I did not see the Aaron Asham vs. Jay Beagle fight until a few minutes ago. I did however read a bunch of stuff about the fight earlier in the day in my Google Reader, which doesn’t play videos. With all the uproar over his actions, you’d think he stomped on Beagle’s head with his skate and then urinated on him right there on the ice. But here is what he did:

You know what that is? That’s entertaining! It’s a guy who is jacked up on adrenaline after whooping the ass of his opponent. Nothing to apologize for.

Where do we stop with this craziness? Professional hockey is entertainment, nothing more and nothing less. It’s about heroes and villains, about big hits and fights, just as much as it is about highlight goals and amazing saves. So let them entertain. Let’s stop dissecting every action of showmanship while sitting on a high horse. It’s not that big of a deal, people. It really isn’t.

The stuff I’ve read over the last 24 hours about the NHL being hypocrites for cracking down on headshots and still allowing fighting is downright stupid. There’s a big difference between getting blindsided and fight between two willing combatants. There’s also that little thing about fighting that, oh I don’t know, makes hockey what it is. It belongs in the game. Case closed.

/ over and out

// sleeper motion

Some quick thoughts as I take a break from researching snow blowers. Damn, no good global warming really messed up my driveway last winter by not showing the eff up.

– Very impressed with the Colorado Avalanche so far this year. That team is just stacked with youth. This Landeskog kid looks real good. And you know what, I think I may have been wrong by mocking Sherman for giving up a 1st rounder for Varlamov. Though let the record show that I was just joining in with the mob on that one!

Of course,  I say all this after they beat the Sens 7-1 and that could prove to be the high point of their season. All down hill from here!*

* Nah, they’ll be fine.

– Luongo has been fantastic in his first two games. Fantastic at making snow angels that is. Granted, he always starts off slow but you’ve got to wonder if we’re going to see him decline from now on. Say what you want about him, he’s been a pretty damn good goalie over the years. If not for his mental issues, he could have been great. Just don’t see much positives there anymore at 32 years of age. It’s a prime age for handsome bloggers such as yours truly to make their mark on the world but not goalies with 12 years of experience in the league already.

So what would you do if you were the Canucks? I’d really have a hard time trading Cory Schneider. In fact, I think I’d do everything I can to try to convince Schneider to sign on for a couple more years with the promise that if he keeps up his stellar play, he’d have every shot at taking over as the starter.

This also once again points out the danger of these long contracts. They’re always good for the short-term but so many things change yearly that they’re really a death sentence in the long run.

– Don Cherry is a good guy. I don’t care what people say about him and his opinions, to me, he’ll always be a good guy. I believe at the end of the day he means well. I don’t agree with everything he says but there are also many things I do agree on. I guess that’s bound to happen when you voice opinions on touchy subjects every week. And there’s something that differentiates Cherry from guys like Roenick or Milbury or other loudmouths whether they be in politics or whatever. I’m not sure what it is; It may be childhood memories of watching Coach’s Corner; Or it may be that he doesn’t strike me as someone who’s fake like so many of these shock jocks do.

Maybe it’s because of his age. The more I think about it, the more I think that’s the thing. Because if someone younger was saying that, I probably wouldn’t feel the same. You gotta admire a man who has forged his own beliefs over his lifetime and sticks by them. No matter how much of a sonofabitch you think he is, you still gotta respect him for that. And I do.

– But his comments about Nilan were all wrong. Because from what I read, Nilan did not say what Cherry said he said.

– That’s all for now. I’ll leave you with this: If you’re not watching Boardwalk Empire on HBO, you’re missing out. By far the best show going right now, imo.

A dying breed...

Great read courtesy of the Montreal Gazette. (Stick tap to BoF reader Rouven for the link.)

Chris Nilan cuts through the pity fest and stomps on all the bullshit…

“I’m not sayin’ take fightin’ out of hockey,” Nilan said. “I’m not sayin’ I want fighting out of hockey. What I am sayin’ is that (NHL commissioner Gary) Bettman can take it out if he likes … that he might as well take it out because it’s not being used the way it once was. It’s so different now.

“Guys make excuses that oh! the instigator rule makes it too tough to fight. I say take the extra two minutes anyway. These days, they take too many two-minute penalties for hookin’ or holdin’ or stupid, little penalties.”

This is so true. Fighting is definitely not what it used to be. I don’t get the point of having an enforcer if his job is not to clean up the BS for fear of giving up a two-minute minor. Crosby takes a hit to the head? You bet your ass that an enforcer should be sent out and drop a few on whoever did it. Someone keeps running your goalie? Bust them up so next time they think twice. It used to be like that, I don’t know what happened because you rarely see it anymore.

Nilan also had some great words on what Laraque said (my post about that here)…

“Oh, listen to this big bullead sayin’: ‘It’s the toughest job in hockey . that I couldn’t watch a movie the night before a game,’ ” Nilan said, shedding a mock tear or two. “Here he is sayin’ all this s—! Here’s this guy who never had two, three fights in a game. He never had to go into Boston to fight (Stan) Jonathan, (Terry) O’Reilly, (John) Wensink, (Al) Secord or (Gord) Kluzak.

“I won’t sit here and tell you I was never scared,” Nilan continued. “Of course, I was nervous before a game. I knew I had to fight. Before a game I knew that maybe I had to fight two or three guys. But not for a second the previous night was I goin’ around moanin’ I couldn’ watch a movie. Not for a second was I depressed.”

Oh snap!

Now here’s Nilan talking about the transition from hockey to retirement. Keep in mind that Nilan made a pittance compares to what today’s NHLers make.

“Was I bummed out and down when I had to retire?” Nilan asked. “Yeah, why wouldn’t’ I be, especially when you’re 34 years old? Did I have the easiest transition in the world outside of hockey? No! But it happens to a lot of guys. It happens to players. It happens to referees. It happens to a lot of peoples who don’t play hockey.”

Here’s a guy owning his life and not making excuses or looking to play the role of the drama queen. Kudos, Mr. Nilan!

Article wraps up perfectly…

“The rest of it . I don’t buy. I truly believe these are three different people and they’re three different cases who had issues in their lives. You can try and tag it they were fighters and that’s why they died, but I don’t buy it.”

Read the rest of it here.

I know I’m probably losing readers by harping on this subject but it’s astounding to me that I see new stuff about this every day.

Came across this article today: Time For NHL to Treat All Players Like People, Regardless of Role

Let’s dissect a few juicy tidbits.

Zenon Konopka, a fighter for the Ottawa Senators, had an interesting take on the pressures of life in the NHL, focusing on when the game ends for a player: “The whole retirement thing has to be looked at as well…The transition from playing to retirement is obviously a tough one, especially when you’re in your mid-30s, compared to most people who retire in their 60s or 70s.”

Yeah, lord knows that it’s a bitch to retire at 35 than in your 70s.

I’m literally laughing out loud while writing this because it’s insanity!

The retirement issue is significant, because many players retire because they feel done with hockey, while others retire because they’re unable to find a job with another team.

And other people get their asses fired or lose their business or quit because their boss is an asshole. Then they move on to another job or another career.

But here’s the kicker.

According to some stats I found online (which we all know is the best source for stats) the median household income in the USA in 2003 was $45,000.

$45,000.

Minimum NHL salary is $500,000 or there about.

Let’s say that because of the higher tax bracket/agent fees an NHL player making minimum has a take home salary somewhere around $250,000. And let’s just bump that Average Joe’s medium household income up to $50,000 and call it their take home pay to make things easier.

For every year an NHL scrub/enforcer/whatever making $500,000 plays in the league, he’s making five times the amount of an Average Joe.

According to this,  the average NHL career lasts 5.66 years.

5.66 years making the league minimum is equivalent to an Average Joe working for 28.3 years.

Poor professional athlete.

Has to retire young and then get a real world job. HOW CAN WE LET THEM LIVE LIKE THIS?

Back to the article in question:

The solution? Guaranteed jobs for enforcers might be nice, but it’s not very realistic. Instead, my hope is that GMs and coaches will look at the events of this summer and realize just how vulnerable players are. While one can’t expect GMs to hold onto players who can’t do what they’re needed to do, perhaps they can make more of an effort to retain players, even if there’s a slightly younger, slightly cheaper alternative in the pipeline. Instead of using players and discarding them when something better comes along, perhaps GMs can try and hold onto players who have served a team.

And perhaps even better, maybe they can work with those players, helping them to improve their skating and backchecking, giving them more of a skill-set than simply fighting.

I’m sorry but this comes off like some “Save The Children” informational except for F*UCKING GROWN MEN WHO EARN A CRAPLOAD OF MONEY FOR PLAYING A SPORT!

“For as little as $5.00 a day we can ensure that Jody Shelley can learn how to backcheck and not have to retire at 35 years of age. Look at his face, no man should suffer like this”

The insanity is that when Dan Ellis was talking about his problems everybody ridiculed him and made him come off silly. Now everybody (well many, anyway) are doing the same thing for enforcers.

It’s insanity, I tell ya!

I’m sure this post will upset half the people reading it (meaning 1 or 2 people at the most), but I thought I’d voice a different point of view than the one I’ve been reading since Belak’s death.

I like hockey. I like sports in general. And while I stay current with the four major sports, I consider myself a casual sports fan at the end of the day because I rarely ever plan my days around sports — with the notable exception being the NFL Playoffs.

I refuse to put these athletes on some pedestal like I may have when I was a kid. Reading some of the stuff I’ve been reading the past few weeks leaves me a bit perturbed because it showers pity on professional athletes. That’s just silly, in my opinion, of course.

Wade Belak committed suicide (allegedly). Rick Rypien committed suicide (allegedly). Derek Boogaard mixed pills with alcohol (allegedly) and died.

All sad tragedies for those who knew them on a personal level. And extra painful and sad for Belak’s daughters who are the biggest victims of their father’s death.

But I’m sorry, heroes or martyrs they are not. People commit suicide every day and most don’t have the options or possibilities that professional athletes do.

And that’s why these words by Georgs Laraque on the plight of enforcers really made me see what a delusional world some people live in.

“This job is so hard, physically and mentally,” said Laraque. “You can go to a movie theatre the night before a game and you’re thinking of the fight you’re going to get into the next day.

“Like, you have to fight Boogaard. Then that game’s over and it’s like, ‘OK, I have to fight Jody Shelley.’ After that it’s Brian McGrattan. You try not to think about it, but you start with the drugs or the alcohol and that creates the problem,” Laraque continued.

“And, when you retire, most of the tough guys aren’t set (for life). You don’t make a lot of money as a fighter, so they’re thinking ‘OK, now what do I do?  So they go back to drugs and alcohol. There’s no options.”

I’m sorry but this is typical “I have it so rough” drama queen type stuff.

Let’s address the “when you retire, most of the tough guys aren’t set (for life)” line. Minimum salary in the NHL these days is over $500k a year. You play in the league for four years and you’re basically a millionaire after agent fees, taxes, etc. 100% of the population can retire with $1,000,000 in their bank. That is, unless they want to live a lifestyle that’s not entirely needed.

Now the line “So they go back to drugs and alcohol. There’s no options.” Are you kidding me? There are options available for professional athletes that aren’t available to anyone in society. Putting “NHL Player” on your resume I would imagine opens up way more doors than, say, “Hockey Blogger.” Some use this to their advantage. others toil away in self-pity; Just like in the general population.

And now to the line “This job is so hard, physically and mentally.”  While I can see the fighting week in and week out taking its toll on a person, this is another self-pity line by Laraque. The life of on an NHLer is not hard, no matter what some people will write. They are pampered and taken care of in every single aspect of their lives. They play a game that is made out to be more than a game, which some buy into causing unneeded stress. And while they may have to deal with physical injuries more often than the general population, it is the line of work they chose. Don’t like it? Quit.

Which brings me to the other contradiction I keep reading. If life is so hard as a player, how can it be depressing when you retire?

I guess the one thing it’s all about at the end of the day is personal greed. Some people want their fame, their perks, their lifestyle and their money. When they have to sacrifice something to get it, they wallow away in self-pity or complain. Kind of silly when you think about it, no?

As far as the disease of depression goes. It is just that: A disease. It affects everyone from athletes to cashiers. People shouldn’t make the sport the story when it comes to depression but rather they should focus on the individual, his story and the disease itself. I know very little about Rypien, Boogaard and Belak’s life story. You’d think people would focus more on that rather than the fact they were just hockey players.

In the case of Rypien, I just found out a few days ago that his girlfriend died in a car accident while he was in junior. Makes you think that would have a greater effect on his life path than fighting ever did, no?

And if hits to the head because of the sport are to blame for some athletes, then I’m sorry to sound cold, but that’s the price of doing business. Just like every time I get on a plane, there’s a chance the plane will crash. And even  if we eliminate all unnecessary physical contact (like fighting), there’s still going to be individuals abusing drugs and alcohol, because while they may live in a fantasy world, they’re still human. And like many humans they like to create problems for themselves rather seeing their blessings.