Hey, You're the First Ones Here

Hey, thanks for sticking around, but you probably should have said something before I locked up the Lounge for the summer.

But, you managed to survive the darkness of the Lounge in summer. For your reward, it's time to talk hockey in an Olympic season.

The KHL is the first league to get going, with Dynamo Moscow defeating Traktor Chelyabinsk, 5-1, in the season opener on Wednesday.

Keep your ear tuned for the mention of Washington Capitals prospect Evgeny Kuznetsov, who's in a rather generous mood late in the game. Nice giveaway by the Traktor forward. An Even better conversion by defending champion Dynamo.



Love the enthusiasm of the announcer here. Nice job capturing the spirit of the first day of the best time of year, the hockey season.

For a quick catch-up on who or what is going on in the KHL this season, here are previews of the Western and Eastern conferences.

From here, we only move forward as more leagues come on line. The QMJHL opens its regular season on Sept. 12, with the OHL and WHL starting play on Sept. 19. The USHL begins its regular season on Sept. 20. With the juniors in action, the next league to start is the Big League, which will capture the bulk of my attention. The NHL opens on Oct. 1 with the AHL following on Oct. 4. From there, we turn to U.S. Division I college hockey, with the Atlantic Hockey conference schools leading off on Oct. 10. The new National Collegiate Hockey Conference, along with the WCHA, Big Ten, Hockey East and ECAC Hockey schools taking to the ice for regular season games on Oct. 11. The last league in the Lounge's personal view of the world on ice is the ECHL, which begins play on Oct. 18.

Got all that? Great, now what are you having? The Lounge is open.

My Hall of Fame Can Be Used for Weddings

The Lounge has a very intricate, highly byzantine code of achievements that a player must solve to be considered, let along gain entry, into Vic's Hockey Hall of Fame.

The standards, if you will, are so demanding that many who have gained entry to the halls in Toronto and Eveleth, Minn., would not make it in. My hall, my rules. You must have more than a shirt and shoes to get served here. (Pants, after all, are required.)

I bring this up because Jeff, a trusted patron who has been known to take a few shifts behind the bar here in the Lounge, asked me whether Rod Brind'Amour should be in consideration for the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Well, he would pass the first test for entry in Vic's Hall. He has been on a Stanley Cup champion. See, I run you out of the Hall if you have not played for a champion. I will have to adjust the rules a bit now to allow for the fact that professionals play in the Olympics, but I do so only slightly. We all acknowledge that the Olympics can be the best All-Star tournament around, but I don't think much of All-Star games, so you might gain a half-point for winning gold in the Olympics. And a Cup championship's value. Five points.

You don't like that price? There's the door.

After that I go into things like dominating the game on a variety of levels. Can you lead a team? (Vic's Hall is for leaders, not followers or specialists.) Have you changed the way the game is played? You may skate as fast as Bobby Orr, but can you put a team on your back and then possibly score again and again while having the entire opposing team hanging on your sweater hem, trying to stop you?

Bobby, your in. The rest of you? Do not put your pencils down just yet.

Would your team, without you, not win that Cup. Like I said, there are a lot of ifs and ands to qualify for enshrinement, but fail to answer in the affirmative to several of these questions means there are fewer butts to be seated honorably in Vic's Hall.

Mine is a much more spacious place than the old Bank of Montreal building in Toronto that now houses the Hockey Hall of Fame. There, you can see the plaques of a number of good players, along with the greats of the game.

Here in the Lounge, only the great ones get in, which leaves plenty of room for a little pool or, for more formal occasions like a wedding reception for our good friends from Iowa, a little polka.

I'm a big fan of Mr. Brind'Amour, who is under review right now, but I am a bit skeptical about his fate. I will have to reserve final judgement for a few years. Here's a warning, Rod. Pick your songs on the Lounge jukebox with care.

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.

Snow Days and the Olympic Break

Getting ready for the Vancouver Olympics, and that means it's the perfect time for the Recess Monkeys' cover of the Chilliwack's "My Girl." It doesn't quite measure up to the original performed in the late 1981 by the band out of Vancouver. But it's the thought that counts. Thanks, SCTV.

*** The state of Ryan Getzlaf's health has prompted a summit meeting among the heads of Team Canada. Getzlaf underwent an MRI, which the Anaheim Ducks said found no "significant ligament or muscle tears."

His day-to-day status has Team Canada chief Steve Yzerman taking the same approach, but with a limited number of days left before the Olympic hockey tournament begins, there has to be a plan, and it has to be announced soon.



*** I have to say that Russia is the team that most interests me. I like the skill level on the forward and back lines. I think this team can compete on the small ice. What would concern me if I were running the Russian operation is the goaltending.

On some nights, Sharks goaltender Evgeni Nabokov plays a man's game. On other nights, he can be as unimpressive as the list of things to do or find in San Jose.

(Need help? I'll give you the first two on the list: 1. Finding a ride to San Francisco. 2. Finding a ride to Monterey.)

That's why Ilya Bryzgalov is the critical player in my projection of Russia as the gold medal winner in Vancouver. After all, I've looked up and down the roster, and there is no Giorgy to turn to when times get tough.

*** From where I'm sitting, with my face pressed to the window overlooking Eighth Avenue in Manhattan, the snow storm does not look as severe as feared. That means the Nashville Predators and New York Rangers most likely will play tonight at MSG 4.0

Larry Brooks of the New York Post says Marian Gaborik is not expected to be in the lineup for the game. Gaborik. Rangers' main scoring threat. Rangers' lone scoring threat? He received a deep thigh cut when he came across the skate of goaltender Henrik Lundqvist in practice on Tuesday.

Brooks says Gaborik may not be in action again until the Olympic tournament starts. But that is of no help to the Rangers, who need him to score early and often.

I'm off to shovel some snow.

Don't Look Too Far Ahead

Rearranging the coasters on the Lounge bar.

*** With a 4-2 victory last night at Honda Center, the Anaheim Ducks put a period on a record winning streak by the Los Angeles Kings. The downside? Ryan Getzlaf. Down on the ice. Sprained ankle.

Did you hear that, Canada? Someone you are counting on for grit and a scoring touch in the Vancouver Games is on crutches. Getzlaf's status will be re-examined today.

And that is what passes for heart-stopping moments as we approach the Olympic men's hockey tournament, which begins next week. Any injury, however slight, will cause GMs in the NHL as well as the men running the Olympic teams to reflect, re-evaluate and resolve to remain committed to NHLers in the Olympics.



*** This video might appear a bit old -- it's from Saturday -- but not as old as some of the pretzels served here in the Lounge.

Michigan at Wisconsin at Camp Randall stadium. Gotta warm up the hockey crowd somehow. Did someone say House of Pain? Time to jump around and recirculate the blood, or whatever antifreeze that is not doing the job at the moment.

The Badgers won. Camp Randall still standing. A nice scene. Glad I was indoors, watching in the Lounge.

*** Back to the Olympics. NHL.com has a page devoted to the Vancouver games -- All Access Vancouver -- with rosters, features, schedules and, one assumes, plenty of stats and summaries as we move toward Russia defeating Canada for the gold medal. Yes, that's my pick, even though I am not firmly behind the goaltending of Evgeni Nabokov and Ilya Bryzgalov.

As for the United States, I see problems in goal, a lack of size up front and a defense that is not a strong as some of the tournament entries. I see a loss to the Swedes in the bronze medal game.

What say you?

*** Some lucky fans in North America will not have to pay to watch the Carolina Hurricanes face the Minnesota Wild next season. Those two teams will open the 2010-11 season with a double dip in Helsinki.

Also heading to Europe for two games are the Columbus Blue Jackets, San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins and Phoenix Coyotes. The Blue Jackets and Sharks will play twice in Stockholm; the Bruins and Coyotes will meet twice in Prague.

*** Roy MacGregor of The Toronto Globe and Mail gets to have the final word in the Lounge when it comes to Bob Gainey, who leaves the Montreal Canadiens in much the same way he found it. A franchise with great history, a hallowed sweater and few players worthy of wearing it.

Let's Make a Deal

The Calgary Flames appear to be in sleep mode, the New York Rangers are moving their problems for those of another team, and the Toronto Maple Leafs are the best team to have won nothing since 1967.

And the pressure is on each of those organizations today. You have to like getting out of bed and going to the Web (no dead tree editions in the Lounge) to read up on who is making a run for the Cup ... in February.

OK, so there will be a long break after next week that leaves the season as a sprint through March and the first few weeks of April. But I see the standings in each conference as a work in progress. There's going to be some bumping and some teams are just going to find out that the tap is dry.

But it is fun to open the morning with this set-up line: A Sutter, a Sather and a Burke walk into the bar.... You can supply your own punchline, and there are many.

I've never been a fan of Darryl Sutter as a coach or a general manager. His "they have to work harder" line after every Sharks loss grew old pretty quick. And he is quick to put the "they" in every sentence. They, as in, not me, you understand. I do.

He is dumping parts, the latest being Olli Jokinen, who is leaving Flames to join the Rangers. The Blueshirts are in Los Angeles tonight to face the Kings. And to those folks in Calgary, I'll tell you this: Happiness is seeing the door quickly slam shut as OJ goes out of the room.

A former King, Islander, Panther, Coyote, Flame. Perhaps you can tell where this is going. Go, OJ, Go.

Larry Brooks of the New York Post looks at the deal as one where two people on the same block are holding garage sales. A trade is made. Your discards for mine. And someday, we'll share the cost of a ride to the dump. Lots of questions are raised. Few are answered.

Glen Sather's Rangers have hit February with little momentum going into the Olympic break, save for a victory Sunday night against the Colorado Avalanche. Should the Rangers win tonight in Los Angeles, then the fans who drink blue Kool-Aid will say all is well, we are back in the race.

Stan Fischler is one who thinks Go, OJ, Go will thrive this season in Manhattan and decide to stay at MSG 4.0 for another season. (I see that Stan has discovered the new mix of Kool-Aid being served as Orange Drink at the Nedick's stand at Penn Station.)

Maybe so, but OJ is not answer to winning the Cup. Darryl Sutter tried that move in Calgary. Didn't work. And after watching his Flames go down meekly at home last night against the Philadelphia Flyers, he may see a few more moves that need to be made.

And now for a team that will truly not be printing Stanley Cup finals tickets. Yes, that's you, Toronto. But Brian Burke is smiling today. He is living off the glow of the trade for Dion Phaneuf, and Puck Daddy reports that if all goes well, the Maple Leafs will be printing money as we speak.

Somethings never change in Toronto.

Losing at the rink. Winning at the bank. So you cannot turn the thumb down on Burke today in Toronto. But someone has to feel some heat. That mean's you, Ron Wilson.

Folks in the Lounge, we introduce you to Damien Cox of the Toronto Star. He sets the bar high for Wilson, who has not been able to win so far with what could be described as the best and the brightest from the Island of Misfit Toys.

Cox, you see, says Wilson is in trouble and needs to win in Vancouver during the Olympics. Yes, you heard Cox right. Wilson needs the United States, they of the smallish forwards, banged up defense and Tim Thomas or Ryan Miller as your starter in net, to produce a medal.

OK, have you seen the Bruins' Thomas lately? Strike 1.



Did you see Sidney Crosby have his way with the Sabres' Miller last night? Strike 2.

Now I think the world of Jonathan Quick, who is the third goaltender on Team USA, but if the Rangers -- with Go, OJ, Go -- torch the Kings goalie tonight, then it's time to prepare Wilson for the worst that the Toronto news media has to offer.

Cox has set the bar pretty high. For a hanging, perhaps?

Is Go Juice Approved for the Olympics?

A can of Coca-Cola mixed with a two shots of espresso or a bottle of Starbucks mocha frappuchino acts like EMT flat paddles on the chest -- a nice jump-start on a cold day. Or the morning after staying up late to watch Vancouver at Phoenix and Minnesota at Anaheim.

I call it Go Juice.

As we get closer to the Winter Games in Vancouver, I have to ask whether this is a legal boost for East Coast viewers of the Olympics.

Everything from Nagano in 1998 seemed to be late, and I was living on the West Coast. I spent one of the Olympic weeks in Kauai, where seemingly all of the Olympic action was broadcast on tape delay as well.

Want to see the big Olympic hockey games? Back then, you had to wait until after "Late Night with David Letterman" -- HAWAII TIME -- before the game would begin. Not a happy experience.

I hope for better this February, but I do have my Go Juice ready for the long haul.

Fresh from TSN and CTV, here is what Team Canada will look like in Vancouver. Over at Puck Daddy, you can find the rosters for Finland and the Czech Republic.

From the Rink has the rosters for Germany and Switzerland. Also there are the rosters for Latvia, Norway and Slovakia.

And now, on to the scoreboard.

THE SCOREBOARD
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Buffalo 4, Pittsburgh 3
At N.Y. Islanders 2, Columbus 1 SO
Nashville 4, at St. Louis 3
At Dallas 5, Chicago 4
At Phoenix 3, Vancouver 2 SO
At Anaheim 4, Minnesota 2
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
Peoria 5, at Lake Erie 3
Providence 3, at Springfield 2 OT
At Worcester 5, Manchester 2
Hershey 5, at Norfolk 3
At Milwaukee 7, Rockford 1
Syracuse 4, at Texas 3 SO
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

EAST COAST HOCKEY LEAGUE
Florida 4, at Gwinnett 1
Elmira 7, at Reading 1
At Stockton 5, Bakersfield 1
At Las Vegas 3, Idaho 1
The standings are here.

QUEBEC MAJOR JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Cape Breton 6, Halifax 0
At Saint John 5, Prince Edward Island 2
Baie-Comeau 5, at Chicoutimi 4
Moncton 4, at Acadie-Bathurst 3
At Val-d'Or 2, Rouyn-Noranda 1
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

ONTARIO HOCKEY LEAGUE
London 4, at Guelph 2
Erie 4, at Saginaw 1
Barrie 7, at Kitchener 4
At Ottawa 4, Belleville 2
Plymouth 5, at Sarnia 2
At Sudbury 4, Sault Ste. Marie 2
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Moose Jaw 6, Prince Albert 3
At Calgary 4, Regina 3
Lethbridge 2, at Edmonton 1 SO
At Kootenay 5, Red Deer 4 SO
At Chilliwack 6, Prince George 1
At Portland 4, Spokane 3
At Tri-City 1, Everett 0
The standings are here.
The roundup is here.

UNITED STATES HOCKEY LEAGUE
At Youngstown 4, Waterloo 3
The standings are here.

WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP
Group A (at Saskatoon)
United States 12, Latvia 1
Canada 8, Slovakia 2
The recaps are here.

Group B (at Regina)
Czech Republic 7, Austria 1
Sweden 4, Russia 1
The recaps are here and here.
The standings and statistics are here.
Three stars by Puck Daddy.