WordsOfWisdom

Is there any point in me posting here any more? Even when I'm on point, and I present an important topic of interest, I get almost zero support from the members here. The people who reply to my post just to sh_t on it are the ones receiving all the likes. Look at the first three posts in this thread: Ask yourself the question (be honest): If this thread had been started by TropicalFruitGirl, Podein, Pilldoc, or basically anyone else but me, that first post gets a respectable reply and probably has 20 likes by now doesn't it? I think I get

I still can't believe the team the Ottawa Senators had back in 2006..... and how they pissed it all away with a series of bizarre moves. The Senators had Heatley, Spezza, Alfredsson, Chara, and Hasek.

Apparently. Whenever I get bored I watch the live feed for a few minutes. I think the NHL's first "make a statement" moment will come at the 2022 entry draft. It'll be interesting to see what happens. I give it a 25% probability that public outcry forces the NHL to remove Russian players from the upcoming NHL draft. I give it a 50% probability that Putin bans players from leaving the country, making the above point moot. I give it a 25% probability that life goes on as normal with no change to the status quo.

Fun Fact: Vitali Klitschko is the mayor of Kyiv in Ukraine. This Vitali Klitschko:

True, but prior to 1990 they weren't allowed to come over at all. My sense is that Russian players will be in the same situation again very shortly (if things don't improve). Plus, even if it doesn't happen, what will the environment be like for Russian players in North America going forward? Will we have situations where American-Ukrainian hockey fans are throwing rocks at the Russian players? Will it become a safety issue for the Russian players to play in hostile territory (or will the NHL be a safe-space where fans don't care)? Will the public put pressure on the NHL to ban t

2022 Draft Prospect Rankings EUROPEAN SKATERS Midterm Rank ↑ Player Height Weight Position Last Amateur Club League 1 KEMELL, JOAKIM 5' 11" 171 RIGHT WING JYP

If that's true then @flyercanuck will be pleased to know that there's finally something I DON'T like about Ovechkin. In any event, I don't think it will ever come down to an NHL-level decision. Given the choice, the NHL sees only $$$. If a Russian player kills 100 Ukrainian civilians and collects their heads in his basement, the NHL and its agents will welcome him with open arms into the league and try to draft him if he's the next Mogilny/Ovechkin level player. Most likely, the ban will come from Russia, just like it did before. That would be Putin's way of punishin

Correct. I'm merely discussing what it means for the NHL if it happens. We are rapidly returning to a world that is much like it was in the 1980's when Russian people were barred from leaving the country. Attempting to leave Russia (USSR) back then meant you were declared a traitor and would be killed. There's an entire documentary on the extraordinary lengths that NHL agents had to go to in order to smuggle Alexander Mogilny out of Russia (USSR) so he could play in the NHL. Players like Mogilny, Bure, and others would routinely receive death threats from Russia for defecting, even years after

When I said banned, I'm referring to them either not being allowed to leave Russia OR them being banned from North America altogether. (As in, passport revoked.) It's not ME banning anyone and it's not what *I* want. I'm just dealing facts. This is very likely going to happen. I'm just the first one to post about it. Do you really think Russian players are going to be able to come here and earn millions of dollars when their leader and their nation is enemy #1 on the world stage right now? Thus, let's discuss what the NHL would look like without any Russi

I realize this would have been an unthinkable topic oh about a week ago, but times have changed. The Iron Curtain is back. Putin is reforming the USSR, and that means Russian born players will no longer be allowed to play in the NHL, the same as it was before prior to ~1989. For those who need a quick history lesson: Players like Alexander Mogilny were the first to defect from the Soviet Union. There wouldn't be an Alex Ovechkin today if it weren't for players like that in the past. Side note: This is not a thread about politics. It's a

I figured a thread on "Popular Canadian Travel Destinations" would have been fun too. But I am doing my best to keep it to hockey. Honest!

Sssh! We can't talk about it.

Can we just acknowledge that it has been a rare thing (until very recently) and smash that LIKE button?

I'm convinced that closing the NHL arenas to fans once again has spawned the Freedom Convoy. Never underestimate how angry Canadian hockey fans can get with no hockey.