Where was Pac Man?

Last night's brawl between Ottawa and Buffalo was reminiscent to the mayhem that apparently took hold of the Las Vegas strip during last weekend's NBA All-Star festivites. Starting with the hit itself, it looked like Drury had his head down and was admiring the play a bit. It didn't seem like Neil's shot was a cheap one, but we'll have to ask Jeremy Jacobs or William W. Wirtz for confirmation.

How stupid is Murray? Putting his scoring line out there after that? You can't put Spezza, Comrie, and Heatley on the ice after that happens. He's a fucking moron. Emery was the toughest dude they had on the ice and he's wearing all the goalie pads too. He was beating the shit outta Biron and then had to go again. You know he was loving it. Someone should have gotten third man in (insert caveat here) and stuck up for Emery. Peters could have really crushed him.

Meanwhile, does anyone whine more than Ruff-Ruff? Talk about the boy who cried wolf. He and Torts should have their own seminars.

But these are the kinda things the league actually needs more of. It makes an early block on Sportscenter. It gets people's attention. This is what hockey's about. It's not meant for a wine and cheese crowd.

Lafleur hot dogs

If you've ever been to a hockey game in Montreal, then you've surely enjoyed the hot dogs. (We'll endorse this posting with plenty of caveats) They're so widely enjoyed that today ESPN's EJ Hradek mentioned them as one of his 10 (wacky) things to love about hockey. Honestly, those dogs are half the reason it's worth going to a game up in Montreal. While some might argue that the Youppi fan zone alone is worth the price of admission, these Lafleur hot dogs are the best sports stadium hot dogs around. If you sit in the Desjardins section, the all you can eat included in the price of your ticket allows you to indulge as many of these dogs as you please. Now that's good business!

No neck? No problem

When analyzing possible candidates for coach of the year, there are some obvious choices and some dark horses.

Barry Trotz faces a divisional schedule with opponents reminiscent to those you see in the Mighty Mites games in between periods. However, when you look at the talent on his own roster, it doesn’t ooze with All-Stars. A #1 seed would have to earn him serious consideration.

Randy Carlisle has battled injuries to his stud defensemen while maintaining a strong position in the standings. However, Brian Burke stockpiled the two best defensemen in the game for the blueline. It seems more like a spot for executive of the year.

Claude Julien runs the same boring style in New Jersey that they’ve been running for years. A Devils game could make Carlos Mencia seem original. But they continue to win and it’s not like the cupboard is full.

Michel Therien runs his own version of NHL Sesame Street. Sidney and Jordan seems to be a bit more female friendly than Bert and Ernie, and Michel is steering them to their best record in years.

Sour Grapes

In today's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Joe Starkey goes on a whining rant about how the NHL isn't protecting Sidney Crosby. Apparently Starkey is Lindey Ruff and John Tortorella's long lost cousin.

Lookey here Joe. I think most people will tell you refereeing in general is pretty poor. Even with the two ref system, referees miss more calls than Nicole Richie misses meals. If you watch enough games, you'd notice that too. Also, let's remembr that last year Sid the Kid was diving like Mark Spitz every time he felt contact. Kudos to him for not doing it this year and playing like a man, but he did establish a reputation for himself. He's going to get hit, this isn't some collegiate intramural league. He's also going to get the benefit of some calls, those watching think he might even get plenty as is. Do you expect other teams to treat him like your grandmother? No, he's the best player on the ice and it's smart hockey for other teams to take Sid off his game.

Don't blame the league because the Penguins lack an enforcer. If they had someone like Laraque on the ice, no one would get near Crosby. As Brett Hull stated on Sunday's NBC coverage, look at Yzerman's and Gretzky's numbers when they had protection with them. Maybe they sign a few of 50 cent's bodyguards in the off season.

Joe-Joe, why don't you just sit back on your couch with some nice brie to go with your whine and let the players police themselves.

Who you looking at? (Part Two)

We had some requests to repost the Nylander picture with one of Michael Stipe (left) and the Borg Queen (right). It looks like a more formidable line that some we've seen in the red, white, and blue at times this season.

And P.S. Thanks to Sam Weinman for stealing our gimmick. He's posted twice in the last two days about Rangers players looking like celebrities.

Move The Penguins To Brooklyn - An Open Letter to "Commissioner" Bettman

Dear Gary, if I may, which, of course, I can, since none of your peers respect you, so why should I - exactly. Here's the gist: the future of the NHL lies in Brooklyn, NY, which, in and of itself, would constitute one of our nation's largest cities, but when encompassed within the Greater New York metropolitan area - wow, look out, Crosby, Staal, and Malkin a hop, skip, and jump from the world's most high-profile media market!? It's time to fulfill Red Dutton's dream, and forget the Dolan's, because here's the thing: if you build it, they will come, and what's more, you don't have to build it, which, of course, you're incapable of doing with your limited capacity, but whatever, it's already being built and called the Barclays Center, if you're slow on the uptake. Funny thing: Brooklyn, NY is only like fifty miles further from Pittsburgh than Brooklyn, PA, but now that I've planted the seed, you'll probably move the team to Brooklyn, PA, though maybe that's where Mario belongs: obscurity:

"B-b-but, we can't have four hockey franchises in the New York Tri-State Region."

Um, very good, Gary, here's a cookie - the Islanders should subsequently be relocated to Winnipeg (where a new arena also lights up the night sky), which is in Manitoba, as in Canada, you know, the birthplace of hockey, not the mall...http://www.jetsowner.com/ (this site has the best statistical data to support the failure of the nhl to gain a foothold in numerous markets)... Why the Islanders, you might ask, to which I might reply, when done laughing: have you watched any Isles games recently, or at any point over the past twenty years? Me neither, but from what I can see while surfing the Center Ice package, there are more Indians inhabiting Long Island than fans at Nassau Coliseum, not to knock their loyalty, but c'mon, who can make it to a seven o'clock weekday game at the Arbouretum? I mean, seriously, when was the last time someone scalped a ticket to an Islander game? I know, I know, I have reservations myself, which is why you schedule afternoon games the day after a major holiday, sanguine, yes, and attendance does rise, albeit minutely, because let's be honest, who wants to pay a few hundred bucks to see the Islanders and Sabres commingle the day after Christmas? Exactly; it'd be like selling Manhattan for a sack of beads, which you can look at as a set of testes, and an opportunity to launch the NHL's halcyon era once the Barclays Center opens around 2009; in the meantime, 'fans' in Pittsburgh and Long Island might actually be gracious enough to buy tickets for a game...

Here, lemme take the first step by knocking myself down to size so we can see things on the level: Potvin doesn't suck, in fact, he's the greatest all-around defenseman I've ever seen play (obviously, Bobby Orr preceded me), and I attended the game where he knocked Ulf Nilsson into the boards; man, he and Hedberg could've rivaled Datsyuk and Zetterberg! Anyway, I digress, but surely you understand the urgency: put yourself in john lennon's shoes and imagine all the fans that'd text search hockey on YouTube, you numbnut - YouTube and Versus, now there's a dynamic duo; surprised the NFL hasn't gone outta business yet with its piddly CBS, FOX, NBC, and ESPN television and radio contracts...anyway, so yeah, NO SLEEP 'TIL BROOKLYN! Not a wink, boy-boy, as you dream of all the ways you can seduce Mark Cuban into buying the Penguins and moving them into the new Barclays Center, ergo, seduce him into saving the NHL, wink-wink...besides, John Ziegler would've pulled the trigger, and the thing is, your tenure has been a miserable failure, marred by ineptitude, all of which can change with one bold and controversial measure to secure the future prosperity of the NHL - yes, not just its viability, but its long-term growth and sustenance, and wouldn't that be nice, like not having five teams located in Cactus League regions, and another two in the Grapefruit League, so yes, you're a lemon: abolishing the heritage of the divisions; the flaming puck - the FOX debacle in general, inclusive of the robots, and on and on and on, but hey, do the right thing, and MOVE THE PENGUINS TO BROOKLYN! Fans don't wanna see Hugh Jessiman playing fourth line rag on some ECHL squad at Bennett Field, WE want Crosby, Staal, and Malkin, so please, for the love of Messier, take your head outta your arse and move the Penguins to Brooklyn, where you can rename them the Americans and begin reeling in some serious scrilla; hell, call yourself messiah, for all I care - Just Do It! Oh, and by the way, don't be offended if I initiate a petition to have you Grey Davis-ed from office...Hasta La Vista, Your Doppelganger, Barry Getman...

Who you looking at?

Remember the old feature on ESPN.com's Page 2 where they'd show celebrities paired up against NHL athletes? Well, how did this miss the cut??

While we're not sure if Nylander can hit the high notes, we do feel somewhat confident that there's a slight chance that Moby has the ability to play 2nd line center better than some of the other players for the Rangers this season.

Joe Thornton Trade - A Year Later

It's been over a year now since Joe Thornton was shipped off to San Jose by the abysmal Boston management, but this week brought back memories of the trade since the Bruins trade Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau, two of the three players received in the Thornton trade.

The trade was a travesty at the time. Thornton had been the face of the franchise for most of his 8 years in Boston. He was on a pace this year to score more points than any other year in his career (and ended up winning the MVP). He hadn't been the leader that the team expected him to be, but some players aren't meant to be leaders. All blame should've been heaped on Bruins management, which runs the Bruins like Kramerica, for giving Joe the captaincy so early on and not recognizing Thornton was unfit for the job. Why resign him in the offseasn if you were unhappy with the way he had played?

So, here we are a year later. Stuart, the best player Boston got in the deal, is shipped off with Primeau for Andrew Ferrence and Chuck Kobasew. Kobasew seems like the best chip acquired, but if Boston is frustrated with the maturation of Brad Boyes, then why should Kobasew's ineffectiveness be seen differently? It seems like Boston keeps getting ten cents on the dollar and the way Jacobs values money, you'd think he'd realize that's not positive. At a certain point you become speechless as you watch a hockey town, which today embraces College Hockey's Beanpot final, lose face in a historic franchise.

The Enforcer

Last night on CBC's Coach's Corner, Don Cherry brought up the argument for keeping a true enforcer on a team's 4th line. He ran pieces on Zach Stortini in Edmonton and Colton Orr of the Rangers scoring their first goals of the season. He showed how they were throwing hits all over the ice to bring the physicality they're in the lineup for and how sometimes they can score goals too. He felt it was integral to keep young players away from the 4th line because then they'd only be playing 6-8 minutes a night. He was ripping the "experts" who don't want guys like Orr or Stortini on the 4th line.

Well Donnie boy, I disagree with you to an extent. I have no problem playing these "enforcers" on the 4th line for protection, but they need to do more than that. They're out there to protect the young players and the superstars from getting run. In the new NHL, however, you need to be able to have 4 lines that can score. Guys like Avery, Barnaby, and Neil are really the kind of guys you want on your team over the Stortinis and Orrs of the world. Orr hasn't even been fighting when he's gotten on the ice this season. If he's not fighting, then there's no point in having him in the lineup. You're better off with a guy like Barnaby, though currently concussed, who has ability to score some goals while being an enforcer as well.

I think playing the young guys on the 4th line is beneficial as long as the coach gets them ice time. If they get a regular shift and get about 8-10 minutes 5-5 ice time a game, they can adjust themselves to the speed of the NHL compared to the AHL, Canadian juniors, or college hockey. Then you can throw them on some specialty teams if you want to give them even more ice time. Look at someone like Jordan Staal. He started on the fourth line and played some PK to start the season. He got adjusted to the speed of the game and now he's on the 2nd line. I'd rather see young guys like him on the 4th line to bring energy and purpose then a stiff like Colton Orr, who should be embarassed he shares the same name as one of the game's greats.

Roberto, I'm Pregnant

In case you haven't seen it yet, here's a amusing clip from a Canucks game.



Apparently the usher isn't happy with this fan. Maybe he's jealous that it's not his baby. And the Canucks commentators need to be more knowledgable of their pop culture. "J-Hi"? What is that??

We might as well throw in an oldie from a couple weeks ago. Who wouldn't want Sidney to put it in their Five Hole? We hear Brooklyn has plenty of tail lined up for him already!

And for good measure, here's everyone's favorite new fan of the New York Rangers!

But why Columbus?

But, the Nationwide Arena in Columbus?? Nothing is more booming in late June than Columbus, Ohio! I don't care if its moved around. Do it somewhere notable in New York City; do it at the Garden; do it outside at a rink in Toronto or Montreal! Do it somewhere memorable, not fucking Columbus. Enough with this small market shit. Look, even if its just a baseball city-like ny-you take the #1 pick to the Yankees game, get him on air there, get him on the national baseball game of the week that weekend-thats what resonates. Locale and presentation is everything. If its in a NY locale, NY press and entertainment press could be there. Do you remember back in the mid 90's, all the rappers used to wear huge hockey jerseys? That was the in-look and one of the reason's why the league was so popular. I remember some video where Biggie was rocking a Dallas Stars jersey!

Moving to Prime Time

Today the NHL announced that it would be holding the first round of this year's Entry Draft on a Friday Night showing on Versus in the U.S. and on TSN and RDS in Canada.

I like the idea of a prime time draft. The other major sports leagues have turned their drafts into major events, so why shouldn't the NHL. Most fans won't care much about the picks after the first round, so the prime time event gives them an opporutnity to focus on the draft and be done with it. Those rabid fans can follow it the next day. With the technology these days fans have become much more familiar with the prospects history and statistics. As long as there is some buildup for the draft, the fans can get excited about who their teams will select in the first round. Nothing builds more excitement than speculation. Not much goes on during Friday nights in June, so the NHL will be able to have the full attention of everyone.

Hook this

Saturday night, February 3rd was just another ordinary night in the NHL: Sidney Crosby had multiple points, Jacques Martin’s Panthers severely underachieved, the Rangers blew a big game, and an egregious amount of penalties were called. In the 14 games counting for 840 minutes (minus overtime), 156 minor penalties were whistled. That equals 312 penalty minutes and 37% of total hockey played was on the power play. Was scoring up? Of course not! The night averaged 4.71 goals per game and a whopping 5 of the 14 games ended in one team being shutout. Note, in the 2001-2002 season during the nefarious “old NHL”, the average goals per game was 5.3, more than half a goal higher. While goal scoring is fairly high this year (the night is not completely indicative), it is clear that last Saturday night, the few fans that watched hockey on TV, watched water-down rinky-dink power-play hockey. No wonder the league can’t fill seats. Memo to Mr. Bettman-more penalties slows the game down.

Of the 156 penalties, 92 were called for hooking, holding, interference, or tripping-fouls that now usually consist of a simple jersey pull, or a phantom tug. Note that there were only 12 fighting majors, 1/13th of the penalties called. Also, only 14 power play goals were scored which means that teams now put such a premium on penalty killing in order to combat, which is becoming such a ubiquitous part of the game. Learning from last year, teams know that they will be down many men each night and that if their penalty killing is solid they will probably win out.

Some veteran officials like Dan Marouelli, Dan O’Halloran, Brad Watson, and even at times Kerry Fraser maintain integrity for the game and for the most allow the game to flow, not making many penalty calls. However, there are too many young officials that because of the lack of guidance from NHL brass, are unsure of what is a penalty and try to make a name for themselves to impress their bosses (see Chris Rooney last year tossing Joe Thornton from his Boston reunion, his only visit to Boston for three seasons). Guys like Marouelli should hold leadership classes where they teach the younger guys about what should be a penalty. In addition, now with 17 minute intermissions and 2 minute TV timeouts, the last thing the game needs are more stoppages.

Some gripes:

• It shouldn’t be a slashing penalty when you slash for the puck and accidentally break the opponent’s stick. That is called hockey-you’re working hard to get to the puck and it never used to be a penalty. Sticks break during shots now. I could breathe on Ovechkin’s stick and it would break. Ok, that didn’t sound good.
• I’m sick and tired of the goalie interference penalty call when a goalie is hit outside the crease. A goalie is fair game outside the crease. Additionally, I wish refs would grow some balls and make the call when a goalie covers up the puck on say the faceoff dot-that is illegal and slows the game down. My first hockey moment was watching Alan Bester get decimated behind the net because he had left the crease-that’s hockey.
• How many regulation penalty shots are seen now? Unless the player is on a clear break and sodomized on the way to the net without getting a shot off, it should be called a hooking penalty.
• Can Walkom or whoever is really in charge of NHL officials make sure to assign a veteran staff to a big game. Sorry Chris Rooney, just because you’re related to Andy van Hellmond (who potentially cost the Nordiques the Stanley Cup in ’95 and disgracefully ended their last season in Quebec City with the awful major call based on Kovalev’s flop in the Eastern Quarters), doesn’t make you a good ref. Why Chris Rooney was officiating the Habs-Pens game on Sunday was beyond me, especially in light of their previous game which was a war to be euphemistic. Rooney nearly blew the game with an obscene “holding” call against Francis Bouillon who was merely fighting with Crosby to get the puck (the Pens scored, but lost in OT).
• Refs should be grouped similar to umpires in Major League Baseball and officials in basketball. Pairs should remain intact throughout the year and playoffs to provide continuity and the best refs should be paired with each other and ref the marquee games. Mike Hasenfrantz, who blew a major puck over the glass call at the Garden this year, which might have cost the Rangers two points, should not be reffing with esteemed veteran Bill McCreary, or any top games for that matter. The 10,500 that show up to Jobing.com arena daily can enjoy Mr. Hasenfrantz (fyi-love how before Montreal games they refer to refs as Monsieur so and so. Monsieur Hasenfrantz has a nice ring to it, even though he’s an absolute abomination).
• Enough with the mic’ed penalty announcements-this isn’t the NFL. Could you imagine Bill “Big Whistle” Chadwick reaching into his pocket to turn on a mike to announce a penalty? Please. Also notice how the younger refs love this part-I think they call penalties just to use the mic.
• Mick McGeough. This guy should be mopping up a Tim Hortons in Northeast Alberta-how this guy is still employed is beyond me. Not many people in pro sports drive others to call them “retarded” (see Craig MacTavish circa November ’06).

Look, hockey officials have it harder than any other refs. They have to skate quickly and make split second decisions during a sport that moves 100 miles per hour. That said, Walkom and the other numbnuts on 6th Avenue need to realize that less power plays equals more scoring and more excitement. Teams have found ways to cope with the new rules (See Jay Pandolfo and the Devils or Jacques Lemaire’s Wild) without taking penalties as MLB stars have found how to stay huge with HGH. Just let it be one huge free for all-that’s exciting. I’m sick and tired of watching half of each game be a power play. Now, to get people watching it? Stay tuned to this page…

Avery part deux

Look, he's going to be a lot of fun to watch, especially in New York. but I think he will divide the locker room even more between the Czechs and non Czechs. I really do like Shanny, but he is the reason the locker room has become divided-its not Jagr's team, yet he's the captain. That, to me, is why the Rangers are terrible right now and Renney's inability to manage this. Renney is over his head. It doesn't help that when the team needs intensity, you look around and see a bunch of soft Europan players. The European team unity, which was a saving grace for last year's team, is one of their greatest weaknesses this year. Sure, bring young guys up, etc, but the only difference between this year and last was Lundqvist's opening two months and Jagr's lack of scoring. Simply put, Ryan Callahan isn't changing this team's fortunes.

Avery joings the Mess?

Briefly, I'll point out that Mark Messier announced he is interested in becoming General Manager of the Rangers in today's Toronto Sun. I'm not sure how his eye for quality talent is, but one has to figure he can't do worse job than Glen Sather. And he might actually be active in the press, which is something the mysteriously hidden Sather has not been doing lately. Still, as far as former stars performing in NYC as GMs, one only has to look at Isiah Thomas and wonder if Messier will be Bobby Brown to Isiah's Whitney Houston.

As for the Sean Avery deal. We've already hit some blog comments in Cyberspace with this one, so here's a bit of a recap:

This move would've helped about 3-4 weeks ago when the team needed an energy injection. Now it's too late, especially after tonight's game. Cliche was a prospect, but he wasn't an overwhelming one. They still have plenty of talent in the wings, the problem is will they ever play them. And Avery can protect Jagr. Has anyone seen Jagr recently??? He's got one more goal than Marc Savard this season!!

I didn't see any of the games from the Junior Tournament, but Cliche's numbers were less than impressive. 6 games, 0 points, and 4 PIM? That's not exactly top 5 Canadian stuff for an offensive minded forward. Tom Pyatt would be a better argument for a top 5 Canadian under 20. He got more publicity in the press than Cliche from the tournament and he put up 4 points in the 6 games. Plenty of players have torn up the QMJHL and then not been productive NHL players. They've got plenty of other promising young forwards in the system like Pyatt, Brodie Dupont, Ryan Russell, Dawes, Immonen, Callahan, Dubinsky, and Korpikoski. Cliche isn't a can't miss guy.

Besides, if people always rip Sather for being a bad evaluator of talent, to which I agree, how do we know if Cliche is any good??

At least we know what Avery can do: 40-50 points a season and a bad ass to provide much needed intensity and protection for this team. Of course this move has some major short term sights, but Avery is only 26. They need an enforcer because Colton Orr is a wuss. It's always better to have enforcers with puck skills (like Tucker, Barnaby, Simon, Neil) so that it doesn't limit your offensive production, while still giving you the edge your team needs.

I don't think we can include Marek in the analysis of the trade. He said he was never going to play in New York after Sather messed with him during contract talks (remember this happened with Zidlicky too, who was a throw-in for Mike Dunham, and now he's solid in Nashville. It doesn't matter how good of a prospect he was because the Rangers had no bargaining power if trying to trade him. It's a little added incentive to the Kings, but it's not anything fans can be disappointed with as far as the trade is concerned.

I just don't think it's the end of the world, but I do think this was needed four weeks ago because the tailspin might be too much at this point. And Elisha Cuthbert is a welcome addition to the Garden faithful.

Commentators, goaltenders, and tall tales

Had you been watching yesterday's Islanders/Capitals game on Fox Sports New York and not been aware of hockey in the last few years, you would've been under the perception that Olaf Kolzig was a contender for the Vezina. Play by Play man Howie Rose was talking up the Capitals goaltender throughout the game with phrases like, "one of the game's best" or "still great at age 37", making you think Kolzig was a dominant goalie. Somehow he was able to restrain himself and not refer to Oli the Goalie as an Hart Trophy candidate.

The truth of the matter is Kolzig is 32nd in the league in GAA and 15th in Save %. Patrick Roy, he is not. His last "good" year was in 02-03 and in his career he's had four years in which one could refer to him as being a "good" goaltender. Sure, he looked good against the Isles yesterday, but there are few goalies who don't these days. The only time he's been the best was when he attended Byron Dafoe's wedding as his "best man". Apparently Dafoe realized he didn't get the best because he was fighting Kolzig on the ice soon after.

It's amusing to hear commentators poorly researched for games, but you'd figure Rose would have realized in the last few years that Kolzig isn't that impressive. Maybe he has him confused with some other German goalie. I'm sure that kind of research won't be tolerated once we get this team moved up to Winnipeg. But maybe it's commentary like this that helped convince Islanders management into believing DiPietro was worth 15 years. And no, that joke won't get old any time soon...

Who's watching?

Yesterday the NHL announced record attendance numbers for the month of July.

If you look at some attendance numbers from Tuesday night, it's still pretty alarming:
- Detroit @ NY Islanders -12,322
- New Jersey @ Atlanta-12,162
- Florida @ Pittsburgh -15, 405 (Pittsburgh can't even sellout, can you imagine??)
- Nashville @ Colorado -17,119 (I thought the Avs sold out every game)
- Minnesota @ St. Louis -10,445 (And there wasn't a storm to kill the attendance this time)

One has to wonder if the numbers put out are even somewhat inflated. If you watch the games on TV, it doesn't look like anyone is there. However, attendance isn't the amount of people that come through the gates, rather it's the amount of tickets distributed. The expensive seats are the ones you see on TV that look empty. The real fans don't sit there because they won't pay for it. So, even when those seats show up as empty on TV, it's the upper levels that are full. The tickets distributed, even for free, are usually for the upper levels. They go to charities, schools, and whomever else and can fill the upper levels. They don't hurt the income of the teams, they just boost the attendance numbers.

Press releases like that insult the fan's intelligence and press releases don't fill seats. Look, NASCAR attendance keeps rising, they don't put out press releases about it. The NFL doesn't send out press releases about attendance, NOBODY DOES!!! ESPECIALLY FOR ONE MONTH'S ATTENDANCE!!! What is this, a field hockey league that is trying to wave its pom poms and show that people are actually watching. How about TV attendance? How about international attendance? Let's see those figures again...I mean come on. Not one person could possibly see this news and think, "Wow, the NHL is filling seats."

The TV ratings are still very alarming and that requires the focus. Let's not concentrate on some Ra-Ra nonsense for the NHL to pat themselves on the back for a month's worth of attendance.

Bring back the Winnipeg Jets

The New York Islanders are 29th in the league in attendance at 12,150 fans a game according to this year's figures on ESPN.com. To add to that, this year's valuations of NHL teams by Forbes has the Islanders losing more money than any other NHL team last year. What's the point of keeping this failing franchise in an odd location (Long Island) with one of the worst arenas (Nassau Colliseum) in the game.

So, what's the solution you ask? Move the team to Winnipeg. The Jets originally left Winnipeg for Pheonix because an overwhelmingly strong US currency and the inability to compete in a system without a salary cap. The dollar has taken a dive and economists predict it will remain around this level in the near future. That's no longer a concern for Canadian teams. With a salary cap, all major Canadian markets can now compete in the NHL.

And besides, how could it not be ten times better than the debacle currently called an NHL franchise on Long Island. I'm sure Manitoba residents would gladly trade 14 more years of Rick DiPietro, just to see NHL hockey in their home province again.