2009-10 NHL Thread

Hawks are still going to have major cap problems this summer.

 

Depends on what you mean by "problems."

They will have to dump two or three good players.

But they have the farm system and backline players ready to move up to replace them with no problems.

With Barker gone now, trading Sharp or Byfuglien would be enough to get them under the cap. And as the Barker deal proved, they'll get good value in those trades.

 

I guess Getzlaf will be OK for the Olympics, all he did last night in his return to the ice is torch the Oilers for four points. Can we say making a statement?

Yzerman and co. agreed and he will be on the team afterall.

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/hockey/news/newsid=42184.html?cid=rsstsn

 

I could score four points against the Oilers.

In one shift. ;D

 

Saddly true enough. If you can stay on your blades, anyone has that potential.

 

Not an NHL item, but I think it's fascinating that twin brothers, Tyler and Justin Donati of the Elmira Jackals, are one-two in the ECHL scoring race.

http://echl.leaguestat.com/stats/statdisplay.php?type=top_scorers&season_id=

They look almost exactly alike, but they're mirror twins - they do everything opposite from each other. Tyler is a left shot who writes and throws with his right hand, while Justin shoots right and writes and throws with his left hand.

This is their first season together since 2006, when they were still playing major junior in Ontario.

 

Those two little shits played for St. Mike's

 

Yeah, I remember their names, but I don't know much about them.

 

Not a fan I take it JR?

 

They were the very definition of 'hotdog' and 'pussy' in the O. Earned the names "Mary Kate" and "Ashley" in many a rink. Could score a ton, but weren't known as character guys or defensively responsible.

They ended up in St. Mike's after demanding a trade out of Oshawa, where they were late-round picks who turned out pretty well. There were problems in St. Mike's, and they both eventually got shipped out of there, one to Sudbury and one to Belleville.

To be fair, it came out later that their mother had terminal cancer (she died in 2006 or 2007 I think), so who knows how much of their attitude problems were just a reaction to a crisis.

 

The low minors are full of those guys -- head cases, guys with amazing scoring ability but need a roadmap to find the other half of the rink, guys who will go to the scorer and argue to be given phantom assists ... guys with all kinds of potential that was never realized just because of those things you mention. Instead of playing the Flyers & Rangers, they're running around on buses between Elmira and Wheeling.

 

I know plenty of those guys, scattered throughout the minors or the low-end leagues in Europe. Guys who are horrific teammates, guy who bitch about assists in games where their team is getting pounded or guys who cause huge turnovers and then fuck off to the bench so some other guy gets tagged with a minus if they get scored on. Fans may wonder why these mega-talented guys never make it, the people who work with them every day don't question it.

Don't know the Donatis but saw them play a lot. "Hot dog" doesn't even begin to describe them. Never heard too many bad things from people who work with the teams they played on but I do know they got Bob McGill gassed as the head coach in Oshawa. He hasn't coached in the O since, maybe they were on to something.