5+Game with Danny Boome 28 /09/09
5+ Game with Danny Boome is the new Article and Blog for Powerplay magazine. The article will cover the 5 main events of the week – games, trades, players, coaches – and anything else that affects the NHL community.
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5+Game 6th Edition
Danny Boome 28/09/09
The Great One Gone! The Russians are ready for revolution!! A curse upon the Blackhawks?! The NHL is back for another European Jolly and preseason comes to a close with final cuts to the rosters. This is 5+Game!
Gretzky: Following his absence from training camp and in light of the controversy surrounding the future of the Phoenix Coyotes, Wayne Gretzky parted company with the club this week. Knowing full well that the new ownership (who ever it is going to be??) would not want him involved and hoping to avoid becoming yet another distraction in the ongoing saga of the Coyotes, he stepped down on Wednesday. Unfortunately for Gretzky he has been vilified in the press for looking out for himself and abandoning his players. Many agree that while he may have been godlike as a player, his coaching was anything but.
Earlier in the week, Coyotes GM Don Malone recruited former team Canada coach Dave King as Assistant Coach and quickly replaced Gretzky as Head Coach with former Dallas Stars Head Coach Dave Tippet. Don’t count The Great One out yet – Team Canada has already contacted Gretzky about his availability!
Patriots before the League: A confutation is building between the NHL and some of the league’s top Russian Stars. The pressure is building over the players’ involvement at the 2014 Winter Olympics that will be held in Sochi, Russia. Players such as Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Ilya Kovalchuk are all stating that they are prepared to take a suspension from the league if the NHL doesn’t allow them to play for their home country in 2014. Some agents feel that the NHL will not release high valued players to compete in the tournament due to the growing rivalry between the NHL and KHL over informal business transactions and approaches towards draft picks and contracted players.
At this time, the NHL is stating that they are concerned for players’ safely, as they feel they won’t have sufficient insurance and medical coverage while in Russia.
This is what you could be missing if they don’t play!
Black Hawks Jinxed? Could the Chicago Blackhawks be facing a jinx this season before the first puck has even been dropped? Pundits are starting to change their tune about the team that was seen as an early play-off contender. Following Patrick Kane’s off-season antics, Marion Hossa’s transfer investigation, and a poor preseason, the team is now featured on the dreaded ESPN front cover. Only one NHL team or player in the past 12 years has managed to make the play-offs or the Stanley Cup final after being featured on the magazine’s front cover. That team was the 2002 Detroit Red Wings, in an article titled “Why The Wings Are the Best Team Ever.” (Seriously. That was the title on the cover.) With a much less favorable title (“Winded City?”), it seems the future may not be as bright as we’d thought for the Blackhawks.
Europe Road Trip: The NHL rolls once again into Europe this weekend to kick off the 2009-10 season. The Detroit Red Wings and St. Louis Blues will face each other in Stockholm and the Chicago Blackhawks will take on the re-vamped Florida Panthers in Helsinki. Wouldn’t it be great to nip over on Easy Jet and catch a game? Season openers in Helsinki and Stockholm are on Friday, October 2nd and Saturday, October 3rd; see Ticketmaster and NHL.com for details.
The Final Cut: For some a dream will come to an end this week; for others, their future will be taken to the next step in its development, while the rest will be treading water in the minors. As the preseason comes to an end, training camp rosters have been shortened to the league’s requirement of a 23-man squad to start this season. All 30 head coaches in the NHL have some hard choices to make this week before Thursday’s opening games. The busiest club in the off-season and preseason was Toronto, who has already sent their first round draft pick, Nazem Kadri, back to major junior to mature a little more. It looks like other first round picks Evander Kane of Atlanta and Brayden Schenn LA will be staying on a little longer as they continue to impress!
Nazem Kadri of Toronto
Evander Kane of Atlanta
Brayden Schenn of LA
Game
Game On: NHL 2009-10 season starts Thursday, October 1st! 82 games and an Olympic break until the play-offs!
The Longest preview video ever, but it gets you in the mood!!
Who’s got Game? Viktor Stalberg, the Toronto Maple Leafs rookie – 6 goals and 9 points in 7 games! Quiet, hard-working, and the team’s top points scorer in the preseason, he just made the team.
The Kids got Skills!
Who’s not got Game? Theo Fleury did not make the final cut with the Calgary Flames. The 41-year-old was given his release by the team after failing to crack the top six forwards and with GM Darryl Sutter having no intention of sending him to the AHL. Fleury says he’ll use the weekend to contemplate his future – perhaps some other offers as well?
What Game are you playing at? The NHL’s marketing sucks. You may already be aware of this. But this year, the incompetence has reached new levels. Contemplating Chaka Khan for the opening act of the 2009-10 awards show doesn’t exactly display an understanding of popular culture. Bryan Adams would be a closer fit. Come on NHL – think young and cool – that’s where you need to be heading!
If Bryan Adams did a Hockey Song..
If a cool band called hockey do a song….young and sexy!!
Check out this weeks Video Clips and News in the 5+Game Blog on www.dannyboome.tv and the 5+Game Face Book Group.
The information statistics and subject matter of articles is sourced from the official NHL web site NHL.com and it’s archives. The Hockey News.com, Yahoo Sports.com and ESPN.com. Research and quotations can at times come from other independent associated press.
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