So it’s time for some hockey.

This isn’t an NHL post, though. It’s video of a nine-year-old kid scoring an absolutely sweet goal.

Wow!

• April 10, 2009 -- Insane Goal (1)
• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)
• February 19, 2009 -- Hockey Renaissance? (2)
• February 12, 2009 -- Who’s Next (0)
• June 10, 2009 -- Cup Runneth Over (7)

Random thoughts and observation on the Stanley Cup Finals…

• Save for the game five blowout when the ‘Guins lost their poise and the Wings mauled Fleury, this has been an even, hard fought and beautifully played series.
• Hockey purists who believe fighting is necessary to the game’s quality must be disappointed. A fight would only detract from this series’ pure energy. Fistfights need to be banned in hockey immediately. A warning followed by 10 game suspensions would do the trick.
• No legitimate, professional sport—except those featuring hand-to-hand combat—can ever be taken seriously when play is stopped so pissed off players can punch each other.
• If TV could find an ascetically appropriate way to enhance puck visibility, the game would easily supplant the NBA as the third major sport.
• Anyone who doesn’t know Sidney Crosby is the best player in the world isn’t watching the same hockey I am. In the Pen’s four playoff rounds he has been the most effective two-way player on ice. His only close peer is Henrik Zetterberg. Alex Ovechkin has a laser of a shot, but he’s lazy on the back check and a sniper—albeit a truly great one—in the offensive zone. Crosby does it all, cycle, grind, pass, score and back-check. The best in the world.
• More than most refs in other sports, hockey zebras have the most thankless job. Forget they have to officiate while players whiz by at 30 MPH, watch the puck so it doesn’t decapitate them, and perform those tasks while skating at 10-20 MPH. If hockey refs call the game by the book, the sadists cry, “Let ‘em play.” (Which really means, “Let them board, cross-check, slash, high stick, and, hopefully, fight.”) If the refs do let the non-intentional infractions slide, people question the game’s legitimacy.
• Say what you want about MLB or NFL game officials, if a runner doesn’t touch all the bases after a walk off homer, he’s called out. If a left tackle jumps offside with 12 seconds on the clock, he gets flagged. The NHL should follow suit. Call a Tuesday night game in late October, the same way you call the Cup Finals.
• Forget the media’s contrived schlock about Detroit being a tired, old, team. First they aren’t that old. Second, they’ll have three full days of rest before game seven. No excuses, no hype needed.
• Of course, I’m praying the Flightless Ones pull it out Friday and my rooting bias when it comes to everything Pittsburgh is well known. But does on-ice analyst, Pierre McGuire, have a clear anti-Penguin bias, or am I being paranoid? Best example was the discrepancy in his commentary during Zetterberg’s blatant hand covering the puck when the biscuit wound up on Osgood’s back during game one contrasted with his call during Scuderi’s brilliant defensive play to keep Detroit from tying the contest Tuesday night.
• The Penguin’s should have been given a penalty shot in game one. Zetterberg did not “bat the puck” he clearly covered it with his hand. Remember also the crease goes up infinitely—just like the NFL goal line extends infinitely—so it doesn’t matter if the rule says ON THE ICE. If Osgood is lying on his back on the ice, and the puck is on his back, the puck is deemed to be on the ice.
• McGuire didn’t seem too concerned at all about Zetterberg’s foul but incorrectly accused Scuderi of the same infraction, which replays clearly showed was not the case. To his credit, Pierre did correct the record.

So who wins game seven? Normally, for predictions, I would consult Nostradamus’ famous cousin and my personal soothsayer Murray Dunnosquatis, but he was last seen chugging Jagermeister with three West Hollywood she-males and I’m not about to go looking for him. So, it’s my call…

Detroit is deeper and Datsyuk will be all the way back unless Babcock is fudging on the extent of the MVP candidate’s injury. But the ‘Guins are a fairly deep team themselves, so the Detroit’s edge in this category is slimmer than the punditocracy would have us believe.

Both goalies have had the post clanging in there favor the entire series. Look for that to change in game seven. I’m thinking a Penguin victory in overtime. Bylsma is going to pair Crosby with Malkin and try to take Zetterberg and Datsyuk out of rhythm. (I won’t consider the nightmare of Maid Marion scoring the winner for the ‘Wings.)

History, home ice, and most pundits are against the Pens. They must beat a truly great team in Detroit. I see Crosby coming up big with four points.

6-5—Tuxedoed Fowls in overtime.

PS. After being informed of the most recent NHL marketing blunder which can be found here: http://shop.nhl.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=3634024 I’m predicting the Penguins to win 5-1 and for them to kick Detroit’s ass all over the ice.

I mean, really, who doesn’t love a good hockey fight?

• May 26, 2009 -- Championship Matchup Redux (2)
• October 10, 2009 -- Fierce And Nerdy: Fiercely Anticipating Steelers vs. Lions (6)
• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)
• May 11, 2010 -- Montreal Canadiens vs Pittsburgh Penguins – Stanley Cup Playoffs (3)
• April 28, 2010 -- Stanley Cup Playoffs – NHL Hockey (2)

Of course, in the days prior to massive league expansion–not to mention the proliferation of playoff series–such repeat Championship clashes were far more frequent. The Boston Celtics were involved in four such back-to-back battles in the 1960s alone, three of the them against the Los Angeles Lakers. Those two teams squared off for the title a remarkable six times in eight years. But the NBA started that decade with only 8 teams and finished it with a still relatively paltry 14.

Considering that, until the 2000-2001 season, the NHL always had the fewest (or tied for fewest) number of teams of any of the Big Four sports, the lack of repeat combatants is especially interesting.

What follows is a breakdown of the most recent repeat championship-competing and winning teams by sport:

Major League Baseball

Back-to-back appearances by a single team: 2000 & 2001 New York Yankees
Back-to-back victories by a team: 1999 & 2000 New York Yankees (a three-peat with the 1998 team)
Back-to-back appearances by both teams: 1977 & 1978 New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers (the Yankees won both years)

National Football League

Back-to-back appearances by a single team: 2004 & 2005 New England Patriots
Back-to-back victories by a team: 2004 & 2005 New England Patriots
Back-to-back appearances by both teams: 1993 & 1994 Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills (the Cowboys won both years)

National Basketball Association

Back-to-back appearances by a single team: 2003/04 & 2004/05 Detroit Pistons
Back-to-back victories by a team: 2001/02 & 2000/01 Los Angeles Lakers (a three-peat with the 1999/2000 team)
Back-to-back appearances by both teams: 1996/97 & 1997/98 Chicago Bulls and New Jersey Jazz (the Bulls won both years)

National Hockey League

Back-to-back appearances by a single team: 1999/2000 & 2000/01 New Jersey Devils
Back-to-back victories by a team: 1996/97 & 1997/98 Detroit Red Wings
Back-to-back appearances by both teams: 1982/83 & 1983/84 New York Islanders and Edmonton Oilers
Back-to-back appearances by both teams with the same team winning: 1976/77 & 1977/78 Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins (the Canadiens were the victor)

• June 10, 2009 -- Cup Runneth Over (7)
• May 22, 2009 -- VideoDeep: Playoff Letdowns (1)
• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)
• October 10, 2009 -- Fierce And Nerdy: Fiercely Anticipating Steelers vs. Lions (6)
• April 10, 2009 -- Insane Goal (1)

• October 14, 2009 -- Hello, Hockey! (0)
• May 26, 2009 -- Championship Matchup Redux (2)
• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)
• February 19, 2009 -- Hockey Renaissance? (2)
• December 5, 2008 -- Avery’s Just Desserts Are Sloppy Seconds (1)

He was bombastic and acid-tongued. Merely speaking with him was an exercise in endurance. You didn’t so much listen to him as weather the storm that would undoubtedly be set off by asking the stupid question with which you were wasting his time. To challenge him was sheer lunacy. To show weakness or fear in front of him was disastrous.

I often wonder what makes coaches think that becoming an autocratic martinet is the best way to motivate players. Didn’t they have to play for guys like this when they were kids? Do they not remember how miserable it was?

But then I remember how hard I played because I was so afraid of the ridicule and the disappointment of my peers and I realized something: they’re right. It can work. Fear and loathing of an authority figure is a great motivator in the short term. That’s why it works with kids and college students. They’re only going to have to deal with it for four years at most.

Some of the greatest teams in history had nothing in common save a unifying hatred of their coach. Herb Brooks was despised by his players, and for many of them it’s taken the erosion of time and Brooks’ unfortunate passing to wear away at that veneer of anger. Brooks brilliantly engineered all of this because he had such a short time to bring that team together.

And within that nugget lies the problem. This particular Roman candle it has a very short fuse. Once lit, it lasts for a short while and more often than not, usually ends as a dud. This is a different era. With the short lifespan of coaches in the NHL and other professional leagues, players often have seniority on their coaches. The screaming act wears thin in a very short while.

I’ll always remember the collapse of another fire-and-brimstone coach as the quintessential example of why this philosophy will ultimately fail at the pro level. Ray Rhodes won the Coach of the Year Award in his first season with the Eagles. But within two years he was out of a job. He would often whip his players into a frenzy with exhortations of “They’re coming into your house to rape your wives and kill your children,” with regard to the opposing team.

As you might imagine, it’s hard to top that one. I mean, after the first week that your house fails to get raided by the Vandals, Visigoths, and Vikings (hah!) it’s hard to remain vigilant.

John Tortorella won a Cup in Tampa, but his act eventually wore thin. There’s only so much you can threaten a player with before trading him or cutting him becomes something he no longer fears. He started a very public feud with Vinny Prospal that eventually blew up in his face. Shortly after engineering a trade that sent Prospal to Philadelphia, Torts was gone and Prospal re-signed in Tampa at the end of the season.

In the short term, I think he will make the Rangers a much better team. Tortorella’s screaming, yelling, and posturing on the bench will motivate players beyond what Tom Renney’s impotent line-juggling could ever hope to do.

However, the second Glen Sather offered Torts the job, the clock started ticking. In the background, like an infinite number of 24 promos played simultaneously, the clock on Tortorella began counting down–whether or not he wins a Cup before that timer elapses is the question.

• May 26, 2009 -- Championship Matchup Redux (2)
• February 19, 2009 -- Hockey Renaissance? (2)
• December 3, 2008 -- Test Passed (1)
• October 14, 2009 -- Hello, Hockey! (0)
• June 10, 2009 -- Cup Runneth Over (7)

But could the sport finally be primed for a resurgence?

New star players can energize a sport like nothing else. Babe Ruth revolutionized baseball with his mammoth blasts. Michael Jordan elevated basketball to new heights, both figuratively and literally. Tiger Woods has enthused interest in golf not just with numbers, but by crossing racial and cultural boundaries.

Now I’m not saying any current NHL player has even begun to make a mark on the scale of the aforementioned athletes, or ever will. But the emergence of Alexander Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin has brought an excitement to the sport that hasn’t been seen since the days of Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.

Gretzky and Lemieux. Two legendary names. Talent above and beyond everyone else of their generation. Excitement every time they took the ice.

Ovechkin, Crosby and Malkin have those same qualities. Unbelievable talent, the ability to electrify the crowd at a split-second’s notice on any shift-change.

Just like this incredible goal that Ovechkin scored last night:

• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)
• October 14, 2009 -- Hello, Hockey! (0)
• May 26, 2009 -- Championship Matchup Redux (2)
• April 10, 2009 -- Insane Goal (1)
• February 12, 2009 -- Who’s Next (0)

• December 1, 2008 -- December (0)
• October 29, 2008 -- Welcome to Deep Into Sports! (0)
• August 1, 2009 -- Top Ten American Sports Franchises (32)
• January 15, 2010 -- Baseball, Football, Basketball, Boxing: All Disappointments (0)
• October 14, 2009 -- Hello, Hockey! (0)

The Flyers came out in their road whites despite being in their own barn.  This was presumably so that the Hurricanes could showcase their new alternate jerseys for their…fans?   Actually, I have no idea for whom they were showcasing their spiffy new all-black jerseys.  They certainly weren’t selling any of them at the Wachovia Center.   Perhaps the Hurricanes felt that for their fourth contest against the Broad Street Bullies in the past 30 days, they needed to find a way to remind the Flyers that they’re still not the Whalers.  Or maybe the Hurricanes front office thought co-opting the black jersey look would give “what once was old, is new again” head coach, Paul Maurice a fresh start.  Either way, I think it’s safe to say the stratagem backfired.   

Given how the Flyers had played in the first two periods, one could easily be forgiven for wondering if they actually were on the road.   Also, the defense’s play early had me wondering if someone had tried to slip Mike Rathje back into uniform without telling anyone.

The Hurricanes’ Eric Staal got the scoring going early, weaving through the Flyers’ defense with ease to score 1:01 into the first period in front of a Philadelphia crowd that was still filing into the arena on Dollar Dog Night.  Scott Hartnell tried to wake the team up with a big hit on former Flyer, Rod Brind’amour.  Hartnell’s subsequent fight against ‘Canes rookie Casey Borer, who showed some grit in sticking up for his Captain, still failed to ignite the team  The period ended with Carolina up by a goal.   

The second period was pretty much all Hurricanes.  The Flyers managed to harness a bit of momentum halfway through the period with a beautiful re-direct by Hartnell in front of the net to pull them within one goal, but Carolina’s Sergei Samsonov scored again 14 seconds later to thoroughly deflate the home team.  The Flyers played listlessly for the rest of the period, and continuing the Flyer tradition of making sure former Flyers have career nights against their old team.  Seriously, Joni Pitkanen even scored a goal. When the second period drew to its merciful conclusion, the Flyers were down 5-1.

By the end of the second, the Wachovia Center was dangerously quiet.  Not even the opiate of $1 hot dogs could quell the fans’ simmering anger at seeing their boys getting so badly out-played.  

As soon as the Flyers took the ice in the third, it was clear something had changed.  From the first puck drop, they were electric.   Suddenly, the Flyers were playing with purpose.  Scott Hartnell said later that Coach John Stevens ripped into the team during the intermission, essentially calling them out for playing like a “bunch of pansies.”  One can only hope that Hartnell is paraphrasing.  I’d hate to think of an NHL coach using language that harsh in a locker room, of all places.

Scott Hartnell scored at 1:42 of the third.  He scored again five minutes later on a pretty backhand to cap his hat trick.  Hartnell’s hat trick was his first since last January, and was the hockey equivalent of hitting for the cycle.  He scored a shorthanded goal, a goal at even strength, and a power play goal.  Had he gotten an assist, he would also have had a Gordie Howe hat trick.

When Scottie Upshall ripped a top-shelf wrist shot over a stickless Michael Leighton at 15:08 in the third to pull the Flyers within a goal of tying the game, the Wachovia Center was in collective hysterics.  The Hurricanes were on their heels and looking confused.  When Carolina’s Brett Carson got called for a hook with a little under four minutes to go in the period, you just knew they were going to tie the game.  As a Philadelphia fan, that kind of optimism is unheard-of.  It was a nice feeling.  Just as time was about to expire on the penalty, Simon Gagne tied the game and the Wachovia Center erupted.

After a rough start, Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki came up with some huge saves in the third period, showing some of the potential that keeps people wondering whether or not he’s good enough to supplant Martin Biron as the starter.  After the Flyers drew another all-too-frequent bench minor for having too many men on the ice during overtime, Niitty staved off the desperate Hurricanes and got his team to the shootout.  

The team’s collective momentum carried over into the shootout where Niittymaki was perfect, stonewalling Hurricanes Rod’Brindamour and Tuomo Ruutu. The Flyers sealed the improbable comeback with shootout goals by team captain Mike Richards and Simon Gagne.

When the dust settled, the Flyers had equaled the greatest comeback win in club history. They’d tied a record set in 1988 when a Flyers team that included current Flyers assistant coach Craig Berube overcame a four-goal deficit in to beat the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena.

• October 14, 2009 -- Hello, Hockey! (0)
• June 10, 2009 -- Cup Runneth Over (7)
• May 26, 2009 -- Championship Matchup Redux (2)
• April 10, 2009 -- Insane Goal (1)
• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)

Anyway, for those living in a hole for the past week, Avery was suspended as a result of comments he made with regard to Calgary defenseman and Hummer-enthusiast, Dion Phaneuf, and his cleft-chinned lady friend, Elisha Cuthbert, whom Avery used to date (Cuthbert, not Phaneuf).  Avery referred to the former 24 star as his “sloppy seconds,” a term which elicited gasps of disbelief and shock from lots of people who have never seen a hockey game.  Without Jack Bauer around to defend his TV daughter’s honor, it fell to Gary Bettman to step in.  And, step in he did, to the tune of a six-game suspension that will surely teach Avery a lesson–in marketing.

I’m not going to argue with the validity of the suspension other than to say that Ryan Hollweg is a lot worse for hockey than Avery will ever be and he’s still playing.  The fact remains that someone had to address Avery’s decision to make such a statement in a public forum.  The fact that the Dallas winger deliberately gathered the reporters to himself before making the statement is, at least to me, much more troublesome than the content of what he said.  I’m certain he says things on the ice that would have made Lenny Bruce blush.  That’s part of being an agitator.  What made this different is that Avery made himself into a spectacle, and in doing so, he made himself bigger than the game, and that can’t happen.

To be fair, the first time I saw photos of Cuthbert and Phaneuf cavorting in Hawaii, I thought exactly the same thing Avery did.  Actually, scratch that.  The very first thing I thought was how good Cuthbert looks in a bikini.  However, immediately after that, I thought about how much jawing Phaneuf was going to hear from agitators around the league.

It’s a time-honored tradition.  One need only to look at sports movies which have always been a great, if a bit behind-the-curve, barometer of sports culture.  From Paul Newman’s, “Hey Hanrahan!” line in Slapshot to “How’s your wife and my kids?” in Major League, razzing a player’s significant other has always been an accepted, even time-honored, tradition.  I sincerely doubt that if this was said in a game, and I’ve no doubt it has been, Phaneuf would have been surprised by it.

In the end, the problem lies with the new NHL.  The culture of the Bettman-era NHL is one where players have very little respect for one another.  Sticks are carried high, boarding penalties are on the rise, and agitators are crossing every line they can to get an advantage.  Avery simply tried to see how far the guys in charge would let him go before they stopped him.  It’s the same way he’s played the game his entire career.  Ever since the inclusion of the instigator penalty, the players have been robbed of the ability to police themselves, and suddenly guys like Avery, Claude Lemieux, and Essa Tikkanen found a role.

I’m not saying that I want the league to go back to the days of the Broad Street Bullies, or even to the clutching and grabbing days of the late 80’s.  But, if Bettman really wanted to reign in this kind of behavior for good, the return to the ice of players like McSorley and Twist would ensure that justice was meted out on the ice, where it should be, and not in Bettman’s Manhattan offices.

• April 10, 2009 -- Insane Goal (1)
• October 14, 2009 -- Hello, Hockey! (0)
• June 10, 2009 -- Cup Runneth Over (7)
• May 26, 2009 -- Championship Matchup Redux (2)
• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)

Tonight’s game came down to the wire, as any contest between first- and second-place division rivals deserves to be determined.  Pittsburgh has played New York twice so far this season, resulting in two overtime losses… but both those games were at Madison Square Garden.  It’ll be interesting to see what happens when the two teams meet up in Pittsburgh.

• February 27, 2009 -- Tortorella Represents a Small Window for the Rangers (3)
• December 1, 2008 -- December (0)
• April 10, 2009 -- Insane Goal (1)
• January 3, 2009 -- NHL All-Star Game Voting Is a Farce (2)
• December 21, 2008 -- The Hate List (9)