joshy207

Nice... I think the One55 is a bakeable boot, but you should check with the store. If they can be baked, get that done (better to go to the shop and pay for it than to mess up your skates in your own oven). Otherwise, just wear them!

What kind of skates did you get?

I don't know a whole lot about the EPL (and next to nothing about other leagues) but when I hear some of the salaries and transfer fees being thrown about in European soccer, you'd think they have to be doing something right to have that kind of money. I'm sick of seeing sponsorships everywhere too. You can't have a power play, bowl game, arena, anything without a sponsor's name or logo plastered on it. It is nice to see some things left unspoiled, but the lure of more money is pretty big. Eventually it becomes too much to pass up. Fuhr... Coke... HAHA!!! I definitely agree, it's oversaturated. I am not a fan of putting sponsors on jerseys. I wouldn't want to see the corporate entity take over the team's image... but, we've already had a subtle case of that in Vancouver. Their last owner was Orca Bay, and their logo changed from the skate to the killer whale. Karmanos did that with both the Windsor Spitfires and the Detroit Ambassadors in the OHL. Hey, I hated when the conference and division names were changed from the builders' names to the geographic titles. I thought it was cool, something that helped make the NHL unique. I won't want to see sponsor titles all over every jersey, pair of pants, helmet, socks, trophy, or even the league name. But we've seen ads come to the boards and ice, and corporate names on most North American stadiums and arenas. Even the Winter Classic... a great idea, it generates a lot of interest in the league. But the NHL had never played an outdoor game until the one in Edmonton. It's really about one thing... MONEY. Money rules everything. It is the American way. I don't want to see sponsors on jerseys, but don't be surprised if/when it happens.

So you're saying the English Premier League is a failure? As are all European soccer and hockey leagues? I do not particularly want to see ads on team jerseys, but I wouldn't be surprised if it happens in the next 10-20 years. There was a time when the boards were solid white. The only coloring on the ice was the lines and circles. The arenas all had regular (non-corporate sponsor) names. For better or worse, times change.

Minnesota Wild's equipment van caught fire while it was backing into Scotiabank Place in Ottawa. All of Nicklas Backstrom's equipment was destroyed as was some other players' gear and some sticks. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=302834 Crazy! I've never heard of anything like this happening...

Emrick is horrible and Thorne is even worse. Those guys are prime examples of why US national hockey coverage sucks. (So are the angry analysts like Melrose and Keith Jones, but that's a whole other topic.) Why Dave Strader isn't the #1 guy on VS. and NBC, I have no idea...

Yup, that's Cuthbert. Used to be on CBC. They let him go during the lockout. Great announcer!

Clean hit. Boychuk caught Stajan in a bit of a vulnerable position. He didn't stick out the elbow, it was tucked in at the time of impact. He didn't leave his feet, he exploded up into the hit. The momentum, and the fact that Stajan crumpled, carried Boychuk up and over him. Head shot? Well, Stajan is much shorter and he was bent over. Of course his head is going to get hit. The league (all leagues--youth hockey has penalties for head checks too) needs to make sure and look at the position of the player getting hit as well as the hitting player's movements before handing out any suspensions.

It's a matter of time, really... most of these guys have customizations done to their skates, some to their gloves, and the goalie gear is generally all customized. Some of the guys will have other gear on hand, maybe another pair of skates, gloves, the goalies might have an old (or new, not yet broken in) set of pads and gloves, the team will have extra sticks and other equipment on hand... but anyone needing new skates could have to wait about a week, and the goalie gear might take a week or two to replace. Oh my god... HILARIOUS!!

I believe Ken Kal said the Wings had lost 125 man-games on the broadcast on Monday.

I'm with you. The guys who have been here for 3 or more years have to be EXHAUSTED. They've played 11 out of 12 possible playoff rounds. Short summers, little time to rest, they can't have a lot left in the tank. I'd be disappointed if they missed the playoffs, but I think it would do more good than harm.

I'll have what you're smoking... Even if hockey were fading in Canada, it's still far, far, FAR, FAR, FAR, FAR more popular than in the US. Have you even been to either country? And if so, what areas?

Virtually nobody cares about hockey in the US.

Just because something isn't popular in the US doesn't mean it can't still be huge. Look at soccer. A fringe sport in the US, the biggest game in most countries across the world. Your argument gets worse and worse every time you post... let it go, you're not going to convince ANYONE. No USA, no NHL... no NHL, no hockey? What. The. Fcuk. are you talking about.

Howard is playing again on Thursday. Ride the hot goalie...

Canada, by far, without question, shouldn't even be a THOUGHT about a debate. Hockey is to most Canadians what football is to a lot of Americans... what baseball used to be to so many Americans... what sand is to the desert. PRETTY IMPORTANT. Watch a little TSN Sports Centre.... 25 minutes of hockey followed by 10 minutes of "everything else" followed by another 25 minutes of hockey. ESPN's Sports Center? "What's hockey?" Every little town in Canada has a rink, and it's the busiest place in town, except maybe the church on Sunday... and even that's debatable. Plenty of bigger cities, suburbs, towns, etc. in the US don't have access to a rink within miles. Also, realize that "hockey" extends far beyond just the NHL.

The theme for this year will be INCONSISTENCY. The Wings are dealing with fatigue from playing 11 of 12 possible playoff series over the last 3 years, the "hangover" from the trip to Sweden, a higher rate of roster turnover than usual, and key injuries early in the season. We will see games like Toronto and Columbus all season long. We'll ride waves of overconfidence and incredible frustration. Ozzie will be a god, he'll be the worst goalie ever. The Wings will be brilliant, they'll be awful. They could win the conference, they could miss the playoffs. They'll end up somewhere in between.

Amazing how quickly Grand Rapids needing an emergency backup turns into the Wings trading Howard away, isn't it? An article on Mlive.com says that Centomo is expected back in Muskegon for their game on Friday. This is nothing more than McCollum not being available today and Pearce being too far away in Toledo for a quick callup.

I heard the Wings gave away a bunch of free tickets.

Yes. He tried it out in practice but never really liked it. Hodson or Maracle (can't remember which one) ended up wearing the mask.

I don't hate Maltby, but his time here should have been over two seasons ago. Draper and Holmstrom are still somewhat effective. Datsyuk and Zetterberg will spend more time together than apart. Bertuzzi will have a halfway decent season but will not be the player most Wings fans want him to be, therefore will be a disappointment. Eaves will be a solid player but won't produce like Cleary has. Howard will be booed in pregame warmups before his first start; during that game; and in every other game this year, no matter how well he plays. Same goes for Jason Williams.

Dean Youngblood was a junior hockey LEGEND while Gordon Bombay was a guy who "used to rule in Peewees." (I can't believe I just quoted that movie. I yell at my players for doing that...) I'd pick Youngblood 10 times out of 10. That said, Reg Dunlop would smoke both of 'em. In a leather bell-bottom suit, no less.

He said last week that he would wait to see how he feels after this season to decide whether he'd sign again. I believe this was reported on 97.1FM.

I saw a guy years ago who had a #21 jersey for Paul Ysebaert. Ysebaert's nickname was "Rocket Man", but this idiot had "ROCK IT MAN" on the back. If you're going to put a nickname on your jersey (don't...) at least put the right nickname on it!

Because no other city is hosting the Olympics.