Vancouver, Where Have All The Car Flags Gone?

One thing you can't help but notice driving around Vancouver this playoff season is the stunning lack of car flags in the city. Last year it was borderline ridiculous how many vehicles were running Canuck colours, and one year later the fad has easily fallen by at least 90%. Last year they could barely keep them in stock, this year there has to be boxes upon boxes of this unsold junk in merchandiser inventories. It isn't just that Vancouver has fallen behind 0-3 in their series against Los Angeles, the virtual extinction of this phenomenon happened from day 1 of the playoffs. Did the Stanley Cup riots sour everyone's spirits? It's possible. Or everyone just got sick of an asinine exercise.

Today's poll question; who will be the next Canadian NHL franchise to win the Stanley Cup? Vancouver is all but done this season (with less than a 5% chance they can come back when down 0-3), but would still have to be the Vegas favourite to win next season. Ottawa still has a chance this season, but their long term odds don't necessarily look good as the window on Alfredsson and Spezza closes shut. It is tough to tell anything about Toronto anymore (99.9% chance next season is Burke's last in TO if they miss the playoffs again) , Montreal is a mess, Calgary is barely mediocre bordering on a mess, and Winnipeg is still a few pieces short. Edmonton has the greatest abundance of high end young talent, but are still waiting for them to come of age.

What will happen? Nobody knows for sure. That's why they play the games. TSN's expert projections had Pittsburgh and Vancouver meeting in the finals. Now both are down 0-3 (for example, you have a 6% chance of winning a 50-50 proposition 4 times in a row). Even the experts are wrong a lot.

Montreal Should Only Hire French Coaches

As a hockey fan who loathes the Montreal Canadiens, I would like to encourage the franchise to hire only francophone coaches. Why? Because there are so few in the NHL to choose from, and many of them have already coached the Habs (Vigneault, Therien, Julien, Martin, etc) and been fired. Is Randy Cunneyworth the right guy for the job? Maybe, maybe not, but insisting that fluency in French is an absolute requirement severely limits their options. It is not as though the team is loaded with French speaking players and that language harmony is required for the coach to communicate with players. The perceived language requirement is mostly for communicating with local media, which hardly affects the team's on ice performance.

Please Montreal, keep lobbying so vehemently for a French speaking coach that the team is left with no choice but to scratch 90% of the candidates off their list. That's what I'd like to see, the Habs forever doomed to mediocrity.

Should Don Cherry Be Sued?

Today's poll question; should Don Cherry be sued for calling some former hockey fighters "pukes and turncoats"? Normally I'm among the first to defend Cherry when he creates a pinko bike riding media controversy, but Don went too far with the latest rant. Players who have played the game have every right to express their opinions about possible negative side effects, and doing so does not make them pukes. They earned the right to have their opinions. Now the 3 players who were at the source of Cherry's tantrum are threatening a lawsuit for defamation, and there is a decent chance that they could win. While I believe Cherry overreacted to what the players said about fighting in hockey, I'm not sure we want to live in a society where calling someone a puke is worthy of a lawsuit. That's too litigious.

Don went too far, but not so far as to warrant a lawsuit. Do you agree or disagree?

Should Fighting Be Banned In Hockey?

This has been a tragic summer for the National Hockey League as 3 "tough guys" who played in the league last season have died. It is starting to raise questions about the long term physical and emotional damage that the enforcer occupation can do to a human body. Today's poll question; should fighting be banned in hockey? I have always been a fan of the fisticuffs but I'm starting to wonder if I need to re-consider my position. Perhaps it is just an unfortunate coincidence that these 3 men have died this summer, or perhaps there is a correlation between years of repeated bare knuckle blows to the head and an early grave. Should I have a guilty conscious because I cheer for these players and I applaud what they do as the modern day gladiators they are?

Darryl Boogaard died by mixing alcohol with prescription pain killers while recovering from a serious concussion. Rick Rypien and Wade Belak committed suicide. One thing all these players had in common was that they fought, and fought a lot. Fighting legend Bob Probert, one of my favourite players of all-time, died at the age of 45 and his family donated his brain to science. The researchers found evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. According to wikipedia:

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive degenerative disease found in individuals who have been subjected to multiple concussions and other forms of head injury. A variant of the condition, dementia pugilistica, is primarily associated with boxing. CTE has been most commonly found in professional athletes participating in gridiron football, ice hockey, professional wrestling and other contact sports, who have experienced head trauma, resulting in characteristic degeneration of brain tissue and the accumulation of tau protein. Individuals with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy may show symptoms of dementia such as memory loss, aggression, confusion and depression which may appear within months of the trauma or many decades later.

Should fighting be banned?

Stephen Harper Attends Hockey Games

Stephen Harper may or may not attend the Winnipeg Jets home opener in over 6 weeks, and evidently this is headline news at the CBC (must be a slow month). "Call it a perk of holding the highest elected office in the land: if there's a big game in the life of his hockey-mad country, Prime Minister Stephen Harper seems able to snag a ticket, even when an event is sold out and his attendance is arranged on short notice." Today's poll question; does it bother you that the Prime Minister attends NHL hockey games? When the PM attended a Stanley Cup finals game in Boston, the opposition erupted in outrage despite Harper paying for his own ticket. It is quite common for politicians to attend sporting events, but rarely does it lead to media criticism. This is quickly becoming a new theme by which the left is attacking the PM.

Meanwhile at the Globe Jane Taber is accusing Stephen Harper of creating his own brand of populist nationalism which includes embracing the British Monarchy and being a hockey fan; and you can expect a lot stories like that from Jane over the next 4 years. To say that Stephen Harper should not be allowed to attend NHL hockey games would be absurd, just as it is to accuse him of having a sinister hidden agenda when he does attend.

Vancouver Burning

Well the Canucks lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, and now downtown is burning. This city should be embarrassed and all these hooligans need to be brought to justice. Trust me, they were all captured on candid camera. To all the fans bracing themselves for another 11 years of Roberto Luongo for $60 million, I say sell sell sell. If Gillis can find a buyer, the future is Cory Schneider. When the Detroit Red Wings lost game 7 at home to Pittsburgh in 2009, there were no riots. Remember that Vancouver, for as much of a cesspool as Detroit is, they don't set their own city on fire when they lose. F**king Detroit has more decorum than Vancouver. That's all I've got to say...

Hockey Night In Vancouver

It is not very often that a Canadian city hosts a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup finals, but that's exactly what's happening tonight in Vancouver. You can expect tens of thousands to gather downtown in what promises to be a big party, whether or not it has a happy ending. They might need to declare Thursday a holliday. The good news is that Vancouver has won every game at home and historically the home team is 12-3 in the 7th game of finals, so there is reason to be optimistic. The biggest problem facing the Canucks right now is that they don't have a legitimate tough guy on their roster. When Shawn Thornton skates over center ice in the warm-up and shoots a puck at Luongo who is stretching on the side boards, somebody needs to clock that guy! The Canucks need a Gino Odjick or a Tiger Williams.

I'm confident the Canucks can win, depending on which Roberto Luongo shows up. Evidently he now sucks when he can't take a pre game walk along the sea wall. He'll get to take his walk today before the game.

Stephen Harper Goes To Boston

In two short hours the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins will face off for game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals in Boston and the Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper will be in attendance. This is a critical game for the Canucks who were blown out in game 3 and need to reclaim control of the series. Hopefully this will help motivate the team to maximize their performance, though I'm not sure all the Canucks European players hold any reverence for Canada's democratically elected leader. Harper was good luck during the Olympics, so it can't hurt.

The Prime Minister will be paying for his trip out of his own pocket, or at least what it would cost him if he were to fly commercial. For security reasons our leader flies on government jets which will cost more than the $1000 he's putting up. This begs the question whether or not our Prime Minister should travel on commercial airlines for personal trips. That's a good idea for a poll question. Are we far enough removed from 9/11 that hijackings are no longer a concern? Airport security has improved by leaps and bounds in the past decade; so is it now fair to expect our commander and chief to fly with the rest of us?

Go Canucks!

Winnipeg Jets Sell 13,000 Season Tickets

The soon to be Winnipeg Jets have surprised the hockey world selling 13,000 season tickets in just 4 days, which has to be close to a league record. Each season ticket package comes with a 3-5 year commitment, and gives the franchise a solid foundation as they begin the journey of building the lowly Atlanta Thrashers into champions. It is an exciting day for Manitoba hockey fans, as the franchise must now set its attention to hiring a new General Manager, re-signing free agents, and preparing for the draft. Canada is on track to add a franchise and win a Stanley Cup within a month, making it a great time to be a Canadian hockey fan.

There are some quality building blocks coming to Manitoba in that Thrashers roster.

Under Contract (and worth being excited about)

-Dustin Byfuglien: $5.2 million per year for 5 more seasons isn't cheap, but 26 year old 6'5 260 lb defensemen who score 20 goals and 50 points don't grow on trees.

-Tobias Enstrom: Great value contract at $3.75 million for two more years, 27 years old and 50 PTS from the blue line.

-Evander Kane: 140 NHL games played before his 20th birthday and played for Team Canada at the world championships this year. The future of the franchise.

-Bryan Little: Having a 24 year old 50 point scorer under contract for 2 more years at under $3 million per season is a good contract.

-Alex Burmistrov: 8th overall pick in 2010 draft, 20 PTS as a rookie. Worth watching.

Restricted Free Agents (team must re-sign, allowed to match contract offers)

-Andrew Ladd: Team's leading scorer. Market value $4-5 million per year.

-Anthoney Stewart: 25 year old power forward due for a raise. Market value $2-3 million per year.

-Blake Wheeler: 25 year old already has 140 career PTS. Market value $3-4 million per year.

-Zach Bogosian: 21 years old already with 200 career GPs. Was in line for a big contract but regressed last season. Market value $2-4 million per year.

Bad Contracts

Nik Antropov and Ron Hainsey not worth what they are being paid, each under contract for 2 more years over $4 million per season.

If you've read this far, you might enjoy reading some more sports analysis.

Most Desirable Canadian NHL City?

Today's poll question; in which Canadian NHL city would you rather live? Now that Winnipeg has been restored to NHL status, some pundits are asking if NHL hockey players would want to live there. That begs the question, which is the most desirable city for free agent hockey players? The strength of the Canadian dollar and economy assure that this endeavour in Manitoba will be more viable than when they left. The devaluing of the currency killed the Jets and Nordiques. Personally I'm a fan of living in Vancouver. The length of the golf season is particularly appealing. You become accustomed to the rain.

Canucks Fans, Don't Count Your Cups Before They Hatch...

While I have jumped onto the Vancouver Canucks bandwagon with both feet, listening to the last 3 days of local sports talk radio a large volume of callers are treating the end result as a foregone conclusion. Boston may as well have touched the Eastern Conference trophy, because it is the only trophy they will win this season. Some fans are calling this the beginning of a dynasty and that not only will they win the championship this year, but for several more years. Michael Bubble was even on Pratt and Taylor talking about how great it is that his grandfather is still alive to finally see Vancouver win it all. It is fine to predict a Vancouver victory, but be careful just how far you push this envelope before any games have even been played. Don't mess up your karma.

As I texted one of my friends this morning, somebody had better tell Canuck fans that they make you play one more series before they actually give you the Stanley Cup. Normally I support hockey fans being enthusiastic and optimistic, but if you spend even 20 minutes listening to the TEAM 1040, you'll understand what I'm talking about. It is getting ridiculous, and this is coming from someone who wants the team to win. Granted if the Canucks lose, I won't be losing any sleep. I've already watched my favourite team win 4 Stanley Cups. Sometimes people ask me how I became a Detroit fan back in the 80s, and I tell them that Robocop had a profound impact on my childhood. That usually gets a laugh.

Go Canucks Go!

You don't have to be a Canucks fan to be excited about Vancouver advancing to the Stanley Cup final as the team has a chance to win the first Cup by a Canadian team in nearly 20 years. What a hockey game! A dramatic game tying goal with just seconds left to play, and then a fluke goal on a crazy bounce in the second overtime to win. Alex Edler shot the puck around the glass, it took a funny bounce to Kevin Bieksa and he shot it in the net with everyone else looking in the other direction. It was one of the strangest goals you will ever see in hockey, let alone as a series winning goal. Then within a matter of seconds the good people at GM Place started dumping 2 tons of paper confetti on the ice as the referees were huddling together discussing if the goal should count. I guess that's why they call it home ice advantage, although replays did show the goal was legit.

As a Vancouver resident I have officially jumped onto the Canucks bandwagon with both feet, flying a Canucks car flag and putting my Red Wings hat away for a Canucks hat. I have already declared on my sports blog that the Vancouver Canucks are going to win the Stanley Cup this season. Perhaps taking statistical likelihoods as absolute certainties is ill-advised, but I feel quite confident in this prediction. Then again, I did declare a 0% chance that the NDP would win 100 seats. I am fallible.

The Tweet of the night has to go to James Moore, @JamesMoore_org: "Just cheered like we won Ajax-Pickering all over again"

Winnipeg's New NHL Team

The NHL is returning to the fine city of Winnipeg, as a local group is reported to be buying the Atlanta Thrashers. This is exciting news for Canadian hockey fans, especially in Manitoba where fans of the departed Jets have been celebrating in the streets. Today's poll question; what should the new franchise be named? The Winnipeg Jets or the Manitoba Moose? Or maybe the Winnipeg Moose or the Manitoba Jets? Perhaps some of you out there like the Thrashers brand, so that option is on the table.

It would have been nice, at least nostalgic, if the Phoenix Coyotes moved back to Winnipeg because that is the original franchise (even if only Shane Doan remains). That being said, there are some interesting puzzle pieces with the Thrashers. Evander Kane and Dustin Byfuglien are going to become cult heroes in Manitoba. Evander is the future.

Are We All Canucks?

On Thursday before the start of the Canucks 2nd round playoff series against Nashville, Stephen Harper made a rare appearance on a local Vancouver sports talk radio show and said that the whole country is behind the team. In this same show, one of the guests talked about how there were a significant number of people in Calgary sports bars cheering for Chicago in game 7 on Tuesday. Another said that many people in Toronto were not cheering for Vancouver, which is now Canada's last team in the playoffs.

So are we all Canucks? That is today's poll question; are you cheering for the Vancouver Canucks to win the Stanley Cup?

Tuesday Night In Vancouver

The Chicago Blackhawks have accomplished the improbable and pushed their playoff series to a 7th and deciding game after going down 3 games to 0. The city of Vancouver is in a very uncomfortable place ahead of Tuesday's game 7 at home. Monday sports talk was very pessimistic with some fans calling the radio shows declaring the season over. One of the most heated topics of conversation was would any team take Luongo's contract. At first you'd think that a week before the election all the politicians should want to be in Vancouver for this event as BC is a battleground province. However, I know where I'll be on Tuesday night and it will not be anywhere near downtown. No doubt riot police will be on standby.

Vancouver played a great game on Sunday, but the referees were just about as lopsided as I have ever seen in a playoff game. David Bolland alone should have had 3 penalties. Vigneault is terrible with line match-ups. You can't have your best players always hurrying off the ice whenever the Hawks put out their 3rd line. You don't win hockey games that way.

If any team would be willing to take Luongo's contract, I'd do almost any deal in a heart beat. The future is Cory Schneider (who needs to start practicing handling the puck far more often).

Nervous In Vancouver

The Chicago Blackhawks have won 2 games in a row after going down 3-0, and suddenly the Vancouver Canucks are playing terrible hockey. The nervous tension in this city is rising rapidly, as many expected this year to be THE year. When they won the first 3 games against the team that eliminated them from the playoffs the last 2 seasons, it felt like destiny to Canucks fans. If this series goes to a game 7 at GM Place, there had better be riot police on standby.

Thursday afternoon I played a short round of golf with some of my friends, and I wore my Detroit Red Wings jersey. Normally that would attract smart ass comments from Canucks fans, but the Nuckleheads that I encountered were nervous and avoided eye contact. Detroit closed out their series after going up 3-0, and helped send the Jets back to Winnipeg.

You can read more on my sports blog.

The Price Is Right In Montreal

Well done Carey Price, after getting booed by Montreal fans in the first period of the first home exhibition game; Carey carried the Habs throughout the season and into the playoffs with a shutout in the 1st game against Boston. At the time I blogged that "The Price Is Not Right In Montreal", and this post is a follow-up. Just remember Habs fans who now praise Price, it was not long ago that you irrationally blamed your goalie of the future for the Jaroslav Halak trade. Now we are in the playoffs, and I have not yet heard anyone longing for Halak's return to Montreal.

Jack Layton was in Montreal on the day of game 1, and Tweeted that he was going to a pub to watch the game. Just a warning to any patrons who find themselves near Jack Layton during one of these games, do not get between him and any cameras in the room. You risk personal harm to yourself. As we saw during the Olympic hockey, lucky Jack will dive in front of people to get his mug into the camera shot.

For additional sports commentary, you can check out my sports blog. It is something I have been experimenting with since November.

Quebec City Oilers

Gary Bettman has now said that the NHL cannot survive in Edmonton unless they build a new arena in the next 5 years. Forget the fact that they sellout every game, the NHL commissioner is now casually threatening to move the storied franchise. What other cities are building new stadiums? How bitterly ironic would it be if the Edmonton Oilers moved into the new arena in Quebec City? Though I suspect they'd change the team name. Alberta oil is not very popular in la belle province. They could call the team the Quebec Green Crusaders.

I would support a small, modestest investment by the federal government to help save the Oilers by building a new barn. I supported the feds helping to build the rink in QC not because I wanted to pander to francophone voters, but because I love hockey and recognize the value of these franchises to our economy and more so our culture. Don't worry Winnipeg, the Phoenix franchise is dying. You'll get your Jets back. First Gary Bettman must be fired. I want to start a petition.

Quebec City "if you build it, they will come..."

I must report my excitement that Quebec City will go ahead with plans to build a modern "NHL ready" arena even before guarantees of federal or private funding assistance. The reason that the private sector has cold feet is that the NHL has said that it has no plans to expand or relocate. Gary Bettman does not want to admit that his dream of turning the Southern US sunbelt into hockey fans failed, but it has. There are about 6 NHL franchises that are bleeding money and have never built the necessary fan base. Many of those franchises were put in those cities under Bettman's reign.

I want the Jets back in Winnipeg, and the Nordiques back in Quebec. I want teams in Hamilton, and Saskatchewan if possible. I would support federal funding for new stadiums in Hamilton and Regina. The Canadian dollar is never going back to where it was we lost those 2 teams back in the 90s. The failed Bettman franchises cannot sustain themselves and will eventually come back to Canada. It is inevitable, and there is substantial monetary value to having an NHL franchise.

I know that many of you don't agree with me, but I am a die hard hockey fan who worked a thousand hours at an NHL facility. FYI, I was not the only University graduate in the janitorial department... :)

NHL All-Star Draft

It was interesting to watch the NHL All-Star teams be selected by a captain's draft. Eric Staal picked his own goalie Cam Ward 1st overall, in a clearly partisan move. By the way, isn't it ironic that Carolina had 3 All-Stars but are currently sitting outside the playoff race? Meanwhile Detroit, sitting in 2nd in the Western Conference had one player named to the game. Though the Wings have been hit hard by injuries and very likely made Zetterberg and others unavailable for the game. It was outstanding that the Toronto Maple Leafs only selection, Phil Kessel, was the very last pick in the draft. Chicago had 4 All-Stars and currently sit in the 7th spot in their Conference, but at least they won the Stanley Cup. Jonathon Toews seemed to enjoy the draft the least. He was not comfortable.