Hockey rules!

Bear-Arms

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Mar 8, 2005
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It's kind of hard to gauge a players reaction after a tough loss. I don't deny some of the calls have been ridiculous this year but to call it not hockey is an exaggeration.
 

Realgeorge

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Nov 2, 2004
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Here We Go RedWings, Here We Go (clap-clap) !!
Caps vs. Redwings Friday 9 Dec, I was there ... You gotta love White gatherings! The crowd was 17265% white, with thousands of Redwings jerseys out in the crowd. Detroit fans easily outnumbered Caps' fans, I estimate by 3 to 1. Seems like half the state of Michigan flocked in to watch the Wings.
And an excellent game it was! The Wings erased a 2-1 deficit to win 4-3 with three power-play goals. The hitting was fierce but clean ... even in the stands! The many Redwings fans were loud but largely polite. The Caps fans cheered the infrequent good plays by the home team. But the atmosphere was electric. Sold out stadium, uninterrupted loud fan buzz, great action on the ice. The NHL is back with a vengeance.
For this fan, the primary enjoyment was the Whiteness. In this strange "arena" in the middle of the all-black DC, the vilest city in the universe, an oasis of civilized humans were gathered to watch great warriors of their own kind compete cleanly and ferociously. Got my money's worth, even with a $50 seat.
And here's a secret: With five seconds to go in the second period, the three Redwing fans sitting next to me each drew a breath and held it as a Caps' forward slammed a long shot. We all had a perfect view angle of it as it sailed into the corner of the goal, striking the twine just under the crossbar, and zinging out of the goal at an odd down angle. "Merde!" cried one of the Wing fans. "There goes our lead." The red light was on ... but play continued! And the refs motioned for "play on." Certainly there would be a replay.
But none was forthcoming. The horn sounded, the teams filed into their dressing rooms, and the score remained unchanged. "Gosh, that one went IN!" said a second Wings fan. "I hope we get a call like that one in the Third Period." I said nothing, because I knew the Wings wouldn't need one.
Not a word was said about the incident in the media, save "a few posts were hit by shots." I know the puck went in, but it doesn't matter. The GLORY of the NHL is intact! An odd ref call here or there ... no matter. Drop the puck! The NHL has allowed me to completely write off football and all its Africanness forever.
--- Max CunninghamEdited by: Realgeorge
 

Realgeorge

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Nov 2, 2004
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Comments from Owner Ted
Unusual candor from a media-mogul Owner
In summary: Quality, not Quantity

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"Under the salary cap system of the "new" NHL, one thing has not changed. Simply spending money on free agents does not guarantee success. Several teams who made big splashes in the free-agent market last summer failed to make the playoffs. Several others who failed to make the playoffs in 2003-04 made smaller, less noteworthy additions and found themselves going deep in the playoffs in 2005-06. As always, it's not how much you spend, it's how you spend it. Several teams spent at our near the cap limit and missed the playoffs last season, while several other teams spent well under the cap and enjoyed excellent seasons followed by successful playoff runs.

It all amounts to value. You can spend $5 million on a player, but that doesn't make him a $5-million player. There are times when it becomes necessary to spend $5 million to bring in a $4 million player, but we are not at that stage in our cycle just yet. You get value when a $1 million player has a $2 million season. And it is easier (and more likely) for a $1 million player to have a $2 million season than for a $7 million player to have an $8 million season.

Of the top six teams in terms of 2005-06 payroll, only three made the playoffs. Only one of those teams advanced to the second round and none advanced beyond the second round."
 
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