Chairman Maouth

One thing doesn't excuse the other. Babcock has made some very poor choices. Not calling a time-out last night was a real head-shaker, as is the way he's utilized Iginla. He's juggled him around like a ******* ball, and has said he doesn't necessarily need Iginla scoring goals. I mean WTF? The he puts him (rarely) with Crosby and Nash and that line tears it up. He gave Iginla 8 minutes ice time in total with 6 of the minutes being in the third period when Canada was under the gun. I'm beginning to wonder if Babcock has suffered an undiagnosed stroke. That's been denied by all sources, including Iginla. Also, he didn't look injured in the last few minutes of last night's game. But hey, who knows. It's not like teams are forthcoming with injuries nowadays.

Babcock has made some very poor decisions so far. He took Iginla off the top line the next game after he had a hat-trick, he failed to call a time-out late in yesterday's game, (total bonehead move) and an argument could be made that he should have pulled Brodeur after the third American goal. Brodeur crapped the bed last night and Babcock failed to act. He has also juggled the lines way too much (again, Iginla) and not allowed any chemistry to build. From a Canadian standpoint, we are in general not too happy with him. Sorry, but it's the truth. I know he has an impressive resume, but right now he isn't living up to it.

Comox Valley.... And many times I've enjoyed taking my bike for a cruise along Chuckanut Drive, and stopping in Bellingham on the way home to do a little shopping.

I probably see and hear more about Phaneuf than a lot of you guys because I'm a Canucks fan. He's been heavily criticized for his poor attitude on and off the ice. Also, his erratic play. Last year was a poor year on the ice, this year - not much better. He's also heavily criticized for cheap stuff after the whistle but not having the guts to drop the gloves; kind of like a bigger and badder Jarkko Ruutu. It was either Bob McKenzie or Nick Kipprusoff who made that exact point only about 2 weeks ago. It's also said that Phaneuf is more in love with being a celebrity than being a hockey player. I doubt that being traded to the self-acclaimed "Centre of the Hockey Universe" will help that attitude in any way.

The Sedin's getting some love on the Wings forum. Will wonders never cease. Seriously though, the reason I've hung around here so long on the periphary is because you guys are pretty good, knowledgable hockey fans.

Best records are.... Canucks - 10-1-0 Avs - 10-4-1 Sharks - 10-2-1 Kings - 12-3-0

Totally disagree.

I post there a lot and I haven't noticed anything either. You wanna see a hate-fest, do an NHL talk forum search for "Canucks".

Did the snub light a fire under the irascible Swede? In the subsequent 13 games, he's scored eight goals. He now has 18 on the season, which puts him on pace for 28 -five more than his career best in 2005-06. "It's not all a coincidence," Samuelsson, 33, agreed. "I was p—ed and I still feel that way. I said what I think and I still think that. Obviously, I have something to prove. I want to play good hockey and I want to prove it to guys that I can." http://www.kelowna.com/2010/01/27/olympic-...der-samuelsson/

I'm not going to get into a semantics argument about my use of the word "corroborate", but yes I agree the corroboration was hearsay. It was also apparently something Campbell would have taken into consideration had it not come from a Canuck, which is ridiculous. Campell said to Ron McLean that players are not actually allowed to skate around the ice on TV timeouts but that the rule is very loosely enforced. However, that again adds a little more to an ever-strengthening circumstantial case (or whatever you want to call this fiasco).

What stinks even more about this is that Campbell said there was no third-party corroboration. There indeed is, and yes it may be biased but it should be investigated. Regarding Campbell's contention that because Raycroft is a Canuck it's biased info, then who could Burrows have talked to who wasn't biased? A Nashville Predator? There's also the matter of Auger apparently giving Burrows a smart-ass wink after the interference call that was caught on video.

New information surfaced this weekend that puts in question the integrity of the NHL's investigation into the Stephane Auger-Alex Burrows affair. League disciplinarian Colin Campbell concluded a short investigation last week by siding with Auger over the question of did the referee threaten Burrows before Monday's game against Nashville. Campbell said he ruled in Auger's favour partly because there was no third-party corroboration. But, it's been revealed, there was evidence the NHL dismissed and it supported Burrows' recollection of events. A key question people have been asking regarding the incident is that if Auger did tell Burrows during a pre-game chat caught on video that he was going to get him, why didn't Burrows tell anyone? He did. Burrows skated to the bench and relayed his conversation with Auger to Vancouver Canucks backup goalie Andrew Raycroft right after it happened, according to Raycroft. "It was right before the anthem and he told me what [Auger] had said to him and then he said, 'It's going to be a long night tonight,'" Raycroft said. "At the time, I thought it was interesting. But I didn't think about it until everything started happening [in the third period]. You just don't expect it. "Maybe it's a coincidence. But he told me." Raycroft said he believed "everyone" was aware of the conversation he had with Burrows. But no one from the NHL contacted him. The suggestion is the league wanted to dismiss the issue as quickly as possible. More at: http://www.theprovince.com/sports/going+lo...1908/story.html

I tend to believe Burrows for the most part, but he absolutely should have immediately told Coach Vig, who would have passed it on to an assistant, who would have called Toronto. Then, the folks in Toronto could keep an eye on Auger. Shoulda woulda coulda. I do think the investigation was a joke though. You can't really even call it an investigation. I also heard today that Campbell admitted on the NHL Network that Auger admitted talking to Burrows about the previous incident in Nashville. More to support Burrows story. I think in all honesty that Auger was out to get Burrows and cost the Canucks the game if he could. I honestly believe that. Even if Burrows misinterpreted what Auger said, Auger delberately made a point that he was unhappy with Burrows before the game. After that, he made two totally phantom calls on Burrows. I know some of you think the diving call was legit, but I don't for a second. It's really hard to tell by the replay and I know for a fact that Burrows lays prone on the ice after a dive to make sure the refs see him. He did no such thing here. He immediately bounced back up and continued to battle for the puck. I don't think there's any disagreement that the interference call on Burrows was absolutely a joke. I also heard, (but can't prove) that the diving call on BUrrows was the first time all year that Auger hadn't called coincidental minors; one to the diver, and one to the other player for tripping or whatever.

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First of all, anyone who may be surprised by this should have their NHL fan status revoked. I think it happens, but I seriously doubt Boogaard. In the BUrrows situation you had first degree hearsay. With Boogard, you've got Russo's interpretation of Boogaard's interpretation of Hordichuk's interpretation of Vigneault's words. That's getting into Kevin Bacon territory.

And it's the same referee who accused Shane Doan of making anti-French Canadian comments. Doan was cleared of those allegations.

My take on this.... There is the video of the ref talking to Burrows before the game. Proof? No, but it does nothing to discredit Burrows allegations. It actually gives them a degree of support. There is that absolutely ridiculous interference call on Burrows near the end of the game and which got Nashville the winning goal. A total phantom call. That also supports Burrows allegations. There is Burrows animated reactions to his penalties - like he had a feeling something like that was coming, and to his shock, the referee actually made good on his threat before the game. There is Burrow's account of the pre-game conversation with Auger where he is quite specific about why Auger said he would target him during the game. This, in my opinion gives more credence to Burrow's accusations. Burrows post-game comments. He knows what he's doing and that he's facing NHL disciplinary action for what he's saying. Also, being known for embellishing calls in the NHL (as Burrows has done in the past) does not automatically make someone a liar. He would have to be extremely stupid to lie about a referee under those circumstances because assuming he was lying, if he wasn't already a target for the referees, he certainly would be now. There is also the matter of the hot-streak that Burrows has been on (another 2 goals last night). If you have a referee who despises Burrows, he may want to bring him down a peg. Burrows allegations, in my opinion, have the ring of truth. I hope the NHL investigates this adequately.

If 99.99 percent is close to .01 then I suppose you're right.

I'm not a Wings fan, but when I think of "best Wings fighter", only one name comes to mind. Probert.

I agree completely. Criminal charges if possible. Then again, using one moron as a tool to criticize an entire fanbase isn't exactly high up on the classy meter either.

I miss the green men. They were there for a few games and then they disappeared.

Most inept post of the new decade. Bet you can top it with your next though.

About 4 minutes after the Rome hit Mitchell's stick caught Salo in the face and it looked very serious too - I think Salo bled even more than Rome, but he just got a few stitches and returned. Very unusual that Salo did that.

Nasty hit. On a sidenote. Alex Burrows just got his second consecutive hat-trick.

You guys are true hockey fans and deserve a pat on the back. I can't imagine following the NHL without adequate coverage of my team (Canucks), the Northwest Division, etc. I'd go crazy if I were forced to miss a single game.