The Worst Team In NHL History

I think it’s safe to say that there are some records nobody sets out to own. There is little doubt that the NHL record for worst team in a season is one such mark.

We mentioned how terrible the New York Rangers of the 1943-44 season were, losing a single game to the Detroit Red Wings in what would be the largest margin of victory in an NHL game. That horrendous team won 6 games over the course of their 50 game season, for a winning percentage of 12%. That sounds terrible doesn’t it?

Well, not so fast!

In the inaugural season for the NHL’s Washington Capitals, 1974-75, the team managed just 8 wins over an 80 game schedule, for a dismal winning percentage of just 10%! Their 8-67-5 record  is currently the worst of any team in the history of the National Hockey League.

Ron Low was the starting goaltender for the Capitals that season and the franchise had high hopes for the netminder as he racked up an impressive 1.82 GAA during the pre-season.  Low was the goalie between the pipes for all 8 wins, while amassing a 5.45 GAA in 48 appearances.

The Capitals’ other goalie, Michel Belhumeur, came over from the Philadelphia Flyers via the expansion draft.  Belhumeur played in 35 games that season but could not manage to pull off a victory.  This distinction lands him in the NHL record books for the most games played in one season by a goaltender without a win.  Interestingly, Belhumeur played the next season with the Capitals as well. He didn’t manage a win in that year either and never played in the National Hockey League again.

Book Review: Playing With Fire by Theoren Fleury

When I first heard about Theoren Fleury’s new book, Playing With Fire, I was excited to read what promised to be a full account of his life to date. I had read the previous account of his life from 1998 entitled Fury: Inside the Life of Theoren Fleury and was looking forward to a more candid account in Playing With Fire.

While there are some similarities of the early accounts of Fleury’s life between the two books, Playing with Fire was more emotional and pulled no punches as opposed to Fury which, in retrospect, was rather selective. Of course, the emotions poured out of Fleury in Playing With Fire as it was written in a first person narrative style.

A General Overview

Playing With Fire is a book that reveals the demons of Theoren Fleury, and that alone makes the book worthwhile. However, much of the book also refers to players, coaches, and specific games. These sections are so specific, including player nicknames, that they may be misleading or confusing to anyone who was not a hockey fan during Fleury’s career. As one non-hockey fan told me after she read the book “I felt as though I was having a conversation with a dumb hockey player”.

Emotional Story

One thing that was very noticeable throughout the book was that Fleury still holds anger toward some people from his past. And while painting the tragic childhood picture assists in the entertainment value of the book, it also leads one to wonder what the future holds for him.  Anyone who has never dealt with an alcoholic father, pill popping mother, or sexually abusive coach can really profess to understand, but Fluery continues to deflect blame for his destructive actions until very late in the book when he takes responsibility.

Fleury’s Affirmations

Fleury also refers to himself as a “elite athlete” dozens of times in the book. The first few times were understandable, but after the 20th time it sort of feels like some sort of affirmation or comping mechanism. Honestly, any player who plays in the NHL is an elite athlete. At first I thought he was simply referring to himself as elite, even among NHL players, until he referred to his Dad as an elite athlete as well. Confusing.

Needless Negativity

What is also confusing as a hockey fan reading the book are several anecdotal stories that appear as needless jabs at some of Fleury’s former teammates and coaches. Clearly he didn’t like certain coaches, ie: Mike Keenan and Dave King – and added comments about them and former teammates that didn’t serve any relevance in the book. Furthermore, he selectively and deliberately pointed out specific things that he didn’t like about them, adding in a few “he was a good guy” and “he had some talent…but” to soften the opinionated blows.

While he heralded the Flames organization for giving him another shot after he was reinstated at the start of the 2009-2010 season, you would never know that he appreciated the organization in the least after reading the book.  Fleury asserts that he was the primary reason why Calgary fans came to games, he made the Flames a ton of money, the Flames would have won more Stanley Cups had they not gutted the team in the 1990s…etc. And, adding more negative comments,  saying that he had no talent to play with on the Flames in the 1990’s, even degrading the talent of several teammates by name.

The Verdict

While there may be pieces of this book that I don’t understand, hidden beneath all of the negativity is the emotional story of a young man who despite his size, troubled upbringing, and addictive demons made an undeniable impact on the game of hockey.

There is no doubt that Theoren Fleury will battle his demons for the rest of his days. That said, we cannot deny his talent or the intensity and passion that he consistently brought to the rink. Nor can we deny the excitement and entertainment that he brought to hockey fans throughout his career.

If you’re looking for a no holds barred account of Theoren Fleury’s rise to fame as a hockey player and/or an emotional account of a person’s struggle alcoholism, drug abuse, gambling and sexual abuse, then the book is worth a read. Just don’t expect it to be shelved next to top selling autobiographies.

Buy Playing With Fire at Amazon.com.

Historical NHL Free Agent Signings on July 6

July 6th has typically been a busy day over the course of history. With some quality free agents still available, is there any reason to believe that this season will be any different?

If history is any indicator, we might see some of those available free agents signing contracts today!

Historical July 6 NHL Free Agent Signings

July 6, 2004 – Phoenix Coyotes signed free agent defenseman Sean O’Donnell, who had been with the Boston Bruins.

July 6, 2004 – Ottawa Senators signed free agent goaltender Dominik Hasek.

July 6, 2004 – Los Angeles Kings signed free agent Craig Conroy, who had been with the Calgary Flames.

July 6, 2001 – Minnesota Wild signed free agent Andrew Brunette. Brunette went on to lead all 2001 Free Agents – in scoring, with 69 points in 2001-02.

July 6, 2001 – Boston Bruins signed free agent left wing Rob Zamuner.

July 6, 2000 – Philadelphia Flyers signed free agent Michal Sykora.

July 6, 2000 – Los Angeles Kings signed free agent Stu Grimson.

July 6, 1999 – New York Rangers signed free agents Valeri Kamensky and Stephane Quintal.

July 6, 1998 – Nashville Predators signed free agent Tom Fitzgerald, and named him the first Captain in team history.

July 6, 1994 – Philadelphia Flyers signed free agent Craig MacTavish

July 6, 1983 – Detroit signed free agent goaltender Ken Holland, who went on to play 3 games with the Red Wings in 1983-84, finishing with a 4.11 GAA.

*Incidentally, Holland was named the Red Wings General Manager in 1997.

July 6, 1983 – Boston Bruins signed free agent Geoff Courtnall

July 6, 1978 – The Islanders signed John Tonelli as a free agent. Tonelli went on to star with the Islanders’ four Stanley Cup Winners.

Donald Brashear Hits Blair Betts

In Game 6 of the Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers series, Donald Brashear dressed and even had a small altercation with Colton Orr prior to the game. Brashear dressed for the Capitals, while Orr did not suit up for the game.

Blair Betts collected the puck at near the red line and dumped it in to the Washington zone. As Betts turned to go to the Ranger bench for  change, Brashear caught him with a late hit  (it may have also been an elbow -  you be the judge).

A scrum ensued where Paul Mara and Brashear tied up near the bench, both receiving two minute minor penalties for roughing.

The officials issued no penalty for the hit by Brashear on Betts.

Assuming that the league reviews the incident, and they should as Betts has not returned to the game, Brashear’s several previous suspensions should play a factor into any sanction the league may hand down.

Update April 27/09:

The National Hockey League assessed the situation and handed Brashear a totla of six games.  Brashear received a one game suspension for initiating contact with Colton Orr prior to the game and five additional games for the hit on Blair Betts.  The following is the rationale behind the decision:

“Brashear delivered a shoulder hit to an unsuspecting player,” said Senior Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell in a release. ”It is also my opinion that the hit was delivered late and targeted the head of his opponent, causing significant injury.”

Glove tap to Kukla’s Korner for the video link.

Let the Games Begin!

At long last the seemingly interminable 82 game schedule is complete, and now it’s time to play for keeps. The excuses stop here, the board is wiped clean, everyone gives 110%,  we need to play for 60 minutes, we gotta take it one shift, one game at a time, cliché, cliché, cliché.

Now that those are out of the way here how I see the first round of the playoffs shaking down, starting with the Eastern Conference:

Boston Bruins (1) vs Montreal Canadiens (8)
By now readers know I’m a Habs fan. I’ll clearly disclose my bias now. You can find my deeper thoughts on this annual rite of spring here, and what I think are the specific keys to the Canadiens success here. Essentially, I’m taking the Habs in 7 because I have to, but reading between the lines, I know I may be a fool in doing so.

Canadiens in 7.

Washington Capitals (2) vs New York Rangers (7)
Hard to think that the Rangers have a chance in this one considering they can’t score to save their lives. This one seems like a mismatch to me. Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, and Markus Naslund vs the likes of Alexander Ovechkin, Alexander Semin and Niklas Backstrom. On the blueline it’s a shaky-at-best Rangers defense corps led by Wade Redden. The Caps are led by Norris contender Mike Green. And in nets you’ve got the inconsistent Henrik Lundqvist vs the even more inconsistent Jose Theodore. Even though this is the time of year where defense and goaltending wins championchips, I can’t see the Rangers defense containing the high-octane Capitals. The Caps had their rude awakening last year by being stunned by the Flyers. I think they’ll be tougher to beat this year.

Capitals in 5.

New Jersey Devils (3) vs Carolina Hurricanes (6)
These seem to be 2 teams heading in opposite directions. The Devils have been mediocre at best since Brodeur became the all time wins leader. The Hurricanes have been lighting teams up, including a 9-0 drubbing against the lottery-favorite Islanders. The Hurricanes have also enjoyed playoff success against the Devils. They may be one of the rare teams that are not afraid of Brodeur and the perennial contenders from Jersey. Erik Cole has been a beast since being sent back to Raleigh from Edmonton, and Eric Staal is enjoying a long stretch of successful hockey. And let’s not forget Cam Ward, who has put himself in the conversation for the Men’s Olympic team. The Devils have rising (or risen?) star Zach Parise, who is enjoying an MVP-caliber season. Patrik Elias and Jamie Langenbrunner bring skill, leader and experience, but how much do they have left?

Hurricanes in 6.

Pittsburgh Penguins (4) vs Philadelphia Flyers (5)
I always find it difficult to predict what will happen between rivals, especially when they share the same geographic area, and are ranked 4th/5th. There’s very very little that separate these 2. The Penguins have 2 studs up front in Sidney Crosby and Hart Trophy candidate Evgeni Malkin. Their back-end offense comes almost exclusively from Sergei Gonchar, and late season pickup of Bill Guerin and Chris Kunitz have paid off huge. Let’s also remember the job that new coach Dan Bylsma has done since the firing of Michel Therrien. The Flyers are no slouches themselves with Jeff Carter having a breakout year, and Mike Richards once again proving that he is one of the game’s best all around young players. Oh and did I mention Daniel Brière and Simon Gagné? They’ve got a big and tough defense corps that can pound anyone in to submission. This will be no walk in the park for the Penguins. But I’m giving them the slight edge in goaltending, and thus, the win in this series, albeit in 7 games.

Penguins in 7.

Out West, there are some old faces back in the mix for the first time in a long time (Chicago and St. Louis) and the last of the 30 NHL teams to make the playoffs (Columbus). Congrats to them all! Will any of them do any damage? Only time will tell.

San Jose Sharks (1) vs Anaheim Ducks (8)
The President Trophy winners take on their inter-state rival in what should be an interesting matchup. Patrick Marleau is enjoying life under new coach Todd McLelland, Joe Thornton has had another good year and Evgeni Nabokov is in the Vezina conversation. Dan Boyle was a good pickup, and young stars like Devin Setoguchi are ready for prime time. Do the Ducks stand a chance? With a proven roster with the likes of Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Scott Niedermayer, Teemu Selanne, Chris Pronger, Rob Niedermayer, Todd Marchant, and Francois Beauchemin, you bet they do. They were 7-2-1 in their final 10 games, a sure sign that an experienced team is getting ready flex their muscles when it counts. I’m going to be bold here, and say that the Ducks pull it off. Thornton and Cheechoo will be no-shows, and the Ducks will grind them out. A big season down the tubes for the Sharks. I may end up eating my words on this one, but I won’t be so quick to write the Ducks off.

Ducks in 6.

Detroit Red Wings (2) vs Columbus Blue Jackets (7)
The Wings are the champs. The Blue Jackets are making their first appearance in the playoffs in their history. On paper, this is a mismatch, and I think that will bear itself out over the course of the series. Only Steve Mason, coming off an unbelievable rookie season can help keep this close. Ken Hitchcock is a great playoff coach and may have some tricks, but how to you keep down a team that has all stars at virtually every position, including their own coach, Mike Babcock? Taming the likes of Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg, Marian Hossa and Tomas Holmstrom is no easy task. The Wings are very deep at all positions and beating them will be no easy task. Chris Osgood, the Red Wings goalie had better be on his game, or this series WILL be more interesting than it ought to be. The Blue Jackets will not roll over, nor will the play with the “happy to be here” mentality. It is the first taste of playoff action for Rick Nash and the rest of the relative no-names on Columbus. They’ve done an amazing thing in getting this far, and they’ll give the Wings a run for their money, but it won’t be enough.

Red Wings in 6.

Vancouver Canucks (3) vs St. Louis Blues (6)
The Blue Jackets were the feel-good story of the year, until the Blues came along and decided to join the playoff party. Coach Andy Murray has pulled off a semi-miracle in getting this team of unproven stars and aging veterans in to the playoffs. Young guns T.J. Oshie, David Perron, Patrik Berglund, Brad Boyes, David Backes lead the way with 37 year old Keith Tkachuk as the veteran leader of the group. In goal they’re going with mostly unproven, unknown Chris Mason in nets. Up front the Canucks are led once again by Daniel and Henrik Sedin. The mid-season acquisition of Mats Sundin seems to be paying off (though maybe not as much as the Canucks and their fans would hope), and Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows came out of seemingly nowhere to help solidify and round out the offense. The Canucks have a deep and well-rounded defense corps consisting of Kevin Bieksa, Alexander Edler,  Willie Mitchell, Mattias Ohlund and Sami Salo. And of course, in goal is one of the best in the game in Roberto Luongo. I think the Blues are going to be one of the teams who will be in “happy to have made it in” mode.

Canucks in 5.

Chicago Blackhawks (4) vs Calgary Flames (5)
Another interesting series in that we have a team on the rise (Chicago) with many young stars (Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Kris Versteeg and Martin Havlat) vs a team with high expectations every year (Calgary). Led by Jarome Iginla, Miikka Kiprusoff, and Dion Phaneuf, the Flames are a well balanced team with a battle-hardened coach in Mike Keenan. The Flames have some questionmarks on defense in terms of their injury situation, but if they’re all available, they’re as good as any defense corps in the league. They’ve got the right mix of offense and bone crushers to go a long way. The Hawks should get solid goaltending from Cup champ Nikolai Khabibulin, but can the Blackhawks avoid the “glad to be here” mentality that I think will be the Blues downfall? The Blackhawks are a team on the rise and will eventually steal the division title from the Red Wings, perhaps even as soon as next season. But some teams need to learn what losing is like before they take a quantum leap forward.

Flames in 6.

So there we have it. If my predictions pan out (and I’m calling for both #1 seeds to get knocked out), we’ll have a 2nd round series that will see the following matchups:

East
Washington (2) vs Montreal (8)
Pittsburgh (4) vs Carolina (6)

West
Detroit (2) vs Anaheim (8)
Vancouver (3) vs Calgary (6)

I’d love to hear your thoughts and your predictions!

The Death Of The Jersey Retirement

The current NHL season has certainly had its fair share of special events with the 100th Anniversary of the Montreal Canadiens, the Winter Classic at Wrigley Field in Chicago, and various teams honoring former players by retiring their jersey number. The jersey retirement has been known to be a great honor bestowed upon a former player for their contribution to the franchise over the course of their career.

What has recently become disturbing to many hockey fans is the manner in which certain players have been chosen to have their jersey retired. Unlike many other honors in the game, the retirement of a jersey has no standard set of league wide criteria that are required to be met in order for a player to receive the honor.

What Are the Minimum Standards?

While it is certainly wishful thinking to believe that a set criteria would be agreed upon league-wide, there is an expectation by fans that franchises should be responsible in their selections of players to honor. Just as with the selections for the Hockey Hall of Fame, there are players whose accomplishments are (at least statistically) greater than some of those players who have been honored.

The Carolina Hurricanes honored Glen Wesley – Yes, they retired the number of Glen Wesley [apparently] using the ideology that tenure, being a good guy, and one Stanley Cup ring is good enough to hang a slightly above average defenseman’s jersey next to that of Ron Francis, the NHL’s 4th leading scorer of all time.

The New York Rangers used this season to honor Adam Graves, a one-time 50 goal scorer who had a decent tenure with the Rangers and suited up for the 1994 Stanley Cup winning team. What baffles the minds of many hockey historians is that the jersey of legendary Rangers Brad Park has yet to be lifted to the rafters at Madison Square Garden, while the jersey of Andy Bathgate was finally honored several weeks after Graves’ ceremony.

Logic And Rationale

If we argue that the main reason for Graves’ jersey retirement was his 52 Goal season in 1994, helping to bring the Stanley Cup to New York, then Sergei Zubov’s Jersey should have been retired long before Graves was honored. Zubov led the 1994 Rangers on both regular season and playoff scoring while quarterbacking the Rangers potent powerplay.

Simply put, without Zubov there is no Stanley Cup in New York in 1994. Zubov, a defenseman, also managed to score nearly twice as many points per game than Graves did as a Ranger and also has more career Stanley Cups than Graves (Zubov earned one more in 1999 with the Dallas Stars).

If we argue that Graves had a long tenure with the Rangers and that he was loved by fans, we must be prepared for an onslaught of Jersey retirements from every team who had a player suit up with the franchise for a decade (See Glen Wesley). Furthermore, if we combine the statistics of having a long tenure with the same team and winning a Stanley Cup, there are still several players who fit the bill. Most notable in this list is Mats Naslund.

Mats Naslund led the 1986 Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens in both regular season and playoff scoring and played the overwhelming majority of his NHL career with Montreal. This leads us to the question of whether playing for a franchise with more Stanley Cup victories is a detriment to having ones jersey retired?

For instance, by New York’s [apparent] standards, Naslund would have his jersey raised to the rafters. However, I don’t think that anyone in the Canadiens organization would dream of honoring Mats Naslund before a legend such as Elmer Lach has been recognized.

Leveraging the Retirement of Jerseys

It is unlikely that the majority of hockey fans have a problem with teams wanting to celebrate their former players and create more history for the franchise. However, it almost seems as though some teams are using the retirement ceremonies as a way to spike ticket sales more than to truly honor the commitment of a great hockey player.

Yes, I realize that there are more criteria than just statistics, trophies and records that can be used to determine the value of a player to the organization. However, without any basic criteria teams may eventually find more ways than not to draw in a crowd for special game featuring the jersey retirement of (Insert name here).

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