Adam Oates opines; J. Thornton vs. J. Jacobs

Adam Oates has an interesting analysis on the lockout. Also, Joe Thornton and Joe Sakic take issue with Jeremy Jacobs:

http://www.boston.com/sports/hockey.../26/jacobs_remarks_a_thorn_in_thorntons_side/

The ugliness continues.

 

I agree with Jacobs and Oates.

 

Love him or hate him Jacobs is right. Too many superstars on too many nights just float. No one expects hat tricks every night, but a consistent effort would be nice.

 

In at least 20% of the games I have watched over the last 5 years, the broadcasters were talkng about how some players were taking the night off. And I could see that with my own eyes as well... I'm with Jacobs on thisas well...

 

Have fun earning 7.4% of what you take home now for the rest of your life, Joe!

 

Couldn't disagree with you more there.

Players in the NHL that "float" on a regular basis are few and far between. I'd add that it's especially true of "superstars". Players that due float on occasion certainly can't be called superstars.

I'd also like to add that if Jacobs was as comitted to making the Bruins a winner, that the great majority of players that have worn the spoked-B, they would have been far more successful over the past 20 years.

 

I'm with you, John, I don't see a lot of players consistantly floating, either. I think Thornton hit upon a bigger problem that easily negates the efforts of star players, and that's all of the hacking/holding/obstruction junk. Allow Thornton to come up ice without someone skiing behind him, and I am willing to bet the appearance of his effort sky rockets.

With Oates, I agree with him, but I also don't know what he's in favor of. He starts out being okay with a cap, then moves on to saying that a few markets should have flexibility and that there should be a luxury tax? either way, he's for finding the middle ground and that's a good thing.

 

Yep, Jacobs should just give those players whatever they want. That's the commitment to winning that the NHLPA likes.
And has Sakic become a huge a!* or what. My recollection is that the Bruins sent Bourque off to Colorado to do Ray a favor as much as anything.
Even the normally closed mouth sheep in the NHLPA are making idiots of themselves now.
I agree with your 2nd paragraph.

 

Don't ever diss Sakic like that! His comments are certainly legit. Lapointe for 5 mill/year? Jacobs is a bad owner...very much in the same mold as Wirtz. Thus, Bourque couldn't win a cup in Boston and had to go to Colorado. Thank you very much Jeremy.

Also, I'm not surprised that NHLers can't bring their A game all the time. They play far too many games and have to practice in between. Why else do they lose so much weight over the course of a season? As well, if Jacobs has a problem with stars taking nights off, just don't pay'em as much. Give'em what you think they're worth. But he obviously can't do that!

Oates is a very grounded person. He's absolutely right in that some players are sacrificing too much and are blindly following Goodenow. Accept a hard salary but don't concede the ruling out of bonuses. The players will still have a grand opportunity to make more money.

In the end, I dislike everyone involved in this lockout. I don't appreciate the fact that the owners won't form a significant economic partenership with themselves before asking for such a committment from the players. Moreover, I hate Bettman's lies and rhetorics ("we're doing this for the fans" BS). The owners are salivating over potential earnings much rather than seeking to reduce ticket prices. I'm also baffled by the fact the players are so strongly opposed to a cap. By conceding a cap, the players can still have their bonuses, lowered UFA age, amongst other perks. Both of these sides should be forced to negotiate via a mediator since they're all screwing us fans over. Finally, I'm most disillusioned with fans blindly supporting the owners. Us stupid fans don't realize how greedy the owners are being as well. They won't lower ticket prices because they're a function of supply and demand for the most part...not player salaries.

 

Good post

I sort of respet Jacobs for the way Bruins were run. B's never dared to risk money to get over that hill to turn the franchise into a winner, but they seem to always be in the hunt for playoffs, and draft and trade well. Most importantly, they managed (with exception of that shameful Lapointe contract) to stay a playoff team AND maintain fiscal sanity. However, comments like this from Jacobs make me think that perhaps Bruins are successful in spite of him, not thanks to him.

 

:lol

 

You know, if Jeremy Jacobs wasn't such a lazy bum, he could have been richer that Warren Buffet.

 

care to elaborate?

 

Can't really argue with this quote from Oates can you....

 

well, it sounds like he wants something similar to the NBA setup since he mentions a cap and then switches to a luxury tax halfway through. It's hard to disagree with someone who just sort of mentions everything and doesn't elaborate, though.

 

Would you let a prospect off the hook if they claimed that the 70-game grind during the CHL season was too much for them to handle, and thus they couldn't play their best?

 

The best case scenario is a soft cap with a hard cap on top of it, but I don't think Bettman wants that. He wants drone colony teams that all spend the same amount of money, all have the same number of good players, and all play the exact same style of play.
Jeremy Jacobs is a brutal owners who is as much of a problem as Sather and the Rangers were with their overspending on too many players. Accusing Joe Thornton who struggled but played hurt is stupid and goes to show why the players don't trust gary and the owners. As much as they depend on the owners for their paycheques, they fully know that their owners have absolutely no concept in just how demanding the game is and how much of a wear it is on the body.

As for Adam Oates, it is all well and good when you have people like Adam making comments after they have made their money. Cut the NHL players pension and see what Adam says about CBA negotiations then. Where was your conscience when you signed for 7 million dollars for 2 years in Anaheim to essentially do nothing. Or where you provided very little in Edmonton.
It's one thing to say something when you are a part of it, it is a completely different thing to say it once you have left.

 

yeah i would. at that age, the kid should also worry about his education, having fun like any normal person should. furthermore, playing away from home could be quite a mental burden. so its not surprising a lot of CHL prospects don't play their best all the time because life is definitely not only about hockey. what's your point then?

now a lot more can be demanded from pro athletes (which is why I don't like your comparison to prospects). however, their bodies endure quite a physical toll over the course of am 82 game season. star players get hooked and checked incessantly. players get worn down. if you know otherwise, please let me know. im not using this as justification for the money these guys make but they're human. do you not view these athletes as people because they make so much more money? do you want them to be robotic? what gives???

 

I'm not saying that there aren't good reasons for not playing one's best consistently. I'm talking about the players who coast along, even when free of stress/injury/etc. Try telling Howe, Chelios, Messier or Stevens that they're allowed to take a night off every once in a while even when perfectly healthy or absent of emotional burden because it's a tough way to make a living. They'd laugh in your face.

 

When Ray Bourque left the Bruins, the lunchpail work ethic left with him.

 

John with all due respect that is nonsense. Superstars float ALL THE TIME in this league. Jagr? Yashin? I watch Joe Thornton's whole career and sometimes it looks like he is half asleep. There is a HUGE difference when this guy has his motor going than when it isnt.

Regarding your comment of "players that due float on occasion certainly cant be called superstars"......I only have this to say, then they shouldnt get paid like them. This was not just a shot at Joe, but a shot at a whole league of superstars who often times dont seem to put forth their best effort.

For those of you who think the hacking, hooking and holding prevent superstars from doing their best work I do agree, but while Joe Thornton used it as an excuse Cam Neely would simply call it a part of the game and keep on chugging. Big difference. Like it or not Jacobs is right.

 

#1. I wouldn't call Yashin a superstar.

#2. The size of a guys paycheck has nothing to do with whether or not he's a "superstar". Blame Milbury for the Yashin contract, not Yashin.

 

John, I think you and I both know what Jacobs was refferring to. Would it have made you feel better if he said "some guys who are making big dollars just dont give the effort to warrant their salaries". Also, would you consider Yashin a superstar if he hustled and played hard every night? You probably would and I think that is the point that Jacobs tries to make. Take all the guys who float and HAVE the talent and have the gear it up and the overall product will improve.

 

All sorts of owners make mistakes,as do players.For Sakic to critcize Jacobs in the context of the Avs getting Bourque is idiotic, given that Jacobs was doing Ray a favor.

 

Maybe the NHLPA apologists would say that too is the owners fault, the superstar was a floater when they signed him & if he wasnt a floater, then he should get even more $$$.