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the REAL new nhl

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Brutus1 said:
I'm not sure how feasible that will be. That has to be way down the road. Just throw the Euro's a bone by playing more games there each year, but to have a full-time team there? Nah.

Let's get it right here, first. I agree that they should look to Canada first, including bringing back the J-E-T-S, jets, jets, jets to Winnipeg. I don't understand the infatuation with Hamilton considering the proximity to Toronto and Buffalo. Three teams in an 88 mile radius is dumb, especially in Canada. Hell, it sure doesn't work with the Rangers, Isles and Devils. Now, London is a bit further away and is approximately the same size as Hamilton, so it may be a better choice. I wonder it they just have to get a team for Mr Blackberry, Jim Balsille?
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450k, i dont think thats a big enough city.

the thing is the canadian dollar. teams from qc, hailfax, winn, etc could compete today, what if the cn dollar slides? back to the same old same old. that being said many us teams are struggling now.

its what 3200 miles from boston to london? 4500 to moscow?

2200 miles is not unheard of for western conference teams... (vancouver to columbus/nashville). it is not unusual for a western conference team to play back to backs with 1k in flight between.

i would question whether or not economics wise if you could place 8 teams to have a division over there? or how it all would work.

the travel isnt the issue (or shouldnt be-its the cop out) the exchange rate factor and economic stability/strength are at issue
 
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Maybe not a normal city, but in the Province of Ontario with all the fans, I'm sure London could work. At least it would be able to draw from Hamilton to Windsor, as opposed to Hamilton. Buffalo isn't 450k and it works there, at least percentage attendance-wise.

Like you, I wondered what would happen to all the Canadian franchises di the Canadian dollar drops back down? It wasn't that long ago that Edmonton was in serious trouble.

Rather than expanding, they should take a couple US teams and move them to Canada. Perhaps Florida and another (Isles, Nashville).

I can't see expansion working in Europe. Sure, they could locate 6 or 8 teams around Europe, but they would have to play the majority of their games against each other

With budgets as tight as they are, I'm not sure how you can say travel would not be a problem. Of course, they already screw up the schedules for some of the Western Conference teams. I guess, they have no choice, but when the Canucks play a 7 game 10 day trip to the east, then turn around and come back again in 11 days is pretty stupid. Oh well, I'm just glad camps open soon.
 
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this will likely format ugly
nhl ticket prices
globeandmail.com: Globe on Hockey

Razorgator.com, a worldwide online ticket agency for sports and entertainment events, has listed its ticket prices heading into the NHL regular season. Five Canadian teams have the highest average ticket price for their home openers this season, while the Ottawa Senators rank 10th among the 30 NHL clubs. Here are the average ticket prices, arranged from high-to-low:

Team '08 Avg. Low High '07 Avg
Vancouver Canucks $301 $129 $778 $227
Montreal Canadiens $283 $123 $705 $155
Toronto Maple Leafs $272 $100 $700 $201
Edmonton Oilers $244 $140 $503 $125
Calgary Flames $237 $146 $392 $185
New York Rangers $204 $90 $420 $152
Minnesota Wild $174 $103 $308 $108
Detroit Red Wings $170 $55 $588 $34
Pittsburgh Penguins $158 $89 $554 $155
Ottawa Senators $151 $73 $363 $42
Buffalo Sabres $147 $112 $273 $112
Washington Capitals $145 $84 $312 $70
San Jose Sharks $142 $50 $335 $68
New Jersey Devils $134 $70 $403 $140
Philadelphia Flyers $130 $12 $330 $82
Colorado Avalanche $123 $73 $274 $150
Boston Bruins $111 $43 $364 $45
Los Angeles Kings $102 $28 $302 $85
Chicago Blackhawks $84 $13 $263 $91
St. Louis Blues $84 $22 $219 $73
Columbus Blue Jackets $78 $25 $140 $62
Tampa Bay Lightning $78 $17 $191 $59
New York Islanders $76 $42 $200 $148
Dallas Stars $72 $21 $196 $76
Anaheim Ducks $67 $27 $212 $47
Atlanta Thrashers $60 $54 $73 $54
Nashville Predators $57 $40 $123 $70
Florida Panthers $47 $18 $140 $60
Carolina Hurricanes $41 $90 $101 $110
Phoenix Coyotes $33 $17 $148 $102
 
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Restoring the Pride of Canada - WSJ.com
Canada's most adored team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, has a problem. It's soft -- something that's pretty hard to fathom given hockey's elbows-first image north of the 49th parallel. Somewhere on the road to becoming the world's most valuable hockey franchise, the perennially mediocre Leafs became the National Hockey League's version of a country club.
Blame the pristine white jerseys. Or the 19,000-seat arena with its three award-winning restaurants. Or the majority owner, Ontario's teachers union -- hardly a win-or-else entity. Or maybe it's the unconditional allegiance from a deep-as-a-glacier fan base, or the lucrative television deals financing the inflated contracts with players whose best hockey is behind them.
Now, after years of mediocrity on the ice -- and perhaps just in time to stave off growing demand for local competition -- the Maple Leafs have committed to pay $15 million to a new general manager, Brian Burke, over a more-than-five-year contract that ends with the 2013-14 season. An American who guided a fast and fierce Anaheim Ducks team to the 2007 Stanley Cup, Mr. Burke says it's time for the Leafs to relearn how to play Canada's national game.
"We need to become harder to play against," says Mr. Burke, who loves players who punish the opposition on both offense and defense. Mr. Burke has a Harvard Law degree and the broad face and meaty chin of a bouncer at the corner pub. "There's a lot of tools in the box, and one of them is physical play," he says, in a phone interview just days after taking his new job.
After a 41-year championship drought, these are desperate times for the Maple Leafs. The team has even ended its pursuit of free agent and longtime team captain Mats Sundin, who once personified the franchise but this season is home in Los Angeles, weighing offers from other teams. At 37, he violates management's unwritten policy against new contracts to players over 30.
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Mr. Burke says only Luke Schenn, the 19-year-old defenseman, and 24-year-old center Mikhail Grabovski are clearly in the Leafs' long-term plans. At a recent practice, left wing Nikolai Kulemin made the mistake of challenging Mr. Schenn in front of the goal. Mr. Schenn nailed him with an elbow across the mouth that snapped his head back. It was the sort of play that makes Mr. Burke smile. "You've got to make players pay a price in all three zones," he says. "We're the beneficiaries of unbelievable fan support. At some point we've got to reward them with success on the ice."
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ill just say that ive been told that the leafs are willing to move some players, more than normal after the roster freeze, they also are willing to sandbag-like another eastern conference team did...
 
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jimotis4heisman;1353828; said:
Restoring the Pride of Canada - WSJ.com





ill just say that ive been told that the leafs are willing to move some players, more than normal after the roster freeze, they also are willing to sandbag-like another eastern conference team did...
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as in sandbag for a higher draft spot? They sure looked like they mailed it in Tuesday night.
 
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Report: Predators may buy own tickets to ensure NHL funds

On the heels of reports the Phoenix Coyotes lost out on revenue-sharing funds, the Nashville Predators are looking at boosting ticket sales with their own money.
According to the Tennessean, Predators officials have discussed the option of buying up unsold tickets to ensure they collect the maximum revenue-sharing from the league. Earlier this month, an ESPN.com report indicated the Coyotes forfeited 25% of their full share for failing to meet specific targets.
"We've consistently said that we're here to give everything we've got to make this work," Predators' lead owner David Freeman told the Tennessean.
For the Predators to qualify for a full share of their revenue-sharing monies from the league, average paid attendance in Nashville must reach the level of 14,000. After 22 home games, the team is 256 tickets short of that mark.


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NHL tests net prototype at Maple Leafs' practice


The NHL tested a prototype for a new net in Toronto at a Maple Leafs practice this week.
Unlike the radically shaped larger goals that were designed several years ago, the new test model relies on differently shaped goalposts to promote scoring. The frame of the goal remains sized at six feet by four feet, but the familiar round posts are oval-shaped instead. The long, flatter side of the oval is on the inside of the frame. The theory is that the flat surface will allow pucks to bounce in off of them, rather than hit the outside of a round post and bounce out.
"Pucks were supposed to be bouncing in more than they were bouncing out and I don't know - I kind of found it the other way around," said Leafs' forward John Mitchell. "It all depends on the angle that you shoot it on. The posts and the crossbar all funnel in towards the net but you have to be kind of shooting straight on from the net in order for it to work."


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net-sm_67396.jpg
 
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As a casual hockey fan I like all the emphasis on scoring more but they have to be careful not to overdo it.

I kind of like the way fate decides which way a puck bounces once it hits a pipe. Right now when you hear it hit the people who want it to go in and the ones who want it to stay out both say "oh shit" for a split second.

Just my .02
 
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could be, for shots straight on maybe, and those going to the far post. shots to the near post likely will see a reduction. maybe try it in the american league. but that being said i dont see a correlation between more goals and more viewers. i dont think a 6-5 game is much more exciting than 2-1. maybe it is.

personally id rather see things before that.
1-continued reduction of netminder pads (and straps, flaps, loose clothing etc).
2-blows to the head automatic 2 min minor. no matter what. players are two valueable to see as manyconcussions as hockey is seeing. 2 mins isnt enough to stop a guy from trying to make a play but it might make them think about a cheap shot. then add $1,000 fine to all head hits as reviewed by the league office. once again 1k wont stop guys from playing but might slow it down, then after say 3 or 5 give them a game even if they are all incidental.
3-instigator, loosen the penalty. make it so a guy can go after someone but theyll have to pay the price, double minor and another fine, say $1,000 or $5,000. something to stop the cheap shot bs youre seeing.
4-i lost my train of thought, ill be back later maybe...


addding

i love pipers, its part of the game. so close yet so close doesnt tickle the twine, it doesnt light the lamp. its that oh we could have won but we hit three pipes post game talk i like.
 
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I seem to remember that the NHL was considering an even more radical frame shape to direct more pucks into the net, a few years ago. It was triangular, with the hypotenuse slanted into the goal mouth. I believe they scrapped it due to safety concerns. The new design doesn't look like it will produce many more goals, but I think looking to increase goals from post shots is wishful thinking anyway. I agree with Jax and jo that "bell ringers" add excitement to the game. Anyone who saw Garpenlov slap one off the crossbar in OT vs. the Leafs in the 94 West Finals made an audible groan.

I do, however, think that raising the average goals scored per game would increase interest, as far as US fans go. It's much the same as with soccer, where most in the US don't know enough about the game to recognize good plays, unless there is a score, or some other achievement (like a first down), every so often. I see the desire for more scoring as still a reaction to the neutral zone trap era of the mid 90s, when some games were truly painful to watch. The changes in the off-sides and two-line pass rules have helped, but they could still do a little more to generate space for the skill players. Increasing rink size would have a great effect, but is wholly impractical. Perhaps cracking down more on obstruction fouls would help. Maybe even going so far as to make hooking completely illegal, which would create many more breakaways, and force defencemen to play back more.
 
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generaladm;1389173; said:
I seem to remember that the NHL was considering an even more radical frame shape to direct more pucks into the net, a few years ago. It was triangular, with the hypotenuse slanted into the goal mouth. I believe they scrapped it due to safety concerns. The new design doesn't look like it will produce many more goals, but I think looking to increase goals from post shots is wishful thinking anyway. I agree with Jax and jo that "bell ringers" add excitement to the game. Anyone who saw Garpenlov slap one off the crossbar in OT vs. the Leafs in the 94 West Finals made an audible groan.

I do, however, think that raising the average goals scored per game would increase interest, as far as US fans go. It's much the same as with soccer, where most in the US don't know enough about the game to recognize good plays, unless there is a score, or some other achievement (like a first down), every so often. I see the desire for more scoring as still a reaction to the neutral zone trap era of the mid 90s, when some games were truly painful to watch. The changes in the off-sides and two-line pass rules have helped, but they could still do a little more to generate space for the skill players. Increasing rink size would have a great effect, but is wholly impractical. Perhaps cracking down more on obstruction fouls would help. Maybe even going so far as to make hooking completely illegal, which would create many more breakaways, and force defencemen to play back more.
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Well said.

I can only speak for myself but as a casual hockey fan growing up in an AHL city in the northeast, I completely got away from the game after about 93-94. Like you said it was just painful to watch that stuff.

I just got back into it this year as amatter of fact and only because someone told me I should check it out, they had eliminated all that trapping and grapping stuff and the game was much more wide open.

I agree with Jo that a 2-1 game can be just as exciting as a 6-5 game but only once you are into it. If they want to capture new fans to the game they have to open up scoring.

My best advice would be, echoing general, to play on a larger rink. I understand the impractical nature of it but again, with my novice/casual fan glasses on, I like watching up and down/wide open skating than guys fighting in the corners. Could they make them play 4 on 4 more often and not ruin the integrity of the game?

Just some ideas/questions. I don't think they need to do a ton of tinkering though. Like I said I was completely indifferent to the NHL and once I started watching again this year I was hooked. Lots of people could be that way if they had a reason to start watching in the first place imo.
 
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