Just a few points. Winnipeg was shopped full time locally for 2 years. Part of the lack of interest had to do with low ticket sales, no corporate support, and no new building on the horizon (as the old one dripped bricks on to the street below-demo’ed quickly after team left- kind of like our old city hall which actually gave a guy a concussion ) coupled with high lease and property taxes that the government was somewhat sheltering the club from …and expecting repayment on. Phoenix is having losses paid by Glendale, a state of the art facility, and a youth hockey market that has grown exponentially since the Coyotes arrived. In view of time line… the fans of the first year and cheap tickets who were grown to watch the Yotes are now in college. There is also decent corporate support within Glendale if not Phoenix itself.

There are your answers.

I didnt see where the puck was on the Seabrook hit but if its by him than i agree with Colin. Keep your head up. Clean hit if the puck is in his body position. I like the hawks but i agree with Colin on this big time. You cant consider yourself safe because you dont have the puck on your stick.

Second Colin was saying those types of hits were documented thru the pronger demo and GMs said it was ok. His assessment, after being given clear instruction by his bosses the BOG and GMs..is that is a clean play. His issue was not that reporters or fans didnt like it it was the GMs that told him the Pronger hit was good now going to the press and sayiung it should have been suspendable.

Why does the Tbay guy get suspended? because he charged from pretty much the blue line and left his feet like Tootoo.
I have no doubt that Colin will have some gloves off meetings with the geezer and fat GMs.

Thats my analysis

However, I just don’t think there’s any place in the game for hits to the head. I don’t see any good coming out of that. I hope they just ban hits to the head entirely and remove all ambiguity. Checks to the body, fine; fighting, fine; go for it. I don’t play hockey so I don’t get the argument that Seabrook “should have had his head up” – he was looking forward to the puck and the play, not behind him for a steamrolling Torres out of nowhere (maybe the idea is he “should” have been looking up for Torres because behind the net is a vulnerable position? – I don’t play so obviously can’t speak to that.)

I also think Torres went out of his way to injure Seabrook but a person could argue that it’s a hockey player’s job to “take out” the opposition…so I don’t know.

Bottom line is I did not care for the hit and I do not like the way Torres plays sometimes, but until the league changes the ruling, that type of thing will keep happening. They should take a look at it, and try to be more consistent on their enforcement in general, because I think it’s been all over the place.

I’ve never been a Colin Campbell fan. That interview he sounded like a whiny old man who’s out of touch with the game. I know it’s a thankless game and he’s playing both sides of the fence there. He’s asking for a clear ruling and then says that things are not black and white. Which is it? Also his arrogance to the knowledge of fans is elitist and unacceptable. Everyone knew Torres should be suspended and he blew that call big time. Cherry was right. If Seabrook had laid there for a minute or so before getting up, Torres would have been suspended. No question about it even thoug it was clear he was out cold for a second or so there. Campbell needs to go. He’s not keeping up with the game’s culture. He didn’t answer the question either of suspending a guy like Ryan for 8 games. Do that and you no longer have any player thinking of the foot stomp. He makes it out like it’s not that easy, but sorry, it is that easy.

I think it’s pretty easy for fans to target one guy for all frustrations experienced by a sport, but we’re still watching. I don’t think the game has been ruined at all. I think in some ways it’s actually a lot better (although I do note that there are ways it has degraded for me, but for the most part it’s the same or better).

I’m not going to defend Bettman, I just don’t think he’s anywhere as bad a commissioner as hockey fans would like to believe. It does sound as though he’s done more to keep Phoenix alive than he did to keep Winnipeg alive though. Perhaps that is just something he learned along the way… I don’t think he has a particular anti-Canadian bias. I don’t get wrapped up in that kind of thought.

Overall, a decent commissioner… stellar businessman, but like most guys of that type, he has a pretty abrasive, annoying personality that sounds like he’s constantly on the defensive (although maybe he is..)

GREAT interview on TSN … mind you Colin gets VERY pissed off to the point that he loses track of conversation at times… but very good. Colin really rips the hosts and defends Gary pretty whole heartedly. It amazes me, as im sure it amazes Colin, just how quickly people forget that Gary drafted the lease agreement in edmonton that saved the Oilers from Houston and Les Alexandre, he saved Calgary by leveraging with local and provincial politicians, he then leveraged for the oilers helping them get lotto rights, he helped save ottawa twice and granted them an expansion team despite the fact they had no NHL arena ready, he tried to save Winnipeg until it was deemed hopeless, he was NEVER involved in the Quebec sale – nor Minnie -. Hartford? cmon.
As for Jim B; we soiled a luxury bed Gary gave him. Pittsburgh handed to him on a silver platter and JB utters the word relocate… Lemieux tells him to get the f out. Bettman is furious at JB (Garys own choice to buy the Pens but didnt know JB wanted to move the pens and was lying the whole time) but finds a team he doesnt mind relocating in Nash. The league, a business, has contractual agreements to stand by and promises to keep. JB jumped the gun and started pre-selling tickets. The man is deemed too immature to ever be a part of the NHL. He tries a 3rd time to get a team by way of circumvention.

Sorry, i just listened to the Gary interview and i know the reporters know they will get followers if they rip into Bettman but i will tell you Bettman outsmarts almost every interviewer i have ever seen. He also has corrected most interviewers on hockey facts and knows pretty much every northamerican league AND its history. When you correct a encyclopedia like Ron Maclean… and make him look foolish…thats knowing your stuff. I think also he wins every interview pretty cleanly.

Sorry to rant here but thought the links would interest.

http://watch.tsn.ca/featured/#clip453862

Gary schooling reporters. Reminds me of MacLeans side remark to Scott Oake on CBC… “good luck with your interview with Gary, hes a shark.” It was a Sanjose game so ROn was using that in his usual way but Gary will make you look dumb if he wants to. Polite reporters just look dumb after and Gary goes easy on them but if you want to look big and push him he can really ruin you (if the viewer has more IQ than nachos). I remember a few interviews where i wondered how the reporter could still work after being so beaten (once was Ron himself).