I didn't post after Game 3, although I probably should have. That was a game where the Sharks outplayed the Avs from start to finish and got beat because Craig Anderson stood on his head all game, and the Sharks made a mistake in overtime.
The Sharks win 9 times out of 10 if they play like that. If they play the same tonight, they should win.
We'll see how it all goes.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
Holy @#%^, the Sharks Win!
That's not a typo. The Sharks won it! They still have a chance in the series. The Sharks did play their game for the majority of the game. They were physical, they controlled the puck, and they punished the smaller but faster Avs team.
The win covers up a lot, but it doesn't change the fact that Nabokov is going to have to step up his game by about 100% for the Sharks to take the series. Anderson let in 6 goals, but faced 46 shots and, by my count, didn't give up any cheap ones. On the other hand, Nabokov let in 5 on 22 shots. Maybe, MAYBE, 3 of them were legitimate.
In any case, it's a win, and the Sharks have the momentum going back to Colorado. The Avs had to feel like the game was theirs to win; all the breaks went their way, and they were 30 seconds away from taking it. Anderson couldn't have played any better, and Nabakov couldn't have played any worse. But, the series goes back now tied, with nobody in control, but the momentum pointing the Sharks direction. I think that the series hinges on the first playoff game in Colorado. Whoever wins that game should take it.
Hopefully, I'll actually be able to watch the game.
On a side note, Versus just went from Hockey, to Whacked Out Sports. Yay Versus!
The win covers up a lot, but it doesn't change the fact that Nabokov is going to have to step up his game by about 100% for the Sharks to take the series. Anderson let in 6 goals, but faced 46 shots and, by my count, didn't give up any cheap ones. On the other hand, Nabokov let in 5 on 22 shots. Maybe, MAYBE, 3 of them were legitimate.
In any case, it's a win, and the Sharks have the momentum going back to Colorado. The Avs had to feel like the game was theirs to win; all the breaks went their way, and they were 30 seconds away from taking it. Anderson couldn't have played any better, and Nabakov couldn't have played any worse. But, the series goes back now tied, with nobody in control, but the momentum pointing the Sharks direction. I think that the series hinges on the first playoff game in Colorado. Whoever wins that game should take it.
Hopefully, I'll actually be able to watch the game.
On a side note, Versus just went from Hockey, to Whacked Out Sports. Yay Versus!
NHL Playoffs Abomination
So, I should start off by apologizing for essentially abandoning this blog after getting it started with the other authors. That is, if there is actually anyone reading this or checking on it. But, I digress.....
During the Olympics there was a lot of talk about the NHL gaining fans because of the quality of Olympic hockey play. That was a fantastic thought, but I said at the time that it wouldn't actually happen. Part of the problem was that hockey was buried on CNBC or MSNBC, which meant that people wouldn't have the opportunity to see it, even if the ratings and interest was up overall. The only Olympic hockey that actually made it onto NBC were the finals, which was great, but not good enough to actually launch some additional interest in the NHL. The country got interested in hockey for the time it took for the US to play Canada in the finals, and then promptly forgot about it and went back to talking about the hot Canadian curler.
But the larger problem that nobody was talking about was the fact that NBC was burying hockey for a reason. THEY KNEW WHAT PEOPLE WANTED TO SEE AND IT WASN'T HOCKEY! It's an easy argument to make that hockey was on the secondary networks and therefore there wasn't any viewership, but I guarantee you that NBC would have been responsive enough to the viewership to move the games onto the major networks if there had been the call for it. The reality is there just wasn't the overall interest in hockey.
But, for the sake of argument, lets say that I'm completely wrong, and that NBC screwed up in a major way, and that Hockey was underexposed during the Olympics and that people were genuinely interested. That moves me on to the actual reason for the post.
The NHL should be embarrassed that they can't manage to get national broadcasts for the playoffs. The NHL can blame it on whomever they want but the reality is that the NHL turned down ESPN's offer after the lockout and decided to go with Versus, which was something else at the time. The fact that I can't even remember what the hell the network was should say enough. But, now, I'm forced to find alternative means to try and watch the game because I live outside of broadcast area for the Sharks game. That's unacceptable! How does the NHL expect to gain fans when they can't manage to have national broadcasts for their product? Playoff hockey is fantastic -- the on ice product is amazing and, in my opinion, doesn't need to be messed with, but how does the league expect to remain viable if they don't have anyone broadcast their games?
I think the first thing that they need to do is get out from under the contract they signed with Versus. When I've actually been able to watch, the national broadcasts from the network are awful, the announcers are terrible, and it's clear that they don't know how to maximize the tension and passion that are the NHL playoffs. The next thing that they need to do is realize that in order to get the best of their product on national television, they may have to sign a short term contract that isn't incredibly advantageous to the NHL. That's fine, do it so that more people actually get to watch the games.
Speaking of watching the games, I'm watching the end of the Detroit, Phoenix game on Versus. There's 50 seconds left and Detroit is up by 3. Yet, for some reason, Versus hasn't pulled away from the game yet, when there's 15 minutes left in a one goal Shark game. This is unbelievable. This network has to be run by idiots, or Detroit fans. Has there ever been a game that had 3 goals scored in 20 seconds?
Final horn, and they go to break while the game is still being played in San Jose. Versus has to be one of the worst run networks on the planet. I'm pretty sure Versus is where all the failed GM's and everybody who's ever been involved in running the Warriors go to when they are fired from every job that'll have them . Pretty soon, Versus will be hiring Matt Millen to get the best on air talent. It's only a matter of time before Charles Rodgers becomes an announcer for Versus hockey.
Now they are in studio, and the game is being played in San Jose, but they are summing up the Detriot game. Fantastic choice, what we all want to see are poorly run replays from a game we just watched, rather than the 1 seed playing from behind.
Also, on a separate note, Nabakov is awful in the playoffs. Is there anyone who inspires less confidence than him in the playoffs? I'm convinced that he's going to give it away the game and I have to believe that the Sharks players think the exact same thing. Do they have any confidence in him at this point? Do they think that for a second they're going to win because of him when it counts? Or do you think that they know that if they're to win, it's going to be despite of Nabakov. Nabakov has given up 5 goals on 18 shots. 18 shots! He's been terrible. I'd feel more comfortable with Greiss in the net and I bet the Sharks would too. As an admittedly novice hockey fan, it's clear that success in the playoffs depends on the play of the goalies. Nabakov cannot step up and make plays when it's necessary. He's a choke artist. He was awful when it mattered in the Olympics, and he's awful in the playoffs.
If they win tonight, it's possible they make it out of the first round. But do you really believe Nabakov will play well in Colorado with the series on the line?
During the Olympics there was a lot of talk about the NHL gaining fans because of the quality of Olympic hockey play. That was a fantastic thought, but I said at the time that it wouldn't actually happen. Part of the problem was that hockey was buried on CNBC or MSNBC, which meant that people wouldn't have the opportunity to see it, even if the ratings and interest was up overall. The only Olympic hockey that actually made it onto NBC were the finals, which was great, but not good enough to actually launch some additional interest in the NHL. The country got interested in hockey for the time it took for the US to play Canada in the finals, and then promptly forgot about it and went back to talking about the hot Canadian curler.
But the larger problem that nobody was talking about was the fact that NBC was burying hockey for a reason. THEY KNEW WHAT PEOPLE WANTED TO SEE AND IT WASN'T HOCKEY! It's an easy argument to make that hockey was on the secondary networks and therefore there wasn't any viewership, but I guarantee you that NBC would have been responsive enough to the viewership to move the games onto the major networks if there had been the call for it. The reality is there just wasn't the overall interest in hockey.
But, for the sake of argument, lets say that I'm completely wrong, and that NBC screwed up in a major way, and that Hockey was underexposed during the Olympics and that people were genuinely interested. That moves me on to the actual reason for the post.
The NHL should be embarrassed that they can't manage to get national broadcasts for the playoffs. The NHL can blame it on whomever they want but the reality is that the NHL turned down ESPN's offer after the lockout and decided to go with Versus, which was something else at the time. The fact that I can't even remember what the hell the network was should say enough. But, now, I'm forced to find alternative means to try and watch the game because I live outside of broadcast area for the Sharks game. That's unacceptable! How does the NHL expect to gain fans when they can't manage to have national broadcasts for their product? Playoff hockey is fantastic -- the on ice product is amazing and, in my opinion, doesn't need to be messed with, but how does the league expect to remain viable if they don't have anyone broadcast their games?
I think the first thing that they need to do is get out from under the contract they signed with Versus. When I've actually been able to watch, the national broadcasts from the network are awful, the announcers are terrible, and it's clear that they don't know how to maximize the tension and passion that are the NHL playoffs. The next thing that they need to do is realize that in order to get the best of their product on national television, they may have to sign a short term contract that isn't incredibly advantageous to the NHL. That's fine, do it so that more people actually get to watch the games.
Speaking of watching the games, I'm watching the end of the Detroit, Phoenix game on Versus. There's 50 seconds left and Detroit is up by 3. Yet, for some reason, Versus hasn't pulled away from the game yet, when there's 15 minutes left in a one goal Shark game. This is unbelievable. This network has to be run by idiots, or Detroit fans. Has there ever been a game that had 3 goals scored in 20 seconds?
Final horn, and they go to break while the game is still being played in San Jose. Versus has to be one of the worst run networks on the planet. I'm pretty sure Versus is where all the failed GM's and everybody who's ever been involved in running the Warriors go to when they are fired from every job that'll have them . Pretty soon, Versus will be hiring Matt Millen to get the best on air talent. It's only a matter of time before Charles Rodgers becomes an announcer for Versus hockey.
Now they are in studio, and the game is being played in San Jose, but they are summing up the Detriot game. Fantastic choice, what we all want to see are poorly run replays from a game we just watched, rather than the 1 seed playing from behind.
Also, on a separate note, Nabakov is awful in the playoffs. Is there anyone who inspires less confidence than him in the playoffs? I'm convinced that he's going to give it away the game and I have to believe that the Sharks players think the exact same thing. Do they have any confidence in him at this point? Do they think that for a second they're going to win because of him when it counts? Or do you think that they know that if they're to win, it's going to be despite of Nabakov. Nabakov has given up 5 goals on 18 shots. 18 shots! He's been terrible. I'd feel more comfortable with Greiss in the net and I bet the Sharks would too. As an admittedly novice hockey fan, it's clear that success in the playoffs depends on the play of the goalies. Nabakov cannot step up and make plays when it's necessary. He's a choke artist. He was awful when it mattered in the Olympics, and he's awful in the playoffs.
If they win tonight, it's possible they make it out of the first round. But do you really believe Nabakov will play well in Colorado with the series on the line?
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