Welcome to NHL Hockey!

[talloola]

For those who are interested, and I'm one of them, the NHL free agency starts 9:00 pac. time thursday
morning.
There are some very good players and lots of good players going into free agency July 1, can work into
a bit of a frenzy late in the day, just before closing time.

For the canucks: Dimitra, Johnson, Lukowitch, McIver, Mitchell, Nycholet, Pettinger, Pope, Raycroft,
Jan Statsny, wellwood
None of the above players have been signed yet, and on July 1, they will be free to either resign with
the canucks or go somewhere else.

 

[talloola]

after antti niemi played so well as goaltender for chicago, and celebrated the winning of the
stanley cup, 'they' have decided to let him walk.

he went to arbitration for a settlement re: his contract. arbitration awarded niemi 2.5 mil per year,
but black hawks decided not to accept that figure and backed off.

chicago has since signed marty turco to a contract, and niemi is a free agent, and can go wherever
he wants, if they want him.

chciago has made big big changes in their team, lots of players have been traded away. They had
huge cap problems, so they kept their 'core' players, and now their stanley cup winning goaltender is
also gone.

very different team next year.

that will be the way of the future for teams who win the cup, they will build up to a cup winning level,
go for it, and hope they win it, then break it all apart, and start over. chicago will still have a
good team, and it will be interesting to see if they can build it up again, and win it again.

 

[talloola]

Mike Modano has signed a one year contract to play for detroit red wings. He was with dallas since
the first year of his nhl career, and it seems they are saving money for younger players.

Detroit is his home town, he grew up there, so it is fitting that he finish his career with them,
and might even win a stanley cup, one never knows.

ryan johnson, kyle wellwood and willie mitchell are still unsigned, and remain free
agents, but mitchell has been skating for 3 weeks now, and possibly he will go through
rigorous tests with vancouver, and try to sign there again, now that salo is gone for
an undetermined length of time, they could use him, 'if' he is in playing form.

 

[talloola]

It took a while but Mat Cooke finally got what he deserves. He has been suspended for the remainder of
the regular season and first round of the playoffs.

The elbow he threw to the other player was very ugly, it was pre meditated, and blind sided, and he
delivered it to the facial area.

The G M, and owner (Mario Lemieux) have also made it clear that they are very displeased with his
behavior, and lemieux has told him that if he doesn't stop that style of play 'he can leave'.

He was an idiot with the canucks, vineault was fed up with him, starting trouble, then hiding behind
the linesmen, pretending he wanted to fight, but knowing the linesmen would hold them back, it was so
obvious on many occcasions.

He has 'no' honour in the game, absolutely no respect for his fellow players, and it is hard to
understand because he isn't a bad player, can help a team with his 'good' play, but he has let his
team down in a huge way by this latest move, especially with malkin and crosby still out.

 

[Mowich]

It took a while but Mat Cooke finally got what he deserves. He has been suspended for the remainder of
the regular season and first round of the playoffs.

The elbow he threw to the other player was very ugly, it was pre meditated, and blind sided, and he
delivered it to the facial area.

The G M, and owner (Mario Lemieux) have also made it clear that they are very displeased with his
behavior, and lemieux has told him that if he doesn't stop that style of play 'he can leave'.

He was an idiot with the canucks, vineault was fed up with him, starting trouble, then hiding behind
the linesmen, pretending he wanted to fight, but knowing the linesmen would hold them back, it was so
obvious on many occcasions.

He has 'no' honour in the game, absolutely no respect for his fellow players, and it is hard to
understand because he isn't a bad player, can help a team with his 'good' play, but he has let his
team down in a huge way by this latest move, especially with malkin and crosby still out.

The Pens owner, Mario Lemieux, has been very vocal about head hits ever since Sidney was taken out with a concussion. I would be more impressed with him if he decided to 'eat' Cooke's contract and get rid of him. That last hit by Cooke was sickening to watch and the NHL finally came down with a punishment to fit the crime - though I would have liked to see Cooke out for the entire play-offs but maybe, just maybe this will be enough to get through to him that his kind of behaviour on the ice is not acceptable and if he doesn't change, he will no be welcome in the league.

 

[talloola]

The Pens owner, Mario Lemieux, has been very vocal about head hits ever since Sidney was taken out with a concussion. I would be more impressed with him if he decided to 'eat' Cooke's contract and get rid of him. That last hit by Cooke was sickening to watch and the NHL finally came down with a punishment to fit the crime - though I would have liked to see Cooke out for the entire play-offs but maybe, just maybe this will be enough to get through to him that his kind of behaviour on the ice is not acceptable and if he doesn't change, he will no be welcome in the league.

Yes, Mario could buy him out, and he would be a free agent, but the only problem with that is, 'some'
g.m. somewhere in the league will 'sign' him, seems ludicrous, but it's all about money and winning
and when cooke plays without all of that viciousness, he is a pretty good 3rd line player.

 

[Mowich]

Yes, Mario could buy him out, and he would be a free agent, but the only problem with that is, 'some'
g.m. somewhere in the league will 'sign' him, seems ludicrous, but it's all about money and winning
and when cooke plays without all of that viciousness, he is a pretty good 3rd line player.

I heard the same thing on Hockey 2 Night, tallola, re Cooke being a fairly decent player when he isn't in the penalty box. I am beginning to think that maybe Cooke has had too many head hits himself which might explain his behaviour. The entire Pens management were solidly behind the NHL decision to suspend Cooke and that gives me hope that if Cooke stays with the team he might finally see the light.

 

[talloola]

I heard the same thing on Hockey 2 Night, tallola, re Cooke being a fairly decent player when he isn't in the penalty box. I am beginning to think that maybe Cooke has had too many head hits himself which might explain his behaviour. The entire Pens management were solidly behind the NHL decision to suspend Cooke and that gives me hope that if Cooke stays with the team he might finally see the light.

He did make a statement, and said he will change and realizes that he needs to, but it's too bad he
didn't make that statement after the savard hit, it seems the suspensions have made him see the light.

And, also the management, coaches and fellow players have to stop supporting their own player who
is hauled up on the carpet, it is getting stale, and shallow to stand behind a player who has made
an ass of himself and hurt some else.
It was good in this case to finally hear those people see it as it was.

 

[JLM]

I heard the same thing on Hockey 2 Night, tallola, re Cooke being a fairly decent player when he isn't in the penalty box. I am beginning to think that maybe Cooke has had too many head hits himself which might explain his behaviour. The entire Pens management were solidly behind the NHL decision to suspend Cooke and that gives me hope that if Cooke stays with the team he might finally see the light.

Yep, I think you may be on to something there. I haven't paid any attention to Cooke lately, but years ago when he was with the Canucks I thought he was generally a pretty highly skilled and highly regarded player. He's probably outlived his "shelf life".

 

[bill barilko]

.....but years ago when he was with the Canucks I thought he was generally a pretty highly skilled and highly regarded player. He's probably outlived his "shelf life".

Dare I say M*rt* McS*rl**?

 

[JLM]

Dare I say M*rt* McS*rl**?

As long as it's in the same sentence as the word "GOON".

 

[talloola]

Yep, I think you may be on to something there. I haven't paid any attention to Cooke lately, but years ago when he was with the Canucks I thought he was generally a pretty highly skilled and highly regarded player. He's probably outlived his "shelf life".

yeah, we watched cooke for years from his early days with canucks, we liked him, he was a middle of
the road player, and worked hard.
Somewhere along the way, his head seemed to grow a little too big, and he started getting an 'attitude,'
and a habit of cheap shotting players, then leaving the scene, and anytime he was challenged after one
of the incidences he would just hang on for dear life, till the linesmen came in to break it up, and
when there was a possibility of a fight breaking out, he would have 'none' of it, but he didn't mind
giving out the hard or high hit first.

Vineault definitely was totally turned off by his style of play, and cooke realized that vineault
didn't like him at all, and that was the beginning of the end, as his quality of play fell 'off' quite
a bit.

 

[talloola]

Calgary lost again tonight to anaheim, just about all over in cow-town, na na naw naw-----

gooo ooood - goo-od bye --------

 

[JLM]

Calgary lost again tonight to anaheim, just about all over in cow-town, na na naw naw-----

gooo ooood - goo-od bye --------

Yep, it didn't hurt my feelings. :lol: Can the Canucks keep it going tonight against L.A.? I think they can since it's at home............L.A. can be quite formidable.

 

[talloola]

Yep, it didn't hurt my feelings. :lol: Can the Canucks keep it going tonight against L.A.? I think they can since it's at home............L.A. can be quite formidable.

but l.a. has just lost their two top scorers for the season, can't be helpful for them.
if they were still playing, l.a. could be a contender, and can beat anyone, not sure now.

If canucks lost one of the sedins and kesler, they would be limping around.

 

[Mowich]

The Calgary Flames owe their continuing existance in the race for a play-off spot to one man - Jerome Inginla(sp?), IMHO. He got another 3 points in the Flames win over St. Louis tonight. 1000 career points. 9 goals in 7 games. This guy is so impressive and such a wonderful example of a great team captain. The Flames are darn lucky to have in on their team.

 

[JLM]

The Calgary Flames owe their continuing existance in the race for a play-off spot to one man - Jerome Inginla(sp?), IMHO. He got another 3 points in the Flames win over St. Louis tonight. 1000 career points. 9 goals in 7 games. This guy is so impressive and such a wonderful example of a great team captain. The Flames are darn lucky to have in on their team.

You're close- Iginla.....................anyone know what Nationality that name is?

 

[Mowich]

You're close- Iginla.....................anyone know what Nationality that name is?

Here you go, JLM. :smile:

Jarome Arthur-Leigh Adekunle Tig Junior Elvis Iginla[1][2] (pronounced /dʒəˈroʊm ɨˈɡɪnlə/; born July 1, 1977) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL). A six-time NHL All-Star, he is the Flames' all-time leader in goals, points, and games played, and is second in assists to Al MacInnis. Named the Flames captain at the start of the 2003–04 season, Iginla has been called the first black captain in NHL history. He has represented Canada internationally on numerous occasions, helping Team Canada to its first Olympic gold medal in 50 years at the 2002 Winter Olympics and another gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

As a junior, Iginla was a member of two Memorial Cup-winning teams with the Kamloops Blazers, and was named the Western Hockey League's Player of the Year in 1996. He was selected 11th overall by the Dallas Stars in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft, but was later traded to Calgary and has played his entire professional career with the Flames. He led the NHL in goals and points in 2001–02, and won the Lester B. Pearson Award as its most valuable player as voted by the players. In 2003–04, Iginla led the league in goals for the second time and captained the Flames to the Stanley Cup Finals, leading the league in playoff scoring. Iginla scored 50 goals in a season for a second time in 2007–08, has scored 1,000 points in his career and was the 10th player in NHL history to score 30 goals in ten consecutive seasons. Known for his polite and generous nature, Iginla participates in numerous community events and donates $2,000 to charity for each goal he scores.

Iginla was born in Edmonton, Alberta, July 1, 1977. His father, a lawyer, was born in Nigeria and changed his first name from Adekunle to Elvis when he arrived in Canada.[3] His surname means "Big tree" in Yoruba, his father's native language.[4] Iginla's mother, Susan, is originally from Oregon, and has worked as a massage therapist and music teacher. Iginla grew up with his mother and grandparents after his parents divorced when he was a year old.[3] While his mother is a Buddhist, he identifies himself as Christian, his father's faith.[5]

In addition to hockey, Iginla played baseball as a young man and was the catcher on the Canadian National Junior team.[4] He credits his grandfather for his career, as with his mother working and father attending law school, he would not have had the opportunity to play sports at a high level if not for his grandfather's support.[6] Iginla grew up admiring other black hockey players, including Edmonton OilersgoaltenderGrant Fuhr. Emulating Fuhr, Iginla played goaltender in his first two years of organized hockey before switching to the right wing.[7] He played his entire minor hockey career in St. Albert, leading the Alberta Midget Hockey League in scoring as a 15-year-old with 87 points for the St. Albert Midget Raiders in 1992–93.[4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jarome_Iginla

 

[talloola]

The Calgary Flames owe their continuing existance in the race for a play-off spot to one man - Jerome Inginla(sp?), IMHO. He got another 3 points in the Flames win over St. Louis tonight. 1000 career points. 9 goals in 7 games. This guy is so impressive and such a wonderful example of a great team captain. The Flames are darn lucky to have in on their team.

yes, he did it again, just when calgary looked like they were toast again, the captain came to the
rescue, my favourite player for many years, he is very special.

 

[#juan]

I was a little fuzzy about how the NHL play-offs worked.
Here is the low down for anyone else who might have been confused:

The NHL is divided into 2 conferences and then 3 divisions per conference. The teams with the most points in each division are seeded 1-3 and the next highest teams are seeded 4-8 for each conference. 16 teams make the playoffs and each round consists of a best of 7 series.

Round 1 (quarterfinals): 16 teams (8 per conference). 1vs8, 2vs7, 3vs6, 4vs5. Seeds 1-4 have home ice advantage*.

Round 2 (semifinals): 8 teams (4 per conference). After the first round, the teams are re-seeded so that the highest ranking team plays the lowest ranking team. i.e. If seeds 1, 2, 5, 6 won in round one, then the matchups would be 1vs6, and 2vs5, with the higher seeds having home ice advantage.

Round 3 (conference finals): 4 teams. Same as round 2. Western winner is awarded the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl and the Eastern winner is awarded the Prince of Wales Trophy.

Round 4 (Stanley Cup finals): 2 teams. The winners from each conference play each other for the Stanley Cup, the oldest trophy is pro sports history. The team with the better regular season has home ice advantage.

*home ice advantage means:
Game 1: better team plays at home
Game 2: better team plays at home
Game 3: better team plays away
Game 4: better team plays away
Game 5: better team plays at home
Game 6: better team plays away
Game 7: better team plays at home