As the interminable NHL Lockout III has finally come to and end, formalities aside, of course there will be a flood of comment from league executives, players, coaches and media to keep up with for those fans who have not been turned off the NHL for good.
Not wishing to be any different, here are a small handful of reactions and insights that might have slipped though the filters of Dreger, LeBrun et al.
Steve Tambellini: “I’m excited by the opportunity to now have 14 different ways to win the draft lottery.”
Rick DiPietro: “The pensions issue was important, as I wanted other players to enjoy the security of a healthy, guaranteed income many years after they can no longer play.”
Paul Holmgren: “The amnesty buyout provisions mean I will still have enough cap space to sign Steve Mason to a 7-year, $40m deal once I let Bryz go.”
Don Cherry: “YA KNOW, THIS BECKHAMBAR FELLA COMES OVER FROM GERMANIA AND GETS ALL THE KODOS AND EVERYTHINK FROM YOU MEDIA TYPES. HOW SOON WE FORGET, EH?”
Alex Kovalev: “True, I’m no longer an NHLer, but once he heard the sides were putting in a 16-hour shift, Mike Keenan insisted I flew down to join the talks.”
Raffi Torres: “The owners were worried about the long term financial risk of funding the players’ pensions, but we assured them that we would do everything we can as a group to keep our life expectancy really low.”
Brian Burke: “Our fans should be grateful that I have ensured the Maple Leafs will be playing games beyond the first week of April this year.”
Jay Feaster: “After the last lockout caused problems for me in fitting contracts under the cap in Tampa, it’s gratifying that my hard work and that of my predecessor has left the Flames with so much cap flexibility to go with a young, contending roster.”
Marc Bergevin: “This buyout calculator on capgeek.com is good. I only have to type ‘Sc’ and it auto-completes to ‘Welcome back, Marc. Why not just bookmark this page to save time?’”
Jim Rutherford: “So if contract term limits differ for signing your own free agents compared to others, how long can I sign Joe Corvo for the next three times I re-acquire him?”
Mike Babcock: “I’m just a coach, so I don’t worry about the cap and that stuff. It’s not like I have to replace Nick Lidstrom in the line-up with Carlo Colaiacovo or anything.”
Greg Jamison: “Thank God that
embarrassing, seemingly endless dispute over money, perpetuated by
excruciating posturing and tedious legal interventions is over.”
6 January 2013
2 December 2012
Board of the Lockout: Part Two
[Now updated to cover all 30 teams]
Much of the frustration of fans and players during the ongoing NHL work stoppage / owners' lockout / "lack of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement" has been that while players have been entirely free to express their opinions and put their names to in-no-way-at-all-coordinated social media commentary on their league adversaries, the NHL's gag order on team executives leaves everyone in the dark about whether there is a split among owners or what Lou Lamoriello would put on his Instagram account.
As the NHL Board of Governors prepares to meet later this week in order to decide exactly what to select next from their vast menu of P.R. screw ups, little is known about many of thediverse individuals rich, old, white men that sit on the Board.
Here is a brief snippet of information on these people, resulting from several months of investigative journalism (bolstered by 10-15 minutes skimming Wikipedia and bios on team websites):
Anaheim Ducks: Henry Samueli
After acquiring the team from the Walt Disney Company and changing its name from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, to avoid being associated with a Mickey Mouse operation, Mr. Samueli is presumably recommending to the Board of Governors that the league in future be known as the National Hockey League of Mighty F***- ups for the reverse reason.
Boston Bruins: Jeremy M. Jacobs
Serving on the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board and described as "a leading advocate for tourism in the United States", Mr. Jacobs has been credited with the recent upsurge in visitors to destinations such as Providence, RI, Peoria, IL and Oklahoma City.
Buffalo Sabres: Terrence M. Pegula
After apparently telling his business partner in 1983: “If I ever have more than two nickels to my name, I’m going to buy the Buffalo Sabres one day”, Mr. Pegula has now been reprimanded by Commisioner Bettman and his fellow Governors for giving the impression to players that NHL franchises could possibly be worth in excess of 11 cents.
Calgary Flames: N. Murray Edwards
Mr. Edwards employs over 15,000 people across numerous companies, with an impressive 11,500 of these not having been acquired in lopsided trades with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Carolina Hurricanes: Peter Karmanos Jr.
69 years old and of Greek descent, Mr. Karmanos is viewed with some suspicion by his fellow Governors, who only know him as “that Chelios guy”.
Chicago Blackhawks: W. Rockwell "Rocky" Wirtz
Mr. Wirtz managed the Judge & Dolph Ltd liquor distributorship until October 2007, opting to step down thanks to the kindly suggestion of newly-drafted Patrick Kane that he could “handle it from here”.
Colorado Avalanche: Josh Kroenke
Although Mr. Kroenke’s father, Stan, is the owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, which includes the Avalanche as well as several other sports franchises, the Avalanche are in the name of Josh, to satisfy NFL ownership restrictions that forbid a team owner being dumb enough to also be an NHL owner.
Columbus Blue Jackets: John P. McConnell
Mr. McConnell is CEO of Worthington Industries, a company whose philosophy is "an unwavering commitment to the customer, and one of the strongest employee/employer partnerships in American industry" and majority owner of the Blue Jackets, whose philosophy isn't.
Dallas Stars: Tom Gaglardi
In talking about his organisation's teamworking philosophy, Mr. Gaglardi states that "We will all be pulling the same rope", said rope being the one used to pull Senior Adviser, Bob Gainey's hand away from the telephone when he's thinking about calling Glen Sather.
Detroit Red Wings: Mike Ilitch
Despite having little or no direct involvement in the team’s achievements, each of Mr. Ilitch’s seven children has his or her name engraved on the Stanley Cup, barely leaving any room for Chris Osgood’s name.
Edmonton Oilers: Daryl Katz
After the empty threat to move his team and the stockpiling of successive lottery pick impact forwards, Mr. Katz is believed to be considering whether his next step is to add 1,723 NHL points to his resume or to just let Nail Yakupov live in his basement.
Florida Panthers: Cliff Viner
Mr. Viner is quoted as seeking three things when interviewing potential employees: "Character, character and character." Since this is clearly only one thing, it is believed the other two things are "willingness to accept an inflated salary to get my team above the salary floor and a large ticket-buying family".
Los Angeles Kings: Timothy J. Leiweke
As President and CEO of AEG, operators of over 100 entertainment and sporting venues, including Sprint Center (Kansas City, MO), Ahoy Arena (Rotterdam) and Wukesong Arena (Beijing), Mr. Leiweke is currently sharing with the Board his vast expertise at making money out of buildings with absolutely no hockey in them.
Minnesota Wild: Craig Leipold
Mr. Leipold "first was considered a potential owner or investor in the NBA ... He attributed this interest to the fact that he knew the sport of basketball well. He became interested in ownership of a professional ice hockey franchise because there were more opportunities than in basketball." It is unknown why Mr. Leipold has such an affinity with Commissioner Bettman.
Montreal Canadiens: Geoff Molson
A 40-year-old Twitter user, Mr. Molson's personal ambition is to someday be allowed by Jeremy Jacobs to speak at a Board meeting or to be allowed to get up to use the bathroom.
Nashville Predators: Joel Dobberpuhl
After turning down applications from Warren Woo, Thomas G. Cigarran, Christopher C. Cigarran, Herbert A. Fritch, DeWitt C. Thompson V and DeWitt C. Thompson VI in the belief they were fake names, the Board of Governors finally settled on accepting Mr. Dobberpuhl to be the representative of the Predators' ownership group.
New Jersey Devils: Lou Lamoriello
Despite the obvious differences in background, team-building philosophy and harmony with league officials, Mr. Lamoriello is understood to side with Rangers’ owner James Dolan on financial issues during Board meetings, as both teams derive the majority of their revenue from the attendance of Rangers fans.
New York Islanders: Charles B. Wang
In his business career, Mr. Wang was involved in many acquisitions said to involve “the immediate termination of top management and key employees”, two things which he hasn’t had to worry about in his hockey ownership career for some reason.
New York Rangers: James L. Dolan
Universally popular with Rangers fans, Mr. Dolan has earned lavish praise for his personnel decisions, such as not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers G.M. and not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers coach.
Ottawa Senators: Eugene Melnyk
Mr. Melynk is a significant investor in biopharmaceutical research and development, as evidenced by the impressive $16m commitment to trial technology designed to keep Sergei Gonchar on the ice beyond his natural human capabilities.
Philadelphia Flyers: Ed Snider
Thanks to Mr. Snider’s vision of "Take what you do well and grow it”, the local economy continues to experience double-digit annual growth in the Horrific Goaltending and Hypocritical Long-Term Contract sectors.
Phoenix Coyotes: Nathaniel H. League
A reclusive owner, who hasn’t been seen in public since June 2012.
Pittsburgh Penguins: David Morehouse
Mr. Morehouse is credited with increasing the Penguins' commercial success due to his emphasis on branding and marketing, concepts the NHL would love to capitalise on, stymied only by the league's failure to find a Penguins player to brand and market the absolute hell out of.
San Jose Sharks: Kevin Compton
Mr. Compton assumed the role of the Sharks’ governor when fellow owner, Greg Jamison, became involved with a group looking to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes, but is due to relinquish the position back to Mr. Jamison when the Coyotes sale process finally falls through in the year 2435.
St. Louis Blues: Tom Stillman
As the newest member of the NHL Board of Governors, Mr. Stillman was recently subjected to a traumatic and lengthy rookie hazing ritual, by being forced to attend a meeting of the NHL Board of Governors.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Jeff Vinik
After becoming owner of the Lightning, Mr. Vinik pledged to construct a team of which fans would be proud "on and off the ice", and has taken under three years to fulfil both parts of that mission.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Larry Tanenbaum
Mr. Tanenbaum also serves as a Governor for the NBA's Toronto Raptors and MLS team, Toronto FC, thus gaining valuable insight from almost trebling his exposure to executives of sports teams more successful than his.
Vancouver Canucks: Francesco Aquilini
Mr. Aquilini is described as “both a starter and closer”, making the number of Italian-Canadian starters associated with the Canucks two / one. [Delete as appropriate depending on whether you are reading before or after one minute past the end of the lockout]
Washington Capitals: Ted Leonsis
Mr. Leonsis also serves on the board of directors of Groupon, though his ideas about making offers involving ridiculous discounts with several unattractive conditions attached are understood to be thought of as “extreme and unrealistic” by the Groupon board.
Winnipeg Jets: Mark Chipman
Long before re-locating the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers, Mr. Chipman and his ownership group moved the Moose from Minnesota to Manitoba, the remainder of his vast fortune in the Canadian logistics industry presumably earned from delivering beavers to Saskatchewan, maple syrup to Nunavut and bags of milk to Don Cherry's Eskimo farm.
Much of the frustration of fans and players during the ongoing NHL work stoppage / owners' lockout / "lack of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement" has been that while players have been entirely free to express their opinions and put their names to in-no-way-at-all-coordinated social media commentary on their league adversaries, the NHL's gag order on team executives leaves everyone in the dark about whether there is a split among owners or what Lou Lamoriello would put on his Instagram account.
As the NHL Board of Governors prepares to meet later this week in order to decide exactly what to select next from their vast menu of P.R. screw ups, little is known about many of the
Here is a brief snippet of information on these people, resulting from several months of investigative journalism (bolstered by 10-15 minutes skimming Wikipedia and bios on team websites):
Anaheim Ducks: Henry Samueli
After acquiring the team from the Walt Disney Company and changing its name from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, to avoid being associated with a Mickey Mouse operation, Mr. Samueli is presumably recommending to the Board of Governors that the league in future be known as the National Hockey League of Mighty F***- ups for the reverse reason.
Boston Bruins: Jeremy M. Jacobs
Serving on the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board and described as "a leading advocate for tourism in the United States", Mr. Jacobs has been credited with the recent upsurge in visitors to destinations such as Providence, RI, Peoria, IL and Oklahoma City.
Buffalo Sabres: Terrence M. Pegula
After apparently telling his business partner in 1983: “If I ever have more than two nickels to my name, I’m going to buy the Buffalo Sabres one day”, Mr. Pegula has now been reprimanded by Commisioner Bettman and his fellow Governors for giving the impression to players that NHL franchises could possibly be worth in excess of 11 cents.
Calgary Flames: N. Murray Edwards
Mr. Edwards employs over 15,000 people across numerous companies, with an impressive 11,500 of these not having been acquired in lopsided trades with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Carolina Hurricanes: Peter Karmanos Jr.
69 years old and of Greek descent, Mr. Karmanos is viewed with some suspicion by his fellow Governors, who only know him as “that Chelios guy”.
Chicago Blackhawks: W. Rockwell "Rocky" Wirtz
Mr. Wirtz managed the Judge & Dolph Ltd liquor distributorship until October 2007, opting to step down thanks to the kindly suggestion of newly-drafted Patrick Kane that he could “handle it from here”.
Colorado Avalanche: Josh Kroenke
Although Mr. Kroenke’s father, Stan, is the owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, which includes the Avalanche as well as several other sports franchises, the Avalanche are in the name of Josh, to satisfy NFL ownership restrictions that forbid a team owner being dumb enough to also be an NHL owner.
Columbus Blue Jackets: John P. McConnell
Mr. McConnell is CEO of Worthington Industries, a company whose philosophy is "an unwavering commitment to the customer, and one of the strongest employee/employer partnerships in American industry" and majority owner of the Blue Jackets, whose philosophy isn't.
Dallas Stars: Tom Gaglardi
In talking about his organisation's teamworking philosophy, Mr. Gaglardi states that "We will all be pulling the same rope", said rope being the one used to pull Senior Adviser, Bob Gainey's hand away from the telephone when he's thinking about calling Glen Sather.
Detroit Red Wings: Mike Ilitch
Despite having little or no direct involvement in the team’s achievements, each of Mr. Ilitch’s seven children has his or her name engraved on the Stanley Cup, barely leaving any room for Chris Osgood’s name.
Edmonton Oilers: Daryl Katz
After the empty threat to move his team and the stockpiling of successive lottery pick impact forwards, Mr. Katz is believed to be considering whether his next step is to add 1,723 NHL points to his resume or to just let Nail Yakupov live in his basement.
Florida Panthers: Cliff Viner
Mr. Viner is quoted as seeking three things when interviewing potential employees: "Character, character and character." Since this is clearly only one thing, it is believed the other two things are "willingness to accept an inflated salary to get my team above the salary floor and a large ticket-buying family".
Los Angeles Kings: Timothy J. Leiweke
As President and CEO of AEG, operators of over 100 entertainment and sporting venues, including Sprint Center (Kansas City, MO), Ahoy Arena (Rotterdam) and Wukesong Arena (Beijing), Mr. Leiweke is currently sharing with the Board his vast expertise at making money out of buildings with absolutely no hockey in them.
Minnesota Wild: Craig Leipold
Mr. Leipold "first was considered a potential owner or investor in the NBA ... He attributed this interest to the fact that he knew the sport of basketball well. He became interested in ownership of a professional ice hockey franchise because there were more opportunities than in basketball." It is unknown why Mr. Leipold has such an affinity with Commissioner Bettman.
Montreal Canadiens: Geoff Molson
A 40-year-old Twitter user, Mr. Molson's personal ambition is to someday be allowed by Jeremy Jacobs to speak at a Board meeting or to be allowed to get up to use the bathroom.
Nashville Predators: Joel Dobberpuhl
After turning down applications from Warren Woo, Thomas G. Cigarran, Christopher C. Cigarran, Herbert A. Fritch, DeWitt C. Thompson V and DeWitt C. Thompson VI in the belief they were fake names, the Board of Governors finally settled on accepting Mr. Dobberpuhl to be the representative of the Predators' ownership group.
New Jersey Devils: Lou Lamoriello
Despite the obvious differences in background, team-building philosophy and harmony with league officials, Mr. Lamoriello is understood to side with Rangers’ owner James Dolan on financial issues during Board meetings, as both teams derive the majority of their revenue from the attendance of Rangers fans.
New York Islanders: Charles B. Wang
In his business career, Mr. Wang was involved in many acquisitions said to involve “the immediate termination of top management and key employees”, two things which he hasn’t had to worry about in his hockey ownership career for some reason.
New York Rangers: James L. Dolan
Universally popular with Rangers fans, Mr. Dolan has earned lavish praise for his personnel decisions, such as not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers G.M. and not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers coach.
Ottawa Senators: Eugene Melnyk
Mr. Melynk is a significant investor in biopharmaceutical research and development, as evidenced by the impressive $16m commitment to trial technology designed to keep Sergei Gonchar on the ice beyond his natural human capabilities.
Philadelphia Flyers: Ed Snider
Thanks to Mr. Snider’s vision of "Take what you do well and grow it”, the local economy continues to experience double-digit annual growth in the Horrific Goaltending and Hypocritical Long-Term Contract sectors.
Phoenix Coyotes: Nathaniel H. League
A reclusive owner, who hasn’t been seen in public since June 2012.
Pittsburgh Penguins: David Morehouse
Mr. Morehouse is credited with increasing the Penguins' commercial success due to his emphasis on branding and marketing, concepts the NHL would love to capitalise on, stymied only by the league's failure to find a Penguins player to brand and market the absolute hell out of.
San Jose Sharks: Kevin Compton
Mr. Compton assumed the role of the Sharks’ governor when fellow owner, Greg Jamison, became involved with a group looking to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes, but is due to relinquish the position back to Mr. Jamison when the Coyotes sale process finally falls through in the year 2435.
St. Louis Blues: Tom Stillman
As the newest member of the NHL Board of Governors, Mr. Stillman was recently subjected to a traumatic and lengthy rookie hazing ritual, by being forced to attend a meeting of the NHL Board of Governors.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Jeff Vinik
After becoming owner of the Lightning, Mr. Vinik pledged to construct a team of which fans would be proud "on and off the ice", and has taken under three years to fulfil both parts of that mission.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Larry Tanenbaum
Mr. Tanenbaum also serves as a Governor for the NBA's Toronto Raptors and MLS team, Toronto FC, thus gaining valuable insight from almost trebling his exposure to executives of sports teams more successful than his.
Vancouver Canucks: Francesco Aquilini
Mr. Aquilini is described as “both a starter and closer”, making the number of Italian-Canadian starters associated with the Canucks two / one. [Delete as appropriate depending on whether you are reading before or after one minute past the end of the lockout]
Washington Capitals: Ted Leonsis
Mr. Leonsis also serves on the board of directors of Groupon, though his ideas about making offers involving ridiculous discounts with several unattractive conditions attached are understood to be thought of as “extreme and unrealistic” by the Groupon board.
Winnipeg Jets: Mark Chipman
Long before re-locating the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers, Mr. Chipman and his ownership group moved the Moose from Minnesota to Manitoba, the remainder of his vast fortune in the Canadian logistics industry presumably earned from delivering beavers to Saskatchewan, maple syrup to Nunavut and bags of milk to Don Cherry's Eskimo farm.
28 November 2012
Board of the Lockout: Part One (?)
Much of the frustration of fans and players during the ongoing NHL work stoppage / owners' lockout / "lack of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement" has been that while players have been entirely free to express their opinions and put their names to in-no-way-at-all-coordinated social media commentary on their league adversaries, the NHL's gag order on team executives leaves everyone in the dark about whether there is a split among owners or what Lou Lamoriello would put on his Instagram account.
As the NHL Board of Governors prepares to meet next week in order to decide exactly what to select next from their vast menu of P.R. screw ups, little is known about many of thediverse individuals rich, old white men that sit on the Board.
Here is a brief snippet of information on some of these people, resulting from several months of investigative journalism (bolstered by 10-15 minutes skimming Wikipedia and bios on team websites):
Boston Bruins: Jeremy M. Jacobs
Serving on the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board and described as "a leading advocate for tourism in the United States", Mr. Jacobs has been credited with the recent upsurge in visitors to destinations such as Providence, RI, Peoria, IL and Oklahoma City.
Carolina Hurricanes: Peter Karmanos Jr.
69 years old and of Greek descent, Mr. Karmanos is viewed with some suspicion by his fellow Governors, who only know him as “that Chelios guy”.
Chicago Blackhawks: W. Rockwell "Rocky" Wirtz
Mr. Wirtz managed the Judge & Dolph Ltd liquor distributorship until October 2007, opting to step down thanks to the kindly suggestion of newly-drafted Patrick Kane that he could “handle it from here”.
Colorado Avalanche: Josh Kroenke
Although Mr. Kroenke’s father, Stan, is the owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, which includes the Avalanche as well as several other sports franchises, the Avalanche are in the name of Josh, to satisfy NFL ownership restrictions that forbid a team owner being dumb enough to also be an NHL owner.
Columbus Blue Jackets: John P. McConnell
Mr. McConnell is CEO of Worthington Industries, a company whose philosophy is "an unwavering commitment to the customer, and one of the strongest employee/employer partnerships in American industry" and majority owner of the Blue Jackets, whose philosophy isn't.
Detroit Red Wings: Mike Ilitch
Despite having little or no direct involvement in the team’s achievements, each of Mr. Ilitch’s seven children has his or her name engraved on the Stanley Cup, barely leaving any room for Chris Osgood’s name.
Edmonton Oilers: Daryl Katz
After the empty threat to move his team and the stockpiling of successive lottery pick impact forwards, Mr. Katz is believed to be considering whether his next step is to add 1,723 NHL points to his resume or to just let Nail Yakupov live in his basement.
New York Islanders: Charles B. Wang
In his business career, Mr. Wang was involved in many acquisitions said to involve “the immediate termination of top management and key employees”, two things which he hasn’t had to worry about in his hockey ownership career for some reason.
New York Rangers: James L. Dolan
Universally popular with Rangers fans, Mr. Dolan has earned lavish praise for his personnel decisions, such as not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers G.M. and not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers coach.
Philadelphia Flyers: Ed Snider
Thanks to Mr. Snider’s vision of "Take what you do well and grow it”, the local economy continues to experience double-digit annual growth in the Horrific Goaltending and Hypocritical Long-Term Contract sectors.
Phoenix Coyotes: Nathaniel H. League
A reclusive owner, who hasn’t been seen in public since June 2012.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Larry Tanenbaum
Mr. Tanenbaum also serves as a Governor for the NBA's Toronto Raptors and MLS team, Toronto FC, thus gaining valuable insight from almost trebling his exposure to executives of sports teams more successful than his.
Vancouver Canucks: Francesco Aquilini
Mr. Aquilini is described as “both a starter and closer”, making the number of Italian-Canadian starters associated with the Canucks two / one. [Delete as appropriate depending on whether you are reading before or after one minute past the end of the lockout]
Washington Capitals: Ted Leonsis
Mr. Leonsis also serves on the board of directors of Groupon, though his ideas about making offers involving ridiculous discounts with several unattractive conditions attached are understood to be thought of as “extreme and unrealistic” by the Groupon board.
Winnipeg Jets: Mark Chipman
Long before re-locating the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers, Mr. Chipman and his ownership group moved the Moose from Minnesota to Manitoba, the remainder of his vast fortune in the Canadian logistics industry presumably earned from delivering beavers to Saskatchewan, maple syrup to Nunavut and bags of milk to Don Cherry's Eskimo farm.
As the NHL Board of Governors prepares to meet next week in order to decide exactly what to select next from their vast menu of P.R. screw ups, little is known about many of the
Here is a brief snippet of information on some of these people, resulting from several months of investigative journalism (bolstered by 10-15 minutes skimming Wikipedia and bios on team websites):
Boston Bruins: Jeremy M. Jacobs
Serving on the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board and described as "a leading advocate for tourism in the United States", Mr. Jacobs has been credited with the recent upsurge in visitors to destinations such as Providence, RI, Peoria, IL and Oklahoma City.
Carolina Hurricanes: Peter Karmanos Jr.
69 years old and of Greek descent, Mr. Karmanos is viewed with some suspicion by his fellow Governors, who only know him as “that Chelios guy”.
Chicago Blackhawks: W. Rockwell "Rocky" Wirtz
Mr. Wirtz managed the Judge & Dolph Ltd liquor distributorship until October 2007, opting to step down thanks to the kindly suggestion of newly-drafted Patrick Kane that he could “handle it from here”.
Colorado Avalanche: Josh Kroenke
Although Mr. Kroenke’s father, Stan, is the owner of Kroenke Sports Enterprises, which includes the Avalanche as well as several other sports franchises, the Avalanche are in the name of Josh, to satisfy NFL ownership restrictions that forbid a team owner being dumb enough to also be an NHL owner.
Columbus Blue Jackets: John P. McConnell
Mr. McConnell is CEO of Worthington Industries, a company whose philosophy is "an unwavering commitment to the customer, and one of the strongest employee/employer partnerships in American industry" and majority owner of the Blue Jackets, whose philosophy isn't.
Detroit Red Wings: Mike Ilitch
Despite having little or no direct involvement in the team’s achievements, each of Mr. Ilitch’s seven children has his or her name engraved on the Stanley Cup, barely leaving any room for Chris Osgood’s name.
Edmonton Oilers: Daryl Katz
After the empty threat to move his team and the stockpiling of successive lottery pick impact forwards, Mr. Katz is believed to be considering whether his next step is to add 1,723 NHL points to his resume or to just let Nail Yakupov live in his basement.
New York Islanders: Charles B. Wang
In his business career, Mr. Wang was involved in many acquisitions said to involve “the immediate termination of top management and key employees”, two things which he hasn’t had to worry about in his hockey ownership career for some reason.
New York Rangers: James L. Dolan
Universally popular with Rangers fans, Mr. Dolan has earned lavish praise for his personnel decisions, such as not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers G.M. and not hiring Isiah Thomas as Rangers coach.
Philadelphia Flyers: Ed Snider
Thanks to Mr. Snider’s vision of "Take what you do well and grow it”, the local economy continues to experience double-digit annual growth in the Horrific Goaltending and Hypocritical Long-Term Contract sectors.
Phoenix Coyotes: Nathaniel H. League
A reclusive owner, who hasn’t been seen in public since June 2012.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Larry Tanenbaum
Mr. Tanenbaum also serves as a Governor for the NBA's Toronto Raptors and MLS team, Toronto FC, thus gaining valuable insight from almost trebling his exposure to executives of sports teams more successful than his.
Vancouver Canucks: Francesco Aquilini
Mr. Aquilini is described as “both a starter and closer”, making the number of Italian-Canadian starters associated with the Canucks two / one. [Delete as appropriate depending on whether you are reading before or after one minute past the end of the lockout]
Washington Capitals: Ted Leonsis
Mr. Leonsis also serves on the board of directors of Groupon, though his ideas about making offers involving ridiculous discounts with several unattractive conditions attached are understood to be thought of as “extreme and unrealistic” by the Groupon board.
Winnipeg Jets: Mark Chipman
Long before re-locating the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers, Mr. Chipman and his ownership group moved the Moose from Minnesota to Manitoba, the remainder of his vast fortune in the Canadian logistics industry presumably earned from delivering beavers to Saskatchewan, maple syrup to Nunavut and bags of milk to Don Cherry's Eskimo farm.
17 September 2012
NHL message to the fans - breaking it down
The following message to fans was issued by the National Hockey League on Sunday:
After being scrawled on a napkin by Bill Daly on Saturday.
Despite the expiration of the Collective Bargaining Agreement…
Let’s make it sound as serious as facing the expiration of the last yoghurt in your refrigerator.
…the National Hockey League has been…
Scott Gomez? Oh, that doesn't read “National Hockey League has-been”.
…and remains…
Chelios?
…committed to negotiating around the clock…
This clock just seems to be situated in an entirely different location to wherever the Players are negotiating.
…to reach a new CBA that is fair to the Players and to the 30 NHL teams.
But to paraphrase Mike Milbury, all CBAs are created fair to the Players, but some are more fair than others.
Thanks to the conditions fostered by seven seasons under the previous CBA…
Which, ergo, was an unmitigated disaster for the League from the start.
…competitive balance has created arguably the most meaningful regular season in pro sports…
Just think how much more arguably meaningful we can make it by slashing it in half!
…a different team has won the Stanley Cup every year…
Though Vegas oddsmakers are strongly tipping the 2004/05 winners to triumph again this year.
…fans and sponsors have agreed the game is at its best…
Look, another group of faceless, wealth generators that you fans clearly have natural empathy with.
…and the League has generated remarkable growth and momentum.
Matched only by the League’s impending generation of remarkable stagnation and regression.
While our last CBA negotiation resulted in a seismic change…
[Insert Dustin Byfuglien summer diet joke here]
…in the League's economic system…
i.e. Bobby Holik being restricted to only 57% of League revenues in future.
…and produced corresponding on-ice benefits…
Fans and sponsors have agreed the shootout is wonderful.
…our current negotiation is focused on a fairer and more sustainable division…
Except for the Northwest Division, which will be garbage forever at this rate.
…of revenues with the Players as well as other necessary adjustments…
[Insert Dustin Byfuglien tailor joke here]
…consistent with the objectives of the economic system…
Lining Ed Snider’s caviar-plated pockets.
…we developed jointly with the NHL Players' Association seven years ago.
Whatever did happen to that lovely Mr Saskin?
Those adjustments are attainable through sensible, focused negotiation -- not through rhetoric.
That includes rhetorical questions such as: “These idiots can’t be stupid enough to cause another lockout, right?”
This is a time of year for all attention to be focused on the ice, not on a meeting room.
Which is why the League is staggered that the Players have not seriously considered its proposal to hold the playoffs across 12 Mexican cities during summer, ending in the re-branded Cancun StanCup Final in mid-September.
The League, the Clubs and the Players all have a stake in resolving our bargaining issues appropriately and getting the puck dropped as soon as possible.
Unless one Club’s fourth line Players have just iced the puck with no timeout available, where, as usual, that Club can suddenly discover several equipment problems preventing the puck from being dropped as soon as possible.
We owe it to each other…
“We” being the players, “it” being money and “each other” being the owners.
…to the game and, most of all, to the fans.
But we’re sure a disingenuous press release will keep you happy for a good couple of months.
16 July 2012
The Pain Game 2011/12 - an attempt to use GVT
Throughout the regular season, my usual breakdown of the extent of injury/illness absences on NHL teams uses cap hit (CHIP) and TOI/G (AMIP) as weights to apply to each player, in an attempt to quantify the significance of any absences. A fuller description is found with the end of year figures for 2011/12.
Both methods have more than a few imperfections (as noted) but offer a reasonable indication. As a third - and probably final - weighting factor, I thought I'd try using GVT, as developed by Tom Awad and described at hockeyprospectus.com. In disgracefully crude short form, this is a metric placing a relative value on a player's contribution to goals scored and conceded by his team.
So, rather than cap hit, for example, I've just used instead a player's average GVT per game (or for goalies, GVT per game available for) in the 2011/12 regular season (taken from www.hockeyabstract.com) as the weighting, producing a cumulative team figure I'll imaginatively call GVTIP.
Disclaimers:
Thoughts:
Both methods have more than a few imperfections (as noted) but offer a reasonable indication. As a third - and probably final - weighting factor, I thought I'd try using GVT, as developed by Tom Awad and described at hockeyprospectus.com. In disgracefully crude short form, this is a metric placing a relative value on a player's contribution to goals scored and conceded by his team.
So, rather than cap hit, for example, I've just used instead a player's average GVT per game (or for goalies, GVT per game available for) in the 2011/12 regular season (taken from www.hockeyabstract.com) as the weighting, producing a cumulative team figure I'll imaginatively call GVTIP.
Disclaimers:
- For players that missed the whole or the vast majority of the season, I've used the equivalent 2010/11 (or 2009/10) GVT figure.
- Unlike TOI/G used in deriving AMIP, the GVT figure does not account for any differences between the figures accrued with different teams during the season for players traded mid-season etc.
- The main drawback is sample size, in that GVT in only a single year (or part year) is likely to be a pretty volatile indicator of a player's relative value, so there are more than a few examples where a player's contribution - perhaps based on a handful of games only - to team GVTIP skews the result completely. So I'm not guaranteeing it is foolproof by any means...
Thoughts:
- Of the top three CHIP numbers, GVT is much more favourable towards the Penguins missing Crosby, Letang, Staal and Malkin (contributing about 41 goals of their deficit between them) than the Canadiens going without Gomez, Markov and Gionta and the Blue Jackets being deprived of Huselius, Martinek, Methot, Carter and Tyutin, for example
- The fact that Gomez and Markov each managed to get a negative GVT in their short periods of active duty actually imply that the Canadiens were several goals better off by them not being in the line-up for most of the year (told you there were distortions...) - believable for Gomez, perhaps not for Markov
- On a similar theme, most of the Islanders' absences are pretty insignificant in terms of GVT, except for Mr Anomaly himself, Rick DiPietro, whose stellar play in the three seconds of health he managed to muster skews the team number into strongly negative territory all by himself
- Conversely, the Blackhawks have a low CHIP number but are way up on GVTIP, largely due to Toews (fair enough) and Carcillo (okaaaayyyyy...)
- As I think would be expected - and partly expecting some of the relative movements above - the GVTIP table is more tilted towards playoff teams with higher team GVT at the top end. Perhaps an argument for using share of team GVT as the weighting of player value at a team level?
9 July 2012
The Pain Game - 4-year analysis (2008/09 - 2011/12)
Another brief data dump of figures aggregated over the last four NHL regular seasons, surprisingly enough updated to include 2011/12.
Analyses of individual seasons (including explanations of the figures and their limitations) plus my equivalent aggregate analysis (aggreganalysis?) are at the following links:
Firstly, an updated ranking of teams by aggregate CHIP over the last four seasons (playoff teams highlighted; click to enlarge image):
Still no obvious correlation between playoff qualification and the degree and quantity of injuries/illnesses suffered. The Islanders, Oilers and Wild (all long-term playoff absentees) sat in the top three positions for the table covering 2008/09 to 2010/11, but have all slipped down slightly since, mostly due to Messrs Markov and Crosby, plus the Flyers' rotating cast of retired-but-not-really-retired veterans.
The same figures grouped by division:
A bit over-simplistic, but still fairly interesting that the supposedly travel-weary Pacific has suffered both the fewest man-games lost and the lowest CHIP in each of the last four seasons (OK, two man-games away in 2008/09 from doing so), while the Atlantic has routinely been hit the hardest. Maybe 95% due to Rick DiPietro, but interesting anyway...
The largest ten and smallest ten CHIP figures by a team in a single season over the last four:
No changes at all in the bottom 10. The Canadiens in the year just gone comfortably surpassed the Blues' previous high watermark, although worth noting that their CHIP number was still a lower proportion of the overall cap compared to the Blues' number from three years before.
The largest ten CHIP figures accumulated by a player in a single season over the last four:
None too surprisingly, Crosby and Markov each make their second appearance here, joined by Kristian Huselius who had the good fortune to only have to play in two games for the Blue Jackets in 2011/12.
23 June 2012
Is there a draft in here? (2012 edition)
After a one-year hiatus (perversely caused by my being in Canada), here is this year's attempt at a totally after-the-fact not-live live blog of the first round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft from the CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh (the draft, not me), affording you to chance to re-live all the excitement of everything you already watched and/or read about.
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We then see a piece of VT (that's videotape, not an inappropriate shot of 2010 first rounder, Vladimir Tarasenko) in which a handful of the expected high picks are talking to camera while seated on a wooden chair in a sparse room featuring many dangerously low, dangling light fittings...Good practice for whichever player ends up playing in Nassau Coliseum anyway.
Next we see a clip of Oilers veteran, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, apparently being denied entry to the draft floor initially due to a total lack of credentials...Bafflingly, Oilers GM Steve Tambellini seems to have been allowed to overcome this handicap and remain as Oilers GM.
Our first visit to TSN Insider (and he is indeed inside tonight) Darren Dreger on the floor (though disappointingly standing up) with a Jordan Staal update...Jordan Staal update: There is no update on Jordan Staal
Now upstairs (up about two stairs, it appears) to Gord Miller, as usual accompanied by the universally respected Bob McKenzie and the universally bespectacled Pierre McGuire...Signs are that the Oilers will be keeping the #1 pick (possibly for eternity)
Just in case TSN were thought not to be occupying every part of the building, we finally get a look at the so-called "Social Lounge", where Alyonka Larionov will seemingly be doing the TwitBook type stuff with all the 18-year-old boys that come in...The set just misses the flashy VIP club area look it was going for, instead pulling off the moderately expensive private dentist waiting room motif
The hearty boos either mean Commissioner Bettman is approaching the podium to kick things off or Marc-André Fleury has just conceded another goal to the Philadelphia Flyers...It appears to be the former, sadly...Bettman routinely thanks the city of Pittsburgh, congratulates them on the 2013 Stanley Cup victory, routinely welcomes all the viewers across North America on various platforms and at draft parties and routinely ignores the watching inhabitants of Europånsyland
There follows a bit of a delay, apparently due to a "staging issue" with the podium...Must take a while to raise the microphone from the default Bettman setting
There follows a bit of a delay, apparently due to a "staging issue" with the podium...Must take a while to raise the microphone from the default Bettman setting
#1 - Edmonton Oilers select Nail Yakupov (Sarnia Sting - OHL)
Yakupov put up some "Stamkosian-like" numbers, according to Miller, which seems to be at least one simile too many...McGuire declares that the Oilers can now "amp it up, offensively"...Judging by the single 40-watt spotlight the arena staff have decided was sufficient to illuminate the whole stage, the Oilers might be asked to amp up the stage too, if they don't borrow some of those bulbs from the intro instead...In his interview with Duthie, Tambellini confirms that his goal is to add defensive depth "this spring"...Either he needs to hurry up, or the seasons work somewhat differently in Alberta to what I had thoughtAway from the stage, we see a few fleeting glimpses of 2009 draft star, Brian Burke, but sadly no evidence of a microphone in his vicinity, of any flagrant intimidation of Bryan Murray or of any discreet barn-booking
TRADE: Ľubomír Višňovský and a pack of three energy-saving lightbulbs has been shipped to the Islanders for their second round pick in 2013
#2 - Columbus Blue Jackets select Ryan Murray (Everett Silvertips - WHL)
With no visible sign of Craig Patrick's hand up his back, highly-acclaimed GM Scott Howson calls out Murray's name...McKenzie: "not saying he's Nick Lidström", McGuire: "not Scotty Niedermayer", me: "not Ken Daneyko's third-grade English teacher"...Howson suggests that Murray is going to play with a lot of good players, presumably looking ahead already to him being traded away for nothing or next year's repeat appearance at the World Championships...Nothing to report on the Rick Nash frontTRADE: Mike Ribeiro is on his way to Washington to play the important role of second-line center behind Jay Beagle...Cody Eakin and a second round pick heading to Dallas
#3 - Montréal Canadiens select Alex Galchenyuk (Sarnia Sting - OHL)
As predicted by McGuire...In carrying out the podium formalities, a disappointing lack of pranks from new GM, Marc Bergevin, despite the perfect opportunity to leave a whoopee cushion for Trevor Timmins to step on...In a frankly shocking break from the norm, McGuire likes this pick...McKenzie suggests Galchenyuk is "more multi-dimensional than Yakupov", presumably meaning to say "multi-dimensioner than"...Amusingly, lots of talk about how the pick takes pressure of the some of the Canadiens' current centers (named) and prospects at the position, without a single Gomez mention...At the interview desk, Bergevin gets Duthie to pull his fingerBettman steps forward again to formally announce the Ducks/Islanders deal, saying the name Ľubomír Višňovský as if he has got absolutely no idea who/what he is...Burke is spotted in conversation with Wild GM, Chuck Fletcher, presumably indirectly challenging Fletcher's old man to a mud wrestle in a Florida swamp
#4 - New York Islanders select Griffin Reinhart (Edmonton Oil Kings - WHL)
TSN's caption for Reinhart has him projected as a "Complete D", which seems a bit judgemental...I can see at least two Wangs on stage, plus coach Jack Capuano, looking like he just got out of bed. A bed situated on an aircraft carrier.Dreger reports that Burke has been talking to Vancouver GM, Mike Gillis, about Roberto Luongo...Burke's tie still mostly done up
#5 - Toronto Maple Leafs select Morgan Rielly (Moose Jaw Warriors - WHL)
Burke offers some incredibly insincere congratulations to the Los Angeles Kings on their championship, plus some slightly more heartfelt thanks to Pittsburgh and an ingratiating hello to Leafs season ticket holders, whose empty platinum seats are sat in front of thousands of televisions across Ontario...Merely an "outstanding pick" this time, says McGuire...I enjoy the congruence of Burke saying the words "Moose Jaw"...Only 15 of the 25 Leafs assistant GMs appear to have made the trip on stage...A caption reveals that Rielly was ranked first at the combine in the right-hand grip test, but only third on the left-hand grip test, so something to work on...Burke explains to Duthie that he won't allow his draft picks to wear a ballcap on stage as it obscures their faces...He stonewalls a Luongo question, then threatens he would have to kill Duthie if he divulged anything at all (a joke, I think)...As we head to commercials, the camera panning away just catches Burke smothering Duthie with a ballcap
#6 - Anaheim Ducks select Hampus Lindholm (Rögle BK - Sweden)
Another "Complete D" apparently...I have him down as being among the top five to ten Hampuses ever drafted...Lindholm exhibits a fine combover...McKenzie and McGuire discuss Bobby Ryan's reported disgruntlement
#7 - Minnesota Wild select Matt Dumba (Red Deer Rebels - WHL)
After hearing his name called, Dumba exchanges celebratory hugs with 300 people in his row before heading for the stage..."Hits like Scott Stevens" according to McKenzie, so a very valuable pick in 2003TRADE: News coming through that Jordan Staal is moving, right before the Carolina Hurricanes were due to select...The deal announced as Staal to Carolina for the #8 pick, Brandon Sutter and Brian Dumoulin...McGuire amps up his excitometer to "Rabid Drooling", speculating that the Penguins will now be pushing hard to sign Zach Parise...I am left stunned by the realisation that the NHL seems to be using an electronic draft board for the first time
#8 - Pittsburgh Penguins select Derrick Pouliot (Portland Winterhawks - WHL)
McGuire boasts that he knew this pick was coming (yawn) and appropriately begins to gush like an oil derrick in Ray Shero's general direction...I wish he could transmit some kind of small indication that he likes the direction of the Penguins franchise...I blank out the next five minutes of Shero and Jim Rutherford being interviewed
#9 - Winnipeg Jets select Jacob Trouba (U.S. NDTP - USHL)
Yet another big D-man - is there any other kind?..."Very good, smart pick" says McGuire - is there any other kind?...We are shown (repeatedly) a clip of an 11-year-old Trouba obliterating some Swedish kid with an open ice hit...Should make him popular in most of CanadaCalgary GM Jay Feaster is working the phones...I suspect he is checking if it is legal for the always re-building Flames to draft a 35-year-old free agent or he is negotiating with Olli Jokinen's agent
#10 - Tampa Bay Lightning select Slater Koekkoek (Peterborough Petes - OHL)
When the clock reaches zero, GM Steve Yzerman pops out and says Koekkoek...That makes seven D-men in a row...Coincidentally, that's also the name of the New York Rangers' strategy in their own zone
#11 - Washington Capitals select Filip Forsberg (Leksands IF - Sweden)
Copious amounts of booing from the Pens-loving audience (possibly including McGuire) as GM George McPhee arrives on stage, prompting him to disdainfully offer his sarcastic gratitude...He ends Forsberg's free-fall down the board...This pick having been acquired from Colorado and used to select a Forsberg surely viewed as the height of irony by any Canadian recording artists in attendance
#12 - Buffalo Sabres select Mikhail Grigorenko (Québec Remparts - QMJHL)
McGuire: "A sham, a disgrace and a cataclysmically dire selection by that amoeba in a suit, Regier"...(No, not really, believe it or not)...McKenzie notes that one criticism of the Russian scorer from scouts who watched the Russian scorer is that the Russian scorer is an enigmatic Russian scorer
#13 - Dallas Stars select Radek Faksa (Kitchener Rangers - OHL)
Faksa has "Bobby Holik qualities" apparently...Personally, I can't wait for his failed stint as a hugely overpaid checker in New York then...We learn that Faksa left home at 11, in which case, I'm more than impressed that he made it to Pittsburgh in time for 13TRADE: The Flames trade down from #14 to #21, also obtaining #42 from the Sabres (the second round pick, not Nathan Gerbe)...Slightly less exciting a move than the Staal trade and McGuire is a bit upset with the Flames
#14 - Buffalo Sabres select Zemgus Girgensons (Dubuque Fighting Saints - USHL)
I have him down as being among the top five to ten Zemguses ever drafted...Also the highest Latvian player ever picked up, beating Sandis Ozolinsh's DUI arrest in 2006
#15 - Ottawa Senators select Cody Ceci (Ottawa 67s - OHL)
TSN are really starting to tip their pitches even more than normal, as Ceci's selection is pre-empted by a shot of his big red entourage (I thought that was Bruce Boudreau's nickname?) in the stands...TSN's final draft expert (with no chairs left to support him), Craig Button, compares Ceci to Larry Murphy...Must be something to do with how much he'll get booed in Toronto...Everybody pronounces his name "See-See", apart from Bryan Murray, who is forced to settle for "Shee-Shee"
#16 - Washington Capitals select Tom Wilson (Plymouth Whalers - OHL)
This year's Lucic comparable...McGuire notes that the Flyers were "salivating" - either at the chance of drafting the giant Wilson or because Bob Clarke has fallen asleep drooling at the draft table againSo we're just over halfway through the round, clocking in at a leisurely 2h 23m...No time to see anything from the Social Lounge on TV, if that was ever the plan, even though most of the GMs have avoided the pre-pick spiel
#17 - San Jose Sharks select Tomáš Hertl (Slavia Praha - Czech Republic)
Hertl joins Faksa and Koekkoek at the head of the class for bad pun potential in headlines, if nothing else...I've got nothing else
#18 - Chicago Blackhawks select Teuvo Teräväinen (Jokerit - Finland)
Some pre-pick spiel from GM Stan Bowman, as he says hello to the Los Angeles Kings, thanks everybody at the draft party in Chicago for their hospitality and congratulates the people of Pittsburgh...Cheap applause for Hawks prospect and Pittsburgh native, Brandon Saad, as he is given the task of announcing the pick, the hubbub enough to make his words almost completely inaudible...McKenzie drops a most welcome reference to stone-faced draft legend, Jarmo Kekäläinen
#19 - Tampa Bay Lightning select Andrei Vasilevski (Ufa Tolpar - Russian Jrs)
McGuire is enthused by how "pro-active" the Lightning are being...I must agree, what with the way they are picking players unlike the other teams who just stand around and wait for players to draft themselves
#20 - Philadelphia Flyers select Scott Laughton (Oshawa Generals - OHL)
Some extremely mild booing now from the crowd as the Flyers prepare to pick...GM Paul Holmgren stoically thinks back to happier times and assumes they are chanting for Brian Boucher as the noise intensifies when he approaches the podium...A pick not predicted by TSN for once...Laughton is compared to Mike Richards, who is also said to be a favourite player of his...Bartenders in Philadelphia (and Dean Lombardi) rejoice
#21 - Calgary Flames select Mark Jankowksi (Stanstead College - Canadian HS)
A "legendary" pick, says McGuire, though his cackling suggests he means it is a surprise rather than anything else...As a Canadian high school player, Jankowski is expected to take several years before being able to face the step up in competition that the NHL presents but a significantly shorter period of time before being able to face the step down in competition that playing in the Northwest Division presents
#22 - Pittsburgh Penguins select Olli Määttä (London Knights - OHL)
I step away to slit my wrists during McGuire's latest genuflective essay about the Penguins, which produces more metaphorical oil spills on the floor of the TSN setSince we are so far ahead of schedule (ahem), we get to see a brief shot of Cody Ceci using the Social Lounge computer, presumably booking himself in for a scaling and a minor filling...Dreger has been absent for a long while, suggesting he either has nothing to report or Marc Bergevin has handcuffed him to a skate sharpening machine
#23 - Florida Panthers select Mike Matheson (Dubuque Fighting Saints - USHL)
Looks a bit ginger
#24 - Boston Bruins select Malcolm Subban (Belleville Bulls - OHL)
Another pleasing (but final?) reference to the Phil Kessel trade, as the Bruins are forced to live off their own picks for a change...Brother P.K. graciously avoids what must have been a strong urge to slewfoot Malcolm on his way down the steps...In interview, Subban Jr reveals that he models himself on Henrik Lundqvist...My picture broke up sufficiently that I couldn't tell if he was referring to his game or the three-piece suit he was wearing
#25 - St. Louis Blues select Jordan Schmaltz (Green Bay Gamblers - USHL)
More technical difficulties chez LW - I'll blame Marc Bergevin...I presume this guy is completely different to fellow Blues prospect Jaden Schwartz?
#26 - Vancouver Canucks select Brendan Gaunce (Belleville Bulls - OHL)
Assistant GM Laurence Gilman avoids shameful embarrassment by remembering to praise the hospitality of Allegheny County rather than just the city of Pittsburgh...Things also speed up with a lengthy tribute to Stan Smyl for no real reason other than his retired number being on the back of the jersey to be presented to the drafted player...As Gaunce makes his way promptly to the stage along a spacious pathway, McGuire confusingly remarks that he "needs to get quicker, especially in confined areas"...Miller comments that "the retired #12 goes on his back", but I don't see the shot of Smyl jumping Gaunce from behind that I expected...In the Duthie vs Gillis confrontation, the Canucks GM (just) falls short of the death threat benchmark when faced with the obligatory Luongo question
#27 - Phoenix Coyotes select Henrik Samuelsson (Edmonton Oil Kings - WHL)
Samuelsson and father Ulf appear to be sitting with every single ex-Hartford Whaler teammate of Samuelsson Sr in the stands...Group photo on stage (for the Coyotes' front office, not the Whalumni) - definitely the first time I've ever seen a jacked-up Rick KnickleDreger is loitering by the Rangers' draft table and reveals that the Rangers had some discussions around Jordan Staal (under the league's compulsory Staal brothers trade requirements)...GM Glen Sather is staring in utter confusion at his cellphone as if he doesn't know how to turn it on or activate the cigar dispenser function
#28 - New York Rangers select Brady Skjei (U.S. NTDP - USHL)
Yet another U.S. player for the Rangers...Said to be a great skater, but "not Ryan McDonagh", three words that fill Canadiens fans with joy every time they appear on their team's line-up card...More apparent technical issues give me pictures but no sound for a stretch...The several minutes of televised NHL coverage without McGuire talking over it are possibly a world first
#29 - New Jersey Devils select Stefan Matteau (U.S. NTDP - USHL)
I can't see how anyone will think of an interesting angle to write about for this pick...
#30 - Los Angeles Kings select Tanner Pearson (Barrie Colts - OHL)
As we are past the four-hour mark now, Bettman wisely ushers Kings' co-director of amateur scouting, Mike Futa, to the podium...I'm guessing Pearson doesn't mind the wait, since he was passed over at the previous two draftsNot even any time for the usual Canadian triumphalism this year or for the impending 1 July PariSutergeddon coverage, as the show wraps up almost as soon as Pearson gets his jersey on.
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