kipwinger

I don't buy that there are two 1st round picks involved.

This bodes well for our Bruins 2024 first round draft pick. Hopefully this signals something of a "retool" for them.

Yzerman is in a strong negotiating position here. The entire world knows he's interested in Konecny. Ottawa/Debrincat start asking for too much and he pivots to Philly and lets them figure it out with some other team.

Yep. If Dats had just retired I'd be more sympathetic. But he bailed on his team and then played five more years overseas. Screw that guy. Fedorov too.

Yep, any day now. It's too bad KRsmith disappeared before the chickens could come home to roost on these guys. Rubbing it in his face would have been pretty satisfying.

I imagine most people would agree with you, I definitely would. But retiring a number is a different thing than building a team retroactively. Retirement is about honoring a player whose career has already concluded. Zetterberg was a better Red Wing. Zetterberg lived and breathed Red Wing hockey AND had more points, assists, and goals. He was also a MASSIVELY important part of a Cup run. And he was the Captain. Those are the types of guys you honor, not guys who just had more skill.

So where Smith and Mantha's.

Fingers crossed Zadina is going back the other way. Seems like every few years there's a guy who is adored (and apologized for) endlessly by 50% of the fanbase. Then they get traded and suck on another team and everybody finally realizes they sucked the whole time until the next guy comes along. Brendan Smith, Tomas Jurco, Mantha, and now Zadina all fit the bill. I'll be glad when the debate is finally put to bed.

The Datsyuk number retirement opinions around here are weird in light of the Vernon/Osgood Hall of Fame debate. Amongst Red Wings players Datsyuk is not top 5 in points, goals, or assists. Zetterberg, for example, is better than Datsyuk in all three categories. Plus he was the Captain, and a Conn Smythe winner, and he didn't bail on the team (and stick them with his cap hit) a year early to go play professionally in another league. He's more deserving in more or less every respect. Except one. Datsyuk was showier, and therefore more popular. Yet it seems like many fans think Dats is a no-brainer while Zetterberg is an after thought.

Meh. He’d get my vote.

I bet a lot of Wings and Flames fans do. He brought Calgary their only Cup and he beat up Roy in Detroit. The guy is a legend to a lot of people.

How many other goalies A) had better careers, B) won two Cups, C) was a central part of the most famous brawl in NHL history? The Hall of Fame is not the Vezina Trophy. One if for the best goalie in any given year, which is more or less what you're describing. One is for famous players. At no point in his career should Mike Vernon have won the Vezina Trophy, but he absolutely should be in the HoF.

Smooth move by Colorado trading Alex Galcheyuk to Nashville for Ryan Johansen. I've always really liked Johansen as a defensively competent 2C who can contribute offense and take on hard matchups. This should really help free up MacKinnon. The fact that they got Nashville to retain 50% of the contract is huge too. Very smart trade.

Shoutout to Netflix for making a "Malice at the Palace" documentary. As a Michigander I will never get tired of watching the Pacers act like b*tches.

Agreed, but who gives a sh*t? It’s still a lesser accomplishment than backstopping your team to a Cup. I think it’s fine to let some guys in for their individual regular season performances. For some guys (Price, Luongo, Lundqvist, etc.) that’s all they have to show for their decades long careers. But for other guys, like Vernon or Osgood, being an integral part of multiple championship teams (along with relatively great stats) is also reason enough to get in. I don’t think there’s a blueprint for letting guys in the Hall.

Really??? I had no idea. I would argue that backstopping your team to several championships and getting the associated "hardware" is a greater feat than winning a Vezina Trophy (which I'd argue is also a team award). There is no greater way for a goalie to earn "fame" than to come up big in the playoffs. Why do I think so? I guess I'd wager than guys like Price, Luongo, Lundqvist, etc. would gladly trade in all their Vezinas for a chance to lift the Cup. Likewise when Bobrovsky looks back on his career I doubt he'll regret the lack of individual awards as much as he'll regret his performance in the Cup finals this year. I think individual awards simply matter less. Certainly to me, but also to the players themselves, and (if Vernon's inclusion in the Hall is any indication) to the Hall inclusion committee and voters as well.

That's kinda my point. Certain segments of the fan base (and media) are going to complain about anything and everything. The self righteousness that permeates sports is over the top. I think leagues are figuring out that the success of their product is not dependent on pandering (or not pandering) to certain segments of the population. Take the NFL for example. The kneeling during the anthem thing pretty much evenly split the fan base right? But guess what didn't happen. NOBODY stopped watching the games or buying the merch. The UFC figured out the same thing a long time ago too. Dana White openly mocks media and internet commenters and his product has never been more successful. There's nothing that will make these people happy so why try?

Players should never have been asked to wear ANY other jerseys in the first place. If teams want to have promotional events they absolutely should, but I think it's a bridge too far to expect players to be billboards for any particular cause without them pushing back. Everybody with any real decision making power did (Bettman, GMs, Owners). The only people that had a problem with it are random people in media and on the internet, and I think the world is starting to figure out that those people don't matter, don't have any real power, and don't really like anything at all. The "I love hockey but all I do is complain about it" crowd has sorta jumped the shark I think.

All awards are team awards, it's a team sport.

No greater hardware than the three Stanley Cup rings Osgood has on his mantle.

Good point. I don't think enough is made of the fact that the Winnipeg Jets should never have been brought back to Winnipeg. Atlanta should have relocated elsewhere. Nobody wants to play in Winnipeg. I know, I'm being a d*ck.

Me too. Those "Law Enforcement" and "First Responder" appreciation nights were hugely popular. It's too bad the NHL caved and decided to cancel them too.

Cancel culture is getting out of control. First they canceled The Dixie Chicks (twice), then they canceled Bud Light, and now they're canceling Pride Nights in the NHL. Special interests are ruining this country.

Let freedom ring.

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