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Bettman must be doing backflips

BoopottsBoopotts Posts: 6,784 ✭✭
in Sports Talk
Both Crosby and AO go off for hatties, and the Caps win 4-3. What an unbelievable game, in what I think will end up being an unbelievable post-season. Canucks/Hawks features some great young players (Sharp, Kane, Toews, etc) and looks like it will be a war, Wings/Ducks features Getzlaf and Datsyuk (the two best players you've never heard of) and could very well go to seven, Caps/Pens (for obvious reasons), and the Bruins/Canes should be incredible as well, given that Boston was arguably the most exciting team to watch in the regular season.

I don't remember a year where all four conference semis were as intriguing as this quartet. Compared to the NBA playoffs, with it's crooked refs and lousy matchups, the NHL playoffs are making this an exceptional May for professional athletics. For those of you who don't like hockey, or are otherwise indifferent, you're missing out on sport at it's finest this NHL postseason.

Comments

  • joestalinjoestalin Posts: 12,473 ✭✭
    So it only took 4 years to finally have a game that would justify the stupid prices that people were paying for Crosby stuff?

    JS
  • yawie99yawie99 Posts: 2,575 ✭✭✭
    The title of this thread seems a bit ironic since the stature of the game has really plummeted under Bettman's watch. I wanna care and am sure I'm missing some great hockey, but I just can't muster the enthusiasm I once had for the NHL. One can't entirely attribute that to Bettman, of course, but I really think the guy has been terrible for the game.
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  • BoopottsBoopotts Posts: 6,784 ✭✭


    << <i>The title of this thread seems a bit ironic since the stature of the game has really plummeted under Bettman's watch. I wanna care and am sure I'm missing some great hockey, but I just can't muster the enthusiasm I once had for the NHL. One can't entirely attribute that to Bettman, of course, but I really think the guy has been terrible for the game. >>



    My only point was that the NHL has to be thrilled with the way things played out in game 2 of the Caps/Pens series. I, like you, have very little use for Gary Bettman. If it were up to me we would move the Coyotes, Thrashers and Panthers to Winnipeg, Hamilton and Halifax, respectively.

    FWIW, the hockey has been fantastic this postseason. And your Blues were a great team to watch in March!
  • edmundfitzgeraldedmundfitzgerald Posts: 4,306 ✭✭


    << <i>

    My only point was that the NHL has to be thrilled with the way things played out in game 2 of the Caps/Pens series. I, like you, have very little use for Gary Bettman. If it were up to me we would move the Coyotes, Thrashers and Panthers to Winnipeg, Hamilton and Halifax, respectively.

    FWIW, the hockey has been fantastic this postseason. And your Blues were a great team to watch in March! >>



    Agree on all parts, however I would choose Quebec over Halifax.
  • BoopottsBoopotts Posts: 6,784 ✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>

    My only point was that the NHL has to be thrilled with the way things played out in game 2 of the Caps/Pens series. I, like you, have very little use for Gary Bettman. If it were up to me we would move the Coyotes, Thrashers and Panthers to Winnipeg, Hamilton and Halifax, respectively.

    FWIW, the hockey has been fantastic this postseason. And your Blues were a great team to watch in March! >>



    Agree on all parts, however I would choose Quebec over Halifax. >>



    I'd take Quebec as well. I lean slightly towards Halifax (though only slightly) because:

    1) Quebec already had the Nordiques (although Winnipeg already had the Jets, so this isn't really a dealbreaker)
    2) Whatever team ended up in QC would be overshadowed by the Habs
    3) Halifax has a population of about 350,000 which compares favorably (although is still a little smaller) than QC

    One thing we can definitely all agree on, though, is that these teams in the American South need to be uprooted if there are metropolitan areas in Canada that are still w/o an NHL team.
  • edmundfitzgeraldedmundfitzgerald Posts: 4,306 ✭✭
    I don't understand the reasoning behind pulling the teams from Quebec, Winnipeg, and Quebec.

    OK, they can say that Toronto and Montreal have more money then Fort Knox because of their rich history. I can buy that.

    But why can Edmonton and Calgary survive, but the other three can't ? I just don't get it.

    A Nordiques-Habs rivalry is great for hockey. Or perhaps some feel a Coyotes-Habs rivalry is better ?

    Hockey is Canada's game, with the rest of us enjoying it too, but it's still their game. They should be respected for
    introducing the game to us, and helping many of us enjoy it. To strip their cities of teams for some unknown reason is beyond me.
  • yawie99yawie99 Posts: 2,575 ✭✭✭
    Point understood, Boo. I knew what you were getting at, but I think it's going to take a long time for the NHL to undo all the self-inflicted damage of the Bettman era. It might not even be possible. Maybe I'm extrapolating too much from my own experiences, but I've gone from being a rabid hockey fan to someone who couldn't even tell you what channel Versus - Versus!?! - is on my cable carrier. I'd be willing to bet that the number of U.S. fans who have essentially walked away from the game over the last five years is more than the number of new fans the game has attracted. Kinda sad, really.
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  • BoopottsBoopotts Posts: 6,784 ✭✭
    Speak of the devil!

    Bettman the idiot did everything in his power to keep the Preds from moving to Hamilton-- let's see if he's able to stonewall this move as well. Seeing as how the Coyotes are now legally bankrupt it seems like he'll have a tougher time keeping the Coyotes in Phx. than he did the Preds in N'ville.
  • GootGoot Posts: 3,496


    << <i>
    Bettman the idiot did everything in his power to keep the Preds from moving to Hamilton-- let's see if he's able to stonewall this move as well. Seeing as how the Coyotes are now legally bankrupt it seems like he'll have a tougher time keeping the Coyotes in Phx. than he did the Preds in N'ville. >>




    It's amazing some places can't support a franchise. The Lightning have been AWFUL the past couple seasons and have remained near the top half in attendance, despite the crappy record, and even ranked in the top five back when the playoffs were a common destination. It'll never be as big as the Bucs, but it's got a very nice niche following in Tampa.
  • ConnecticoinConnecticoin Posts: 12,868 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>My only point was that the NHL has to be thrilled with the way things played out in game 2 of the Caps/Pens series. I, like you, have very little use for Gary Bettman. If it were up to me we would move the Coyotes, Thrashers and Panthers to Winnipeg, Hamilton and Halifax, respectively.
    >>



    Move the Whalers back to Hartford too! image

    Whalers - Bruins would be a hell of a playoff rivalry!
    *For Sale on BST* *For Sale on Ebay*
  • BoopottsBoopotts Posts: 6,784 ✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>
    Bettman the idiot did everything in his power to keep the Preds from moving to Hamilton-- let's see if he's able to stonewall this move as well. Seeing as how the Coyotes are now legally bankrupt it seems like he'll have a tougher time keeping the Coyotes in Phx. than he did the Preds in N'ville. >>




    It's amazing some places can't support a franchise. The Lightning have been AWFUL the past couple seasons and have remained near the top half in attendance, despite the crappy record, and even ranked in the top five back when the playoffs were a common destination. It'll never be as big as the Bucs, but it's got a very nice niche following in Tampa. >>




    That's a great point-- there are some teams, such as the Lightning and (I think) the 'Canes who are fine where they are, and these franchises deserve the league's support. But the teams that have terrible attendance and perennially poor records would be best served in a locale north of the border (IMO).
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