RPM's Breakaway Blog

This Ain't No Ice Ballet

2009-07-14T20:28:00.001-07:00

The playoffs are over and we’re well into the free-agent frenzy. Yet it’s not the moves dominating the hockey headlines. It’s the non-movement of current Ottawa Senator Dany Heatley. In case you’ve been living under a rock, he requested a trade from the Senators.

A deal was nearly done with Edmonton until the Heatley camp decided to wait while he slept on the decision. He did not decide to wave his no-trade clause and as of July 1st, he was due a $4 million bonus. As of today, he’s still sleeping on the decision.

This is Heatley’s second trade request in his career.

We can only speculate as to the train of thought coming from Heatley and his people to not accept the deal from Edmonton. If he’s waiting to be on a Stanly Cup contending team for next year, Marian Hossa would probably be the first in line to say the grass isn’t always greener.

He doesn’t want to play for Ottawa, but apparently he wants to play for Edmonton even less. Word from the NHL states he’s waiting for another offer – a better offer maybe. The NHL is a business and teams don’t usually bend to the requests of players who want to go to certain teams. This didn’t work for Lindros and I doubt it will work for him. He was lucky to be granted a trade request once already in his career.

Besides, his actions may not reflect well if the Edmonton deal goes through. Rumors of poor morale in the Oilers dressing room were rampant last year and the addition of Heatley cannot bode well for the room if there’s a hint that he doesn’t want to be there.

Plus, you can’t help but think that Heatley may request another trade from Edmonton once he doesn’t want to play there anymore. Heatley has played for two NHL teams in his career and has requested trades off both those teams. As we all know, Edmonton fans don’t appreciate players requesting a trade. Heatley’s jersey could be the next one added to the fire that is still smoldering from the Pronger jerseys.

There’s also the possibility of Ottawa filing a grievance for the $4 million bonus will be a hit against any team struggling against the cap.

In my opinion, there’s not room for divas in the NHL and regardless of what happens, I agree with many of the sports commentators – it will probably not end well. Edmonton won’t hold open the door for much longer and with no other teams waiting in the wings, Heatley will have no choice but to report to the Senators training camp.

Celebrate Good Times

2009-04-14T21:14:00.000-07:00

We're heading into the Stanley Cup playoffs and while everyone is picking their post-season pools, I'm thinking about goal celebrations. I remember seeing a replay of Ovetchkin's goal celebration after the 50th. It was more than the usual hands in the air. It was said to mirror an NFL touchdown celebration. Seems it upset some. My question is, why shouldn't he celebrate such an accomplishment? Some players barely reach the twenty goal mark.

Since the lockout, the NHL has been faced with selling the game and why not concentrate on one of the current superstars who is breaking away from the mold these players seem to be made in. The interviews are all cut from the same cloth and there's no one actually saying something witty or controversial. A goal celebration should be no different. Why not make it fun and different.

I say, celebrate a goal however you want, because they can be hard to come by. Especially 50 goals, a number untouched by so man other players. Get the fans excited and talking about you and how much you love to play hockey. There's nothing wrong with seeing a player just love to play. Hope you celebrate just as much next year when you get another 50.

Breakaway Queston #6

2009-04-14T21:12:00.000-07:00

Who's your Stanley Cup Favourite?

We're on the cusp of the 2009 post-season and it's time to see if the Sharks will finally pull off a Cup or fizzle out like in every other year. Will Detroit take the Cup again? Will Philadelphia or Boston end up on top in the East? Me, I'm betting on Detroit to go far.

Waiting To See Who Wins, No Matter How Long It Takes

2008-05-10T17:49:00.000-07:00

We're about a week after the marathon game between the Dallas Stars and the San Jose Sharks and it's no surprise there's talk of changing the overtime format for the playoffs. There's talk of 4-on-4 through to making the shoot-out extend into the post-season, so these games don't go so long.

I stayed up to watch that game last Sunday and at no point did I think it should have played out any other way. I don't think the fans in Dallas cared either. On TV, it looked like half the fans in the arena began to stand and watch the game mid way through the third period. Many of the seats were still full until the 3rd OT period when a few (and I mean few) gaps in the crowd could be seen. They were rewarded for this when Dallas scored to end the game and advance to the Western Conference Final.

I think it's fine the way it is. Yes I was tired, like many of the fans in Dallas were. But there was no way I was turning off that TV, even though I didn't really have anything riding on the outcome. Some things are worth the wait.

It's intense and the embodiment of the sudden death goal. The more OT time that passes, the game settles into that hypnotic fluidity of that awkward state of playing it safe and taking the chance that could end the game. There are interludes of those flashes of speed or the lead pass which get the heart racing. I comes down to that one mistake and, in the Dallas/San Jose game, which goaltender was better. Which team had the determination to stick it out a few moments or that one play more than the other team

It doesn't get much better than that for the devoted hockey fan. Why would you want to change something to make the game more exciting when it's already absolutely edge-of-the-seat entertaining?

Breakaway Question #5

2007-11-08T20:29:00.000-08:00

We're about a month into the new NHL season, which team is your favorite for the Stanley Cup?

Tell me what you think. Post a comment.

Breakaway Queston #4

2007-09-20T18:08:00.001-07:00

Which re-vamped NHL jersey do you think looks the best?

Tell me what you think. Post a comment.

Another Trend in the NHL?

2007-09-20T16:53:00.000-07:00

Is it just me or are injuries happening more in the NHL? We're a few days into the pre-season and players have already gone down with serious injuries. Sammy Salo, wrist fracture; Mathieu Schneider, ankle fracture; Andrew Archer, broken cheek, Petr Sykora, broken nose. Other players have already missed time for precautionary reasons: Roberto Luongo, Ray Emery and Sheldon Souray.

You could argue it's better to have injuries at the beginning of the season versus the end, but injuries never really go away. In addition, every point counts and key players missing from a lineup can result in lost games and unattained points. There's no "i" in team, but contributions from a veteran cannot be replaced by a rookie.Will serious injuries plague the new NHL?

Head injuries were prevalent during last season, but the rules on shots to the head have not been amended, only leading me to believe we will see a repeat of these injuries in 2007/08.

The game has certainly changed, but is a rise in injuries really the result of a loss of respect for fellow players.

To be continued...

Breakaway Question #3

2007-08-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

Do you think making offers to Restricted Free Agents is a good way to build on talent?

Tell me what you think. Post a comment.

Ok, Now I'm Getting Excited.

2007-07-14T21:42:00.000-07:00

The NHL released it's schedule this past week and I think I'm starting to get excited about the new season. My anger at the recent events has subsided and I can start moving on. Oh, just for the record, we still don't know the fate of Nashville, but whatever will be will be. I've printed the schedules (yes schedules) and I've circled the games I definitely won't want to miss. The truth of the matter is, I'm still a fan and when the new schedule is released, a switch goes off inside my brain. All the football, baseball, soccer and any other sport are good summer fillers, but nothing can replace my love for the wonderful game of hockey. Not even in 30+ degree weather.

The NHL in Summertime (Insert Cheesy Daytime TV Music Here)

2007-07-04T18:53:00.000-07:00

In this episode of the The NHL in Summertime, the Michael Nylander saga. There was a deal with the Oilers and then there wasn't. I know, I'm confused too - I woke up the morning of the Washington announcement and I remember thinking, "what?????". Due to global warming, it's not that cold here anymore.

I don't want to get into the topic pending future action, possibly legal, by the Edmonton Oilers. All I will say is what is going on in the NHL? The drama goes on and on and on. And we don't even know if Nashville will keep its franchise.

I;m still trying to get over some trade action earlier in the week. I don't think my brain can handle all this drama.

The summer is supposed to be a time fans look forward to the upcoming hockey season, but all I can look forward to is some kind of understanding of all the mayhem.

Breakaway Question

2007-07-02T01:25:00.000-07:00

On July 1st, what player do you think was paid more than he was worth?

Tell me what you think. Post a Comment.

(Personally, I think Briere was highly overpaid, but I don't want to influence your choice.)

Hey Big Spender.

2007-07-02T01:08:00.000-07:00

Holy crap. What a stupid day. I'm not going to even get into the decisions my local team made, but did you notice that all the free agents that were signed on July 1st went for much more than they were worth? The salary cap went up this year to $50 million and that seemed to translate into a GM spending spree.

I enjoy the opening of the free agent hunt, but I this year seemed like a ridiculous spectacle of deep pockets. I can't help but feeling many teams are trying to buy their way to a Stanley Cup victory and the New York Rangers should be the first to tell you how well that works.

This whole off season has been a gong show starting with the Nashville soap opera and, as I write this, I'm becoming more and more confused about the direction the NHL is going in.

The bad taste of the dealings of my hometown team will pass as they always do (the whole "we had to give up a lot to get a lot" excuse), but I thought the "New NHL" was supposed to be bigger and better. There's certainly bigger $$$'s, but after today, I'm not sure the NHL is a lot better.

How much do you want to bet the next move will be to make the nets bigger by changing the shape of them.

Breakaway Question

2007-06-30T13:25:00.000-07:00

Which free agent would you go after this summer?

Tell me what you think. Post a comment.

Well I Haven't Seen That Before.

2007-06-30T09:59:00.000-07:00

The time between the draft and the first day of player free agency is exciting for any hockey fan. Draft day can be exciting with the trades for movement within the draft. This year, though, there were only a couple big splashes by June 22. I can only assume teams are waiting to woo those free agents to bulk up their lineups - and there are a lot of players worth wooing this year:Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Ryan Smyth, Daniel Briere, and Paul Kariya to name a few. It will be exciting I'm sure.

There was something different this year. Something I've never seen before. A trade between the Flyers and the Predators for the rights to Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell was something new. These two players were to become free agents on July 1, but the Predators traded them to Philadelphia so the Flyers would have exclusive rights to sign these players. Both players now have six-year deals.

Will this be a new trend in the NHL? We usually see teams trade away these upcoming free agents at the trade deadline for a last minute boost before the playoffs. Trades after the season has ended is an interesting concept. It all comes down to what a team is willing to sacrifice for the future. The Flyers experienced a season last year worth forgetting and this seems like a gamble that paid off. Nashville also got their first round pick back in the draft.

It will definitely be interesting to see what will happen next year after the season wraps up. Whether this type of deal will become commonplace. It will be interesting to see if the excitement leading to July 1 will turn out to be less exciting due to these types of deals.

I Ain't No Puck Bunny.

2007-06-14T17:06:00.000-07:00

I don't mean to brag, but I know a thing or two about hockey. I'm no expert, but I try to know more than just who's the best looking player. I love the sport and I love talking about the sport and that's what this blog will be about - all things hockey.

This posting is just to let you all know that.