Archive for February, 2006

Quote of the Day

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From Helene St. James’ Hockey Diary:

A reporter asked Chris Chelios whether Sweden is a better team with Peter Forsberg. Chelios’ answer was vintage Chelios: “I would say ‘yes.’ He’s a pretty good player. Is this is a trick question?”

That is vintage Chelios. I can hear him say it. What a dumb question, seriously.

Nice to see the Freep get on the blog bandwagon. First it was the News’ Ted Kulfan “blog,” then Ansar Khan’s mLive-style blog and now we have Ms. St. James’. It’d be nice to see a links list from those three and maybe some more interactive functionality as well. Blogging is more than a format, guys, it’s a dialog. Want to join the conversation?

Kronwall headed to Torino

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Kukla: ” Kronwall will be part of the taxi squad and will be able to practice with the team, which will probably be good for him.” (via. A2Y)

Update (2:15 PM): More from the Freep:

Wings general manager Ken Holland confirmed Monday that Kronwall was to head to Torino that night, expected to arrive Tuesday morning. Sweden plays Slovakia at 8 p.m. Torino time.

Kronwall is coming over to join the Swedish taxi squad but might play because Niclas Havelid has suffered a knee injury.

It’ll be great for Nik to get some playing time, if he can, but it’s a big risk to take. The Wings can’t afford to have him get injured again.

However, as the Freep points out, Sweden only has four more games, at best: “The quarterfinals are Wednesday, semifinals Friday and the medal games Saturday and Sunday.” So, he’ll be able to work on getting into better game-shape but because he’s missed so much of the tournament already, there’s less a chance for re-injury while playing the less physical Olympic style.

Update (5:59 PM): Helene St. James has emmended her article on this. The relevant part now reads,

Kronwall is coming over to join the taxi squad, but might play because there is some question as to the status of Niclas Havelid, who has tweaked a knee. Swedish coach Bengt-Ake Gustafsson said that Havelid would play Tuesday, but that Kronwall was the first defenseman substitute.

“Niklas is going to come down here and be ready if we have some injuries,” Gustafsson said. “He was the best defenseman at the World Championships last year; he came in and played really well for us. He has a lot of skill. Unfortunately he got hurt earlier this season, and he had a tough time, but he worked so hard to try to make this team. Now he is catching up. We hope that if we have any injuries, he is here and can help us.”

IwoCPO over at Abel to Yzerman points out that the Swedes are likely to find a way to get Kronwall on the ice. They’ve lost in the quarterfinals in the last two Olympics and will want the best players available to ensure it doesn’t happen again, even if it means screwing over the Detroit Red Wings. Iwo puts it this way:

“Kronwall’s recovery, if necessary, after the Olympics is of zero concern to Gustafsson, the Swedish hockey program or the country itself. In fact the only Swedes who are concerned at all about Kronwall’s ability to play out the NHL season are the four Red Wings who will be playing with him the rest of this tournament.”

I imagine Holland isn’t all that happy about this but Kronwall obviously got the call and he can’t exactly ignore his country, can he?

Maybe it’s time to start cheering for an early Swedish elimination. Slovakia/Finland final, anyone?

The 19th Carnival of the NHL – The Steve Yzerman Edition

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Hello and welcome to On the Wings. I’m Matt Saler and I’ll be your host today as we go through the 19th Carnival of the NHL. Because this is Hockeytown and the number 19 has only one meaning here, this Carnival has been dubbed “The Steve Yzerman Edition,” and was meant to focus on captains. However, the New Jersey State Police didn’t get the memo and they neglected to keep their “Operation Slapshot” under wraps for just a couple more weeks. Read the post next time, guys. You screwed everything up.

Anyway, we do have some captain material to cover so here it is.

First, we have d-lee of Red and Black Hockey and the colorful Acid Queen of Sweet Tea, Barbecue and Bodychecks. D-lee takes us back to September, 2005, when the ‘Canes’ beloved captain Ron Francis announced his retirement, taking a look at one of the classiest players in league history. The Queen took a slightly different angle but wrote more recently on the retirement ceremony. Also, be sure to check out d-lee’s look at Rod Brind’amour, the ‘Canes’ latest captain, and how he arrived in Carolina.

While we’re on the topic of recently-retired captains, we should stop by Steve Ovadia’s Puck Update, where Steve reveals a secret about Mark Messier (*gasp*! Messier not liked? Wow…). Not far off geographically is blogger-in-spirit Greg Wyshynski, who covered the Devils’ retirement ceremony for Scott Stevens for NY Sports Day. Be sure to check that one out.

It hasn’t happened yet (thank God) but it will happen soon and Bill Houlihan is on top of it. I’m talking about Steve Yzerman’s retirement and who is in line to replace him. Bill takes a look at the candidates here but may want to add Robert Lang to the list. Lang was named captain of the Czech Olympic team this past week.

While we’re on the topic of Steve Yzerman, here is an email tribute to him from a fellow fan here:

Steve Yzerman is my personal sports hero.

He is a true example of class and what a professional athlete should be. I am 30 years old, and idolized him so much 15 years ago that I wore his number 19 on all my highs school sports teams. Before he was a legend, and before he won a cup, when he was just a very, very good player, he was my hero. At the time, however, it was more of an immature youthful idol-worship. Now, 15 years later, it has turned to a deep respect and appreciation for one of the greatest leaders/players/heroes in sports history. I will truly miss him when he is gone. He is one of the few public figures whose example has truly inspired me, and I can’t wait to tell my kids about his example when they are old enough. As a lifelong Wings fan, I really can’t imagine the Wings without him, because I’ve never SEEN the Wings without him. 22 seasons in a Red Wing uniform. That in itself is a truly iconic feat.

Cheers to the kid from Ottawa. I’ve enjoyed cheering you on….thanks for all the memories, and hopefully a few more to come!

Kevin Usealman – transplanted Wings fan

Portage, Wisconsin

And if you’ve never read Christy’s piece on The Captain, read it now.

That’s the last of the captain-related content. But before we move on to the gambling scandal, I will direct you to some more uplifting stuff.

First, we have JP of Japer’s Rink, who, in the current spirit of Olympics-inspired national pride, provides two lists. The first is of the best American-born players in NHL history and the second is of the best Americans in Captials history. Both lists are very well done, though I confess I haven’t heard of a few of the Caps players. JP also has this account of the game he attended with Ted Leonsis, the owner of the Capitals. Ah, for an owner such as that here in Detroit….

If Mike Illitch’s hard heart about “independent media” makes you sad, check out Jes Golbez’s “Peter Forsberg Slideshow.” It’s worth a laugh or two (though that last slide goes a long ways in quieting any laughter, my fellow Wings fans).

One final attempt at avoiding the gambling issue: Grampapinhead takes a look at penalties and the referees that call them here. He also makes an interesting suggestion: female refs.

Now, we have to talk about the gambling scandal. But it won’t be too bad, since I didn’t get a lot of submissions on it, though there is plenty out there if you look.

First, Michael of Confessions of a Hockey Fan takes a look at the defense strategy of Mark Recchi and John LeClair. Here’s Steve Ovadia’s unique look at the whole thing. Finally, we have another great piece from Greg Wyshynski.

And that’s the Carnival. I apologize for my tardiness in getting it published. Next time I’ll be sure I have a clear spot in my schedule before volunteering to do it!

The Carnival is returning

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OtW is hosting the 19th Carnival of the NHL and we’re dubbing it the “Steve Yzerman Edition,” in honor of one of hockey’s greatest players.

Because Yzerman is “The Captain,” we’d like to see your thoughts on your team’s captain. What do you know about him, why is he captain, how does he lead, has there ever been a specific instance in which he sparked your team on in an important game, etc. If you have something you’d like to write about Yzerman, we’d love to see that too.

The Carnival, the second we’ve hosted, will take place on Monday the 13th of February. Please submit your contribution by 11:59 PM on the 12th (Sunday night).

Update (08. Feb): Remember bloggers, we need your submissions by midnight Sunday night if the Carnival is going to open on Monday.

Update (12. Feb): I have to delay the Carnival for a few more days. I’ve got too much to do for school and won’t be able to get to it until this weekend. The deadline is extended until Friday night and the Carnival will take place on Saturday, the 18th.

Update (17. Feb, 9:25 PM): A reminder, if you haven’t submitted anything yet, you have and a half hours or so to get something in. Well, really until I get up tomorrow to do the Carnival but you get the idea.

Quote of the Week

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I like this sentiment (from today’s Freep):

Coach Mike Babcock watched the Super Bowl and said it was nice that Jerome Bettis went out a champion in his final game.

“Reminded me of Ray Bourque or John Elway,” Babcock said. “I don’t think there’s any better way. We should be doing the same thing here for (No.) 19.

“If it’s going around, you might as well catch it.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Also, posting may pick up some more soon. A due date has been pushed back so the academic pressure isn’t as serious this week, though I do still have a lot to do.