Boone may be riding off into the sunset – metaphorically; he’s actually driving off to the suburbs – on Aug. 31.
But on at least 82 occasions – and maybe more, inshallah, if the Canadiens make the playoffs – the happy retiree will be hunched over a keyboard, pretending to be a productive member of society.
A prolonged period of intense negotiations between HIO executives and Boone’s agent, Otto Yerass of the sports management firm Dewey, Skruwem & Howe, has resulted in an agreement that guarantees the continuation of the live game blog and the post-game About Last Night feature.
The Canadiens are scheduled to begin their exhibition season on Sunday, Sept. 23, with a 7 p.m. game against the Ottawa Senators at the Bell Centre.
HIO’s live blogger will be there … if there is a there.
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Good news everyone!
NHL 13 team ratings are out, and the Habs are as good as any team in the East!
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/nhl-13-player-team-ratings-eastern-conference-220009401–nhl.html#more-39561
Give me an effing break with rating Phaneuff 88 and Mike Green an 85 where Subban is 85.
Bourque is also just as good as Patches! Heh those ratings are never great, but it’s a really fun game to play with some friends.
Yeah you’re right I guess I just wanted to complain. Do you buy the new game each year?
Ah i just read your response below… The goalie hitting was something that interested me, the new feature of crossovers and momentum or whatever they were calling it doesn’t seem like it will be all that noticeable during gameplay
It’s usually all good stuff that they add in there, and makes for a more interesting game, but I usually skip at least one year.
I really hated the new Be a pro mode in the NHL 12, and that had me only play when I had friends around to play with.
Eller is rated higher than DD. Uhhhhh, based on last years stats, how about no?
“There’s genius everywhere, but until they turn pro, it’s like popcorn in the pan. Some pop… some don’t.”
- Jerry Maguire
Ridicule! Taber-whoit!
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Listen to the Smart Dog. He knows his poop!
Hopefully it runs as smooth as NHL 12.
rip off city
I bought NHL 12, and I love the game… I just have no time to play it.
Definitely won’t grab 13, even though its tempting, cause i know I’ll play like 2 or 3 games, and that will be it.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
The incremental changes are not worth buying the new game each year for me either.
NHL 13 Player Ratings for your Montreal Canadiens – and a projected line-up?
http://mit.zenfs.com/206/2012/08/Ratings_Montreal.jpg
Grant Herschell with a good story about the horrors of breaking your best stick in the Beer League Playoffs, and the realizations about the NHL that he came to in buying a new one.
http://lastwordonsports.com/2012/08/17/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new-forgetting-nhl-superstars/
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
for those who don’t know:
Luca Ciampini was the 2nd overall pick in the 1st round of the QMJHL his entry year. Widely considered one of the best 1994′s in Quebec the past 10 years. Hails from Lasalle, a suburb of Montreal. He is a scorer, a sniper, an offensive player.
He shows flashes of that offensive talent for sure, but is just inconsistent at this point.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Interesting, thanks.
His stats aren’t very good. But I guess that’s why he’s out there. Who knows, maybe he’s had a rough time and can do better.
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Listen to the Smart Dog. He knows his poop!
I have seen him play quite a bit last season and he has that ability to drive you crazy. The flashes of Offense are there but not on a consistent basis. Then again he is developing, so fingers crossed. He could end up being a steal.
He certainly didn’t impress Central Scouting who had him at 196th NA mid-term and off the chart completely by years end. Also team scouts weren’t that impressed either as he didn’t get drafted.
It appears Chris Campoli is a spokesman for the players – I think a smarter thing for Campoli to do is have a signed contract with a team before speaking out cause last season he had a tough time getting a contract so this off season will be harder I believe………
I don’t think Campoli will get much of a sniff either way, considering how he played last year.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Let’s not forget the incident of holding the Hawks hostage and taking them to arbitration after a breakout year of scoring 4 goals and 17 assists in 77 games. Needless to say the Hawks walked away from the table before the arbitrator even made a decision.
And the players have this bobo as a spokesman???
“There’s genius everywhere, but until they turn pro, it’s like popcorn in the pan. Some pop… some don’t.”
- Jerry Maguire
And his Italian last name!
Seriously though, it does seem odd that Campoli is a spokesman for a league he’s not even part of right now. But maybe he’s a smart guy – just not an NHL stand-out.
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Listen to the Smart Dog. He knows his poop!
Same for Darche.
S-Dog, maybe he is looking at life after being a hockey player. Many players have no idea what they are going to do once their playing days are over.
Yah Mustang, absolutely.
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Listen to the Smart Dog. He knows his poop!
In Campoli’s defense he played better after the Trade deadline.
Since this site has turned into CBA Inside/Out…..
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=403196
and
http://www.sportsnet.ca/magazine/2012/08/16/fixing_nhl_crisis_in_five_easy_steps/
BTW, contraction is never going to happen. Weaker teams will eventually move on to Quebec City, Seattle, Kansas City or Southern Ontario.
No new thread; so I guess we get to look at Boone’s mug all day, wait a second, Boone looks different in that photo, but I can’t put my finger on it.
Musta had someone monkeying around with photoshop in the gazette offices.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Good morning Boys and girls!
Mr. Boone! There is nothing like being an old retired fart in this great country. I play it every day with anticipation and a sense of adventure. First time in my life, to bed last night before 10pm out of board-om. Up this morning at 5am and went out for a nice quiet walk along the water trail as the water fowl rabbits and song birds were waking.
After a very stressful and hard working life, I am now on cruse control and enjoying stress free!
Come home, grab a coffee and hop onto HIO!
Not to much going on here so I just might take my fishen poll and boat out if the rain holds off.
Hope everyone has a great day as well.!
Summit game tickets, News, Pictures and comments
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Montreal-Canadiens-We-Are-Fans-Summit/197390760316125
I hope they are biting for you today Ian.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
I don’t know if this has been posted. But here it is:
Patrick Roy joins l’Antichambre. I wonder if they’ll sit him next to Mario Tremblay (and maybe add Ronald Corey as a visiting guest). Or is it the way up to the Montreal Canadiens head coach job à la Therrien?
Just finished my way to the bottom of the blog and answered my own question. It was posted already. I guess thats new news for me, being in Germany I often get yesterdays news in my today over here.
@UCe
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNvcTQWdF9Q
…Normand, I happenstanced on this movie on YouTube while in a JerryLee Lewis kinda mood
…it’s called Elvis Meets Nixon
…I think of You, because the movie reveals Nixon a Chargers’ fan and Elvis a Raiders fan
…it’s an hour long, but a hoot
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Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Campaign to Retire Toe Blake’s Number 6 !!!
Jut to throw something in. Habs have invited Stephen MacAulay to their rookie camp. You might remember him as the defensive wizard under Gerard Gallant in St. John for the last three years. A draft pick of the Blues in 2010 but didn’t fit into their plans. The next Doug Jarvis? Who knows.
A 6’1″ checker and “exceptionally hard worker”. A third line center, he’s a defensive guy and apparently good at it.
Sounds like Chipchura… with the difference of course that we didn’t waste a high level pick on him.
I wonder if he speaks French? Seems like a good way to get to camp this year.
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Listen to the Smart Dog. He knows his poop!
Sounds like a good invite… has an edge with coaches already.
double
Will the Gazette publish a redacted copy of Boone’s contract proposal and their response?
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The cerebral insight of PJ Stock:
“Le problem est Markov n’a pas jouer un seul game cette annee”
“Louis Leblanc est un kid locale”
” I have a pet peeve”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=UPJZ1jL3h1I&NR=1
…the Mike Boone of music …Jerry Lee Lewis
…One does not need be sober to make Magic
_________________________________________________________
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Campaign to Retire Toe Blake’s Number 6 !!!
…has anyOne posted that the Canadiens is giving Halifax Mooseheads forward Luca Ciampini a shot at training camp ?
…18 year old from Montreal
…first, I thought Bergevin was signing a WiseGuy to look after ‘business’ if Chara goes after Patches’ head agin’ and the Prust and Armstrong experiment does not work out
…next time, contract ‘a whack job’
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Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Campaign to Retire Toe Blake’s Number 6 !!!
It’s been posted. Seems like a mystery though, the guy isn’t big, doesn’t score, has a lousy plus-minus. Must have connections of some sort…. does anyone else see something in this guy I missed?
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Listen to the Smart Dog. He knows his poop!
He shows flashes of talent, but is inconsistent.
Maybe they are hoping to see what he can do against better competition.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
I continue to find it amazing how many people find the idea of an abolished draft to be a stupid idea.
1) With a hard salary cap and a maximum limit on contracts, you don’t need an entry draft. They serve the same purposes in limiting team’s ability to stack up on talent.
2) Not every talented player will go to the big teams. This is a ludicrous idea that continually gets trotted out. Look at this year’s NCAA signings of top recruits in basketball, for example, where teams compete to sign the top guys each year.
Rivals.com had identified twenty-five 5-star recruits in this year’s class. Of those 25, 18 different schools landed at least one of the top recruits. Kentucky and Arizona led the pack with three each, while UCLA, N.C. State and Providence were the only other schools to land multiple top recruits.
UCLA (#1 ranked prospect, 3), Kentucky (2, 8, 14), Baylor (4), Pittsburgh (5), Providence (6, 16), UNLV (7), Arizona (9, 15, 23), Oklahoma State (10), Michigan (11), North Carolina State (12, 17), Wisconsin (13), Duke (18), Indiana (19), Houston (20), San Diego State (21), Alabama (22), Kansas (24) and Michigan State (25).
Note some of the schools conspicuous by their absence amongst the top 25 guys: North Carolina, Louisville, Syracuse, Florida, Marquette, Missouri, Georgetown, Cincinnati…all NCAA division I powers that were largely shut out. Why? Because they probably already had players. Kentucky, the #1 last year, basically has sold their soul to the devil, happily taking “one-and-done” players every year ensuring that they have opportunities for top guys every year.
How would this work in the NHL? Unlike the NCAA, where “careers” last 1-4 years, an NHL career for a top player could last 15 years or more. This puts a huge limitation on teams in terms of having contracts and salary to offer in the first place and having prime opportunities (top line forward, top pairing defenceman, starting goaltender) for those truly elite prospects.
When a guy signs with a team, he’s got a choice to make: go for a ring with a Stanley Cup contender, where he might be buried on the third or fourth line, or perhaps sign for more money with a doormat team, lured by the opportunity to get top line minutes to have a chance at the stats needed to earn a BIG contract when they come out of their first contract. I’m all for players taking that gamble because I generally support people’s freedom to choose their own fates.
People point at a team like Columbus as somebody who would never get any players. I argue that teams could rebuild FASTER if they were able to sign 3 or 4 of the “first-round” calibre guys in one season. Let’s say Columbus had the chance to sign Malcolm Subban, Alex Galchenyuk, Nail Yakupov and one of the elite defence prospects this season. They have tons of cap space and they’ve got ice-time for those guys.
Maybe I’m delusional, but I honestly think such an opportunity would be attractive to some of these guys. Not all of them, but certainly some of them. Not every team could bring in a group of 4 or 5 and fit them in…those that could would have an advantage in that one year, and it would add an exciting element of building a team to the GM’s.
3) I don’t buy the party line that many NHL cities would be shunned by all prospects. Columbus is often trotted out…I get a kick out of that. Columbus is the home of Ohio State University, which brings about 50,000 students into the city and features elite level NCAA teams in football and basketball, amongst other sports. You’re telling me that Columbus is not going to have a very, very vibrant nightlife? Did you go to university?
There will undoubtedly be players that want nothing to do with Edmonton (cold) or Nashville (who doesn’t like country
) or Montreal (French). But there will be others that do. It would probably balance out over the long-term. Montreal were doormats most years when it came to UFA’s, but in 2009 we were one of the only teams with sufficient money AND prime opportunities (top-6 minutes) to offer. All of a sudden, Montreal was a pretty attractive team, signing Cammalleri, Spacek, Gionta and Moen in one fell swoop.
4) Think of how many kids get drafted but never see a game in the league. Why even bother with most of it? Let the teams sign the guys they need for their NHL and AHL rosters, and let the rest of the kids explore their options instead of getting stuck in a deep system and perhaps having their development stunted. I feel bad for a guy like Yannick Weber…he could probably play for 50% of the teams in the NHL, but his development is being crushed because he is the wrong fit in Montreal. Is that fair to the player?
The above reason also addresses part of complaint #5…
5) How would GM’s balance this with everything else they do? Let’s be honest…in most drafts, very few of these guys play for at least three seasons, so there is no need to sign them at 18 years old.
9 (of 211) 2011 draft picks played a game last season.
16 (of 210) 2010 draft picks have played a game in the NHL over the past two seasons.
65 (of 211) 2009 draft picks have played a game in the NHL over their three eligible seasons.
Teams can take their time looking at guys who are out there. Minus a draft, they have more time to assess the vast majority of these guys, which should result in less wasted money being thrown around. Leagues are always trying to get the draft upped to 20 so they have more time to assess the players. Abolishing the draft and treating these guys as free agents does largely the same thing.
My only caveat to it would be that players could be signed out of the CHL anytime, but once signed to a professional contract, they can’t go back. This would largely deter teams from signing guys (thereby burning one of their 50 roster spots) unless they are very sure about that player being able to contribute in the AHL or NHL.
First of all I will begin by saying I don’t think this will ever happen, regardless of whether it is a good idea or not.
Secondly you can’t really compare high school athletes picking a University to players picking a pro team. Essentially many high school players pick their University based on which school will help their draft position. Another batch pick their University based on where they are from or where there parents were Alumnis. Another batch actually pick their school based on the Scholastic program available to help them in a career completely unrelated to sports.
Hockey players will pick teams in order by Money, Money and then perhaps winning, then favourite team.
I have not sat down and thought long and hard about this discussion but rather am responding off the cuff. I commend you for having the guts to suggest dropping the draft, but I think a draft is an essential part of equalizing the teams, the fact that the leagues and players associations have bastardized their own agreements in order to nullify the draft is another issue.
End of day, I just see no way of the draft ending, at least not until some player takes it to court and wins.
Also by eliminating a draft, I think you now open a can of worms which allows players to enter the league at an earlier age, this could be very dangerous. I can’t stand the fact the NBA has players skipping out on college to make the NBA, and if unsuccesful bypass a chance at helping their future outside of sport. Would be a shame to see 18 year old kids getting hammered around in the AHL and NHL on a regular basis. Currently the draft is a tool to prevent players from entering the league until a certain age. Give the owners a chance to sign anyone and they will sacrifice any kid for the hope that he is the next Gretzky.
A good example of sports where the draft has not been necessary to even the odds is some of the sports leagues in Europe.
In soccer, teams typically pay significant amounts of money out trying to develop kids as teenagers (or even younger of famous soccer academies, such as Ajax or Barcelona), regaining that money by selling top players to the richer teams throughout Europe.
This club approach to developing players carries over to hockey in many countries, with entry drafts being largely unheard of in Europe until the KHL’s recent adoption of such. The Swedish Elitserien and Finnish SM-Liiga both operate, as they always have, without an entry draft. The NHL itself operated for far longer without a draft than it has with one. And it largely worked out, so I’m not sure that I would be comfortable arguing that abolishing the draft will never happen.
Regarding money, of course that is going to be the first criterion. But if college players factor in a host of things, is it really so wrong to think that some of these kids might factor in other things than just money as well? Players, given more freedom, could make their decisions partially based on proximity to family, on climate, on organizational fit, on childhood dreams (picture Crosby signing in Montreal, the team he grew up cheering for), etc. There are tons of other factors that go into a decision. At 18 years old, I left a lot of scholarship money on the table when I chose which university I would attend, ultimately choosing the one that offered me the least amount of money in exchange for a unique challenge that I couldn’t get anywhere else. Some kids would have taken the money, but I’m not THAT unique!
It is not at all clear to be how eliminating the draft encourages more young players to come to the NHL. If anything, I suspect it would have the opposite effect. You mention the fact that the NBA has players skipping college to make the NBA, but you’re okay with the CHL structure? All those kids that got drafted this past summer should be entering first year of university…why aren’t you outraged by the fact that they aren’t?
I have no problem at all with players skipping on college. The NCAA is the most ethically corrupt money-making machine in the world, with everybody cashing in huge (to the tune of billions of dollars) while the kids are one knee injury or Achilles injury from never making a dime on their athletic talent). You can always go to college at age 20 having made $1 million as a first year professional hockey player but seeing your career end because of a catastrophic knee injury. You can’t always go to the NHL after blowing out your knee during your first season in the NCAA or CIAU, earning peanuts. That is an awful lot of career earnings to throw away.
As I mentioned, precious few of the 18 and 19 year olds ever make the NHL. That isn’t going to change. Most simply aren’t good enough to ever play. The draft controls where a player plays. The age limit (that a player must be 18 years old to play professionally) is set by league rules and I am in no way suggesting that the league should change that rule.
As you suggested, the draft almost certainly will end when a player takes the league to court and wins. I don’t think that decision is far off. I’m merely suggesting that in the interest of fairness to people, why not try to come up with a more fair and equitable system now, as opposed to waiting until it is struck down?
If hockey players were payed in the tens of thousands of dollars instead of the hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars, this would be a no-brainer issue. Few, if anybody, could morally justify the draft. The fact that the players are overpaid does not change the fact that the draft is simply wrong.
If we end up with the Spanish based soccer system I then feel sorry for all fans outside original 6 ciites. There would never be a Carolina or Tampa Bay Stanley Cup Champion again. The Spanish Top Division (equivalent of their NHL) has over half their teams with less than half as many points as the first place team. The Spanish league is a 3 team race most years for the championship.
I personally am not a fan of the current CHL system wherein players at age 16 must decide if they want to eliminate having any opportunity for a U.S. scholarship by allowing themselves to become drafted in the CHL thus ruining their eligibility.
As for the NCAA, I am in a complete different camp from you. Having many friends who attended various schools on scholarships and watching how they have furthered their careers as a result I like it. As for the ethics, yah there are issues, but I don’t have any with the players not being paid. Those billions of dollars also pay for things like lacrosse, hockey, gymnastics and other scholarships and other school activities.
Most of the scholarships at prestigous schools have an equivalancy of $60 -$100K. If people are going to these schools and not taking advantage of the actual schooling and the opportunities that presents, then they shouldn’t have gone to school.
Education is a wonderful thing to get, and the fact these kids get it free and at some incredible schools is a bonus. The injury argument is a red herring. That is chance, chance can always occur at any time and is not enhanced or lessened by going to school.
I see the development benefits you speak of, but isn’t the reason the soccer development works so well because they get these kids at a much younger age? Do the NHL teams start signing kids at 16 then?
I don’t know, I think biggest problem is, the NHL has 30 teams that need to be fed, and the total number of hockey players in North America is a much smaller number compared to the number of soccer players to choose from in Europe . (Perhaps not, but just my feeling on those numbers)
BUt perhaps with this constant labour unrest something radical like this is considered. I suspect the CHL would be completely against this happening.
You’re convoluting two issues: Spanish football works that way because they do not have a hard salary cap in place. My central point is that a hard salary cap AND maximum number of contracts each team can hold already take care of the possibility of European style disparity. You can’t load up on talent like Real Madrid or Barcelona because you’re not allowed to spend 20 or 100 times what the other teams in La Liga can spend.
I have no problem with athletic scholarships. I do have a problem with the sheer corruption of the NCAA in working with the NFL (who have a rule on the books that you must be at least two years out of high school before you can play in the NFL) and the NBA (who instituted a year insisting that you must be at least one year out of high school before you can play in the NBA) to force the top talents to go to the NCAA. That is absolute BS. The end result is scandals like those of Derrick Rose, who faked his SAT scores to be eligible at Memphis, or Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett, who had no business ever being admitted to a university. Like you, I think kids SHOULD go to school. But effectively forcing them to do so is wrong, and the NCAA is so ethically corrupt that the whole system should be torn apart and rebuilt with education as the centrepoint. Somewhere along the way, universities have lost their way when it comes to sports, as Penn State is the most recent to demonstrate.
Precious few kids would make the NHL straight out of high school. But if they have the talent and the desire, why shouldn’t they be able to? They are allowed to be riddled with bullets in defence of their country, but we’re worried about them getting bodychecked while earning salaries that could set them up for life. There is an awfully skewed societal viewpoint in evidence here.
As for the soccer model, they do sign them very young. And that was my concern with that model. In Sweden, they created lower tier leagues (essentially with the same clubs running junior teams) that are little different in principle than what we have with the CHL-AHL-NHL progression. The difference is that all the leagues are run by the same teams, and the players can leave at the end of any contract.
Re-posted:
It might work out like in US College Football, where a team like the University of Southern California should get all the recruits, but they can’t because they have a limit on scholarships, they can only have 90 players on those at any time. So USC selects/recruits the best players it can, then the rest bounce around to Arizona, Oregon, Stanford, etc. Further, if you’re a running back and you want to play rather than sit on the bench, and you know the team already has Reggie Bush and LenDale White committed to play there, maybe you look at what UCLA has to offer.
In hockey, if you’re a young guy who plays the wing and wants to snipe goals, then you might want to go to Pittsburgh really badly so you get to play with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. If you’re a center who wants to be the #1 guy on the team and get powerplay time, you’re not going to look at Pittsburgh. Same issues would face a goalie prospect, he might choose to go somewhere because they don’t have a #1 goalie, and playing time is the most important consideration. Then teams like Nashville can make competitive offers that stacked teams loaded with veterans like the Rangers or Kings would tend to be in this scenario can’t.
Why not go back to the sponsorship system?
Then teams could develop players from an early age and at the end of the day the drafted no-shows wouldn’t make it out of junior.
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The cerebral insight of PJ Stock:
“Le problem est Markov n’a pas jouer un seul game cette annee”
“Louis Leblanc est un kid locale”
” I have a pet peeve”
Not a crazy idea at all Chris. There are enough brakes in the system as you point out, with the 90 reserved players and the 50 contracts and the salary cap that the draft is probably superfluous. All it does is maybe ensure that the once in a generation players like Pierre Turgeon, Eric Lindros or Vincent Lecavalier come along they go to the weak sisters of the NHL and prop them up, like Sidney Crosby did with the Penguins, although in that case it was due to the luck of the lottery.
We love the draft nowadays and a lot of fans can’t fathom team sports without a draft, but its inception stems from the need of the owners to protect themselves from the bidding wars which were starting to occur for underaged players in the sixties with the advent of player agents.
I have more on this topic that I posted as it related to the Justin Schultz controversy this summer.
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.ca/2012/06/does-justin-schultz-deserve-to-choose.html
So yes, the draft is not an immutable, integral part of pro sports, just a way for those free-market titans of industry who ‘assume all the risks’ and pay for airfare and towel laundering, and who therefore need a ‘more fair’ distribution of revenues, to rig the system. Yes, in this case, communism suits them just fine.
I’ve been thinking about this for a while Chris, and been meaning to sit down and write out a longer post, but the CBA subject is getting me down. As people can tell I’m passionate about this issue, and I’ve been posting strong opinions, and I think it’s rubbing some people the wrong way, and in some cases it’s some posters that I respect and value the conversations we have on here. So I’ve been holding off. Well, at least my version of holding off.
Anyway, my thoughts are that the NHL can be short-sighted here if they break the union. Two unintended consequences can arise that would be worse than the current situation.
One is that the owners, if they get their way with the initial proposal they put forward, may make their league unattractive enough that players flee to the KHL or other European leagues. It wouldn’t be all players, but enough that it might sting.
Vladimir Putin has allowed the oligarchs to appropriate vast segments of the Russian economy and derive staggering personal fortunes from that, but in return he has ordered them to invest back in Russia, instead of just buying villas in the Mediterranean. The investment in Sochi for the Olympic Games is all because an oligarch is pumping money into a totally unsuitable resort on the Black Sea. The winter amenities won’t be great as global warming accentuates, but the beaches and casinos will rock.
In the same vein, I can see him ordering that they KHL compete head to head with the NHL, or at least 4 to 6 teams. He would want this for the prestige of Mother Russia. Issues like air travel and other considerations can be addressed with enough investment (ie: charter some German planes for your team).
If the NHL clamps down on rookie contracts and free agency, does Nail Yakupov come to North America to play junior and then NHL, or does he stay at home? So Gary Bettman can’t be reckless and squeeze the lemon too hard, eventually he’ll have created a rival league, instead of having the NHL conquer Europe.
Another unintended consequence is that if the NHLPA doesn’t serve its purpose anymore, if it doesn’t work as an effective bargaining tool for the players, if the NHL imposes draconian limits on the earnings of players, they can choose to decertify as a union and strike down things like the draft and the reserve clause in the courts, and create a perfect free market in terms of player contracts. The only reason these things we take for granted are allowable under American law is that the players have agreed to it in a CBA. If the NHLPA and CBA are no longer in force, then all these restraints of trade would be removed, by force of court order if necessary.
So if the NHL goes scorched earth on the players, it may be a Pyrrhic victory.
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.ca/2012/07/will-nhl-consider-nuclear-option-and.html
Normand,
Every been in Russia?
I don’t mean a tour of Moscow, Red Square and the Kremlin but a few months in the outposts where the KHL teams are based.
The issues with personal security, home security and general standards including travel are not appealing to players especially those who are used to the good life in the NHL.
Sure they pay tax free in cash but if you are held up at gunpoint it doesn’t make much sense.
Think for a minute that many North American wives would stand up to those challenges?
KHL is set up for Russian players and fringe NHL players wanting to cash in for one big bonanza! Look how many foreign players stay beyond one contract?
Been there (3 years) and it isn’t pretty!
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The cerebral insight of PJ Stock:
“Le problem est Markov n’a pas jouer un seul game cette annee”
“Louis Leblanc est un kid locale”
” I have a pet peeve”
In many respects, this is exactly the way I can see things going down.
The draft is acceptable because the NHLPA and the NHL agreed to it in their collective bargaining agreement, thereby precluding legal challenges. What is very interesting is that the NHLPA has the right to bargain away the rights of players not yet in the NHLPA. This is another case where the players’ greed will allow them to sell out the rights of the younger generation to secure as much money for themselves as they can. I’ve always found it amazing that the collective bargaining agreement between players and the league doesn’t also have some input from the junior age players that will be affected by that agreement over the next couple of seasons.
NFL free agency only became a reality after the 1987 work stoppage resulted in the decertification of their player union and a number of players launched antitrust lawsuits against the league. In 1992, one of these lawsuits was successful and, with a looming class action lawsuit led by Reggie White looming in the courts, the NFL VERY reluctantly relented.
As you say, if the NHL plays hardball too much here, they risk a Pyrrhic victory that could completely change the landscape of the sport. I’ve outlined one area I’d like to see, but it is just as likely that we will see cracks and fissures in the league that aren’t as desirable.
I think you are confusing me with Yeats.
Apart from the CBA negotiations, this has been a good offseason. Mike Boone staying is one of the best news!!!
Now they really HAVE TO find a way to play hockey in October – with the live blog and all.
I’ve been moderated!!!
What scandal!!
I thought it was funny. (OK so maybe I’m the only one).
But it was a fair fight between Fehr and Butthead.
I guess my reference to _______ was too much.
Perhaps so….
How’s a guy supposed to earn a living around here?
If only there was some meaty hockey news to sink my teeth into!
I was moderated yesterday referring to Bettman as a small man who wants to prove he at least has a big _____ in a _____ swinging contest. My post made no sense with the ( deleted ) in the middle of it.
“They don’t hang Conference Championship Banners from the rafters here”
Carey Price
I got to read it before it was moderated or perhaps better to say AutoCorrected. There was some entertainment value there Bri, but i am concerned at how you came up with that.
Yah, not much hockey to think about. Perhaps we should focus on the NFL in the meantime! My Steelers have a couple issues, Harrison undergoing knee surgery and the fact Wallace hasn’t reported yet. I am thinking the biggest concern Patriot fans like yourself have is the fact it was revealed this offseason that Wes Welker is using some kind of propecian product to get his full head of hair back!
…Brian, try the ‘rick’, ‘rock’ and ‘wrecker’ H.I.S. work-around
…I thought of it too late to save My excellent Olympic comment to be modded, but I will assign all literary rights to You to save You from being accused of plagiarism
…after all, We are ALL in this ‘together’ !
_________________________________________________________
Habitant means PASSIONATE HOCKEY
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=423049
Campaign to Retire Toe Blake’s Number 6 !!!
tick tock and decker were modded?
Boone will be back. We’re all ready and waiting. Even the summit is all planned.
All that’s missing is the $%#@* new CBA.
Maybe we can march like the students.
Bring out the pots and pans.
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.
Maybe hockey sticks and helmets?
The cops would love that.
It reminds them of riot duty.
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.
Cops are the biggest hockey fans.
With people talking earlier about the major i Mtl,Tor, NY, Chi. Bos, etc…( i.e. the franchises that are successful ) not wanting a lockout and doing everything in their power to make sure there is a season ( I think it was Burly earlier ) I would have to add Nashville to that group because of the 26 million in bonus money they have and will have to payer Weber without him playing a single game
“They don’t hang Conference Championship Banners from the rafters here”
Carey Price
Don’t believe a word that Burly character has to say, he will only get you in trouble.
Yah, can’t imagine they want to pay 26million for nothing, but I am not sure. They are a team that needs a change to the current deal, yet they also can’t afford to lose the momentum they have gained the past two years with playoffs. So hard to know if the owners really are united behind Bettman, but I am not so sure.
there is 0 chance the owners are united. Zero. But they are smart enough to stay quiet. There is not a chance Molson wants a lockout.
None of the “healthy” teams do.
I am in agreement Ed, I have posted earlier my theory. That being the “Healthy Teams” have given Bettman until the 15th of Sept. (or another predetermined date) to try and get what he can out of the players to help the other franchises, after that they are willing to keep something similar to what we have now and start the season.
Agreed, unfortunately the owners of the smaller franchises who are receiving compensation from the owners of the successful franchises have an equal vote to the owners of the successful franchises. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think that’s how it works.
“They don’t hang Conference Championship Banners from the rafters here”
Carey Price
I think just as the high end players in the league have more influence than 4th liners, the powerful owners have more influence than their weaker sisters. I could be wrong, but seems to me people like Snider and Jacobs have much more influence than the owners of Edmonton or Nashville.
What’s that rumbling I hear in the background?
That’s the NHL season!!!
Not a single mention on here today that Carey Price turned 25 today. Hard to believe he’s only 25 and ready to start his 6th season as a Habs goalie when most goaltenders his age have barely been promoted from the minors or have only had a couple of NHL seasons.
“They don’t hang Conference Championship Banners from the rafters here”
Carey Price
There were two posts today, it was on the first one.
https://twitter.com/CP0031/status/236200803134734337/photo/1
Chrisadiens pointed it out very early in the day, in fact we have a poster here who shares the same birthday! But not much since, you are correct.
Happy Birthday Carey.
Unlike some, I think we’re lucky to have him. I am a little biased because I’m a former tender and he’s my favorite player, but the only guy I’d rather have from the 2005 draft is Sid the KID, but he’s the best player in the World. That includes Ryan and Kopitar from that draft.
“They don’t hang Conference Championship Banners from the rafters here”
Carey Price
There are a few of us who feel that way.
At the risk of starting a discussion, totally agree too.
A little country but title appropriate;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCqAt6-sptk&feature=related
Elvis has left the building!
Wow! Max and Boone both signed in the same week. Great news! Does this mean less money left for PK? Whats Mike’s salary cap hit?
Seriously, Mike… this site is nothing without your blogging! And “About Last Night” is the best post-game read out there!
Welcome back!
This is great news!
Elvis Presley died 35 years ago today and managers of his estate announced the re-release of one of his hit singles, which has been retitled ‘Sept. 15′ for hockey fans
If you like your hockey, I’ve got bad news, my friend
That’s when your heartaches begin
When dreams of a season must come to an end
That’s when your heartaches begin
Players and owners can’t really share
A big pot of gold if it means being fair
If next season they cancel
Because neither will bend
That’s when your heartaches begin
[Spoken}
If you’ve followed hockey through the years with your friends, brother
That’s, that’s when the good times clicked in
And you know, when all your dreams, when all your dreams of a lifetime
Must, must all come to an end
Yeah, that’s, that’s when your heartaches begin.
For you know the players and the owners they can’t really share
The joy that we fans feel when our team plays with flair
When two sides will not bargain
It’s the fans who don’t win
Well, that’s when your heartaches begin.
Edit: Geez, you guys are quick. The post was up for 37.4 seconds before being removed to fix, and it gets two responses to a period . (yeah, that one)
That time again huh? Back pains, cramps, mood swings?
Point well taken.
***Subbang Baby!!!***
Do you think we were set up or what?
He scares me.
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I think I just started to like Elvis that much more.. and I already loved the guy.. thank you for that
“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”
Mark Twain.
Johnny…. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUWMSVDPdGQ&feature=related
OR
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H50iHzF9Riw&feature=related
Cuel!
Damn, he’s Good!
Abe doesn’t sound too positive about this season;
https://abehefter.wordpress.com/2012/08/16/kiss-the-nhl-season-good-bye-habs-fans/
with all the negative news and speculation on the ol’ internet its nice to find some good refreshing new.. I for one am very happy about this .. GO Boone GO! .. or should I say Blog! Boone! Blog!
“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”
Mark Twain.
Great news Mr Boone!
Hopefully your emeritus status will allow you to unleash your political incorrectness even more than before.
–
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.
Quick recap on what I’ve just read on here from comments today.
-saw some more bashing of Cammy but he’ll always be remembered as a playoff hero to me.
-people who think they should reduce the number of NHL teams should realize the NHLPA would never agree to anything that would reduce their union members by 10 to 20%. I would have no problem with relocating these teams to markets like Quebec, Hamilton, or even Markam. Quebec could support a franchise now because of the salary cap and the strength of the Can $. Problem with Markam and Hamilton is the Leafs and Sabres probably wouldn’t approve because of competition.
- hear Patrick Roy is joining L’Antichambre. Makes me wonder how many times he is available after Habs games because of his travelling with the Ramparts
-Kovy making a comeback, good for him, I wish him the best of luck, he was always one of my favorites, but I don;t think he fits into our plans or the direction management is going
-
Mmmmm….corn from D’aoust on Harwood in Vaudreuil. Maybe not quite as good as Hurrle’s outside of St. Agatha in SW Ontario but I was weened on that stuff so I’m a bit biased.
But D’aoust…pretty darned close.
***Subbang Baby!!!***
Stuffed myself with fresh Cob tonight… yum yum!
One of my favorite summer treats. Nothing like fresh sweet corn. It’s not just for breakfast anymore.
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Good news! ty for stickin’ around Boonemeister.
Occupation: Professional Hedonist… aiming low and exceeding expectations
Hobo with a laptop
SUMMIT NEWS! Possible LOCK OUT,
“IF” a lock out happens, I have instructed the Bell Center to not refund my visa account, but to hold on to our money and replace all the tickets purchased with the same seats at a date of our choosing.
It would be a nightmare for me to get everyone’s mailing address, pay for money orders in both USA and Canadian currency’s, stamps etc. for a hundred and fifty people.
Anyone who could not make the new date, we will help you sell your new tickets to other HIO members that would like to go.
This is only a heads up in the event of a lockout.
Summit game tickets, News, Pictures and comments
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Montreal-Canadiens-We-Are-Fans-Summit/197390760316125
Ian
Put me on the waiting list should the date change, I’ll definitely buy someone’s tickets. I just can’t do that October 27th date.
Hopefully there is no lockout and I’m at the 2013-14 summit though.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
That is very welcome news, Mr. Boone. As you say, let’s just hope there is a hockey season for you to live blog!
Full Breezer 4 Life
Great news, Boone. Very happy you’ll still be doing the Live Game Blogs and ALN. HIO wouldn’t be the same without you.
- Honestly yours
Twitter: @de_benny
2012 picks Sebastian Collberg, Erik Nyström named to Swedish nat junior team for 4-Nations Tournament in Czech Rep end August.
Timmins sure liked Nystrom.
It’ll be cool to see him play(Hopefully), he’s the one guy we drafted a lot of peeps had no clue about. But Timmins said he was impressed by him.
Occupation: Professional Hedonist… aiming low and exceeding expectations
Hobo with a laptop
I trust Timmins, but I want to see this kid play.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
i agree 100% i cant wait to see what this kids got.. didn’t Timmins say he believed this kid was the sleeper pick of the draft?
“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”
Mark Twain.
I like that Nickle lad. He reminds me of Don Rickles.
Not sure if someone has already said this —
something to consider for September 14 —
play this year under last year’s cap and floor
and continue negotiations.
64.3million — fines are paid by clubs over this limit and all go into the escrow fund that gets redistributed to the weaker teams.
Both sides could also agree to a one year delay in cap from now on, setting the cap based on two seasons before.
Players would probably do it as along the same lines as their proposal but NHL wouldn’t be.
The NHLPA played the “we could continue using the current CBA until we decide on a new one” card, but the NHL shot that down and said if there is not a new CBA by September 15th, they will lock the players out.
I can see why the NHL would choose that… They have much less negotiating power over the players while they are still playing hockey.
The cap is halfway between what the players and the owners are suggesting for 2012/13.
This season the players share starts at $1,881,000,000.
The NHL wants it to drop to $1,419,000,000.
The NHLPA offer is for $1,744,200,000.
Yours is $1,710,000,000 if my math is correct.
Obviously, with the retention of Mike Boone for the ‘live blog’ and ‘about last night’, I am withdrawing my offer to the Gazette to post a ‘white board’ blog for every HABS game.
Instead I shall be retooling my resume and concentrating all my efforts towards getting my application in for the job of HABS blogger on the soon to be launched website of #hockeyyinsiderr.
Pursuant to that effort I wish to state that I have solid leads which inform me that there is an ‘out clause’ in Patrick Roy’s contract with RDS which allows him to accept either the CEO/GM/COACH position of the Phoenix-Quebec franchise or a job as head coach with an eastern division team that shall be nameless for now.
Stay tuned!
The Habs are looking for part time people in the new Habs Hall of Fame…
You saw that too, eh Frank?
It’s tempting.
I wonder if I should ask my agent to contact them.
I have 3 strikes against me. I live in Ottawa. I dont know French. And I’m cocky.
I’d apply if I lived in Montreal.. but i Like my job as it is so i’m not gonna move just for that.. tempting though lol
“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”
Mark Twain.
Patrick Roy to be a panelist on l’Antichambre!
Michel Therrien is sweating already.
He seems to disappear in the summer time, long weekend too. I’m not sure what that suggest about his life, or mine, or yours or anybody else around here, that’s just my observation.
vvv this was meant to be a reply to the comment below vvv
What ever happened to TomNickle?
Traded up to TomDime?
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
You’ll find him in the loony bin.
Bazinga!
LMAO oh the wit is just flowing today .. keep up the good work guys
“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.”
Mark Twain.
I have some very reliable sources who tell me that a dingo ate the Nickleman.
Trini, you’ve got sources and leads all over the place.
What are you…. a politician?
Could also be a journalist.
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.
Elaine Benis?
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.
Subs back out for an extra lineman against the run?
“Et le but!”
I was really hoping to read Timo was taking over the live game blog and ALN.
Where does that come from? Do you really think The Gazette is THAT rich?
lmao,we both know the only thing more entertaining then letting you run the game blog is if you got a full access media pass for post game interviews.
“But on at least 82 occasions – and maybe more, inshallah, if the Canadiens make the playoffs – the happy retiree will be hunched over a keyboard, pretending to be a productive member of society.”
I expect Boone to live blog what ever is on RDS on the nights the Habs are scheduled to play if there is a lockout.
Hopefully we’ll get some old re-runs of Mini Golf, and get to read Boone say, “BIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRDDDDDDDDDDDDDIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE Carl Carmoni”
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Mini-Putt, poker and petoncle!
Now THAT’S programming, à son meilleur!
Live from Parc La Fontaine, via BellEspressVu. Unfortunately, not a winter sport. Could show summer reruns, like RDS did with table hockey.
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.
SAMEDI 27 OCTOBRE 2012 À 19H00
NIVEAU BLANC SECTION 308 RANGÉE EE SIÈGE 12
1) So, is this as good a vantage point as John Bellyfull’s rooftop perch?
2) Which ones of you knuckleheads will I be seated with?
3) My ticket says ‘No Backpacks’, but what about Gore-Tex? Because that’s probably a good choice of outerwear for the people sitting in front of me, I tend to be demonstrative and use my hands a lot when I scream, even when I’m holding a cup.
4) Is anyone else bringing a vuvuzela?
Geez Norm…
Gore-Tex and a vuvuzela?
All you’ll be missing is the sockdals (the dreaded socks and sandals).
How far behind me are you? Only eight rows…. I’d better bring my earplugs and raincoat.
You will be directly behind chrisadiens and I. Hopefully you won’t have to yell “down in front”.
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Just make sure you block all of the splashing. Sounds like he’s a little sloppy.
Vuvuzuela: African Moose Horn.
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.
Negotiations aren’t going so well….
http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Owners+quick+reject+players+association+proposal/7098861/story.html
_____________________________
“Access Forbidden” gettin’ ya down?
Hold down Shift while clicking refresh.
Doomed?
Chrisadiens and HabFan10912, one of the few father son tandems on HIO.
OK after two weeks of beach front, I’m suffering the post-vacation doldrums. So I don’t know if the Mods will leave this as is, but for at least your temporary entertainment, I offer you the following conversation between Bettman and Fehr, via texts:
Damn autocorrect:
Donald Fehr: Gary, I think you should rectify the CBA of the past
Autocorrect: Gary, I think you should rectally toss the CBA up your ass
Bettman’s response: Ooo, aaah
Bettman: Donald, I’m dumping Colin Campbell when I get to the office
A/C: Donald, I’m jumping Colin Campbell when I get to the office
Fehr’s response: I knew that beady look of yours was for a reason
Fehr: I shook my coke too hard and it exploded everywhere
A/C: I shook my c*ck too hard and it exploded everywhere
Bettman’s response: Can I watch?
Bettman: I think I’ll take you out for dinner and then we can discuss the CBA
A/C: I think I’ll eat you out for dinner then we can disguise the CBA
Fehr’s response: This is awkward.
Fehr: Sorry I’m late for the meeting, but I’m coming out of the clinic
A/C: Sorry I’m late for the meeting, but I’m coming out of the closet
Bettman’s response: Oh goodie, now we have so much in common!
Do you mean Colin Campbell?
I believe Clarence Campbell is dead.
All my creative work….down the toilet!
I too have suffered from “doldrums” after a vacation. Mostly after my annual trip to Montreal with my Dad. We have coined the acronym, PMD. Post Montreal Depression.
Chrisadiens and HabFan10912, one of the few father son tandems on HIO.
Any acronym with the first two letters being P & M, scares me.
Duck
Still no Nordiques and now Boone is returning! This world is driving me to drink I tell you…
[Disclaimer]: I’m a hockey fan. I care about the habs, but probably not as much as you.
Great news Mr. Boone. Judging from the photo it IS time to retire! Now if they can only sign PK we’ll have all our ducks in a row.
With Mike Boone’s new (guaranteed) contract firmly in grasp re:live blogging on HIO, it’s possible he will be earning more than NHL players this year.
Definetely more then my brother in law.
With Grabovski making 5.5 million a season maybe a lockout isan’t that bad of an idea.
Best news of the day!
‘Beware the late one!’
Did any one see that Kovy is trying to come back?
A BIG who cares to that. Kovy was done when the Habs let him go.
+1
Who said it was for us? lol We certainly don’t need em ..
My band: http://facebook.com/TheCollectiveOttawa
Edmonton paper is saying that the OIlers have had preliminary talks with his agent.
Edit: Wrong place sorry.
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Stu’s latest as it pertains to the Devils and the money woes of the owner.
http://nhl-red-light.si.com/2012/08/16/gotta-give-the-devils-owner-his-due/
It’s hard to believe that a team like the Devils, who have been consistently successful over the past 15-18 years (only missing the post-season twice) would not be in such financial peril. Is attendance really that bad?
“There’s genius everywhere, but until they turn pro, it’s like popcorn in the pan. Some pop… some don’t.”
- Jerry Maguire
Well the Leafs sale has passed its final litmus test, they are now owned by the media. I feel sorry for all my Leaf friends here in Ontario, the day they get honest coverage of their favourite team is virtually gone now.
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=403201
I would think they should be happy.
If the coverage was honest, they would see the team for what it really is.
Most every Leaf fan I know, admits quite readily how bad their team is.
Yes but…. are they really leaf fans?
Leaf fans are actually quite proud they finished ahead of the habs last season. IT may of cost them their coveted number 1 center but at least they were 14th instead of 15th.
Yeah, but Brian Burke still got to draft the player they had ranked #1 overall.
Yes Dr., they may think of it as a small step, huh? Might be one step forward and two back in the end though.
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That’s pretty sad but then again Leafs fans have always been sad.
And Leaf Fans are also proud of the fact they are the only team since the 2005 lockout not to have made the playoffs…….lol
The Leafs had it easy up until now. I mean these fans deserve better come on ! It`s as if it is o.k. to keep a G.M. that did not make it in 4 years in the playoffs. It happened to us last year for the first time in a while and have you see the clean up ? It was long overdue but still Toronto needs a complete overhaul and a new modern way of seeing things much more than we did.
So if a change in media pressure is in the cards it will be for the Leafs own good. The coverage so far has been to soft and naive.
Here’s an interesting piece of information. A 2006 Ontario Superior Court case found that the trustees had gone against Lord Stanley’s conditions in the 1947 agreement.[22] The NHL has agreed to allow other teams to play for the Cup should the league not be operating, as was the case in the 2004–05 NHL lockout.
which means amateur teams could compete for the stanley cup.
http://web.archive.org/web/20071216083200/http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=153935&hubname=
_______________________________________________________
Well, he’s kind of had it in for me ever since I accidentally ran over his dog. Actually, replace “accidentally” with “repeatedly” and replace “dog” with “son.”
“It’s sad when our rookies have no NHL experience before they jump up to the NHL.” – nunacanadien
I believe some tried to get that invoked last lockout but the NHL said they wouldn’t
I don’t remember who it was that tried, it may have been a rec league for all I know. I recall something about not being considered the next best league, so NO!
or I dreamt that…
An Habs/Inside/Out gutted out of its “about last night” serie and no Boone to look up for ? man, that was an horrible proposition….. quick someone signed him long term and lets be done with it.
the canadiens just released a top 10 untouchable records set by the canadiens, definitely worth a read, pretty awesome!
http://canadiens.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=82438
So cool!
With Andrei Markov healthy, we’ll get back to that 33% PP Efficiency level.
Refuse to drink their kool-aid any longer. I wont read it. Enough of this living in the past bs. Buckle down and freakin get this team to where they are creating new records.
Heck I saw someone suggest we next retire Doug Riseborough’s jersey.
Geez!
i don’t disagree with you, but it’s still worth reading, 17 stanley cups is something no one will ever come close to touching.
Here’s my CBA proposal:
Revenues split 50/50.
Abolish both the draft and introduce unrestricted free agency to every player from 18 years old onwards. Players get absolute freedom of choosing their place of work in exchange for a bigger share of revenue to the owners. Win-win.
Maintain a hard salary cap and maximum number of contracts to prevent rich teams from abusing the system.
Abolish all contracts over 5 years OR abolish buy-outs and the ability of teams to bury mistakes in the minors. Teams will not risk long term contracts to the same extent if they have to worry about eating a mistake for the lifetime of that contract.
Set up a revenue sharing system that helps the middle teams a bit more without putting all teams on equal footing. If your team is brutally mismanaged, there should be a financial penalty associated with that.
After that, work out the rest of the details that I don’t really care about all that much.
I think you hit the Yakupov on the head with the contract duration/buy out. Get rid of buy outs and make the long term contracts extremely risky for those that offer them. I can see the number of players who would be rewarded with those contracts drop significantly to only 4 or 5 players.
So free market capitalism for the players entering the league, but socialism on the split of revenues?
Players choosing where they work means Winnipeg and Edmonton may as well close shop. Most will want the 3 Californian teams and the 2 Florida teams. Some tradition-minded players (fewer and fewer of those these days) will want to go to an original 6 team or the expansion 12.
Agree with the hard cap and the term.
I am not a believer in revenue sharing. Weak sister teams due to poor marketing and management can and should remain just that.
Someone hires this guy as a mediator between the owners and NHLPA.
” Abolish both the draft and introduce unrestricted free agency to every player from 18 years old onwards. Players get absolute freedom of choosing their place of work in exchange for a bigger share of revenue to the owners. Win-win.”
How many players would choose to play in Nashville or Columbus no matter how much money they’d be offered?
It might work out like in US College Football, where a team like the University of Southern California should get all the recruits, but they can’t because they have a limit on scholarships, they can only have 90 players on those at any time. So USC selects/recruits the best players it can, then the rest bounce around to Arizona, Oregon, Stanford, etc. Further, if you’re a running back and you want to play rather than sit on the bench, and you know the team already has Reggie Bush and LenDale White committed to play there, maybe you look at what UCLA has to offer.
In hockey, if you’re a young guy who plays the wing and wants to snipe goals, then you might want to go to Pittsburgh really badly so you get to play with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. If you’re a center who wants to be the #1 guy on the team and get powerplay time, you’re not going to look at Pittsburgh. Same issues would face a goalie prospect, he might choose to go somewhere because they don’t have a #1 goalie, and playing time is the most important consideration. Then teams like Nashville can make competitive offers that stacked teams loaded with veterans like the Rangers or Kings would tend to be in this scenario can’t.
———————————————————————–
This isn’t “Billionaires vs. Millionaires.” Only a willfully uninformed fool would apply that sloppy shorthand designation to this disgraceful power grab crafted by some of the wealthiest individuals and corporate entities in North America aimed against professional athletes.–Larry Brooks of the New York Post
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.com/
True,but young guys will be looking for other things such as what type of a nightlife does a city offer? Not sure if Columbus or Nashville cut it in this area(with apologies to all country music fans).
Seriously Chris. Abolishing the draft. Your dumbest idea to date and you continue touting it.
Draft should definitely be maintained. However, team names should go into a hat to determine draft order. This will eliminate tanking.
“eliminate tanking” ????
Surely this will now become HardHabits’ newest nominee for “dumbest idea to date”. He loves his tanking
“Et le but!”
Chris,
I see below that HardHabits doesn’t like the idea of getting rid of the draft. I differ.
I rarely mention ditching the draft only because I think it is unlikely to happen. We accept the draft because it seems “fair” and promises to increase the parity of the league, but it is a really onerous restriction on trade and free market economics. Fair to whom? The teams? Seriously in what occupation can you imagine people being told “if you want to work in this field you are only allowed to work for Firm A for the next 10 years at whatever rate of compensation between $y and $z you can work out, given that you have roughly 0 leverage since you can’t go work for any competitor.”
Funny how the contingent of pro-Owner bootlicker Ayn Rand free market capitalists never seem to object to the one aspect of professional sports that is really objectionable on a free market basis (and no, I don’t mean to group HardHabits in that crowd, I suspect he just has a pragmatic objection to ditching the draft)
The thing about revenue sharing that is very tough for the NHL is the lack of a big money national TV deal. In a sport like NFL football they can afford to equalize small market teams with an even share of the national tv money. With the NHL dependent on gate revenue it is much harder to take money from tickets bought in real markets like New York and Detroit and give it to teams that cannot sell the product in places like Phoenix, or are mismanaged like Columbus.
I favour a heavy luxury tax to allow teams like the Rangers or the Leafs who would have a legitimate interest in spending like drunken sailors to do so and fund the revenue sharing pool directly out of their own hubris. For every dollar paid in excess of the cap $x would have to be paid by that team into a fund to be distributed to teams who spent between the salary floor and cap. You could adjust x to tweak how much you want to discourage the behaviour or increase revenue sharing.
I wouldn’t abolish the draft. I would put all the non playoff teams in the lottery with all the same chance of getting the 1st overall pick.
yes there has to be less incentive to suck. The oilers getting the first pick for years on end is shameful
Put all non playoff teams in a hat and draw 1- 14. All playoff teams in and draw for 15- 30.
Use Boone ‘s hat from the picture above.
“Et le but!”
Too much common sense… wont fly.
Otto Yerass works with Dewey Skruwem and Howe? I thought he just commented on articles?
Anyhow, good news. I guess Boone won’t be using the retirement squeegee and empty Timmie’s cup every day.
Dear Mr. Boone:
This is wonderful news (I’m one of the ‘literally dozens’): the season is far far better for your blogging–in all seriousness.
I trust that a gratuity sent to your former employer will still find you.
Best,
VancouverHab
Interesting that Bettman brings up the world economy, I am assuming he is admitting or agreeing that the U.S. Economy, the European Economy and even the Canadian Economy are teetering right now. Yes we in Canada seem to have it a little better, but there is still a great deal of people living with a higher debt ratio than has ever been the norm in this country.
I haven’t heard any rhetoric from either side saying they wish the game was more affordable for fans to watch, thus growing the game amongst who it is most important the Paying Public.
Anyways, just an observation, I am sure both Donald Fehr and Gary Bettman really do care about the fans, they just haven’t been asked the right question yet which will allow them to elaborate.
Why would they cut ticket prices? The rinks that they can’t fill are empty because people won’t watch hockey in those markets despite ticket prices that are ludicrously low.
Fans in the big markets that do sell out most of their seats (the Canadian teams plus New York Rangers, Philadelphia, Detroit, San Jose) will not boost league revenues by cutting ticket prices.
Fans are an afterthought because, by and large, they will go to games regardless of what happens.
The world economy affects fans, but there are enough of them to still sell out the arenas in the cities that are going to sell out. Unfortunately, the companies that the teams need to buy up the lucrative corporate boxes are not paying out for those boxes in uncertain economic times, so they are the bigger focus, not the fans.
My point is not the specific of ticket prices, but rather, if you are going to bring up the world economy essentially you are saying there are tough times and the owners need a break. If you are going to use the argument of tough economic times, then there should be a trickle down affect.
Don’t tell me as an owner that times are tough, and you need your operating costs lowered all the while your teams have done nothing but raise prices.
If you don’t plan on having the trickle down, then don’t bring up the economy. I have no issue with ticket prices staying where they are, and as such Bettman should keep his mouth shut when talking about the economy is all.
Edit: Further to your point about rinks full where fans care and rinks empty where they don’t care. This is exactly why I am completely opposed to revenue sharing. Why should the Habs be penalized for having a healthy fan base. The Coyotes of the world, knew what hockey was or wasn’t in their marketplace when they bought in, if the market they are in is terrible for hockey, that is their problem. Sell or be contracted. The fact Gary stands in the way is another issue.
Solid point!
Now if the owners would state that they needed player salaries to drop so they could lower ticket prices to reflect the current state of the market, then maybe I would believe all their blubbering.
I do agree with you Burly 100% on your above. Here is a separate question though….would the owners of these big market teams really have lower ticket prices or ticket availability if the Sh*t markets didn’t exist?
Probably not. So I don’t really care about Millionaires having to share money with other Millionaires as it doesn’t effect us other than having to wait longer to see certain teams come on the schedule due to too many teams in the league and having the superstars more spread out
“Why would they cut ticket prices?”
Necessity.
This is ridiculous. It’s not rocket science!!
First, take 4% of the top of all league generated revenue and put it in the revenue sharing fund. If the annual amount is not used, then the balance goes back to the players and owners 50/50. If a team receiving benefits from the fund loses money for 3 straight years, they are allowed to relocate. The balance of 96% is diivided 50/50.
The cap stays at $70.2 million but the floor goes to $53 million.
Players are only eligable to be UFA’s at 28 years old, period, unless bought out or released by their team. The maximum length of contract would be 10 years for players signing when under 30 and 5 years for players who sign when over 30. Contracts cannot be front loaded and the actual salary would count towards the cap. No signing bonuses. Each team can designate one “franchise” player who would not count towards the cap as long as his salary was at or under 15% of the team cap, not actual salaries. If the salary is over 15%, then the team would have to pay a 5% luxury tax on the portion of the salary over the 15%. Players would retain arbitration rights. Entry level contracts would be 4 years not 3. Every second year, teams could buy out one contract which would not count towards the cap. Salaries for players who sign after they turn 35 and retire, will not count towards the cap. If a player whos signs after 35 and they are demoted, half their salary would count towards the cap. I think this addresses most of the big issues, would help hold salaries to more reasonable levels, allow teams to benefit from developing players and be fair to players who might want to take advantage of being UFA’s. At the end of the day, if a player demands a trade when they aren’t happy, they get moved when a deal can be worked out, that would not change. I think this is fair to all.
Habfan17
Excellent post,Habfan17! Your recommendations ALL make perfect sense,which will explain why they don’t stand a chance of ever being implemented.
Great news! This ensures I will be here for the live blog, but most importantly I will have ALN to read! I look forward to it after every game.
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Long live Captain Gionta.
News out of Montreal. Habs will give Galchenyuk every opportunity to make the big team out of traing camp.
also they are still interested in Shane Doan….
And so he should be given every opportunity to make the club given how high he was drafted and how abysmally the team finished in last years standings.
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“It’s just an opinion – I could be wrong”
Can’t say for sure Andy. just what I heard. news from yesterday
15 Aug 2012….
Are you saying not only there will be hockey come October, Galchenyuk will be playing??? And plus Shane Doan will sign with Montreal????
Just a minute ago I was thinking about how good we might be in few years. I did not realized we could be pretty good already this coming season.
Doan already released the teams he would be willing to go to, montreal wasnt on the list, i bet every team in the league has interest in doan, the amount he wants and will probably get doesn’t fit for montreal.
Do you think Galchenyuk playing 3rd line minutes is going to help him? Go back to Sarnia, play 25 min., dominate, play in the Memorial Cup, go to the World Junior tounament, then come back be a top 6 player. Succeed and come here with a great attitude.
accp – You have to post the source that goes along with your info. Otherwise, it’s not valid.
Other link would not light up!
Summit game tickets, News, Pictures and comments
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Montreal-Canadiens-We-Are-Fans-Summit/197390760316125
Great to have Mike Boone back for the coming season. The Live Blog format and Mike’s personal, opinion-based writing style makes him one of us. He is less full of starch than other journalists (perhaps less palatable to the Gazette brass?) And by his longevity, the aged one connects us to tall Habs stories and lore of yesteryear — classic old school stuff. Welcome back Mike, if you were ever gone.
Mike is HIO’s Old Bard.
Richard R
Price is an oyster. Unfortunately not all oysters produce pearls.