This week is all about returns! A few Toronto Maple Leafs are on their way to joining the lineup if they haven’t already. And Erik Karlsson made his first trip to Ottawa as a player on the opposing team.
Opinions
Opinion: The NHL Needs Its Own Day
Or Maybe Even Its Own Month
I’ve been thinking about this for a long time now. Most major sports own a specific day or time of year that helps turn all the attention in the sports world to them — but not the NHL.
Blake’s Takes: Can Ovie Top Gretzky?
The NHL had another big week, and so did I. This week I focused on my trip to Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit to see the Red Wings, and a few big goal scorers.
Blake’s Takes: The Good, the Bad and the Penguins
Continue reading “Blake’s Takes: The Good, the Bad and the Penguins”
Blake’s Takes: Pacioretty, Plekanec, Pettersson; Quenneville, Crosby & Ovechkin!
Welcome to the fourth installment of Blake’s Takes. Here is who stood out to me during this past week in hockey.
1. Joel Quenneville
Why the Chicago Blackhawks 2019 Winter Classic Jersey is a Winner
Not the new Chicago Blackhawks Winter Classic jerseys! Those are black and white — but red is nowhere to be found. Yesterday, the team unveiled the jerseys that they will wear at the Winter Classic against the Boston Bruins on January 1, 2019, and I absolutely love this design. Continue reading “Why the Chicago Blackhawks 2019 Winter Classic Jersey is a Winner”
The Quenneville Era is Over in Chicago
Coach Q Fired After 10 Seasons.
Will His Replacement Last 10 Months?
The biggest news in the hockey world on Tuesday — and probably for this entire week — was the firing of Chicago Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville. Because when a team fires the second-winningest coach in NHL history, it’s kind of a big deal.
Quenneville’s departure comes on the heels of a five-game losing streak and a 6-6-3 record to start the 2018-19 season. Jeremy Colliton, the head coach of the Blackhawks AHL affiliate, was named Quenneville’s successor. Assistant coaches Ulf Samuelsson and Kevin Dineen were also let go, while Barry Smith was moved from the ‘Hawks front office to an assistant coaching role.
Like a lot of Blackhawks fans, I am disappointed that Coach Q was fired. Quenneville was to the Blackhawks what Mike Ditka was to the Bears or Phil Jackson was to the Bulls. Continue reading “The Quenneville Era is Over in Chicago”
Blake’s Takes: Stay Away, Slava Voynov
Welcome to the third installment of Blake’s Takes. This week, we will look at some career milestones, the Bolts’ big bet, and a player we don’t want back in the NHL And I finally have an opinion on The Global Series.
Blake’s Takes: Torts and Global Series
1. Filip Forsberg is Breaking Out
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Filip Forsberg has been one of the better players in the league for a few years now. Just watch a few seconds of his highlight reel and it’s not hard to figure out why. But he has never been in the conversation as one of the few elite forwards in the NHL along with Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, John Tavares, etc. It looks like that is about to change this year.
John Ziegler Did More Harm Than Good for Hockey
Former National Hockey League President John Ziegler Jr. passed away last Thursday. The NHL and two teams that Ziegler worked for — the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks — all issued whitewashed statements about how great Ziegler was for the NHL during his 15-year tenure as president. Various media outlets also issued brief stories, regurgitating what NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in his statement. All of these articles made a half-hearted attempt to puff up Ziegler’s accomplishments, but none really said that Ziegler did more harm than good during his run as NHL president. So I will.
Continue reading “John Ziegler Did More Harm Than Good for Hockey”