Kukla's Korner Hockey

Goodbye Sather?

by Paul on 03/21/10 at 08:54 AM ET
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from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

Let’s assume, for a moment, that with eight of their final 11 games on the road, the New York Rangers will not make the playoffs.

That would mean that a Glen Sather team would have missed the post-season for the ninth time in 19 season since winning his last Stanley Cup in Edmonton.

It would also mean that a Sather-built team will have more losses than wins for the 15th time in 19 seasons.

The Hall of Fame induction of 1997 seems a long time ago now: It’s well past best-before date for Sather and it’s time to say goodbye and hello to Mark Messier and Adam Graves.

It’s time to pass the torch.

read on for more hockey talk…

Filed in: NHL Teams, New York Rangers | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Glen+Sather,

Can A Team Or Two Step Up?

by Paul on 03/21/10 at 08:38 AM ET
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from Larry Brooks of the NY Post,

Seriously, even one of the best advertisements the NHL has had going for it since the lockout—the Sidney Crosby-Alex Ovechkin rivalry—has been tainted by the introduction of jingoism into the mix by outside forces who have sought to superimpose a Cold War environment into the equation, as if this were 1972 with cheers greeting Bobby Clarke for slashing Valeri Kharlamov across the ankle.

The Blackhawks and Sharks seem to have peaked months ago. The Coyotes are an interesting little success story as wards of the state. The Lightning were sold again. Pierre McGuire still is talking, and there are five teams in the East—count them, five out of 15—who have scored more goals than they have allowed.

It’s parity as parody, and everyone most certainly does not have a chance to win despite the Sixth Avenue politicians’ promises coming out of the lockout of two chickens in every pot. In the last four years before the imposition of the imposition of the hard cap, 14 different teams played in the conference finals. In the four years since the lockout, 10 different teams made it that far.

more plus the NHLPA may be getting closer to Donald Fehr as executive director…

Filed in: NHL Teams, NHL Talk, NHLPA | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Reinsdorf Back In The Phoenix Picture

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 11:36 PM ET
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from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

There was a series of meetings this past Tuesday in Phoenix regarding the future of the Coyotes’ ownership, with both NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly on hand.

While nobody connected with the NHL would talk about it Saturday, one source connected to the situation told ESPN.com the Ice Edge group, which had signed a letter of intent earlier this season to buy the Coyotes, was no longer the front-runner to purchase the team. The source said Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf was back in the picture. Still, Ice Edge remains in the mix and hopes to try to complete the purchase.

If there is no local owner lined up by May, relocation could possibly enter the picture. The city of Glendale is working hard right now to try to avoid that.

more hockey topics…

Filed in: NHL Teams, Phoenix Coyotes | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Jerry+Reinsdorf,

Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond And Cam Janssen Go At It

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 08:38 PM ET
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How about a fight that went around 2 1/2 minutes.

Filed in: NHL Teams, New Jersey Devils, St. Louis Blues | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Cam+Janssen, Pierre-Luc+Letourneau-Leblond,

You May Need ‘The Babcock’

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 05:29 PM ET
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Thanks to Jeff Marek of CBC pointing this out on Twitter..

Filed in: Non-NHL Hockey, International Hockey | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Mike+Babcock, Team+Canada,

Sharks Coach Has Concerns

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 03:40 PM ET
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from David Pollak of Working the Corners,

At the top of the list of things that concern him during this current stretch is inconsistency, whether it’s the collective inability for the team to put together 60 minutes of solid hockey or the performance of individual players.

“Right now we just don’t have enough players every night,” McLellan said, not referring to quantity. “We get two or three back to where they’re supposed to be and then another two or three drop off.  And you can’t have that.”

There are other differences in the coaching staff’s approach this year.

“We’ve shuffled lines around quicker this year,” McLellan said. “We’ve used some of the players from the minors because we want to, not because we have to.”

more

Filed in: NHL Teams, San Jose Sharks | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Brian Campbell Not Interested In Hearing From Ovechkin

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 02:30 PM ET
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from David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune,

In regard to the official apology Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin offered after inflicting the injury that potentially ended Brian Campbell’s season and hurt the Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup hopes, Campbell says thanks.

But no thanks.

And please don’t call.

“Whatever he says isn’t going to change the fact I’m not going to be playing for a little while,’’ Campbell told the Tribune in his first explanation of what happened last Sunday at the United Center. “I think the intent was there. If the intent is there, I don’t think you can really say you didn’t mean to do anything. So for me, I don’t need anything from him.’’

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Chicago Blackhawks, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Alexander+Ovechkin, Brian+Campbell,

Vacation Over

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 01:53 PM ET
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Alexander Ovechkin says his vacation is over and time to get back to work.  More on Ovechkin and Bruce Boudreau has a few things to say at Capitals Insider.

Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Alexander+Ovechkin,

Senators Now In A Playoff Race

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 10:34 AM ET
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from Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun,

Just two months after referring to his Senators as one of the top five teams in the league and predicting they’d go “deep” into the playoffs, owner Eugene Melnyk was somewhat more reserved with his comments Friday.

In fact, Melnyk had to address the possibility that the Senators might yet be guilty of one of the greatest collapses of all-time and miss the post-season tournament altogether.

“I have absolute confidence that with the players we have and the coaching staff we have, we will obviously make the playoffs,” Melnyk said in an interview on Toronto’s FAN 590, before adding in his usual brash fashion: “There’s no question in my mind and once the playoffs start, it’s a whole new ballgame and our guys are going to rise to the top.”

That’s not the easy sell it once was, to be sure.

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Ottawa Senators | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Eleven Games Today In The NHL

by Paul on 03/20/10 at 10:30 AM ET
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First puck drops just after 1:00pm ET today.

Also, don’t forget the free preview of the NHL Networks begins today.

View today’s NHL schedule below…

Continue Reading »

Filed in: NHL Teams | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

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