“I Might Just Be A Hockey Fan In California” is a feature that is posted every Saturday here at the View From My Seats. There are plenty of things going on in the hockey world (and even the sports world); and you know everyone has an opinion. This is a place for some quick hits of the week that was.
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I might just be a hockey fan in California, but:
- Word from hockey insiders (read: Darren Dreger) is that Jeff Carter is available for any team willing to trade for him. What an absolute PR nightmare for the Blue Jackets—if they trade him for a package less than Jakub Voracek and Sean Couturier, he’ll get hammered. If they hold on to him, the small market club that has been losing money (and the second half this season won’t help), will have pay $33.5 million to a guy that has made it publically known that he doesn’t want to be there. I’m not sure how they win in this situation.
- Mike Yeo has done a great job with the Minnesota Wild this season. Remember that if/when the team takes a nosedive with Mikko Koivu, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, and Guillaume Latendresse all out of the lineup. Where’s Colton Gillies when you need him?
- Major props to Dallas management for signing Alex Goligoski to a four-year deal this week. The man has the potential to be the backbone of their blueline for the foreseeable future and knows how to run a power play. Mix in his age and every team could use a guy like that.
- Barry Trotz has done some impressive things in Nashville, but his nickname for Pekka Rinne might be the best thing he’s come up with for the Predators in his 14- year tenure. The nickname? The Eraser.
- Sticking with Pekka Rinne, how the hell the All-Star game feature six netminders and not include the best goaltender in the world? Want proof? He makes $7 million for a budget-constrained team and you don’t hear anybody complaining about his salary.
- Here was the word last week from Pens’ GM Ray Shero as Sidney Crosby was set to go see his specialist in Atlanta, “Sidney has made a lot of progress but he is still having some symptoms, so this is the next step in his recovery. Obviously he won’t be back in the lineup until he is symptom-free.” Remember, this is a guy that is still having motion and balance problems—and now he’s in L.A. visiting yet another specialist. So I’ll say it: have we seen the last of Crosby this season? More importantly, should we have seen the last of Crosby this season?
- So Ed Jovanovski gets hit by Daniel Paille, gets into a fight with Paille to defend his honor, breaks his hand on Paille’s face, and now has two-months of rehab before he can get back onto the ice for the Panthers’ stretch run. On in hockey is that the “smart” thing to do. (For the record: he did exactly what the Panthers organization and their fans expected him to do)
- ‘Tis the season for hockey fans to start wildly throwing names in hopes of making that deadline deal that will send them to the Promised Land. But for those in LA thinking that Jonathan Bernier would be the perfect trade bait, just remember—Pekka Rinne got paid $7 million per season and Jonathan Quick is going to be an unrestricted free agent after next season. Just a hunch, but he’ll probably command a raise over his current $1.8 million cap hit.
- On the flipside, is there any way the Canucks can afford the luxury of having Cory Schneider sitting on the bench during the playoff run; when they know they could have cashed him in for help on the ice? These are the moves you have to make when the Stanley Cup window is open.
- Everyone has been talking about Tim Thomas this week. It’s time they stopped—enough is enough.
- Speaking of goaltending, at what point do the Buffalo Sabres admit that Ryan Miller is a huge problem? He’s had an awful start to the season, but he wasn’t all that great down the stretch last season either. The entire team has struggled, but even if the rest of the team pulls it together, they aren’t going anywhere unless Miller starts looking like the Miller of old. Here’s the thing: I’m not sure he’ll ever look that way again.
- Here’s the thing that the Calgary media needs to understand: Darryl Sutter isn’t the warm and feely guy in front of the media. That’s just not how he rolls—it’s time to get over it.
- It’s January and there are a plethora of articles flowing from Edmonton talking about the rebuild, drafting, and if the Oilers are doing it the right way. I know they got off to a good start, but it sounds like the majority of the Oilogosphere is turning their attention to the future. Again.
- When you hear a coach saying stuff like, “it’s an opportunity for other guys to step up,” what he’s really saying is, “I really hope these guys can help us tread water until we get our big guns back into the lineup.”
- If Tomas Vokoun can continue to round into the goaltender the Caps thought they were getting when they signed him in the offseason, watch out. Just imagine what a Tomas Vokoun from last season could do with that kind of talent in front of him.
- When Kevin Poulin played against the Predators earlier this year, it was the Islanders fifth starting goaltender this year. You know what they always say: “if you have five starting goaltenders, you don’t have one.”
- It was interesting to see Ken Campbell of The Hockey News say that the Lightning’s struggles this season were somehow karmic payback for Tampa playing a trapping, defensive style of hockey with all of their offensive talent. Actually, it has far less to do the karmic stars and much more to do with their goaltenders watching pucks fly into the net faster than a Shea Weber slap shot.
- Check out what Stars coach Glen Gulutzan had to say about his team after a poor effort against Tampa Bay. “The only reason you prepare against Detroit, Boston, St. Louis is because you’ve got a little fear in your belly that you might get embarrassed. So you work and do the little things. It’s a sign of weakness if you can’t bring that little fear and that adrenaline in your game every night. You just think you’re too good.” You have to love the honesty of a rookie coach.
- A quick note to all the fans that think the refs hate your team: Stop it. Everyone knows that referees hate all 30 teams equally and when you complain that you’re getting screwed, you make the rest of your fanbase look stupid.
- It’s hard to put the Red Wings 17-game home winning streak in the proper context. It’s the best home streak in 36 years and they haven’t at Joe Louis Arena since people were eating Halloween candy. For historical purposes, they’re only three away from tying the NHL’s all-time record that was set in Bruins back in 1930 and tied by the Broad Street Bullies in 1976. Yeah, this is a pretty good run the Wings are on right now.
- On behalf of all fans around the world, can we please do everything possible to avoid another lockout?
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Click here for our archive of past editions of our “I Might Just Be A Hockey Fan In California” feature.
Matt Reitz is the Editor-In-Chief here at ViewFromMySeats.com and former NHL Writer for ProHockeyTalk on NBCSports. When he’s not shoving a mic in the face of NHLers or explaining why home teams should wear white, he’s usually trying to figure out what song to play next on his iPod. It’s a never-ending job.
