971 replies to this topic

[AllseeingEye]

Nope, Habs fan since 1966.....

[FogPub]

^^ Seattle do look better this year, but I've still got some hope for the Canucks - and the two play each other next.

 

The Seattle media are finally starting to pay attention to the Kraken, which is also good for them.

[AllseeingEye]

Its all well and good the Seattle media is tuning in to the Kraken but of course that has to happen in order for the hockey team to remain relevant in a city where the sporting hierarchy is as follows: Seahawks, Seahawks, Seahawks, Seahawks, Mariners, College (UW) Huskies, Kraken...

 

Remember too the rebuilt/updated Key-Climate Pledge arena for the hockey club was, bigger picture, also a required prerequisite for the city if it hoped to get an NBA franchise back after losing the Sonics in 2008; and that was the real play in rebuilding Key Arena. It now seats 17,000 for the Kraken - but was very deliberately designed so it could be quickly configured to hold 18,000+ in anticipation of getting an expansion NBA team. There are also currently 30,000 s/f of unused space in the arena whose sole purpose is to be configured as a dressing/training room for an NBA club.

 

Interesting too that Geoff Baker, the main media columnist guy for the Kraken - the one who talks up the team the most by far and who's column is reprinted in other mainly US papers - is a Canadian, from Montreal originally I believe. Still a long way to go for the NHL to really ignite a broad base of passionate (professional) hockey fans in the Puget Sound. And naturally the best way to do that in a crowded major US sporting market is to win.

 

In fact just two days ago Baker had this to say in his column:

 

A three-game homestand for the Kraken this week will involve more than battling the Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver Canucks and Pittsburgh Penguins.

 

The trio of Climate Pledge Arena matchups presents an opportunity for the Kraken in their bigger, ongoing battle to define for local fans what type of team they’ll be. Establishing a stronger on-ice identity would be a step toward greater relevance in a market where their season debut was overshadowed by the playoff Mariners. They’ll also compete for attention in coming months with the surprising first-place Seahawks.

 

Through seven games entering Tuesday’s matchup against Buffalo, the Kraken showed signs of escaping their placement among the NHL’s bottom rungs. And that would be critical to making them a hotter ticket and filling some of the ample empty seats at an officially “sold out” home arena, where the Kraken failed to win their first three games.

 

Interesting to note too along the masthead of his paper (Seattle Times) the order of precedence on the sports page is: Seahawks - Mariners - UW - WSU (Washington State Cougars, which aren't even Seattle-based) and then the Kraken. Like all pro sports teams they gotta win if they want to convert hearts and minds and put bums in seats.

[Mike K.]

Climate Pledge Arena, lol.

[AllseeingEye]

Hey....I'm just the messenger I didn't name the joint....

[FogPub]

Climate Pledge Arena, lol.

That's a bit rich coming from someone who's local arena is named after a grocery store...

.

[Mike K.]

My local(er) arena is named for a radio station, thank you very much.

[AllseeingEye]

Potential trouble in Canuckville. They are right up against the salary cap and the only way to re-sign their captain with a 'market value' contract - which Horvat will get from someone like the NY Rangers to name one possibility, Colorado being another potential option - will be to move out substantial salary in return, which in today's NHL is very hard to do. Most teams have cash/cap issues so taking on some Canuck deadweight, Oliver Ekman-Larsson I'm looking at you, would be like winning the lottery and finding a unicorn on the same day.

 

To compound matters NHL Prez Gary Bettman announced this week league revenues are less than forecast so that anticipated cap lift in 2023-4 may only rise $1 miilion per team, which is peanuts and barely enough to cover off the team Gatorade budget....

 

https://www.tsn.ca/n...mours-1.1892706

[Matt R.]

^ what a bunch of babies.

[Victoria Watcher]

Canucks’ fan favourite, Gino Odjick, dies at 52

Odjick was diagnosed with Amyloidosis, an organ-attacking disease, in 2014

https://www.vicnews....ick-dies-at-52/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 16 January 2023 - 05:12 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

After weeks of speculation, the struggling Vancouver Canucks have fired head coach Bruce Boudreau.

https://www.vicnews....u-hire-tocchet/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 January 2023 - 11:08 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

A memorial for Atkins was placed on the Campbell River Mirror’s website Jan. 13 and concluded with the ultimate epitaph for the sadsack team which in recent weeks has piled more embarrassment on a rich legacy of disappointment with the very public firing of fan-favourite coach Bruce Boudreau during another losing season.

The loving tribute to Atkins concluded with a reflection of his unending wait for the ultimate hockey prize for his favourite team:

“Russell would’ve liked to have had 6 of the Vancouver Canucks to be his pallbearers so they could have let him down one more time.”

 

https://www.campbell...6b6cb860319adc5

[Victoria Watcher]

The NHL continues to draw attention for Pride Night celebrations around the league as teams and players make a decision not to wear the themed uniforms. In the latest example, the New York Rangers elected not to wear pride-themed jerseys or use rainbow stick tape in warmups prior to their game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday night.

 

The Rangers promoted Pride Night by saying the players would wear pride-themed jerseys and rainbow tape in warmups, but when the time came, the team was in its normal uniforms.

 

That unexpected change raised some eyebrows, and there were more than a few questions about why the Rangers didn't follow through with their original plan. On Saturday, the New York Post's Mollie Walker tweeted out a statement from the team, which did not include an explanation about why the team changed its plans at the last minute.

 

 

https://www.cbssport...night-uniforms/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 29 January 2023 - 09:38 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Canucks miss playoffs for three straight years.

Meanwhile Kraken are in, in just their 2nd season.

[Victoria Watcher]

Kraken win round #1.

[Victoria Watcher]

The Florida Panthers seem to be trying to avoid a Leafs Nation takeover at FLA Live Arena during their second-round playoff series.

 

Tickets for the Panthers' three home games against the Toronto Maple Leafs go on sale on Monday morning at 11 a.m. ET, but purchases are restricted to residents of the United States.

 

 

On the Ticketmaster website, a note states: "orders by residents outside of the United States will be canceled without notice and refunds given." Residency, Ticketmaster says, is based on credit card billing address.

 

Of course, there are no such rules on the secondary market — where Panthers season-ticket holders may be tempted to try to make good money from Leafs fans anxious to see their team in the second round for the first time since 2004.

 

 

 

https://www.sportsne...-u-s-residents/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 01 May 2023 - 07:54 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Canucks to hold their NHL training camp in Victoria in September

 

Taking the team outside Vancouver to start the year “allows us to connect with our loyal fans from across the province” says president of hockey operations

 

 

 

 

https://www.timescol...ptember-6989332

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 12 May 2023 - 05:12 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

NHL scores: Kraken force Game 7 vs. Stars behind three-point performances from Eeli Tolvanen, Jordan Eberle

 

https://www.cbssport...-jordan-eberle/

[AllseeingEye]

Good for Seattle - perhaps their success will spur Canuck ownership and management to get their act in gear.

 

Seattle is an odd market - it has a very long hockey history stretching from the Metropolitans over a century ago - it was the first US-based franchise to win the Stanley Cup - through the Totems in the old Western Hockey League in the 1950's/60's but hockey regardless has remained histrionically well behind the other major sports, especially the NFL in terms of fan interest, attendance and participation.

 

In order of precedence when it had the old Sonics NBA franchise, Seattle sports interest generally was viewed as NFL, NBA/MLB, UW Husky football and even the Seattle Sounders MLS franchise. I remember when the Huskies especially were a perennial NCAA Tier 1 college football power the rabid fan participation at times even surpassed that of the Seahawks. Back then Husky Stadium capacity was close to 75,000 and game "events" were region-wide and drew in fans from far beyond merely Seattle.

 

Hockey had nowhere to go but up so its nice to see the Kraken making a deep run in only their second season.

[FogPub]

The Cup this year will be contested by - and won by one of - four teams from the deep American south; and while this might be Gary Bettman's vision of the perfect future, it means (other than the draft) I'll largely ignore hockey until September.