... ^^ sounds like there quite possibly is a conspiracy underneath each face-off dot.  

Well, there you are … enough said
facebook.com/reel/174426463645...fs=e&fs=e

As we're on to a new page, and in consideration of the Don Cherry aspect of this thread, I was wondering if anyone had ever posted a picture of Don Cherry and Jackie.

Nope. I did find this, however - a montage of Jackie and former Red Wing Mickey Redmond. They're not related. And as may be expected, neither is she related to former Blackhawk and Bruin Dick Redmond (Mickey's brother).

Dick Redmond,, no relation , as far as anyone knows but who knows who jumped the fence at one point, played the point ! on the St. Catharines Blackhawks power play back in the day, wielding a menacing “banana blade” stick which had pucks flying at 100 mph , bobbing and weaving like a very fast knuckleball. They were soon outlawed after that.

In other sports highlights/lowlights, the five players charged with sexual assault were all acquitted yesterday. The league has already announced that they won't be eligible to return to the NHL until the league has thoroughly reviewed the decision. This strikes me more as PR butt-covering than anything else - the NHL certainly has access to white-shoe lawyers, but a court of law is a court of law.

Meantime, the Players Association has stated that they should be allowed to play.

Story here.

It'll be interesting to see which teams (if any) pick any of these guys up if the league DOES decide to let them back in. And it'll be interesting to see what, if any, blowback there is from said teams' fanbases. There's no way these guys won't be considered damaged goods.

They’re marred for life. How’s Milan Lucic faring….?

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Originally posted by chuckv97

They’re marred for life. How’s Milan Lucic faring….?

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In fairness, Lucic's career was already close to being on life support before the (ahem) incident.

I think there's mucho "It is better that 10 guilty men go free than one innocent person be convicted." in ^^ decision.    And maybe some "absolute proof instead of reasonable doubt, " but it reminds me of one of our local lawyers telling me that: a) judges like to leave grounds for appeal and b) You can never be sure ... he said that on occasion he'd advised guys he'd represented to, "Bring your toothbrush." but the magistrate/judge saw things differently.

Fwiw, I'm with the NHLPA   ... If they are "not guilty" what's the league's rationale?   Maybe let the fans decide??

quote:

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Originally posted by Owen

And maybe some "absolute proof instead of reasonable doubt, " but it reminds me of one of our local lawyers telling me that: a) judges like to leave grounds for appeal 

 

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You would know the Canadian system better than I do. Here in the 'States, there is no appeal from a finding of "not guilty" when it comes to criminal matters - we have pretty strict rules when it comes to double jeopardy. Those CONVICTED in criminal matters can certainly appeal, as can rebuffed parties in civil cases. But if you're the defendant and your case is broomed in criminal court, that's it.

Next question is: were any of these guys sufficiently skilled that a team would be willing to take a chance on 'em? Can't recall any of them melting the ice behind them...

Unless you're independently wealthy Skip, I wouldn't wager too much on me knowing more about the Canadian legal system than you do. 

Fwiw, news reports up here are saying that in this instance the Crown has 30 days to appeal, but that an appeal is unlikely.

In between my snoozing, TIMing and channel-hopping I'd been led to believe that Carter Hart was doing okay.   https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=172631

quote:

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Originally posted by Owen

Unless you're independently wealthy Skip, I wouldn't wager too much on me knowing more about the Canadian legal system than you do. 

Fwiw, news reports up here are saying that in this instance the Crown has 30 days to appeal, but that an appeal is unlikely.

 

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Interesting. I looked up Canadian criminal law on Wikipedia - which, as we all know, is even more infallible than a pope - and found this:

The Crown may appeal against a verdict of acquittal on a question of law alone. The accused may appeal on a question of law, fact or mixed law and fact. Either party may appeal a sentence unless the sentence is one fixed by law.

Either party is entitled to a further appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada against a conviction or acquittal if a judge of the court of appeal dissented on a question of law or if the court of appeal allowed a Crown appeal against an acquittal and substituted a conviction. Otherwise either party may appeal a verdict or sentence with leave of the Supreme Court.

As previously noted, if one is determined "not guilty" by a judge or jury in the States, that's it. You're free to go (as long as you don't have any other stuff going on). You may still be subject to civil action, but the criminal case is over.

I don’t think it’s the legal issue with these fellas,, more the stigma, and the reluctance of team owners to bring them on board.
Think Joel Quenneville…. seems like anybody associated with a scandal is persona non grata

quote:

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Originally posted by chuckv97

I don’t think it’s the legal issue with these fellas,, more the stigma, and the reluctance of team owners to bring them on board.
Think Joel Quenneville…. seems like anybody associated with a scandal is persona non grata

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And yet Quennville is back... as is Stan Bowman. Which proves only that Gary Bettman has a finely-attuned ear for when enough people have allowed their dudgeon to die down, and can convince a majority of the Governors to agree. Heck, he's probably had to convince the Governors to wait on a buncha stuff.

I've really gotta hand it to Bettman. Sometimes he gives me the willies, and he seems to like the spotlight more than I might find seemly. Even so, there's no question that he's done an incredibly smart job of balancing growth with politics. He gets paid well - reportedly, $9.5  - $10 million a year - but he ain't no billionaire. Even so, he gets billionaires to toe his line. Whatever else one might sa about him, that man is no dummy.

I really haven’t scrutinized Bettman’s decisions.. & nothing I’ve noticed about him has bothered me. I go back to his statement, when some Canadian teams were in jeopardy years ago, that he “gets it” about the Canadian element in the NHL as being important. I don’t think that was an empty statement.

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Originally posted by chuckv97

I really haven’t scrutinized Bettman’s decisions.. & nothing I’ve noticed about him has bothered me. I go back to his statement, when some Canadian teams were in jeopardy years ago, that he “gets it” about the Canadian element in the NHL as being important. I don’t think that was an empty statement.

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No, he absolutely gets that part. He understands the history and how important the game is to Canadians, and he understands how many Canadians play in the NHL. But he also understands market sizes and how big a population base is necessary to support an NHL franchise - especially these days, when smaller-market teams are valued well over a billion and any team has to gross more than $200 million per year just to meet the cap obligations. From what I can see, there's financial room for only one additional NHL team in Canada - and that's somewhere in southern Ontario, shouting distance from Toronto. The analog would be NYC, where you've got the Rangers, the Devils and the Islanders all in close geographic proximity.

In spite of mucho support, a re-vamped Expos can’t get enough big money people to invest in Montreal, even though some former players lobby hard for their return. In Southern Ontario I’m reminded of that egoist Blackbery Balsillie trying to introduce an NHL team in Hamilton , even selling seson tickets , if I remember right, before Bettman and the governors’ granted permission for a franchise.  lol .   The Sabres and Leafs are too close , Buffalo especially thinking they’ll suffer at the gate.  Many Southwestern Ontario fans from about Woodstock west have traditionally favoured the Red Wings,, as they do the Tigers in baseball. 

quote:

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Originally posted by chuckv97

In spite of mucho support, a re-vamped Expos can’t get enough big money people to invest in Montreal, even though some former players lobby hard for their return. In Southern Ontario I’m reminded of that egoist Blackbery Balsillie trying to introduce an NHL team in Hamilton , even selling seson tickets , if I remember right, before Bettman and the governors’ granted permission for a franchise.  lol .   The Sabres and Leafs are too close , Buffalo especially thinking they’ll suffer at the gate.  Many Southwestern Ontario fans from about Woodstock west have traditionally favoured the Red Wings,, as they do the Tigers in baseball. 

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That's fair, but do consider that in our lifetimes pretty much everything west of the Connecticut River, east of the Alleghenies and south of the Quebec border was owned by the Rangers. It's true that the population has grown, but even so, the market now supports three NHL teams. As the crow flies, the NJ Devils play less than ten miles from Madison Square Garden and the Islanders are about 15 miles east of that. Three teams within a 30 mile radius.

Consider also SoCal, where the Kings and the Ducks play in arenas about 27 miles from one another. In the middle of a desert.

Bottom line is that if a well-financed group has the means to buy or build a franchise and the other team owners think it (at minimum) wouldn't hurt and (best case) may help grow interest in dollars, they'll take a look. Little doubt that Buffalo wouldn't be crazy about the idea.  Buffalo's got the Sabres, the Bills, chicken wings and Beef-on-Weck sandwiches, all supported by a small (just over a million in the metro area) and spleeny population. Not much else.

With more than 10 million people in the Golden Horseshoe, I would think southern Ontario could support another team, and I know how much Canadians would LOVE to see another NHL franchise in the nation. I just don't see anywhere else in Canada that could support one.

As an aside ,,,,,,
“ Overview
NHL player percentages based on where they're from : r/nhl
Approximately 322 Canadian players were on NHL rosters as of December 4, 2023, with about 45.7% of those players, or roughly 147, hailing from Ontario, according to The Hockey News.”
I grew up in the “Golden Horshoe” , 30 miles from Buffalo,, 65 miles from Toronto. Yes, the population is there for a third team ,, getting it done seems to be a problem.

Not much else?!?!?!

Say what????

Wot about snow, some sort of canal, and "shuffle off to ______________," ??   

^^^^^ don’t forget the forgettable Jim’s Truck Stop…. (Cheektowaga being a Fubbalo suburb just off l-90, exit 52E)

quote:

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Originally posted by Owen

Not much else?!?!?!

Say what????

Wot about snow, some sort of canal, and "shuffle off to ______________," ??   

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Think that was "truckin' up to ______________." It didn't sound like Garcia and Weir were looking forward to the trip. 

Now you've done it, Skip!!  [i.e. made me consult the all-knowing Google].

And I've learned that Shuffle off To Buffalo was a 1995 song by the Boswell sisters; apparently it's a metaphor for, "...  a couple excitedly planning their honeymoon trip to Niagara Falls, using the metaphor of shuffling off to Buffalo. The lyrics playfully reference the anticipation of starting a family... etc.  ."

Can't speak for Garcia/Weir, but most guys I know [knew?] looked forward to at least part of, "starting a family."   

I heard “shuffle off to Buffalo” back in the sexy sixties,, maybe even in the nifty fifties. It’s sorta like “go forth and multiply”..... ( however, I'd never say that to Jackie , Maddy, or even Mickey & Dickie)

I had drifted off to parts unknown by the time the "Baby J's" played in the auld hometown. (it being the home of the Niagara Grape & Wine Festival) & to tie it in with our thread namesake, , how about about DC’s getting recruited by the Dodgers…!?  sheesh

Yessir,, this is where the rubber puck meets the historical road….
youtu.be/sSM4tWe0J4M?si=e6e1EYiaBPLJqxeq