Page 3 of 4 FirstFirst 1234 LastLast
Results 21 to 30 of 36

Thread: The Official NHL thread

  1. #21
    Senior Member JPnyc's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Posts
    2,734
    It depends. I loved the euro game, but I don't care for stick work on opponents. I love the fact that the game is not just up and down there, and is far more creative and interesting to watch. North American hockey is more based on playing percentages than the euro game is.

    What I mean is, take a power play for example. The North American approach is, get some players in front of the goal, pepper the goalie with shots and hope for a rebound or deflection in front.

    The euro approach is passing the puck around trying to set up a great shot after maneuvering the goalie out of position. Now this approach does not work as well on the smaller ice surface of the NHL, because obviously it's easier to take away passing lanes if there's less surface area, but it's still inherently more interesting to me.

    The hitting is still part of the game, but players and coaches alike are realizing that it's not necessary to put somebody through the boards to take him out of the play, and very often it takes the defender out of the play also, which is clearly undesirable.

  2. #22
    The ******* Shadow dalek's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Posts
    1,564
    Quote Originally Posted by wolfman1984
    First off, the Wolfman was born and raised in a little town called Winnipeg. You wan't to talk Loyality, I was a Jets fan right until the end (WHITE NOISE ALL THE WAY!). Ironically enough, I moved away from WInnipeg to Ottawa the year the Senators joined the NHL. So I had two choices. Start cheering for a startup team that would probably suck for the first couple of years....or cheer to a crappy team to the south of me that would suck eternally. I choose the Sens

    .....so no bandwagon for me either!
    You really have my sympathies now Wolfman, I actually liked the Jets and I even liked the Nordiques, only because I loved watching them and the Habs fight to the death....(Dale Hunter what a pest, people think Avery is bad...Lol)

    I can only hope we don't entirely adopt the European style of play, which ironically enough the Europeans are trying to match the NHL style as it is more exciting, for what it's worth, and as Grapes say's no one goes for a beer or hot dog when a fight breaks out..and I tend to believe that our cousins to the South actually like the rougher style of play, I think the Mid and Northern states have always liked it....their college programs are the best along with the teams on the East Coast...
    PC Registered user # 2,336,789,457...

    "When the water reaches the upper level, follow the rats."
    Claude Swanson

  3. #23
    Senior Member JPnyc's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Posts
    2,734
    Well, Mr. Cherry is mistaken. I frequently get up to get something to eat or drink during a fight. The game is not going on at that point, and that's what my interest is, the game.

    I don't deny that much of the current NHL fan base likes the rough-and-tumble nature of the sport. I also believe it's what has prevented the sport from growing beyond its current fan base, after being part of the American sports landscape for such a long time. It's still a distant fourth behind basketball.

    I can honestly say I like the game in spite of those things, not because of them. I started watching in the early 70s, just after expansion, but my favorite era was the 80s. Edmonton was the greatest hockey team I had ever seen, and the most riveting spectator sport experience I have ever had.

  4. #24
    The ******* Shadow dalek's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Posts
    1,564
    Quote Originally Posted by JPnyc
    Well, Mr. Cherry is mistaken. I frequently get up to get something to eat or drink during a fight. The game is not going on at that point, and that's what my interest is, the game.
    lol...at home on the couch...yeah okay, but if you watch it live it's a different experience, and no one leaves, unless it's to use the bathroom and even then a die hard fan may stay...

    It's a pretty good game and most of the Northern States and Eastern States do enjoy it, but where Baseball and Basketball and Football are king, of course it's hard to break into that market, hard to have a tailgate party in temperatures of -20 and 2ft of snow....

    For the speed and physical contact there is no other sport like it, in football you have the offence and then the defence, in baseball.....well I've seen moss grow faster then some of the pitchers throwing lately, and basketball, well I for one can never understand what it is to like when a game is decided with the last throw, why bother with the other 47 minutes and 57 seconds...

    Put it this way, the game is an emotional roller coaster for both the fans and players and it can happen in a split second..(one of the reasons I've heard why Americans don't like the game is because they can't follow the puck, remember the telecasts where they coloured the puck and made it turn red on a hard shot....ooooohhhh....)

    It's being watered down, maybe it for the good of the game South of the border, but right now, if I were able to, I would fold some of the newer franchises and concentrate on the original six and original expansion teams, and right now I can see that the Canadian teams are carrying the league, to me I can believe we can expand in Canada and with the economy growing as it is, say goodbye to the American teams that can't exist.

    I bet Hamilton/Winnipeg/Quebec would be able to compete now what with the cap and our strong dollar...

    For me I could care less if it makes it in Kansas or Missouri, or Florida (too many teams there now anyways), but there will always be Hockey in Canada...
    PC Registered user # 2,336,789,457...

    "When the water reaches the upper level, follow the rats."
    Claude Swanson

  5. #25
    Senior Member JPnyc's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Posts
    2,734
    I hate the fact that we've lost franchises that I grew up watching, like Winnipeg and the Nordiques. Even Pittsburgh, which at best has an uncertain future at this point, is a franchise I would hate to see moved. They've managed to bring up some of the most amazing talent the game has ever seen, including right now. They deserve to continue.

    I'm not referring to further expansion, there are too many teams now, I'm referring to media coverage here in my own hometown. The Rangers are in first place, have won nine of 10, 5 straight, four straight on the road, and the back pages are full of the New York knickerbockers, who couldn't beat an egg with a fork. I can tell you that pisses Rangers fans off to no end.

    I would like to see the sport taken more seriously here in the US. I also don't think this unbalanced schedule is helping at all, I think it's making things worse. We keep playing the same teams over and over and over, and that gets boring, rivalry or no. I haven't seen the San Jose Sharks in so long I wasn't even sure they continue to exist. We played Detroit once, in preseason, and it wasn't even televised here.

  6. #26
    Senior Member JPnyc's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Posts
    2,734
    By the way, speaking of inability to see the puck, my British pal still maintains there IS no puck, and that we're all being duped. I have him watching the games now though, streamed on the web.

  7. #27
    Some Assembly Required ShagDevil's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
    Location
    SC
    Posts
    718
    First off - Big Devils fan here (Stevens induction was a beautiful site). I bet Lindros was cringing.

    Secondly, I love the new rules but, I disagree that the rules were aimed at the Devils specifically. If you want to point fingers, then I suggest looking at Lemaire's system as a huge catalyst for the rule changes. Granted he coached the Devs but, I watched many other teams adapt his system before the new rules took affect. In fact, if you want to get technical about teams playing the trap, how about Scotty Bowman's Canadiens of the 70's?

    In fact, I've watched quite a fair share of Eastern Conference teams adapt & play Lemaire's system from '96 all the way up to '03. Off the top of my head I know for a fact that the Flyers, Rangers, Penguins, Islanders, Bruins, Senators, & Leafs were equally guilty of playing the 1-2-2.

    I also noticed that a good defense is praised in every other major sport except hockey. Boring it may be but, it was quite a successful system. Am I glad it's gone? yep. As well as it worked, I enjoy the high octane hockey I'm seeing nowadays. I also really like the new system the Devils play under Sutter.

    As for killing hockey? I blame the lack of a decent marketing campaign, and that schlep Bettman. If you really think about it, only real hockey fans even know what the "trap" is and while many may complain about it, we'll all still tune in.
    The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his - George Patton

  8. #28
    Senior Member JPnyc's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Posts
    2,734
    But I'm a HUGE fan for 30 yrs and even I was losing interest in the game. At one time I would watch everything from pee wee to college, to any NHL game that was on, and everything in between. By the mid 90s, I started channel surfing during games, and even nodding off occasionally. That style of play for me, was worse than mixing downs and booze, and listening to Gerald Ford speeches at the same time.

  9. #29
    Senior Member JPnyc's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Posts
    2,734
    Oh, and there is a difference between a 1-2-2 and a NZ trap. With a 1-2-2, which is as old as the hills, there is ONE forechecker deep. With a pure NZ trap, which may be regarded as a FORM of a 1-2-2, there is no deep forchecker. The center tries to herd the puck carrier toward the boards, where he and the winger collapse on him.

  10. #30
    Some Assembly Required ShagDevil's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
    Location
    SC
    Posts
    718
    Well, I always referenced the trap as a 1-2-2 but let's not get too technical here. The fact is, I love the new rules. The shootouts have caused a lot of debate but, I personally like them.

    My biggest deal is with people blaming the Devils for the rule changes and making the sport boring when quite a few other teams adapted and played the same system. One team didn't make hockey boring; It was because so many teams played the same defensive system that it became boring. If sole blame is to be placed on anyone, it's Lemaire.

    With that being said, I'm glad the rules have changed. I hope this brings more people to the games and generates interest among the masses. By the way, what's with the age old generalization that hockey fans are toothless rednecks? I have plenty of teefs!
    The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his - George Patton

Similar Threads

  1. negging a thread
    By hogfly in forum Site Feedback/Questions/Suggestions
    Replies: 33
    Last Post: September 29th, 2004, 01:10 AM
  2. Owner of Privacy Tools 2004 Announces Plan to INFECT Others
    By crocNduck in forum Spyware / Adware
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: August 30th, 2004, 05:56 PM
  3. The suicide thread!
    By Drunk On Duvel in forum AntiOnline's General Chit Chat
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: August 22nd, 2003, 01:55 AM
  4. Suicide Threads
    By GreekGoddess in forum Site Feedback/Questions/Suggestions
    Replies: 32
    Last Post: July 10th, 2002, 09:57 AM
  5. KaKoKool, You suck.
    By Terr in forum Non-Security Archives
    Replies: 32
    Last Post: November 30th, 2001, 08:32 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •