WarriorofTime
Registered User
- Jul 3, 2010
- 29,369
- 17,674
I dunno man, if every Jets game we heard, "the Winnipeg Jets.... whose 4th line center, as you all know, is an alcoholic...." that would just feel weird and exploitative.
So you can beat the hell out of someone on the ice, but a redemption story is no good?
This just seems silly, lets be as bland and uninteresting as possible.
Clearly you have an axe to grind or don't watch the games. I've watched every minute of McDavids play in both regular season and playoffs and the difference is monumental. His biggest asset is his speed driving to net. Its almost unstoppable unless you take a penalty (if we are following the rules to the letter of the law). I completely understand that nobody wants to watch a game where every time McDavid is on the ice he draws a penalty. So the refs let most of it go which I'm okay with. In the regular season, I would say they let 80% of it go but in the playoffs they changed the formula to letting 1oo% of it go. Every time McDavid would build up any speed he ended up on his butt with no penalty. McDavid was forced to change his game to dump and chase or drive wide of the net. Again makes for suffocating, no skill, boring hockey.The "McDavid doesn't get fair treatment" argument is such BS and anyone who tries to make that is missing a massive hole in this theory; McDavid has the puck arguably more than any other player in the league, so it just seems like he is getting more abuse that goes uncalled.
The last thing the NHL needs is the NBA where the power the stars have is uncontrollable.
They have always sucked at marketing their players.
I don't disagree, but I think the fact they sell the stars in the first place helps a ton with selling the depth guys.
This sport struggles marketing itself because all of its big name players McDavid, Matthews, Ovi, Crosby, Draisaitl (minus Mackinnon) are eliminated immediately. Other guys like Kane and Panarin didn't even make it. Imagine the NBA playoffs if Lebron, Curry, Giannis, Harden etc all went home in the first round?
Are you implying that we need to rig games for these superstars for "exposure" like the NBA does?
Rig the games and suspend the face of the league. The former is how the NBA does it and the latter worked just fine for the NFL.
Our league can't sell the sport because it's cool if it's open season on mcdavid Matthews petterson in the playoffs. Who cares. f*** the stars who sell the game.
The refs should protect the superstars more imowho f***in cares?
I'd rather have down to earth, personable superstars than toxic pieces of shit like LeBron and Harden.
Are you implying that we need to rig games for these superstars for "exposure" like the NBA does?
The league could always try something that worked in the past: Have McDavid shipped out to LA and send the other worthwhile players to New York. Problem solved.
They absolutely should. Remember when you couldnt touch 99? It wasnt just about respect for Wayne, the players knew full well that the man was their golden ticket. The bigger the game becomes, the more money there is in the pot for everyone. I really don't like how the NBA runs the league as far as its officiating goes, it's a joke quite frankly, but when you go to work the next day you can hear people talking about Lebron dropping 60 or the Greek freak dominating etc. The league knows they have to give these guys the calls, which opens up the superstars to show their skill because you can't breathe on them. A lot of people at my work are hockey fans but the only time where people get really excited is if a player goes off. A 2 point night for McDavid, OV, Crosby etc is pretty meh.The refs should protect the superstars more imo
what about pasta during dunkin donuts commercials?They have always sucked at marketing their players.
but why 25 years ago, the nhl board of governors hired bettman because a southern expansion in US markets will deliver them a lucrative TV deal?knowing its a fringe sport and not like other american sports..This nails it down pretty well.
Hockey will never be at the level of most other sports because of it's niche nature. It's hard enough to just play the sport. Even in colder climates where there are plenty of outdoor rinks you have 4 months of the year maybe where the ice will stick around long enough for you to get out there. You can get a pair of 2nd hand skates and a stick and hit the rink as often as you want. But there are still a tonne of barriers to get to actually playing the sport at a level you'll get noticed at. Most schools in Canada don't have hockey programs. So the only way to get noticed is to play higher level AAA or AA programs. which can cost a parent a fortune before you might get drafted into the CHL or noticed by an NCAA team. Hockey is bar none the least accessible sport there is in Canada, let alone the US. Basketball, football and soccer pretty much all are available for kids through their high school. Most cities also have organized versions of those sports which cost nowhere near the same level as hockey. I played high level baseball in Canada and the cost to play wasn't even close to what my friends parents paid for them to play the same level of hockey.
Ah yes, just like every regular season game has 20 powerplays.Only took less than half a page for people to bitch about reffing in the playoffs. It's like some of you want to watch games that have 20 powerplays, that's garbage hockey. McDavid didn't draw calls in the playoffs because he played like shit, let it go.
Playoff hockey is unmatched in it's quality in a good way. Nothing beats an OT NHL playoff game.
No disrespect to anyone who went through this, and I salute them.So you can beat the hell out of someone on the ice, but a redemption story is no good?
This just seems silly, lets be as bland and uninteresting as possible.
I'd argue that the league sells itself just fine. Not everything has to be bigger, grander and more corporate, that rarely makes things any better. Players get paid well, games are readily and easily available on many viewing options, most rinks are full most nights. Why does it have to be more than that, and why would it be any be any better if it was?
The NHL is all about status quo, avoiding upsetting the establishment, sitting on the fence. They don't want players to talk about their struggles, or anything in general, unless it's for their own gain.