• Moderators, please send me a PM if you are unable to access mod permissions. Thanks, Habsy.

2019-20 Miscellaneous NHL/Hockey News Thread

The NHLPA Executive Board is voting on the latest playoff proposal from the league and we should hear results later today. As Wyshynski points out, even if it passes, there is still a “metric ton” of other details to negotiate.

 
Well, the NHLPA "approved" a 24 team playoff format ... if you call approval from the team reps official, which is debatable. The catch here is that they approved a version different than the NHL's proposal, so further negotiations will be required. Primarily, the players wanted the teams re-seeded after each round instead of the bracket format preferred by the NHL.

Personally ... whatever. For me it's pretty much 90% as dumb as the league's plan, so at least the delay for further discussions will allow for a more complete understanding of what conditions might be in their as yet un-named hub cities after local restrictions start to be lifted.

www.espn.com

NHLPA board approves plan for 24-team playoffs

The National Hockey League Players' Association executive board has voted to approve a 24-team, conference-based playoff format for a potential restart of the 2019-20 NHL season this summer.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
 
So the NHLPA vote wasn’t unanimous. The Canes and Lightning voted no. Alex Killorn explained why the Lightning voted no to The Athletic.

“I brought the format to my team,” Killorn said via text Saturday night. “They didn’t feel it was fair that certain teams that probably wouldn’t have made the playoffs would have a chance to make the playoffs in a best-of-five series. My team also felt it was unfair that the teams with a bye would not be as well prepared for a playoff series as the teams that had already basically played a playoff series to get into the playoffs.”

Was last year’s first round flameout part of the decision making? Almost certainly, yes. The wrapped the division in early March and hadn’t played a meaningful game in a month before facing Columbus, that had basically played a month’s worth of playoff games just to get in.

Martinook is the Canes rep, maybe we’ll hear something from him soon.

theathletic.com

Why the Lightning were one of two teams to vote ‘no’ on 24-team format

"Everyone on our team wants to play," said Alex Killorn, Tampa Bay's NHLPA rep. But he said the team had concerns about the proposed plan.
theathletic.com theathletic.com
 
Meh ... Killorn raises a legitimate concern. For me, that'e enough to keep it from being unanimous ... and for me it would be enough to vote "no." We've had this discussion before and you all know where I stand.
 
Paulie Walnuts said:
I think 24 is OK since the bubble teams did not have a chance to make it in. It would not be OK if everyone played 82 games.
Click to expand...
What do you mean the bubble teams didn't make it in? Going from 16 to 24 means ALL the bubble teams made the playoffs. It's ridiculous. A decent chunk of those teams gave up on the season and dealt away vets at the deadline and since the NHL is sticking with the roster freeze, nobody can even replace those players. If this comes off then the Canadiens will make "the playoffs" with the 3rd fewest regulation time wins in the WHOLE LEAGUE. This is all borderline idiotic.

BTW, I'm not picking on the Canadiens here. At least they were slugging it out and giving it their best shot. My complaint has nothing to do with specific teams and everything to do with replacing "the playoffs" with something that just isn't the same ... yet still calling it the same thing and soft shaming anyone who disagrees.
 
Last edited:
Per LeBrun, the NHL is moving to Phase 2. Teams are allowed to re-open practices facilities, subject to local regulations, but can have no more than 6 players in the facility at a time. Players only, no coaches or other personnel allowed on the ice. McKenzie says there is a 29(!) page protocol being sent to the teams.
 
the new practice rinks looked very close to ready but I did not go inside. On the outside the only issue was the back area was not yet paved.
 
The reason for the extra teams is RATINGS which means MONEY. That's about 95% of the reason for the change. They had 2 seasons of 48 games. That's a big, big change to me. Did anyone complain back then those seasons were not legit? Maybe if Chicago and Montreal were in with 16 teams they would not go to 24 but we will never know that . The shootout is a big change as is a point for OT/SO losses. A lot of things have changed in the past 20 years. All those other changes were permanent and this is just 1 year, for now.
 
Listen ... the NHL doesn't get enough ratings for that to matter, really ... so, no. That's not a good enough reason. The NHL is a fringe sport and its own fans aren't even really fans of the sport so much as fans of their own teams. The TV numbers over decades show that to be the case pretty clearly. And I'm allowed to complain about it, even if it's "just" for one year. It's dumb. You don't HAVE to recreate the wheel under these circumstances because from what I've read the TV people weren't even putting any pressure on the NHL to expand the format. Figure out alternate venues to cut down on the risk of exposure, whatever ... but you just don't have to open the barn door to anybody with even the hint of an argument that they got somehow cheated out of the playoffs by making a sham of those playoffs. That's the kind of insular decision making that pretty much guarantees the NHL will always be a niche sport. Have some bloody integrity for once.
 
Sports haven't really had integrity since the 80s. Especially college FB and BB who are now basically run by TV networks. And also all the under the table cash given out in college sports.
 
Last edited:
The University of Alabama-Huntsville announced on Friday that they were dropping Men’s ice hockey. They’ve had a D1 program since 1985. While checking it out, I saw that the WCHA will essentially dissolve after the 2020-21 season. The Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio schools are withdrawing to form a new CCHA for the 2021-22 season. With UAH dropping hockey, the WCHA will be left with the 2 Alaska schools, although their future is in jeopardy too.
 
I don't think Alaska schools play FB unless it's at a low level. So they probably can barely afford what they have now. Which means hockey is likely first to get axed.
 
The Alaska schools had been subsidizing travel expenses for the rest of the league to make the long road trips. I find all the conference shenanigans distasteful myself (looking at you too, Big Ten) but in the end, sorry to say as a huge Tech fan, but that's just too big a conference footprint to sustain for schools with "mid-major"-level athletic departments at best, in a non-revenue sport.
 
StormChaserBH said:
The Alaska schools had been subsidizing travel expenses for the rest of the league to make the long road trips. I find all the conference shenanigans distasteful myself (looking at you too, Big Ten) but in the end, sorry to say as a huge Tech fan, but that's just too big a conference footprint to sustain for schools with "mid-major"-level athletic departments at best, in a non-revenue sport.
Click to expand...
The Alaska schools announced that they were most likely going to stop doing that ... even before the pandemic screwed up everyone's budgets. The money they got from the State to fund that program had gone away. I remember the papers making a big deal out of it when I was up in Alaska last year. I mean, it never made a heck of a lot of sense.

Because of the weather issues, the Alaska schools are big into indoor winter sports and not so much into anything else. The Greater Northwest Conference is where the two bigger Alaska schools play D2 basketball but I don't think any of the other schools even play hockey. Hopefully they can find a way to keep their programs going.
 
TV is what made the giant conferences. Seems very odd that BC-Pitt is an ACC game but I don't have a problem with it. Some people predict Big 12 won't last and those teams will go to SEC, Big 10 or possibly ACC. The ACC probably would not mind having WV. And everybody would want Texas and Oklahoma . When the music stops Iowa St, Kansas St, and maybe some other B12 teams may not have a chair to sit on. When TV contracts are redone that's when the B12 might disappear . Kansas might like the ACC for BB. they could be the MACC, mostly Atlantic Coast Conference. :)

Anchorage is cold in the winter but not as bad as people think because it's on the coast. Many times Minn. is colder than Anchorage. One time a coworker went to Fairbanks in winter. I think the high was -20. The jets did not turn off engines because they were worried they would not start up again.

Is it only NCSU fans that are mad about "Yankee" schools BC and Pitt and Syracuse in the ACC? Most of them are still ticked they have not won anything major since Reagan was president.
 
Last edited:
jeffbear said:
The Alaska schools announced that they were most likely going to stop doing that ... even before the pandemic screwed up everyone's budgets.
Click to expand...

Yup, which is clearly why they're going to be without a conference again. Wasn't ever an issue on the ice to bring the two into the conference, just ensuring the universities commitments to a D-I standard, and the bloody ridiculous travel for an otherwise bus league. Competing as independents they'll be playing 80% road games (other than playing each other 10 times I suppose) and paying travel expenses for some non-conference home games anyway, so we'll see if they can even continue. I do feel bad for the players and staff at all 3 programs including UAH.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top