2009-10 NHL Season Part 2

[BigMac12]

Coyotes shut out the Ducks. I feel very confident about this season's Desert Dogs.

[The_Admiral]

by beating...the Ducks?

Also, how did the Coyotes add $2.1 million in payroll when they're bankrupt, in debt, and under league ownership? Far cry from the 2003 league-owned Expos that couldn't make a single goddamned September call-up. This whole thing stinks to high heaven, if you ask me. I wish your team ill.

[BrySmalls]

by beating...the Ducks?

Also, how did the Coyotes add $2.1 million in payroll when they're bankrupt, in debt, and under league ownership? Far cry from the 2003 league-owned Expos that couldn't make a single goddamned September call-up. This whole thing stinks to high heaven, if you ask me. I wish your team ill.

After the last few years, saying that the NHL will find any means necessary to make the team succeed in Phoenix is a vast understatement.

[BigMac12]

I wish your team ill.

Same to whatever team you root for.

[OMMF]

Also, how did the Coyotes add $2.1 million in payroll when they're bankrupt, in debt, and under league ownership? Far cry from the 2003 league-owned Expos that couldn't make a single goddamned September call-up. This whole thing stinks to high heaven, if you ask me. I wish your team ill.

Why, exactly? Being bankrupt doesn't mean all spending or investment immediately stops. On the contrary, you would make decisions that would try to get your organization out of debt. It is in the NHL's interest to have a competitive team and to do so, they gave the current GM a budget to work within and he made moves staying within that. Now that is not to say that there isn't the appearance of a conflict of interest (the league owns the team and is also responsible for approving the deals made) but seeing as how it takes 2 teams to be involved in a deal, you would have heard from another GM if something unsavory had happened.

[The_Admiral]

I think it's pretty bogus that the other 29 teams, most of which are solvent, have to fund Gary Bettman's deadline spending spree. The Coyotes are so far gone that adding Wojtek Wolski or whoever else is not going to get the team out of debt. Usually when a league has to buy a bankrupt team to keep it going, the modus operandi is to do so on only the thinnest and tightest shoestring budgets. The Sabres and Senators were hardly free-spending when the league had to assume control of them. Again, the Montreal Expos weren't so much league-run as they were league-sabotaged. This is unprecendented extravagance, and it's being squandered.

[OMMF]

I think it's pretty bogus that the other 29 teams, most of which are solvent, have to fund Gary Bettman's deadline spending spree. The Coyotes are so far gone that adding Wojtek Wolski or whoever else is not going to get the team out of debt. Usually when a league has to buy a bankrupt team to keep it going, the modus operandi is to do so on only the thinnest and tightest shoestring budgets. The Sabres and Senators were hardly free-spending when the league had to assume control of them. Again, the Montreal Expos weren't so much league-run as they were league-sabotaged. This is unprecendented extravagance, and it's being squandered.

Well trying to compare Montreal against Phoenix will be fruitless as you are talking about two different leagues, one of which wants the team to stay where it is and one who wanted to get the hell out of Dodge.

As to the Sabres and Senators, Ottawa was already on their way to be a top-3 seed (and winning the President's Trophy) so how much money would you expect the league to spend on a first place team as far as acquiring players? On the other end, Buffalo finished 12th and only did so by getting points in 7 of their last 10 games. Now compare those to Phoenix, who are trying to maintain home ice advantage in the first round (more money for the team) and may make it past that with the players they acquired (more money for team.)

Also, at the trade deadline the year that the Sabres and Senators were under the control of the league, they both made moves, including one with each other (now that seems sketchy.) Ottawa acquired Rob Ray and Bryan Smolinkski, among others, and Buffalo picked up some unknown player named Daniel Briere.

I know that I sound like a Coyotes apologist. Honestly, I really could not care less. But I think the people that are against Bettman/Phoenix/NHL, etc are just looking for things to get outraged about when there is really nothing there.

[Don]

Playoff revenue helps get a team out of debt, why would they not make moves that would improve their chances of going deep into the postseason?

[The_Admiral]

If I thought the deadline spree would help the other teams in the league get a return on their investment, I wouldn't complain. You do know the group that's supposed to buy the team this summer doesn't have any money, right?

[STL FANATIC]

It's not hard to figure. The NHL wants to succeed in Phoenix. To do so, they know they need to put a consistent contender on the ice to peak fans interest. They're spending the money that allows that.

Whether that's perfectly "clean" or not isn't clear and may be a matter of opinion, but it's rather easy to determine the motivation.

In my opinion, if the NHL is set on keeping the team in Phoenix (and in my other opinion I think they should be), then this seems to absolutely be the right way to handle things. Really, it's the only way.

[The_Admiral]

Then I hope the team is sold for $2.1 million more than the NHL bought it for. Once again, the problem is that it turned out the Ice Edge people don't actually have any money to buy the team and they couldn't get taxpayers to foot the bill for them, as well they shouldn't. (This ended up being more or less the same plan that Reinsdorf had, which was to buy the team while boldly not paying for it and having a TIF enacted to cover those pesky costs of purchasing a pro sports team.) How much good does it do the NHL to raise the franchise value on the other owners' dime if nobody is there to buy it? Is the NHL going to own the Coyotes for another year? Five more years?

[Top Shelf]

And in other news, Marc Savard gets knocked the out by Matt Cooke.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_F7LEZ78_o

That was a cheapshot, no question about it. Cooke should be thrown out of the league for all of the cheapshots he's piled up. And the lack of a penalty on the play is total bush league.

[maz]

I was at the game. The dead silence in the arena, especially when the stretcher was brought out, was sickening.

That said, I dont think it was a cheap shot. I know nobody is going to take what i say seriously being that im defending a penguin (god forbid), but I dont see any intent here at all. You can see afterwards that Cooke is obviously shaken at what he had just done. To say anyone should be thrown out of the league is ridiculous. I'll admit cooke has had some questionable at best hits, but calm down for a second and really look at this. It was a shot to the head, yes, but beyond that it was a legal hit. It was right after he made the shot. And it didnt look like he was trying to kill Savard, more like he was just going to put the body into him. He leaned into him. That's why there was no penalty. The way he hit him and when were perfectly legal. The only questionable part was where on the body, and the position Savard was in is what made him so vulnerable. Anywhere else on the body and everyone would have forotten about the hit by game's end. Nothing bush league about the lack of penalty, especailly in a game where the refs had already made a bunch of tick-tacky calls on the pens, one of which resulted in a goal. If there was any kind of penalty there they would have called it.

You cannot jump to conclusions and call for someone to get drawn and quartered after every injury-inducing hit. In a game like this things like this are going to happen and it is not always on purpose.

[Lee.]

Cooke has a history of cheapshots, and blindsiding opposing players. This is inexcusable for any player, not just

Matt Cooke.

He's a dirty player. At least Pronger is subtle about some of the he pulls, Cooke just isn't smart enough to hide the :censored:ty things he does to people.

[BrySmalls]

Well Matt Cooke did his part in "pressing the attack and playing Penguins Hockey to vanquish the Boston Bruins."

[BBTV]

Cool pic. Phaneuf ended up on top though.

[NEW.ERA]

Ironically the GM's are meeting this week to discuss these incidents.

When will these players learn. When they end someone's career or kill someone you take your pick. All I can say is why! I play this game and I know how fast it is but rec league is no where near the NHL.

What's a fair suspension? 5, 10, 15 Games probably none of the above but these hits to the head need to be stop now.

[Brendan]

I was at the game. The dead silence in the arena, especially when the stretcher was brought out, was sickening.

That said, I dont think it was a cheap shot. I know nobody is going to take what i say seriously being that im defending a penguin (god forbid), but I dont see any intent here at all. You can see afterwards that Cooke is obviously shaken at what he had just done. To say anyone should be thrown out of the league is ridiculous. I'll admit cooke has had some questionable at best hits, but calm down for a second and really look at this. It was a shot to the head, yes, but beyond that it was a legal hit. It was right after he made the shot. And it didnt look like he was trying to kill Savard, more like he was just going to put the body into him. He leaned into him. That's why there was no penalty. The way he hit him and when were perfectly legal. The only questionable part was where on the body, and the position Savard was in is what made him so vulnerable. Anywhere else on the body and everyone would have forotten about the hit by game's end. Nothing bush league about the lack of penalty, especailly in a game where the refs had already made a bunch of tick-tacky calls on the pens, one of which resulted in a goal. If there was any kind of penalty there they would have called it.

You cannot jump to conclusions and call for someone to get drawn and quartered after every injury-inducing hit. In a game like this things like this are going to happen and it is not always on purpose.

Take the glasses off bud. Cook is a dirty player and should be suspended the rest of the season.

[OMMF]

I know nobody is going to take what i say seriously being that im defending a penguin

Correct.

[Brass]

I could see if Cooke actually hit another part of Savard's body, but look at the video again - the only thing that moves is Savard's head. It was also a blindsided hit. If Cooke didn't have a history of this crap, then I'd probably be more forgiving, but I can't be. He went for the head, which while it might be legal, is a complete dirty move. Be a man, and hit his body if you're going to do it.

You can see afterwards that Cooke is obviously shaken at what he had just done.

Wasn't that "obvious" to me....