Too Many Kids at the NHL Draft?
Every year that goes by, I wonder how many kids showed up to the NHL draft in hopes of being drafted, but never do. Just read this over at Jason Gregor’s draft live blog,
The seventh round is under way. There are 25 picks left and it is painful to watch the handful of kids that are still sitting in the stands waiting for their name to be called. I have no idea what parents are thinking when they agree to let their son come here, unless he is rated in the top 60. Those guys do drop, but normally not all the way out of the draft. If you son is rated in the 4th or 5th round, don’t bring him.
You can see the frustration, sadness and humiliation in their body with ever pick that passes them by.
There is no need for them to be here and I think it is on the shoulder of the parents and agents to convince them not to come. Some might be motivated by it, but many never recover from not getting the call.
I’ve never attended a draft to see this first hand, but it’s always something that I’ve thought about happening. I do remember back in 1995 when the draft was in Edmonton, one of the guys from my high school was there jumping up and down “Pick me! Pick me!” in hopes of yeah you know, getting picked. Did he? Of course not.
What do you think? Does Gregor make a good point by telling parents not to send their low ranked kids to the draft? Or do you want them to be there no matter what the chance, just in case they get to walk up on stage and get that jersey?
Chris Pronger is a Philadelphia Flyer
The first trade of the day has been announced, and it’s Chris Pronger to the Philadelphia Flyers for Luca Sbisa, Joffrey Lupul and two first-round picks.
What do you think? Is the 34 year old worth it for the Flyers? I think that he is instant return for the Flyers, but don’t know how long term the guy will be over there.
How about on the other end? Did the Ducks get Pronger’s worth in return?
Victor Hedman Selected Second
Aaaaaaaaaand with the second pick, the Lightning have selected Victor Hedman. Do I like this? YES. Would I have traded this pick away for something? Not a chance. Look how far the Lightning rode the Vinny train? Time to get off that train and onto the Hedman train now.
John Tavares Selected First in the NHL Draft
Five years after being identified as a possible number one pick in the NHL entry draft, the New York Islanders have selected John Tavares first overall. Was there any doubt? I didn’t think so, but kept reading that Hedman was a strong possibility for a #1… Turns out that the most scouted player in the history of the draft (according to Bob McKenzie) got selected first, like he thought he should have. I don’t know how this guy will turn out in the show, but his quote at the start of this show of “I want to be the greatest player ever” instantly turned me off of him.
Good luck with that you clown.
Hilary Rhoda and Sean Avery
Looks like Sean Avery has picked up some sloppy seconds of his own by snagging Sports Illustrated model Hilary Rhoda from NY Jets QB Mark Sanchez.
The New York Times is reporting that Avery and Rhoda were spotted at some place called Brother Jimmy’s in Murray Hill last night, getting quite friendly with each other while doing shots of Jack and Patron.
First things first, if this chick does shots of Jack, then someone better put on a ring on that quick!
K, back to reality. Let’s say that Avery and Rhoda stay together for a while, and then Sanchez and Cuthbert hook up? Would those sloppy seconds cancel each other out then? What about Phaneuf? If he and Avery (probably the gayest looking of the three) hooked up would that be some kind of kissing your cousin sloppy seconds?
2009 NHL Awards
Well I was all pumped to watch the NHL awards show last night on CBC, but low and behold they didn’t show it live, so I knew all the results before the stupid thing even aired… so yeah CBC, I didn’t watch. Anyway, here are the winners:
Calder Trophy – Steve Mason, Columbus Blue Jackets
Lester B. Pearson Award – Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
Frank J. Selke Trophy – Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy – Steve Sullivan, Nashville Predators
William M. Jennings Trophy – Tim Thomas/Manny Fernandez, Boston Bruins
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy – Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings
King Clancy Memorial Trophy – Ethan Moreau, Edmonton Oilers
Scotiabank Fan Fav Award – Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks
NHL Foundation Award – Rick Nash, Columbus Blue Jackets
Vezina Trophy – Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins
Jack Adams Trophy – Claude Julien, Boston Bruins
Mark Messier Leadership Award – Jerome Iginla, Calgary Flames
James Norris Memorial Trophy – Zdano Chara, Boston Bruins
Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy – Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
Art Ross Trophy – Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Lifetime Achievement Award – Jean Beliveau, Montreal Canadiens
Hart Memorial Trophy – Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
No real shockers there. I looked through the voting results on some other sites and was a little surprised to see players like Phaneuf actually get votes for the Norris when he had an awful season, but we all know that was just Pierre Mcguire stuffing the ballot boxes… 
Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup Parade Pictures
Here are a selection of pictures from the Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup Parade that was held today at noon. Enjoy!
CBC’s 2009 Playoff Montage
The 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs Monrage brought to you by CBC and City and Colour.
Pittsburgh Penguins – Stanley Cup Champions
Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins for capturing their 3rd Stanley Cup on Friday night as they beat the Detroit Red Wings 2-1 in game 7 of the finals.
Earlier in the series many people, including myself, thought that Detroit was going to take this one easily, but the Pens fought back hard (other than game 5) and won the cup on the Wing’s home ice. How sweet that must have been considering that the opposite took place last season.
I was in Ontario for the weekend and got to watch game 7 at a place called Rusty’s at Blue Mountain Resort. I wasn’t too sure who the crowd would be going for, but even as I walked past the hotel rooms on the way to the bar I figured it out quickly. “Let’s go Pens! Let’s go Pens!” Upon arriving at the bar it was even more clear as there was a surprising sea of black and gold, with a lone 12 year old in a wings jersey… yeah, there was a 12 year old in the bar somehow.
Anyway, it was a great game, and a stellar way to finish off the season. Before the Penguins win I was pulling for the Wings for no reason other than I didn’t want to see Crosby hoist the cup. After they won though, I once again realized that it doesn’t matter who wins, being the lucky captain to be able to lift that thing (away from that weasel Bettman) is one hell of an accomplishment, and you have to be happy for them.
Anyway, I can go on and on, but considering that I’m writing this three days after the win, I’ll just close out with two of my favourite quotes from the post game interviews on CBC:
Marc Andre Fluery when asked what he was thinking when the Wings were buzzing in his zone with only a few seconds to go:
“Oh Shit! Sorry guys, but that’s what I was thinking!”
Matt Cooke’s 5 year old son when asked if he had any thoughts to share:
“I skipped school” (with a huge grin)
Special thanks to CBC for this years intro and closing videos. That video before game one of the series with Coldplay was unreal, and the closing video with Dallas Green’s Sleeping Sickness was awesome as well. Those things give me goosebumps!
NHL Playoff Schedule
Alright, what is going on with the league and it’s playoff scheduling this year? Why did we have to start this series so early, if they were going to give copious days off between games? Why not go back to the way things were, where a set pattern was followed?
For this complaint I’ve hired Andre the Giant to come back and enforce things 80’s style for me.
This year the Stanley Cup Finals started on May 30th, and then went straight to game two on May 31st. I LOVED THIS MOVE! Then the schedule moved to a day off between games leaving us with June 2, 4, and 6th. Ok, that’s pretty much what the league has been doing for a while now so no real surprise here.
Now what? They have taken it one step further by having two days off between games… why do we have to wait from Saturday to Tuesday before our next game? GARBAGE! And if the Pens win the game tonight, we have to wait until FRIDAY? Why so long?
I propose that the league goes back to the 80’s and changes the playoff schedule. What was wrong with having the first two games back to back, a day off, then two more back to back in the other teams arena? NOTHING. Then if the series goes farther than 4 you can give them ONE day off in between games. What does this do? It creates real momentum by having the games played pretty much back to back, and it doesn’t allow for our minds to wander (and wonder if the NBA finals really have that much influence over the NHL schedule).
So, NHL, I’m sending Andre your way. Straighten up before next season and there is a good chance that the big guy wouldn’t have made it your way yet, but delay… and be prepared for a Wrestlemania IV throw-down!
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