they may not be able to use the WHA as a bargaining hammer for much longer.
In a surprise (though cynics would say not unexpected) announcement Friday, the fledgling league announced that its Quebec franchise had been taken away from the rights holder, Jean Paul Boily. Citing frequent appearances at WHA meetings seeking financial concessions, the league decided that Mr. Boily did not have the financial where-with-all to put a team on the ice this year and thus have terminated their operating agreement with him.
Now it possibly takes rather large cojones to start waving the finger of financial misrepresentation around. For all its bluster and occasional media releases, there has not been much said, let alone done, from the WHA headquarters since they held their player draft a month ago.
For a league planning on taking to the ice in November they face a rather large mountain called credibility. They haven’t signed any player of any skill level, to a contract as of yet. This despite the motions of draft from a Niagra Falls casino in July. The only big name they seem to have pursued in any fashion, Sidney Crosby has decided to stick to junior hockey and for the most part the majority of the remaining teams have yet to sign a lease with any arena.
With the exception of the Detroit franchise, none of the other teams have a GM or a coach, trainer or stickboy, let alone players. In short, the league still appears to remain the vision of a couple of guys in a bar, drafting teams on the back of a beer bottle coaster.
The final word on the state of the WHA at the moment belongs to league co-founder Al Howell who said: “The fans of Quebec deserve WHA hockey and we will now explore all options to make this a reality”.
One suspects that the hockey fans of Quebec City must be thinking what they did to deserve this salad of unfulfilled expectations.
In a surprise (though cynics would say not unexpected) announcement Friday, the fledgling league announced that its Quebec franchise had been taken away from the rights holder, Jean Paul Boily. Citing frequent appearances at WHA meetings seeking financial concessions, the league decided that Mr. Boily did not have the financial where-with-all to put a team on the ice this year and thus have terminated their operating agreement with him.
Now it possibly takes rather large cojones to start waving the finger of financial misrepresentation around. For all its bluster and occasional media releases, there has not been much said, let alone done, from the WHA headquarters since they held their player draft a month ago.
For a league planning on taking to the ice in November they face a rather large mountain called credibility. They haven’t signed any player of any skill level, to a contract as of yet. This despite the motions of draft from a Niagra Falls casino in July. The only big name they seem to have pursued in any fashion, Sidney Crosby has decided to stick to junior hockey and for the most part the majority of the remaining teams have yet to sign a lease with any arena.
With the exception of the Detroit franchise, none of the other teams have a GM or a coach, trainer or stickboy, let alone players. In short, the league still appears to remain the vision of a couple of guys in a bar, drafting teams on the back of a beer bottle coaster.
The final word on the state of the WHA at the moment belongs to league co-founder Al Howell who said: “The fans of Quebec deserve WHA hockey and we will now explore all options to make this a reality”.
One suspects that the hockey fans of Quebec City must be thinking what they did to deserve this salad of unfulfilled expectations.
Friday, August 27, 2004
Judge Kitchen hears a plea
The Todd Bertuzzi assault trial provided its first appearance of the principle player on Thursday, as the Vancouver Canuck Assistant Captain made his plea in a British Columbia court. With four words, “not guilty, your honour” Bertuzzi set in motion the legal proceedings that will become the focus of the Hockey world for the next little while. The trial to determine is Bertuzzi’s actions on the ice at GM place last march against Colorado Avalanche Steve Moore promises to be a media show along the lines of the Kobe Bryant trial. Already news agencies are making plans to apply for permission to have a camera present during the actual trial once it gets under way.
Bertuzzi’s appearance Thursday, his first since the charges were laid, was a short lived affair. With his wife by his side and his lawyer in tow, Bertuzzi quickly arrived, stepped out of his SUV and into courtroom and then left. Bertuzzi did all his talking in the court, having nothing to say to the assembled media, fans and casual observers gathered outside the Law Courts in Vancouver. Radio stations interrupted their programming with “bulletins”, one when he arrived, the other when he left. Television stations had the cameras rolling each one striving to capture the seriousness of the situation with a gripping visual. One wonders how the voracious Vancouver newspapers will handle the story; expect front page photos and in-depth coverage of what amounted to about a ten minute event.
With his plea entered the next phase of the trial will be to set a date for the proceedings to continue. That will take place next Wednesday when the lawyers gather once again in front of the judge to set forth their timetable.
The crown attorney is seeking a summary conviction which means there will be no preliminary hearing and no jury pool required the case will be heard by a judge alone. Should Bertuzzi find himself convicted, the most his sentence could be would be eighteen months. A situation that a number of players surveyed on Thursday wouldn’t want to see. Contacted at the Team Canada training camp, team mate Ed Jovanovski said he was fully behind his assistant captain and felt that the situation had been dealt with fairly by the league. Joe Sakic, who is the captain of the Avalanche and a team mate of Moores, likewise echoed similar sentiments feeling that these incidents should not end up in the courts.
With a possible labour dispute on the horizon it would be interesting to see the status of many of the possible witnesses to the incident. The judge mentioned that if the league solved their difficulties and had a season some of the witnesses would be scattered around the various NHL cities. An even worse scenario might be if the season doesn’t go ahead, who knows where the witnesses might end up if they have to find work elsewhere.
Regardless, with a plea of not guilty the trial will now go ahead. With the very likely scenario of no on ice action to keep the media occupied, Bertuzzi may find that his case is THE only hockey news story of the fall. If he thought he was under the microscope before, things just got magnified even more. This case has all the potential of becoming a media circus, a situation that will benefit no one. The competitive nature of the media in Vancouver means this will be the lead story for the duration of the trial. It will be interesting to see if the coverage will reflect a sensible balanced presentation of facts or a sensationalized tabloid style of run away muckraking.
Bertuzzi’s appearance Thursday, his first since the charges were laid, was a short lived affair. With his wife by his side and his lawyer in tow, Bertuzzi quickly arrived, stepped out of his SUV and into courtroom and then left. Bertuzzi did all his talking in the court, having nothing to say to the assembled media, fans and casual observers gathered outside the Law Courts in Vancouver. Radio stations interrupted their programming with “bulletins”, one when he arrived, the other when he left. Television stations had the cameras rolling each one striving to capture the seriousness of the situation with a gripping visual. One wonders how the voracious Vancouver newspapers will handle the story; expect front page photos and in-depth coverage of what amounted to about a ten minute event.
With his plea entered the next phase of the trial will be to set a date for the proceedings to continue. That will take place next Wednesday when the lawyers gather once again in front of the judge to set forth their timetable.
The crown attorney is seeking a summary conviction which means there will be no preliminary hearing and no jury pool required the case will be heard by a judge alone. Should Bertuzzi find himself convicted, the most his sentence could be would be eighteen months. A situation that a number of players surveyed on Thursday wouldn’t want to see. Contacted at the Team Canada training camp, team mate Ed Jovanovski said he was fully behind his assistant captain and felt that the situation had been dealt with fairly by the league. Joe Sakic, who is the captain of the Avalanche and a team mate of Moores, likewise echoed similar sentiments feeling that these incidents should not end up in the courts.
With a possible labour dispute on the horizon it would be interesting to see the status of many of the possible witnesses to the incident. The judge mentioned that if the league solved their difficulties and had a season some of the witnesses would be scattered around the various NHL cities. An even worse scenario might be if the season doesn’t go ahead, who knows where the witnesses might end up if they have to find work elsewhere.
Regardless, with a plea of not guilty the trial will now go ahead. With the very likely scenario of no on ice action to keep the media occupied, Bertuzzi may find that his case is THE only hockey news story of the fall. If he thought he was under the microscope before, things just got magnified even more. This case has all the potential of becoming a media circus, a situation that will benefit no one. The competitive nature of the media in Vancouver means this will be the lead story for the duration of the trial. It will be interesting to see if the coverage will reflect a sensible balanced presentation of facts or a sensationalized tabloid style of run away muckraking.
Thursday, August 26, 2004
Keeping their comments to themselves
They spent five hours in discussions on Wednesday afternoon and when they exited the conference room the only thing that they had to say was no comment.
The NHL and the NHLPA have decided that they don’t want to take away from the excitement and anticipation of the World Cup of Hockey. So they won’t be talking much about how talks are progressing, or how they are not progressing while they continue to talk. Having met for the first time since their less than productive meeting last week in New Jersey, the two sides are keeping a low profile. They meet again on Thursday and say they may have something to say, after they break off discussions later in the day.
The two sides will then regroup and meet again next week in Montreal as the World Cup gets underway. Meetings next Tuesday and Wednesday will take place as the clock continues to tick down towards the September 15th deadline.
As for the players they are concentrating as much as possible on the hockey aspect of things, letting their union reps take care of the face to face consultations. Team Canada has an unusual situation to deal with, they have Wayne Gretzky running the program who just happens to be the one of the owners of the Phoenix Coyotes, while on the ice there’s Mario Lemieux, well documented as the owner the Pittsburgh franchise. Needless to say the collective agreement is not getting much discussion in between the skating drills and other preparations for the World Cup.
Even with the cone of silence in place, the subtle indications are that the owners are preparing for a lengthy battle with their players.
But thankfully for Hockey fans the next two weeks will see the rhetoric kept below our radar, not that many would be paying attention while the game is on the ice. After that it will remain to be seen if the game is put on ice for a while.
The NHL and the NHLPA have decided that they don’t want to take away from the excitement and anticipation of the World Cup of Hockey. So they won’t be talking much about how talks are progressing, or how they are not progressing while they continue to talk. Having met for the first time since their less than productive meeting last week in New Jersey, the two sides are keeping a low profile. They meet again on Thursday and say they may have something to say, after they break off discussions later in the day.
The two sides will then regroup and meet again next week in Montreal as the World Cup gets underway. Meetings next Tuesday and Wednesday will take place as the clock continues to tick down towards the September 15th deadline.
As for the players they are concentrating as much as possible on the hockey aspect of things, letting their union reps take care of the face to face consultations. Team Canada has an unusual situation to deal with, they have Wayne Gretzky running the program who just happens to be the one of the owners of the Phoenix Coyotes, while on the ice there’s Mario Lemieux, well documented as the owner the Pittsburgh franchise. Needless to say the collective agreement is not getting much discussion in between the skating drills and other preparations for the World Cup.
Even with the cone of silence in place, the subtle indications are that the owners are preparing for a lengthy battle with their players.
But thankfully for Hockey fans the next two weeks will see the rhetoric kept below our radar, not that many would be paying attention while the game is on the ice. After that it will remain to be seen if the game is put on ice for a while.
Sticking to his original plan
Sidney Crosby gave the thought of becoming an instant millionaire about two weeks of serious thought, but at the end of the day, the junior player from Nova Scotia decided that the path to success will run through Rimouski for one more year.
Crosby was tempted with a potential 7.5 million dollar contract offered up, 2 million of which would have been his whether the new WHA ever took to the ice or not. The Hamilton franchise of the newly formed league had hoped to lure Crosby away from the junior leagues and become the leagues first marquee signing. The WHA which has been keeping a rather low profile of late, let the word slip out that they had made the offer to Crosby on the same day his father advised the media that he had turned the league down.
Better to have tried and failed than to not try at all could be the credo at the WHA office these days, and well if the young phenom had turned them down anyways why not make the contract offer extremely high so as to show the league as ready to chase after some primo players.
In the end, the Crosby’s decided that the uncertain status of the WHA (the league really hasn’t progressed very far with its plans since the franchise announcements of a few months ago) that weighed against making the leap to pro hockey. That and some unfinished business in junior hockey, Crosby would like another shot at a Memorial Cup and of course be in Canada’s line up when they try to reclaim the title of World Champions and a gold medal at the World Junior Championships in North Dakota this year.
For the Hamilton franchise the gambit was seen as a way to try and secure a lease with officials at the Copps Coliseum. The new franchise has been having some problems getting a deal done on ice time at Copps, situation that many of the other WHA teams share, the Toronto franchise still has yet to secure a home for the upcoming season and little has been heard from BC since the Vancouver spokespeople advised they were inquiring about ice time at GM Place, one can imagine the quality dates they’ll get there after the Canucks schedule is factored in (providing the Canucks actually have a reason to take to the ice in September).
The Crosby’s would have received 2 million dollars up front for Sidney; his even if the league never plays a single period. It would have been like having a money tree; bills would fall off after each day progressed with no puck hitting the ice. Already with the clock ticking on the league there is some talk that they may not actually start play until November as some of the teams are having problems securing ice time. Sidney would thus have been cashing cheques through September and October wondering if November would send him to work.
As it is he’ll be heading to camp shortly, the Rimouski Oceanic’s, still wanting to learn some more skills and work on his style of play. He’ll make it to the pros, there’s no doubt about that, but he’ll do it on his own schedule, somehow one gets the feeling he won’t be too disappointed when he gets his first paystub. In this case, a good thing will not doubt be coming to those that wait.
Crosby was tempted with a potential 7.5 million dollar contract offered up, 2 million of which would have been his whether the new WHA ever took to the ice or not. The Hamilton franchise of the newly formed league had hoped to lure Crosby away from the junior leagues and become the leagues first marquee signing. The WHA which has been keeping a rather low profile of late, let the word slip out that they had made the offer to Crosby on the same day his father advised the media that he had turned the league down.
Better to have tried and failed than to not try at all could be the credo at the WHA office these days, and well if the young phenom had turned them down anyways why not make the contract offer extremely high so as to show the league as ready to chase after some primo players.
In the end, the Crosby’s decided that the uncertain status of the WHA (the league really hasn’t progressed very far with its plans since the franchise announcements of a few months ago) that weighed against making the leap to pro hockey. That and some unfinished business in junior hockey, Crosby would like another shot at a Memorial Cup and of course be in Canada’s line up when they try to reclaim the title of World Champions and a gold medal at the World Junior Championships in North Dakota this year.
For the Hamilton franchise the gambit was seen as a way to try and secure a lease with officials at the Copps Coliseum. The new franchise has been having some problems getting a deal done on ice time at Copps, situation that many of the other WHA teams share, the Toronto franchise still has yet to secure a home for the upcoming season and little has been heard from BC since the Vancouver spokespeople advised they were inquiring about ice time at GM Place, one can imagine the quality dates they’ll get there after the Canucks schedule is factored in (providing the Canucks actually have a reason to take to the ice in September).
The Crosby’s would have received 2 million dollars up front for Sidney; his even if the league never plays a single period. It would have been like having a money tree; bills would fall off after each day progressed with no puck hitting the ice. Already with the clock ticking on the league there is some talk that they may not actually start play until November as some of the teams are having problems securing ice time. Sidney would thus have been cashing cheques through September and October wondering if November would send him to work.
As it is he’ll be heading to camp shortly, the Rimouski Oceanic’s, still wanting to learn some more skills and work on his style of play. He’ll make it to the pros, there’s no doubt about that, but he’ll do it on his own schedule, somehow one gets the feeling he won’t be too disappointed when he gets his first paystub. In this case, a good thing will not doubt be coming to those that wait.
Smooth skating in Ottawa
Team Canada took advantage of the Tampa connection for a scoring spurt in the second period which propelled the Canadians on to a 3-1 victory over Team USA in Ottawa Wednesday night.
Vincent Lecavalier and Brad Richards, benefiting from the example of some fellow named Lemieux, scored two of the three Canadian goals and Joe Sakic added the final marker as the Canadians recovered from Monday’s loss at Columbus. Playing a style of hockey that Jarome Iginla called “Canadian hockey” Team Canada added some physical play to their speed game as they turned the tables on the Americans, who took the play to them two nights ago.
Despite being outshot by the Americans, Canada held back a charge in the third period when the USA outshot the host 15-6. Roberto Lunongo, who let in all three goals on Monday night, held off the Americans for his half of the game, turning over the netminding duties to Jose Theodore at 10 minutes of the second. Theodore weathered the third period storm fairly handily, giving up a goal to Chris Drury, at the 4 minute mark of the third. But having faced 18 of 19 shots successfully Theodore made a strong case for the opportunity to serve as back up to Team Canada starter Martin Brodeur.
The Americans started Robert Esche in the nets on Wednesday he kept the Canadians off the scoreboard for his 30 minutes of play, Canada getting all of their goals when Ty Conklin took over midway through the second.
For coach Pat Quinn the Canadian effort was more to his liking, he particularly was impressed with the rapport between Richards, Lecavalier and Lemieux and also felt that all the forwards did a much better job of coming back to help out in their own end.
The two teams have one exhibition game remaining; Canada plays Slovakia on Saturday in Ottawa while the Americans take on the Russian team on Friday in Columbus. With one more game to work out the line combinations, shake out any remaining rust and get their systems down, both Canada and USA feel they’ll be ready for action when the tournament gets under way on August 30th.
Vincent Lecavalier and Brad Richards, benefiting from the example of some fellow named Lemieux, scored two of the three Canadian goals and Joe Sakic added the final marker as the Canadians recovered from Monday’s loss at Columbus. Playing a style of hockey that Jarome Iginla called “Canadian hockey” Team Canada added some physical play to their speed game as they turned the tables on the Americans, who took the play to them two nights ago.
Despite being outshot by the Americans, Canada held back a charge in the third period when the USA outshot the host 15-6. Roberto Lunongo, who let in all three goals on Monday night, held off the Americans for his half of the game, turning over the netminding duties to Jose Theodore at 10 minutes of the second. Theodore weathered the third period storm fairly handily, giving up a goal to Chris Drury, at the 4 minute mark of the third. But having faced 18 of 19 shots successfully Theodore made a strong case for the opportunity to serve as back up to Team Canada starter Martin Brodeur.
The Americans started Robert Esche in the nets on Wednesday he kept the Canadians off the scoreboard for his 30 minutes of play, Canada getting all of their goals when Ty Conklin took over midway through the second.
For coach Pat Quinn the Canadian effort was more to his liking, he particularly was impressed with the rapport between Richards, Lecavalier and Lemieux and also felt that all the forwards did a much better job of coming back to help out in their own end.
The two teams have one exhibition game remaining; Canada plays Slovakia on Saturday in Ottawa while the Americans take on the Russian team on Friday in Columbus. With one more game to work out the line combinations, shake out any remaining rust and get their systems down, both Canada and USA feel they’ll be ready for action when the tournament gets under way on August 30th.
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
NHL Hockey in late September is looking less and less likely.
For Hockey fans hoping for positive news regarding the labour situation things aren’t shaping up too good. Both sides seem rather entrenched in their positions and as time ticks down towards a mid September shut down, there seem less and less reasons to be hopeful.
In a fascinating hour of discussion Monday morning, CKNW talk show host Bill Good had former Vancouver Canuck President and GM, Brian Burke and former Canucks owner Arthur Griffiths on to talk about the state of the NHL and what kind of hope they had for a strike or lock out free settlement by the 15th of September.
The consensus of Griffiths and Burke was that a work stoppage of some length was probably unavoidable, lasting at least until Christmas and maybe beyond. A shutdown would definitely be bad news for hockey owners, players and fans. But it would also be particularly bad for local businesses and services in the NHL cities. Numbers vary from city to city but for the most part NHL game night is an economic engine in the immediate area of any NHL arena. From ticket takers to concession workers at the rink, to restaurants, hotels and stores in the NHL cities there would be an economic price to pay to dark rinks for a year.
Good and his guests discussed that impact, as well as the financial ramifications on the league should the shutdown of hockey last more than the season. It was the expectation of those interviewed during the hour that should the league be shut down for the year, there is a very good chance that a number of franchises would not recover from the economic hit and would fold. Contraction will come to the NHL with a vengeance if the shut down lasts a serious amount of time.
HockeyNation fans can listen in to the interview simply by heading for the CKNW website, clicking on the AudioVault section and listening in to the 9am-10 am segment for Monday August 23rd.
Arthur Griffiths will be bringing his extensive knowledge of the ownership side of the game to MOJO radio in Vancouver next week. Griffith’s has been hired on as an on air commentator, hosting a program covering all aspects of the labour dispute, starting Monday August 30th at 10 am (PST). I guess we have pre game shows on the radio, so we can look at this as a Pre Strike/Lockout show.
For those looking for silver linings in our apparently very grey skies, so far Griffiths has signed on only for a two week run, Hockey fans everywhere while not wishing ill for Arthur, no doubt are hoping his show is cancelled before September turns to October.
In a fascinating hour of discussion Monday morning, CKNW talk show host Bill Good had former Vancouver Canuck President and GM, Brian Burke and former Canucks owner Arthur Griffiths on to talk about the state of the NHL and what kind of hope they had for a strike or lock out free settlement by the 15th of September.
The consensus of Griffiths and Burke was that a work stoppage of some length was probably unavoidable, lasting at least until Christmas and maybe beyond. A shutdown would definitely be bad news for hockey owners, players and fans. But it would also be particularly bad for local businesses and services in the NHL cities. Numbers vary from city to city but for the most part NHL game night is an economic engine in the immediate area of any NHL arena. From ticket takers to concession workers at the rink, to restaurants, hotels and stores in the NHL cities there would be an economic price to pay to dark rinks for a year.
Good and his guests discussed that impact, as well as the financial ramifications on the league should the shutdown of hockey last more than the season. It was the expectation of those interviewed during the hour that should the league be shut down for the year, there is a very good chance that a number of franchises would not recover from the economic hit and would fold. Contraction will come to the NHL with a vengeance if the shut down lasts a serious amount of time.
HockeyNation fans can listen in to the interview simply by heading for the CKNW website, clicking on the AudioVault section and listening in to the 9am-10 am segment for Monday August 23rd.
Arthur Griffiths will be bringing his extensive knowledge of the ownership side of the game to MOJO radio in Vancouver next week. Griffith’s has been hired on as an on air commentator, hosting a program covering all aspects of the labour dispute, starting Monday August 30th at 10 am (PST). I guess we have pre game shows on the radio, so we can look at this as a Pre Strike/Lockout show.
For those looking for silver linings in our apparently very grey skies, so far Griffiths has signed on only for a two week run, Hockey fans everywhere while not wishing ill for Arthur, no doubt are hoping his show is cancelled before September turns to October.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)