A Black day for the NHL

[Cookie La Rue]

Figure it out.

There's some ugly truth in it.
I watched the last Philly Penguins game a day later just for the incidents i read before and it was pretty entertaining from a standpoint without real connection, i don't care about both of them.

[Fred]

But when I see what went down with Weber - well, suffice it to say I'm not a goddamn fucking moron that wants to watch a bloody gongshow based on idiocy. $2500. For sucker-punching and slamming a League superstar's head into the glass after the game was over.

These are dark, dark days for the NHL.

I think it goes back to the Chara/Max Pacioretty incident. That more than any thing showed to me any...any thing goes. Max Pacioretty is Mtl top points leader and he was close to be killed out there. The league stood by and did nothing, it was open season after that. How can you allow actions such as that to go unpunished......even if we are to believe Chara didn't know what he was doing...it doesn't matter he was reckless and deserved a big big suspension. But Jacobs got his way and every one took note.

Back in the Broad Street Bully days they recognized the problem and took action. I have no confidence this will happen in this money hungry league...if you can make a dollar hey why not

[tantalum]

That is very interesting coming from your part of the US. I'd have thought with St. Louis having such a great season the local hockey faithful would be heavily invested.

Going back to my NFL comparison and reading your post, maybe its because of the weakness of the Commissioner. The NFL owners are far more unified in public, and discipline against owners is also heavy. The NHL meanwhile keeps up its bush-league image by allowing a rogue's gallery buy teams (while keeping billionaire Canadian die-hard hockey fan out of the club), pandering to the inner circle of owners - Chicago, Boston, Toronto, etc. The idea of Toronto having a special exclusion zone that covers 1/3rd of the Canadian population, while Quebec had to share its province with another franchise, and apparently no compensation going to the Alberta teams when Winnipeg came in, makes me scratch my head.

The Blues fans are the ones still watching as they are obviously excited.

The NFL is far more unified in public on this front right now because of the 1186 players forming a class action lawsuit against the league because of concussions/head injuries and their aftermath (4 more players sued the NFL directly yesterday in direct response to the Saints bounty program). The NHL won't take it seriously until former concussed players and/or their families do the same thing and sue the LEAGUE. They are happy enough if a team, coaches and player gets sued like the Moore case but once all affected parties get together and sue the league the NHL will change it's tune. They've never been smart about things. Most leagues would look at the NFL issues and say "hmmm we should be preventative here", instead they've said "let's pretend we are preventative but in the end be reactive". Make no mistake about the NFL, if that collection of 1200 players didn't exist and weren't making trouble this bounty program thing would have been swept under the carpet. But they can't do that anymore.

[Aaronp18]

Violence is an easy answer to the question "How can we increase the size of our viewership?"

The problem is that it can not be sustained. You can't get the players to play with that type of emotion all the time, if you try to it will eventually be WWF .... errrr .... E type of violence. Manufactured, and that's how it will feel.

This increases immediate ratings but it will not create more fans of the game of hockey, which should be the long term goal of the NHL. We already have a bunch of fans right here on this site who watch the NHL on a regular basis and are questioning whether or not they would ever let their kids play hockey.

What in the hell does the NHL believe the casual observer is thinking.

"Wow what a fast, exciting and skilled game ice hockey is! I wonder what it takes to get started in the game? Looks like it would be fun to play!"

Not bloody likely.

The sad part is of the increased new viewers to this years playoffs I would wager to guess roughly 0% of them would ever want their kids to take part in this game after what they've seen thus far this year. That is exactly how you don't increase the popularity of a sport to a population that is unfamiliar with the game.

The NHL fucked it up last year and they are continuing the pound the pooch even harder this year. The NHL really better figure things out in a damn hurry or they are going to dig themselves a hole they may never get out of.

[Madcombinepilot]

The sad part is of the increased new viewers to this years playoffs I would wager to guess roughly 0% of them would ever want their kids to take part in this game after what they've seen thus far this year. That is exactly how you don't increase the popularity of a sport to a population that is unfamiliar with the game.

The NHL fucked it up last year and they are continuing the pound the pooch even harder this year. The NHL really better figure things out in a damn hurry or they are going to dig themselves a hole they may never get out of.

guys, its not the NHL or Bettman (stooge)

its the owners who pull the strings in this league. always has been, always will be. They are responsible for what we pay money to see.

[rats19]

The sad part is of the increased new viewers to this years playoffs I would wager to guess roughly 0% of them would ever want their kids to take part in this game after what they've seen thus far this year. That is exactly how you don't increase the popularity of a sport to a population that is unfamiliar with the game.

The NHL fucked it up last year and they are continuing the pound the pooch even harder this year. The NHL really better figure things out in a damn hurry or they are going to dig themselves a hole they may never get out of.

guys, its not the NHL or Bettman (stooge)

its the owners who pull the strings in this league. always has been, always will be. They are responsible for what we pay money to see.

Explain to me what kind of billionaire wants his biggest investment hurt and not drawing paying customers to the rink. Unless insurance bails him out, but even then the star Is still gone...someone explain please

[Madcombinepilot]

the kind that sees the big payday right now...

[rats19]

the kind that sees the big payday right now...

Not sure u become a billionaire using "in the moment philosophy" but not being one of course how the fuck would I know. But it still doesn't make sense, there ate 30 of them...surely they are can't be In the right now mindset..
Need smore splainin..

[Cornuck]

the kind that sees the big payday right now...

The kind that see employees as interchangeable parts?

[rats19]

I ....must be daft.

[Lancer]

and now Torres is back at it knocking Hossa out of the game on a stretcher. How many games folks? 3? 5? Are the arena staff getting out the gurney to milk what verdict they can out of Blind-man Shanahan? Don't anyone say that it would be beneath the Blackhawk organization.

Part of me says, "just deserts" after Keith's hit on Dank and Karma is a sweet bitch at times. The other part of me, though, just shakes my head at yet another example of where Bettman's league is taking hockey.

[Aaronp18]

the kind that sees the big payday right now...

The kind that see employees as interchangeable parts?

This makes little to no sense if you are an investor, which, make no mistake about it, is exactly what he majority of NHL owners are.

There's replaceable employees in every business but there's also the guys that make you money no matter how much they are paid. These are the highly skilled players that sell tickets and merchandise and add value to not only your franchise but the league as a whole.

For the long term success of the league and an increased valuation of each franchise the stars need to be on the ice playing.

[rats19]

the kind that sees the big payday right now...

The kind that see employees as interchangeable parts?

This makes little to no sense if you are an investor, which, make no mistake about it, is exactly what he majority of NHL owners are.

There's replaceable employees in every business but there's also the guys that make you money no matter how much they are paid. These are the highly skilled players that sell tickets and merchandise and add value to not only your franchise but the league as a whole.

For the long term success of the league and an increased valuation of each franchise the stars need to be on the ice playing.

So...umm....hmmm

[Cornuck]

How do the refs miss the Torres hit on Hossa?
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck- ... 58145.html

[Farhan Lalji]

How do the refs miss the Torres hit on Hossa?
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck- ... 58145.html

My only regret is that it wasn't on Duncan Keith to be perfectly honest.