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Post by Greg C. on Sept 21, 2007 16:20:08 GMT -5
You're right. A conumdrum, but things have a way of turning around. Once Bonds is gone, the spotlight can shine on others and some of these guys may come up big. Also, the clubhouse will probably be a lot tighter and that's important. As you know, in hockey, it's one of the most important things-that's why they have captains and why it means so much. Bochy is a pretty smart guy and he can make a winner if he gets just some of the tools he needs. That western division is wide open, except for that Padre pitching staff, which is one of the best. The Dodgers, with all those young studs like Martin, Ethier and Loney are also going to be good for a long time. There's no reason the Giants couldn't do the same with their farm system. I play hockey and leadership is definately the most important thing. I was captain for two seasons and i try to lead by example. im not gonna make a dramatic speech before a big game. I'm gonna go out there lay some big hits, block a shot, and hopefully score a goal. whatever it takes to win. even if it means a broken bone (which i have had many of). |
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 21, 2007 19:24:22 GMT -5
You're right on. The best leaders are the quiet guys who lead by example, not by rah-rah speeches. The same goes true in the military. Where do you play hockey? What class? I know I'm dating myself, but I use to play in the old New York Metro League and before that, I played for the UCLA Club Team, where I too was Captain of the squad (I actually have the jersey). Check out the UCLA Sports Hall of Fame on campus in Westwood right by the Wooten Center and I believe there is still a picture of our team in one of the displays. In the military, the most respected NCO's and officers (I ws both at various times) were the ones who were always there with their men, getting them to follow them because they were side-by-side with the men, rather than in the reear with a pair of binoculars waving a flag. But then again, I was in Special Forces, and if you tried that kind of rah-rah stuff in SF, you'd get a quick boot in the butt, no matter what your rank. Do you play in juniors or seniors? College? What position? My captain for the high school team I was coaching for the past 6 years, was appointed by me as captain in his freshman year, because of his leadership qualities (surprise, his Dad is currently in Army Special Forces) and in his sophomore year, we were state champs. He would score, pass and stick up for his teammates. he was a long way from being a thug or goon, but he fought when he had to, although I am very much against fighting in high school and college hockey. However, some are spontaneous and unavoidable and are a spur of the moment type of thing, not the Sean Avery-type stuff. It's a shame; he's a good hockey player - and a great skater - when he wants to be.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 21, 2007 20:04:31 GMT -5
It's a league in the county I live in...the Monmouth County Hockey League. I'm a right wing/center even though i'm offensively minded, I love blocking shots and playing defense.
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 21, 2007 21:03:08 GMT -5
They play good hockey down the shore; always have. Tom Dowd's been in the NHL for 19 years now and he's from Brick. there are quite a few other guys ready to break into the NHL from the Jersey Shore. My team was from West New York (I was from Bayonne). Since there was so little hockey being played in NJ when I was growing up, we had to play mostly in New York or go on road trips to Mass, Michigan, Minnesota and into Canada. I also recently (2 years ago) helped coach some teams in Metulla, Israel. They have some pretty good players there, mostly from the former Soviet countries. One guy, Max Birbraer, used to be in the Devils farm system, but he's playing in Europe now. they only have one ice rink right now, right on the Lebanese border (it was bombed during the recent war), but another one is being built near Tel Aviv. It's hard to get some of these guys to hit AND skate. You have to do offense and defense to be effective these days. There are no more one-way players.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 22, 2007 6:55:51 GMT -5
Yeah, I hear Hockey is starting to become popular over in the middle east, especially in Israel. The league's logo is a star of david made out of hockey sticks.
as for the giants, they have officially announced they WILL NOT re-sign Bonds next season. (Yay!)
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 22, 2007 8:14:12 GMT -5
Heard the Bonds news last night. Too bad, but I guess it has to be done. By the way, the Israel Hockey League has hats, pucks and jerseys for sale on their website. I got a bunch of hats for my sons and my Israeli daughter-in-law. It's a neat new logo. Hope they keep playing. The second arena will help, but one war and it's all over. Got to keep hockey growing. Nike is selling off Bauer because of disappointing sales in the U.S. If possible, it appears hockey is getting LESS popular in the U.S. even though for the first time, the first 2 draft picks were Americans. Hope Americans don't lose interest. The coaching in the U.S. colleges is the best in the world, better than the Canada Hockey League (WHL,OHA,QMJHL). Even the Bruins and Black Hawks don't sell out anymore, although the west coast teams like Anaheim may be taking up some of that slack, but until as long as its trendy and the Ducks are winning Cups. The Kings don't do real well, although San Jose seems to be a real hockey town - a lot of transplants because of the technology industry.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 22, 2007 9:13:56 GMT -5
Hockey may be unpopular in every US state except Detroit and New York. The rangers just sold out in less then an hour and I was lucky enough to get tickets to only one game. Some of my buddies who are also die-hards didnt get any tix. Its a shame, i follwed this team through the seven years of crappy, playoff-less hockey and now that they are good, I cant get to see them. Tickets for Brian Leetch night are on "Stub Hub" for $2000 each.
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 22, 2007 12:40:22 GMT -5
I LOVE the rangers fans. I started going to Ranger games in the days of Gordie Howe in the old Garden on 50th Street. I loved that place. The players had to come right through the main lobby to get to the dressing rooms. I met Vic Hadfield, Pete Stemkowski and Andy Bathgate(my all-time favorite Ranger, along with Rod Gilbert, whom I've met a couple of times) that way. I have tickets to the Rangers here in Atlanta. I see them, the Devils, Penguins, Islanders and maybe Dallas (my daughter-in-law has a cousin on the Stars, Jeff Halpern). I also got tickets for the Kings-Wild game in L.A. in December when I'm out there. It's a shame; it's easy to get tickets to virtually any game here in Atlanta or L.A. I just paid $800 to StubHub for 2 tickets to the Yankee- Sox game at Fenway last Friday night. It was worth every penny. I agree with you that Detroit and NY are the best NHL American cities. All the NHL cities in Canada are great. I've been to Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal (missed Edmonton and Ottawa) and they are GREAT places to see games. But they are tough on their own players, a lot like Philly. They don't give them a break. Do they have a program like they do in Toronto and some other cities where season-ticket holders sell tickets to games that they can't make? The Dodgers also have it in L.A. Check it out - they might. It's a good way to see a game and it doesn't cost as much as StubHub.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 22, 2007 12:48:40 GMT -5
Yeah, its called Rangers Ticket Exchange. But theres no limit on how much you can charge so its just as expensive. pretty soon, us die-hards arent gonna be able to afford a game. I sit in the 300's section which is a ways up from the ice. $48 x 2 plus $20 parking, and food/soda is another $20. And if you want a beer, go mortgage your house!
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 22, 2007 14:21:51 GMT -5
Our tickets start at $48 - I usually get the $60 seats (no wonder people don't go), parking is $15 and food/soda is another fortune. We usually eat fast food at the CNN Center before we go in. It's tough when you're in a hockey town. Did you ever think of going over to the Devils? Guaranteed they could win 10 Cups in a row and have dancing girls as seat attendants and they still wouldn't sell out. Now that they're in Newark, it'll be interesting to see what happens. God forbid they begin to lose - they'll be giving tickets out to the homeless on Broad Street! Gotta go now. Leaving for our beach house on the Florida Gulf (much less expensive than the Jersey Shore - we could have never afforded one when we were up there). Be back Wednesday...
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 22, 2007 14:46:08 GMT -5
Newark is the worst area in NJ when it comes to murders, rapes, and attacks. Why the Devils moved there is beyond me. When they played at the Meadowlands they got a decent amount of people (far less then the Rangers, but enough) but managemtn was concerned and figured if they move to a bigger city, they'll get more people, especially Devil fans living in NY that can now take the train in. What Devils management doesnt understand is, THERE ARE NO DEVIL FANS IN NY! The Devils new uniform, sponsored by Kevlar...  |
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 24, 2007 10:07:54 GMT -5
I know I won't be making a special trip to Newark to see the Devs! I was there a couple of years ago and it doesn't look any better than when I left years ago. It's a shame; it used to be a nice city, believe it or not.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 24, 2007 14:58:44 GMT -5
Supposedly, they spruced it up a bit. But the train station is still 4 dangerous blocks away from the Prudential Center. its a nice arena inside, just too bad no one will go. check out the devs website for a e-brochure.
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 25, 2007 20:16:41 GMT -5
Can the DEVS be looking to move back to Kansas City or to Las Vegas or Winnipeg as they cry poverty because nobody shows up in Newark? My money is on Vegas. Wait a couple of years..plus, they need another good western division team.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 26, 2007 6:09:11 GMT -5
Can the DEVS be looking to move back to Kansas City or to Las Vegas or Winnipeg as they cry poverty because nobody shows up in Newark? My money is on Vegas. Wait a couple of years..plus, they need another good western division team. The Devils are in New Jersey to stay. They have a large fan base but no one wants to come to the games. Teams that need to move are: Panthers to Hamilton Predators to Winnepeg Coyotes to Kansas City |
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 26, 2007 19:44:23 GMT -5
Exactly my point about the Devils - nobody goes to the games. Look to them to move in the next 5-10 years. They've been in KC, Colorado and two places in NJ in their short history. I'd hate to see it as they're my team and I'm a native New Jerseyean. Nashville's not going anywhere, although they should be. The Coyotes? Possible. The Panthers need to move. Surprisingly, Tampa Bay draws great and will continue to do so. Hamilton needs to have a team, as does Winnipeg. Vegas will have a team - it's already on the drawing board according to The Hockey News. It might even be the L.A. Kings, if their young guys don't pan out, although Camalleri is one of the young guns in the league.
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 26, 2007 20:26:16 GMT -5
Exactly my point about the Devils - nobody goes to the games. Look to them to move in the next 5-10 years. They've been in KC, Colorado and two places in NJ in their short history. I'd hate to see it as they're my team and I'm a native New Jerseyean. Nashville's not going anywhere, although they should be. The Coyotes? Possible. The Panthers need to move. Surprisingly, Tampa Bay draws great and will continue to do so. Hamilton needs to have a team, as does Winnipeg. Vegas will have a team - it's already on the drawing board according to The Hockey News. It might even be the L.A. Kings, if their young guys don't pan out, although Camalleri is one of the young guns in the league. LA has a good team and a strong fan base dating back to the 1967 expansion. Cammalleri is fast as hell and Anze Kopitar will be a 40 goal scorer sometime in his career. The only problem is defense. As a coach I preach you can score 6 goals a game but if you give up 7, theres gonna be a problem. LA has offense, but the goaltending and defense is a big question mark. |
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 27, 2007 6:44:05 GMT -5
Don't get me wrong, I love the idea about L.A. having an NHL team and I think they have a good young club developing, much like Pittsburgh, but not at that level at this point, but whenever I'm out in L.A. and when Anaheim is winning, it's almost too easy to get a ticket to a Kings game...Angelenos are notorious front runners, except for Dodger fans where the Hispanic fan base is fiercely loyal and has always been supportive...Bottom line, the Kings have to fix their goaltending problems as well as their D's and start winning, or else it will be another Rams debacle. L.A. has no business not having an NFL team...how did that happen in a great city like that?  (that's rhetorical - I know how it happened). |
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Post by Greg C. on Sept 27, 2007 12:08:53 GMT -5
Pittsburgh has a great team right now, obviously. but in 5 or 6 years there gonna run into problems when they have to pay Crosby, Malkin, Staal, Armstrong, and Fleury top dollar.
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Post by bucko1 on Sept 27, 2007 18:18:21 GMT -5
They don't care about 5-6 years down the road right now. They're worrying - like all pro teams - what's going to happen this year and maybe next. Pro teams cannot afford to plan any further than that right now. I have quite a few friends in front offices of pro teams and they all have one common theme - the need to produce in one to two years or they're gone.
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(that's rhetorical - I know how it happened).