NHL: Preseason!

Teflon Billy said:
What if, as has happened before, Colin Campbell (and Gary f'n bettman) are listening to--your example--Pat Quinn?
Click to expand...

Yep, that's how it used to go. Now Campbell and Bettman need to listen to the fans, not the GMs and coaches.

The problem is, if the fans get vocal during games, which unfortunately is a big possibility, then it might not stick. Let's hope the fans realize that some long, hard-to-watch, penalty-filled games now for better hockey in the future is worth it.

I still think this Competition Commitee that was created will do its job and ensure that the rules are followed from this point onward. Hopefully that isn't as gullible as it sounds... :p
 

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Minnesota goes wild on Coyotes

Sports Ticker

9/17/2005 10:21:06 PM

ST. PAUL, Minnesota (Ticker) -- The Minnesota Wild may have found their top line combination.

Brian Rolston, Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Mikko Koivu combined for four goals and four assists and Dwayne Roloson stopped 20 shots as the Wild posted a 7-0 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes.

Desperate for another offensive weapon other than Marian Gaborik, Minnesota signed center Rolston as a free agent in July 2004. Coach Jacques Lemaire elected to put him between the youngsters Bouchard and Koivu, and the move paid off instantaneously.

Rolston opened the scoring with a power-play goal late in the first period and Bouchard doubled Minnesota's lead seven minutes into the second. After a shorthanded tally by Wes Walz midway through the stanza, Koivu gave the Wild a 4-0 bulge at 2:05 of the third.

Bouchard capped the scoring for his line with a power-play tally at 6:30, while Roman Voloshenko and Pascal Dupuis scored with the man advantage later in the period to provide the final margin.

Roloson made eight saves in the first period, seven in the second and five in the third for the shutout. David LeNeveu surrendered seven goals on 35 shots for the Coyotes.

Phoenix played without newcomers Brett Hull, Mike Ricci, Petr Nedved and goaltender Curtis Joseph. Gaborik sat out for the Wild.
 

Sakic scores twice in Avalanche win

Sports Ticker

9/17/2005 10:55:31 PM

DENVER (Ticker) -- The Colorado Avalanche lost an abundance of veteran goal-scorers over the summer, but their long-time captain continues to produce.

Joe Sakic scored a pair of goals, including one that snapped a tie late in the third period, as the Avalanche registered a 4-2 triumph over the Dallas Stars.

Due to the NHL's new salary cap, the Avalanche were unable to retain proven scorers Peter Forsberg, Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne for the 2005-06 season. However, along with teammates Alex Tanguay and Milan Hejduk, Sakic is proving he still is among the elite offensive players in the league.

Captain of the Avalanche franchise since 1992, Sakic gave Colorado a 1-0 lead 30 seconds into the game. With the contest even at 2-2, the former Hart and Conn Smythe Trophy winner netted his second goal of the game, a power-play tally with 4:15 to go in the third period that put the Avalanche ahead for good.

Defenseman Patrice Brisebois added a power-play goal and 2003 fourth-round pick David Svagrovsky scored an empty-netter for Colorado.

Peter Budaj allowed two goals on 11 shots before David Aebischer came on to make 12 saves for the Avalanche.

Jussi Jokinen scored twice in 5 1/2 minutes in the second to erase a 2-0 deficit for Dallas.
 

Vanek, Biron, lead Sabres to OT win

Associated Press

9/17/2005 10:07:02 PM

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Rookie Thomas Vanek scored his second goal of the game 34 seconds into overtime to give the Buffalo Sabres a 3-2 pre-season victory over Washington Capitals on Saturday night.

Ales Kotalik also scored in Buffalo's pre-season opener, and goalie Martin Biron stopped 27 shots.

Matt Pettinger and Bryan Muir scored for Washington, which squandered two one-goal leads. The Capitals opened exhibition play Friday night with a 6-0 loss at Carolina.

Vanek, the fifth player selected in the 2003 draft out of the University of Minnesota, converted Daniel Briere's pass through the slot in overtime. Driving to the right of the net, Vanek managed to get his stick on the puck despite being checked by Muir - his weak shot dribbling in just behind goalie Maxime Daigneault.

Vanek forced overtime when, set up by Briere, he blasted a 45-footer past Daigneault midway through the third period.

Capitals goalie Olaf Kolzig stopped all 22 shots he faced through two periods before being replaced by Daigneault.

Buffalo did have one goal disallowed when Andrew Peters was penalized for goalie interference after driving into the crease to tip in Teppo Numminen's shot from a bad angle in the first period.

Vanek capped his night when he scored Buffalo's lone goal in the shootout session, which the NHL is introducing the season to eliminate tie games. All pre-season games, no matter what the score, feature a shootout.
 

Gagne scores three; Flyers win in London

Sports Ticker

9/17/2005 8:39:10 PM

LONDON, Ontario (Ticker) -- This is exactly what the NHL was hoping for.

Simon Gagne recorded a hat trick and Jon Sim collected two goals and an assist as the Philadelphia Flyers posted a wild 8-6 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers at the John Labatt Centre.

Aiming to bring more scoring to the game to appease fans, the NHL instituted a number of rule changes, including the elimination of the red line to allow breakout passes. The style of play the league envisioned became reality Saturday as the Flyers carried a 6-2 lead into the third period, which featured six more tallies.

Gagne gave Philadelphia a 2-1 lead in the first period, opening the scoring with a shorthanded goal before snapping a tie at 11:09. He completed his hat trick with 17 seconds remaining in the third, scoring into an empty net to seal the win.

Sim put the Flyers ahead, 5-1, at 3:14 of the second period and tallied again 7 1/2 minutes into the third after Brad Larsen and J.P. Vigier - who also scored in the first period - netted goals less than a minute apart to draw the Thrashers within 6-4.

Defenseman Kim Johnsson and newcomers Turner Stevenson and Mike Knuble also scored goals for the Flyers, while 2003 first-round pick Mike Richards collected three assists.

Larsen and defenseman Mark Popovic each had a goal and an assist for the Thrashers, who played without star right wing Marian Hossa.

Injuries prevented Peter Forsberg, Sami Kapanen and defenseman Derian Hatcher from playing for Philadelphia. Kapanen (shoulder) is expected to miss at least 10 weeks, while Forsberg (ankle) and Hatcher (knee) are questionable to start the regular season.
 

Bourque scores two, Hawks edge Flames

Associated Press

9/17/2005 10:00:11 PM

CHICAGO (AP) - Rookie Rene Bourque scored his second goal with 17.8 seconds left to give the Chicago Blackhawks a 5-4 victory over the Calgary Flames in an exhibition game Saturday night.

Bourque skated behind the net and sent a backhand shot from a sharp angle between Calgary goalie Philippe Sauve and the left post.

Calgary's Chris Simon scored a power-play goal with 1:09 left in the third period to tie it at 4-4. Mark Giordano, who added two assists, scored with 5:53 remaining in the third to help rally the Flames from a 4-2 deficit.

Kyle Calder, Matthew Barnaby and Cam Barker also scored for the Blackhawks in their opener.

Jarome Iginla and Jordan Leopold also scored for the Flames, who lost to Edmonton in a shootout Friday night in their opener.

Michael Leighton played the entire game in goal for Chicago, making 33 saves.

Brent Krahn started in nets for the Flames, allowing three goals on 21 shots. Sauve replaced him at 9:20 of the second and permitted two goals on 13 shots.

There were 28 minor penalties, 17 against Chicago and 11 against Calgary. Chicago was 3-for-10 on the power play, while Calgary was 2-for-17.

The Blackhawks took a 2-0 lead just 3:51 in thanks to 5-on-3 power-play goals by Bourque and Barker.

The Flames tied it 2-2 midway through the first on Iginla's and Leopold's goals.

Calder scored a power-play goal at 9:20 of the second to give Chicago a 3-2 lead. Barnaby made it 4-2 midway though the third.
 


I still think this Competition Commitee that was created will do its job and ensure that the rules are followed from this point onward. Hopefully that isn't as gullible as it sounds...
Click to expand...

Nope, I agree. I think that the NHL has to change to reclaim it's place in the big four of sports. It saounds like the league brass knows it, and are committed to change.
 

Frolov scores twice in Kings victory

Associated Press

9/18/2005 12:39:20 AM

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Alexander Frolov scored two goals and newcomer Jeremy Roenick had three assists to help the Los Angeles Kings beat the Anaheim Mighty Ducks 4-2 on Saturday night in the pre-season opener for both teams.

Roenick, making his Kings debut after joining the team in an off-season trade with Philadelphia, assisted on Mike Cammalleri's power-play goal midway through the second period and set up Frolov's two goals later in the period.

Craig Conroy also scored for the Kings.

Jason Marshall gave Anaheim a 1-0 lead in the opening period. Shortly after the goal, Marshall was attacked by Kings forward Ken Belanger, who received 19 penalty minutes and a game misconduct.

Rookie Corey Perry added a goal late in the first to give Anaheim a 2-0 lead.

The teams combined for 36 penalties.
 

Sunday's Games! Let's begin with...

Sabres hold off Blue Jackets

Associated Press

9/18/2005 7:20:18 PM

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Tim Connolly, Milan Bartovic and Michael Ryan scored to lead the Buffalo Sabres to a 3-2 win over Columbus on Sunday.

The Sabres, who beat Washington by the same score in their preseason opener on Saturday night, dominated the first two periods before a crowd of 15,374 at Nationwide Arena.

Ryan Miller had a shutout until midway through the third period. Blue Jackets defenceman Duvie Westcott scored on a wrist shot from the top of the right circle to cut the lead to 3-1. Greg Mauldin then made it 3-2 when he scored in a scrum with just under six minutes remaining.

Miller, who finished with 41 saves, stopped Columbus on a power play and a breakaway in the final minutes.

On the third of Buffalo's four power-play chances in the opening period, Connolly redirected a hard shot from the right wing by Chris Drury for a 1-0 lead. The goal came soon after Columbus had weathered two 5-on-3s.

With seven seconds left in the first period, Bartovic cleaned up a rebound after Columbus goaltender Martin Prusek stopped Maxim Afinogenov's shot from close range.

Ryan then made it 3-0 by beating Andrew Penner in the second period, shortly after Penner replaced Prusek. Prusek, a free-agent signing who played last year for Ottawa, stopped 25 of 27 shots.

The Blue Jackets are without their top player, Rick Nash, who is sidelined with an ankle sprain. Nash, who signed a $27-million US, five-year contract this summer, is expected to miss another week or two.
 

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