Hockey fans...

[caseOrange]

Any NHL or general hockey fans out there?

Personally, i'm p-o'd at the NHL right now because of the lock-out, and since we lost our minors team a couple of years ago, there's not many people left down here to talk hockey with.

[Xenu]

I'm going thru withdrawls as well . We have the Predators here, but I'm a Sharks fan from way back....lousy lock-out.

[caseOrange]

Yep. And it looks like it's going to last the whole season and into next season. Are there any minor league teams in your area? Sometimes the NHLers will show up on a minor league squad to bide their time.

What do you think of the two sides in the lock-out? i side more with the owners, but only because i agree with a salary cap. Otherwise, i think they're just greedy.

But i could say the same with the players. Every major sport has a salary cap except hockey, which is probably the one that needs it the most, IMO. The problem is that my team (NY Rangers) screwed the whole argument in favor of a cap by spending tens of millions of dollars on big-name players and still can't get into the play-offs for 7 years running.

BTW, my girlfriend loved the design of Predators' sweaters so much, she went out and bought one during the inaugural season. The only difference is it doesn't have the "98" on the shoulder patch. i must admit, and almost everyone i know agrees with me, that Nashville has one of the coolest logos EVER!

[Roner]

I'm not missing hockey too much yet. I'm a huge football guy, so I usually don't pay much attention to hockey until after the Superbowl. Now, the down side of this is I live near Chicago. I'm a Blackhawks fan, they suck so bad it's like every year is a lockout. The good news is we have an AHL team, The Chicago Wolves. I love the Wolves, I've been going to games since the team started here, they used to be in the IHL and won the Turner Cup twice, then thier first year in the AHL they won the Calder Cup. I'd forgotten what winning hockey in Chicago was like until they came to town. Apparently once the NHL calls the season Chris Chelios is going to sign with the Wolves for the rest of the season. It's the only reason I look forward to the canceling of the season. As far as the lockout goes, I side with owners. They really do need a salary cap, not only will help the league survive but is should also make it more competetive over all.

[Harvester]

I'm a Sharks fan from way back

Sorry, that just sounds odd! Of course, I'm a Habs fan (Montreal Canadiens) and have been as long as I can remember. The '76 team was and still is the greatest team ever assembled.
As for the lockout, if the billionaires (owners) and millionaires (players) can't figure out how to divide up a couple billion in revenues then the hell with them.
If the NHL comes back with shootouts to decide games, I'll have watched my last NHL game as well. No team sport should be decided by an individual skills competition.

As for missing hockey, it's not such a big deal. I'm playing twice a week so I manage to get my fix that way. Up here they're playing some 'Battlestar' show on Space on Saturdays when a guy might otherwise be watching 'Hockey Night in Canada'.
There's lots of entertainment choices these days and the NHL & NHLPA better realize that. If people in Canada are finding other things to do, it can't be good down south.

[Roner]

Here in the States it seems that no one really cares. Hockey has been losing momentum the last few years. I wouldn't even consider it the fourth major sport anymore. I think the NHL needs to quit thinking it can compete with the NFL, MLB, and NBA and just realize it's a cult sport here and market it that way. If they ever settle the lockout that is.

[ah-chie]

I've been a hockey fan for about 45 years (I remember cheering for the Leafs on the radio before I started going to school).

I miss seeing the Leafs on television but have found lately that I enjoy going to the Junior A games more (and our home town team is lousy this year) so there isn't a hockey void in our lives.

I hope they do sort things out before too long, but it wouldn't break my heart if the NHL was relegated to being mainly a Canadian organization and they dumped the ridiculous American franchises (where it isn't really part of the mainstream culture anyway - like in the south etc.). That way there might be a chance for more Canadian teams in the league. It could be more along the lines of the CFL. That would suit me just dandy. ;D

[Spassvogel]

Our local WHL Team, the Winterhawks has been consistently entertaining for 20+years. The lockout allowed us to keep Braydon Coburn (first rounder by Atlanta) another year, which was a small silver lining. I actually prefer juniors to the NHL for the most part, but the last Winter Olympics was pretty entertaining, and I hope the NHL decides to elmininate the red line. It would make the game a whole lot more interesting.

Even though I think the players' union is in the wrong overall, there's no doubt in my mind that Gary Bettman has run the league into the ground. (particuarly with Expansion)

The NFL is the most profitable pro league, and they not only have a salary cap, but they have near parity. Any team can beat any other team at any given time.

Spass

[caseOrange]

Spassvogel said:

Even though I think the players' union is in the wrong overall, there's no doubt in my mind that Gary Bettman has run the league into the ground. (particuarly with Expansion)

i totally agree. The expansion of the NHL in the last few years has been nothing but billionaires wanting to own their own NHL team and sparkles in Bettman's rose-colored glasses as he marketed it as proof that people across the country wanted hockey. And to top it off, he has said that the elimination of teams is not even an option.

There are some consistently successful markets in the U.S. for hockey: Denver, New Jersey, St. Louis, Detroit and Dallas, to name a few. And you can't get rid of NY, Boston or Chicago because of their Original Six standing.

As far as expansion teams go, i think Minnesota should stay because they have a lot of potential up there. i would like to see Tampa Bay stay because they finally have an Owner/GM/Coach combo going on that cares about the franchise.

IMHO, there are a few markets that need to give it up; and i hate to say this because, when you get right down to it, i like all the NHL teams (except for Philly and Jersey). i'm not going to list them because i don't want to make enemies with the few true hockey fans i've found on this board.

[Roner]

Spassvogel said:

The NFL is the most profitable pro league, and they not only have a salary cap, but they have near parity. Any team can beat any other team at any given time.

Spass

You're wrong about one thing Spass, I'm a Bears fan, believe not Any team can beat another. The Bears can't seem to win games they're supposed to. LOL

[caseOrange]

Roner said:

You're wrong about one thing Spass, I'm a Bears fan, believe not Any team can beat another. The Bears can't seem to win games they're supposed to. LOL

Try being a Saints fan.

[caseOrange]

Just to update anybody who cares: the NHL has set this weekend (Feb. 11-13) as the official deadline for having a season or not. This is according to CNN Headline News. It doesn't look good.

[Roner]

It's going to be weird that the Stanley Cup will have a blank spot on it. It's just not right. I still think the owners are right though. The players need to gets their heads out of their collective rear ends and get on the ice.

[caseOrange]

Well, it's pretty much a done deal now--Headline News just had a blurb at the bottom of the screen saying that talks broke off today, before the deadline was even reached. No Stanley Cup this year. i hope the players and owners are happy now.

[Roner]

Moral of the story: Support your local minor league clubs. I'll being for the Chicago Wolves to win the Calder Cup this year. It's all the hockey fan in me has left.