I hate that crest on the new one so much. It looks tiny and I'm not a fan of the curves on the badge. I think it'd look better a shield/badge more like the Rangers emblem, where it's more squared off.
And the idea of fake laces, why even bother with printed on laces? You can just put real laces on.
They just don't look like hockey jerseys to me. The stripes around the chest, but not the arms or vice versa. If you made it short sleeved and a slimmer cut they'd look like soccer jerseys.
I've had the USA Hockey logo beaten into me for the last however many years of playing so I really like it. I think it looks really good on the navy jerseys.
And I dislike shield emblems in general, they walk that fine line between looking classic and looking old and it usually falls on just looking old.
Personally, I like the crest. It's a little understated, and I like that. My main problems are the glossy stars, the strange-looking cut (to my eyes anyway), and Nike's irrepressible need to make sure that the swoosh is the most visible thing on any rutting thing that they make.
he has possibly the worst layout of any blogger ever, but writes a really good blog. usually about the oilers but he tackles all hockey talk.
So as I meander around here lets get back to the beginning and lets use Chara as our example.
Since Chara's arrival the Bruins have gone from being a middle of the road club to one of the elite NHL franchises. Only Chicago, with two Cups, has had more success. The Bruins, like Detroit and Pittsburgh, have won a Cup and had an opportunity to win another. Pretty heady company and the future hall of famer Zdeno Chara is a big reason why.
And still, two years after a Cup win, fans are calling for him to get dumped.
Why?
Here are some theories.
Media. Hockey media are notoriously terrible. Not all of them of course but watch Hockey Night in Canada. Its almost unbearable once you get by Friedman, MacLean and the production values. They seize on the most ridculous narratives and run with them and the cult of the plug is propagated by its high priest Don Cherry and his acolytes Stock, Healy, Weekes et al. Star players fail and lose their clubs' championships, the muckers and grinders win the Cup. Remember the ridiculous narrative about Shawn Thornton in 2011 and how he turned the tide for the Bruins. Never mind Tim Thomas and Chara and Bergeron and a deep and skilled lineup and the injury to Hamhuis that hobbled the Canucks. It was Shawn Thornton who, what, hit somebody? Fought somebody? I can't remember because it mattered so little.
Cheap shitty narrative.
And these ideas permeate hockey thinking. Mark Spector (such an easy target, sorry) claimed that what the Oilers needed to do earlier this year was put Ben Eager in the top six. Of course Spector is only echoing what Cherry used to say every Saturday night, that Tie Domi, expert self promoter though not much of a hockey player, should be playing alongside Mats Sundin. Leaf fans loved Tie Domi. Mats Sundin not so much. Not a winner.
Some weeks later Eager was waived through the league.
Spector also claimed that the Oilers had to dump their Euros, especially those in their supporting cast (read Paajarvi first of all), his theory being that no team could win with such a makeup.
After Brian Bickell scored to tie game six for Chicago Joel Quennevlle sent his fourth line over the boards to protect the tie and get the game to overtime. On that line - a Swede, Marcus Kruger and a Czech, Michael Frolik. On the blue in support, Chicago's second pair, Oduya and Hjalmarsson. (Also in Chicago's bottom six forwards, another Swede, Stallberg. In their bottom pairing on D, Roscival, another Czech.)
Seventeen seconds later Chicago scored to take the lead. After Boston's timeout Quenneville sent out the same five man unit to protect the Stanley Cup. When they came off with seconds left two more Europeans, Marian Hossa and Michael Handzus, were sent out with Jonathan Toews to finish the Bruins off.
So apparently Spector is wrong? And what about that old saw about Europeans and the Cup. You know where they don't care about it and all that.
Cheap shitty narrative.
Fact: skilled players on your fourth line > facepunchers. While Frolik and Kruger and Bolland were trusted with the Stanley Cup, literally sent out against Lucic and Krejci and Horton with EVERYTHING ON THE LINE, in the second game of a back to back where Toronto had a chance to advance to the second round, Colton Orr was stapled to the bench while his teammates flagged. Would an actual hockey player have made a difference? Maybe not. But common sense says yes, having a guy that the coach could have sent over the boards would have been a good thing.
So for starters you have that. Hockey fans are told over and over again, by a panel of mostly former plugs (Cherry a career AHLer, Weekes and Healy backup goalies, PJ Stock a plug's plug) that plugs are great and skill is soft and never mind the Europeans. Ilya Kovalchuk was reamed in 2012 despite playing through a serious back injury. He had filled the net the first three rounds but was ineffective and suddenly, four wins from the Cup, the narrative stated that he didn't care.
Critical thought folks. Critical thought.
Its not a strong suit in modern society so to expect it in sport may be asking a little much. People generally defer to authority, its in our general nature. People defer to the government, trusting that they are doing right by us. People trust the corporations who steal from us and the unions that steal from us and the media who have their own agenda. As Dave Nonis has blundered time and again this summer his supporters' most common refrain is 'he knows what he is doing, there are only thirty GMs and he is one and what do you know anyhow'.
This ignores the fact that holding a position does not necessarily mean you are good at that position. Mike Milbury. Doug MacLean. John Ferguson Jr. Steve Tambellini. They all say hello.
The best general in World War I, bar none, was a real estate agent from Victoria, Arthur Currie.
I'm not saying I could do the job of a GM, I couldn't, but the idea that a GM is infallible because he is a GM is so obviously ridiculous its not even worth addressing, similar to the idea that one cannot criticize a GM's move because one isn't a GM. That logic leads to this - you could not criticize a band unless you were professional musician, a book unless you were a published author, a business unless you were a businessman and so on.
Dumb. Really really dumb. But people believe this and this line of thinking, again, permeates hockey. Tie Domi used to say 'you never played the game' when he was questioned or criticized.
Hockey is a conservative world, in many ways its a backwards world. The kid who had the shit kicked out of him for snowing a goalie this spring and people saying he had it coming. The idea that a goon who can't play the game and dances with the other team's dancing bear is an integral part of the team when for the first century or so of the game there was no such role. The fact that fans think a guy like Colton Orr and his 'intangibles' matter and that the team would be better without Phaneuf (bad in the room).
I lived in Clearwater Florida for over three years when a very talented Bucs team looked to win their first Super Bowl. They would win it a couple of years after we left but when we were there they always fell short. The city was football crazy and there was anger and frustration but this was directed at the quarterback Trent Dilfer (ironically he would win the Super Bowl with Baltimore) and the coach Tony Dungy (he would also win a Super Bowl in Indy). It was not directed at Warren Sapp and Derek Brooks and Ronde Barber and John Lynch and the many high profile stars on the team. It was not directed at the best players.
When I lived in Toronto in the eighties and early nineties the Blue Jays were a team on the cusp. They collapsed in 1985 and in 1987 and for years they teased the fanbase. Why did they fall short? Their pitching was not good enough and their offence was not deep enough and their defence, especially in the outfield, could be shoddy.
People were disappointed and angry but as a fan from those days (and a young man at that, a little more prone to, lets say, hyperbole and exuberance, as young men tend to be) I can say that there were no calls for George Bell to get run out of town or Dave Stieb or any number of quality players. They may have been flawed but they helped the team win.
Somehow hockey fans though subscribe to this idea that in many cases it is the best player who is the problem when the team fails. It isn't a lack of depth or quality on the club or that they were outplayed or that they were just plain unlucky.
No, its on Zdeno Chara's head that Boston lost and on Crosby's that the Pens failed and on Phaneuf that the Leafs' failures rest.
Counterpoint, Chara was visibly gassed in the Finals, and he's no spring chicken. I'm not hanging anything on him though. Losing Soupy hurt. Bergeron was playing hurt to the point that he damn near killed himself out there. Chicago was too fast and Boston let them play in space, which is precisely what they couldn't afford to do. Anybody calling for anybody's head in Boston over last season is a damned idiot by my reckoning.
Counterpoint, Chara was visibly gassed in the Finals, and he's no spring chicken. I'm not hanging anything on him though. Losing Soupy hurt. Bergeron was playing hurt to the point that he damn near killed himself out there. Chicago was too fast and Boston let them play in space, which is precisely what they couldn't afford to do. Anybody calling for anybody's head in Boston over last season is a damned idiot by my reckoning.
By the end it was fairly apparent Chara had done something to either a hip or an oblique, he just could not turn to transition with any kind of speed.
I'd be up for it! I'll probably be in a Keeper League and another league with some friends I went to university with. I think I've got room for one more team.
Just because I'm an anal retentive over planner, give me notice by September 22nd if you want to play, either by forum or google doc.
Even then I won't say no if we're not full, I'll just hate you and do my best to give you bottom of the waiver wire, which I don't think I can actually control.
I think I'm ready to start thinking about hockey again. I didn't want to pay much attention over the summer because of the disappointment with how the Penguins' season ended and the Pirates actually playing well. But now with the preseason set to start soon let's get back into things.
I'll join the fantasy league again this year even though it didn't go so well last year. It might work better if we do H2H this year since I recall there being...problems with the league being roto last year.
The Buffalo jersey isn't terrible, it is just very close to something Nashville would wear and nothing like the old-style Buffalo jerseys which everyone actually wants instead.
Woohoo NHL.com reminded me that I'll have to pay $150 to watch hockey.
Totally going to pay them, unfortunately.
Still debating if I want to turn TSN back on in my cable package for $12/m to get the nearly 20 Pens games they'll be carrying. Sometimes I think the Penguins really did move to Hamilton for how much they're treated like an in-market team.
Oh well, at least I now have the XBMC Gamecenter add-on working now so I don't have to pony up for a Gold account to watch it on my Xbox so I can enjoy hockey on my TV. Hell, I can even watch hockey in my bedroom now if I want.
I LIVE LIKE A KING.
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#pipeCocky Stride, Musky odoursPope of Chili TownRegistered Userregular
Yeah the new buffalo tip is not a terrible jersey, it's just clumsy.
Which is especially a shame considering they also recently fielded one of my absolute favourite jerseys
The interview questions in the new Live the Life mode are pretty good. Last night I told the media I was going to hack anyone who dared enter my crease.
I just found this on the Flyers' store and it is the dumbest fucking thing in the world and I'm going to buy it and wear it foreeeever
The backstory is that they did green shirts with "o'" in front of the players' names, to make them Irish you see. But that they picked James van Riemsdyk is too delightful for words.
Anyone see the pity piece on Pronger on ESPN today? I don't really wish the guy any ill will, but there was zero mention of the number of times he's been fined or suspended for delivering hits that probably helped put other people in the same position he's in now. Yeah, it sucks, and I'm glad that sports leagues are finally taking concussions seriously, but you don't have to shed a tear for this guy. Unlike probably 2/3rds of the guys he ran over in his career, he was successful enough to give himself long-term financial security (although a lot of that is due to not being an idiot with his money, so bully to him for that).
Today is being an especially, god awfully slow day at work so I'm setting up the fantasy league. I figured I'd try and get a bit of a consensus from everyone on what categories to track.
The entire list
Skaters
Goals
Assists
Points
Plus/Minus
Penalty Minutes
Powerplay Goals
Powerplay Assists
Powerplay Points
Shorthanded Goals
Shorthanded Assists
Shorthanded Points
Game-Winning Goals
Shots on Goal
Shooting Percentage
Faceoffs Won
Faceoffs Lost
Hits
Blocks Goalies
Games Started
Wins
Losses
Goals Against
Goals Against Average
Shots Against
Saves
Save Percentage
Shutouts
I'm inclined to go with Goals, Assists, Points, PIM, PPP, SOG, Wins, GAA, Saves, SV%, Shutouts. I want opinions so that no one will question me before my transformation into the tyrannical league commissioner.
I always thought that fantasy leagues should include everything after the start of the season. All Star Game? Sure! Playoffs? Absolutely! This year, the Olympics? Why not?
My question about the stats is how is it figured? One point per each of those things? I've seen some wacky stats kept where I could never tell how many points I'd be getting.
Oh, and be sure to include goalie points, PIMs, etc. Nothing like seeing a goalie get a second assist, a penalty, and a win, then seeing 2 of them wiped off the figures.
chromdom on
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AngryThe glory I had witnessedwas just a sleight of handRegistered Userregular
if you have goals and assists, points are an unnecessary stat. i'd prefer save percentage instead of saves. that would put it unbalanced 5-4 in favor of skater to goalie stats which i think is good.
Can we do a league without penalty minutes because I've never understood why anyone considered that a positive stat in the first place? Or if we did include it, make it a negative with the most points losing.
I think whatever the categories are, it should be at least a 6/4 split for skaters/goalies. There are only going to be what, 2 starting goalies vs. 10 or more starting skaters? It doesn't make a ton of sense to have the number of categories be too close. Might even want to make it 7/3 or something if you want to have 10 categories total. So I'd have something like.
Goals
Assists
Plus/Minus
Penalty Minutes (negatively) or Hits
Powerplay Points
Shots on Goal
Blocks
Wins
Goals Against Average
Save Percentage
But really anything's fine.
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AngryThe glory I had witnessedwas just a sleight of handRegistered Userregular
i hate pims as well but it's so ingrained that everyone uses it. blocks really wouldn't be viable, it wouldn't add enough value to the guys that get huge block totals as they typically have very low scoring stats.
plus/minus might be the most bullshit stat in all of competitive sports, please don't use it.
Posts
And the idea of fake laces, why even bother with printed on laces? You can just put real laces on.
They just don't look like hockey jerseys to me. The stripes around the chest, but not the arms or vice versa. If you made it short sleeved and a slimmer cut they'd look like soccer jerseys.
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.
the shield might be a little small, but i like it's design.
i really liked the design of hockey canada's jerseys in 2010.
And I dislike shield emblems in general, they walk that fine line between looking classic and looking old and it usually falls on just looking old.
scratch that
reverse it
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.
he has possibly the worst layout of any blogger ever, but writes a really good blog. usually about the oilers but he tackles all hockey talk.
By the end it was fairly apparent Chara had done something to either a hip or an oblique, he just could not turn to transition with any kind of speed.
I've had good experiences with the yahoo fantasy hockey system before and can set it up if anyone is interested.
Sooo.... maybe?
3DS Friend Code: 0216-0898-6512
Switch Friend Code: SW-7437-1538-7786
Hopefully by starting early on this we can avoid having to make anyone autodraft.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AntvhH6OJ1qqdGtZMWRNLWYzMWRqWXRRMkpUc2Q5b3c&usp=sharing
Even then I won't say no if we're not full, I'll just hate you and do my best to give you bottom of the waiver wire, which I don't think I can actually control.
I think I'm ready to start thinking about hockey again. I didn't want to pay much attention over the summer because of the disappointment with how the Penguins' season ended and the Pirates actually playing well. But now with the preseason set to start soon let's get back into things.
I'll join the fantasy league again this year even though it didn't go so well last year. It might work better if we do H2H this year since I recall there being...problems with the league being roto last year.
Who's laughing now, Canada?
Also, Buffalo did a thing to a jersey and...just, wow.
And if they match the nameplate font with the number font.
and some other things I'll think of later.
It's hard to tell with only 2 letters and 1 number but they both had single pointed serifs which is pretty indicative
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.
Sorry, I meant the coloration, not the font.
The "Buffalo" is weird and off-putting, though.
Totally going to pay them, unfortunately.
Still debating if I want to turn TSN back on in my cable package for $12/m to get the nearly 20 Pens games they'll be carrying. Sometimes I think the Penguins really did move to Hamilton for how much they're treated like an in-market team.
Oh well, at least I now have the XBMC Gamecenter add-on working now so I don't have to pony up for a Gold account to watch it on my Xbox so I can enjoy hockey on my TV. Hell, I can even watch hockey in my bedroom now if I want.
I LIVE LIKE A KING.
Which is especially a shame considering they also recently fielded one of my absolute favourite jerseys
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.
I don't know how good it'd actually look on a third jersey, but I think it wouldn't be bad on an away white.
Management didn't like that, but the fans did.
The entire list
Goals
Assists
Points
Plus/Minus
Penalty Minutes
Powerplay Goals
Powerplay Assists
Powerplay Points
Shorthanded Goals
Shorthanded Assists
Shorthanded Points
Game-Winning Goals
Shots on Goal
Shooting Percentage
Faceoffs Won
Faceoffs Lost
Hits
Blocks
Goalies
Games Started
Wins
Losses
Goals Against
Goals Against Average
Shots Against
Saves
Save Percentage
Shutouts
I'm inclined to go with Goals, Assists, Points, PIM, PPP, SOG, Wins, GAA, Saves, SV%, Shutouts. I want opinions so that no one will question me before my transformation into the tyrannical league commissioner.
My question about the stats is how is it figured? One point per each of those things? I've seen some wacky stats kept where I could never tell how many points I'd be getting.
Oh, and be sure to include goalie points, PIMs, etc. Nothing like seeing a goalie get a second assist, a penalty, and a win, then seeing 2 of them wiped off the figures.
goals
assists
ppp
pim
sog
wins
gaa
sv%
shutouts
I may draft the Merlot Line anyway, just because.
I think whatever the categories are, it should be at least a 6/4 split for skaters/goalies. There are only going to be what, 2 starting goalies vs. 10 or more starting skaters? It doesn't make a ton of sense to have the number of categories be too close. Might even want to make it 7/3 or something if you want to have 10 categories total. So I'd have something like.
Goals
Assists
Plus/Minus
Penalty Minutes (negatively) or Hits
Powerplay Points
Shots on Goal
Blocks
Wins
Goals Against Average
Save Percentage
But really anything's fine.
plus/minus might be the most bullshit stat in all of competitive sports, please don't use it.