Around the NHL: Part XXII

[eco's bones]

This is a beating the dead horse question, but when do you think next season starts? Dec? Do they then forget the ASG to squeeze in a condensed season, and maybe extend the regular season till late April, pushing the SCF to mid to late June?

I mean next year’s ASG is in the middle of a giant swamp. So yeah..

I'm not sure the NHL will start a 20-21 unless they can put asses in seats and have certainty that people won't catch a disease. There's a political component to this as well--two countries--17 states and DC and 5 Canadian provinces--with federal, state, provincial and local officials to work around on health and safety issues. If one of those states or provinces shuts down or can't go--what do you do? What if it's two or three or four or five? What happens if California is one of them?---that wipes out 3 teams in the Pacific. As well for the NHL to be viable for an entire season the AHL has to be too. Pittsburgh and Philadelphia almost always have several injuries. Who's going to replace the injured if the AHL isn't operating? Now we're adding a few more states.

Further--I really don't think you'll get 31 different owners to agree to play a 40-50 game season in 2/3/4 neutral ground empty arenas--to pay out of their own pockets for our entertainment. Most if not all will look at that dynamic the other way around---that we should pay for it. I also don't think a lot of players would be jazzed about the idea of months on end away from family, girlfriends and everything else.

So really I think there's going to have to be some certainty before a new season starts. Scientists really need to get cracking on a vaccine.

 

[leetch99]

I heard today a Bruin tested positive for Covid ? Anybody else hear such a thing...likely Marchand on account of running around kissing/licking everyone . It was just a Bruin friend fan that mentioned it to me . Not sure if he had a news source or not ?

 

[Kords]

I heard today a Bruin tested positive for Covid ? Anybody else hear such a thing...likely Marchand on account of running around kissing/licking everyone . It was just a Bruin friend fan that mentioned it to me . Not sure if he had a news source or not ?

My guess is Chara. I saw pictures of him at a protest in Boston surrounded by people, so he was definitely exposed to a degree.

 

[Oscar Lindberg]

Bettman must be giddy the NHL has a chance to be the only major game in town until the NFL starts up

Meanwhile the NBA is stalling out because their players are fighting amongst themselves to even come back

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Bettman must be giddy the NHL has a chance to be the only major game in town until the NFL starts up

Meanwhile the NBA is stalling out because their players are fighting amongst themselves to even come back

Yeah, NHL won't be back before the NFL pre-season starts. I expect both to start in August and people won't tune in for NHL play offs over NFL pre-season

 

[NYSPORTS]

Yeah, NHL won't be back before the NFL pre-season starts. I expect both to start in August and people won't tune in for NHL play offs over NFL pre-season

we might see NHL rating skyrocket though. People likely won’t be taking vacations and could be as tired of what’s happening nationwide and continually reminded of it with the NFL. The NHL won’t slay the NFL dragon but i’m betting people will be tired of the noise. A nice hockey game is a good draw.

 

[Leetch3]

I heard today a Bruin tested positive for Covid ? Anybody else hear such a thing...likely Marchand on account of running around kissing/licking everyone . It was just a Bruin friend fan that mentioned it to me . Not sure if he had a news source or not ?

Boston Bruins Player Tested Positive For COVID-19

it doesn't say when the player tested positive but says that he has been tested twice since and both were negative. it says he will be tested again next week before he can join the team for phase 2 so I assume its recent but based on the 2 follow up test it could have been a false positive.

 

[egelband]

it worked out well when they hired wonder boy as their gm

Thought that was Toronto’s guy.

 

[NYSPORTS]

I heard today a Bruin tested positive for Covid ? Anybody else hear such a thing...

well, outside of hockey i’m reading a growing number of college fball players are testing positive. Can’t tell if they simply showed up to school and tested positive or if they tested positive after practicing. Reading two, three and four at a clip including Bama, Fla, Mississippi State.

Hockey is going to be a big test for all of us. One positive test during a playoff series and i can’t imagine the next step.

 

[Ola]

Coronavirus: Premier League receives six positive tests

The PL had 6+2 positive tests the first round of testing. Then second round they had none.

England has bigger problems on average that the US. They will be back playing next week.

I don’t get why the NHL can’t even get back to training by the time the PL — with players from all over the world — can get back to PLAYING in all cities. Unbelievable really.

 

[bl02]

Coronavirus: Premier League receives six positive tests

The PL had 6+2 positive tests the first round of testing. Then second round they had none.

England has bigger problems on average that the US. They will be back playing next week.

I don’t get why the NHL can’t even get back to training by the time the PL — with players from all over the world — can get back to PLAYING in all cities. Unbelievable really.

I agree with you but that is sure to set off another debate for another time.
The one big positive I would say is that it didn't spread rampant among more players for the second round of testing.
Also I guess another positive is that we can use those leagues as models (guinea pigs) to see how things go for them a month down the road when hopefully the NHL is ready to start full swing with training camps.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

it worked out well when they hired wonder boy as their gm

The Chayka philosophy

- Take on bad contracts for prospects/picks
- Trade for veteran players a year too late
- Make a big mid season acquisition that sets your team back
- Realize that you're the dummy that other GMs call first.

 

[Roo Returns]

The Chayka philosophy

- Take on bad contracts for prospects/picks
- Trade for veteran players a year too late
- Make a big mid season acquisition that sets your team back
- Realize that you're the dummy that other GMs call first.

Bu-bu-bu-but....Corsi or something......

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Bu-bu-bu-but....Corsi or something......

The funny thing is his teams have SUCKED at Corsi.

I legit have no idea what hes trying to build. Like I can cut Dubas some slack because he has to un-Lou the Leafs but Chayka inherited a pretty clean slate.

 

[nyr2k2]

Coronavirus: Premier League receives six positive tests

The PL had 6+2 positive tests the first round of testing. Then second round they had none.

England has bigger problems on average that the US. They will be back playing next week.

I don’t get why the NHL can’t even get back to training by the time the PL — with players from all over the world — can get back to PLAYING in all cities. Unbelievable really.

Well it's a bit different since to my knowledge, Boris Johnson is calling the shots for the UK as a whole (correct me if I'm wrong). Here, each state is doing their own thing, on their own schedule, and even then within each state different counties are doing their own thing. Where I live in MD, my county's reopening is way ahead of the reopening in the neighboring county and a couple others. And then if I drive five minutes into Virginia, they're ahead of where we are. And even then! The county in Virginia that I'd drive into was well well behind other counties in the rest of Virginia.

So, I don't know. Given the U.S.'s massive geographic size and the hyper-localized decision-making, it's really tough to expect all 31 cities to be able to be on the same page.

Also consider that it's quite a bit easier for a footballer to stay sharp and fit than a hockey player. In the U.S., most rinks haven't been open until very recently and many still aren't open. The players have nowhere to skate. Footballers, particularly those in the EPL who are very well off, can probably stay fit in the comfort of their own backyards, or at least find some private turf where they can get time. My son who will be trying out for his high school team in the fall, he's been practicing in small groups with his buddies and the high school players for over a month. They just go to a park or to the tennis courts to play futsal. His cousin who is a gifted youth hockey player, playing club hockey year round, hasn't skated since March. So, that's a big difference as well.

Plenty of reasons it's easier to get footballers back on a pitch than hockey players on ice.

 

[Ola]

Well it's a bit different since to my knowledge, Boris Johnson is calling the shots for the UK as a whole (correct me if I'm wrong). Here, each state is doing their own thing, on their own schedule, and even then within each state different counties are doing their own thing. Where I live in MD, my county's reopening is way ahead of the reopening in the neighboring county and a couple others. And then if I drive five minutes into Virginia, they're ahead of where we are. And even then! The county in Virginia that I'd drive into was well well behind other counties in the rest of Virginia.

So, I don't know. Given the U.S.'s massive geographic size and the hyper-localized decision-making, it's really tough to expect all 31 cities to be able to be on the same page.

Also consider that it's quite a bit easier for a footballer to stay sharp and fit than a hockey player. In the U.S., most rinks haven't been open until very recently and many still aren't open. The players have nowhere to skate. Footballers, particularly those in the EPL who are very well off, can probably stay fit in the comfort of their own backyards, or at least find some private turf where they can get time. My son who will be trying out for his high school team in the fall, he's been practicing in small groups with his buddies and the high school players for over a month. They just go to a park or to the tennis courts to play futsal. His cousin who is a gifted youth hockey player, playing club hockey year round, hasn't skated since March. So, that's a big difference as well.

Plenty of reasons it's easier to get footballers back on a pitch than hockey players on ice.

Actually, I don't think it is different. Many countries are also decentralized in Europe.

Games wouldn't be open to public. Would playing hockey games really be illegal at many places in the US today?

 

[nyr2k2]

Actually, I don't think it is different. Many countries are also decentralized in Europe.

Games wouldn't be open to public. Would playing hockey games really be illegal at many places in the US today?

What I'm saying, is that many places still have things like guidelines that prohibit more than ten people from gathering. And if you go over one county they don't, but then other counties they do. Sports teams still have to abide by these guidelines. They aren't exempt. Not most places, anyway. Like the a bunch of Capitals players couldn't just decide on their own to rent a rink a skate 15 guys at a time. Maybe you go into Tennessee or down south and they have totally different, relaxed standards.

And as I said, resuming playing football is a lot easier than resuming hockey, even if everything else is equal.

 

[Anthony5967]

The funny thing is his teams have SUCKED at Corsi.

I legit have no idea what hes trying to build. Like I can cut Dubas some slack because he has to un-Lou the Leafs but Chayka inherited a pretty clean slate.

Remember when they had Duclair, Domi and Dylan Strome? The New Yotes! All are gone. What did they even get? Schmaltz? He really has done a horrendous job.

 

[Oscar Lindberg]

I actually think the Coyotes are a decent squad, though it’s easy to dump on them because of the crazy amount of hype Chayka had

I’d also take Schmaltz over all three of those guys mentioned above

 

[nyr2k2]

I actually think the Coyotes are a decent squad, though it’s easy to dump on them because of the crazy amount of hype Chayka had

I’d also take Schmaltz over all three of those guys mentioned above

I don't know if I'd take him over Strome. At least, I think their production will be pretty similar moving forward.

Domi, who knows. His 70-point season may be the best any of them have. But he's so up-and-down. Never know what Domi you're getting.

I'd definitely take Schmaltz over Duclair. He seems just as likely to find himself benched and traded than repeating his success. I just don't understand him as a player.

 

[LokiDog]

I don’t think Arizona is THAT bad and they seem to be trending in the right direction, even if they’re doing so slowly. I wouldn’t take them seriously yet and I didn’t like the Hall acquisition because it seemed premature to go for a big fish, especially with a lot of uncertainty about re-signing him (if he’d signed an extension immediately I might feel differently), but I think they’re a team to watch in a couple of years. They’re not as well set up as teams who are already entering the prime window, like Colorado, or teams that are 1-2 years away from contending, like us, but I don’t think they’re in a bad place.

 

[NYSPORTS]

Coronavirus: Premier League receives six positive tests

The PL had 6+2 positive tests the first round of testing. Then second round they had none.

England has bigger problems on average that the US. They will be back playing next week.

I don’t get why the NHL can’t even get back to training by the time the PL — with players from all over the world — can get back to PLAYING in all cities. Unbelievable really.

not all of the States are open. Restrictions vary from State to State too.

 

[Anthony5967]

The problem I have with Arizona is they've been rebuilding for years and have no stars. I like Chychrun, but in my opinion he's a solid enough d-man that I think he will be their McDonagh, but not a star or no. 1 guy. Keller is good, lesser Gaudreau. I am a big Keller guy, but he needs help. Schmaltz is a good piece. Not crazy about Fischer. Dvorak is their Stepan, maybe a slightly lesser version of the one we had in NY for years. 50-55 point guy perhaps. Finished the year pointless in his final seven games. I still don't know what Arizona is. The Rangers acquired Yandle in spring of 2015 where Arizona was dumping pieces to rebuild/retool. The NYR contended those years and pulled off a retool to put themselves into contention again.

 

[TheBloodyNine]

I don’t think Arizona is THAT bad and they seem to be trending in the right direction, even if they’re doing so slowly. I wouldn’t take them seriously yet and I didn’t like the Hall acquisition because it seemed premature to go for a big fish, especially with a lot of uncertainty about re-signing him (if he’d signed an extension immediately I might feel differently), but I think they’re a team to watch in a couple of years. They’re not as well set up as teams who are already entering the prime window, like Colorado, or teams that are 1-2 years away from contending, like us, but I don’t think they’re in a bad place.

They are trending in the direction of Minnesota.

 

[ecemleafs]

The problem I have with Arizona is they've been rebuilding for years and have no stars. I like Chychrun, but in my opinion he's a solid enough d-man that I think he will be their McDonagh, but not a star or no. 1 guy. Keller is good, lesser Gaudreau. I am a big Keller guy, but he needs help. Schmaltz is a good piece. Not crazy about Fischer. Dvorak is their Stepan, maybe a slightly lesser version of the one we had in NY for years. 50-55 point guy perhaps. Finished the year pointless in his final seven games. I still don't know what Arizona is. The Rangers acquired Yandle in spring of 2015 where Arizona was dumping pieces to rebuild/retool. The NYR contended those years and pulled off a retool to put themselves into contention again.

well theyve missed pretty bad on early first rounders. they took hayton 5th overall in 2018. they could have had quinn hughes who went 2 picks later. they picked strome in 2015 3rd overall and marner was picked 4th. they took perlini 12th in 2014 and 2 of the next 3 picks were vrana and larkin. the coyotes look a lot different if they had Hughes, Larkin, and Marner on the team instead of Strome, Hayton, Perlini.