I thought he was talking about locker room stuff; if it's ice time, that would be an easily verifiable statistic.
Kane has essentially gotten off scot-free. Appologize and don't do it again was his sentence. I hope all of this has been blown out of proportion.
Rumored to be $64 million, so that averages out to $5.34 a year - with no cap hits or punishments if he decides to retire. That's a pretty freaking fantastic deal for one of the top 3 goalies in the NHL. With that and the logjam on defense we have right now after trading for Erhoff and Lukowich (great trade, IMO) and now that Schneider is expendable, I wonder if we can expect a deal for a forward coming up?
Regarding Kane: What a joke. If any "normal" person had done the same, I'd wager it would have been a different sentence. What irks me is that not once, in any of his public apologies did he apologise to the cabbie. To the team, his family, his fans, yes. To the cabbie, nope. As for Heatley, well, he's lucky he even has a career when, due to his status, he avoided a prison sentence any other person would have received. I'm no sympathy or respect for spoiled prima donnas making more in a season that most of us will ever see. The NHL is a disgrace and I'm finding it harder to remain a fan. When you factor in the BS with Bettman, the Phoenix situation and now all the crap with the NHLPA... I think I'll start getting my hockey fix from the minor leagues.
IMO, the cabbie was looking for a cash grab. I don't know what rumor is fact and which is fiction, but I heard he was driving without a license and was drunk. So I think I'll side with Kane on this one. I finally found someone who agrees with me regarding Heatley. He should be in prison right now; not whining that he doesn't like a coach who is making an eighth of what he is. Bettman is a tool, but Balsillie is worse. His attitude of my way or the highway has done nothing but screw him over. If he had kept his aspirations of moving Pittsburgh quiet when he was in talks to buy them, we might have the Hamilton Penguins right now. I think it's simple logic to play by the NHL's rules to get in and then it's harder for them to get you out. This whole NHLPA mess makes me scratch my head. If the players wanted to be all hardline against the NHL during the lockout, why didn't they vote down the proposed deal? I tend to agree with Roenick: some suits in a backroom are looking for a power grab.
Well, with Kane, whether the cabbie was going for a cash grab or not, you're right, we'll likely never know. But still, I don't like spoiled little rich kids. And Heatley, we do indeed agree. Bettman is a tool. He pissed all over the sport the minute he got here. What happened to tradition? What happened to naming conferences and divisions after those that contributed so much to the game. Nope. Geographical names now. And he's utterly horrid at running the league. Balsillie could have handled it better yes, but things are certainly taking some interesting turns of late. As for JR, I couldn't agree with the man more. My favourite quote was, roughly, "Let's face it, pro athletes aren't the brightest bulbs." I'm expecting another lockout when this CBA expires.
The whole NHLPA situation is unfortunate. Paul Kelly was definitely the right man for the job. I suspect that a lot of veteran players are quietly upset about what went down last weekend. If you take a look at the list of player reps, they're almost all young guys who probably know very little about the business of the game and a few disgruntled oldies like Chelios and Roloson. And when you have to vote on the issue at 3AM in the morning... well, the whole situation is simply ridiculous. Some of the big names in the League should come forward and take a stand. Make sure the next guy you get in there is someone who is going to be as responsible as Paul Kelly was... don't get a blowhard like Hargrove who doesn't understand anything about anything.
Hargrove would be, possibly, a fatal mistake for the NHLPA and the game. If Bettman remains Commissioner and Hargrove heads the NHLPA... And on the Phoenix subject, as of today, there are only two bidders: The NHL with $140 million and Balsillie with $242.5 million. Gee, I wonder whatever happened to all those other potential buyers Bettman was on about a few months back?
And in the "people Bettman and the Greedy Guv'ners think are uber-cool category": http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=290401 C'mon. How can Balsillie be worse than this guy?
No kidding. And I hope his lawyers bring that up. Today and tomorrow in court and I think both Bettman and Balsillie take the stand tomorrow. I want that team in Canada but I do think Balsillie should have "softened" a bit and said he'd keep the team in Phoenix for the season. Logistically, moving them now, or during the season, will be a nightmare.
Who would have thought that Mike Comrie would one day be an Edmonton Oiler again? Shocking Aside from the awkwardness of Comrie being one of Edmonton's most hated, and now him being back all of a sudden, it's not a bad signing at all. One year for like $1.125 Million for a potential 25-30 goal scorer. With the way the Oilers' offseason has gone this year, it's either this or nothing. It'll be interesting to see how Oilers fans respond. Well like it or not, he's an Oiler; and I, for one, will be cheering him on.
While he certainly isn't the player he once was (41 and several years removed from the NHL) I do respect his desire to end his career on a positive note. The NHL reinstating him is about the only decision they've made I can agree with lately. I hope he makes it through camp and onto a roster, whether with the Flames or another team. It'd be a good end for him after what he's gone through.
I wish him well. Now, thankfully, the Sens, its fans, and organization can concentrate on a season without clouds and questions hanging over it.