Search for your favorite player or team
© The Hockey News. All rights reserved. Any and all material on this website cannot be used, reproduced, or distributed without prior written permission from Roustan Media Ltd. For more information, please see our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
November 3, 2014
The Hockey News has been providing the most comprehensive coverage of the world of hockey since 1947. In each issue, you'll find news, features and opinions about the NHL and leagues across North America and the world.
In The CARDS
ATHLETES CAN BE A SUPERSTITIOUS LOT. They like their routines and are loathe to change it up if they are winning. In 1996-97, Score spotlighted 13 – get it? – players who had particular hockey-related superstitions. Some of the quirkier hang-ups include: Chris Chelios wearing the same protective gear for more than 10 years, Felix Potvin shooting a puck into his own net during pre-game warmups, Teemu Selanne switching his jersey number from 13 to 8 after an injury and Mike Modano insisting Van Halen music be played at the start of each home game.…
THN INBOX
BOLTS? YOU DOLTS What were you guys thinking when you predicted the Lightning to be Eastern Conference champions and runners up in the Stanley Cup final. They could barely handle Montreal this past post-season. And you guys predicted Buffalo to be a bottom team again? No way will that happen. They did too much in free agency and trades this summer. I clearly disagree with what you are predicting. Cal Thomas, Hamilton, Ont. LIST MISSES Greetings, I have received my coveted copy of The Hockey News Yearbook. I keep it handy all season long, as it provides much food for thought. However, my issue seems to be missing a page or two. In Ken Campbell’s article on the NHL’s Top 50 players, the Kings’ Jeff Carter is not listed. I can only assume this…
MOVER AND SHAKER
RYAN PILON WASN’T THE FIRST player to request a trade from the hapless Lethbridge Hurricanes. Nor was he the last. A projected late first-round pick for the 2015 NHL draft, Pilon followed ex-teammates Sam McKechnie and Jaimen Yakubowski out the door in Lethbridge in the early stages of 2013-14. The exodus continued this season as Macoy Erkamps and Minnesota Wild prospect Reid Duke also asked to get out of a losing environment. “It made my decision a little easier,” said Pilon, who was dealt to the Brandon Wheat Kings last November. “I needed to look at it from my standpoint, not from theirs or anybody else’s.” Pilon has been the highest profile player to leave. The 6-foot-2, 212-pound defenseman was the No. 3 overall Western League bantam selection in 2011, a captain…
TRUTH IN NUMBERS
WHEN TIM BARNES MADE THE argument in 2009 that “possession is everything,” he wasn’t announcing a unique conclusion that emerged from decades in a stats lab. He was quoting Mike Babcock, who was inspired by Scotty Bowman, who worked closely with Roger Neilson, who was inspired by Harry Sinden. Like any other hockey fan, Barnes looked to the great leaders and innovators of the past for ways to learn more about the game – in sharing his discoveries on his blog, Irreverent Oilers Fans, he helped spur the modern hockey stats movement. Barnes’ effort to quantify possession led him to a measure Buffalo Sabres goaltending coach Jim Corsi used to assess his players’ workloads (counting not just shots against, but also misses and blocked shots). Ironically, Corsi had never intended it…
Made possible with the support of
