Posted on November 21, 2007
Filed Under NHL Blog, Religion | Leave a Comment
Reason for the Resurgence of Fundamentalist Religion in the United States
The last thirty years has seen a striking and disturbing resurgence of fundamentalist religious groups in the United States. In a country predicated on the dictum of a separation of church and state we now live in an era in which the President claims to pray every night and wages an illegal war for control of oil in the name of god and Freedom. How did this change come to pass? It was scarcely 40 years ago that John F. Kennedy had to downplay his Catholic background in his bid for the Presidency; these days a candidate is nearly required to often invoke God in order to have any chance of mounting a serious bid to the position.
The matter is one of great complexity intertwined with an almost endless procession of threads running the gamut from fear, hopelessness, faith and community. Religion was almost certainly conceived as a way to explain existence for the earliest thinking humans. At this time in history, existence was harsh, and consisted primarily of finding ways to continue to exist. Once human were organized to a point in which there were rulers of others, a reason had to be constructed to implore the ruled to behave and follow edicts laid out by rulers. At a time when life offered little in the way of luxuries or upward mobility; the concept of following a set of rules from a greater power in order to receive to blessed afterlife became an extremely popular and effective method of controlling the populace.
Fast forward to 2007 and the situation is similar but perversely reversed. The systematic elimination of a middle class and the marginalization of many jobs and workers have left a large amount of the populace living on the margins and unfulfilled in their careers. With such a large dearth in their lives, many people turned to religion; an entity that could provide internal fulfillment, a sense of community and the sense that there was something better to be had after this life.
The leaders of these large churches, notably the Reverend Jerry Falwell, were able to recognize the political power of these groups of people and using his ability to influence large pockets of voters, forced politicians in turn to make a show of embracing god and religion, but also backed candidates whom supported fundamentalist tenets referred to in the Bible.
Sadly this has lead to a situation where the people who most fervently follow religion hold huge amounts of power in a national election, yet by being swayed by candidate who appears to follow Christian principles and promises to uphold the “moral fiber” of the country, these very people, who are often amongst the most marginalized, completely undermine all the political power they achieve by blindly attaching themselves to selected passages written in a fiction novel centuries ago instead of forcing candidates to focus on real issues that could actually affect some social change.
Posted on October 4, 2007
Filed Under NHL Blog, Hall of Fame | Leave a Comment
By: Mike Dunshee MDunsh@gmail.com
During the 2006-07 season New Jersey Devils goalie Martin Brodeur began to approach the all-time wins record in NHL history, currently held by Patrick Roy. Brodeur also passed Jacque Plantes record 47 wins in a season and in doing so extended his own record by recording his sixth season of 40 wins of more. With 3 Stanley Cups, 2 Vezina Trophies and some all-time records in sight, there was a movement in the hockey world to crown Brodeur as the greatest of all-time, just as there had been a similar movement for Patrick Roy when he starting eclipsing all-time records late in his career.
Certainly Marty Brodeur deserves and has earned all the accolades one could bestow upon an NHL goalie. His career numbers and resume speak for themselves and there is no debate that he is certainly on the list of the greatest goaltenders ever, but as it almost always goes when we get swept up in the excitement of records being broken and career milestones being eclipsed, it is an error to crown Brodeur as the best ever, when in fact he is not even the best of his generation. That distinction goes to a fiery and controversial Czech goalie, of whom the mention of his name brings on opinions ranging from venomous to worship. That man is of course Dominick Hasek.
Hasek and Brodeur make for an interesting study because they both became primary goaltenders in the 93-94 season and achieved immediate success in the NHL. From that point on through the 2001-02 season, Brodeur and Hasek, along with Patrick Roy dominated goaltending in the NHL. After winning the Stanley Cup in Detroit in 2002, Hasek retired at age 37, only to return after for one season away from the league. After injuries limited Hasek to 14 games in his return he moved on to Ottawa where he had the Senators atop the league before being felled again by injury at the Olympics. Amid controversy that Hasek had not done all he could have to return for the playoffs, Ottawa was not interested in bringing Hasek back and The Dominator returned to Detroit for yet another season. In the time period that since Hasek retired, Brodeur cemented himself as the premier goalie in the NHL, winning 2 Vezina Trophies and approaching many league records. For the purpose of this study, I am going to focus on the time frame between 93-94 and 01-02, the first retirement for Hasek at the age of 37. Today Brodeur is only 35 and comparing him to a 40 plus Hasek is a wasted exercise.
The 1993-94 season was one of great change for the NHL and its fans. The Minnesota North Stars began play as the Dallas Stars and the Anaheim Might Ducks and Florida Panthers joined the NHL as the league continued its rampant expansion. The 93-94 season was also the first in which the Conference and Division names were changed from the traditional “hockey” names into the more homogenized East and West while the divisions were also re-named regionally.
Two more large changes took place in Buffalo and New Jersey as Dominick Hasek and Martin Brodeur took over as starting goaltenders for their respective teams. At the time few could have guessed that both would change the face of each franchise and rewrite the record book for goaltenders. Both put up impressive regular season stats, Brodeur a 2.40 GAA and .915 SV%, while Hasek recorded an otherworldly 1.95 GAA and .930 SV%. The duo added plenty of hardware for the season as Brodeur captured the Calder Trophy as the leagues best rookie, while Hasek captured the Vezina (best goalie), was named a First Team All-NHL and split the William Jennings Trophy (least goals allowed) with the goalie he displaced Grant Fuhr. As fate would have it the two met in the first round of the postseason in what turned out to be an epic seven game series. New Jersey triumphed in game seven by a score of 2-1 but not before a thrilling four overtime game six that Buffalo won 1-0 giving Hasek two shutouts in the series. This would be the only time the two legendary goalies faced each other in the playoffs.
The Devils and Brodeur would play superbly to the Conference Finals, falling in double-overtime of game seven to the eventual champion New York Rangers. It was the Rangers first championship in 54 years and widely hailed throughout the sports world, but it was the emergence of a new star for their rivals down the road that would have the greater long term effect on the hockey word.
Hasek and Brodeur opened the next season as well known variables for the first time in their careers; unfortunately the NHL wasn’t quite ready for them as a labor dispute caused a player lockout leading to cancellation of about half the season. When the teams did take the ice, Hasek and Brodeur quickly dispelled any notions of a one season fluke for either; Brodeur was excellent once again posting a 2.44 GAA and .902 SV%, while Hasek posted a 2.11 GAA and matched the previous seasons stunning .930 SV%. Those numbers got Hasek named to his second straight First Team All-NHL squad and netted a second straight Vezina Trophy. For all the regular season accolades though, Hasek struggled in the playoffs; losing in the first round. Brodeur on the other hand backstopped New Jersey all the way to the Stanley Cup, as the Devils, long one of the moribund franchises in the league were champions for the first time. Brodeur was a linchpin to the Devils Cup run as he posted a 1.67 GAA and .927 SV% through the 20 game run.
The next season was a different from the previous two as Hasek and Brodeur tasted some failure for the first time as starting goalies. Brodeur registered a career low 2.34 GAA and a .911 SV%, but the defending champs missed the playoffs by two points. Buffalo had an even worse season missing the playoffs by a wide margin as Hasek posted a career high 2.83 GAA offset against an excellent .920 SV%. For the first time there was no postseason play or awards for either goalie in 95-96.
In 1996-97 Brodeur and Hasek lead their clubs to impressive turnarounds as the Devils and Sabres finished first and second in the Eastern Conference respectively. Brodeur recorded the best season of his career posting a scintillating 1.88 GAA, .927 SV% and 10 shutouts. Hasek posted a 2.27 GAA and 5 shutouts, but bested Marty with a .930 SV%. Brodeur was named the Second Team All-NHL, while Hasek was the First Team selection and collected his third Vezina. Hasek also became the first goalie since Jacque Plante in 1962 to win the Hart Trophy as the league MVP and the first goalie since Mike Liut in 1981 to win the Lester B. Pearson Trophy, as Most Valuable Player selected by the NHLPA. Though bested by Brodeur in GAA and shutouts, Hasek was selected by both the writers and his fellow peers as the best goalie and most valuable player in multiple instances during the season. At this time it was a widely held view that the Devils were a talented team deploying “the trap” defensive system in an extremely efficient manner, while Buffalo was a team lacking in stars that was carried by their goaltender.
Despite the impressive regular seasons for both teams and individuals, playoff success was not to follow for either in 1997. Hasek went down with an injury and played in only three games, recording a 1.96 GAA and the Sabres were eliminated in the second round by the Philadelphia Flyers. Brodeur was excellent in the playoffs, posting a .929 SV% and an amazing 1.73 GAA, but his Devils were also bested in the second round.
During the 1997-98 regular season New Jersey was the cream of the Eastern Conference leading the way with 107 points. The Sabres did not fair nearly as well as they fell to 6th place in the conference. Both Hasek and Brodeur posted notable seasons; Brodeur appeared in 70 games, posted a 1.89 GAA, another 10 shutout season and a SV% of .917. Despite those numbers, Hasek was clearly the star as he became the story of the NHL this season. In one of the more remarkable seasons in memory, Hasek registered a .932 SV%, 13 shutouts and a 2.09 GAA. These remarkable numbers lead Hasek to be elected NHL First Team Goalie again and collect his fourth Vezina Trophy. Even more amazing, Hasek collected for the second straight season both the Hart and Lester B. Pearson Trophies. Hasek is the only goalie to win either award multiple times. Brodeur did not go without in post season awards, being named NHL Second Team goalie and winning the William Jennings Trophy.
The playoffs were two separate tales as Brodeur played well for the heavily favored Devils posting a 1.97 GAA and .927 SV%, but was bounced out of the postseason in the first round by the upstart Senators. Meanwhile Hasek lead the 6th seeded Sabres to the Conference Finals before they were beaten by the Capitals. Hasek was the key to the run posting a 2.03 GAA and .938 SV%.
This season was also notable as it was the first time the NHL took a break in the schedule to allow its players to represent their countries in the Olympics. The ensuing tournament had many remarkable and memorable moments, none more so then when Hasek, playing for the Czech Republic, stopped the Canadians in a dramatic shootout victory. The Czech team would go on to win the Gold Medal and Hasek, who posted a 0.97 GAA during the tournament was named the best goaltender and widely acknowledged as the best player in the Olympics. Brodeur made the trip for Team Canada, but did not play behind Patrick Roy.
The 1998-99 season will always be best remembered as the final season for Wayne Gretzky. The retirement of the Great One along with the expansion and re-alignment in the league ensured that the NHL of the new millennium would be a much different league. The Devils and Brodeur rebounded from the early playoff exit the previous season to once again capture the best record in the East. Brodeur had a bit of slippage in his overall numbers posting a 2.29 GAA and .906 SV%. The Sabres once again qualified for a lower playoff seed (7th) while Hasek once again posted dominant numbers; a 1.87 GAA and an insane .937 SV%; both career bests. For the third straight season and fifth time overall, Hasek was named the NHL First Team All-Star goalie and the Vezina Trophy winner as the leagues best goalie. Brodeur was shutout of any postseason awards.
In the playoffs, the year continued to be dominated by Hasek. While Brodeur and the Devils flamed out in the first round as the number one seed for the second straight year (Brodeur posting a career worst 2.83 GAA and .856 SV %). Meanwhile Hasek backstopped the 7th seed Sabres to an amazing run into the Stanley Cup Finals. During the run Hasek posted a 1.77 GAA and an even topped his regular season save percentage with an amazing .939. The Finals ended in a memorable and controversial fashion in the third overtime of Game 6 as Brett Hull scored the Cup clinching goal for Dallas with his skate clearly in the crease before he possessed the puck. It was a heartbreaking elimination for Buffalo and the phrase “No Goal” was associated with the club for many years following the defeat.
The Finals appearance would be the peak of the Buffalo experience for Hasek as the Sabres took a serious step backwards with Hasek on the injured list for most of 99-00. The was another season of change for a league going through growing pains into the new millennium; on the ice scoring continued to plummet as Jaromir Jagr won the scoring title with a paltry 96 points. This was the lowest total for an Art Ross Trophy winner (excluded the lockout season of 94-95) since Stan Mikita won the award in the 1967-68 season with 87 points. Legendary Bruins defenseman Ray Bourque was traded to the Colorado Avalanche in his quest to play for a competitive squad. Long-time fans noted the irony of Bourque, the Boston legend, teaming with former Montreal goalie Patrick Roy, on a team that a few years earlier had been the Quebec Nordiques.
Hasek played in only 35 games during the regular season as his Sabres struggled to the 8th seed in the East. Hasek recorded a 2.21 GAA and a .919 SV%. The save percentage, while excellent for most goalies was the worst Hasek had put up since becoming a starting goalie. Brodeur and the Devils continued to be one of the top regular season teams as the Devils wrapped up the second seed in the East and Marty recorded a 2.24 GAA to go with a .910 SV%. For the first time in a long while, neither Hasek nor Brodeur won any off-season awards and both headed into the playoffs with questions surrounding each.
The question for Hasek was if he could return from injury and carry the Sabres on his back through another playoff tournament. Facing the top seeded Philadelphia Flyers, that question was soon answered with a resounding no as the Flyers took the series in five games. Hasek recorded a 2.39 GAA with a .918 SV% during the series.
It was another story for Brodeur and the Devils who were being dogged about questions of “choking” after back to back first round upsets. The Devils responding in the most resounding of manners by sweeping through the playoffs en route to hoisting the Stanley Cup.
After losing in the first round as a number one seed in consecutive years, the Devils came into the playoffs as the number four seed in the East. The Devils beat the top seeded Flyers in seven games to advance to the NHL Finals where they defeated the defending champion Dallas Stars in six games as Brodeur captured his second Stanley Cup. In the playoffs Brodeur was outstanding as he recorded a 1.61 GAA and a .927 SV% in 23 games in the run to the Cup.
The 2000-01 season was a renaissance season of sorts for the previous generation of NHL stars. Mario Lemieux made a triumphant return to the game and led all players in points per game while spurring teammate Jaromir Jagr onto the Art Ross Trophy. Ray Bourque played his first full season in Colorado with Patrick Roy and the theme for the Avalanche season was to help Ray finally get his name on the Stanley Cup; a quest immortalized by the playoff tagline “Mission 16W”; that turned into “Mission Accomplished” when Colorado bested the Devils in game seven of the finals to win the Stanley Cup in what would be the last NHL game for Ray Bourque.
The Devils, defending their Stanley Cup, finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference, earning the first seed going into the playoffs for the fourth time in the last five years. Martin Brodeur turned out another typically excellent season for the Devils as he backstopped the team through 72 games with 9 shutouts, a 2.32 GAA and .906 SV%. Buffalo had a strong regular season earning the fifth seed out East in what would turn out to be the last season in a Sabres uniform for Hasek. Clashes with head coach Ted Nolan, frustration with the club around him and a general mood of discontent would lead to “The Dominator” being shipped to Detroit in the off season. In his last season in Buffalo Hasek recorded what had become his typically stunning numbers; a 2.11 GAA, .921 SV% and 11 shutouts in 67 games. These efforts earned Hasek more decorations as he won his second Jennings Trophy, a record sixth Vezina, and was named for the sixth time a First Team All-Star.
While Brodeur lead the Devils all the way to game seven of the finals while posting a 2.07 GAA, 4 shutouts and a .897 SV%, Hasek and the Sabres were eliminated by Mario Lemieux and the Penguins in game seven of the second round. In what was his swan song in Buffalo Hasek posted stellar playoff stats of 2.09 GAA and .916 SV%, that while superb, represented his worst post season SV% since the 94-95 campaign.
The following season would be the first in Detroit for Hasek and also the last in the first part his NHL career, and for our purposes the last for direct comparison in this study. With Hasek joining the talented Detroit Red Wings, the team was immediately installed as overwhelming favorites to win the Stanley Cup. The Wings boasted a talented roster that had come up short of the Cup in the prior three seasons with much of the blame going to goaltending. With Hasek now in net, nothing short of a Cup victory would be enough for Detroit. The Wings did not disappoint in the regular season, running away with the leagues best record while amassing 116 points. Hasek, 37, put up impressive numbers with a 2.17 GAA and a .915 SV%. The Devils slipped a bit but where still a strong regular season club and qualified for the playoffs as the 6th seed in the East. Brodeur posted a 2.15 GAA and a .906 SV%. Interestingly it was the third time in the last four years that Brodeur had posted a .906 SV% exactly. For only the second time since they had become starting goaltenders neither Brodeur nor Hasek won any awards, Jose Theodore, the Montreal goalie was a surprise sweeping all goalie awards and the Hart Trophy.
The 01-02 season was also notable for being the second time the NHL took a break for players to play in the Olympics. With longtime Canada goalie Patrick Roy retired, Brodeur took the reins as starter for team Canada while Hasek resumed his role as goalie for the Czech team. The Czech Republic was not able to return to the success of the previous Olympics finishing in 7th place as Hasek recorded a 2.01 GAA. Brodeur meanwhile became a national figure as he recorded a 1.80 while backstopping Canada to their first gold medal since 1952.
When the NHL resumed, New Jersey, after winning the Eastern Conference in consecutive years was felled in the first round of the playoffs by the Carolina Hurricanes. In six games Brodeur played superbly, a 1.42 GAA and .938 SV%, but it the “Canes still managed to oust New Jersey from the postseason.
Meanwhile Hasek ventured into the Western Conference Playoffs for the first time and didn’t disappoint. He played spectacularly leading Detroit to the Stanley Cup as the Red Wings lived up to expectations. In the playoff tournament, Hasek recorded a 1.86 GAA, a .920 SV% and 6 shutouts on his way to raising the Stanley Cup.
After the 01-02 season Hasek announced his first retirement and sat out the following season. He then returned to Detroit for the 03-04 season which gave rise to an awkward goalie situation as the Red Wings had signed Curtis Joseph to replace Hasek and now had a logjam in net. The season was a disappointment as Hasek was felled by injury and played in only 14 games. After the year off for the strike “The Dominator” was signed by the Ottawa Senators who hoped the legendary goalie would be the final piece of the championship puzzle to their talented club. The season started off as good as hoped for as Hasek gave a vintage performance through 43 games posted a 2.09 GAA, .925 SV% and 5 shutouts. Hasek then traveled to Nagano to represent the Czech Republic in the Olympics. Controversy ensued when Hasek left the first period of the first game with a groin injury and never returned to the Senators for the rest of the season. Many Ottawa fans and media were critical of Hasek for playing in the Olympics and of his inability to return from the injury.
After the controversy in Ottawa, the Senators indicated that they were not interested in resigning Hasek for the 06-07 season. The Detroit Red Wings, coming off a shocking first round playoff upset were once again in need for a goaltender, signed Hasek, making him a Wing for the third time. This reunion proved to be a much happier one than the injury plagued previous reunion. The Wings once again captured the top seed in the West and the relatively healthy 42 year old Hasek put up stellar numbers of a 2.05 GAA, .913 SV% and 8 shutouts over 56 games. The playoffs saw the Wings lose in the Conference Championship to the Anaheim Ducks, along the way the over 40 year old netminder posted a 1.79 GAA, .923 SV% and 2 shutouts.
In the four seasons after the 01-02 season, Brodeur cemented himself as the best goaltender in the game. He continued to play over 70 games each season for the Devils (73, 75, 73, and 78) while continually putting up impressive goals against average (2.02, 2.03, 2.57, 2.18) and save percentage numbers (.914, .917, .911, .922) while recording an impressive number of shutouts (9, 11, 5, 12). In these four seasons Brodeur finally captured the Vezina Trophy winning for both the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons. It was also after those two seasons that Brodeur was named to the NHL All-Star First team and he added two Jennings Trophies to make a total of four in his career.
New Jersey and Brodeur captured the Stanley Cup in 02-03, defeating Anaheim in seven games in the finals. Brodeur was stellar in the playoffs posting a 1.65 GAA and a career playoff best .934 SV%. It was an exceptional season for Marty, who along with the Cup captured his first Vezina and First Team All-Star recognition, while also winning his third Jennings Trophy.
Despite great personal success, the next couple of seasons were less bountiful for the Devils as they were bounced from the first round in 03-04 (2.62, .902) and then the second round in 05-06 (2.25, .923) in the first season returning from the lockout. New Jersey managed to make it to the second round in 06-07, as Brodeur was merely solid posting a 2.44 GAA and .916 SV%.
From our analysis, it is clear that over the time period from 1993-2002, though the Devils clearly had better team success, Hasek was by far the superior goalie. There were no seasons in that time period when Brodeur bested Hasek in both GAA and SV%. In the nine seasons Hasek was awarded the Vezina and First Team All-Star six times, Brodeur zero.
A look at the stats side by side;
| SV% |
GAA |
SO |
SH/MIN |
|||||||||||
| DH | 1998-1999 | 0.937 |
DH | 1998-1999 | 1.87 |
DH | 1997-1998 | 13 |
DH | 1995-1996 | 0.589 |
|||
| DH | 1997-1998 | 0.932 |
MB | 1996-1997 | 1.88 |
DH | 2000-2001 | 11 |
DH | 1996-1997 | 0.539 |
|||
| DH | 1993-1994 | 0.930 |
MB | 1997-1998 | 1.89 |
MB | 1996-1997 | 10 |
DH | 1997-1998 | 0.509 |
|||
| DH | 1994-1995 | 0.930 |
DH | 1993-1994 | 1.95 |
MB | 1997-1998 | 10 |
DH | 1994-1995 | 0.505 |
|||
| DH | 1996-1997 | 0.930 |
DH | 1997-1998 | 2.09 |
DH | 1998-1999 | 9 |
DH | 1998-1999 | 0.492 |
|||
| MB | 1996-1997 | 0.927 |
DH | 1994-1995 | 2.11 |
MB | 2000-2001 | 9 |
MB | 1993-1994 | 0.472 |
|||
| DH | 2000-2001 | 0.921 |
DH | 2000-2001 | 2.11 |
DH | 1993-1994 | 7 |
DH | 1993-1994 | 0.462 |
|||
| DH | 1995-1996 | 0.920 |
MB | 2001-2002 | 2.15 |
MB | 1995-1996 | 6 |
DH | 1999-2000 | 0.454 |
|||
| DH | 1999-2000 | 0.919 |
DH | 2001-2002 | 2.17 |
MB | 1999-2000 | 6 |
DH | 2000-2001 | 0.442 |
|||
| MB | 1997-1998 | 0.917 |
DH | 1999-2000 | 2.21 |
DH | 1994-1995 | 5 |
MB | 1995-1996 | 0.441 |
|||
| DH | 2001-2002 | 0.915 |
MB | 1999-2000 | 2.24 |
DH | 1996-1997 | 5 |
DH | 2001-2002 | 0.427 |
|||
| MB | 1993-1994 | 0.915 |
DH | 1996-1997 | 2.27 |
DH | 2001-2002 | 5 |
MB | 1996-1997 | 0.425 |
|||
| MB | 1995-1996 | 0.911 |
MB | 1998-1999 | 2.29 |
MB | 1998-1999 | 4 |
MB | 1999-2000 | 0.417 |
|||
| MB | 1999-2000 | 0.910 |
MB | 2000-2001 | 2.32 |
MB | 2001-2002 | 4 |
MB | 1994-1995 | 0.416 |
|||
| MB | 1998-1999 | 0.906 |
MB | 1995-1996 | 2.34 |
DH | 1999-2000 | 3 |
MB | 2000-2001 | 0.410 |
|||
| MB | 2000-2001 | 0.906 |
MB | 1993-1994 | 2.40 |
MB | 1993-1994 | 3 |
MB | 1998-1999 | 0.408 |
|||
| MB | 2001-2002 | 0.906 |
MB | 1994-1995 | 2.44 |
MB | 1994-1995 | 3 |
MB | 2001-2002 | 0.381 |
|||
| MB | 1994-1995 | 0.902 |
DH | 1995-1996 | 2.83 |
DH | 1995-1996 | 2 |
MB | 1997-1998 | 0.380 |
Hasek is clearly superior in the stats column, while Brodeur has the second and third best GAA seasons listed, his best SV% and shot per minute seasons would have ranked as the sixth best for Hasek, so clearly we can start to assume that the NJ system and talent offered Brodeur more support than Hasek received.
This assumption carries more weight if we look past the 93-94 season for Brodeur as an outlier, and see that Brodeur has 8 of the 9 seasons with the least shots faced per minute. In the save percentage rankings, we see the exact same pattern; that excepting for 93-94, Brodeur has 8 of the 9 seasons with the lowest save percentages. Goals against average and shutouts are distributed more evenly, but Hasek still owns 5 of the 7 best GAA seasons and the top two shutout seasons.
So what of playoff statistics? Much has been made of Brodeurs’ ability in the postseason, while critics will say that Hasek shrinks under the pressure. Well there is only one reasonable thing to do when trying to make a distinction and that’s to look into the numbers and not read baseless opinions flung about cyberspace. Surely to the chagrin of Brodeur supporters, the numbers between Hasek and Brodeur in the postseason are very similar. In 164 career playoff games, Brodeur has 22 shutouts, a 1.93 GAA and a .920 save percentage while winning three Stanley Cups. Hasek has played in 115 playoff contests amassing 14 shutouts, a 1.99 GAA and a .926 SV% while winning one Stanley Cup. Hardly the massive difference Brodeur supporters would like you to believe.
What about the supporting casts that each goalie played with in their respective primes? I have heard the argument that Hasek played on better teams, while New Jersey often lacked any real star players besides Brodeur. So let’s take a look at what teammates took the ice the most on the teams Hasek and Brodeur represented between the 94 and 2002 seasons.
TEAMMATES:
When Hasek went to Detroit for the 01-02 season, he joined a team replete in Hall of Fame caliber players, with the addition of Hasek anything short of the Stanley Cup would have been a disappointment. Hasek and the Wings delivered that season, beating the upstart Hurricanes in five games in the finals. While that team was the most talented NHL team that either Hasek or Brodeur have ever played on, what about the rest of their careers? Below I have compiled a list of the 20 players who played the most games for each team that each respective netminders was on through 93-02.
| BRODEUR |
GP |
HASEK |
GP |
| Scott Stevens | 688 |
Rob Ray | 553 |
| Scott Niedermayer |
646 |
Alexei Zhitnik |
492 |
| Randy McKay | 607 |
Richard Smehlik | 449 |
| Ken Daneyko | 601 |
Derek Plante | 395 |
| Bobby Holik |
581 |
Mike Peca |
363 |
| Petr Sykora |
445 |
Brian Holzinger | 352 |
| Patrik Elias |
395 |
Miroslav Satan |
335 |
| Sergei Brylin |
385 |
Jay McKee |
324 |
| Bobby Carpenter | 353 |
Curtis Brown |
318 |
| Brian Rolston |
348 |
Matthew Barnaby |
315 |
| Jay Pandolfo |
338 |
Michal Grosek | 308 |
| Bill Guerin |
310 |
Dixon Ward | 307 |
| Jason Arnott |
302 |
Donald Audette | 306 |
| Lyle Odelein |
285 |
Jason Woolley |
292 |
| Denis Pederson | 271 |
Jason Dawe | 290 |
| Valeri Zelepukin | 253 |
Brad May |
274 |
| John Madden |
240 |
Vaclav Varada |
256 |
| Scott Gomez |
234 |
Darryl Shannon | 255 |
| Brian Rafalski |
229 |
Mike Wilson | 231 |
| John MacLean | 228 |
Wayne Primeau |
225 |
I am going to work on the assumption that by reading this you are a hockey fan to some degree. It doesn’t take an expert to see that Brodeur has had far superior teammates. The best players appearing on this list for Hasek are Peca and Satan, the best defenseman Zhitnik, Smehlik and McKee. These are all very good players, but are all far from Hall of Fame caliber.
Meanwhile the top twenty list for Brodeur is littered with some of the better players in the game over the timeframe. The two most common teammates, Stevens and Niedermayer, are two of the elite defenders of their generation. Niedermayer will be a first ballot Hall of Famer and I will be surprised if Stevens doesn’t find himself enshrined in Toronto eventually.
Other elite players that Brodeur was teammates with include Rolston, Guerin, Elias, Arnott and Raflaski, all all-star caliber players. There isn’t a rationale argument that Hasek benefited by playing with better teammates in his prime. Clearly Brodeur had the luxury of playing on more talented teams.
When all of this is measured the data clearly favors Hasek. He was not only statistically superior to Brodeur; he also was consistently named the better goalie in awards and played with far inferior teammates. Supporters of Brodeur would certainly cite post season performance, but we have clearly demonstrated that Brodeur hasn’t outplayed Hasek in the playoffs by a wide margin. Finally if one argues that Brodeur has managed to accumulate more records this is mostly due to (a) playing on superior teams and (b) Hasek playing in Europe through his early twenties. Any analysis of the outside of the era when both goalies were in their primes in the NHL must also include the stellar career that Hasek had in Europe before he came to the NHL.
Posted on October 4, 2007
Filed Under NHL Blog, Hall of Fame | Leave a Comment
By: Mike Dunshee; MDunsh@gmail.com
The greatest individual honor any player can hope to attain is the honor that was bestowed upon Mark Messier, Ron Francis, Al MacInnis, and Scott Stevens as all were inducted into the Hall of Fame over the summer. All four quite deserved the honor and were “slam-dunk” type picks as the NHL strike and the resulting rule changes lead to a glut of players retiring during the time period.
With the induction ceremony over it got me thinking, who among active players would one day be enshrined in Toronto? So I’ve decided to take a look at the candidates; since I think it’s a pointless endeavor to say Crosby and Ovechkin as long as they stay healthy, I’ve decided to narrow my candidates down to those born before 1980. Why 1980? No reason except it seemed like a good number to arbitrarily grab out of the air; player will be at least 27 going into this season and as such we should have a good idea of their abilities.
Already In
If these guys decided to quit today, tomorrow or the following day, they have already earned their pass to the Hall.
Ed Belfour: He has played long enough to climb up the all-time lists in counting stats and has backstopped enough elite teams to make it to Toronto. That is if he ever does retire of course.
Rob Blake: I don’t know if I am 100% on board that he should be in, but after nearly 20 years of being one of the better defenseman and some high profile playoff runs in Colorado, he will get through.
Martin Brodeur: A no-brainer. He will retire with the all-time lead in wins and at least three Cups. He has been one of the games best for nearly two decades.
Chris Chelios: The only question is will he ever retire in order to get inducted? Never a great offensive defenseman, he still won three Norris Trophies and would have been a Hall of Famer even if he retired a decade ago.
Peter Forsberg: It doesn’t matter if his NHL career is over or not; Forsberg is going to the Hall. He has widely been recognized as the games most complete player for years now and even with his endless injuries has still put together quite an impressive career. The only real question is how many Hart Trophies would he have won if healthy.
Dominick Hasek: The most decorated goalie in the history of the sport has the kind of career that the Hall was invented for, Vezinas, Harts, Jennings, Pearson, Cups and Gold Medals dot his resume. Not too mention some otherworldly save percentage numbers.
Jaromir Jagr: Love him or hate him, he goes right next to Hasek, Brodeur and Sakic as an automatic no thought required in. After a couple of disappointing seasons in Washington, Jagr has been rejuvenated in the new NHL and Manhattan. His credentials? Does 5 Art Ross, 3 Pearson, 2 Cups, 600 goals and 1500 points sound good to you? At 35 years old it is possible he can make a run at 750 goals and 2000 points if he wants to play long enough.
Nicklas Lidstrom: The current playing legend amongst defense, Lidstrom doesn’t seem to be slowing down at all at 37. With 5 Norris Trophies, Lidstrom has cracked the list of Top Ten All-Time at his position.
Mike Modano: The new all-time leading scoring American, Modano has crossed 500 goals, 1200 points, played his whole career with one franchise and won a Cup. He scored fifty goals once and never reached 100 points, yet Modano is going in.
Scott Niederamyer: He hasn’t retired yet, but as far as his Hall of Fame case it won’t matter. Nieds has four Cups, a Norris and a Conn Smyth. His years in Jersey may have stifled his scoring, but added to his ring collection. He isn’t about to make the Top-10 all-time defenseman, but he will make the Hall first time around.
Joe Sakic: Depending on how long he wants to play Sakic is going to end up pretty high on the all-time scoring lists. He has a Hart, a Conn Smyth, two Cups and three First Team All-Star selections to go along with 610 goals and 1589 points. At 38 he scored 100 points last year. There isn’t anything to think about.
Brendan Shanahan: At 38, Shanny is still putting the puck in the net. He was already potted over 600 goals and will soon cross 1300 points. Combine that with two 50+ goal seasons and another five season in the forties, Shanahan is the elite power forward of his generation.
Mats Sundin: Though the individual season scoring numbers have never been mind blowing, they add up to over 500 goals and 1200 points and at 36 Sundin is still going strong. As of now I doubt he delivers the promised Cup to Toronto, but being the face of one of the leagues most visible franchises for over a decade won’t hurt his chances.
Needs Some Work
These guys are close put just need to put some finishing touches on their resume to earn entrance. Some of them have lots of time to do it and they just need to keep healthy and maintain their current pace, while some are quickly running out of time.
Daniel Alfredsson: The longtime Senator made a lot of strides in eliminating his and his teams’ reputation for choking in the post season last year by making the Finals. Still Alfie has put up only one 40 goals and 100 point season and at 34 has yet to reach 300 goals or 1000 points; it’s going to take at least 3-4 big seasons and leading a Cup run for him to get in.
Rod Brind’Amour: Three years ago or so, no one is putting him on this list, but the post-lockout NHL has been very kind to Brindy. He had the spotlight shine on him during the Canes Cup run and followed up with a strong 06-07 crossing the 1000 point marker. The points totals aren’t enough alone but his two-way play and reputation as a leader will probably get him there.
Sergei Fedorov: The rapid decline phase of his career will likely cost Fedorov his shot at the Hall. Despite a Hart and multiple Selke trophies, Fedorov has had only has one very productive season in the last ten. At 37, it is doubtful he will manage to reach 500 goals or regain first line status.
Jarome Iginla: Many consider Iginla the most complete player and best leader in hockey right now. It is not an irrational opinion. At 30, he needs to put a few more big seasons together and has plenty of time to do so. If there is any worry it is that his overall numbers have dipped a bit in the more open game.
Vincent Lecavalier: Vinny is another player who put up solid numbers throughout his early 20’s but really came into his own in the last couple of seasons. Last season was the former #1 overall picks big breakout as he shattered career high with 108 points and a league leading 52 goals. Only27, Lecavalier will likely be putting up 40 plus goal season for the next 5-7 seasons. If he manages that, he will find himself in Toronto one day.
Chris Pronger: With a Hart Trophy to his name, Pronger is in a rare and elite class of defenseman. Yet Pronger has only once been a First Team All-Star. Injuries and suspensions go as a mark against him, but at 32 he should have time to put up the 3 or 4 more good seasons he needs to make the cut.
Mark Reechi: I am on the fence if he is going in, I would say no. He had a few really big seasons early in his career playing on the Lemieux-Jagr Penguins, since then he has been mostly a very solid wing, who has had a few big seasons and managed to stay very healthy. It is his durability that will get him the Hall pass as Reechi is already over 500 goals and likely to surpass 1400 points.
Teemu Selanne: If Selanne retires now it is possible that the two year reinvigoration his career received capped by a Cup in ’07 may be enough for voters to let him in. Teemu does have 540 career goals and 1135 point in 1041 games. His 76 goals as a rookie still stand as an NHL record that has gone unchallenged. Still Selanne was also very inconsistent throughout his career most notably in his very disappointing stretch between 01-02 and 03-04 with San Jose and Colorado. Still it is worth to note that he is mainly an offensive threat and his worse years coincided with the lowest scoring years in the NHL. When it goes to the voters, 500 goals and 1000 points are no longer automatics.
Joe Thornton: At 28, Jumbo Joe wouldn’t quite be in if he retired tomorrow, yet at the torrid pace he has been on since being dealt to the Sharks, it won’t be all that long. With back-to-back 90+ assists seasons, Thornton looks like a lock to put up 100+ point seasons for the next 6-8 years. For him, it’s just about staying healthy and interested.
Keith Tkachuk: Most would rank Tkachuk behind only Brendan Shanahan as far as “power forwards” go over his generation. He certainly has had some impressive seasons, twice notching 50 goals and another seven seasons over the 30 mark in addition to that. After a strong 06-07 season, it looks like Tkachuk will have enough gas in the tank to reach the 500-1000 milestones, good accomplishments for players of his ilk. Despite not having won anything in the NHL, I think a couple more good seasons’ gets him in.
Long Way to Go:
Players who have a chance, but due to being young, blossoming late or starting their career later, they have to put up big numbers for a long time in order to reach the Hall.
JS Giguere: He was a Cup and a Conn, but has been a full time starter for only five seasons. Still his numbers are impressive and he now looks to have a hold on the job. If Giguere can string together big seasons well into his thirties coupled with some big playoff runs, it’s not out of the realm of possibility.
Scott Gomez: Making the age cut off by eight days, Gomez is as young as you will get on this list; and probably the hardest to project. Having moved to the Rangers he escapes the defensive minded New Jersey system and gains Jagr as a teammate; these factors make him a good bet to reach 100 points this year. Even so, Jagr won’t be around forever and Gomez will have to play better than he has yet for a long time to be Hall of Fame material.
Sergei Gonchar: I think Gonchar gets a bad rap around a lot of NHL circles; not the greatest in the defensive end, there are plenty of NHL defenseman who are just as bad and none this side of Nick Lidstrom can bring the offense from the blue line that Gonchar can. As of today, he doesn’t get in, yet on the Pens high octane offense he could put up some incredible numbers over the next few seasons that could get him over the hump.
Milan Hejduk: Hejduk rebounded to 35 goals after a disappointing 05-06. Is still only 31, but it seems as the old game was much better suited to his skills. Facing life without Sakic soon, it’s a real long shot.
Marian Hossa: Hossa broke the 100 point barrier for the first time last season. With 270 career goals he is a good bet to reach 500. Even so, it is going to take a string of 100 point seasons and a few deep playoff runs to get Hossa to Toronto.
Olli Jokinen: I’m convinced he has the talent, but he needs to get out of Florida now, get to a contender and string together a decade of big time hockey.
Paul Kariya: Now 32, Kariya hopes to continue his career renaissance with the Blues over the next few years. Long an all-star caliber player, there just isn’t enough truly great seasons on his resume for me to see him as a Hall of Famer.
Miikka Kiprusoff: Kipper has steadily been building on his NHL Finals run the last two seasons and looks to have risen to amongst the elite goalies in the league. His big problem is he is 30 and has only been starting two seasons. He will need to maintain his current level or play over 6-8 more seasons and that is going to be extremely difficult.
Roberto Loungo: Finally rescued from Florida, the big question surrounding Loungo coming into last season was how would he fare on a contending team in a city that was not only aware that there was an NHL team playing there, but a city that actually loved hockey? Loungo silenced any doubters by putting up a season worthy of Hart consideration. At only 28, it seems as if he remains healthy, Loungo will be the elite goalie in the league for years to come and end up in the Hall.
Patrick Marleau: At 27, Marleau is just starting to come into his own, having developed into a point-per-game player two seasons ago. Currently playing second fiddle to the only man drafted before him, Joe Thornton, trade winds have recently been blowing around Marleau. His best chance for a run at the Hall is change team and lead a team while continuing on the point-per-game pace for a decade.
Brad Richards: At 27, he is coming off the most disappointing season of his career. Locked up to a big money deal for the next few years, the Lightning badly need Richards to return to form if they are going to contend. The good news is Richards is blessed with talent to be one of the best in the game and there is no reason to think he cannot regain elite status next year.
Marty Turco: Turco finally had his first good playoff showing last season, yet the Stars failed to advance. Despite putting up spectacular numbers over the last few season it will take another 5 or 6 years and some playoff success for Turco to reach the Hall.
No Way:
For a variety of reasons (injuries, blossomed too late, just not good enough) these are good players who won’t make it.
Todd Bertuzzi: At 32, Big Bert was really only a top tier player for two seasons. Injuries have taken their toll and it is unlikely he regains a spot amongst the games elite. The Stephen Moore incident certainly doesn’t help either.
Pavel Datsyuk: At 29, and primarily an offensive player, he has never scored over 30 goals or cracked the 90 point barrier. Coupled with playoff struggles, Datsyuk isn’t close.
Chris Drury: Despite all the post season heroics and leadership accolades, Drury won’t be able to compile the needed numbers for a Hall call. Still he will be remembered as the kid who pitched Connecticut to a Little League World Series and then became an NHL star.
Patrick Elias: Injuries and the defensive system employed by the Devils will prevent Elias from accumulating the type of numbers he needs to get in the Hall. Having recently signed a deal to stay in Jersey, there is little hope of a string of 100 point seasons.
Bill Guerin: A fine All-Star caliber player for a long time, Guerin is very unlikely to reach 500 goals or 1000 points. Bouncing around to a lot of teams doesn’t help nor does the fact that despite being noted as a goal scorer he only cracked 40 twice and never had more than 41.
Ed Jovanovski: Hard to believe he has been around 11 seasons already. Not really a chance as he has never really been a threat to win the Norris, doesn’t score much and gets hurt too often. Playing on the woeful Coyotes isn’t going to get him noticed either.
Nikolai Khabibulin: He has four all-star games and a Cup victory, but too much time spent on terrible teams costs him any shot he may have had.
Saku Koivu: He has long been a great leader and inspiration on the sports most storied franchise, but Koivu has never been dominant enough to be considered a Hall of Fame type player.
Olaf Kolzig: “Ollie the Goalie” has had a long and noteworthy run with the Capitals that has included a trip to the NHL Finals and a Vezina. The Capitals toiling at the bottom of the league for the better part of the last decade and being a contemporary of Hasek and Brodeur eliminate any shot of the Hall for Kolzig.
John Leclair: Vermont’s hockey ambassador, Leclair had an amazing peak of three straight 50 goals seasons and five straight of 40 plus goals in the late nineties. Since then injuries have sapped him of all productivity. He is done.
Eric Lindros: It’s far more likely that Lindros will be remembered as for the controversy and injuries that surrounded his career rather than the fact that for a few years he was a dominant force in the league. He had the Hall of Fame talent but couldn’t put it together long enough.
Markus Naslund: For a three year period, Naslund was one of, if not the most dangerous offensive weapon in the league. Unfortunatly for Naslund, this also happened to be a one of the lowest scoring eras in the NHL. Now 34 and in decline, Naslund has a peak that was far too brief to be considered for induction
Gary Roberts: The amazing thing about Roberts is that he retired over 10 years ago due to injury. He has basically had a whole second career since then. Though Roberts is an amazing story and has had a great career, it is not Hall of Fame caliber.
Marc Savard: Savard may be one of the best 5 playmakers in the game. His problems are twofold; (a) he didn’t develop until he was 28 and (b) he is playing for the lowly Bruins. At 30 it is going to take an Adam Oates like effort of about 80 assists per year for the next 8 years for him to have a shot.
Ryan Smyth: Smyth is a really good player who plays all out all the time. In the end he gets hurt too much and the overall numbers just aren’t there for him to qualify.
Martin St. Louis: It’s really amazing the career St. Louis has put together for himself. If five years ago anyone had this guy pegged as a Hart winner and 100-point guy, they probably should be running a team. Still his peak started too late to make a serious Hall bid.
Thomas Vokoun: He put together a few big seasons in Nashville, put never won anything. Not likely he is going to start in Florida.
Doug Weight: He is going over 1000 points this year barring injury, but the fact of the matter is he has pretty much always been a second line center and 1000 points for a center in his era is not Hall of Fame.
Sergei Zubov: Zubov, now 37, started to show some age for the first time last season. He’s been very, very good for a long time; just not Hall of Fame good.
Get in a line and buy a ticket:
Jason Arnott
Daniel Briere
Roman Hamrlik
Derian Hatcher
Alex Kovalev
Robert Lang
Trevor Linden
Alex Mogilny
Owen Nolan
Chris Osgood
Brian Rolston
Glen Wesley
Posted on August 29, 2007
Filed Under New York Yankees, Red Sox, MLB | Leave a Comment
Are there any players playing for a contending team with a greater combination of salary and talent that look less interested in playing baseball than Bobby Abreu and JD Drew? Pretty much all season, and for that matter the entire decade both of these players have irritated front offices and fans with their lacksadasical manner on the field.
After wearing out his welcome in Philly, Abreu came to New York at the deadline and played well enough for two months to cause the Yankees to give up Gary Sheffield. This season, while Sheffield has enhanced his reputation as a raving lunactic by stating MLB favored Latin players over African-American since they were easier to control and than twice stating Joe Torree treated black players differently all the while sporting a unique Hitler mustache, the guy has remarkably continued to be a monster offensive force. Meanwhile Abreu has lollygagged through the season, occasionally showing an offensive spurt. On Monday, in the early stages of a 16-0 shellacking by Detroit, Abreu pulled up on a ball causing Melky Cabrera to make an ill-advised dive and keeping the Tigers circling the bases.
JD Drew meanwhile has been nothing but bad in Boston. After signing a much maligned 5-year $70 million deal, Drew has put up a stunningly poor 7 home runs and .749 OPS in 382 at bats. Drew and his horrible play were on display Tuesday night as he came up againt Yankee phenom Joba Chamberlain in the 8th, down by two with two runners on. In a spot where a big hit could pretty much bury the Yankees for the year, Drew went to 3-2 before being totally dominated on a slider. The problem? He never took the bat off of his shoulder! Drew just stood there, content to try and work a walk in a situation where Boston NEEDED him to take a cut and at least TRY and deliver the big hit. Instead up stepping up Drew, took five close pitches before going down on pathetic half swing. This is way JD Drew is and continues to be a loser baseball player - a guy once touted as a “Mickey Mantle” type player who has bounced around the league cashing checks and winning nothing.
Posted on August 15, 2007
Filed Under New York Yankees, Red Sox, MLB, Hall of Fame, ARod | Leave a Comment
Back in the late 90’s there existed a young trio of AL shortstops that came to prominence around the same period, putting up numbers that had many proclaiming the three of them future Hall of Famers and the evolution of the position spawned from Cal Ripken. I am speaking of course of Nomar, A-Rod and Jeter. Soon after these there were intertwined in media lore, yet another young AL shortstop rose to prominence; Miguel Tejada in Oakland, who received far less ink, but produced on par with the other three. While watching Nomar get ejected over a called strike in a game Monday night it struck me how the four paths have diverged since the decade or so since they became linked.
Nomar burst onto the scene in Boston winning the Rookie of the Year award in 1997 hitting 30 homers, and with an OPS+ of 123. After a stellar 1998, Nomar really hit his stride in 99 and 2000 as he won batting titles hitting 35 and 27 home runs and winning back to back batting titles hitting .357 and .372 respectively. Things started to unravel for Nomar in 2001 as he suffered a wrist injury and played in only 21 games. He returned to have productive 2002 and 2003 seasons, but after playing in only 38 games in 2004 was dealt to the Cubs in the famous deadline deal that many believe brought the long-suffering Red Sox their first World Series in 86 years. After an injury riddled season and a half in Chicago, Nomar signed with the Dodgers in ‘06 to play first base. After a decent 2006 at age 32, (20HR, 120 OPS+) Nomar continues to decline during the ‘07 season. Moved to third to make room for James Loney, Nomar has played 110 games with only 6 homers and an abysmal .363 slugging with a 79 OPS+. At 33, the idea of him being a productive everyday player is waning fast, not to mention his Hall of Fame chances.
Baseball reference lists Miguel Tejada as the second most similar player to Nomar. Like Garciaparra, Tejeda seems to have lost his power and entered a decline phase at a dizzying speed. After decent but unremarkable seasons in 98 and 99, Tejada come to prominence in 2000 belting 30 homers. He followed this up with seasons of 31, 34, 27, 34, 26, and 24 homers through 2006. His OPS+ in the corresponding seasons (2000-06) were stellar; 112,112,122,117,126,133,126. Tejeda won the AL MVP in 2002 and drove in a stunning 150 runs in 2004. The 2007 season hasn’t been nearly as kind to Tejada, now 31, as he only has 11 HRs in 354 at bats and an OPS+ of 106. It is possible that the ‘07 season is just a blip on the radar hindered by injury, but as whispers of steroid rumors circle around the diminishing power numbers, it is far more likely Tejada will continue to regress and soon be moved from the shortstop position.
The other two players in our quadrant of great shortstops need no introduction; one is the only of the four who remains on his original team, the other is at 32 already being hailed as the next home run king and plays slightly to the left of the other. This is of course Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez. Basically there is no need to discuss either of the two as their performance has been analyzed and dissecting by thousands over the last few years. Jeter remains an elite player at short and given his fame as a Yankee shortstop with four World Series rings and god-like worship from the media will be a first ballot Hall of Famer. His teammate A-Rod, who can do basically nothing right in the eyes of the media, will likely retire as one of the five greatest hitters to play the game. A-Rod is already a first ballot Hall of Famer, and despite being currently one of the more disliked players in the game, will if he makes it, probably become a national hero if he runs down the reviled Barry Bonds on the career home run list sometime in about 2016.
The point? A few years ago I, and other statistically inclined individuals would have made the argument that Jeter was the least player of the four. Today with the best player (A-Rod) moved to third, (to stand in the shadow of Jeter for Yankee fans to scorn) and Nomar and Tejeda having clearly fallen off, Jeter reigns as the best shortstop of the trinity plus one. It really is a charmed life isn’t it?
Posted on July 25, 2007
Filed Under New York Yankees, MLB, Bad Analysis, "Pete" | Leave a Comment
I grew up smack dab in the middle of CT so I have the privledge of knowing many Yankees fans, many Yankees fans. Really they aren’t all that bad of people, just a little misguided. Actually they have been quite tolerable since oh, sometime in late October of 2004. Anyway I recently had an interesting conversation with one of my buddies; let’s call him Pete for our sake. To fully grasp this conversation, let us revisit a conversation I had with this same “Pete” right before the season started;
Mike: “I don’t think the Yankees have any bullpen besides Mariano.”
“Pete”: “Are you crazy Luis Vizcaino is going to be lights out, the next closer!!”
Mike: “Never heard of him”
“Pete”: “You will”
So fast forward to last weekend when I receive a call from “Pete”
“P”: “We found our next closer”
M: (bemused) “Oh yeah, who?”
“P”: “Anwar Ramirez”
M: “Never heard of him”
“P” “You will”
M: “Didnt we have this conversation about Vizcaino three months ago?”
“P”: Yeah but this guy is different, mark my words.” “Know what two pitchers he reminds me of?”
M: ”I can’t imagine”
“P”: Mariano Rivera and Pedro Martinez!”
M: “Really, not Johan?”
“P”: “Don’t be an idiot, Johan is a lefty.” “Mark my words and remember this conversation.”
M: “Ohhh don’t worry about that”
Posted on July 25, 2007
Filed Under Red Sox, MLB, Roids | Leave a Comment
Curt Schilling is blasting off again on steriod users Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds and Rafael “Period” Palmerio. On HBO Sports with Bob Costas, Schilling is very aggressive in callling out baseballs steriods users saying that the 1988 MVP Jose Canseco should have his MVP taken back and that Palmeiro should have his entire final season wiped off the books. Wow got to love some tough talk from players in the game. In fact Schilling was one of the first to talk out about steroids and was called to testify in Congress about the issue. Oh wait wasnt that when the usually outspoken and brash Schill ducked and covered saying he shouldnt be taken seriously? What a blowhard, so the big chance when the outspoken athlete gets the stage he ducks and runs for cover? Well this is a guy who came out in support of George Bush….is guess that would explain backtracking and misstepping before congress. Schilling is a great pitcher but should practice keeping his strong opinions to himself if he isnt going to back them up when it counts.
Posted on July 12, 2007
Filed Under MLB, Fantasy | Leave a Comment
As we get back into action after the All-Star break most of the mainstream baseball writers just give out second half grades or second half picks. Not me, it seems like a great time to look back at my preseason prognostications and see just how good I am. For review, I picked the order of each teams finish, a key and an overrated and underrated player. I will score the standings, and the over and under. The original article is under the General page. Let’s have a look;
AL East
I’ll take 2 of 3 all day. Lugo has been a massive flop but Drew has also been a bust. So 0-2 for Theo.
Another 2-3. The bullpen has been a huge part of the Yanks struggles, they seem destined for 2nd and Posada has been huge. Wang somehow keeps getting it done with no K’s.
I’ll take a 3-3 on this one.
Another 3-3, you paying attention yet?
I’ll just take a 2-3 on this as Tejada under whelmed before he got hurt.
That’s 10-15on the AL East if you are counting.
AL Central
Wow should I get 4-4 or just 3-4 since Detroit just took the division lead? I think the Carmona pick was so brilliant I get 3-3.
Castillo still sucks and Cuddyer is still quietly pretty good. I’ll be real tough on myself, 2-3.
They aren’t going to finish third but Inge is still real good. Slam dunks on the other two. 2-3.
I predicted the fall correctly and it has a lot to do with the pitching. Yet Buehrle is good and Konerko has slumped. 2-3
5. Kansas City: Over: DeJesus, Under: Teahan
Ok I’ll take a 2-3 on this one.
ALC Total: 11-15
AL West:
That is a 3-3 folks.
A 1-3
3. Oakland; Over: Bradley, Under; Swisher
Bradley is gone and the A’s could still make a run. 2-3
4.Seattle: Over; Jose Guillen, Over; Beltre
A tough 1-3.
ALW is a rocky 7-12. For an AL total of 28-42, pretty good.
NL East:
I’ll take a 2-3 as Delgado may be finished.
Not good Phillies may get 2nd but Rowand has hit and Burrell has bottomed out.
1-3
3. Atlanta: Over; Chuck James; Under; Chipper
I’m just going to go 2-3 as Chipper had hit when healthy but James hasn’t gone Jeremy Sowers either.
4.Florida: Over: Cody Ross; Under; Mike Jacobs
I’ll take a 2-3 on this as neither player is a factor at all.
NLE: 8-12
NL Central:
I’m going 3-3 as the reason for Counsell was Braun and Hall was hitting before he got hurt last week. Did you have them wining the division?
1-3 as team has collapsed and Rolen looks finished.
3. Cincinnati; Over; Arroyo, Under; Dunn
Missed big time on the team but a home run on the players. Hey I’m a fantsy guy anyway. 2-3
4. Houston: Over; Ausmus, Under; Ensberg
I’ll take a 2-3 despite another huge bust year from Ensberg
Looks like an 0-2 as DeRosa has been fairly decent.
Big second half could move LaRoche to good pick. 2-3
NLC 10-17
NL West
Did you know about Martin before this year? 2-3
Ughhh bad bad player picks. 1-3
At least Cain is good. This team is old and awful, a really bad combo. 1-3
Come on who watches the NL West anyway? 0-3
Whew, back on track with the players at least 2-3.
NLC 6-15.
NL Total: 24-44
Overall 52-86
Your fantasy team would be pretty good if you heeded my advice and plucked players such as Holliday, Shields, Carmona and Martin for example. Overall some great picks if I do say – visit the original article to see who I choose for the awards and World Series!
Posted on June 27, 2007
Filed Under New York Yankees, Bruins, MLB, E Day | Leave a Comment
So I’ve plodded back into work after 12 days off which featured a drive down old I-95 to visit Wrightsville Beach, Raleigh, Chapel Hill and a night in Manhatten on the way back. The grand fuel total for this 2000 mile trek in a hulking V8 F150 was about $325, which doesnt include tolls, about another $40.
It was my first time in Raleigh and Chapel Hill; Raleigh seemed ok, but being from the Northeast I find mydelf usually not too enthralled with the sprawling cities all over the rest of the country. If I want to drive a half hour everywhere, wouldnt I just live in the suburbs? Chapel Hill is really nice, a bit quaint, but very nice.
Wrightsville Beach could easily give any town in the US a run for highest ratio of stunning women per capita. It is literally incredible. On a Friday evening at a bar named Dockside, I was on a patio with about 60 people on it. I counted 11 women aged probably between 21-33 whom if they walked in a bar in Boston they would have walked out with a Red Sox. The following day visiting a grocery store of all places, the three cashiers all looked like they should be auditioning as they blonde friend in the next teeny bopper California surfer movie. Really I dont understnd how anyone is able to hold a full time job in that town.
Anyhow the Yankees ran of a cute little winning streak that got everyone briefly excited but have reverted back to their losing ways of late and sit a full 11 games behind the Red Sox. They are also eight games back in the Wildcard bringing the
E DAY Countdown: 80
Race for last
NYY 36-38
BAL 33-43
Right at the point where he had to (right?) be close to losing playing time Coco Crisp all of a sudden turned into a monster power hitter in Atlanta. Looks like we will be stuck with Coco for the rest of the season.
Watched the first 12 picks or so of the NHL Draft. Its funny Versus wont even send their own crew and we have to watch the Canadian feed. I guess they blew their budget on Pro Bullriding.
The Bruins selected Zach Hamill 8th when he was generally ranked about 16th. I am not going to jump to any conclusions but thats not exactly what I call value. The big surprise of the draft was Angelo Esposito, whom a year ago was considered the best player in the draft falling to Pittsburgh at #20.
Posted on June 4, 2007
Filed Under NHL Blog, New York Yankees, Red Sox, Playoffs, Joe Morgan, MLB, Bad Analysis, E Day, ARod | Leave a Comment
With the Yankees in town there was ZERO coverage of game three of the NHL Finals this weekend in Boston. Which is too bad because many missed out on a very exciting contest in front of a rabid Canadian crowd. Ottawa Captain Daniel Alffredsson continues to have a stellar playoff as it was his game tying goal which changed the momentum to the Senators side. Sadly as too often seems the case these days, the larger story from the game was a dirty play - Chris Prongers elbows up hit on Dean McCammond that earned him a suspension for Game 4. This is of course, the second suspension for head shots in this playoffs for Pronger. That said, the one game was at least justified, and the league couldnt have been faulted for making it 2-3 games.
Free agent rumblings are starting up and most have the Sabres facing a worst case scenario of losing both Briere and Drury. After two straight trips to the Conference Finals, losing both these players may signal that Buffalo missed their window with this club and may take a step back as Miller, Vanek and Roy assume leadership roles on the club.
In Boston the Yankees took two out of three games from the Red Sox to creep to 12.5 games out in the East. The Sunday night game was an ecspecially exciting contest for anyone who liked baseball as the game had a little bit of everything. The two key plays that changed the game were in my mind, Posada doing a great job of blocking the plate and tagging out Lugo and home to keep the game tied and then Bobby Abreu somehow just snaring the drive off of Dustin Pedroias’ bat in the 8th that would have scored two runs.
Joe Morgan and Jon Miller spent most of the night discussing ARod and has recent tribulations of the mystery blonde in Toronto and the yelling at the Blue Jay to get him to miss the ball. Joe, ever the analyst stated that ball players were covered like movie stars today but the difference was that movie stars wanted to be in the press while ballplayers didnt want the attention. Now I certainly cant think of any ballplayers that have called attention to themselves can you?
Second on the case of the Toronto Pop Up, Joe was able to tell us that this sort of stuff happened all the time when he played so we can presume he thought it would have been acceptable then, but Joe also informed us many times that the game has changed since then and now had many unwritten rules so he wasnt sure it was ok now. The commentary highlight was certainly though when Miller compared Pettite and his record of 3-4 and Beckett who was 8-0, despite have a slightly higher ERA. Joe was able to attribute this to Beckett being just good enough to win and Pettite just good enought to lose, stating that win-loss was still the benchmark for pitchers. Way too keep up with the times.
Willy Mo Pena started in right going 1-4 with a K. His two contact outs were very hard hit flyballs, one on which Melly Cabrera made a great catch on in deep center and the other a laser to right. He made one good running catch in right, and struggled on one single to no consequence.
AB-OBP-SLG-OPS
Pena 70-308-414-722
Crisp 185-300-324-624
EDay Countdown: 101
Almost to double digits!!!
NYY 24-30
TBD 23-31
God the Rays are terrible