Topic: NHL is back! 20 of 30 teams make playoffs?

[Ian Sane]

TSN is running a story about new special goalie jerseys, kind of like the ones soccer goalies wear.  Apparently the JERSEY was stopping too many goals or something and the new jerseys have to look different in order to work correctly.  Of course this is all bullsh!t.  The real reason for new jerseys is the same reason why last season they switched the white uniform to be the away jersey: to sell more merchandise.  They already have three jerseys per team plus vintage jerseys where applicable and now goaley jerseys which I assume will come in at least three variations as well.

I think it's stupid.  The reason soccer goalies have different jerseys is so the ref can tell them apart from the other players.  Otherwise they would look the same and since the goalie can use his hands and no one else can that's important.  Hockey goalies already look different because of the equipment so there's no need for a difference.  Plus if these jerseys feel and fit differently then the goalies have to get used to them so switching to them at the last minute is going to affect how they play.  Plus personally I think it just looks stupid.  Everyone's on the same team so everyone should wear the same uniform.  And there are already so many changes this year.  How about they see how these other changes are doing before making more?  The NHL should stop turning the league into a farce to try to sell tickets to people in Phoenix and Carolina and start focusing more on those who actually care about hockey.

It's like if the Canucks win the Stanley Cup this year there'll be an asterisk next to it in the record book reading "cup obtained playing bastardized sport kind of similar to hockey."

[Guitar Smasher]

"It's like if the Canucks win the Stanley Cup this year there'll be an asterisk next to it in the record book reading "cup obtained playing bastardized sport kind of similar to hockey." "

I don't think we have to worry about that.

[IceCold]

Quote
TSN is running a story about new special goalie jerseys, kind of like the ones soccer goalies wear. Apparently the JERSEY was stopping too many goals or something and the new jerseys have to look different in order to work correctly. Of course this is all bullsh!t. The real reason for new jerseys is the same reason why last season they switched the white uniform to be the away jersey: to sell more merchandise. They already have three jerseys per team plus vintage jerseys where applicable and now goaley jerseys which I assume will come in at least three variations as well.

What the hell? Now the NHL would just be making change for the sake of it.

I saw a total of 14 minutes of the Vancouver game. Because of the damn regional coverage, I couldn't catch the full Leafs or Nucks game. I actually really enjoyed the Edmonton game though. Seeing the great long passes did my heart good...didn't see much of it in the Flames game because of their dump and chase style. It was obvious that the refs were making a point to prove to everyone that the crackdown is for real, and I think that they blew the whistle a bit too often, but they need to make a statement, so I understood the reasoning.

Did you get a chance to watch the Vancouver game? I saw bits and pieces of it - mostly after our period had ended and they joined the VAN game until the end of the period. From what I saw and heard (listened to parts of it online), Cloutier was sharp and didn't look rusty at all. I saw some great saves and he seemed composed. The 6 on 4 goal at the end can hardly be blamed on him, and I'm hoping that he stays in this mindset for the future. I really couldn't tell how everyone else was playing because of limited time watching, but i saw the highlights, and the Bertuzzi-Naslund connection was beautiful.

Good start, but it was against Phoenix, so I'm waiting for a stronger opponent AND a chance to see the full game before I can really evaluate them

[Ian Sane]

Here in BC we didn't get the see the whole game either.  The Toronto/Ottawa game went into overtime and then a shootout so it overlapped with the first 8 minutes or so for the Canucks game.  God forbid they cut away to the Vancouver game for the BC audience because EVERYONE loves the Leafs.  I don't like the shootout but I'm glad Toronto is the first victim of it.

Vancouver played pretty well and it was a fun game to watch.  The lack of the red line really helps.  Plus Vancouver adjusted to the new rules very well.  They didn't have that many penalities.  No more than usual at least.  It certainly wasn't like the pre-season games.  Cloutier played well.  For the first goal on him the guy was wide open so I'm not going to get mad at Dan for that.

The Toronto/Ottawa game was pretty fun too.  Not nearly as many whistles blown and lots of back and forth action.  The crackdown on obstruction and the removal of the red line were really good ideas.

[MrAustin]

To all the Nucks fans: Go MN WILD!

God bless this great game of hockey, and thank God it's back.