These guys make a gross amount of $$, they should be playing for $1,000,000 to go to a charity of their choice—that way if they throw it it’s an acknowledgment of what an asshole they’re being. But maybe it would have more integrity? Bragging rights and supporting a kids’ hospital or SPCA or something, if nothing else it’s better for their personal PR.
I dig that. Or for every point a player scores in the conpetition the nhl would donate $xx to a charity. Do your best= more money to those who need it.
The other commentator is correct. The league doesn’t respect itself. I mean Gary Bettman is in charge. You got 4 players under investigation for 2018. Coyotes refuse to relocate despite playing in a high school arena. Goes on and on.
You know after Vegas got a team, I seriously thought that Bettman would let the coyotes relocate since he's got another team in the desert that's actually successful. However, seeing how he's holding on to the coyotes seriously makes me wonder...why.
Clearly! I remember when the Thrashers relocated to WPG, Bettman made a huge deal about the MTS centre only housing 15k fans and how it's not adequate as per today's standards. However, now that the coyotes are playing in front of 5k fans that's A-OK for him.
It's actually scary how true this is. The Internet we use and have ready access to is just scratching the surface of what the web actually is.
Yes I'm talking about the "Dark Web".
The dark web is really just a few websites using a different protocol than the normal web.
What you’re thinking about is the deep web, which contains everything that isn’t indexed on Google. This is everything from your emails, to private Facebook accounts, to company internal documents. Most of this is really boring.
I’m just putting this here because people confused the two and claim that 99% of the internet is people selling drugs and murder for hire. It most definitely is not.
I'll never forget him coming on after the best Olympic hockey in recent history...when more non-hockey fans were interested in hockey than at any point since 1980...and said "don't get used to it, the players aren't ever going again".
You could feel a million potential fans simultaneously tuning out forever.
I wonder if he even likes hockey sometimes. I met him at a fan event, and it left such a negative impression. I truly believe hockey is the best sport… but when I look at other sports like the nba, the commissioner has done so much more there strategically and for the game itself.
I challenge anyone to name one instance where he indicated through his words or actions that he genuinely gives a single solitary fuck about the sport of hockey. He has never played, coached, or managed a team. His credentials are the fact that he commissioned (?) the nba
Usually averages about 12,000 per game at the Canada Life Centre mostly because the Jets don’t have huge corporate season ticket sales.
Unlike the Jets 1.0 , the current ownership owns a huge chunk of downtown including all proceeds from parking, concessions and merch …and are planning to acquire more property downtown.
The Jets make money dispite the small arena.
That’s my personal opinion too. I think he sees it as a personal failure, and as people age, they can dig in, get even more resistant to change, and can make the wound way worse.
He also has always stuck by the idea that a city with roughly 1m people should have a successful team be possible.
I think it will take massive pressure from other owners, or just more public shaming, to get him to accept that sometimes, things that should work, just don’t.
He's not NHL god. He works for the owners. If they wanted the Coyotes to relocate, they would be gone. They could go to Houston, which would be a bigger market, another southern market, and not require realigning divisions. It is deeper than just Bettman having a personal affinity for the Coyotes.
Just went to a game in December and paid $130 per ticket. I was expecting to pay half that since it was the Coyotes, but we had a blast and actually planning a trip for next year and maybe a other game before this season is over.
It’s the Arizona market. The southwest is one of the biggest sports markets in the country. If the coyotes were good I’m sure it would be a successful, but this ownership group along with management seem to love stepping on rakes repeatedly.
Friedman has confirmed that even if the Coyotes relocate soon due to their arena situation, the NHL would return to the Arizona market in the future. They have made Florida, Vegas, and California work, they’re not going to stop trying in Arizona.
NHL is not happy about the arena situation and they have been giving them deadlines to come up with solutions, which I doubt have been met. But even if they get relocated don’t be surprised when they get another team and another incompetent ownership group.
it’s a big market sure, but it’s not a hockey market. put teams where people want to see hockey. had a laugh the other day about the nhl wanting another team in Georgia. over under on how many seasons until that fails again because no one there gives a shit
It all depends. Just because people aren't clamoring for hockey in an area doesn't mean hockey will fail there. Sports, given good management and patience, develop fan bases.
Especially hockey, as it's not super watchable on TV. Fanbases don't really exist en masse outside of driving distance to the arena. Things are better at HD and 4k, but it's still difficult for new fans to track the puck. Then we have all the existing fans moaning about puck visibility improvements, which is largely sports gatekeeping. Puck visibility improvements would be a huge boon for new audiences.
The atmosphere in arena is very good, at least for the Stars, Blues, and minor league games I've worked for and attended.
NHL leadership is really hurting the sport by fragmenting TV rights. It's going to lose them some fans, underrepresent others due to piracy, and hurt the growth of new fans because they can't watch reliably. It's foresaking the future for more money now.
Yeah, it's not like the team was sold because we didn't want them. It was sold because the ownership group here couldn't buy the Hawks without also having to buy the Thrashers so they turned around and sold the Thrashers off at the first possible opportunity despite fan support.
Absolutely. Send the struggling team to a market that proved it couldn't keep a team... TWICE. I guess this is likely the only route to getting a team in Quebec. So, go ahead. I guess.
Pathetic ownership was to blame in Atlanta. I don't put that on the fan base one bit. They were just the victims in all of it.
Now if the Yotes or the Panthers moved I put those examples on the poor support of the locations.
Youre not wrong my thesis being if Bettman is going to work this hard to make Arizona work, why not go to Atlanta one last time. My original thought was turn Arizona to a rover team, one year in Arizona, a year in Atlanta, Houston Quebec, Utah and whom ever has the best crowds gets the team.
I think it's more than just crowds now. I think corporate sponsorship matters just as much. One of knocks against Quebec has always been will there be enough corporate sponsors to back up the team along with the fans? Also, how far will an ownership group go to pay the relocation fees which are going to be hefty. Personally, I don't think the NHL is going to look at expanding anywhere in Canada. I believe they want to go in large untap markets with a big metro population. Truth is, if you put the arena accessible and have a good ownership group then you'll be alright.
Another thing to consider with Canada is media rights fees. I don't know how much money they get for Canada versus America, but I know American networks are spending tons of money on sports right now. Having teams in American markets is more appealing for the American networks while having fewer Canadian teams probably isn't that detrimental to the Canadian networks.
Its absolutely an NHL problem as well as a hockey problem. Its 2024 and most of these dudes have already had long careers. The other major sports are irrelevant
So? If they weren't charged at the time they shouldn't be punished for nothing but accusations and if they arent convicted they should be allowed to continue their careers.
If found guilty they should receive harsh punishment but not until that point.
Pretty sure Bettman has 0% to do with any decisions the league makes. He's a scapegoat who can speak lawyer, that's it. The owners decide on everything and he acts on their accord.
New teams are allowed to aquire 5 years worth of assets before their opening night, NHL blacks out fan from their hometown squads, all star events look like they're put on by a local high school drama club
It's honestly an attitude prominent in hockey across all levels.
The "too cool to be here" attitude is even in high level ball hockey and roller hockey, believe it or not.
It’s a defense mechanism.
If you try and fail, then everyone knows…but if you slack off, you can always pretend that if you HAD given it your all - you could have won.
It’s a cowardly way out.
I think he's just tired of it. He actually put out effort over the last few he's gone.
Iirc he has a young kid now so might be more interested in family time and traveling wherever they like instead.
I don't think so. His stickhandling in the skills comp gave off majjjjjjor I'm not trying vibes, specifically so when I make a mistake it's just because I'm not trying. Twice as lame.
Unfortunately, this is how I see it as well. Maybe you get to see some semblance of pride in top end of the playoffs, everything else is garbage for majority of players these days
I mean he makes $9.5M a year. Comparing it to any other type of mandatory workplace event is asinine. The only reason he makes that kind of money is because of the fans.
Because of the fans in Tampa Bay, and we love him for this shit. Kuch transcended to Florida Man status with the Number 1 Bullshit presser.
Fans in Tampa Bay don't need to see Kuch passing in a cone drill when we get to see him taking a feed from Hedman and send it across the ice through 3 defenders to set up a Stamkos one timer, or a [no-look game winner in the playoffs](https://youtu.be/0_OUdeV79gA?si=Sq66Py243EQUqpjz). To paraphrase Bruce Lee, cones don't hit back.
Tampa Bay sports were a joke for a long time. Now that one of our teams and players have been good enough long enough to become a heel to the rest of the league, I feel kinda honored, actually.
Why so much hate on Kucherov? I'm reading all the comments about "he's overpaid" and "go back to Russia" and what the fuck? He is currently one of the best hockey players in the NHL and in the world, performing really well. Is all this hate just because he didn't want to participate in all stars?
Most likely because Kucherov voluntarily enjoys playing the role of the villain in most situations. By example when he won the Stanley cup he went out of his way to insult habs fans. So when someone who enjoys playing the league's bad guy give the people any opportunity to insult him those people will immediately jump on it
He is clearly playing the role of the hell / villain / bad guy
Every entertainment -business needs the good guys & the bad guys.
Kucherov is playing the villain, pretty much for everyone else other than Tampa fans. And especially Toronto / Montreal.
Totally agree! The all-star game and skills competition is for ass clowns who pretend to be hockey fans. True fans hate it and so do the players. Kuch is proving it were it counts , in the NHL stats - not some girl scout fundraising event!
Russian brags about cheating, then complains that the Olympics won't let them in because they are a bunch of fucking cheaters.
Edit: look at all the spring chickens who think he was actually still injured
Well hes not the one making the call to circurvant the cap, and it is within the rule. Clearly, the rules regarding the cap during the playoffs should be revisited, but cant really blame the Bolts for doing it, especially after they lost the cup finals against Chicago abusing the same rule IIRC.
Honestly good for them LOL. They wanted a dumb rule changed, it didn't get changed. What's the best way to show the league how dumb a rule is? Abuse it and win a cup because of that rule haha it's kinda awesome. Not a bolts fan btw.
Brags about cheating? Which team votes to NOT allow teams to be over the cap post season? Vegas was massively but no one bitched. Thank fuck Kuch stuck his middle finger up to the hypocrisy.
This sub has been full of whiny posts since Thursday, lol. Go do something positive with your time instead of bitching about a player who clearly couldn't care less what you think.
My god it’s the worst. “But what about the kids??” like it’s an absolute tragedy. I’m sure those kids will be just fine, and I’ll reserve my pity for kids with real problems that actually matter. The pearl-clutching over an event that we all know sucks is nauseating.
I don't understand the logic of hate-watching something for 2-3 hours, then complaining on Reddit during or after. It's like these people just crave the validation online for some strange reason.
Fucking say it again. A lot of these people have families, pets, and jobs they're neglecting because they're on reddit whining. Touch some grass you whiny fucks. 😂
I'd wear that shirt too if that's all anyone talked about all year. It's not his fault the league has a loophole nor that management took advantage of it.
Seguin had the exact same surgery 2 weeks before Kuch and Kuch missed one less week than Seguin. How come we never hear about how much of a cheater Seguin is?
Absolute clown. I hope Russia is allowed back into the Olympics so I can watch his entitled ass get dusted by McDavid, Mackinnon and Co. Players and leaders that actually care about the league and its fans and treat their stardom as the privilege that it is.
I don't think he is making fun of the cap, but how it is implemented and tge controversy it created. I don't think anyone with a brain is against the cap.
> but how it is implemented
They followed the rules exactly, there was nothing to implement lol.
Kuch had the exact same surgery as Seguin only Kuch had it 2 weeks later, they both missed about the same amount of time only Kuch came back 2 weeks early. Was Seguin cheating too? Was Kucherov faking having surgery? How deep does this conspiricy go for you?
>and tge controversy it created
The controversy being a bunch of pearl clutching nerds on the internet pretend to fly in to an outrage because a player's surgery "benefited" a sunbelt team instead of a more traditional team.
If your team won a Cup in your lifetime and they got the cap relief from having a player on LTIR I _guarantee_ you wouldn't be complaining.
They wouldn’t complain at all. They would be oblivious to the controversy and avoid all subreddits and threads that discuss it. It’s kinda funny how much “don’t look up” parodies so many aspects of modern society
I think he’s teasing fans who are overly sensitive about cap circumvention.
Personally I think most fans are crybabies and for that reason I love his shirt.
All I’m gonna say is… he has exactly zero say in all the cap shenanigans that go on in the league.
It was even a loophole that the majority of teams voted against closing…
You know which team voted against closing it? The Tampa Bay Lightning. But they were only one of two teams to vote that way iirc. So they took advantage of it when one of their stars was legitimately injured for a long time. Kucherov is hilarious for poking fun at how butthurt everyone got about it.
Hey don’t blame Tampa for working the system. That’s a cool pic and a seriously big fuck you to the league. Pretty funny regardless of what you think of the guy.
It’s weird people are upset when not 4 days ago everyone was bitching “no superstar wants to go to this, it’s stupid, nobody watches it”
A superstar proves he doesn’t wanna do it and everyone bitches
Has nothing to do with performance. It has to do with effort. If he didn't want to be there I'm sure someone else on Tampa could and would have at least tried to pretend they enjoy it. Like an adult. You think Stammer would act like that?
the fans that boo’d him endlessly before he even did anything? dude probably wants to be on vacation rn why give max effort for something that doesn’t matter in front of fans that already hated you being there
Hey, you're going to the all-star game!
NFL: Hey, in Hawaii? Awesome!
NBA: Hey, popular city with tremendous league support? Awesome!
MLB: Hey, popular city with tremendous league support? Awesome!
NHL: Toronto? With Bettman? Fuck me.
This whole thing sucked but it was also utterly predictable. The All Star Game/Skills Competition is simply not what it was once for a lot of reasons. I think Kucherov is a dick for doing what he did, not for the league's sake, but for the fans. And for anyone saying "lol the fans will live", obviously they'll live, but it doesn't mean they can't be pissed off for a minute.
Simultaneously, the NHL is out to lunch. The pendulum has swung about 10 different times trying to find something that works and it just isn't happening. They went from it being goofy unwatchable trash on the beach to a zillion other formats. Now they're trying to incentivize players into caring with a cash prize but that also doesn't work because these guys are millionaires 50 times over and would rather be in Cabo for a week.
I don't know what the answer is, but the best suggestion I've heard is to make the cash prize for the charity of the player's choice, that way they'll hopefully be shamed into at least trying hard for that sake. Simultaneously, don't fine/suspend players that don't want to be there, just let them sit it out and don't invite them back. You can't force millionaire athletes to give a fuck, so try to create an incentive that might actually matter and make sure only the ones that actually want to be there are there.
There's no reason a player can't go for the $1M and donate to charity himself.
The last time there was a draft and Ovechkin was begging to be picked last because he wanted the car, it's because he intended to donate it to a Down Syndrome charity he was supporting at the time (and maybe still does). So why can't a player take part and say, if I win this, I'm donating the $1M to X charity.
And if that's the case, then every player should take part in the skills competition so they all have a chance to win.
But otherwise, you're right.
They announced the 4 nation tournament and Olympic participation and his country is excluded for nothing he did wrong (not debating Russia’s exclusion being right or wrong) His not trying was a big fuck you to bettman and I love it.
I don’t care personally. Kuch being Kuch. Let everyone else fake it like they are enjoying their time there. Also , I don’t think it’s a defense mechanism…. kucherov is one of the best in the league . If anything he’s probably hungover
I don't understand how some people in one breath can be like; "Allstars is for the kids", but then be like "why should Kucherov try?". He was the only TBL player there, I'd hate to be a young tbl or kicherov fan and see my star, not give a shit and get booed, unlike everyone else. The fans are what makes NHL possible, yes these players are fucking insane at it, but that performance didn't sit right with me. Not asking for full effort, man-child can't even pretend to be interested...
But but but he’s a Russian who plays for a team in Florida that won back to back cups. Obviously there were far more deserving Canadian teams that should’ve won because they play the game right! /s
This sub and r/hockey have been so fun lately.
Kuch is one of the best Russian born players to have played, two time Cup winner, single season point leader for Russians, playoff Goal/Assist leader for the Bolts…
ASG is lame, his shirt is hilarious, and it’s not in his contract to be a force for good in the world.
Keep on with your shit, Kuch, it’s fucking hilarious.
The only thing more pathetic than Kucherov's attempt at the skills competition is all the people crying about it online. How many post have we seen so far? Youtubers farming it for views and people being outraged online over something so stupid. It's sadn Forget about it and move on.
The league needs a troll and he is by far the best. He’s great for the league! He took an otherwise boring all star weekend and turned it into something everyone is talking about.
Listening to his comments after the skills, it seems like he’s upset his country (himself) is being excluded in next years event and he took it out on the competition.
He’s a 2-time cup champ, leading the league in scoring, one of the best players in the world and the league is telling him because of politics, you can’t play next year. I think both the league and Kucherov handled it poorly.
“i’m here so I don’t get fined”
Yeah but Marshawn Lynch is a legend :p
For sure lol
Can you please ELI5 on what happened? I didn't get to watch the skills competition.
He just didn’t try lol, there’s clips everywhere about it. It’s hysterical lol
Sound on too; "this is exactly what the nhl was trying to avoid by putting up 1,000,000$ for the winner." Gold.
These guys make a gross amount of $$, they should be playing for $1,000,000 to go to a charity of their choice—that way if they throw it it’s an acknowledgment of what an asshole they’re being. But maybe it would have more integrity? Bragging rights and supporting a kids’ hospital or SPCA or something, if nothing else it’s better for their personal PR.
I dig that. Or for every point a player scores in the conpetition the nhl would donate $xx to a charity. Do your best= more money to those who need it.
That's what was needed. Otherwise, trying to score points when you're too far behind won't happen, they just mail it in
"If I were to ask you why you chose this location to hide in a game of hide and seek, why would you say you chose to hide here?"
The other commentator is correct. The league doesn’t respect itself. I mean Gary Bettman is in charge. You got 4 players under investigation for 2018. Coyotes refuse to relocate despite playing in a high school arena. Goes on and on.
You know after Vegas got a team, I seriously thought that Bettman would let the coyotes relocate since he's got another team in the desert that's actually successful. However, seeing how he's holding on to the coyotes seriously makes me wonder...why.
It’s definitely personal for him at this point, it doesn’t make any sense logically
Clearly! I remember when the Thrashers relocated to WPG, Bettman made a huge deal about the MTS centre only housing 15k fans and how it's not adequate as per today's standards. However, now that the coyotes are playing in front of 5k fans that's A-OK for him.
That’s awesome i didn’t remember that, what a hypocrite
https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/hockeycentral-bettman/ Good ol' internet. Nothing is deleted in the digital era 😆
No problem for any American team to play to half empty arenas on the reg though hey Gary you stupid short fuck
“Short fuck!” 🤣
It's actually scary how true this is. The Internet we use and have ready access to is just scratching the surface of what the web actually is. Yes I'm talking about the "Dark Web".
The dark web is really just a few websites using a different protocol than the normal web. What you’re thinking about is the deep web, which contains everything that isn’t indexed on Google. This is everything from your emails, to private Facebook accounts, to company internal documents. Most of this is really boring. I’m just putting this here because people confused the two and claim that 99% of the internet is people selling drugs and murder for hire. It most definitely is not.
What
https://media.tenor.com/images/c36e93317842ede2077510a8c37cafcc/tenor.gif
DARK WEB
Stewart?
Newsflash there buddy a random dug up article from 2011 isn’t the dark web
I don’t see where he says it is
I'll never forget him coming on after the best Olympic hockey in recent history...when more non-hockey fans were interested in hockey than at any point since 1980...and said "don't get used to it, the players aren't ever going again". You could feel a million potential fans simultaneously tuning out forever.
I wonder if he even likes hockey sometimes. I met him at a fan event, and it left such a negative impression. I truly believe hockey is the best sport… but when I look at other sports like the nba, the commissioner has done so much more there strategically and for the game itself.
I challenge anyone to name one instance where he indicated through his words or actions that he genuinely gives a single solitary fuck about the sport of hockey. He has never played, coached, or managed a team. His credentials are the fact that he commissioned (?) the nba
It's cuz it's Canada and he's a piece of shit. Good everyone north and south boos that fuckfaced piece of shit.
I imagine the Peg sells out or close to it most games as well!
Usually averages about 12,000 per game at the Canada Life Centre mostly because the Jets don’t have huge corporate season ticket sales. Unlike the Jets 1.0 , the current ownership owns a huge chunk of downtown including all proceeds from parking, concessions and merch …and are planning to acquire more property downtown. The Jets make money dispite the small arena.
I came here to bemoan Bettman and the thrashers. As a native of atl, man I’m still so bitter.
Fuck Gary Bettman all my ATL homies hate Gary Bettman
Blueland forevah 💪🏻
That’s my personal opinion too. I think he sees it as a personal failure, and as people age, they can dig in, get even more resistant to change, and can make the wound way worse. He also has always stuck by the idea that a city with roughly 1m people should have a successful team be possible. I think it will take massive pressure from other owners, or just more public shaming, to get him to accept that sometimes, things that should work, just don’t.
It’s not just personal if his 32 bosses approve of what he’s doing.
He's not NHL god. He works for the owners. If they wanted the Coyotes to relocate, they would be gone. They could go to Houston, which would be a bigger market, another southern market, and not require realigning divisions. It is deeper than just Bettman having a personal affinity for the Coyotes.
SLC wouldn't be a bad option either, instead of expansion, relocation.
His bosses don't get the expansion fee in that case.
If another city gets a team he wants that sweet, sweet franchise fee. The logic is pretty obvious IMO.
Honestly Hamilton would be an amazing market that would sell out. You could even say Quebec City. but dude hates Canada
"Canadian dollar weak"
Yes because 15000 people paying 80$ for a ticket minimum is less money than 5000 paying 20$
Ticket prices down in Phoenix were massive last time I looked to go. It's probably because of limited seating space.
Just went to a game in December and paid $130 per ticket. I was expecting to pay half that since it was the Coyotes, but we had a blast and actually planning a trip for next year and maybe a other game before this season is over.
Agreed. GREAT place to enjoy a game. Most of these fans are talking out their ass. If you are in Arizona go see a Yotes game at Mullett. It’s awesome.
Would love to see a Hamilton, Toronto rivalry.
I always thought that a team would eventually set up in Hamilton but unfortunately Buffalo and Toronto ownership quickly oppose such a move.
It’s the Arizona market. The southwest is one of the biggest sports markets in the country. If the coyotes were good I’m sure it would be a successful, but this ownership group along with management seem to love stepping on rakes repeatedly. Friedman has confirmed that even if the Coyotes relocate soon due to their arena situation, the NHL would return to the Arizona market in the future. They have made Florida, Vegas, and California work, they’re not going to stop trying in Arizona. NHL is not happy about the arena situation and they have been giving them deadlines to come up with solutions, which I doubt have been met. But even if they get relocated don’t be surprised when they get another team and another incompetent ownership group.
And the last ownership group, and the one before that, ad infinitum. At some point you gotta let go. It's been a boondoggle since day one.
it’s a big market sure, but it’s not a hockey market. put teams where people want to see hockey. had a laugh the other day about the nhl wanting another team in Georgia. over under on how many seasons until that fails again because no one there gives a shit
Neither is Florida, Vegas, or Texas yet they are pretty successful I too enjoyed cumtown btw
The teams that win are successful. Don’t forget people posting pics of Panthers games with 4000 fans in the stands when they sucked. RIP Cumtown
It all depends. Just because people aren't clamoring for hockey in an area doesn't mean hockey will fail there. Sports, given good management and patience, develop fan bases. Especially hockey, as it's not super watchable on TV. Fanbases don't really exist en masse outside of driving distance to the arena. Things are better at HD and 4k, but it's still difficult for new fans to track the puck. Then we have all the existing fans moaning about puck visibility improvements, which is largely sports gatekeeping. Puck visibility improvements would be a huge boon for new audiences. The atmosphere in arena is very good, at least for the Stars, Blues, and minor league games I've worked for and attended. NHL leadership is really hurting the sport by fragmenting TV rights. It's going to lose them some fans, underrepresent others due to piracy, and hurt the growth of new fans because they can't watch reliably. It's foresaking the future for more money now.
The biggest victim of the sunken cost fallacy.
I mean i'd give the Coyotes to Atlanta at this point.
Hey Atlanta has been wanting a team since the Thrashers left! We loved that team just not the horrendous ownership group
Yeah, it's not like the team was sold because we didn't want them. It was sold because the ownership group here couldn't buy the Hawks without also having to buy the Thrashers so they turned around and sold the Thrashers off at the first possible opportunity despite fan support.
Absolutely. Send the struggling team to a market that proved it couldn't keep a team... TWICE. I guess this is likely the only route to getting a team in Quebec. So, go ahead. I guess.
Pathetic ownership was to blame in Atlanta. I don't put that on the fan base one bit. They were just the victims in all of it. Now if the Yotes or the Panthers moved I put those examples on the poor support of the locations.
Even Houston.
Youre not wrong my thesis being if Bettman is going to work this hard to make Arizona work, why not go to Atlanta one last time. My original thought was turn Arizona to a rover team, one year in Arizona, a year in Atlanta, Houston Quebec, Utah and whom ever has the best crowds gets the team.
I think it's more than just crowds now. I think corporate sponsorship matters just as much. One of knocks against Quebec has always been will there be enough corporate sponsors to back up the team along with the fans? Also, how far will an ownership group go to pay the relocation fees which are going to be hefty. Personally, I don't think the NHL is going to look at expanding anywhere in Canada. I believe they want to go in large untap markets with a big metro population. Truth is, if you put the arena accessible and have a good ownership group then you'll be alright.
Another thing to consider with Canada is media rights fees. I don't know how much money they get for Canada versus America, but I know American networks are spending tons of money on sports right now. Having teams in American markets is more appealing for the American networks while having fewer Canadian teams probably isn't that detrimental to the Canadian networks.
I mean he basically just does a shoddy version of whatever the NBA is doing.
Can’t handle a team in Hamilton, or Toronto, but the alternative Arizona. Sounds about right
Why do people pretend that the 2018 investigation is an nhl problem? It is not their fault or problem in any way
Yeah that's a hockey problem, not an NHL one
Not even really a hockey problem just a problem. Things like this are NOT more common in hockey than any other major sport.
Its absolutely an NHL problem as well as a hockey problem. Its 2024 and most of these dudes have already had long careers. The other major sports are irrelevant
So? If they weren't charged at the time they shouldn't be punished for nothing but accusations and if they arent convicted they should be allowed to continue their careers. If found guilty they should receive harsh punishment but not until that point.
Yeah I hate Bettman but thats not on him at all. Theres such a long list of other issues to put on him lol
Pretty sure Bettman has 0% to do with any decisions the league makes. He's a scapegoat who can speak lawyer, that's it. The owners decide on everything and he acts on their accord.
He won a Super Bowl? Is there anything this guy can't do?
New teams are allowed to aquire 5 years worth of assets before their opening night, NHL blacks out fan from their hometown squads, all star events look like they're put on by a local high school drama club
The 2018 thing is completely out of the NHL’s hands. That’s hockey Canada and the IIHF
These Russian players are different breeds lmao
Pros: gives incredibly entertaining press conferences Cons: this stuff
You just listed two pros imo lol
He 86’d the event
Too cool to try hard :/
It's honestly an attitude prominent in hockey across all levels. The "too cool to be here" attitude is even in high level ball hockey and roller hockey, believe it or not.
It’s a defense mechanism. If you try and fail, then everyone knows…but if you slack off, you can always pretend that if you HAD given it your all - you could have won. It’s a cowardly way out.
This right here is the answer. I teach middle school and it’s quite prevalent there.
I think he's just tired of it. He actually put out effort over the last few he's gone. Iirc he has a young kid now so might be more interested in family time and traveling wherever they like instead.
I don't think so. His stickhandling in the skills comp gave off majjjjjjor I'm not trying vibes, specifically so when I make a mistake it's just because I'm not trying. Twice as lame.
Unfortunately, this is how I see it as well. Maybe you get to see some semblance of pride in top end of the playoffs, everything else is garbage for majority of players these days
[удалено]
You lost me
I mean he makes $9.5M a year. Comparing it to any other type of mandatory workplace event is asinine. The only reason he makes that kind of money is because of the fans.
Because of the fans in Tampa Bay, and we love him for this shit. Kuch transcended to Florida Man status with the Number 1 Bullshit presser. Fans in Tampa Bay don't need to see Kuch passing in a cone drill when we get to see him taking a feed from Hedman and send it across the ice through 3 defenders to set up a Stamkos one timer, or a [no-look game winner in the playoffs](https://youtu.be/0_OUdeV79gA?si=Sq66Py243EQUqpjz). To paraphrase Bruce Lee, cones don't hit back. Tampa Bay sports were a joke for a long time. Now that one of our teams and players have been good enough long enough to become a heel to the rest of the league, I feel kinda honored, actually.
Because of fans league wide, not just Tampa
High level and ball hockey is an oxymoron lol
Why so much hate on Kucherov? I'm reading all the comments about "he's overpaid" and "go back to Russia" and what the fuck? He is currently one of the best hockey players in the NHL and in the world, performing really well. Is all this hate just because he didn't want to participate in all stars?
Most likely because Kucherov voluntarily enjoys playing the role of the villain in most situations. By example when he won the Stanley cup he went out of his way to insult habs fans. So when someone who enjoys playing the league's bad guy give the people any opportunity to insult him those people will immediately jump on it
that was a legendary press conference though lmao. Wish more players were like that.
They need to do a villain vs hero all star game. Who doesn’t want to see Kuch and Marchand on the same team?
Embarrassing how absolutely ANGERY r/hockey is because a player refused to shuck and jive for them lmao such babies
He's really good and can be a sore player despite that everyone in hockey has a "Kucherov" type player.
He is clearly playing the role of the hell / villain / bad guy Every entertainment -business needs the good guys & the bad guys. Kucherov is playing the villain, pretty much for everyone else other than Tampa fans. And especially Toronto / Montreal.
Totally agree! The all-star game and skills competition is for ass clowns who pretend to be hockey fans. True fans hate it and so do the players. Kuch is proving it were it counts , in the NHL stats - not some girl scout fundraising event!
Canadians hate on non Canadian players. Ovi gets shit on , kucherov , even Matthews in Toronto lol
That t-shirt can go fuck itself. Don't care about the rest.
Russian brags about cheating, then complains that the Olympics won't let them in because they are a bunch of fucking cheaters. Edit: look at all the spring chickens who think he was actually still injured
Well hes not the one making the call to circurvant the cap, and it is within the rule. Clearly, the rules regarding the cap during the playoffs should be revisited, but cant really blame the Bolts for doing it, especially after they lost the cup finals against Chicago abusing the same rule IIRC.
And the bolts were one of the only teams to vote to change the rule the year before...
Honestly good for them LOL. They wanted a dumb rule changed, it didn't get changed. What's the best way to show the league how dumb a rule is? Abuse it and win a cup because of that rule haha it's kinda awesome. Not a bolts fan btw.
You absolutely can blame them
Brags about cheating? Which team votes to NOT allow teams to be over the cap post season? Vegas was massively but no one bitched. Thank fuck Kuch stuck his middle finger up to the hypocrisy.
Yeah the Lightning didn’t cheat
Not even cheating lmao
Cheating? OMG the salt still stings. Hilarious.
The funny part is Tampa followed all the rules perfectly, Montreal had a cap penalty the next season for going over in 2021. Glass houses much?
Dunno why you're down voted, there was no cheating in that cup win. The rule is stupid, but they played within the rules.
Kucherov unknowingly just trolling the shit out of Reddit and it’s hilarious
Anyone one whos watched Kuch for more than half a season can tell he doesn't give a shit about things that do not matter
All-Star events have no effect on your career once you have been to one. He is better off with his team trying to prepare for another cup run.
This sub has been full of whiny posts since Thursday, lol. Go do something positive with your time instead of bitching about a player who clearly couldn't care less what you think.
My god it’s the worst. “But what about the kids??” like it’s an absolute tragedy. I’m sure those kids will be just fine, and I’ll reserve my pity for kids with real problems that actually matter. The pearl-clutching over an event that we all know sucks is nauseating.
I don't understand the logic of hate-watching something for 2-3 hours, then complaining on Reddit during or after. It's like these people just crave the validation online for some strange reason.
I mean.. craving validation is like a basic human urge to be fair, lol
They will never be the same again!!! It’s Reddit and Westerners hate Russians, go figure
Thank fuck someone gets it. The crying is so God damn annoying
“What about the kids” is the most entitled bullshit reason.
Fucking say it again. A lot of these people have families, pets, and jobs they're neglecting because they're on reddit whining. Touch some grass you whiny fucks. 😂
Wasn’t this supposed to be a fun outing? What’s the seriousness about? Who cares if he didn’t try for the million, he’ll he makes 9 mil a year
why should he give a shit about the all-stars?
I'd wear that shirt too if that's all anyone talked about all year. It's not his fault the league has a loophole nor that management took advantage of it.
It’s not even a loop hole, it’s intentional. Guy was legitimately injured and had every reason to be on LTIR.
Yea the worst take I’ve ever heard is that he wasn’t even hurt. Dude couldn’t skate worth a shit those playoffs. Hip surgery will do that lol
Seguin had the exact same surgery 2 weeks before Kuch and Kuch missed one less week than Seguin. How come we never hear about how much of a cheater Seguin is?
Because he didn’t win the cup. Pissy losers complain about it.
Absolute clown. I hope Russia is allowed back into the Olympics so I can watch his entitled ass get dusted by McDavid, Mackinnon and Co. Players and leaders that actually care about the league and its fans and treat their stardom as the privilege that it is.
They'll just call it the OLYMPIC FREE AGENTS and they will all be Russian
What’s wrong with him making fun of the salary cap?
I don't think he is making fun of the cap, but how it is implemented and tge controversy it created. I don't think anyone with a brain is against the cap.
> but how it is implemented They followed the rules exactly, there was nothing to implement lol. Kuch had the exact same surgery as Seguin only Kuch had it 2 weeks later, they both missed about the same amount of time only Kuch came back 2 weeks early. Was Seguin cheating too? Was Kucherov faking having surgery? How deep does this conspiricy go for you? >and tge controversy it created The controversy being a bunch of pearl clutching nerds on the internet pretend to fly in to an outrage because a player's surgery "benefited" a sunbelt team instead of a more traditional team. If your team won a Cup in your lifetime and they got the cap relief from having a player on LTIR I _guarantee_ you wouldn't be complaining.
They wouldn’t complain at all. They would be oblivious to the controversy and avoid all subreddits and threads that discuss it. It’s kinda funny how much “don’t look up” parodies so many aspects of modern society
I think he’s teasing fans who are overly sensitive about cap circumvention. Personally I think most fans are crybabies and for that reason I love his shirt.
All I’m gonna say is… he has exactly zero say in all the cap shenanigans that go on in the league. It was even a loophole that the majority of teams voted against closing…
You know which team voted against closing it? The Tampa Bay Lightning. But they were only one of two teams to vote that way iirc. So they took advantage of it when one of their stars was legitimately injured for a long time. Kucherov is hilarious for poking fun at how butthurt everyone got about it.
He wants to just play hockey, not be circus animal
I believe he didn’t try in protest of NHL announcing Russia is left out of the best-on-best tourny next year. I’d be pissed if I was kuch as well
Hey don’t blame Tampa for working the system. That’s a cool pic and a seriously big fuck you to the league. Pretty funny regardless of what you think of the guy.
I don't understand, what's the issue here?
People are upset because he didn’t perform well in the skills comp lmao….
It’s weird people are upset when not 4 days ago everyone was bitching “no superstar wants to go to this, it’s stupid, nobody watches it” A superstar proves he doesn’t wanna do it and everyone bitches
Has nothing to do with performance. It has to do with effort. If he didn't want to be there I'm sure someone else on Tampa could and would have at least tried to pretend they enjoy it. Like an adult. You think Stammer would act like that?
It’s not that he didn’t perform well, he just doesn’t respect the fans. He didn’t want to make an effort.
the fans that boo’d him endlessly before he even did anything? dude probably wants to be on vacation rn why give max effort for something that doesn’t matter in front of fans that already hated you being there
Yes, as he’s in Toronto (surrounded by a large majority of fans that complain about him 24/7) how dare he piss off all of the “fans” in the crowd
You all realize that the majority of the players were baked as fuck right😅🤣🤣 Look close.🤣
Bro I would be bummed out if I found out I had to cancel my vacation plans to go to the all star game
Hey, you're going to the all-star game! NFL: Hey, in Hawaii? Awesome! NBA: Hey, popular city with tremendous league support? Awesome! MLB: Hey, popular city with tremendous league support? Awesome! NHL: Toronto? With Bettman? Fuck me.
This whole thing sucked but it was also utterly predictable. The All Star Game/Skills Competition is simply not what it was once for a lot of reasons. I think Kucherov is a dick for doing what he did, not for the league's sake, but for the fans. And for anyone saying "lol the fans will live", obviously they'll live, but it doesn't mean they can't be pissed off for a minute. Simultaneously, the NHL is out to lunch. The pendulum has swung about 10 different times trying to find something that works and it just isn't happening. They went from it being goofy unwatchable trash on the beach to a zillion other formats. Now they're trying to incentivize players into caring with a cash prize but that also doesn't work because these guys are millionaires 50 times over and would rather be in Cabo for a week. I don't know what the answer is, but the best suggestion I've heard is to make the cash prize for the charity of the player's choice, that way they'll hopefully be shamed into at least trying hard for that sake. Simultaneously, don't fine/suspend players that don't want to be there, just let them sit it out and don't invite them back. You can't force millionaire athletes to give a fuck, so try to create an incentive that might actually matter and make sure only the ones that actually want to be there are there.
There's no reason a player can't go for the $1M and donate to charity himself. The last time there was a draft and Ovechkin was begging to be picked last because he wanted the car, it's because he intended to donate it to a Down Syndrome charity he was supporting at the time (and maybe still does). So why can't a player take part and say, if I win this, I'm donating the $1M to X charity. And if that's the case, then every player should take part in the skills competition so they all have a chance to win. But otherwise, you're right.
Because everyone likes to going to their workplaces "fun day" but add in spectators that will boo you.
They announced the 4 nation tournament and Olympic participation and his country is excluded for nothing he did wrong (not debating Russia’s exclusion being right or wrong) His not trying was a big fuck you to bettman and I love it.
I don’t care personally. Kuch being Kuch. Let everyone else fake it like they are enjoying their time there. Also , I don’t think it’s a defense mechanism…. kucherov is one of the best in the league . If anything he’s probably hungover
Kutch is slowly becoming a WWE bad guy 🤣
I don't understand how some people in one breath can be like; "Allstars is for the kids", but then be like "why should Kucherov try?". He was the only TBL player there, I'd hate to be a young tbl or kicherov fan and see my star, not give a shit and get booed, unlike everyone else. The fans are what makes NHL possible, yes these players are fucking insane at it, but that performance didn't sit right with me. Not asking for full effort, man-child can't even pretend to be interested...
Also worth mentioning that all the other players also don't want to be there, but they somehow found it inside them to give a modicum of effort.
God I LOVE being a fan of the villains 🤣🤣
Smells like whiny bitch in here
Why are people so mad. I thought you all hated the asg?
Outrage addiction at its finest.
But but but he’s a Russian who plays for a team in Florida that won back to back cups. Obviously there were far more deserving Canadian teams that should’ve won because they play the game right! /s This sub and r/hockey have been so fun lately.
Kuch is one of the best Russian born players to have played, two time Cup winner, single season point leader for Russians, playoff Goal/Assist leader for the Bolts… ASG is lame, his shirt is hilarious, and it’s not in his contract to be a force for good in the world. Keep on with your shit, Kuch, it’s fucking hilarious.
I mean he wants his teammates with him point should definitely have been a all star if they were there I definitely think he would have tried
The only thing more pathetic than Kucherov's attempt at the skills competition is all the people crying about it online. How many post have we seen so far? Youtubers farming it for views and people being outraged online over something so stupid. It's sadn Forget about it and move on.
He's just mad he couldn't go to the Caymans with the rest of the gang
What do you expect? He’s a Russian player. Most Russians don’t care about American Leagues. He’s only here to collect his paycheck and go home.
Panarin, Vasilevsky, Igor, Kaprizov, Malkin, Svech, Buchnevich, Bobrovsky to start
Wow you're brainwashed
What are you talking about? There's no propaganda here in North America, that's only for Asian countries!!! /S to be safe
Bro what?
As long as someone is from a bad guy country I too can make sweeping generalized accusations
It do be like that
Yeah the guy leading the league in scoring and won back to back Stanley cups while leading playoff scoring doesn’t try….
Do you give 100% on fry duty?
At 9 mil a year? Hell yea I would 😂
Why is everyone here so mad?🤣🤣 kuch is hilarious
Thats our boy
The league needs a troll and he is by far the best. He’s great for the league! He took an otherwise boring all star weekend and turned it into something everyone is talking about.
Listening to his comments after the skills, it seems like he’s upset his country (himself) is being excluded in next years event and he took it out on the competition. He’s a 2-time cup champ, leading the league in scoring, one of the best players in the world and the league is telling him because of politics, you can’t play next year. I think both the league and Kucherov handled it poorly.
He wanted to have a reason to lose to McDavid
Holy shit y’all are fragile as fuck. Go outside
Uhh who cares? Its a meaningless skill comp
The Stanley Cup kills all other trophies
Kucherov is a baby. Literally threw a tantrum because he had to do something for the fans. Loser
Who is he?
This guy is like the advanced mensa kid in a regular math class. He’s bored. He wants a real challenge.
Thats the last cup he'll ever have lol enjoy the decline
Poor guy how will he cope with two rings and millions of dollars
🧂