NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, in a Q & A with reporters in Dallas yesterday, said a decision should be made by mid-July. I'm hearing Yankee Stadium, Soldier Field and Fenway remain the front-runners. Here's the transcript.
Q. What is the likelihood we'll see another outdoor game next season? Is Yankee Stadium a possibility as a venue?
BETTMAN: "Funny you should ask. We are in the midst of doing our homework and trying to make some plans to do another outdoor game. We think the game in Buffalo, the Winter Classic on January 1st last, was a great event for our game and for our fans. It made us the center of sports focus on a day which had traditionally been devoted to college football. So we very much want to do it again. We want to keep it special. We don't want to overdo it.
We have no shortage of interested cities and teams. And we're exploring them. One of the possibilities is Yankee Stadium. But there are a variety of issues with respect to all of the possibilities. We have to see which can be resolved satisfactorily.
There is some construction going on, on and about the Yankee Stadium area, the old stadium area, which may impact us. There are some winterization issues, because it is an older stadium. As I sit here today, I don't know whether or not they can be resolved. We don't have a deal yet to go anywhere, but we're in discussions with a variety of places, some that have been named, I'm not breaking any news here, Chicago, Boston, Colorado, Denver, Pennsylvania.
Actually got a letter from the Governor suggesting, based on this incredible -- I think Governor Rendell said in his letter to me as great a sportsfan as he is, he's never seen the intensity of a rivalry as he's seeing now between the Flyers and the Penguins, and we should consider playing in HappyValley before a 107,000 people.
We're looking at a lot of things. I anticipate, hopefully by the time we announce the schedule in early July when we release it, historically on the day after the baseball All-Star Game, that we'll know what we're doing.
But as I sit here today, other than we're planning to try to do something, we're not done yet."
Comments (68)
Bettman,
You suck. I hope the NHLPA and Owners realize this, and kick your ass out on the streets.
Respectfully,
Lance Pizzil
On behalf of all diehard hockey fans, I wish nothing but crap for Gary Bettman, and respectfully hope he is jobless as soon as humanly possible.
Have you ever noticed that Bettmans head bobbles when he talks ? About 5-10 years ago, he used to do it so much that my friends and called him a bobblehead doll.
Bettman also looks like The Count from Sesame Street.
I hope he dies.... a lot !
I agree with all of the previous posters. He sucks and knows nothing about the game. I cringe everytime he says come get the Stanely cup. Alot of times it looks like the captains actually rip it out of his hands so i guess they don't like him either. lmao
Do you people have anything hockey related to say? Or are you just a bunch of bitter fans slinging personal insults? Hell you're not even the best at that... Flyers fans are.
Why don;t you make some intelligent comments regarding Bettmans pronouncement instead of just making fun of the guys physical characteristics?
Bettman should be considering Ann Arbor. A game in the Big House (Which has hosted outdoor hockey before) could seat well over 100K plus and could feature a Western and Eastern Conference team (Detroit and Toronto). It would also allow a US Canada angle.
Come on Rangers fans... you're a bit smarter than you're letting on.
this is the last chance for a game at Yankee stadium. get it done. Rangers Bruins or Rangers Wings.
Bettman needs an original 6 matchup, the original idea of the Rangers and Bruins was good, Rangers and Blackhawks even better. Not sure that Yankee Stadium is the best idea however, there are many diffiuclties with that site especially at the particular time frame. Chicago would be a great venue as would Boston due to the fact that the Ballparks (Wrigley and Fenway would allow for a more personal experience. These parks are smaller capacities and closer proximity to the field. If the Hockey Rink looked far from the fans in Buffalo, imagine how Far away one would be in Yankee Stadium. Bettman will probably go with his own personal bias on this one as he does with everything else. He seems to want to push the low income markets and consistently ignore and insult the major hockey market teams. He is a very poor marketing man and he obviously was the WRONG person to take charge of the NHL. The owners should get rid of him and find someone who truly understands the game and can start the tedious process of getting rid of some franchise baggage, and certainly never ever use the word expansion again!
Yankee stadium is not being torn down, I don't know why there has to be a rush on it.
They would still be able to have an outdoor game there 10 years from now if they wanted to.
Black and Gold:
F off. Why dont you come on here and post something relevant instead of b!tching about others comments ? Its obvious you just come here to start stuff.... so just f@ck off and die.
Hey BlackNGold,
How can you honestly be a fan of a team who is so perennially horrible? The Penguins are good for a stretch of a few years only after they have been bottom feeders for the previous decade (not even considering the years they purposely tank in order to secure the best player to come along in a generation, right?)
So explain to me how you are so much better of a fan when the team you choose to cheer for is so horrible. Without having Crosby gift wrapped for you by the league then where would you be? Even with your other top 5 picks year after year. You guys needed to have "the next one" handed to you to keep your team from folding and moving elsewhere. So stop coming on here with you holier than thou attitude. Watch the shots of your fan base when the camera pans over the Mellon arena. It is full of teenage girls in their Malkin and Crosby jerseys. You have no real fan base because they all abandoned your team after the Lemieux/ Jagr era. The franchise is an embarrassment to the rest of the league. I'm surprised you guys didn't throw away this year in order to secure yourself a better shot at Stamkos.
And to top it all off, the Pens can't even just go out and play an honest series. You have Crosby, Malkin and Hossa diving every chance they get plus Malkin either slew footing or elbowing players all the time. Add that to the fact that the refs seem to be trying their hardest to not see all this garbage going on. So go ahead and enjoy your one and only run at the cup this year. Chances are you will lose either Hossa or Malkin, hopefully both. Then your team can go and tank the next five years and get some more overall #1 picks. Great franchise you follow there BNG!!!!!! You'd think you would have other things on your mind other than the newsday blog as your team looks to be heading to the cup finals. I cannot wait to watch the Wings skate circles around you guys with a group of players selected in the 6th and 7th rounds. Imagine how amazing the wings would be right now if they had Crosby centering all their own great draft picks.
And if you guys don't win the cup and don't resign Hossa and then lose Malkin then you will rue the trade for Hossa and have no future to build around other than the king of cry babies...the one and only big lipped, horse nostril, diving, trashy play-off beard wearing Crosby. But as long as you have Crosby you will have plenty of teen girls buying up those #87 jerseys!!
Effigy and Joke:
Bitter much?
BtW Joke. Season ticket holder from 1983-1995 (when I moved away).
1983 Penguins - Worst record in NHL history. So much for your 'bandwagon' argument.
You all enjoy watching your team play in international tourney's!
Not sure why everyone thinks an original 6 game is going to be a great event. Hockey has changed and I think the original six is a moot point. Rangers/Flyers, Rangers/Penguins Rangers/devils or Rangers/Islanders are better games for regional fans than Rangers/Boston or Detroit. Detroit fans can care less about the Rangers. How many corporate fans are going to sit down outside in the winter to watch Boston/Rangers?? Not many lol and that is at least 40% of the fans and that is light on the estimate. Pittsburgh/Philly sounds the best right now because no one is going to knock the penguins out of the top spot for years. There are no free agents that can match the penguins young guns and their goalie outplayed the King and he is 21? I am not sure, but he is young.
By the way, I think any fan that thinks the Penguins cheated in their series to win should get out of his parents basement. Anyone that has a brain knows the better team won that series. That is so idiotic. And to compare the any franchise to the Rangers is absurd. The Rangers have one cup in maybe 60 years and raised the jersey of Messier to the roofs of the garden after he ran to Vancouver for more money. That tell you enough about that franchise lol
THERE IS NOTHING BETTER THAN PLAYOFF HOCKEY!
Look at how ranger fans are still whining about diving, the refs, blah blah blah blah. It's no wonder the whole league says that the rangers have the most classless fans in the NHL and why players come to NY to finish the last few years of their career and collect a paycheck. What a pathetic bunch.
It figures that a Pens fan comes in here to defend Bettman. I think that may be the only fanbase that actually would cheer him...hey!..maybe that's the reason Bettman is fixing these playoffs for them to win it all. Bettman is tired of being booed in every other arena!! LOL!!!
BNG (or is it Edward?),
I just quickly scanned my last post and I don't believe I ever said you were on the bandwagon. I did say that it looks like 95% of your teams fan base is.
And you proved my point with your worst in the league stat...I do believe that Mario was drafted the following year? Coincidence? Tanking? Crosby gift wrapped to save the team again 15 years later?
Now all of a sudden we are all supposed to realize the superiority of the mighty Penguins?
I never said that the refs and diving were the reasons we lost the series...I called into question the need for your team to be resorting to such lame tactics as Hossa diving for all the world to see at center ice . The pens are obviously very fast and very skilled, so why the need to play like such babies and dive and cry at every call that goes against them? I said from game 1 that the rangers would have to play amazingly well to win and they didn't. But it doesn't help when you are playing a team that can do no wrong with the refs.
Lets look at the Orpik play on Briere were Orpik holds Briere for about ten seconds around the back of the net and then pushes Briere into the goalie and then Briere gets called for goalie interference. It's the same thing as Malkin slew footing the same player twice with in 30 seconds and it somehow goes unnoticed. The call from Doc Emerick on the play was that Malkin was "Battling for the puck" and then took Mara down "in almost a slew foot motion". Go check out the clip on youtube. Don't tell me you don't see how the Penguins are the darlings of the NHL.
So tell me BNG...is it true that Mario didn't shake hands with the Penguins after being drafted #1 over all? I wonder if it had to do with playing for a team that obviously tanked and quit to get him. Not winning cups is a lot different then quiting at the end of a season, so don't compare the Original Six Rangers with your pitiful franchise.
I thought Pitt was 1 game away from the Stanley Cup finals. and they are playing Philly now and probably Detroit next. I would have assumed you had better things to do than come here. Evidently not,
as for a game at yankee stadiium it will not be vs the devs or isles. neither has enough of a fan base in person or for tv ratings. so if it happens it will be vs a team from another city.
I think we should have another Penguins game outdoors. It will give NBC 10,000 more opportunities to talk about how great Sid the kid is. Who they play is irrelevant and where they play the game is even less irrelevant.
...or would it be even MORE irrelevant?
Joke,
How are the Rangers relevant again?
Do you realize how stupid you sound when you spout off like that?
The Rangers draw from 8 million plus. Pittsburgh is a city of 350K.
Pittsburgh has a median income of 36K and an average home price of 118K.
Obviously, fans in Pittsburgh pony up a significantly higher percentage of their income/worth to follow the team.
Even with that, the Pens have sold out the last 60 games.
Before the lockout, when the Ranger payroll was twice the size of the Pens payroll, before the league realized that parity was the path to growth, (See the salary cap which is 75% higher in only 4 years), the Pens had a tough time drawing - for two years - Needless to say, there are a higher percentage of Pens fans amongst Pittsburgh natives than Rangers fans amongst NY'ers.
Hell, here in NY, the woeful Knicks get more press than the Rangers. Sports talk radio spends more time covering the Mets in December than the Rangers. Your number one radio broadcast team (Mike and Mad Dog) brag on the air about how they dislike hockey.
Yeah. NY is a hockey town and Dolan is a great owner.
B&G
could you possibly be more Rangers obsessed?
your team is one win away from the Stanley Cup finals
what's the first thing you are doing after walking up on a beautiful spring morning?
posting about the Rangers and instigating with Rangers fans
you must be a very unhappy little man
Dude,
I could care less about the Rangers... but watching clueless Ranger fans rag about the league having some conspiracy against them is so entertaining I can't help following it on my iPhone.
"The league is conspiring against us because we're an original six team in a the leagues largest market..." LMAO
Considering that the NY area metro and LI covers exactly 3 NHL franchises B&G's argument holds little sense. Please don't tell me that the comparison should be about population size and more BS, if any of that were pertinent then the NHL wouldn't have expanded into some many obviously poor markets. The bottm line is walking from Times Squres to 34th St one can feel the electricity in the air still today when the Rangers have a game at the Garden. And by the way throughout the 40's and 50's the Old Garden was sold out for Rangers Hockey, in fat a little known team called the Rovers drew approx 24k a night, so please don't tell me that Hockey is inconsequential in NY. That would be incorrect. And do not compare the Fan Base in NY to the Pitt fan base, as that is not even reasonable. If Pens didn't lose so much and find a way to give up last ten games of a season then they would have never had Mario, and if they never had Mario we wouldn't even know that Hockey existed in Pitt. Your entire franchise exists because of ONE PLAYER period, that is the legacy, in fact that one PLAYER had to fork out his money and OWN the freakin team to ensure it could live. Great story yet very few franchises have had their entire history based upon the back of one player. In fact I can't think of any franchise that had to be so dependent upon 1 player ever in the history of sports, and yeah you start the Babe Ruth, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Jimmy Brown, yada yada yada BS yet for every great superstar in the history of sports their franchise has had success with wither future or past players. Pitt only survived because of Mario and when he stopped playing they only survived becaues he had the balls and backbone to own the franchise and fight for it in a city of little to no consequence. Bravo for Mario! Please don't come here and compare NY as a hockey town and belittle NY fans by comparing them to Pens fans because that is truly an insult.
That should be 14k for Rovers not 24K, also please remember that the NY hockey fan market was large enough to let the NHL expand to LI and NJ(Devils moved from Colorado) and still have enough fan base. For any moron who doesn't understand ALL Islander fans evolved from Rangers fans, in fact for a long time Long Beach LI was a Ranger hang out and most players, coaches lived there. So when the Isles came into the league the already large Ranger fan base decided to look into the Isles as a closer alternative. The reason that there is so much hatred between these fans is because at the birth of that franchise it was Ranger fans who tansferred camps. Now enough time later there are Isles fans who never were Ranger fans, yet their Dad or Grand Dad was. Same for the Devils, the majority of that fan base is not in NJ, and whatever NJ fan base they have were at one time Rangers fans. So, when you take this into account the Ranger fan base would be incredibly huge if the NHL did not find it necessary to expand and allow a team to move into the Rangers territory. Figure those numbers out and then tell me that Hockey is irrelevant in NY.
That should be 14k for Rovers not 24K, also please remember that the NY hockey fan market was large enough to let the NHL expand to LI and NJ(Devils moved from Colorado) and still have enough fan base. For any moron who doesn't understand ALL Islander fans evolved from Rangers fans, in fact for a long time Long Beach LI was a Ranger hang out and most players, coaches lived there. So when the Isles came into the league the already large Ranger fan base decided to look into the Isles as a closer alternative. The reason that there is so much hatred between these fans is because at the birth of that franchise it was Ranger fans who tansferred camps. Now enough time later there are Isles fans who never were Ranger fans, yet their Dad or Grand Dad was. Same for the Devils, the majority of that fan base is not in NJ, and whatever NJ fan base they have were at one time Rangers fans. So, when you take this into account the Ranger fan base would be incredibly huge if the NHL did not find it necessary to expand and allow a team to move into the Rangers territory. Figure those numbers out and then tell me that Hockey is irrelevant in NY.
BNG,
I really don't care about average population, median income or how many pets per household. I was making a comment about your holier than thou attitude in regards to the fact that the Pens happen to be making a push for the cup. You come on here to stir up trouble and make comments about how great the pens are and how bad the rangers are. I was merely pointing out that before Mario nobody cared about the pens. And then after Mario nobody cared about the pens. Now all of a sudden because the league handed you Crosby we are supposed to bow down to your team and not call your team out on it's garbage antics?
And again you make my argument with you statement that the pens have sold out the last 60 games. If the team was so loved and awe inspiring then where is the fan base during the lean times?
Is it just a coincidence that you got your season tickets the same year the pens got Mario?? And let's say that you were 18 when you got the tix in '83-'84...that would mean you are now about 40 years old and trying to cause trouble on a newsday blog when your team is one game away from the cup finals and the rangers are done for the year. So who needs to get out of their parents basement and who sounds stupid spouting off?? And you can get back to me later about Mario not even going down to get his jersey from the Pens organization after he was drafted.
I can't believe I'm going to do this ... temporary truce with Ranger fans ... I have to side mostly with Ranger fans in this little debate about the Penguins ....
#1 ... I noticed from the first time I saw Sid the Kid playing in the BnG ... that he was a great talent ... I also saw a side that repulsed me as a hockey fan and player .... his whining and snibbling at the refs for every borderline hit .... even some good ones .... the squeeky wheel gets the grease .... When anything questionable affects Sid the Kid ... the refs seem to give him the benefit of the doubt ..... most NHL fans recognize that ... not just Ranger fans.
That said ... that kind of favoritsm once favored the Rangers in the 90s .... I will not go there ... but it happens. Refs are human ... and they'll slant one way or another.
#2 ... It's common knowledge that Pens tanked in 1984 .... I as an Islander fan was to preoccupied with the drive for 5 at the time ... but I did take notice of Pitts' sudden tanking late in that season ... I know they stunk it up in 1983 also ... but if I'm correct they had traded their first round pick to Minnesota earlier ... so didn't get the #1 overall .... so in 84 ... they wanted to gaurantee a shot at the "Next One" Lemieux ... and the Devils were giving them a run for their money in the ineptness dept.
#3 ... On the other hand ... Pens did stink back then ... just as they did prior to getting Crosby ... and other teams tank depending on their circumstances ... so if it wasn't them ... it would be someone else tanking ... but one may argue that the Rangers also did the dis-honorable thing on the other end of the spectrum when they bought their 94 cup by picking over the bones of the Edmonton Oilers' dynasty during their money troubles.
#4 ... BnG brought up a good point about the Pittsburgh fan base in general ... they are die hard passionate fans ... and sure ... when the team wasn't winning ... they did spend their hard earned cash on more affordable and necessary things.
... it's not a secret that the NYC market (including LI & NJ) is massive compared to Pittsburgh or other mid to small sized cities ... and in that context ... hockey is NIL in popularity in the NYC market compared to the community attention a city like Pittsburgh demands on the Penguins .... NYC experiences a unique battle for the sports market dollar that most other cities other than maybe a city like LA experience .... and that is competition for the entertainment dollar. The fact that the NYC area supports 3 NHL teams is actually impressive ... even with the problems all 3 organizations itself have received in different ways over the past 3+ decades.
But it's different in this area ... What the Devils, Rangers and Islanders worry about marketing wise is completely on a different scale than what other mid-small market teams worry about.
Now back to the complaining about officiating .. that is a completely different matter .... Ranger fans may feel that the Pens got a break ... and Pens fans may feel that during the 90s they could no longer compete against larger markets due to the free-agency imbalance .... they lost Jagr due to money problems and were forced to trade him ... or maybe he'd still be in Pittsburgh today ... so all the complaints come from a different point of view and all have a degree of legitimacy ....
The Pens have a great team ... and how they became great whether dishonorable tanking or legitimate ineptness to obtain Malkin and Crosby is now irrelevant ... either truth doesn't change the fact that they are a great team.
Also ... hoping for Malkin to leave the Pens is a waste ... he's not going anywhere ... especially after the Pens go to the finals ... they are amassing plenty of revenue these playoffs ...and the Pens aren't going away anytime soon. Besides ... the cost of a team signing Malkin as a RFA is going to be costly.
Next .... who wants to debate that Tampa tanked for Stamkos .... that is grossly more obvious than anything Pittsburgh did ... look who they gave away ..... Richards.... and still they had 2 of the most talented NHL forwards on their team in St. Louis and Lecavalier
Ok guys ... continue your bombs thrown at each other.
Joke,
There's no debate the Pens played their backup goalie in the final game of 1983-4. You want to call that tanking? OK. Call it what you want. There's no news here. It's not much different from what the local Jets fans were calling for at the end of the last NFL season.
I bought my season tickets the year BEFORE they drafted Mario. So your S.O.o.L. there. I also attended the 1975 series against the Isles where the Pens lost a 3-0 lead. Calling me 'bandwagon' is just disingenuous.
As for saying the Pens only had Mario. Are you really that stupid? Especially since your captain, Jagr, Played for the Pens.
Coffey, Barrasso, Murphy, Jagr, Francis all played for those teams. And each is a HoF'er. Coaches Bob Johnson and Scotty Bowman.
Not exactly "chopped liver", so take your all Mario, all the time comments and shove them where most Rangers fans talk.. out their @$$.
As for Sid diving. I think it's hilarious that you folks can't find any flaws with his game so you resort to calling Sid a diver. Sid is smaller than any other of the top ten forwards in the NHL. He's also one of the best skaters in the league, and is a real playmaker. Most times he forces the opposition to take a penalty with his speed and ability.
Of course, their are times when a guy like hatcher takes out there of his teeth and he comes back to score the GWG. But hey, it's your party, you can cry if you want to.
You know arguing with a NYer is usually a losing proposition to begin with, it gets worse when you find a NYer who is rooting for some other team in another city, ala the NY/Cowboy fans, or the NY/Bulls fan (when Bulls were winning championships) as bad as that is it only happens when the said other team is winning. It never happens when the other team is sucking on wind. So am I surprised that suddenly there are bandwagon Pens fans, not at all, and yeah every badnwagon fan was a true blue always been there fan, and I am the King of England. If that were true then people like B&G would have been on these blogs during the tough times, yet as we all know they don't show up until their team is suddenly winning and the reason for this is because it doesn't become their team until said team is winning, the truest definition of a bandwagon fan. So, the Rangers season is over and next year guess what, I will be a Ranger fan just as I have since going to my first game at the old garden in 1961. I am proud to be a Ranger fan, and have always been one, I have been out of the NY area since 1986 yet I have always continued to follow my teams which are the Rangers, Giants, and Mets, gave up on the Knicks long ago and for the most part abandoned the NBA totally. So to argue with people like B&G is truly throwing pearls to swine, it basically is a waste of time and good energy, this true blue fan will be gone as soon as Pitt loses. Makes you really want to see the Flyers kick Pens ass and then listen to the silence from the bandwagon.
PS no one said all they had was Mario, what was said is that MArio turned the entire Franchise around and without him the Franchise would not have survived. He is the face of the Pens, too the extent that he had to become part of the ownership group. All the other names you supply were great players yet without Mario none of them would have delivered Pitt to the 2 Cups they were able to win. Please don't even try the BS that Mario was simply a piece to the puzzle, because that doesn't hold water. And if you truly belive that you are more dense then I thought. The Pens are MARIO period. Did he need players to surround him, everyone does, yet he became the face of the Franchise and still is. Very few Franchises have ever had to rely on one human being for their success.
I don't know whether to be amused or appalled by the behavior here.
When you parse through some of the exchanges, there have been some nuggets of wisdom and humor. Meanwhile, the baseball blogs are moribund even with the subway series going on. Here, the passion has yet to die down so I have to admire that.
BUT the bashing of the stereotypical fan is ridiculous by both sides. Arguing about the depth of intellect or passion is crazy. The Rangers sold out even when they went through their playoff drought. The NHL barely registers here because of other sports and entertainment options. But the Ranger fans are among the loyalest out there.
As for the Pens, I, for one, always rooted for Pitt to keep the Pens because I know their fan base is loyal and passionate and the idea of the Pens moving was distasteful to me.
I agree with one of the posters that with only 4 teams left, the playoffs lose a bit of their luster. Not because the Rangers are not in them (which does hurt) but because there are fewer stories to follow.
Something about having 4 series going on with two games every night on t.v. is fun -- like where the NBA playoffs just were.
It's sad that the most thought-out response today came from an Islander fan, but that's fine and I salute his/her efforts. (It's the offseason, time to lay down our arms until July.)
Emergency message to Habitant1, I suggest that your omission of the Pats from your honor roll of almighty teams besting NY teams this year was surely inadvertent. Oh, sorry, I forgot the gift that keeps on giving -- 17-14.
And if you're going to talk about Pennsylvania teams please keep note the geographical distinctions -- the teams in the eastern half have not won anything since 1980. The Steel City owns plenty of metal in the form of championships trophies since that time. Don't insult the western half by lumping them with the eastern half.
I am hoping for an entertaining pair of Game 5s (and perhaps more) in the semis and looking forward to the Finals, regardless of the teams.
Finally, how about an outdoor game pitting Montreal against the Rangers -- an original 6 matchup -- a Canadian team in the U.S. and the owner of the most cups. Just a thought.
Good night, all.
B&G - a few threads ago you said you would go away if we admit you the Pens won fair and square and that the Rangers have some over the hill players. I agreed with you and yet you still persist in coming here on a Ranger not Penguin board 2 weeks after the series is over. Now please be a man of your word and go away. Nobody likes a guest who doesn't know when to leave the party unless she looks like a supermodel.
everyone else pls stop feeding the troll.
So it looks like reading comprehension is not one of BNG's stronger points. This makes two posts in a row where you have placed words in my mouth.
I'll just end it with this...all I said in the beginning was that there was no need for you to be coming on to a Rangers blog and boasting as if the Pens were anything to really be boasting about. I pointed out the tanking, the gift-wrapped second coming of Mario, the diving and the whining. You keep saying I am stupid and then inserting arguments that I never made...jeez even Islander fans are seeing through your B.S.
If you want to come on another teams blog then you should make sure you are there to discuss hockey, not bash the team of the blog you are on.
So you were old enough to be watching hockey the year I was born. My guess that you are about 40 years old seems to be about right. So why at your age are you going on to other teams blogs to try and cause trouble? Do you go on Senators and Flyers boards as well? And you are the one that made a comment about losers living in their parents basement....take a look in the mirror and tell me what you see.
one more thing about Crosby diving. You said yourself that Crosby is "one of the best skaters in the league". Why then does he go down like a brick when some one like Tyutin barely lays a glove on him? Anybody who has ever played the game at any level can spot a dive easily, and what Crosby is doing is diving to draw a penalty that he knows the refs will call for him. And his attitude is obviously rubbing off on his team as Hossa and Malkin are doing it as well. It's just that I would expect more from the ambassador of the game and the "next one".
You don't want to respond to my comments about Hossa's dive at center ice or Malkins two slew foots or his elbow to Briere? Some how Avery is the worst thing to happen to the NHL because he stood in Brodeur's face and did a stupid texas two step. But Malkin can risk injuring a player severely and it is just part of the game I guess.
joke - what you are doing is encouraging the troll to keep responding. can't you do it elsewhere in a national or Pittsburgh blog. Do we really need to read about the pens the rest of the summer. why can't you just let it die.
As for msg4ever's insinuation that I'm somewhat less than honest regarding my background. I'll point you to a post here on the Newsday Blogs that came well before this thread:
http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/football/bob_blog/2008/05/comment_contest_winners_16.html
As for Jokes comment that I ever accused anyone of living in Mom and Dads basement. Show me the post. Never happened. So much for your bravado over reading comprehension.
Malkins slew foot was stupid. No argument. Dumb hockey moves are dumb hockey moves no matter who makes them.
As for the accusations of diving, get some new material, and btw, you may want to call the architect and have him change the design of that glass house you live in if you're going to keep throwing stones.
To LI Joe: I live and work right here on LI. I'm your neighbor, the guy in front of you at the checkout line. I'm a Newsday subscriber.
Look at the first dozen posts of this thread and tell me again how classy you Rangers fans are? Riiiiiiight.
Excuse me, I have to go buy supplies for todays Eastern Conference Finals game.
Bandwagon, enjoy it while it lasts as next year you will have to find someone else to root for or maybe you are as delusional as the ESPN bunch who have annointed Pens as the next Dynasty even thought they have won nothing yet, that is the fastest dynasty I have ever witnessed. The last true dynasty I saw was in Feb, that was the Pats and I remember 17-14 or as one put it the gift that keeps on giving. At least the Pats had a pedigree that could make a dynasty argument, Pens have NOTHING to even begin the debate with. Please win something before the ad nausem dynasty discussion starts.
msg4ever,
You won't hear me saying anything about a 'Dynasty'.
Hell I'm not even ready to talk about playing in the finals until the Pens win their next game.
Calling me 'Bandwagon'... LMAO. Is that the best insult you can come up with? And you call yourself a NY'er?
What does the Pats have to do with hockey? msg4ever, you really need to stay on the Ritalin man... focus!
The focus and point is I never heard anything from you on this Blog until this season with the Pens, that tells me you are a bandwagon fan. Where were your Rangers insults and the other nonsense prior to late this season? You were not here period, now you won't leave so it is obvious you are a bandwagon Pens apologist. The Pats were an an example of a team in any sport that had a legitimate dynasty argument and unfortunately for them the Giants put that to sleep. Has nothing to do wit hHockey has to do with the definition of dynasty as there is no hockey franchise at present that can lay claim to a dynasty. So, you other Pens brethren are pretty adamant about this being the beginning of a dynasty. Maybe they are more long term Pitt fans who actually live in Pitt, I don't know that may have something to do with their level of ignorance as well. Thankfully you haven't yet joined the dynasty koolaid gang, it may be that you haven't been a Pens fan long enough, even more evidence of being a bandwagoner!
" I live and work right here on LI. I'm your neighbor, the guy in front of you at the checkout line. I'm a Newsday subscriber"
my god are you an asssshole
I cannot stand people who are proud to be obnoxious
Nice to meet you too Dude!
Now we're on the the Stanley Cup Finals!
Hey B&G, so you're the a$$hole on line in front of me. How does that make you relevent? You're just another a$$hole Pens fan that lives in NY. You should try getting a life sometime. I highly recomend it.
looks like there are rumors that idiot Sather is after another Poti like defenseman Joni "32 hits" Pitkanen
You're right... now that you've shown your fascination with that aspect of the human anatomy, I'm a little nervous about you being "behind" me.
Rangers fans are great, when they don't have anything intelligent to say (and that's all the time) they resort to calling people names, just like Avery.
Tony V....
"It's sad that the most thought-out response today came from an Islander fan, but that's fine and I salute his/her efforts."
I salute you for saluting 19Isles comments AND, more importantly, reading his comment in it's entirety.
He is one of our regular quality posters on Logan's board....as well as a QUANTITY poster.....i.e., we have learned to take a No-Doz before reading one of his novels.
Black and Gold???
What are you doin buddy??
Trying to resurrect the ghosts of Carnegie and Rockefeller and get a little PIT/NYC rivalry going again?
Did Glauber evict you?
BTW......Mazeroski's home run was hit with a corked bat.
Still can't find that life, can ya? Just the fact that you're on this blog all day and night proves you're a loser. You should be nervous cause I f@#k little b!tches like you all the time. When I'm done with you I'll do your father, and your son, if you have one.
Glad to hear you're out of the closet Kocur. No sense hiding your sexual preferences.
Islander505, just having a little fun. Zipay doesn't seem to get the quality Glauber does on his blog.
Most of these Ranger posters are OK, but some of them are sad bitter little people.
The Gov of Pen had to step into private business to stop Mario from moving the team. Let's not forget that little fact.
3 other cities were wooing the Pens away and Mario was getting ready to bite when a deal was struck by the city of Pitts and the state to keep the Pens in Shitsburgh.
Why was the team moving... well as I recall the fans stopped showing up, the lease was up and the team was OUT OF CASH!
What was the name of the city B&G that was offering a free area and city lease?
Kansas City, but you have it wrong. Outside of the NY area, most local governments subsidize sporting venues. In Pittsburgh the Pirates and Steelers were given new homes even though there old house - Three Rivers - was only built in 1970.
On the other side of the state, a new area was built for the Flyers.
Meanwhile, the Pens are still playing in the oldest barn in the league, built in the 1950's. There was no way to remain competitive in that venue even if it was sold out every game.
The Pens approached the Gov, who by the way was a native of Philly and an avowed Flayers fan. The Gov denied the Pens request for the state to assist in financing the new barn.
It was only after the Pens threatened to move and Pens fans threatened to never support the Gov in future elections that the Gov "ponied up".
The franchise was never moving. It was all politics.
But that doesn't make a good story for you Rangers fans, so you can go on believing that the Pens were being sold.
Like I said, it's your party, you can cry of you want to.
The Igloo was built in 1962, so much for the 50's. Maybe that is something a bandwagoneer wouldn't know, good guess though. Get ready for The Wings to kick the Pens ass. The Pens and Flyers were basically skating in sand in comparison to the speed and up tempo of the Det Dallas series. Both of the teams in the West could win the cup. It will however be the Wings who prevail and yest they are better than the Pens. Basically the Flyers quit after 20 minutes, not sure they really showed up at all. Whether the Pens were being sold or not is really of no consequence, they are of course the next dynasty. Please forgive me if I don't hold my breath on that dynasty issue. And surely the Gov of Pitt gave in because of Pens fans, what a ridiculous statement.
msg4ever,
They broke ground in March of 1957. You might want to get your facts straight before you open that big mouth of yours.
As for your hockey knowledge, it's non-existent. The Stars or Wings will give the Pens a tougher fight than the Pens have had so far in the playoffs. But it won't be because either team has more speed than Pittsburgh.
Falling back on the Dynasty crap are you? You're really grasping at straws aren't you? The can't be a Dynasty until the first championship is won. The Pens haven't accomplished anything yet.
Oh yeah... since when are you an expert on PA politics?
I don't think there's anything sadder than a big mouthed ExPatriate NY'er who thinks he knows everything.
Why's everyone letting this "B&G" get them all worked up? After the Red Wings beat the Stars, they're just gonna roll through the Pens. He shouldn't have too much to say after that...
Blow & Gag is just another troll who thinks he's the authority on everything. If you just let him talk to himself he'll disappear like the rest have. It should be fun watching Detroit or Dallas tear appart the flightless birds.
Pittsburgh Civic Arena, as it was originally known, was completed in 1961 at a cost of $22 million, which makes it the oldest arena in use in the NHL. Oddly enough, the arena was not originally intended for sports, but instead as to host the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, which had previously performed at Pitt Stadium but grew tired of having performances rained out. The building was—and remains—unique, and well ahead of its time. It was built with a retractable dome made of six stainless steel arched panels, five of which could roll under the sixth. When the weather was pleasant enough, the dome could open in two and a half minutes, turning Pittsburgh Civic Arena into an outdoor venue.
Hey B&G, how about an Pitt ex-patriate who does not know what they are talking about? Here ae the facts about your beloved Igloo, straight from Wikepedia, not my words, just the facts, now why don't you please go away! Who give a crap about when it BROKE GROUND, if it did break ground when you say, then it took light years to build it, bottom line is when it opens and there is a CO granted, and as to your knowledge I guess it is a bit off the mark isn't it?
The Mellon Arena (known as Pittsburgh Civic Arena from 1961–1999[1] and informally known as "The Igloo") is an indoor arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is home to the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League and was formerly home to the Pittsburgh Hornets of the AHL; the Pittsburgh Rens of the ABL; the Pittsburgh Pipers and Pittsburgh Condors of the ABA; Pittsburgh CrosseFire of the NLL; and Pittsburgh Spirit of the MISL (among others). The arena seats 16,958 for ice hockey (17,132 at standing room capacity) and features 56 luxury suites and 1,696 club seats.
More FACTS for the bandwagoneer! Keep opening your mouth and let the BS dribble out, try some research now and then before you make yourself out to be an authority, go stand on line at the local grocery store and speak with your neighbors, see if they have a bandwagon club for you to join.
In recent years, the age of the arena has been a problem. Over the arena's lifetime, additions and renovations not initially envisioned have contributed to its unusual layout. In either "end zone" of the arena, the lower level seats farthest from the floor have their views obstructed by the overhanging upper level. This requires the aid of television monitors in the ceiling for fans to see the action. In addition, some seats must be covered with a tarp because of leaky sections in the building's roof.[citation needed]
The aging arena is costly to maintain and does not produce enough revenue to keep the NHL's Penguins profitable.[citation needed] It also has been unable to attract other events, such as concerts, due to the wiring and electrical capacity of the dated facility.
During a Penguins game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 19, 2006, the power abruptly went out in some sections of the arena, and the game was taken off the air while the technical difficulties were fixed. During this period, renderings and designs of a New Pittsburgh Arena were shown on the scoreboard as fans chanted, "New Arena, New Arena!" [2]
In addition, the visitors' locker room is considered by many players from opposing teams as not being up to NHL standards. [1]
Not to mention POOR ICE. Just some more facts for the Bandwagoneer, and get ready as the bandwagon is going to be over turned in the finals, and either team from the West can Win the Cup. Yet it will be the WIngs that give the Pens an education on what the Stanley Cup finals are all about. Enjoy it while it lasts as the dynasty is going to have to wait a while to get going.
Maybe now that B&G has been exposed as a know it all who really knows nothing, he will graciously disappear to the Pitt blogs and simply exchange pats on the back with the Pens fans who are anxiously predicting a dynasty. Nothing like a bandwagon fan who has to go on blogs for teams other than his own rooting preference to stir up crap. At least someone with this personality disorder could have the courtesy to know the facts and actually be correct now and then.
msg4ever,
So you know how to cut and paste, congrats! How long did it take you to figure out how to do that?
The Civic Arena broke ground in March of 1957 and hosted it's first event in September of 1961. That means the architects designed the building sometime in the 1956-1957 time period. So it's a building from the 50's.
Yeah, it took four years to build. Another testament to how screwed up the political process in PA is.
Yes, the ice does suck, you should see the equipment used to chill the floor. It's ancient. But no matter, we're building a new building which will rival anything currently in the NHL.
Of course MSG is widely viewed by players has having some of the worst ice in the league year round.
I'm glad you learned how to use Wikipedia. Thanks for sharing.
The Pens are playing for the 'Cup. While the Rangers are... Hmmm.. what are the Rangers doing.. even they don't know.
BNG....does the name Jim Balsillie mean anything to you???...
Do you recall a game a few years back when a tentative agreement had been made to sell the team to the afforementined Mr. Balsillie, and he and Mario were whooping it up in the "Luxury Boxes" at the Igloo?
Then what happened??....who stepped in to save the Pittsburgh faithful?...it was not the season ticket holders, nor the extensive fan base. It was none other than Gary Bettman because the Pens were going to be playing out of the other steel city, Hamilton!
Then you got a mulligan in the name of Crosby, a new arena, and all is well and good in Pittsburgh.
I am not calling you bandwagon, or anything else for that matter but please for once acknowledge that without Bettman's help you would not have a team to root for, unless you went north of the 49th, so when you tell me how passionate the fans are in Pittsburgh, I have to snicker a little.
GWN,
You're spouting revisionist history.
Blackberry magnet Jim Balsillie or "BALL SILLY" as we like to call him in Pittsburgh, was only entertained because he had promised to keep the Pens in Pittsburgh. When it was found out that he was secretly planning to move the team to Hamilton, he was shown the door. (Subsequently, he was shown the door in Nashville for the same reason too).
It's about time you Rangers fans did some homework, The true owner of the Pens isn't Mario, it's Billionaire Ron Burkle. The Pens have not been hurting for deep pocketed onership since the days of Roger Marino and Howard Baldwin. In fact, Pittsburgh native Mark Cuban refused to waste time and effort in making an offer for the Pens because he didn't believe the ownership group was serious about selling the team or moving the franch