OOTS

[Aaronp18]

Perhaps by crafting a system that destroys it.

No question.

The Flyers should have simply tried to outscore the Lightning, they definitely have the talent to do so - they are the highest scoring team in the league. Laviolette likely caused them to lose the game. They got right away from what has been making them successful this year

Hell I have Giroux in a couple pools.

Not exactly happy they didn't try a little harder to score.

I think he reached a breaking point, basically saying what Tampa was doing was borderline ridiculous. And yes many teams play a passive defense trying to clog up the neutral zone but not usually with your most talented players out there. You usually see it after a line change so guys don't get caught.

But to make it a regular occurrence means the league may be headed in the wrong direction.

Last night was basically a dick measuring contest, but if some good for the rest of the league comes out of it in an attempt to persuade teams to play a more exciting brand of hockey then good for Laviolette as i really don't care if they win or lose.

Now if AV tries this bullshit and they lose I'd be pissed right off!

But like I said - props to Lavi for doing what he did.

[Fred]

Vcr fans did vote with their feet. I recall for many years the Pascific Coluseum was only 50% full andn that's in a Cdn market. There is a long list of teams who are either on the verge of bankruptcy or would be if they weren't a tax write off for the their sugar Daddy owners. Teams I understand are virtually giving away tickets in many locations. An owner that disregards the fans sentiment better need a huge tax write off

I'm not interested in who's to blame....a pox on both their houses

Suggestion that evn more fans stay away is not a great solution. The NHL is already desperate for fan support.

I liked it when they brought in the trapazoid. I used to hate watching Turco and he had a number of imitators. Team A fired it in Turco et al fired in back out in out, in out it.........boring. What TB is doing is also boring. Used to be the fastest game on 2 feet, that will not last long if this continues

[Madcombinepilot]

meh.

like every aspect of every game nowadays, things get grabbed by the media and blown out of proportion, or take on new meanings.

Tant is right. The trap never left, therefore it cant creep back in. Someone else said it was a pissing contest, and thats correct as well. Its a one time thing, we wont see it again, the players were commenting on it themselves about how it shouldn't happen. Gm's have commented. Coaches have commented, Fans have commented... this has been commented to death.

how bad is burrow's injury?

[tantalum]

Yes Vancouver fans did vote with their feet and pocketbooks. But they didn't show up because of what system the canucks were playing. They didn't show up because they sucked and didn't win. They started to get wins and people showed up in droves yet the team really was boring to watch. Same thing with the Flames. They didn't have an empty building and a near move to Portland because of the system they played. It was because they were a terrible team. They got a bit of talent, a good blueline and a good goaltender and played some of the worst hockey to watch but they were successful and people bought tickets.

Wins = people in the seats and buying merchandise

Wins also influence other teams and how they build.

Systems only affect the buying public by contributing to the W/L columns. Some people may stop wtaching but more will start if the team wins.


Burrows....skated today but not likely in the lineup tonight. Still D2D.

[Aaronp18]

Systems only affect the buying public by contributing to the W/L columns. Some people may stop wtaching but more will start if the team wins.

Very true, so it's the leagues responsibility to ensure that markets can draw fans even if they aren't winning.

This means putting the most exciting product on the ice and creating rules that allow for the most entertaining hockey.

The fans and media are what push the NHL to make change, their attention has been grabbed and this is now an issue heading int o GM meetings.

Like I said

[tantalum]

Only wins put people in seats. Is exciting hockey working out well in Columbus? No because they suck. Put some wins up on the board using any system they want and fans fill the seats.

it would actually behoove the NHL to NOT penalize a 1-3-1 system because it's boring as it may lead to more wins for those bad teams. Bad teams losing by bigger margins isn't going to make anyone happy.

[Aaronp18]

Only wins put people in seats. Is exciting hockey working out well in Columbus? No because they suck. Put some wins up on the board using any system they want and fans fill the seats

Well, I'd say terrible management had something to do with Columbus and their failures.

Eventually you need to win, yes.

But New Jersey has been successful and they still have attendance issues.

How often in the pat did we hate to watch the Canucks play Minnesota? I would lose interest every game because it was painful to watch. Canada is what is making the NHL succeed right now and we like to watch a more exciting brand of hockey. The casual fan is going to come and go, but if you make a product that appeals to the masses others will tune in and watch teams outside of their favorites.

Hell it's why I watch the early game on CBC or TSN, to see some teams play exciting hockey. I'll turn it off right away if the game is crap.

[Fred]

Only wins put people in seats. Is exciting hockey working out well in Columbus? No because they suck. Put some wins up on the board using any system they want and fans fill the seats.

it would actually behoove the NHL to NOT penalize a 1-3-1 system because it's boring as it may lead to more wins for those bad teams. Bad teams losing by bigger margins isn't going to make anyone happy.

I can't say i agree with that I recently watched the St L game in Vcr and it was undoubtedly very very boring. I left early. I listened to a chap on 1040 saying the same if teams are going back to that style there's lots of other options for his money. He cited the Minny game. Lots of better things to do than watch that garbage. There are games frankly I turn off on TV now. I'd rather watch re runs of Pinocchio than what another game like last nights.

The NHL only has excitment to sell and when that's gone ? Maybe I should start watching the local midget team

[tantalum]

For you sure. For me even. I agree the on ice product has some importance. But for the sheep of the general public it's the wins that matter. Wins make going to the games THE thing to do. Losses and it is the thing to avoid (except for diehards).

I'm not saying you wouldn't lose fans by being successful yet boring, as you will. However, the gain in fans when a team wins and becomes successful will dwarf those leaving the fan base.


Columbus...yes mismanagement has a lot to do with the attendance issues but that is because that mismanagement has resulted in a team that doesn't win games. If somehow they were winning games the fans would be attending despite front office shenanigans.

New jersey...doesn't have great attendance but often it isn't horrible. they tend to average 15k+ per game during the year. Some of that has to do with location. Part of it has to do with what I think is a pretty saturated market in that area (NYR, NYI, Philly) and the devils being the last team added. The last couple of years they have dropped lower and guess what they've had limited success failing to make the playoffs or get out of the first round 5 times in the last 7 years...not good for a fan base that was brought up on long runs. Sometimes markets just aren't great markets. People not buying tickets has little to do with what system a team plays.

[mathonwy]

A possible way to fix this is introduce the back court violation and a mandatory 1 forechecker rule

The defending team HAS to have at least 1 forechecker and the attacking team has to get it past their blue line in ... 10 seconds (or more allowing for line changes and what not).

If TB wants to clog up the neutral zone with 3 across then that's there perogative. Philly can do the exact the same thing if they want.

What I saw yesterday was a travesty for the money paying fans and is absolutely horrible for hockey in general.

[dhabums]

What I saw yesterday was a travesty for the money paying fans and is absolutely horrible for hockey in general.

To be fair, they weren't really paying that much.

[Rumsfeld]

I can't say i agree with that I recently watched the St L game in Vcr and it was undoubtedly very very boring. I left early. I listened to a chap on 1040 saying the same if teams are going back to that style there's lots of other options for his money. He cited the Minny game. Lots of better things to do than watch that garbage. There are games frankly I turn off on TV now. I'd rather watch re runs of Pinocchio than what another game like last nights.

Well if you regularly listen to 1040 you already have a fondness for wooden puppets who speak lies, so it's not a bad choice.

The NHL only has excitment to sell and when that's gone ? Maybe I should start watching the local midget team

Maybe they have their own website even.

[Aaronp18]

There is a reason that every professional sports league designs and alters their rules to encourage offense. Scoring and offensive chances are more entertaining, especially to the casual fan.

Winning keeps the home town fan coming back, but an exciting product will generate more revenue for the league because more casual fans will watch if they are entertained.

Yeah some markets are crappy and maybe diluted which is why you need to bring an exciting brand of hockey so that people outside that individual market will watch your sport.

If you can draw more casual fans, the fan base will expand and then even if a team doesn't perform well for a stretch because they are re-building this larger core group of fans will help steady ticket sales during the down years. The biggest problem with a team like Columbus is that they have never been successful to even attempt to gain a larger fan base.

So I want to watch a more exciting brand of hockey and the casual fan is drawn to a more exciting brand of hockey, so why wouldn't the league want to encourage a faster paced, more offensively driven league?

[Fred]

Well if you regularly listen to 1040 you already have a fondness for wooden puppets who speak lies, so it's not a bad choice.



The NHL only has excitment to sell and when that's gone ? Maybe I should start watching the local midget team


Maybe they have their own website even.

droll

I never stated i listened to 1040 regularly, I do occassionally and some of the fans phone in have some good comments. Such as the guy I just listened to. He was a guy that did attend games live, maybe a season ticket holder who was complaining about the value for money with the Minny game...it certainly doesn't make him a wooden head.

I have a certain expectation when i plonk down my money for season tickets, I think thats reasonable. It's one thing to watch a game on TV when u have the option to change channels it's all together different if you pay up front and end up stuck with a crummy game. If a team like TB pulls that crap here I will not be a happy camper

Here's a well produced technical explanation of the pro's and cons

http://www.japersrink.com/2011/4/29/214 ... -the-1-3-1

[tantalum]

Other than the times Philly wasn't doing anything the game wasn't that boring at all. SO I still disagree it was Tampa Bay that was pulling the crap.

Anyways.....guess what? Yep you guessed it Columbus is losing (4-1 with 5 minutes left in the second). On a whopping 29 point pace. Can't believe no one got fired after that 9-2 game. (edit. 5-1 after 2. Could conceivably give up 7 or 8 this game as well. What a terrible team).