If you were an NHL owner, would you support Jim Balsillie’s bid to buy a franchise? He’s got a massive bank account, he’s passionate about hockey, and he has been trying to acquire his own team for many years now, so why wouldn’t you want him? The problem is that he doesn’t want to play by the rules. He is only willing to buy a team if he can move it to Hamilton, and he continues to try pursue every avenue to push this agenda.
While Gary Bettman and the NHL may seem misguided in their attempts to succeed south of the border, the league has a clear idea of where it would like to flourish. In the southern markets where it has had success, as in San Jose, Dallas, Minnesota – a strong fan base has developed. The teams are doing well financially and are a benefit to the league.
In 2005, Balsillie attempted to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins and many surmised that he intended to move the team to Hamilton. When the NHL stepped in to regulate the process, intending to negotiate the deal for a new arena in Pittsburg, and demanding the right to take over the team if necessary, Balsillie balked, walking away from his initial offer. Three years later, the Penguins won a Stanley Cup and Pittsburgh is once again a strong hockey market with a solid future ahead of it. Evidently, the NHL was correct in stopping Balsillie from taking control of the team and potentially alienating this solid fan base.
The league has many aspects to consider when it comes to adding a new team in Hamilton. One is the effect on current teams in the surrounding areas – Buffalo, Toronto, and Ottawa. Ontario can most likely support another NHL franchise, but it will not occur without affecting these teams.
For his part, Balsillie, is not taking no for an answer, and if you are an NHL owner or the Commissioner, that could be scary. If you’re one of 30 partners in a billion dollar company, do you really want one of your fellow associates to be someone who doesn’t follow rules, someone who does whatever he wants no matter how many feathers he ruffles? Sounds like a scary proposition to me, no matter how big his pockets are.
Head to the Net’s “Hockey Insider” Saj Karsan has advised me not to make predictions. He warns that in sports, nothing is predictable. No truer words could be spoken, yet, what fun is sports without picking sides? With this in mind, I predict that we have just witnessed the beginn
ing of hockey’s first dynasty since the great Edmonton Oilers of the 80’s.
The Pittsburgh Penguins finally overcame their youth and inexperience on Friday night to win their first Stanley Cup since 1992. Sidney Crosby became the youngest ever captain of a Cup winning team, and it’s only a sign of things to come. For all the leadership provided by Crosby, Evgeni Malkin answered with scoring – becoming the highest ever point scoring playoff performer not named Gretzky or Lemieux. And for all the scoring Malkin provided, Marc-Andre Fleury answered with goaltending. Although he may have had his weak spots during the run, he showed championship mettle when it counted in game seven. Not only did he play a stellar game, he made two Stanley Cup winning saves in the final minute, on none other than Henrik Zetterberg and Niklas Lidstrom, two former Conn Smyth trophy winners.
The reason I label this team capable of a sustained dynasty is that the key players are all locked up with the team for years. Crosby is signed until the 2012-13 season, Malkin until 2013-14, Fleury until 2014-15, and even “checking centre” Jordan Staal is locked up until 2012-13. As long as they can continue to fill the role player positions, this hockey franchise has a very good shot at achieving four straight championships.
Looking for a bandwagon to jump on? Hop aboard the Pens’ train, you’re in for a fun ride.
According to TSN’s hockey insider, Darren Dreger, the Pittsburgh Penguins were a happy group after Tuesday night’s game six win, because they stuck to their game plan and then “they weathered the storm in the third.”
Let’s say for arguments sake that Detroit had scored during their phase of prolonged pressure, which basically lasted the entire third period. Dreger, in his analyses, would definitely not be talking about how successful the Penguins were at their game plan, he would probably be lauding the Red Wings’ ability to absorb the blows and land a knock-out punch at the crucial moment.
In all fairness to the Penguins, Detroit deserved to lose the game. They slept for the first two periods and only awoke for the third, which they dominated. But for the Penguins, the final 20 minutes were a failure. Entering the last period with a lead of 1-0 and subsequently being outshot 14-7 was a failure on their part. They played with fire and were lucky to escape with a tie from that timeframe.
But that’s not what the analysts say. They give us a results based breakdown, stating that Pittsburgh bounced back well from their loss, played a great game, and deserve their win. We deserve better! We demand a real analysis!
