Sunday, February 28, 2010

The Sunday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Bronze medal game
Finland 5, Slovakia 3
Summary, recap and video link are here.
Bracket is here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Adirondack 3, Lowell 2
At Hamilton 4, Rochester 1
Portland 2, at Hartford 1 OT
At Hershey 9, Bridgeport 2
Albany 5, at Manchester 2
Norfolk 3, at Binghamton 2 SO
At Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 5, Providence 1
Abbotsford 4, at Worcester 3
At Lake Erie 5, Grand Rapids 3
Springfield 2, at Syracuse 1
Manitoba 3, at San Antonio 1
At Rockford 2, Peoria 1 SO
At Milwaukee 7, Chicago 6 OT
Texas 5, at Houston 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Gwinnett 6, at Toledo 4
At Trenton 7, Reading 1
At Johnstown 6, Cincinnati 2
At Florida 5, South Carolina 4 OT
At Kalamazoo 5, Charlotte 2
At Elmira 4, Wheeling 1
At Idaho 7, Alaska 1
At Ontario 3, Utah 1
At Bakersfield 4, Victoria 2
Stockton 6, at Las Vegas 4
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Moncton 4, at Halifax 3
Montreal 6, at Shawinigan 1
At Baie-Comeau 4, Prince Edward Island 3 SO
Saint John 6, at Rouyn-Noranda 5 SO
At Cape Breton 6, Acadie-Bathurst 1
At Drummondville 7, Gatineau 0
Lewiston 5, at Quebec 4
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
Kingston 6, at Belleville 5 OT
At Erie 7, Ottawa 1
Guelph 3, at Plymouth 2
At Saginaw 4, Sarnia 1
At Barrie 6, Niagara 1
At Owen Sound 7, Peterborough 4
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Moose Jaw 3, Chilliwack 2
Regina 3, at Saskatoon 0
At Brandon 5, Prince Albert 3
At Swift Current 5, Vancouver 3
At Calgary 2, Kelowna 1
Red Deer 4, at Edmonton 3 SO
Lethbridge 4, at Kootenay 1
Portland 3, at Seattle 2 SO
Kamloops 6, Medicine Hat 3
At Spokane 5, Tri-City 2
At Everett 5, Prince George 0
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Sioux Falls 3, at Green Bay 2 SO
Omaha 3, at Sioux City 2 SO
Team USA 7, at Lincoln 1
Chicago 3, at Tri-City 2
Youngstown 6, at Waterloo 4
At Cedar Rapids 3, Fargo 2 SO
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY
At RIT 5, Canisius 4
At Air Force 8, Sacred Heart 1
At Connecticut 3, Mercyhurst 2 OT
American International 2, at Army 2 OT
Holy Cross 1, at Bentley 1 OT
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

ECAC HOCKEY
At Quinnipiac 4, Yale 3
At St. Lawrence 4, Harvard 3
At Princeton 7, Brown 3
RPI 1, at Cornell 1 OT
Dartmouth 3, at Clarkson 3 OT
At Colgate 5, Union 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

HOCKEY EAST
At New Hampshire 3, Northeastern 1
Massachusetts Lowell 2, at Providence 2 OT
Maine 5, at Merrimack 1
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
At Niagara 3, Alabama Huntsville 1
Standings, summary and recap are here.

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
Miami 0, at Ohio State 0 SO (OSU wins)
Ferris State 1, at Western Michigan 1 SO (WMU wins)
At Notre Dame 5, Michigan 3
At Northern Michigan 3, Lake Superior 0
Michigan State 2, at Bowling Green 2 SO (BG wins)
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

WESTERN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
At Minnesota Duluth 3, Minnesota 0
Denver 4, at Minnesota State 3 OT
Wisconsin 5, at Michigan Tech 2
North Dakota 3, at Colorado College 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

NONCONFERENCE
At Nebraska Omaha 3, Bemidji State 2
Summary is here and recap is here.
At Alaska 3, Alaska Anchorage 2
Summary is here.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

The Saturday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
United States 6, Finland 1
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Canada 3, Slovakia 2
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Bracket is here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Springfield 2, at Hartford 1 OT
Albany 4, at Portland 2
Providence 6, at Binghamton 4
At Rochester 5, Grand Rapids 3
Abbotsford 5, at Worcester 4 SO
At Adirondack 3, Norfolk 2
Syracuse 3, at Lake Erie 2
Lowell 3, at Manchester 2
At Peoria 3, Chicago 2
At San Antonio 4, Manitoba 0
At Texas 3, Houston 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Toledo 5, at Johnstown 2
At Reading 5, Wheeling 4 SO
Charlotte 2, at Cincinnati 1
At Kalamazoo 4, Gwinnett 3
Trenton 3, at Elmira 1
At Idaho 4, Alaska 1
At Bakersfield 3, Victoria 2
At Las Vegas 5, Stockton 2
At Ontario 7, Utah 3
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Cape Breton 3, Acadie-Bathurst 1
Drummondville 3, at Quebec 0
At Rimouski 7, Lewiston 5
At Gatineau 2, Montreal 1
Prince Edward Island 4, at Chicoutimi 3 SO
Saint John 9, at Val-d'Or 3
Victoriaville 3, at Shawinigan 2 SO
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Kingston 5, Belleville 2
At Guelph 6, Peterborough 5
Ottawa 5, at Kitchener 4 OT
Brampton 4, at Mississauga 0
At Sault Ste. Marie 7, Windsor 3
London 3, at Sudbury 2
Barrie 9, at Oshawa 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Moose Jaw 2, Vancouver 0
At Saskatoon 5, Prince Albert 0
At Brandon 3, Chilliwack 0
At Saskatoon 6, Regina 4
Kelowna 4, at Edmonton 0
Kamloops 4, at Lethbridge 3 OT
At Medicine Hat 5, Kootenay 3
Calgary 4, at Red Deer 2
At Spokane 5, Prince George 1
Tri-City 4, at Everett 3 SO
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Indiana 6, at Team USA 1
Team USA 6, at Des Moines 2
At Green Bay 5, Sioux Falls 1
Omaha 4, at Lincoln 0
Chicago 4, at Tri-City 3
At Waterloo 8, Fargo 2
At Cedar Rapids 6, Youngstown 1
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY
At Holy Cross 4, Bentley 1
At RIT 8, Canisius 0
At Air Force 6, Sacred Heart 3
Mercyhurst 5, at Connecticut 1
Army 8, at American International 6
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

ECAC HOCKEY
At Cornell 4, Union 1
Dartmouth 3, at St. Lawrence 2
At Quinnipiac 8, Brown 3
Yale 7, at Princeton 4
At Clarkson 2, Harvard 1 OT
At Colgate 3, RPI 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

HOCKEY EAST
At Merrimack 6, Maine 3
At Massachusetts Lowell 4, Providence 0
At Vermont 7, Boston University 3
New Hampshire 4, at New Hampshire 4 OT
At Boston College 2, Massachusetts 1 OT
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
At Niagara 4, Alabama Huntsville 3
Standings and summary are here.

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
At Northern Michigan 2, Lake Superior 1 OT
At Michigan State 5, Bowling Green 2
At Miami 6, Ohio State 2
Western Michigan 2, at Ferris State 2 SO (FS wins)
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

WESTERN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
Wisconsin 5, at Michigan Tech 2
North Dakota 3, at Colorado College 2 OT
Minnesota 3, at Minnesota Duluth 2
Denver 3, at Minnesota State 1
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

NONCONFERENCE
Bemidji State 3, at Nebraska Omaha 1
Summary is here and recap is here
Alaska at Alaska Anchorage
Summary is here.

Friday, February 26, 2010

These Kids Can Play, All Right



Feeling pretty good right now, that's why we have spooled up Grand Funk Railroad. Straight out of Flint. Tough town. Two shots and a beer town. A hockey town.

There have to be some drinks being consumed now that two periods are in the books in Vancouver and the United States has a big lead on Finland with 20 minutes left in the first semifinal in the Olympic men's hockey team. Not exactly the kind of game NBC probably wanted when it pre-empted storm coverage here in New York, and the afternoon soap operas on the West Coast.

Still, the Americans are skating hard, forcing mistakes and doing pretty well, for the most part, when it comes to avoiding any mistakes on their own. These kids are fast, and they are playing the kind of game that you hope means good things for the national program for the next 10 years.

Beats the old plan of win once and let the other guys worry about four years down the road. Now I know that might seem harsh for those who remember Mike Modano and his age group come up through the ranks. But there has been very little success at the elite level.

No Olympic gold medals. No World Championship medals. One World Cup gold. Building a good program, with NHLers, juniors, bantams, whatever, calls for finding the right players a few years before they join your roster.

The success of this team, gold, bronze or silver, will only mean good things if those calling the shots build a program that can go to any event, in any year, and contend for gold. Not every 10 or 30 years.

That's the challenge, for today, tomorrow, and well down the road.

Now the game is over. Americans win. 6-1. Now before taking all of Saturday to reflect on the next game, it's time to hit the dance floor in the Lounge.

Cue up a band from Detroit, THE Hockeytown. Rare Earth is being served.

The Friday Spreadsheet

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Toronto 3, Hershey 2
Rockford 4, at Milwaukee 1
Manitoba 3, at Houston 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Rouyn-Noranda 4, Val-d'Or 1
Standings are here.
Summary is here.
Recap is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Brampton 6, Sudbury 0
Niagara 5, at Peterborough 1
At Windsor 6, Plymouth 3
At Barrie 5, London 3
Kitchener 7, Sarnia 3
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
At Michigan 4, Notre Dame 0
Standings, summary and recap are here.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

This Quarter's for You, Veronika



In a previous life, I was working in Southern California, trying to preach the Gospel of Puck to a somewhat skeptical crowd.

I managed to have a few allies in the newsroom, and I also will take credit for a few converts.

One day, I went to see the photo editor for any shots she could get for the NHL draft project I was working on. I mispronounced the name of a prospect and his hometown. Miroslav Satan. Veronika was quick to correct my mistakes, always polite and with a smile.

A Slovak who likes her hockey. You had to like that. For her kind work, I used to serenade her with the chorus of Elvis Costello's song whenever she entered the sports department. The rest of the lyrics, in this context, were not important. "Ver-ON-I-ca" was the message I wanted to get across.

Soon, I had others doing the same. Life is great when you can be a part of team play.

Well, I've long since moved from Southern California, and I don't know where Veronika is these days. But Slovakia is in the semifinals of the Olympic men's hockey tournament. The Czechs are going home. On Wednesday night, when you heard the call "Goooooooal, Slovakia," I heard "Veronica."

I imagine she's smiling now. I know I am.

Russia and Milbury, Pay Your Tab Now

Credit Pierre LeBrun, the hockey reporter being held hostage by ESPN, for a quick and precise postmortem on the fall of the flying Russian men's hockey team.

LeBrun, who seems to be relegated to ESPN's website while the worldwide leader in televised sports gives you Barry Melrose for hockey analysis, tells of a split on the Russian squad. Are you an NHLer or a KHLer. In a digital world, it's either yes or no, 1 or 0. This just in. It's zero medals for the Russian men's hockey squad this year.

Canada took Russia out of the game with a hard forecheck, solid team play and an eye for detail. You try to jack me near the end of the game, and I'll jack you back. Alexander Semin, meet Dan Boyle.

Canada's victory in hockey, apparently by coincidence, also took Vancouver off the must-see list of President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia. I say coincidence, but the CBC sees things in a slightly different matter. So see, hockey does matter. But you knew that if you are frequenting the Lounge, right?

Now back to LeBrun, who says the Alexander Ovechkin we have come to know in the NHL was not the OV8 reporters got to work with, or against, in Vancouver. Will Ovechkin's attitude improve when he is back with the Washington Capitals? I say yes, and look out if he should see Mike Milbury coming down the hallway.



Milbury's slur on the Russians was just the right tone for a man who confidently maintained an outhouse of a franchise in the New York Islanders. He flushed money and prospects, all the time saying there was a plan. His plan. His plan? To stay employed for a while. Islanders? TSN? CBC? NBC? Sure. He's not picky.

Congrats, Mike. Somehow, you've remained employed. Now shut up.

The Thursday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
United States 2, Switzerland 0
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Canada 7, Russia 3
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Finland 2, Czech Republic 0
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Slovakia 4, Sweden 3
Recap, summary and video link are here.
The bracket is here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Hershey 3, at Lake Erie 2 SO
Syracuse 6, at Adirondack 5
Abbotsford 3, at Bridgeport 2
San Antonio 3, at Grand Rapids 2
At Manchester 5, Springfield 2
Norfolk 4, at Binghamton 3
At Worcester 3, Portland 1
At Hamilton 3, Toronto 1
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Kalamazoo 4, Gwinnett 3 OT
At Cincinnati 3, Wheeling 2
At Utah 7, Stockton 1
At Idaho 6, Alaska 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Acadie-Bathurst 2, at Halifax 1 OT
At Drummondville 3, Prince Edward Island 1
Saint John 7, at Gatineau 5
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Erie 8, Owen Sound 2
Mississauga 4, at Belleville 2
Kingston 7, at Oshawa 4
Sault Ste. Marie 6, at Saginaw 3
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Saskatoon 4, at Moose Jaw 3 OT
Chilliwack 3, at Prince Albert 2
Vancouver 4, at Regina 3
Red Deer 5, at Calgary 4 SO
At Edmonton 5, Kamloops 1
At Lethbridge 3, Kelowna 2 SO
Seattle 6, at Prince George 3
Everett 2, at Spokane 1
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Adjusting to Brodeur on the Bench



Sometimes you need to shake things up a bit. Eat here one day, down the block the next. Nothing wrong with either place, but this one seems right for the moment at hand.

That's the feeling here in the Lounge about Canada putting Martin Brodeur on the bench and Roberto Luongo in net.

There's a confidence factor, for the goalies in question, and for the whole team. When your rock in net looks shaky, it's time to reassess.

Brodeur has been the main man for a long time, steady hands as the waters begin to roil. But last Sunday against the United States he looked like he was trying juggle one of those Fat Darrell sandwiches you get from the grease trucks at Rutgers.

Brodeur a legend. A Fat Darrell a legend. In shaky hands? You have a mess on your hands. Canada has put its hopes in steadier hands in Luongo, who was fine on Tuesday night against Germany. He's on home ice as a Vancouver Canuck. He's ready to take over. I expect great things from him tonight against Russia.

Hmm, I wonder if I can get a Fat Darrell anywhere around the office.

The Wednesday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Switzerland 3, Belarus 2 SO
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Canada 8, Germany 2
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Czech Republic 3, Latvia 2 OT
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Slovakia 4, Norway 3
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Bracket is here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Portland 2, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 1
At Peoria 4, Texas 3
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Pirates/Penguins recap is here.
Rivermen/Stars recap is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Utah 5, Stockton 4
Standings are here.
Summary is here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Montreal 9, at Lewiston 7
Quebec 4, at Baie-Comeau 3 OT
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Vancouver 4, at Brandon 0
At Moose Jaw 4, Regina 3
Chilliwack 5, at Saskatoon 4 SO
At Red Deer 4, Kootenay 2
Seattle 6, at Prince George 3
At Tri-City 6, Portland 0
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

HOCKEY EAST
At Boston College 7, Merrimack 0
Standings, summary and recap is here.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Do Not Adjust My Television Set



After spending a lot of money today on car repairs -- and is there ever a small, inexpensive car repair -- it was time to reassess my spending habits for the rest of the year.

I work hard for my money. And like Reverend Jim from "Taxi," I have a ideal room in mind. To achieve that goal, I will work harder. I will enhance my work by acquiring additional skills. And I will make some spending adjustments.

More green foods and less meat? OK, I guess I am well down that road already. Fewer adult beverages? Yes, that can be done through more domestic consumption here at the Lounge and fewer trips to other well stocked establishments. Cutting back on the cable bill? Now wait just a minute.

I remember the days when you got the Original 3 networks, maybe an independent station and also the PBS channel, which did not really count as a channel except for the times they had German soccer, a few pro tennis tournaments and one World Hockey Association all-star game. Yes, on PBS, or at least the PBS affiliate in Denver picked it up. God bless you for that one.

But without cable, I don't get any Olympic hockey until NBC puts a game on the mothership. And without cable, I don't get the three local NHL teams or hardly any regular season or Stanley Cup playoff hockey.

I gotta tell you, I may be the only man who has access to three Versus feeds, one of them in HD. So, take the meat out of the freezer, and put some really, bad cheap beer or seltzer in the fridge, but stay away from my cable TV box please.

Three Versus feeds and one in HD. Call me crazy, but is this a great country or what?

(Anybody want to buy a car that needs repairs? Anybody? Hello?)

The Tuesday Spreadsheet

One of the saddest days of the year is when you get up and realize there are no hockey games on the schedule. Monday, the song says, you just can't trust that day. So, instead of results, here are the standings from each of the leagues that we follow here on the Spreadsheet.

Check back into the Lounge later today for more on the Olympic men's tournament, the National Hockey League and anything else that grabs a stool along the bar. Thanks for checking in.

OLYMPICS
The bracket is here.

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
The standings are here.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY
The standings are here.

ECAC HOCKEY
The standings are here.

HOCKEY EAST
The standings are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
The standings are here.

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
The standings are here.

WESTERN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
The standings are here.

Monday, February 22, 2010

My Plan for 2014 Games



I know people tend to look too far forward in life, but when it comes to these games, we have to think ahead before time and politics.

Reschedule those annoying Euro games that start the regular season. Instead, put those select number of games in February to lead up to the Games. You have, say, 14 teams over there and they play, while the teams back in North America break a few days earlier to allow for the exclusivity of NHL games in Europe.

Those players in Europe get a free European vacation during the games, courtesy the NHL, NHLPA, IOC, whatever. It gets players over there early. It allows the NHL to play games and promote its game in Europe as excitement about the Olympic tournament builds.

It's a win-win. And if the NHL can somehow get the right to broadcast games on the NHL Network, NHL Center Ice and NHL Game Center Live. If NBC is placing the games played in North America on the back channels, what will become of games played in Russia at odd hours back in North America? Put Steve Rosenbloom of the Chicago Tribune among those who say there is no solution save for the NHL to exit the games. The same is true for Jay Feaster, the former GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Normally I would agree. But there is a way out of this and the grease is money. I think my changes help put money back in the NHL's pocket, which is exactly why I think a few changes in the schedule and broadcast rights will put the NHL players right where the NHLPA and the IIHF want them. Sochi, anyone?

The Monday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Russia 4, Czech Republic 2
Recap, summary and video link are here.
United States 5, Canada 3
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Sweden 3, Finland 0
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Standings are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Hamilton 5, Adirondack 0
At Bridgeport 2, Hartford 1
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 4, at Manchester 2
At Rochester 3, Portland 2 SO
At Chicago 7, San Antonio 4
At Grand Rapids 5, Texas 4
Abbotsford 5, at Providence 2
At Hershey 5, Albany 3
At Milwaukee 4, Rockford 1
Houston 4, at Peoria 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
At South Carolina 6, Toledo 0
At Trenton 7, Wheeling 4
At Elmira 7, Johnstown 2
Charlotte 7, at Gwinnett 2
At Ontario 6, Bakersfield 4
At Alaska 3, Las Vegas 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Cape Breton 4, at Halifax 1
At Rouyn-Noranda 2, Chicoutimi 1
At Saint John 3, Rimouski 2 OT
At Moncton 4, Shawinigan 0
At Montreal 3, Gatineau 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
Barrie 2, at Brampton 1
At Kingston 7, Erie 5
At Ottawa 5, Peterborough 2
At Oshawa 5, Kitchener 4
Plymouth 11, at Sarnia 3
Guelph 5, at Sault Ste. Marie 2
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Edmonton 6, at Lethbridge 4
Kootenay 3, at Medicine Hat 1
Prince Albert 3, at Swift Current 2
At Seattle 3, Kelowna 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Fargo 6, Indiana 2
The standings are here.
The summary is here.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY
At Canisius 5, American International 2
Standings and summary are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
Robert Morris 4, at Alabama Huntsville 2
Standings and summary are here.

HOCKEY EAST
At Boston College, Northeastern 1
Standings, summary and recap are here.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

This Is Super Sunday

Got the chips, adult beverages and other grub ready for the day. And the chores here in the Lounge are done.

In other words, I have just to clear a few thoughts from my head before the the Olympic men's hockey games begin today.

***Germany, you kill me. You really do. The German team has given us every reason to find an infomercial on another channel during their games. The Jupiter Jack, the Magic Bullet, whatever. Those infomercials go on the offensive. They attack your senses. They dull your resistance by sheer volume and intensity.

Even if you do not buy these items, you know better than to doubt the resolve of the pitchman yelling -- and I mean YELLING -- at you. He wants your money. And even if you don't give him your money, you will have to defend your wallet. There will be a cost. Nothing is free.

The German team? You could do school figures in your own end and so long as you retain the puck, no harm will come to you. Boredom is Germany's weapon. Frustration is building. You are getting sleepy. You have lost the puck. Hypnotizing, yes? Sleep inducing is more like it.

Good for Belarus to draw some offense out of the Germans. Good for Belarus for defeating the Germans, 5-3, in the late game on Saturday. Of course the German coaches and managers will say, lose despite scoring three goals or lose after scoring no goals, what is the difference? Artistry, entertainment, development of skills that allows your team to contend -- yes, that's the real concept -- at the elite level.

So do us all a favor, Germany. WAKE UP. Learn to play offense. Go and sin no more.

*** A loss today will not change the attitudes of the Canadian or Russian men's teams. If you've been around the block before, you do not have to explain your failures in the preliminaries. That is why they are called preliminaries. Canada and Russia will not beat themselves up today if they lose. That is for the fans to do.

*** A victory today will not change the concerns people have about the United States men's team. And I do not think anything will settle the nerves of U.S. fans except a gold medal. This is the beauty of hockey in the United States. Fans want the team to win. Deep down, they wonder why the team doesn't win more often. And I believe the American hockey players understand this. It's still just a game down here. A game played by kids. Let's see what the kids can do. Let them play.



*** The AHL outdoor game in Syracuse was fun. An outdoor game in the minor leagues feels like a winter carnival or a state fair, and that is why I believe future outdoor games should be limited to the minors.

Look, the NHL got lucky with falling snow and rabid fans for the outdoor game in Orchard Park, N.Y. The first outdoor game, the Heritage Classic in Edmonton, did nothing to make me want to see another game outside. It looked cold, and the Oilers and Montreal Canadiens did their best to entertain, but the stadium looked like any other football stadium. Big. Charmless. Generic.

The football stadium in Western New York had the same lack of visual appeal, which the league addressed by placing the next two Winter Classics in Wrigley Field and Fenway Park. Some of that visual charm, for me, came from remembering when the NFL and the old, dearly missed AFL played their games in baseball stadiums with terrible brown grass. A stadium for the summer game playing host to the crude beauty of football in the deepening chill of late fall and early winter.

It was great to see the old baseball yards filled in winter. And to have it be a hockey game on the main stage, well that was all the better in my book.

But there are no good baseball stadiums left. They are all new, more like malls with exposed brick to make you think it is a classic stadium. But it's pretty much like New Coke. Not a classic. The new ballpark on the South Side of Chicago may be nice, but the old yard was where men went to blow off some steam as their favorite side booted grounders and waited for next year. Ditto the Polo Grounds, Shibe Park, Tiger Stadium, etc. Those joints are gone. And the malls that have replaced them for baseball and pro football leave me cold.

At least the AHL got it right. Take the game to the New York State Fairgrounds. Make it look like a carnival. No need for 60,000 or 70,000 fans. How about 20,000 fans sitting in what looked like a large rodeo ring. Big grandstand on one side. Players and some small bleachers on the other. Elephant ears, apple fritters, beer, hot dogs. Maybe even a Jupiter Jack. Food and toys for the working people. A place to blow off some steam. Kudos to the AHL. You get it.

And I get it. Time to stop writing and get the food ready. The games are about to begin.

The Sunday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Switzerland 5, Norway 4 OT
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Slovakia 6, Latvia 0
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Belarus 5, Germany 3
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Standings are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Syracuse 2, Binghamton 1
At Toronto 2, Manitoba 0
At Albany 2, Adirondack 1
Abbotsford 1, at Bridgeport 0
Peoria 5, at Grand Rapids 3
At Hartford 4, Worcester 2
At Hershey 4, Lake Erie 1
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 1, at Lowell 0
At Manchester 4, Providence 0
Portland 4, at Rochester 3
At Norfolk 3, Springfield 2 SO
At Chicago 7, Houston 1
At Rockford 3, San Antonio 2
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Trenton 6, at Johnstown 2
At South Carolina 6, Toledo 0
Wheeling 2, at Cincinnati 1 SO
At Florida 4, Kalamazoo 3 SO
At Elmira 3, Reading 2
At Ontario 5, Idaho 4 OT
At Utah 3, Victoria 1
Stockton 2, at Bakersfield 0
Las Vegas 4, at Alaska 3 OT
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Chicoutimi 2, at Val-d'Or 0
Lewiston 6, at Baie-Comeau 5 SO
Moncton 4, at Acadie-Bathurst 2
Rimouski 6, at Prince Edward Island 1
Shawinigan 3, at Saint John 1
At Drummondville 5, Victoriaville 3
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
London 6, at Peterborough 5 SO
At Sudbury 5, Guelph 1
Erie 6, at Belleville 0
At Plymouth 5, Sarnia 2
At Saginaw 4, Mississauga 2
At Barrie 8, Windsor 5
Kitchener 6, at Owen Sound 5 SO
At Sault Ste. Marie 6, Niagara 3
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Prince Albert 3, Vancouver 2 OT
At Regina 5, Chilliwack 3
At Saskatchewan 6, Brandon 4
At Edmonton 3, Prince George 2
Kootenay 2, Lethbridge 1 SO
At Medicine Hat 4, Moose Jaw 0
Calgary 4, at Kamloops 3
At Portland 3, Kelowna 2
Everett 4, at Seattle 2
Spokane 2, at Tri-City 1
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.
Roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Cedar Rapids 5, at Team USA 2
Omaha 3, at Youngstown 1
At Des Moines 4, Tri-City 1
Green Bay 4, at Lincoln 3 OT
At Waterloo 3, Sioux City 1
Sioux Falls 1, at Chicago 0
Indiana 7, at Fargo 4
Standings are here.
Summaries are here.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY
At RIT 3, Air Force 0
At Bentley 4, Connecticut 2
American International 2, at Canisius 2 OT
Sacred Heart 5, at Holy Cross 3
At Mercyhurst 4, Army 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

ECAC HOCKEY
At Union 7, Quinnipiac 3
At Yale 5, Clarkson 4 OT
Colgate 4, at Harvard 2
Princeton 7, at RPI 0
At Dartmouth 5, Cornell 4
St. Lawrence 2, at Brown 2 OT
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

HOCKEY EAST
Merrimack 3, at Massachusetts 0
Vermont 3, at New Hampshire 3 OT
Massachusetts Lowell 4, at Maine 2
At Boston University 2, Providence 1
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
At Bemidji State 6, Niagara 1
At Alabama Huntsville 4, Robert Morris 3
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
At Alaska 5, Lake Superior 1
Ohio State 3, at Western Michigan 3 SO (OSU wins)
Nebraska Omaha 4, at Miami 2
Notre Dame 1, at Bowling Green 1 SO (BG wins)
At Michigan 5, Northern Michigan 4
At Michigan State 3, Ferris State 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

WESTERN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
At North Dakota 5, Minnesota Duluth 1
At Minnesota 7, Colorado College 4
At Wisconsin 7, St. Cloud State 4
At Denver 5, Michigan Tech 3
At Minnesota State 4, Alaska Anchorage 3
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

The Foundation of Their Success

This may not seem the proper time to stump for the world junior hockey tournament, with the Olympics still a few days away from beginning medal-round play.

Then again, with Canada and United States about to play their final round-robin game tomorrow, maybe it is.

That’s because the genesis of both rosters occurred during previous world junior tournaments. (If you haven’t watched this event, which usually begins after Christmas and ends in early January, treat yourself and head to Buffalo, site of the 2011 tournament.) That is when many of these elite players first pop up on a fan’s radar.

The United States won the world junior title for the first time in 2004 in Helsinki, Finland, shocking Canada in the final. That tournament was a coming-out party for Zach Parise, now playing on the top line for the American Olympic team. Other U.S. Olympians on that team were defenseman Ryan Suter and forward Ryan Kesler. Suter was also on the 2005 U.S. team at the world junior, along with fellow Olympians Ryan Callahan and Phil Kessel.

The 2005 world junior tournament, held in Grand Forks, North Dakota, remains notable because it was held during the NHL lockout, thus ensuring that NHL teams would not be able to hold back junior-eligible talent from playing for their countries.

Canada won the championship that year with an incredible array of talent. How good? Seven players on that team – defensemen Brent Seabrook and Shea Weber and forwards Sidney Crosby, Ryan Getzlaf, Mike Richards, Corey Perry and Patrice Bergeron – are on Canada’s Olympic team. Jeff Carter, tabbed as a replacement in case Getzlaf’s injured left ankle kept him out of the Olympics, was also on the team. (So was Dion Phaneuf, who was once considered to be a candidate for the Olympic team before he regressed mightily.)

The United States won the world junior title over Canada this past January in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, which bodes well for USA Hockey once the NHL caves and makes its players available for ensuing Olympics, as this barkeep believes. The players on this recent U.S. champion and the ones who will head to Buffalo later this year will probably show up in Sochi, Russia four years from now.

That’s something else to look forward to, besides the games of the coming week.

Back to the Olympics for a moment. The most cohesive team of the Games is Finland, without question. Their power play hums right along, probing, probling, then zap! Another goal. The Finns were overlooked before this tournament, passed off as being old. They aren’t getting any younger but right now there are teams in the Olympics – hello there, Canada – who would love to be that old if it brought along the same consistency and unity the Finns have right now. Others have already said this, but let me chime in, too: Finland will be a tough out.

The Saturday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Sweden 4, Belarus 2
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Czech Republic 5, Latvia 2
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Finland 5, Germany 0
Recap, summary and video link are here.
Standings are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Portland 3, at Albany 2
Hamilton 4, at Grand Rapids 3
Bridgeport 4, at Hartford 2
At Lowell 5, Manchester 0
At Toronto 2, Texas 1
Worcester 4, at Binghamton 3
At Providence 4, Abbotsford 2
Manitoba 4, at Rochester 3
At Norfolk 3, Springfield 1
At Adirondack 5, Hershey 3
Lake Erie 6, at Syracuse 4
At Milwaukee 2, Houston 0
Chicago 4, at Peoria 3
At Rockford 6, San Antonio 5
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Trenton 3, at Johnstown 1
At South Carolina 4, Gwinnett 0
At Cincinnati 3, Wheeling 1
Kalamazoo 4, at Florida 3 OT
At Elmira 8, Reading 3
Victoria 5, at Utah 2
At Bakersfield 5, Stockton 4 OT
At Ontario 4, Idaho 1
At Alaska 4, Las Vegas 3 OT
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Cape Breton 6, Halifax 4
At Moncton 8, Rimouski 0
At Prince Edward Island 4, Shawinigan 2
Chicoutimi 3, at Val-d'Or 2 OT
At Rouyn-Noranda 4, Gatineau 2
At Baie-Comeau 5, Lewiston 3
At Drummondville 8, Quebec 2
Victoriaville 5, at Montreal 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Plymouth 6, Mississauga 2
At Kingston 3, Brampton 2 SO
Guelph 4, at Kitchener 3 OT
At London 2, Saginaw 1
Erie 5, at Ottawa 2
At Sarnia 5, Owen Sound 0
At Sudbury 2, Niagara 1
Belleville 9, at Ottawa 4
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Vancouver 5, at Saskatoon 2
At Brandon 10, Regina 2
Chilliwack 3, at Swift Current 0
At Edmonton 4, Lethbridge 1
Spokane 6, at Kootenay 4
At Red Deer 3, Prince George 1
At Kamloops 5, Seattle 4 OT
Calgary 4, at Kelowna 1
Everett 3, at Tri-City 2
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Cedar Rapids 3, at Team USA 2
Omaha 4, at Youngstown 1
Waterloo 5, at Des Moines 1
At Lincoln 3, Sioux City 1
At Tri-City 4, Green Bay 3
At Chicago 1, Sioux Falls 0
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY
At Connecticut 4, Bentley 1
At RIT 3, Air Force 2 OT
At Sacred Heart 3, Holy Cross 1
Army 4, at Mercyhurst 4 OT
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

ECAC HOCKEY
At Brown 3, Clarkson 2
Cornell 3, at Harvard 0
At Union 4, Princeton 1
Colgate 6, at Dartmouth 6 OT
At Yale 7, St. Lawrence 5
At RPI 5, Quinnipiac 3
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

HOCKEY EAST
At New Hampshire 5, Vermont 4 OT
At Maine 8, Massachusetts Lowell 4
At Providence 5, Boston University 4
At Merrimack 4, Massachusetts 1
At Northeastern 3, Boston College 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

COLLEGE HOCKEY AMERICA
At Bemidji State 3, Niagara 2
Standings and summary are here.

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
At Bowling Green 4, Notre Dame 3
Northern Michigan 3, at Michigan 1
At Ferris State 4, Michigan State 1
At Alaska 4, Lake Superior 0
Ohio State 3, at Western Michigan 1
At Miami 6, Nebraska Omaha 2
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

WESTERN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION
St. Cloud State 5, at Wisconsin 1
At Denver 5, Michigan Tech 2
At Minnesota State 5, Alaska Anchorage 2
At North Dakota 5, Minnesota Duluth 2
At Minnesota 3, Colorado College 0
Standings, summaries and recaps are here.

Friday, February 19, 2010

No Gold for the Olympic Network



Another day with three games of hockey to watch -- LIVE-- as I get ready for the big Saturday. Three Olympic men's hockey games and the AHL outdoor game. Yep, Binghamton Senators at Syracuse Crunch at 1 pm Eastern at the State Fairgrounds. (NHL Network will broadcast it.) Cannot wait. All this hockey is music to my ears.

*** Despite all the gripes and angst about the treatment of Olympic men's hockey on the mothership NBC, I am happy to have four flat screens in the office, all at my disposal, to watch the games as they move from right to left, and from CNBC to MSNBC with an assist from the USA Network.

But NBC? Garbage. The people on the "Today" show spend more time gushing about a figure skater or a skier than telling people what they missed last night. They just rehash what NBC already broadcast in prime time the previous evening.

This morning, when the rather annoying Hoda Kotb and Kathy Lee Gifford come on at 10 am Eastern to recap the Olympic events, its more about skating, which by 10 am means that the same has been said near the top of the hour starting at 7 am.

At one point, a correspondent for the "Today" show tried to talk about the Canada-Switzerland game (don't even ask them to update anyone about the late, late Slovakia victory over Russia), she was muted by the USA! USA! USA! cheering/commentary of Kotb and Gifford.

Note to self: "Today" show is yet another good argument for sleeping in.

*** Happy to see Ziggy Palffy back on the ice for Slovakia. It was a sad sight to see Ziggy at the Salt Lake Games, dressed in street clothes, because he was not cleared by the NHL to play in the early round games. The Los Angeles Kings allowed him to join his countrymen in Salt Lake City, but the league said no. No such sad sights this time as Ziggy is back on Olympic ice. Good for you, Ziggy.

*** If you are not on Twitter when the Canadian men's hockey team is playing, you are missing a great deal. Joy, angst, anger, bitter reflection and then more joy. All in 140 characters or less. I say you get on Twitter by Sunday. That's where the hockey conversation will be.

*** After the Czech Republic/Latvia game tonight, it will be time to get out for a cold one or two and some good tunes before heading home to catch the last 30 minutes of the Finland/Germany game. Looking forward to some hockey, hot and sour soup, live jazz, and more hockey.

I'll let Mr. Coltrane see you to the door.

The Friday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
United States 6, Norway 1
Recap and summary are here.
Canada 3, Switzerland 2 SO
Recap and summary are here.
Slovakia 2, Russia 1 SO
Recap and summary are here.
Standings are here.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.
Video links are here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Toledo 7, at Charlotte 0
The standings are here.
The summary is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
Ottawa 6, at Peterborough 4
At Windsor 5, Mississauga 1
Owen Sound 5, at Saginaw 1
At Barrie 6, Oshawa 4
At Niagara 4, Brampton 3
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

Paul Henderson Has Cancer



It was disheartening and depressing to find out on Thursday that Paul Henderson has cancer. For Canadians of a certain vintage – and this typist is among them – Henderson stands fixed in late September of 1972 in Luzhniki Ice Palace in Moscow, wrapped in the clutches of Yvan Cournoyer, both celebrating Henderson’s goal in front of a down and out Vladislav Tretiak, giving Canada victory in Game 8 of the Summit Series against the Soviet Union. That victory secured a triumph in the series for Canada, a win that would not have been possible had Henderson not also scored the winning goal in the previous two games.

That Game 8 moment was the only time I ever watched hockey a school with the blessing of my teachers, the TV wheeled into the gymnasium so we would not miss the game. It was a seminal occasion, not just because of the dramatic circumstances, but because that was the point at which hockey changed, when Canada began to realize it could not continue to play the game the same way and still win. Things would have to change.

The sudden and everlasting fame that came Henderson’s way might have swallowed other people whole. Henderson had an average pro hockey career but his life, guided resolutely by his faith and by his conviction, is what might be defined in hockey terms as solid and sturdy, characteristic of a stand-up guy.

That will help Henderson as he seeks treatment for his cancer, but anyone who was celebrating 38 years ago knows there could be no better time to repay him than by lending him their full support as he tries to buck the odds yet again.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Things We Know So Far

Some things we learned after the first game in the Olympics for each competing nation:

Flames can burn brighter. Some players from the Calgary Flames look pretty good when they can get out from under the restrictive defensive system the team employs. Nik Hagman scored twice for Finland, both off his backhand, in the Finns’ 5-1 victory over Belarus. Hagman’s Calgary linemate, Jarome Iginla, had a hat trick for Canada in its 8-0 victory over Norway. Iginla did not ignite until he was put on a line with Sidney Crosby and Rick Nash, a group that was initially formed during Canada’s orientation camp in the summer. Expect them to stay together for the balance of the tournament.

The specter of the stopper. A hot goalie(s) will emerge during this tournament but we were reminded of just how much damage a netminder can do to Olympic hopes by the play of Vitali Koval of Belarus, who held his team in longer against Finland than it deserved to be, making 40 saves. Of course, a hot goalie can also cool like yesterday’s fish. In that same Finland-Belarus game, Antero Nittymaki of Finland, who was named the most valuable player of the 2006 Olympic hockey tournament, did not even suit up.

There is speed and then there is crazy speed. Russia has the latter. There seems to be a calculated frenzy to what the Russians do on the ice, always skating, sticks alert, flooding the zone, bearing down on the net. It’s nearly as wild as those skates of Alexander Ovechkin. Such a style is guaranteed to spawn defensive lapses but it sure is fun to watch. Additionally intriguing will be how long the Russians stick with this freewheeling nature as they move the deeper into the tournament. It is one thing to dangle against Latvia, quite another to dipsy doodle in the medal round.

Didn’t you used to be . . . ? Jaromir Jagr and Peter Forsberg both looked good in their openers, Jagr scoring once in the Czech Republic’s 3-1 victory over Slovakia. Forsberg played nearly 13 minutes in Sweden’s 2-0 win over Germany. He had no shots but still retains his eye for a nice set-up, dishing off to Nicklas Backstrom for a good scoring chance. Neither player will ever be as dominating as they once were but both looked inspired. Granted, it’s early, but nothing they did yesterday will tamp down talk about either of them returning to the NHL.

A big country. Brian Burke, the general manager of the United States, promised his team would be big. It is and it used its size effectively against Switzerland. That will please Burke to no end but, more important, it may also allow a young U.S. team to assert itself much quicker than one would expect. Oh, and the line of Zach Parise, Paul Stastny and Patrick Kane is definitely worth watching.

Quack, quack. How can the Anaheim Ducks have eight players in the Olympics – a goalie, two defensemen and five forwards representing four countries -- and be sitting on the outside of the Western Conference playoffs? Just askin’.

The Thursday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
Finland 5, Belarus 1
Sweden 2, Germany 0
Czech Republic 3, Slovakia 1
The standings and summaries are here.
The roundup is here.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.
Video links are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Bridgeport 3, Lowell 2 SO
Norfolk 7, at Hartford 3
Texas 3, at Syracuse 1
At Toronto 4, Manitoba 3
Adirondack 4, at Binghamton 3
At Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 9, Albany 2
At Chicago 3, San Antonio 2
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Toledo 2, at Cincinnati 1 OT
At Florida 4, Kalamazoo 2
At Utah 3, Victoria 2 SO
The standings are here.
The summaries are here

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Drummondville 4, at Victoriaville 2
Saint John 6, at Halifax 2
At Cape Breton 5, Shawinigan 3
At Val-d'Or 3, Gatineau 1
At Montreal 6, Chicoutimi 2
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Belleville 4, Kingston 2
The standings are here.
The summary is here.
The recap is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Saskatoon 8, Red Deer 1
At Calgary 5, Prince George 1
Swift Current 4, at Lethbridge 1
Spokane 7, at Kamloops 0
At Everett 5, Portland 2
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Indiana 11, Youngstown 1
The standings are here.
The summary is here.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The Wednesday Spreadsheet

OLYMPICS
United States 3, Switzerland 1
Canada 8, Norway 0
Russia 8, Latvia 2
Standings and summaries are here.
The roundup is here.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.
Video links are here.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Worcester 6, at Springfield 0
Manitoba 6, at Rochester 3
Texas 5, at Hamilton 0
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Quebec 1, Baie-Comeau 0
The standings are here.
The summary is here.
The recap is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Red Deer 4, at Prince Albert 1
Swift Current 2, at Kootenay 1
At Tri-City 3, Moose Jaw 1
At Chilliwack 1, Seattle 0 OT
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
Waterloo 4, at Sioux City 3 OT
The standings are here.
The summary is here.

ECAC HOCKEY
Cornell 6, at Colgate 2
Standings, summary and recap are here.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Can the NHL Afford Some Time Off?



I'm not the most alert person in the morning. But I know I've heard this story before. The "Today" show on NBC is promoting the Olympic hockey tournament this morning. Did you know the United States men's team won the gold medal in 1980?

That's the story in the United States. Before National Hockey League participation. When the men's hockey tournament actually appeared on a national television network in the United States. ABC. One of the Original 3.

Like I said, that was the story.

This is what was not part of Tom Brokaw's piece this morning.

NHL players in the big tournament. A real world class affair. Most of the tournament games not on NBC, one of the Original 3. Most of the games foisted off on NBC siblings, MSNBC, CNBC and the USA network.

NBC, U.S. rights holder to the National Hockey League. NBC, the network that cut away from a playoff game in overtime to give you hours of Kentucky Derby preview programming. Well, the network was nice enough to give viewers enough time to find Versus for the next overtime period. Don't get Versus? That covers most of you out there. (Fortunately, not me.)

The NHL is not going to get the bump everyone imagined, or said they imagined, when its players were committed to the Olympic tournament. And yet there are some American newspaper writers criticizing the league for giving some "grudging" cooperation by taking a two-week break.

Listen, a two-week break for this league is more than what the National Basketball Association or Major League Baseball have given to its sport's Olympic effort. Most professional team sports don't have to worry about cutting into its regular season for an Olympic tournament.

But the NHL takes two weeks and the best these handful of writers can say is that the NHL lacks real commitment.

NBC is not talking about the NHL. Except for its Sunday game of the week package, you would be hard pressed to know that the NHL plays there. Many American newspapers, which were quick to use the lockout as a reason to sharply curtail coverage of the league, are already getting ready for spring training baseball.

That means more space for features on players who will not make the team, shouldn't have made the team, will make the team and, despite the great buildup in a February story on pitchers, be a disappointment by June.

By that time, the Stanley Cup will have been awarded, NBC will have provided a minimum of effort for another year of NHL action and all the great Olympic action on MSNBC, CNBC and the USA network will have been forgotten.

Boy, I bet that changes in 2014, when the Olympics are in Russia and NBC really makes a commitment to hockey. Right?

The Tuesday Spreadsheet

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Portland 7, Hartford 4
Abbotsford 5, at Toronto 1
At Rockford 2, Grand Rapids 1 OT
At Albany 2, Norfolk 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
London 3, at Guelph 1
At Kingston 5, Ottawa 3
Erie 1, at Mississauga 0 SO
At Sarnia 6, Sudbury 2
Brampton 3, Oshawa 2
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Brandon 4, at Calgary 2
Moose Jaw 7, at Portland 6
At Spokane 3, Everett 2
Vancouver 8, at Seattle 3
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

Monday, February 15, 2010

At the Intermission . . .

Some random thoughts before Canada decides between Ryan Getzlaf and Jeff Carter. Here at Vic’s, we keep the debate simple. Guacamole or more guacamole?

  • Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau is resolutely cheerful about his goaltending situation but imagine how happy he would be if one of Washington’s troika of netminders – Semyon Varlamov, Jose Theodore and Michal Neuvirth – seized the job in a dominating fashion. Varlamov only returned from injury last week so this may be a story that has yet to be written. Beltway hockey fans are sick of hearing muttering about their goaltending as their recent three-game road trip showed, Washington’s high-octane offense can only lift the team out of so many holes. The Caps give up an average of 31 shots a game; they’re going to need someone to stop a few of them this spring.

  • Speaking of teams that allow a lot of shots – Hello there, Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks allow 33.2 shots a game, 28th in the league, the byproduct of a flowing style that leaves large tracts of ice available for opposition forwards to revive their best pond hockey moves. Scott Niedermayer can’t be everywhere at once and that usually leaves Jonas Hiller to deal with the mess. He’ll be worn out by April. The Ducks are still in the Western Conference playoff race so it doesn’t seem likely they will be sellers at the trade deadline. That may change in the summer, though, regardless of where they land. This is a team that falls off markedly once you get past its first line and it could use another quality defenseman.

  • The Calgary Flames don’t have an easy path ahead of them if they want to hold on to a playoff spot in the West. The Flames have 20 games remaining after the Olympic break, 11 of them on the road, where they are playing better (15-9-6) than at home (15-14-3). But there are few pushovers in their finish, which includes an Eastern road trip that concludes in Washington. The Flames still have two games left against San Jose (at home), two with Detroit (home and away), two with Vancouver (both away) and two with Colorado (both away), a team that has beaten the Flames in four previous games this season. The one wild card: four games (two in each building) against the Minnesota Wild.

  • The Columbus Blue Jackets are 3-1-1 since they replaced Ken Hitchcock as coach with Claude Noel on Feb. 3. Has Noel made that much of a difference in such a short span? Maybe, but look at the play of goalie Steve Mason, who played four of the five games, posting two shutouts. Show me a good goalie and I’ll show you a coach you got really smart overnight.

  • The NHL has not committed to making its players available for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia and it will be mighty interesting to see how that plays out when the new collective agreement between the league and its players comes up in a couple of years. Expect the league to wield this bargaining chip with a flourish in an attempt to rein in costs. Expect the players to cave on it, too, because most of them are really, really in love with the idea of playing in the Olympics. Even the guys who don’t go must enjoy the opportunity to unwind in the midst of the season. Only the owners are against the idea and we all know they can be swayed if the deal is right.

The Monday Spreadsheet



NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
At N.Y. Rangers 5, Tampa Bay 2
Nashville 4, at Pittsburgh 3 SO
At Minnesota 6, Vancouver 2
Ottawa 4, at N.Y. Islanders 3
Chicago 5, at Columbus 4 SO
Anaheim 7, at Edmonton 3
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
Recap by Sportsnet.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 4, at Adirondack 3
Springfield 4, at Bridgeport 0
Worcester 5, at Manchester 2
Syracuse 7, at Providence 4
At Hershey 5, Lowell 2
San Antonio 2, at Milwaukee 1
At Binghamton 4, Rochester 2
Chicago 3, at Houston 0
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Kalamazoo 3, Toledo 0
At Victoria 5, Alaska 1
Trenton 7, at Elmira 5
At Gwinnett 6, Florida 3
At Bakersfield 7, Ontario 0
At Reading 5, Wheeling 3
Cincinnati 5, at Johnstown 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
Cape Breton 4, at Saint John 2
At Rimouski 2, Halifax 1
At Lewiston 4, Quebec 2
At Victoriaville 7, Chicoutimi 1
Rouyn-Noranda 4, at Montreal 3
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Brampton 4, Peterborough 0
At London 5, Sudbury 0
At Ottawa 3, Kingston 2
Kitchener 6, at Erie 3
Saginaw 4, at Sault Ste. Marie 0
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Calgary 6, at Lethbridge 2
At Kootenay 6, Saskatoon 3
Brandon 5, at Medicine Hat 1
At Vancouver 6, Chilliwack 1
At Tri-City 3, Kamloops 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Waterloo 4, Sioux Falls 3 OT
At Omaha 6, Youngstown 1
The standings are here.
The summaries are here.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Clearing the Airwaves



*** Thought we'd start the Sunday reading period with some thoughts after Don Cherry detailed his thoughts about Daniel Carcillo and Sean Avery during the Coach's Corner segment Saturday night on "Hockey Night in Canada."

Little rats. If you are talking to Cherry, that's what he sees in Avery and Carcillo. Now I'd have to look into the archives, and I will during the Olympic break, but are these two rats doing anything different from the original rat, Kenny "The Rat" Linseman?

Cherry's argument about the instigator makes some sense at face value. You allow a tough guy to police the situation when an Avery or Carcillo takes on a star, and you take away the threat of an extra penalty for instigation, and things get put back in place. Order is restored.

But I don't remember Linseman ever having to defend himself in the old days. He'd poke some one and as soon as a Ranger or Islander came in to settle the score, instantly there was Paul Holmgren or another large Flyer fluent in fist arriving quickly to protect Linseman.

I'll have to check into this, because Cherry has a point about Avery and Carcillo taking advantage of the rules that allow them to play outside the rules to challenge star players.

But the Kenny the Rat played the same way in a tougher era. And I'm pretty certain he got away with pretty much everything without ever paying full price. We shall see.



*** All eyes of Canada, or a large share of them, will be tracking the progress of the Anaheim/Edmonton game tonight. More likely, they will be tracking the status of the Ducks' Ryan Getzlaf, who is considered to be a critical figure in Canada's drive for hockey gold in Vancouver.

This daily watch reminds me a lot of the daily updates about Paul Kariya before the NHLers went to the Nagano Games in 1998. Kariya, recovering from a concussion, never made it to the Olympic tournament. And right up to the point of his status being made official, hockey writers across Canada were making calls to determine Kariya's health and the likelihood of him being in the lineup.

We'll be watching tonight as well.

*** I'm not a big fan of the NHL taking a break so its players can play in the Olympics. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy most of the men's tournament, but I do not enjoy seeing the rest of the NHL shut down.

The junior leagues and U.S. colleges do not shut down for the World Junior Championship. In fact, junior-age players participate in more games outside of their leagues than you might imagine. If you count the WJC, Russia-Canada challenge series, league all-star games, CHL prospect games, etc., there are a lot of extracurricular activity.

But their leagues don't shut down.

During the New York Islanders/Tampa Bay Lightning broadcast on MSG-Plus, Butch Goring said he did not support shutting down the NHL to allow the Olympic tournament to have NHL players. He said it should be an amateur tournament.

Those days are not coming back, however. You dictate that Canada and the United States send only amateurs and that's where that movement stops. Sweden, Russia, Finland and the Czech Republic are going to send their best. The Olympics and the IIHF want the best in the world tournaments.

An amateur-only tournament then, is only likely in the World Junior Championship. If the NHL wants to skip the 2014 Games in Russia, I have no problem with it; others would disagree. But I don't expect the rest of the world to go along with the amateurs-only concept.

That ship has sailed.