Your Top 5 Worst-Run NHL clubs

[Opie 308]

DTEOWNER

I agree with your list but isn't it sad that two of the most historic franchises in the sport are also two of the suckiest, and have some of the worst ownership. Especially Boston, Most expensive ticket prices in all of the major sports categories, and yet they still cry poverty all the time and let players like Joe Thornton walk away in his prime. That would be like trading away Datsyuk or Zetterberg in a couple of years because Little Ceasars is in a slump.

Well I guess that wasn't Joe's prime seeing as he only gets better every year!

Edit for clarity: The boston area is the most expensive sport venue, not the bruins are the most expensive ticket in sports!!

Edited June 22, 2007 by Opie

[eva unit zero 271]

A team in Hamilton would probably force the Leafs to try and build a better hockey team.

That's the best argument yet for not allowing Hamilton a team.

The worst run franchises:

1) Chicago. They don't even try to succeed.

2) Toronto. Constantly adding overpriced pieces that aren't what the team needs is not a recipe for success.

3) Phoenix. Consistently bad player management and the only team that was around before 1998 that has yet to win two rounds in a single playoff year.

4) Washington. Washington has had the best left winger in the league for two seasons, and their top centers are third liners Kris Beech and Brian Sutherby. It's been painfully obvious they need a top-six scoring center, especially given they had five wingers and a defenseman in their top six scorers this past season.

5) Boston. Thornton trade and Lapointe signing not great moves, but Boston at least tries to improve by signing the kinds of players they need (Chara, Savard) and developing their top prospects (Bergeron, Toivonen).

[StevieY9802 6]

1. Chicago - that one's easy.

2. Florida, hasn't made the playoffs since what 2000? And boy does that trade of Luongo seem bad now.

3. Boston. Ownership was too cheap for too long and when they did spend money didn't do it wisely enough. Marty Lapointe 5.25 mil but didn't want to give Jason Allison just over 6mil? Granted Allison ended up getting hurt not long after getting to LA but thats knowing it now. at the time though that was stupid.

4. Coyotes. They just couldn't get things right. At least they keep trying to get the right people in there.

5. Blue Jackets. I was hoping MacLean could get the job done but he didn't. That team just never did anything. Adam Foote for the money he got when they had nothing else? They could have done more with that money imo.

6. I wanna throw Philly in cause Bobby Clarke was so stuck in his, this team needs to play like my team did back in the 70's, mentality that it hurt his team. They were big and slow and the smaller faster Wings took care of them easily in 97 and Bobby never tried to fix that. Stayed with the big guys always.

Another honorable mention is Washington.

Edited June 22, 2007 by StevieY9802

[Opie 308]

Toivonen will never be an NHL starter, or if he is the team he starts for will not be very good.

He has a painfully slow glove hand and doesn't appear to be mentally tough, he tends to let in weak goals once he makes a mistake.

Watching the Bruins netminders this last season was painful, you have Tim Thomas, who btw is the stereotypical goalie the wings can't win against, he is horrible position wise, and diving all over the place, getting lucky. Then you have Toivonen who is supposed to be the future and he is struggling to be the backup.

Bergereon on the other hand is a diamond in the rough and therefore will be traded out of boston in 3 years tops!!!

Unless they get new management.

As great as Savard played last year, he will not be the player he can be until he has a legit first line player with him. Murray has slowed down, and last year missed the net a lot.

[NKYWingsFan 4]

1. Chicago

2. Chicago

3. Chicago

4. Chicago

5. Chicago

The rest of the owners in the league rank as geniuses in comparison to the Wirtzesses. Bettman is a frikkin Rhodes Scholar compared to Wirtz. That danged hockey monkey could do a better job than Wirtz.

JHTFC I dislike Bill Wirtz.

[eva unit zero 271]

Toivonen will never be an NHL starter, or if he is the team he starts for will not be very good.

He has a painfully slow glove hand and doesn't appear to be mentally tough, he tends to let in weak goals once he makes a mistake.

Watching the Bruins netminders this last season was painful, you have Tim Thomas, who btw is the stereotypical goalie the wings can't win against, he is horrible position wise, and diving all over the place, getting lucky. Then you have Toivonen who is supposed to be the future and he is struggling to be the backup.

Bergereon on the other hand is a diamond in the rough and therefore will be traded out of boston in 3 years tops!!!

Unless they get new management.

As great as Savard played last year, he will not be the player he can be until he has a legit first line player with him. Murray has slowed down, and last year missed the net a lot.

Toivonen also missed the last 41 games in 05-06 with an ankle injury. I bet he'll look more like his 05-06 self (.914 sv pct) next year. He did make 30 saves per game this year though.

Murray last year scored 28 goals in 59 games (39 goal pace over 82 games), and his shooting percentage was the best it had been since his first season in Boston. Not sure what else he could have done that would have fit what you were expecting of him. Bergeron missed the net more per-game. Savard posted 96 points, so if that's not 'the player he can be' then why does Boston get flak for trading Thornton?

[Opie 308]

Who will Savard have next year, he was making unbelievable passes that guys like Marco Sturm were on the receiving end of, no offense to Marco Sturm but he is not the second coming of Gretzky. I guarantee you if you put Savard on Det second line he gets more points, Just think about it, put Savard in Lang's spot, do you think he would get more points? Savard played his ass off don't get me wrong. When the B's signed him I thought he would be screwed without Heatly and Kovalchuk but he proved he is a great set up man. However in Boston, because Chara usually picks fights with weaker non fighters Savard had to step up and stand up for his teammates (not fighting but getting in the tussels and hitting guys who were making dirty plays).

Murray, similar thing, it is not that he is not performing, as much as he is on the decline and cannot be there #1 option anymore, but here is another scenario. You put Murray in Homer's spot on Det top line and he scores easily 40+, however with guys knowing he is Savard's only option he doesn't get clean looks and started taking shots from some weird angles.

Stats are great but they don't tell all of the story.

I am not bashing the players here and I know that is what my first post read like (after I re-read it) however the org needs to do a better job with talent, how many times can they act as a farm team for others. Thornton had finally become what everyone said he would be, he was fighting, he was grinding, he was scoring, he was setting up goals, and all were happy. Until Stuart, Sturm, and Primeau came along. Three guys who combined can barely carry Joe's jock. And remember it is not like they lost him in free agency because they couldn't pay him. They just didn't want to pay him the contract he had!

Bad deals or non deals by the B's

Thornton

Guerin

Allison

Lapointe

to name a few.

Edited June 22, 2007 by Opie

[eva unit zero 271]

Bad deals or non deals by the B's

Thornton

Guerin

Allison

Lapointe

to name a few.

How is Guerin a bad deal or non-deal? They got him for Anson Carter, and when he left he got a deal that paid him TWICE what he was worth. Boston had Murray, who was better than Guerin at that point ANYWAY.

Allison wasn't signed because Boston could (and did) just replace him with Thornton.

The problem with Lapointe is they saw him have one season on Fedorov's wing on the first line, and signed him based on that result but then put him on the third line. Much like Ray Whitney in Detroit; signed at a first line contract for a first line performance, but then not given first line time or linemates.

[Hank 0]

Great thread!

1. Chicago

2. Boston

3. Toronto

4. Washington

5. Phoenix

I would have put Philly and the Islanders in there but since both of those teams cut out their cancers (Clarke and Milbury) they've actually improved a lot.

The top 3 are easy though. Chicago and Boston have two of the worst owners in sports history. Toronto is run so piss poor it's not even funny. Tomas Kaberle is the only allstar they've drafted and produced since Wendel Clarke. That's pathetic. Money is what got them in the playoffs before the lockout. Is it any coincidence that they've playing golf in April since the Cap was introduced? I don't think so.

Now that I think about it, this bums me out. 3 of the 6 original teams are the worst run organiztions in the NHL. For shame.

And the Rangers haven't exactly been great lately either. Horrible drafts and free agent pickups. Although, this past season their hired guns actually produced and there appears to be some light at the end of the tunnel with their prospects.

[JayUp88 1]

How in the world the Blackhawks a original 6 team can not have a TV contract is crazy.

[Opie 308]

Using your logic about centers the wings can now let Flip or Draper man the second line because they have Datsyuk on the First line as center. I will have to disagree on that part.

Guerin was a mistake, it is not like they couldn't have offered him the money he got. They are a cheap organization that fills one line with good to decent players with the occasional great (thornton, allison) and then expects guys like Stanislov Chistov, PJ Axelsson, Brandon Bochenski, Shean Donovan, Mark Mowers, and Chuck Kobesew to carry the load.

Phil Kessel, Mark Savard, and Patrice Bergereon will all be out of Beantown within 3 years unless the org makes a drastic change in the way they handle the team.

Especially if they are going to change coaches every year. I am not a Dave Lewis fan but come on, you give a guy skunk piss and expect him to make fine wine out of it you cannot hold him liable!!

[Hank 0]

Using your logic about centers the wings can now let Flip or Draper man the second line because they have Datsyuk on the First line as center. I will have to disagree on that part.

Guerin was a mistake, it is not like they couldn't have offered him the money he got. They are a cheap organization that fills one line with good to decent players with the occasional great (thornton, allison) and then expects guys like Stanislov Chistov, PJ Axelsson, Brandon Bochenski, Shean Donovan, Mark Mowers, and Chuck Kobesew to carry the load.

Phil Kessel, Mark Savard, and Patrice Bergereon will all be out of Beantown within 3 years unless the org makes a drastic change in the way they handle the team.

Especially if they are going to change coaches every year. I am not a Dave Lewis fan but come on, you give a guy skunk piss and expect him to make fine wine out of it you cannot hold him liable!!

What makes me laugh about the Lewis firing is that some in the organization disliked his defensive style and felt it didn't suit the teams makup. So what do they do? They hire a defensive specialist from the DEVILS organization. Brilliant.

[Opie 308]

I got to tell you if it weren't for my grandfather hating the Bruins when I was a kid, he was a laughs fan, I wouldn't be a Wings fan. I watched a lot of games in the 80's on his floor watching on the French channels. Watching this #19 guy play his ass off while his team sucked. I started to like him and my grandfather (pepere for those of you French Canadians like me) would constantly remind me, he will be nothing, his team sucks, he will be stuck there to rot. If only he had lived to eat his words!!

[A.T.Hun 0]

Isn't it sad that three of the original six are in pretty much everybody's top five? Here's the kicker: Jacobs was just elected chairman of the board of governors. Shoot me. Shoot me now.

[Opie 308]

Isn't it sad that three of the original six are in pretty much everybody's top five? Here's the kicker: Jacobs was just elected chairman of the board of governors. Shoot me. Shoot me now.

I saw the news report on that and I thought some one had laced my coffee with LSD and then the next AM when I woke up, still true!!!!!

[Normy P 0]

Chicago has to be #1 for sure but their prospects are looking bright, depending who they select today. The Blackhawks have a good core of young players and a great goalie, look for them to start making a move in the next few seasons.

I really think any team that doesn't average 15000+ per game should be moved to another area. This would include:

Phoenix

Boston

New Jersey

Washington

NY Islanders

Chicago

St. Louis

The sad part is all of these teams are in huge markets with potentially millions of fans. The one that baffles me most is New Jersey which has been a consistently great team for over a decade and a half!

[StevieY9802 6]

Guerin was a mistake, it is not like they couldn't have offered him the money he got.

He got $9mil from the Stars. I can't blame them for letting him go. Allison was a mistake for sure and Lapointe. The Bruins have made poor choices in where to spend there money and where not to. I think they have a GM now that maybe can get them fixed up and they just need to try and make that team better. It will take time some time.

[glasgowcelticwing 18]

here are mine i based this on and off the ice

1.chicago blackhawks

2.boston bruins

3 philadelphia flyers

4. toronto maple leafs

5. phoenix coyotes

Can't disagree with that....although it kinda sucks that 3 of the original six are run so badly.

[Barrie 900]

The Leafs hands down. With all the money they bring in, they should be winning the Eastern Conference every year. With the size of their market, there's no excuse why they are sooooo bad.

I know Chicago and Boston are run bad too, but atleast they've made a Stanley Cup Final since expansion.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

I still think the Kings deserve consideration, if for no other reason than they not only signed Cloutier, they then gave him a 2-year extension at $3 mill a year.

Edited June 22, 2007 by haroldsnepsts

[canadienhater 0]

1. Chicago

2. Chicago

3. Chicago

4. Chicago

5. Chicago

The rest of the owners in the league rank as geniuses in comparison to the Wirtzesses. Bettman is a frikkin Rhodes Scholar compared to Wirtz. That danged hockey monkey could do a better job than Wirtz.

JHTFC I dislike Bill Wirtz.

remember how wirtz said all the wings do is buy there championship well we have a cap now where have you been

The Leafs hands down. With all the money they bring in, they should be winning the Eastern Conference every year. With the size of their market, there's no excuse why they are sooooo bad.

I know Chicago and Boston are run bad too, but atleast they've made a Stanley Cup Final since expansion.

The leafs always go for the quick fix

[wingfanatic4alltime 32]

1. Chicago- Do i really have to say anything else

2. Islanders- Signing Dipietro to a 15 year Deal, signing Yashin to a 8 year deal i believe, among other bad moves

3. Nashville-They got robbed in the foresberg trade, they are losing kariya, foresberg. who knows about there future.

4. Washington- It seems like they have a good couple years then they fall into a 10 year drought of being pathetic. With ovechkin ownership needs to step up and get him some help.

5. Boston- as mentioned by other posts

[alienanxiety 23]

1. Chicago - no reason to state the obvious

2. Toronto - one moronic move after another, although today's trade with San Jose was surprisingly good for the Leafs.

3. Boston - terrible contracts and trades

4. Washington - I'd be hard pressed to name 5 players on that team over the last five seasons. I can't beleive they aren't worse.

5. Edmonton - You know something is rotten in Denmark when a third of your team abandons ship right after a miraculous Stanley Cup run.

A lot of people have been picking on Philly, but I think there only recent mistake was signing large hulking defensmen that didn't fit the new NHL. I think they have done a lot this offseason to improve their team, and I don't think they are done yet.

As for Phoenix, I don't think it is the management at fault here. It seems every season they look like they are going to break out on paper, but they are always miserable. I think that would have more to do with coaching, no?

Runners up for badly run teams are: LA, NY Islanders, and Florida.

Edited June 22, 2007 by alienanxiety

[servo 15]

In no particular order:

Blackhawks, Bruins, Toronto, Kings, and Coyotes.

Honorable mention to the Isles for their kooky ass lifelong contracts. Since the Yashin deal worked out so well, I guess they figured they'd go for it with DiPietro.

Totally agree. My pics as well.

[Barrie 900]

2. Toronto - one moronic move after another, although today's trade with San Jose was surprisingly good for the Leafs.

Nah, they have to rebuild. Look at all the picks they traded. They have a GM with no job security, so all he's doing is making moves that he thinks will help them now to get a contract extension.