Tag: nhl

Roloson is out, what now?

Post ImageAs you probably know by now, the Oilers lost game 1 tonight against the Hurricanes, and worse still, Rolson is injured and likely out for the remainder of the playoffs. So the choice now is either Jussi Markannen or Ty Conklin. Listening to Overtime Openline on 630 CHED, I need to point some things out:

  • Al Stafford keeps pointing out that Ty/Jussi won over half the games they played for the Oilers, so don’t discount them. He’s missing the point. Most of the games we lost with those two could have been won if only we’d had one or two key saves, something Roloson has been able to do.
  • Don’t kid yourself. The main reason the Oilers are in the finals is Dwayne Roloson. He’s been able to keep us in games when we’ve needed it most. We’ve been outshot almost every game so far in the playoffs.
  • If you take out the first three games Roloson played for us this season, he’s been amazing, and better still in the playoffs.
  • Not Bergeron’s fault? There was no need to hit the player into Roloson – it was completely boneheaded. I would bench Bergeron, he played an absolutely terrible game.
  • Ty Conklin should never be allowed to play for the Oilers again after a play like that. Miscommunication or not, cold or not, that just isn’t something you can do in the Stanley Cup Finals. There’s a reason he isn’t a starting goalie, and he proved it right there.

There’s lots of faith by a lot of people that Ty or Jussi can step up, and I just don’t think it will happen. And we need the goalie to be amazing, it’s the way we play. Giving up lots of shots, sending lots of players up on rushes, etc. I mean the Oilers have still got a good shot, they’re playing amazingly well as a team, but losing Roloson is a serious blow. I guess we can only hope the Oilers will find a way to get it done.

I say play Devan Dubnyk. He’s a young guy, with something to prove, and the rest of the team can rally around him. And he doesn’t carry any negative stuff with him, like both Ty and Jussi do. Either that, or let’s put Pronger in net. He stops more shots than Conklin, seriously!

Oilers going for the cup!

Post ImageFor the first time since 1990, our beloved Edmonton Oilers are heading to the Stanley Cup finals against either Buffalo or Carolina. The Oilers took their third win in Anaheim tonight, by a one goal margin winning 2-1. The first period wasn’t great, but the second and third were fairly solid.

  • Roloson’s 12 wins are the most by an Oilers goalie since Bill Ranford won 16 in the 1990 playoffs.
  • The Ducks finished a combined 1-6-1 against Edmonton in the regular season and playoffs this season.
  • The Oilers killed off all but one of their 11 penalties in this game.
  • The Oilers are the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the finals.
  • Edmonton outscored Anaheim 16-13 in the series, but they outshot the Oilers 183-121.

For more on the game, check out EdmontonOilers.com and NHL.com.

Did I think the Oilers would make it this far? Certainly not at the beginning of the year, though as a fan there’s always that glimmer of hope and belief. Roloson was a major addition to our team. Most of the season I complained along with everyone else about our goaltending, so to be in the finals with a great goalie is a nice surprise. The team is playing really well at the moment, and will certainly make great use of the time off before the next series starts.

And let me just say, Carolina or Buffalo, it doesn’t matter. I really hope we don’t hear crap about them not being hockey towns or any of that. Any team who can make it to the finals fully deserves to be there.

Let’s bring home the cup boys!

Five wins to go!

Post ImageFor anyone not currently in Edmonton, the Oilers won again tonight, defeating the Ducks by a score of 5-4. If you’re in Edmonton, you can no doubt hear the cheering and honking from wherever you are reading this! The game ended up being much too close, as the Oilers fell asleep and blew a four goal lead. That said, we’re only five wins away from bringing the cup home baby, back home to the City of Champions!

  • Tonight’s game was Chris Pronger’s 100th playoff game.
  • Toby Peterson scored the first goal tonight, his first ever playoff goal.
  • Steve Staios also scored his first ever playoff goal tonight.
  • The Ducks have lost 13 consecutive games in Edmonton, dating back to Feb. 24, 1999.
  • Tonight was the seventh consecutive playoff sellout for the Oilers.
  • Before the game, anthem singer Paul Lorieau pointed his microphone to the crowd as they sang O Canada.
  • Anaheim has outshot Edmonton in all three games of the series.
  • Peca has scored a goal in four straight games and has points in his last six.
  • NHL commissioner Gary Bettman took in the game and got a mix of cheers and boos when his visit was announced on the JumboTron.

For more on tonight’s game, check out NHL.com and EdmontonOilers.com.

Let’s go Oilers, let’s go! Hopefully Thursday’s game is much less stressful than tonight’s.

Hockey Hall of Fame

Post ImageAs I mentioned previously, Dickson and I went to the Hockey Hall of Fame yesterday while we were in Toronto. It was pretty cool to be Edmonton Oiler fans from Edmonton the day after we secured our spot in the Western Conference finals at the hall of fame for the great sport of hockey! I ended up posting 56 pictures of my trip, which you can check out at Flickr.

So like I said, I somehow thought the place would be bigger, area-wise. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still pretty big, just not the size I envisioned. There is a section for the IIHF and international hockey, the main trophy room, a section for NHL dynastys, a Legends section (with people like Gretzky), a local hockey section, a broadcast section, a historic merchandise section, a Montreal Canadians section, and a “shooting game” section. There’s also a couple of theatres, and a fairly large gift shop. I think I most enjoyed the dynasty section and the legends section, lots of really interesting stuff.

We got to the hall of fame around 11 AM, and there wasn’t that many people there. By the time we left, a large group of students had arrived and were creating quite a ruckus. The website says the average visit length is three hours, but were only there a little longer than an hour. I guess if you read everything and took in one of the shows in the theatres, you could be there quite a while.

I quite enjoyed my visit to the Hockey Hall of Fame, and I’d suggest that any hockey fan who gets the chance should check out it.

Oilers make the Western finals!

Post ImageTonight the Edmonton Oilers defeated the San Jose Sharks by a score of 2-0 and will now face Anaheim in the Western Conference final. Unfortunately I missed the game, but I had up-to-the-second text message updates. I can’t imagine what things are like back home in Edmonton! Here are some things to note about tonight’s game:

  • The Edmonton Oilers are in the Western Conference finals for the first time in 14 years (not since 1992).
  • This game was Roloson’s first career playoff shutout.
  • Harvey’s assist was his first playoff point.
  • It was the first time an eighth seed has advanced to the third round since the NHL adopted the conference format in 1994.
  • This is the second consecutive season the Sharks have been knocked out by an Alberta-based team.
  • Edmonton fans cheered the U.S. national anthem so loudly that the noise drowned out singer Paul Lorieau. Oilers fans were asked to be on their best behavior after some in the crowd in San Jose before Game 5 booed the Canadian anthem.
  • The Oilers are the only remaining team that has won a Stanley Cup title.
  • Edmonton played its 12th game this postseason, the most of any team.

More on the game here and here. Game 1 of the series against the Ducks is Friday night at 7 PM MDT, so don’t miss it! I know I won’t.

UPDATE: Check out the world’s smallest Oilers logo from the UofA’s NanoFab lab!

NHL's low tech screws Oilers

Post ImageThe Edmonton Oilers just lost the game tonight to Minnesota in the shootout. We should have won though, as we scored a goal in the second period that was reviewed by the local goal judge who said it was no goal. After reviewing the overhead camera angle, any moron could see it was a goal, the puck crossed the line. Apparently the goal judge in Minnesota didn’t wait for Toronto to review the goal like he was supposed to, and it cost us a very valuable point in the race to make the playoffs. Completely unacceptable. All the league did was apologize.

I have the solution though. Since the league apparently cannot employ anyone who can view a simple goddamn television screen, let’s get rid of the video and opportunity for human errors. This low tech is costing teams valuable points. Let’s put little sensors, RFID or something, in each puck and on every net. The sensors would automatically detect when a puck crosses the line. This would also allow us to get rid of the red light people, no need for them when the sensors can do the work. I am sure there would be a few errors, but with some testing and tweaking, I am confident it would be MUCH lower than the error rate with humans involved. How much could it possibly cost? A few cents per puck? Almost nothing.

The current system is clearly not working. The only other option would be to have EVERY review go to the main office in Toronto, to get rid of all local video reviewing. I hope the goal judge in Minnesota is fired. Let’s make sure it doesn’t happen again. This is the year 2006, let’s get with the times NHL! Spend some money to go high tech.

NHL coming to iTunes?

Post ImageEarlier I mentioned that Apple would be making SNL skits available via iTunes for customers to download to their video iPods – but that’s not the only iTunes news of the day! Apparently the NHL is close to reaching a deal to offer video via Apple as well:

According to Sports Business Journal The NHL is very close to reaching agreements with Apple Computer Inc. for video downloading. “It would be fair to say we are close,” said Doug Perlman, NHL executive vice president of media.

Considering the NHL lost many of its American viewers with last year’s strike, this can only be seen as good news for the league. I wonder if they would offer entire games, or just highlights or something?

Read: Kukla’s Korner

The Return of Hockey

Post ImageToday is the start of the 2005-2006 NHL regular season, which means that finally, hockey is back. Tonight also marks the NHL debut of Sidney Crosby, and the coaching debut of “The Great One” himself. Gretzky’s Coyotes take on the Canucks tonight whose lineup will feature Todd Bertuzzi. Another “first” tonight will be the Philadelphia and NYR game, which will be the first ever NHL game telecast by OLN. Then there are the new rule changes which for many will be seen for the first time tonight. Lots of excitement!

There’s still a lot of questions surrounding the NHL though too. Are fans going to come back? Is hockey going to be able to recover from the lockout? Will the NHL ever become more popular than poker in the US? Is the game going to be exciting and fresh? Are the teams going to be more evenly matched now? Will Canadians be able to cope with no Hockey Night in Canada? Probably lots more too, most of which can’t be answered just yet. Make no mistake about it, this season is make or break for the NHL.

Here’s the NHL.com preview for tonight’s Oilers versus Avalanche game. I’m going to watch the game with some friends tonight at Boston Pizza on Calgary Trail, so feel free to stop by if you’d like to join us!

Read: NHL is Back

Can podcasting save hockey?

Post ImageI’ve been pretty silent about the NHL and its labour dispute, but before you start laughing at the above title, check out the post of the same name by Matt May, in which he says:

The NHL is going to need a full-court press to get and keep the fans’ attention and interest. OLN will also need to increase its exposure, as it treats its NHL content as a draw for its other programming. And Comcast, which owns OLN, is heavily invested in digital cable and broadband Internet. Comcast will be pushing NHL content on its on-demand cable services as well as online.

So, we’re most of the way there: a sports league and a television network both with a vested interest in reaching people more people than they currently have access to. This is a great situation for podcasting, and even better for video in RSS enclosures. I don’t think we’re quite ready for full-game feeds, and we may never need them, given the real-time nature of sporting events. But OLN will be creating hockey-related content around their coverage, and that’s no good to them if nobody is watching it at 11pm. They will already be offering it on demand. Why not serve an MPEG for download on their own broadband network?

He makes a number of good points in his post, noting for example that ESPN recently refused to pick up the NHL coverage for the next few seasons, forcing he league to hook up with the Outdoor Life Network. NBC has also picked up rights for the next two seasons, but without any license fees. Basically, it comes down to the NHL needing to be creative in finding delivery vehicles for its content.

Would people subscribe to NHL podcasts? Might seem crazy, but I think you’d be surprised. Websites for sports are often extremely cutting edge, with advanced real-time statistics, audio, and video, so it’s not unlikely that at least some fans would be willing to try it out. It’s definitely an interesting idea.

While the other major sports in the US are all still swirling their toes in the online water with monthly subscription charges for streaming content, the NHL has a real chance to rebuild by letting more people in. There are millions of monthly impressions to be had. Even OLN and Comcast stand to benefit in this arrangement by increasing their own profile. It would be fascinating for everyone involved to see the league and the network take such a bold step.

I don’t think podcasting is going to “save hockey”, but I think it would be an excellent experiment in delivering content to fans.

Read: Corante

Why the NHL should be blogging

I was thinking recently about the NHL and the problem it faces as a result of cancelling the 2004-2005 hockey season. People have stated that the league’s failure to come to an agreement with the players is just the beginning of the end for professional hockey. Hockey as a product will struggle even more if it returns next season than it has already. And it fascinates me to read about the countless hours both sides waste in their negotiating. Most recently, the NHL made two offers to the players who promptly responded that they were not impressed. How long has this been going on now? Do you even remember what hockey is? How can we get both sides to come to an agreement? And how can the NHL save hockey?

The NHL should start a blog. And I don’t mean marketing crap in the form of a blog, but an actual blog with posts written by people involved in the running of the league and in the negotiations with the NHLPA. The league has in the past been anything but open and transparent. Closed door meetings, “no comment” answers, secret phone calls, the works. As a result, their customers (that’s you, the fan) have grown to ignore and ridicule the league almost as much as the greedy players. And if their lack of transparency keeps up, their customers will only become more indifferent. How can you re-launch a product when your customers just don’t give a damn about it?

If the NHL were blogging, I think they’d see a number of benefits:

  • Communication with their customers!
    What’s the best way to keep your customers interested as you try to improve your product and prepare it for consumption? Find out what your customers think. Involve them in the process, and let them guide you. And not just customers, but partners too!

  • An improved public image!
    Who would look more like the bad guy after a round of negotiations goes nowhere? The NHLPA who is closed, private, and bureaucratic, or the NHL who carries on an open dialogue on their blog? Clearly, the respect and admiration the NHL would gain from blogging would give them the upper hand in negotiations with the players. Not only that, but the NHL would be seen as a forward thinking organization, cutting edge even.

  • Education and understanding
    Just as going into the locker room between periods gives you greater insight into how a team is feeling and thinking, an NHL blog would give fans better insight into the stresses the league apparently faces. Another example is Microsoft’s Channel9 – readers have the ability to learn why Microsoft makes certain decisions and what’s coming down the pipe. The NHL currently lacks such educational capabilities.

  • Eye opening experience
    Perhaps by starting their own blog, the NHL would be interested in reading other blogs and would start keeping track of what is being said about hockey and the league by the fans. The big thing here is learning to listen. Hockey is a product that does not change to reflect customer wants and desires, and there is no reason for that. Want to impress your customers with a re-launch? Find out what they want first.

I am sure there are many more benefits as well, but those listed above came immediately to mind. The cost of getting involved in blogging is almost zero, and the return on investment is incredible. I think everyone would benefit if the NHL started blogging – the league itself, the players, and most importantly, the fans.

If I were the NHL, I’d be franticly looking for ways to “save hockey” and make it a viable product again. So if you’re reading this NHL, start a blog!