Now that we have that out of the way…...

An exclusive photo, provided by the CBC’s Michel Godbout, from the Price family ranch in Williams Lake, BC.

Looks like the picket signs will not be needed after all, and will be used for a Labour Day bonfire, now that Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price has signed a two-year deal.

So can we all breathe again folks?????

With that out of the way, yours truly is taking some time off from the blogging world. So unless something mega-dramatic happens, there won’t be much new to see here until training camp begins.

Not going anywhere, as I will still be checking in on Twitter regularly, I’m just going to recharge the batteries and read a hockey book or four while doing some offline preparation for the upcoming season.

I will also be making a special announcement, regarding the future of Ya! The Habs Rule! in the coming weeks as well.

BBS!

Birthday greetings to Pierre Turgeon

 Pierre Turgeon was born on this day in 1969.

A star with the Granby Bisons (QMJHL), Turgeon was the first overall  selection, by the Buffalo Sabres, in the 1987 Entry Draft. His offensive play  dazzled the Buffalo faithful,  with many thinking they had their next Gilbert Perreault.

He would be traded, early in the 1991-92 season, to the New York Islanders in a multi-player deal that saw Islanders star Pat Lafontaine go the other way.

The trade had no bearing on Turgeon’s offensive performance, when the reached a career high in points (132) with the Islanders the following season. The Islanders would go on to upset the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Patrick Division Final, before falling the the eventual Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens.

Turgeon then achieved a childhood dream, after the Islanders decided to clean house, when he was traded to Montreal  with Vladimir Malakhov for Kirk Muller, Mathieu Schneider and Craig Darby on April 5, 1995.

He scored 20 points in 15 games for the Canadiens, but the team failed to make the playoffs in that strike-shortened season.

In his only full season in Montreal (1995-96), he scored a team high 96 points in 80 games.

He was also named team captain, after predecessor Mike Keane was dealt to Colorado as part of the Patrick Roy trade, and would be the last to wear the “C” for the Canadiens in the Montreal Forum.

Turgeon would win the Molson Cup as the Canadiens’ player of the year.

Despite a decent personal season, the Canadiens squeaked into the playoffs and were eliminated in the first round in six games.

Though he managed six points in those half dozen post-season games, being the captain took on the weight of discontent and the criticism of media and fans alike.

Some fans and media felt Turgeon had underachieved in the playoffs and that he did not act like a captain.

Allegations even came out that Canadiens president Ronald Corey only gave Turgeon the captaincy due to his francophone heritage to lead the Canadiens from the Forum to the Molson Centre.

By the start of the 1996-97 season, Turgeon found himself the third –line centre in training camp. Unhappy, he requested a trade before the start of the season.

In his last game with the Canadiens (Oct 29, 1996), a 5-4 loss to Phoenix, Turgeon was playing left wing (he was a centre) on the first line. He assisted on all four Canadiens goals.

Later that night, the childhood dream ended when Turgeon was traded to the St. Louis Blues, along with Rory Fitzpatrick and Craig Conroy, in exchange for Murray Baron and Shayne Corson.

Journalist Réjean Tremblay assessed the trade this way;

“Players like Pierre Turgeon are part of an infinitely small minority. There are only so many who can collect a hundred points as season year after year.

When you get such a player, you make him happy and let him produce.

You don’t put him on the third line with pluggers who can’t score.”

In his 104 games with Montreal, Turgeon scored 50 goals and added 77 assists for 127 points.

He would continue playing for the Blues, Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche before retiring in 2007 . In his 19-year career, Turgeon racked up 515 goals and 812 assists in 1294 games. He scored 97 points in 109 playoff games.

Bettman’s mad science experiment is underway

“Hey guys, are they looking at widening the surface again? If so, where’s the other half of the rink?” Photo – Chris Johnston (Canadian Press)

Day one of the NHL’s Research, Development and Orientation camp on Wednesday certainly brought some interesting experiments that may, or may not be implied to improve the game.

The camp is being supervised by former NHL player and current league VP of hockey and business development, Brendan Shanahan. A great background into how the camp came to be comes from Yahoo!’s Nicholas J. Cotsonika.

A quick recap of the first days’s events and observations can be found from the Canadian Press (via the Globe and Mail).

As teams of prospects, from the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, worked through the drills using the new rule suggestions. The results were observed by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and a host of league GMs. The Washington Capitals’ Bruce Boudreau was the only active NHL coach on hand.

Leafs GM and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman observe the camp, discussing what potential rule changes will benefit the Toronto Maple Leafs – Toronto Star Photo

There are several things I agree on, notably the hybrid icing rule, albeit a tad confusing at times, as injuries are getting out of hand.

I wasn’t big on it at one time, but after last season’s post-season “too many men” drinking game, it may be needed as coaches and players can’t seem to communicate line changes as thoroughly in the louder NHL rinks. The blue areas are likely to be called the Don Cherry zones, after the strong proponent of the idea and goat of one of the most infamous too-many-men calls in hockey history.

The shallower goals (40” instead of 44”) wouldn’t make much of a difference to a goalie, and would speed up the pace with a bit more room behind the goal. I also like the larger creases,

I’m not sure what using a red mesh in the goalie net would accomplish, as it is being toyed with to make it easier for shooters to see the puck. NHL goalies would likely respond by wearing red pads, no matter what team they played on.

The 3-on-3 OT experiment seemed to impress many and would likely reduce shootouts. They also had the goalies change ends in the OT frame, something most GM's believe should happen.

The 2-on-2 overtime test seemed to be just a joke.

“We just had a 2-on-2 offside. Somebody get out the gong,” The Hockey News’ Adam Proteau noted on the magazine’s Twitter account. He later went on to tweet, “If the NHL ever adopts 2-on-2 OT, we all have to agree to band together & stage a coupe at league HQ.”

I am definitely not a fan of the the idea of just setting the puck on the faceoff dot and making the players wait for the whistle. It reminds me too much of some kind of dog-training exercise.

From a cosmetic point of view, I still have to figure out what the purpose of doubling the width of the blue line is. It makes no sense to me.

As for a single faceoff circle in one end, blah! I like the idea of finding a way for discouraging players to deliberately stop play in their own end, but that just doesn’t look right. Personally I think coaches it will take away from faceoff strategies, making the game more preictable and boring.

More on day one of the camp from Yahoo!’s Greg Wyshinski

Thursday’s agenda includes:

• No touch icing, where the team that commits an offside infraction cannot make a line change and face-off is in offending team zone.
• Face-off variation: After a face-off violation, opposition center may choose his face-off opponent.
• Second referee located off the playing surface
• Delayed penalty rule
• No icing the puck while shorthanded

Ultimately the camp gives the NHL a chance to work through some ideas, as good or bad as they may be, and decide what is right for the future of the game. This blogger is  just hopeful that they just don’t get too overboard and literally change the face of the game.

No holiday weekend for the Habs and their followers

Well I hope those who got it here in Canada had a great “civic” holiday weekend. That’s the most common place term for it.

For our US counterparts, the first Monday in August goes by a variety of names in the various provinces/territories of your northern neighbor. And you guys thought just our money was silly, eh?

Still recuperating from a busy weekend, a crazy Tuesday on the “paying job”work front,I refuse to watch “The Replacements” on TSN.

Yes there is an “Ole. Ole, Ole, Ole” chant in there, but acting legend Gene Hackman and “Whoa” Keanu Reeves? C’mon.

Instead I thought I’d catch up on what Pierre Gauthier and co. and Habs addicts did over the weekend.

Mario Tremblay joins RDS: Moving on… As long as it doesn’t come  full circle, recalling Tremblay began a career as a TV analyst during Patrick Roy’s rookie year. From the get go in the press box, and  even while as a player, Tremblay never liked Patrick Roy. We all know what happened years later.

I just can’t wait to hear what he has to say about Carey Price. The kid, depending on who you read/listen to, already wants out of Montreal, so talks about a catalyst!  Too bad I cancelled my RDS subscription on Saturday, so I’ll have to rely on other sources to see what Tremblay has to say.

Louis signs: Ending the Q vs. Ivy League questions, the Canadiens signed 2009 First Round Pick Louis Leblanc to an entry-level deal. Provided he doesn’t stick with the Hamilton Bulldogs, he’ll play in the Q with the Montreal Juniors.

LeBlanc must have learned enough from one year of economics in Harvard that the pros means “Cha-Ching!” and “Uber-Cha-Ching!”, to a reported $3.6 million with bonuses over three years, if he makes the club straight out of juniors.

An excellent look at the LeBlanc signing from HabsEyesOnThePrize.

Well, at least the Bulldogs have a captain: Gauthier also signed Hamilton Bulldogs captain Alex Henry to a two-year deal.

On a related Bulldogs note, they’ll start their pre-season in Cornerbrook, Newfoundland beginning September 28. The camp will be highlighted by a trio of games across “The Rock” against the Binghampton Senators in CB, Grand Falls-Windsor and St. John’s.

You know, my fiance wanted to go back home to NL this year….hmmmm Nah, she’d never go for that.

This year’s Jay Leach?: With Andrei Markov’s injury a given for the start of the 2010-11 season, the Canadiens picked up defenceman Alexandre Picard. It’s a two-way deal for practically pennies and will give the Canadiens and Bulldogs that extra body with next to no cap hit.

Honestly, I’m not watching the movie: But, not a bad soundtrack…

Antti Niemi: It’s Finnish for “ain’t coming to Montreal.” Face it folks, if the Canadiens were unwilling to sign Halak, they are certainly not going after this guy.

To be honest, I really didn’t think his playoff performance was as stellar as some say it was. If it had been, Stan Bowman would not have walked away from the arbitration and moved to get rid of that other goaltending leech on the Blackhawks salary cap. Unfortunately Bowman still has Cristobel Huet to deal with.

Fare thee well, lads: Glen Metropolit and Dominic Moore have found new homes with Ev-Zug (Switzerland) and the Tampa Bay Lightning respectively.

Metro was a class act in the NHL, has also spent some time before in the European Leagues. I wish nothing but the best for him in the future. Many will say that Europe is the end of the line for NHLers,  when a team doesn’t sign them, but may thrive for several years while getting a chance to play. One of Metropolit’s teammates will be former Canadiens forward Paul DiPietro, who has played for EV-Zug for nearly a decade.

I still scratch my head over Gauthier’s decision not to re-sign Dominic Moore, especially after his performance in the post-season, but it falls on cap space and younger players (Lars Eller, Dustin Boyd, Alexander Avtsin and LeBlanc) waiting in the wings.

Lightning GM Steve Yzerman got a two-year bargain to add to his Tampa puzzle, and if there’s a “bite them in the ass” deal this season or next (and possibly in the playoffs) against the Candiens, it will be this one, and not the Halak deal.

The Fan590 spoke to Moore , who turned 30, on Tuesday about the new deal and the Habs playoff run last season.

It wouldn’t be complete without SOMETHING on Carey Price:  I’ll bestow this honor to J.T from “The H Does not Stand for Habs”, who offers the top-10 reasons Price has not signed. My fave, taking a page from the Michael Ryder days:

“3. I made a paper airplane out of it while I was sitting on the bench during the playoffs.”

The pool now is when the Canadiens sign him.

Did I miss anything?….oh yeah: So Georges Laraque finally decides to retire, big surprise.

I have to question the whole deal to sign him from the get go now.

Did the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Canadiens medical team drop the ball on this one and overestimated BGL’s physical abilities, essentially leaving Bob Gainey to waste cap room for three seasons.

Unfortunately his retirement comes after the buyout, so the Habs are still on the hook for $500K for each of the next two seasons.

Meanwhile the big guy has become co-deputy leader of The Green Party, a political party who has a leader and two deputies, but zero seats in the House of Commons.

True story, but I watched a “direct-to-DVD” version of “Jack and the Beanstalk” last night. The beanstalk reminded me of Laraque in a way; big, green and little movement.

He’s a Scrappy fella: Most of you Habs fans, and hockey history buffs, likely read Dennis Kane’s blog. For those that don’t, shame on you.

Lately Dennis has been sharing some scrapbook memories on the Habs. Here’s his latest entry.

That’s it for today folks, going to see if the Northern Lights are out.

Pat Burns is not ready to quit his battle yet

"As your life gets closer to the end, you realize that your body gets weaker, you mind works harder but your heart gets softer. You get closer to family, you get closer to God, and there are things that you realize along the way.” -  Pat Burns March 26, 2010

As we all know, former Montreal Canadiens coach Pat burns is in his third battle with cancer. He announced in January of 2009 that he had incurable lung cancer. Burns had been treated for colon cancer in 2004 and liver cancer in 2005.

I recently talked to a contact, who had been in touch with the Burns family in recently, and got an update on his health.

Burns continues to battle the incurable disease, but by opting not to seek treatment his health is rapidly declining. “He’s not doing well,” I was told.

It’s also reported that the three-time Adams Trophy winner, and his wife Lynne, have also sold their home in New Hampshire and are spending the summer in Quebec. The Burns family spent the past winter in Tampa.

The fact that he was healthy enough to travel back to Canada could be a positive sign that his fight with cancer is far from over. “With that kind of mobility, it sounds like he's still got some time with us,” my source added.

Then again, is anyone surprised that Pat Burns was going to take this on without a fight?

Burns last public appearance was on March 26, for the arena naming ceremony in his hometown of Stanstead, Quebec. A frail Burns spoke with a weak voice, far from the bellowing one that got players and referees attention on the ice.

There was concern the end was indeed near back in April, when the  58-year-old was rushed to hospital with pneumonia. He was released a few days later.

A grass roots movement, and several of his former NHL colleagues pushed to get Burns into the Hockey Hall of Fame this summer, before he passed away.

“Pat’s been stricken with a terrible disease,” said former coach Mike Keenan, when I spoke to him earlier this month. “It was an honest attempt, and a very nice gesture for other members of the Hall to bring up his name.”

Unfortunately their public calls did not factor in with the selection committee enough, leading to criticism of the Hall of Fame by fans and media alike.

Three days later, the NHL and his former teams (the Canadiens, the Boston Bruins, The Toronto Maple Leafs, and the New Jersey Devils) donated $50K to the construction of the Pat Burns Arena.

photo: Canadian Press

More Cammalleri!: Likes the idea of a 2nd Toronto team

Just last week, Canadiens forward Michael Cammalleri got some up front media exposure in Toronto. This week, he hit not one, but two Toronto-based radio stations. I know he’s a local boy, but are the Leafs really that non-newsworthy these days?

First up, his chat with TheFan590’s Eric Smith. Cammalleri, in a phone interview from his Montreal condo, discusses the Canadiens playoff run, the Halak deal, his training regimen and the BioSteel Pro Hockey Week, and the Kovalchuk situation.

For more info on the BioSteel contest mentioned, you can click this link at The Fourth Period for a chance to train for a day with Cammalleri and over another dozen NHL stars.

“We might even get Scott Gomez to come in on a flight from Alaska,” Cammalleri said. “But you didn’t hear it from me.”

Actually, the main site for the event does confirm Gomez as an attendee. P.K. Subban is also slotted to attend.

The Richmond Hill native then moved up the dial to AM640 with Bill Hayes to talk more on the BioSteel event as well as growing up as a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“I had a close buddy that was a huge Habs fan,” Cammalleri said. “He was always Patrick Roy, and I was (Doug) Gilmour or Gary Leeman when we played on the streets.”

Eventually, both players he emulated went on to wear a Habs sweater, so we can’t be too hard on him now, can we?

Cammalleri also talked about the current Habs roster and going into training camp with great optimism.

It’s not a concern in the coming year(s) but he also acknowledged that he does have a limited no-trade clause in his contract. You’ll also notice his openness on what goes on in contract negotiations in theFan’s interview.

He also spoke openly on having another NHL team, or perhaps two in Canada.

“I think that would be tremendous. If we can get a couple more markets in Canada, I can’t see a downside to that,” he said. “I think we should have one (a second Toronto team) undoubtedly. I think that market could easily handle another team and it would be good for everybody.”

If that’s not enough of No. 13 for you: A quick write up on Cammalleri’s busy summer from canadiens.com

A push for the Habs captaincy: Hockey54’s Launy “The” Schwartz gives his reasoning to give the “C” to the Habs winger.

Lions in Winter also has a poll on the subject.

Before you eat those stadium nachos…

When Franke Selke took over the Montreal Canadiens, one of the first things he complained about was the smell  coming out of the Montreal Forum. “Clean the toilets! Nettoyez les toilettes!” were the words he muttered, as cited in the book “Lions in Winter.” It was done.

One has to wonder what the Hall of Fame builder would think in present day, after reading what the story published by ESPN on Monday. Thanks to my friend Mike McLaren for bringing this to our attention.

If you are about to eat, you may want to wait until after or just read this before you eat that next hot dog at our favorite sports arena.

The ESPN story outlines recent health inspection reports at stadiums/arenas in 2009 for the four major leagues (MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL).

For the health and germ conscious, you will really want to think twice as you dip your nacho into that cheese, while sitting down to cheer on your favorite team.

Best scores: All of Ontario based venues came with an impressive 0% rating, including the Rogers Centre, Air Canada Centre and Scotiabank Place. In Chicago, only Soldier field had any violations and were cited due to a lack of hot water.

Worst: Best to bring your own food to any Florida sporting event. Ditto for the Verizon Center in D.C.

The full article can be found here, but I’ve outline the NHL venues below.

Jobing.com Arena
Phoenix Coyotes
Vendors with critical violations: 33%
Inspection report excerpt: Inspectors spotted an employee scooping ice with his bare hands instead of using scoops.

Honda Center
Anaheim Ducks
Vendors with critical violations: 3%

Inspection report excerpt: The only major violation was for not having chlorine sanitizer in the kitchen's dishwashing machine.

HP Pavilion at San Jose
San Jose Sharks
Vendors with critical violations: 20%

Inspection report excerpt: At one location, inspectors found Chinese chicken salad had warmed to 60 degrees, about 20 degrees above a safe temperature.

Staples Center
Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Kings
Vendors with critical violations: 11%

Inspection report excerpt: One stand dumped 9.5 pounds of sushi after inspectors found that it become too warm.

Air Canada Centre
Toronto Raptors, Toronto Maple Leafs
Vendors with critical violations: 0%

Inspection report excerpt: No critical or major violations.

Bell Centre
Montreal Canadiens
Vendors with critical violations: 3%

Inspection report excerpt: Food found at an improper temperature.

General Motors Place
Vancouver Canucks
Vendors with critical violations: 9%

Inspection report excerpt: A sushi display cooler was malfunctioning, and the temperature of the sushi rose above safe levels. Inspectors also cautioned one stand regarding properly heating donairs, which have been tied to E. coli outbreaks elsewhere in Canada.

Pengrowth Saddledome
Calgary Flames
Vendors with critical violations: 14%

Inspection report excerpt: Utensils and equipment at one location were not being cleaned and sanitized properly.

Rexall Place
Edmonton Oilers
Vendors with critical violations: 25%

Inspection report excerpt: At one location, workers used contaminated cleaning items.

Scotiabank Place
Ottawa Senators
Vendors with critical violations: 0%

Inspection report excerpt: No critical or major violations.

Pepsi Center
Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche
Vendors with critical violations: 67%

Inspection report excerpt: At one bar, inspectors found phorid flies, sometimes called coffin flies, in a bottle of cognac.

BankAtlantic Center
Florida Panthers
Vendors with critical violations: 67%

Inspection report excerpt: Inspectors issued several violations for soiled ice bins and coolers.

St. Pete Times Forum
Tampa Bay Lightning
Vendors with critical violations: 88%

Inspection report excerpt: At one location with five critical violations, an inspector saw an employee handle dirty dishes and then put away clean dishes without washing his/her hands or changing gloves. The same location lacked soap at a hand sink.

Philips Arena
Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Thrashers
Vendors with critical violations: 35%

Inspection report excerpt: At a couple of locations, inspectors found food not being protected from contamination.

United Center
Chicago Bulls, Chicago Blackhawks
Vendors with critical violations: 0%

Inspection report excerpt: No critical or major violations. Chicago health inspectors inspect vendors while the stadiums are empty, when no workers are preparing or serving food.

TD Garden
Boston Celtics, Boston Bruins
Vendors with critical violations: 21%

Inspection report excerpt: Storing dishwashing chemicals on top of an ice machine resulted in a critical violation for one location.

Joe Louis Arena
Detroit Red Wings
Vendors with critical violations: 52%

Inspection report excerpt: Poisonous or toxic materials were stored atop items used to serve customers, posing a potential risk of contamination. Inspectors also found roaches below a soda dispenser at one location.

Xcel Energy Center
Minnesota Wild
Vendors with critical violations: 17%

Inspection report excerpt: Chicken strips for topping a Caesar salad were found at 105 degrees, when they should have been at least 140 degrees.

Scottrade Center
St. Louis Blues
Vendors with critical violations: 0%

Inspection report excerpt: No critical or major violations.

Prudential Center
New Jersey Devils
Vendors with critical violations: 6%

Inspection report excerpt: Inspectors noted that at one location, the person in charge "did not demonstrate adequate knowledge of food safety," and the sink lacked soap and paper towels, and there was no sanitizer solution.

HSBC Arena
Buffalo Sabres
Vendors with critical violations: 8%

Inspection report excerpt: Two critical violations for having a toxic chemical in an unlabeled spray bottle.

Madison Square Garden
New York Knicks, New York Rangers
Vendors with critical violations: 61%

Inspection report excerpt: At one stand, inspectors found "53 mouse excreta" (38 on top of a metal box underneath the cash registers in the front food-prep/service area and 15 on top of a carbonated-beverage dispensing unit).

Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
New York Islanders
Vendors with critical violations: 0%

Inspection report excerpt: No critical or major violations.

RBC Center
Carolina Hurricanes
Vendors with critical violations: 67%

Inspection report excerpt: Inspectors cited one vendor after watching employees handle raw, breaded chicken while loading fryers and then handling cooked food without changing gloves or washing hands. The employees placed cooked chicken back in the same container used to pre-portion raw chicken before cooking.

Nationwide Arena
Columbus Blue Jackets
Vendors with critical violations: 9%

Inspection report excerpt: One of the stadium's critical violations was for employees' handling lemons, limes and oranges with their bare hands while placing them on beverage glasses.

Mellon Arena
Pittsburgh Penguins
Vendors with critical violations: 55%

Inspection report excerpt: In one of the arena's higher-end clubs, inspectors found a live cockroach on top of a soda dispenser holster behind the bar.

Wachovia Center
Philadelphia 76ers, Philadelphia Flyers
Vendors with critical violations: 15%

Inspection report excerpt: Inspectors found evidence of mouse and fruit fly infestations at one bar location.

Bridgestone Arena
Nashville Predators
Vendors with critical violations: 59%

Inspection report excerpt: Nashville inspectors, who also score vendors, gave the facility's lowest score -- 75 -- to a vendor with three critical and nine non-critical violations.

American Airlines Center
Dallas Mavericks, Dallas Stars
Vendors with critical violations: 40%

Inspection report excerpt: Expired milk, brown lettuce and employees caught drinking or eating while they were working in the stand accounted for some of the stadium's critical violations.

Verizon Center
Washington Wizards, Washington Capitals
Vendors with critical violations: 100%

Inspection report excerpt: Mice droppings, a critical violation in Washington, were found at at least 10 vendors.

Hungry now?

It should be interesting to hear a rebuttal from the four major leagues. Typically they will come up with some criticism of the report as over exaggerated. But when 12 of the NHL’s 30 venues have ratings of 33% or more, it will certainly make people think.

My 5 minute major with Marty McSorely

He’s a decade removed from NHL play, after a dubious end to his NHL career, but Marty McSorely is still a drawing card wherever he goes.

I caught up with the two-time Stanley Cup champion last Thursday after the first round of play at Wayne Gretzky’s Celebrity Pro-Am in Thornbury, ON. After battling the extremely high July temperatures, and an aggravated pair of recently replaced hips, the now 47-year-old, former NHL enforcer was kind enough to sit down with me over lunch.

“My body didn’t feel good,” he saidon  what he felt was an off opening round. “The last three or four years have been pretty hard. I had one hip replaced in June (2009) and one in November, and just started playing golf again in March.”

McSorely has even found himself back on the ice playing a bit of hockey, something he has missed over the years, “I loved the competition, but over the last five years (in the NHL) I didn’t like the way I was used".

He found himself on teams that were focused primarily on developing younger teams, which turned out to be a bit of a regret for him. “I told Robby Blake, before he left L.A. and signed with San Jose, to go to a really good team, one that needs to put you on the ice and will let the young guys develop on their own.

“That was probably the mistake I made. I was thinking I was going to a team to help with the young guys, but ended up only playing in my own end.”

I also asked McSorely on his recollections of Blake, as well as Scott Niedermayer and Keith Tkachuk, who all retired at the end of the 2009-10 season.

“Robby Blake was a big athletic man, that really moved very very easily, and hit guys hard because he surprised him,” he said on his former teammate.

“Scott Niedermayer’s area of influence on the ice was greater than any other players’. He had an effect on the game in such a huge area. Keith Tkachuk was a strong winger, a talented package in a big box.”

Of course the passing of Bob Probert, just days before, had to come up in the conversation.

“It was a sad day, not just because he was great player,” McSorely said. “Off the ice, he had a great aura. Whenever he walked in a room, and not just the dressing room, everybody was better for it. He was genuinely a good guy.”

A classic battle between Marty McSorely and the late Bob Probert. “I’ve been asked that a lot the last couple days,” McSorely said when questioned as to how often they matched up over the years. “I don’t know how many times it was.”

After thinking back on his battles as a heavyweight in the NHL (bad hips or not, he’s still in great shape and his 6’1” listing is a bit undersized), I elected not to ask whatever happened to his infamous illegal stick from Game Two of the 1993 Stanley Cup Final.

I do always toss the question to NHLers of naming a player that isn’t in the Hockey Hall of Fame, that they think should be. “I would have said Dino Ciccarelli up to now,” McSorely said, noting Ciccarelli’s recent 2010 induction announcement. “He was a guy that competed hard and scored a lot of goals.”

Coincidentally, last NHL player to be convicted of assault for an on-ice incident, prior to McSorely’s conviction, was Dino Cicarelli who received a day in jail for hitting a Toronto player over the head with a stick in 1988.

The Cayuga, ON native also gave me a little insight into a hometown project he’s helping to gain support towards building a new arena.

Earlier in the day, some autograph collectors, that were clearly resellers, had inquired about some further signings. “Best thing to do, is contact our organization or the NHL Alumni Association,” he told them. “Send a donation, and I’ll sign anything you want.”

“I have pretty much every card ever made of me, but I was never much of a collector over the years,” McSorley later told me. “Instead of autographs, I always got a picture of me with whoever came down in Los Angeles. Ronald Reagan, Chuck Norris, you name it.”

In light of a rough first day of play, McSorely and his pro partner did manage to make it to the final round. The Anaheim Ducks Corey Perry would end up the celebrity winner for the tournament.

Wayne Gretzky tees off on a variety of topics

Wayne Gretzky is nearly a year removed as head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes, and seems to be enjoying the experience away from hockey to the fullest.

Talking at his PGA-Nationwide Celebrity Pro-Am in Thornbury ON, a trim and relaxed Gretzky spoke on his former team, the free agent market and his tournament.

The full audio of the media scrum can be found on this podcast link.

“I’m happy doing what I’m doing and getting opportunities to do things I never got to do,” he said when asked how things have been since he left as Coyotes coach, amidst the ownership issues. “I’ve had a really great year.”

Gretzky was also happy to see the Coyotes on-ice performance last season, and commended his successor Dave Tippett on doing a wonderful job with the young group of players,

The 49-year-old NHL legend also discussed the new NHL and how the “dynasty days” appear to be long gone.

“You might not be able to build a dynasty,” he said. “You can’t afford to keep those players over a long period of time.

“You gotta pick your six or seven guys. Detroit sent the benchmark for that and I think Chicago is following that in some sort of fashion.”

Gretzky also spoke on the future of his tournament, now in it’s third year, which gives several upstart Canadians a chance to play at the PGA level. “We’ll sit down next week, after it’s over, and look to restructure it going forward.”

The tournament features several sports and entertainment personalities. One of the most fun to watch is former NBA star Charles Barkley, noted for his hesitant tee shot.

“Why don’t you try and do it,” when I asked him to describe Barkley’s swing in three words or less. “It’s just nerves, but he loves coming back.”

On the topic of free agency, Gretzky said sometimes it comes down to just wanting to win over money.

“With Kovalchuk, he’s coming from a young team in Atlanta, and he wants to win a championship. He’s probably holding out for a chance to win the Stanley Cup.”

Asked if there would ever be a LeBron James type scenario in the NHL, Gretzky jokingly speculated that if it did, it would probably happen in Toronto.

Related articles:

The Toronto Sun

Looking at alternate formats in the NHL standings

Different point formats would leave different paths to the Stanley Cup for some teams, and possibly dead ends for others, including the Montreal Canadiens.

There were a lot of comments and criticisms, on various message boards, over how the final playoff spot in the NHL Eastern Conference came to a decision by shootout.

Some were good, some were bad. Many feel that a shootout is not the way to decide a critical game, such as a gold-medal game in the WJC, and it should be the taken out of the NHL regular season. That or the league needs to make changes in the points system.

One solution is to adopt the 3-2-1 point system in the NHL. Three points for the regulation win, two for over time/shootout and one for a non-regulation loss.

Below is the NHL’s Eastern and Western Conference final standings, with regulation and non regulation won-loss records separated.

Eastern Conference

Team	RW	RL	OT/SO W	OT/SO L	PTS
Washington	43	15	11	13	121
New Jersey	40	27	8	7	103
Buffalo	35	27	10	10	100
Pittsburgh	33	28	14	7	101
Ottawa	34	32	10	6	94
Boston	25	30	14	13	91
Philadelphia	35	35	6	6	88
Montreal	24	33	15	10	88
NYR	34	33	4	11	87
Atlanta	29	34	6	13	83
Carolina	26	37	9	10	80
Tampa Bay	25	36	9	12	80
NYI	20	37	14	11	79
Florida	24	37	8	13	77
Toronto	21	38	9	14	74

Western Conference

Team	RW	RL	OT/SO W	OT/SO L	POINTS
San Jose	43	20	8	11	113
Chicago	37	22	15	8	112
Vancouver	41	28	8	5	103
Phoenix	31	25	19	7	107
Detroit	33	24	11	14	102
Los Angeles	32	27	14	9	101
Nashville	33	29	14	6	100
Colorado	34	30	9	9	95
St. Louis	30	32	10	10	90
Calgary	35	32	5	10	90
Anaheim	31	32	8	11	89
Dallas	28	31	9	14	88
Minnesota	28	36	10	8	84
Columbus	27	35	5	15	79
Edmonton	18	47	9	8	62

 

Next are the conference standings based on a 3-2-1 points format.

Also added is the format, used by the NBA, that ranks the three division winners and the fourth best team in the conference one to four.

In other words, you could win your division but still be the fourth seeded team. I did a piece on adopting the NBA format, and resulting scenarios in previous seasons, last year when I wrote on Bleacher Report.

Conference Rankings (3-2-1 Points System)

	East	Pts		West	Pts
1	Washington	157	1	San Jose	151
2	New Jersey	146	2	Chicago	150
3	Pittsburgh	140	3	Vancouver	149
4	Buffalo	136	4	Phoenix	141
5	Ottawa	132	5	Los Angeles	138
6	Philadelphia	128	6	Nashville	135
7	NYR	124	7	Colorado	135
8	Boston	115	8	Detroit	132
9	Montreal	115	9	St. Louis	118
10	Atlanta	99	10	Calgary	115
11	Carolina	96	11	Anaheim	109
12	Tampa Bay	93	12	Minnesota	104
13	NYI	88	13	Dallas	102
14	Florida	88	14	Columbus	91
15	Toronto	81	15	Edmonton	72

Analysis: The Eastern Conference, using this format, puts the Northeast Division Sabres as the fourth seed.

Sunday’s Rangers/Flyers game would have had little meaning, but the Canadiens OT loss to Toronto, and Boston’s win over Washington on Suday would eliminate Montreal from the playoffs. Total wins, then regulation wins were used as tie-breakers.

In the Western Conference, Detroit would be the eighth seed. Dallas and Minnesota swap potential draft positions.

The downside to using a 3-2-1 format is that regular season points records would be shattered. The asterisk would need to be used.

Another Scenario: What if the NHL went back to ties?

Scrap the shootout and go back the way things were with the old-school point format (Win = 2pts Tie = 1pt) and a five minute overtime. Teams shootout records have been factored in as ties in this scenario.

How does that pan out? Let’s take a look.

NHL Standings based on Win-Loss-Tie Records

Eastern Conference

	W	L	T	POINTS
Washington	49	22	11	109
New Jersey	42	29	11	95
Buffalo	41	31	10	92
Pittsburgh	39	33	10	88
Ottawa	39	33	10	88
Philadelphia	37	38	7	81
NYR	35	40	7	77
Boston	29	34	19	77
Montreal	32	38	12	76
Atlanta	31	41	10	72
Carolina	31	42	9	71
Tampa Bay	30	41	11	71
Florida	26	40	16	68
NYI	26	42	14	66
Toronto	26	48	8	60

Western Conference

	W	L	T	POINTS
San Jose	44	25	13	101
Chicago	43	24	15	101
Vancouver	45	29	8	98
Phoenix	36	26	20	92
Detroit	38	29	15	91
Nashville	39	31	12	90
Los Angeles	36	28	18	90
Calgary	37	35	10	84
Colorado	36	34	12	84
Anaheim	34	35	13	81
St. Louis	33	37	12	78
Minnesota	33	37	12	78
Dallas	30	35	17	77
Columbus	30	40	12	72
Edmonton	19	49	14	52

Going this way has little change atop either conference, but again has the Rangers in and the Canadiens out in the Eastern Conference. A pair of Sutters in Calgary might have liked this method a lot better in the west.

Keep in mind that these variations are just based on the final numbers from the 2009-10 season. A straight 1 to 16 format (which was used in the early ‘80s) or going by point percentage would be otehr ways of seeding the playoff contenders.

If one of these formats was put in place down the road, there would be more strategy involved in the game (ie: playing for the tie) and results would obviously be different.

Fans in Montreal should be grateful neither was used this season.The Canadiens collapse in the final three games would not have been as forgiving in one of the above options.

My First 40 Years of Hockey Memories

Well what a weekend. Canada clinches the Gold in Vancouver, and on my 40th birthday to boot!

After watching Sidney Crosby’s overtime goal, I started thinking back on the forty years of hockey that I have witnessed or been around for, in one way or another.

Orr’s overtime winner in 1970 and Henderson’s goal in ‘72 were a bit beyond my memory when they happened, but have since been embedded.

The Habs Dynasty of the ‘70s, the Islanders and Oilers if the ‘80s, the Habs wins in ‘86 and ‘93 (10 overtime wins!). Sakic passing the Cup to Bourque in 2001, the Rangers breaking their Cup drought in 1995 and the goal that wasn’t for Calgary in 2004.

The Canada Cups ‘76,’81, ‘84, ‘87, ‘91 and later becoming the World Cup of Hockey.

The NHL/Soviet Super Series – Challenge Cup matchups, World Junior Tournaments.

The Gretzky trade, the Roy Trade, the closing of the Forum, the death of the Rocket…

Canadian Olympic triumphs 2002 and now 2010, mixed with disappointments (1998, 2006) and an oh-so-close in 1992. Not forgetting the USA “Miracle on Ice” in 1980.

Then there’s the players of the past forty years…Orr, Dryden, Tretiak, the Espositos, LaFleur, Bossy, Gretzky, Bourque, Messier, Naslund, Yzerman, Roy, Neely, LaFontaine, the Hulls, Howe, Beliveau, Lemieux. Dozens of Hall of Famers who were starting of finishing their careers.

Me with Henri Richard  02/27/2010. Pocket Rocket doesn’t look a day over 18 1/2!!

Learning and reading of the greats of generations past, and those of the present. Not to mention meeting several of them in person!

Then there was the internet, which brought the whole hockey world together. We email, we tweet, we blog, we write, we comment on every aspect of the game.

I was going to detail this post in a more refined fashion, but then realized it might take days to write it..

Instead I leave a photo montage of notable images in hockey from the last 40 years for you to enjoy…I can’t wait to see what the next 40 bring!

A Statistical Look: Montreal Canadiens Sans Michael Cammalleri Equals..

When Michael Cammalleri arrived on the scene, spirits were high in Montreal as the Canadiens had acquired a top-level sniper long term.

He got off to a slow start, but quickly found his mark and went into Saturday’s game with a team leading 26 goals in 55 games.

We all saw what happened Saturday afternoon, after Cammalleri took a hit into the boards from Anton Volchenkov, but in case you missed it, here it is.

The collision sent chills through viewers of the game, whether they were Canadiens fans or not.

Cammalleri was expected to have an MRI either later Saturday or sometime on Sunday and results are expected to be announced on Monday.

But it doesn’t take a medical degree to know that this is not a short term injury.

Late January seems to be  bad time to get injured as a Canadiens player. Just short of a year ago, on Feb 1, Robert Lang sliced his Achilles tendon, ending his short period with the Canadiens.

The most tragic of all fell on January 28, 1937, when Howie Morenz’s career, and ultimately his life, was over after getting his skate caught in a rut after receiving a body check against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Fortunately for Lang and Cammalleri, today’s  modern medicine is far more advanced that that of 1937. Lang is back playing with the Phoenix Coyotes, and Cammalleri will return the the ice. But will it be this season?

Michael Cammalleri is helped off the ice after receiving a body check from the Ottawa Senators’ Anton Volchenkov 01/30/2010 – Ottawa Citizen Photo

Through 56 games in the 2009-10 NHL season, the Canadiens have managed to stay at .500 amidst all their other injuries past and  current.

The team is still holding on to seventh position in the Eastern Conference, amongst a pack of eight teams battling for the last four playoff spots.

While the earlier loss of Andrei Markov crippled the Montreal power play, Cammalleri’s injury is different in a very big way.

The Canadiens have a combined 139 goals, and rank 29th in the league as of the time this is published.

Cammalleri has 26 of those goals (eighth best in the league), or 18.7 per cent of them, and has been in on the scoring for 48 goals in total (34.5 %).

Further breaking down the goal scoring, he has scored four of the Canadiens 43 power play goals, and has eleven power play assists (34.8 %). He has also logged the most power play time on ice of all Montreal forwards.

The key abilities of Cammalleri, that have truly benefited the Canadiens’ offense, are his numbers playing even strength.

Montreal ranks dead last in five-one five-goals (81), despite being tied for first with ten four-on-four tallies.

Cammalleri’s numbers, playing even strength, are  22 goals and 11 assists. Otherwise said, he’s on for 36.3 percent of the team’s even strength goals, not to mention his plus-10 rating that leads the team.

If the team is already last in five-on-five with him in the lineup,imagine how bad it will be without him.

Another key area where the Canadiens will be hurt is in the shot department, where the Canadiens again sit neat the bottom of the barrel.

Cammalleri’s 191 shots on goal are just in the top-ten league wide and makes up for over twelve percent of the pucks that reach the Canadiens’ opposing goals. His 13.6 shooting percentage is comparable to that of Alexander Ovechin’s.

The bottom line in any game though is the end result, so here they are.

When Cammalleri scores a goal for the Canadiens, the team is 12-6-2, and is 3-0-1 in his four multi-goal games.

When he doesn’t score a goal, they are 13-19-4.

What happens when he’s not on the ice at all???

Malone’s Seven-Goal Night: The Hockey News looks back at Joe Malone’s seven-goal game on this day in 1920. The record to this day remains unbroken.

January 31, 1936: Canadiens Play Benefit Game for Injured Rookie

Many Montreal Canadiens fans always recall the 1937 memorial game for the late Howie Morenz, as the team’s first benefit game.

In fact, the Canadiens, in one form or another, participated in at least two known benefit games prior.

One was in March 1929, where Canadiens and Montreal Maroons players, still in town after the playoffs, participated in an event on support of local sports figure Tom Elliott. The game is of interest as the teams experimented with new offside rules planned to be implemented it the next season.

The second took place at the Forum on January 31, 1936 where Inside Hockey’s Mike Wyman has a detailed look back at a benefit game played for Nels Crutchfield, who’s only NHL season was with Montreal in 1934-35.

Crutchfield was a standout with the McGill Redmen, and a prospect of the Montreal Maroons before his rights were traded to the Canadiens in October 1934.

He played just one season with the Canadiens, before suffering a severe skull fracture, during a car accident, in September of 1935.

St. Maurice Valley-Chronicle 10/03/1935

Montreal Gazette – 10/01/35

Fans from Crutchfield’s hometown of Shawinigan spent their $2.00 for the train ride to the Forum to see the event. The Canadiens donated the use of the Forum rent free, and provided ushers at no charge.

Members of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who had played the Canadiens the night before, chose to stay in Montreal to participate in the event  before heading to Chicago.

The New York Rangers and Canadian Olympic Team also sent cash donations.

The game was just part of a full evening of events for the benefit.

After a figure skating exhibition, and a twenty minute women’s game, a squad of Canadiens and Maroons players took on a team of players from Crutchfield’s former amateur teams.

Itinerary for Crutchfield benefit game –St. Maurice Valley Chronicle 01/23/1936

The speed skating race featured the Leafs King Clancy, the Canadiens Johnny Gagnon and the Maroons Bob Gracie. There was even a goalie race between the Canadiens Wilf Cude and the Maroons Bill Beverage.

The original on-ice entertainer, Jean Pusie of the Canadiens, won the event overall even outskating provincial amateur champion Leo Sylvestre.

Canadiens legends Newsy Lalonde participated in a seven-on-seven Old-Timers game, with former linemate Billy Boucher scoring the lone goal.

The main event saw the Canadiens against the Maroons, with the help of a few Leafs in a seven-on-seven game. The Montreal clubs swapped goalies for the night as Cude earned a shutout in the Maroons/mixed teams 3-0 win.

In total, $7,777 was raised and Canadiens president Ernest Savard, and co-owner Maurice Forget went to Crutchfield’s home to personally present the check in March, 1936.

More on Nels Crutchfield can be found at Greatest Hockey Legends, and Legends of Hockey.

 Crutchfield’s ECHA contract with the 1929-30 Shawinigan Cataractes