Guerin
Well, the Guerin buyout process is underway. Again, I am not shocked. It's a business decision. Ditto with the reluctance in handing out long-term deals to guys in their 30's. The good old days of throwing money at guys are gone.
I thought Guerin was OK during his time in Dallas. Did he live up to the $9 million/year deal he signed? No. I know there were some injuries. Last season there were personal issues and he was drained by all the business related stuff he dealt with during the lockout.
But if you look back from the time the Stars went on that spending spree in July 2002 -- with Guerin as the centerpiece -- this team hasn't really done much when it came to meeting expectations. They won one playoff series.
Was it all his fault? Of course not. But he underachieved at times the same way the team did, especially in the playoffs. He gets a pass on the 2003 playoffs when he was hurt.
I liked Guerin. I thought he was a stand up guy for the most part. Never made excuses. It's tough seeing him end his stay in Dallas this way.
Right now, a lot of things are up in the air with the Stars. We'll have to see what happens to Jason Arnott and Willie Mitchell. Arnott looks iffy, but Mitchell could come back and that may open the door for the Stars to trade a defenseman for some help at forward.
There's also the free agent market.
Doug Armstrong still has the cap room to bring in some players and still meet his target of being around $40 million when the season starts in October.
It's going to be interesting.
30 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Arnott
Mike Heika of the Morning News has an article today on the Jason Arnott situation. Arnott is going to test the market. Surprised? No. Arnott's one of the top centers hitting the market. He'd be be nuts not to test the market.
The Stars are wary about handing out a long-term contract to someone in Arnott's age range. Surprised? Not really. You have to be careful about doing that these days. It may look great now, but in a couple of years you could be saddled with a player whose production level doesn't match his hit on your salary cap. You have to spend smart under the cap and you have to think not just about the coming year, but a few years ahead.
Why spend on Arnott now when next summer you might be able to land a top flight 28-year-old forward in the free agent market. I really don't have a problem with Armstrong's thinking on this. Sometimes you have to take a step back to ultimately move forward.
As for Willie Mitchell, I am sure he would like to test the market too. I don't know what is going to be out there though. The demand probably isn't going to be as high. If he signs the Stars will still have eight defensemen. You could always try to move one of them for a forward. Of course counting on a trade to solve your problems can be risky because it takes to teams to trade.
29 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Klemm
So, the Stars have exercised the option on Jon Klemm's contract. That gives the Stars six defenseman under contract and you can make it seven once Trevor Daley is signed.
It could be an indication that talks with Willie Mitchell have gone nowhere and that he could he be wearing a different team's colors next season.
If the Stars are still going after Mitchell then someone has to go, or maybe they can move Stephane Robidas to forward and have him as the 8th defenseman.
Anyway, this makes it look more and more like Bill Guerin's days as a Stars could be numbered. We'll know soon.
28 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Odds & Ends
I guess it is sit around and speculate as we wait to see what Stars GM Doug Armstrong is going to do. Perhaps we'll have a few quiet days and then all hell will break loose later in the week.
No surprise yesterday with the qualifying offers. As I mentioned in one of the stories over the weekend, Jaroslav Svoboda could be the odd-man out and it turns out he was.
I thought Svoboda was OK, but this creates some space for some of the Stars prospects.
The Hockey Forecaster gave the Stars a D+ as far as Saturday's draft goes. The Forceaster's assessment:
The Good
Dallas needed a little bit of everything, and that is pretty much what they drafted with their five selections.
The Bad
All five of the selections were chosen far higher than they were ranked. The goaltender that they chose 120th overall (Richard Bachman) was ranked behind many other goalies who were still available. Their top selection, Ivan Vishnevskiy (27th overall), was the only player whom they selected about where Central Scouting and other hockey experts had him.
The Unique
Vishnevskiy is such an offensive talent on the blueline that he sometimes forgets that he is a defenseman -- and that part of that word is 'defense'. If he can tweak his game in that area a little bit, the Stars may have a Sergei Zubov on their hands.
Grade: D+
It's hard to give a poor mark to a team that had so few selections, but Dallas really missed the mark with everyone but their top pick. Some very good players slipped by them while they were grabbing prospects earlier than they needed to.
My favorite quote from over the past few days comes from Tampa Bay GM Jay Feaster, who offered this analysis of his team's progress following Friday night's trade of Roberto Luongo to the Canucks:
"I like to think we became a better hockey team last night without doing a damn thing, because Roberto is out of the Southeast Division. Not having to face him eight times (a year) is a great thing."
(Thanks to James Mirtle for putting together a nice collection of trade reaction quotes)
27 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Big week ahead
Well, it's shaping up to be an interesting week. I think the big issue I am interested in as far as the Stars is what happens with Bill Guerin. I don't see how the Stars keep him with Doug Armstrong saying he'd still like to try to sign Jason Arnott and Willie Mitchell.
I don't think he can do it without moving Guerin's salary. A trade would be great, but I think the buy-out is the option Armstrong ends up having to go with if he wants to free up the space.
A lot will depend on how much he wants to spend up to the cap to start the season. He's got to leave some room for short-term injuries and possible acquisitions during the season.
How much? I'd say a minimum of $2 million and that would be pushing it. I'd say $3 million based on what several teams went through last season.
Armstrong can gamble, but if things go wrong you start ending up making a lot of decisions tilted more towards just money moves instead of having a balance of both hockey and money influencing your decisions.
Money is always going to play a role in your decisions, but you shouldn't try to put yourself in a position where your hands are tied and everything you do is strictly done because of money.
Plus, you've got an entire season to use that cap space. Why push it at the beginning of the season? That pad you leave grows during the season and gives you options to make some good hockey moves down the road.
Just my opinion on that one.
Anyway, I am on board with a buy-out of Guerin if it comes down to that.
I thought the Stars draft was OK. The trade was the big deal. As for the picks? Who knows. Time will tell. Ivan Vishnevskiy could be a fun guy watch develop. He needs to drop the second "i" in his name.
One reason I don't like the Patrik Stefan trade is I am going to actually have to think when I am writing about him and Stars goalie Tobias Stephan. Those two need to come up with a unified spelling for their last names.
What was Roberto Luongo thinking? He wants the Panthers to make a public statement that they wouldn't trade him. He wants Francois Allaire hired as the goaltending coach. And he wanted Jamie McLennan to return as his backup. Then he wonders why his contract talks with the Panthers fall through and he gets traded to Vancouver.
25 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Stefan Trade
On the surface I like the Kapanen and a pick to Atlanta for Stefan and Modry. But as I said in my earlier post, I can't make a call until I see the whole picture. I think the Stars are up to $36.3 million for 15 players right now with Modry's $1.824 million. That includes picking up the option on Jon Klemm.
Stefan will cost another $1.064 million to qualify, so that's close to $37.36 million.
Unless the Stars have something else up their sleeves, it looks like Mitchell may be gone. If they pick up the option on Klemm, they have seven defensemen right now.
I liked Kapanen and thought the Stars never used him effectively a lot of the times. That being said, Stefan has some untapped potential. I don't think he is ever going to turn into a No. 1 center, but he is still young and turn into a 20-goal scorer.
24 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Draft day
Nothing like a blockbuster trade the night before the NHL Draft. The Canucks gave up a lot to get Roberto Luongo, but if they can sign him to a long-term deal then it looks better for GM Dave Nonis. Of course, Nonis still could have some problems on the blue line with the departure of Bryan Allen in the trade and the fact that Ed Jovanovski is an unrestricted free agent. And the loss of Todd Bertuzzi, despite his ho-hum 2005-06 season, is still a big loss. Florida also gets goalie Alexander Auld, who had his moments in 2005-06.
I have no idea what the Stars may be up to this weekend. Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News has some speculation on some of the questions facing Stars GM Doug Armstrong.
I think Armstrong would like to move Bill Guerin, but I think that's going to be hard. Not impossible, but hard. That would leave a buy-out, which would have to exercised by the end of the month.
There are plenty of rumors flying around today. The latest one comes from Sun Media's Bruce Garrioch, who writes: "The Dallas Stars have been whispering they're willing to move D Philippe Boucher."
It's Garrioch, so I have to wonder. Then again, it could be an interesting weekend with a lot of surprises.
If Armstrong does make any significant moves this weekend, it may be hard to judge them until we see the whole picture. We still have to see what happens with Guerin, Jason Arnott and Willie Mitchell. Then we can see who he has under contract, where is as far as the cap and get a good idea of where this team stands as far as 2006-07.
I do think the team has to move forward and improve. I am not sure trying to take a run at it with basically the same roster as last season will cut it. San Jose and Anaheim are both teams on the rise for right now and that could make life tough on the Stars if they stand pat.
The team needs a more balanced approach up front. I think teams who did well over the long haul, meaning deep into the playoffs, were to be able to generate scoring potential from more than just one or two lines.
That means you might consider spending $4 million on three players you can spread across the lineup instead of throwing all that money at one guy you are going to throw on one of your top two lines. You might be able to exceed the point production of that one guy with those three guys and you might end up with a much more balanced offense.
Just a thought.
24 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
NHL Awards tonight
The NHL Awards show is tonight on OLN and CBA. Start time is 7 pm (CT). It's not the most exciting show in the world, but two Stars are up for awards. Jere Lehtinen is up for the Selke and Sergei Zubov is up for the Norris. Neither is considered the favorite to win.
My picks if I had a vote:
Calder: Alexander Ovechkin, Washington.
Selke: Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina
Hart: Joe Thornton, San Jose
Adams: Lindy Ruff, Buffalo
Norris: Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit
Vezina: Miikka Kiprusoff, Calgary
Lady Byng: Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit
After that it is on to the Draft. That will on OLN Saturday starting at 5 pm (CT). It could be an interesting weekend, especially if teams make some significant moves.
Doug Armstrong told the Dallas Morning News that a decision on buying out Bill Guerin probably won't come until after the draft. That makes sense. He probably wants to see if he can shed some cap space via trades while he is in Vancouver.
22 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF Game 7
Congratulations to the Carolina Hurricanes. And the Edmonton Oilers. Last night's game was another excellent contest. I said the other day the Hurricanes needed to establish some momentum early in Game 7 and they were able to do that with Aaron Ward's goal. The 'Canes were the better team through the first two periods, but the Oilers made a great run in the third period.
Cam Ward was superb and was the obvious choice for the Conn Smythe. I thought Jussi Markkanen played very well. I'm not sure goaltending did the Oilers in in this series.
Outside of the Ty Conklin-Jason Smith snafu that led to the game-winner in the first game, I think the Oilers goaltending was good enough to win the series. I think blowing that lead in the first game and their power play woes early in the series were key factors in the Oilers not winning.
I thought Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos was on the verge of a Mark Cuban moment late in the first when they were trying to sort out what to do about that penalty shot or no penalty shot situation in front of the Carolina net.
I give the NHL's Stephen Walkom credit for going on NBC during the first intermission and explaining why it wasn't a penalty shot.
Good work by the NBC technical crew, albeit not until the second period, to give a completely different look at the play. It was an angle that the league wouldn't have and the image was blown up as well. It was a look that showed the puck over the goal line. That's something you didn't see in any of the other angles that the NHL would have had at its disposal.
The question was the sequence of events and whether Walkom's explanation would have still held with the NBC angle. To be honest, I didn't even fire up the DVR and sift through it a few times to compare what NBC's angle showed against Walkom's explanation. Didn't care. It was in the past. (If you care, here's an article on it in one of the North Carolina newspapers)
Plus, since I am closely following the NBA Finals, I can get my fill of complaints about officiating and conspiracy theories reading about the Mavericks.
Anyway, the Stanley Cup Final was a great series. Highly entertaining from my perspective. I thought the NBC broadcasts were good. I think they are a lot better than ABC's broadcasts of the Mavericks-Heat series.
The only thing missing was some good post-game stuff. We got a few interviews before they signed off after the games, but not in-depth stuff. I know it would have been a scheduling nightmare for OLN, but it would have been nice if they could have picked up post-game stuff after NBC signed off.
20 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF Game 6
Total domination by the Oilers last night and the end result is we get a Game 7 for the Stanley Cup. Just another notch in the Oilers' remarkable run this season.
The Oilers power play has come to life, their team defense has been remarkable and Jussi Markkanen has been a rock in goal.
And then there is Fernando Pisani and his 13 goals in the playoffs. His linemate, Raffi Torres, is having a pretty good series too. He's really developed into a good all-around player. Then there is that other guy on the line, Michael Peca.
I was really surprised to see Erik Cole in the lineup and then I was equally surprised that he played as well as he did. Once he took that big hit from Ethan Moreau early in the first period you got the sense he was in the game.
It didn't make any difference for the Hurricanes, who were just smothered by the Oilers.
Carolina looks like a frustrated team right now. The Oilers are banging away at them and giving them very little in the way of quality shots on net.
Series momentum is with the Oilers. Carolina needs to turn that around by establishing some momentum early in Game 7.
Monday's tilt should be fun.
Once the Cup is skated then we enter into the off-season fun. The buyout window opens 48 hours after the Stanley Cup Final. The draft is next Saturday. Free agency is a week after that. There should be enough stuff to keep us all occupied for the next month to six weeks.
18 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF Game 5/Stars Moves
Great game last night and a great win for the Oilers. Maybe this series will go seven games. No complaints here. This has been an entertaining series. Last night's game was probably the most entertaining of the five games.
When that Cory Stillman pass floated towards the middle of the ice in the Carolina zone I thought to myself, "That could be trouble for Carolina." And then along came Fernando Pisani, who scored his 12th goal of the playoffs. Talk about a guy stepping it up in the playoffs. He had 18 in 80 games during the regular season.
Rexall should be rocking Saturday night.
On to the Stars. No surprise that the Stars picked up the option on Jere Lehtinen. They also made a nice move signing Niklas Hagman to a two-year deal that will save a little money since his his average annual salary will come in at a little less than if he had just accepted his qualifying offer. I thought Hagman played well after the Olympics and into the playoffs. Among the RFA's, he was definitely a keeper.
Mike Heika has an article on the Bill Guerin situation in today's Dallas Morning News. Nothing really new. Guerin wants to stay, but doesn't know what is going to happen. Neither do I.
The window to buy out his contract opens 48 hours after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Final. The window to trade him opens after the Final concludes.
I think a buyout makes sense from a cap perspective. His contract is a huge drain and his performance fails to justify it.
Of course, it would have cost them zero as far as the cap if they had done it last summer as a compliance buyout. Now, it will cost them $2.2 million in cap space each of the next two seasons.
Hindsight it 20-20. Things have changed a lot in a year.
15 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF Game 4
The Hurricanes are one win away from the Stanley Cup. I thought last night's game was excellent. A lot of good scoring chances, some good physical play and, as always, a great atmosphere at Rexall.
The Oilers power play is just killing them. There just seems to be no sense of urgency to it. Just a lot of guys standing around.
Another good game from Jussi Markkanen. He had at least three great saves and for all the talk about the loss of Dwayne Roloson, goaltending is not the Oilers problem right now. They've scored three goals in the last three games.
Cam Ward continues to be excel at the other end. He is looking more and more like the Conn Smythe winner if the Hurricanes go on to win this thing. I think Rod Brind'Amour deserves some attention. So does Cory Stillman, who is tied for the lead in playoff scoring and has come up with some big plays throughout the playoffs.
But the Hurricanes have to win it first.
NBC's ratings for Game 3 on Saturday night weren't great. The game drew a 1.7 rating in Nielsen's selected 56 major markets. How the broadcast really fared won't be known until Nielsen factors in all of the 200-plus markets in the United States.
13 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF
Big win for the Oilers Saturday night. Good solid outing from Oilers goalie Jussi Markkanen. Just another chapter in the wacky goaltending storyline of this season's playoffs.
I thought the Oilers as a team played very well and, as a result, have climbed back into the series. Of course, I didn't think they were really out of it. If they lose tonight, then they have problems. If they win I think the pressure shifts big time into Carolina's lap.
I am curious to see what kind of ratings NBC got for the game. I expect they will be dismal. I just don't see any dramatic changes in the ratings in the near future. The ratings are what they are. The league needs to deal with that and just move forward. Big national TV revenue is not in the picture so your economic model has to account for that. The lockout helped the league accomplish that.
The Canadian Press reports today that there were no violations of the NHL's new anti-doping policy. The World Anti-Doping Agency's Dick Pound, who doesn't think much of the NHL's policy, wasn't available for comment. He's probably dump on the NHL's results so it really doesn't matter.
12 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF Game 2
I don't think last night's game had anything to do with goaltending. It had a lot more to do with the play of the Hurricanes, who were clearly the better team across the board.
They won the special teams battle big time. Their penalty kill was huge early and the power play came through later in the game. And the 'Canes did all those little things -- blocking shots, clogging passing lanes -- that the Oilers had been doing so well in the first three rounds.
Again, the Oilers got themselves in trouble early trying to play run and gun with the Hurricanes. That led to the first Carolina goal by Andrew Ladd and that score held up as the game-winner. Penalties hurt the Oilers as well.
It all added up to a blow out win. I think the shots were 26-25 in favor of Carolina, but that stat was misleading. The 'Canes were pretty dominant.
Best observation of OLN's broadcast last night had to come from Mark Messier during the pre-game show. He talked about "eliminating" the other team's "will to win." I am not sure anyone's will to win has been eliminated in this series, but Carolina showed it was willing to do a lot of the little things you need to do to win. They executed better and were far more disciplined.
I give them credit. They won Game 1 and the Oilers lost Dwayne Roloson, but the Hurricanes stepped up their play a couple of notches. That's the sign of a good, well-focused hockey team.
I am still not ready to write off the Oilers. We'll see how things go as the series shifts to Edmonton for Games 3 and 4.
All games in a series are big, but Saturday's Game 3 is mighty big for the Oil.
08 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
SCF Game 1
There goes my pick of Dwayne Roloson for the Conn Smythe. What a huge loss for the Oilers. One play in Game 1 and the series takes on a whole new look. Craig MacTavish tried to keep a stiff upper lip last night after the game, but it's a big blow for the Oilers who are now going to have to rely on Ty Conklin or Jussi Markkanen to win this series.
I am not counting the Oilers out but my opinion on this series changed dramatically.
You have to wonder what Conklin is thinking after coughing up the puck the net and watching Rod Brind'Amour score the game-winner. Conklin's gaffe is already being placed in historical perspective by the Edmonton media. There was this from the Edmonton Sun this morning:
Steve Smith cost the Oilers a chance to win five Stanley Cups in a row when he scored on his own net in Game 7 of a series against the Calgary Flames. He went down as the greatest goat in Edmonton's Stanley Cup playoff history.
But Conklin, in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final, may have one-upped him. He didn't score on his own net. But he might as well have.
Markkanen, on the other hand, hasn't played since March 3.
Conklin made the big goof at the end, but he wasn't the only reason the Oilers loss. I think the Oil got caught up in too much of a run and gun game with the Hurricanes, who were very effective off the rush in this game.
Cam Ward was brilliant in the Carolina end. His first big save on Shawn Horcoff in the third was worth more than a just a mere few rewinds on the DVR. That was spectacular.
This is one of those games where you forget about the four goals the guy let in and just remember the big saves he made to help your team win the game. He stole a game for them in a way. I thought Carolina was awful for the first two-thirds of the game and Ward had to come up huge even as the Hurricanes outscored Edmonton 4-1 in the third period.
I've never been a big fan of the Stars' Ice Girls, but I am starting to like those Carolina Hurricanes cheerleaders. They are called the Storm Squad. You can meet them here. I honestly didn't know there was a guy named Mike in the mix.
You can also read the Canadian media's spin on them here. It's not all that flattering, but I am not surprised.
Gary Bettman held his "State of the Game" address/news conference before last night's game. Another fine attempt by the Canadian media to find something
Well, it will probably take until the end of June to give you an answer with certainty. It will be somewhere in the 40s. My guess is somewhere in the 43 to 44 million dollar range. But, you know, I can't give you a number that you can exactly hold me to, but it's in that range.
You can read the entire transcript here.
06 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Odds & Ends
The Stanley Cup Final gets underway tonight, but around these parts it seems to be all Dallas Mavericks, all the time. Nothing wrong with that. Winning breeds excitement and attention.
Hockey isn't a tiny little dot on the radar around here. There's been some Stanley Cup articles in the paper the last few days, but that is about it. When my alarm went off this morning the talk on the radio was Mavericks-Heat and that was a national radio show on ESPN radio. Tuned in Norm Hitzges on The Ticket his morning while in the car and he sounded like he was coming off a weekend full of Cialis and Mavs dancers. He was excited to be talking Mavericks basketball.
From a media standpoint, this is a fun time. It was fun when the Stars made their run and it was when the Cowboys went to those Super Bowls in the 90's. Of course, it's a lot more fun when the team wins. I'm sure it's fun in the Raleigh area right now.
Anyway, I am going with Oilers. I think they'll win for the same reasons that the Mavericks ultimately beat the Suns -- defense and depth. I think the Oilers are a little deeper across the board except in goal. I think it has the potential to be a great series. At least I hope it is a great series.
The Stars did couple of mentions in a column by the Jennifer Floyd of the Fort Worth Star-Telgram today. They were:
What is going on with our local teams:
The Stars. Take a moment to feel just a wee bit sorry for those people charged with selling 2006-07 season ticket packages. OK. You can now return to your Mavs mania.
And there was this.
The Stanley Cup Finals are set to begin, which means Bill Guerin has about two more weeks of being a member of the Stars.
05 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Carolina vs. Edmonton
Another great game to end a great series between the Hurricanes and the Sabres. I think it was the best series of the playoffs so far. Two pretty evenly matched teams going at it for seven games. You can't ask for much more than that.
It basically came down to a delay of game penalty on Brian Campbell for shooting the puck over the glass and then Rod Brind'Amour scoring the game-winner on the resulting power play.
Tough way to lose for the Sabres, but that's life. That penalty is an automatic call. And it came down to special teams execution and the 'Canes got the job done.
Give the Sabres credit. They played well despite being down Jay McKee and Teppo Numminen on defense.
The Stanley Cup Final should be a good one. I think it's a toss up for the most part. I probably won't be rooting for one team or the other. I haven't had a favorite in any of the series since the Stars got bounced. I've just been watching and enjoying it. I think either Carolina or Edmonton is deserving based on their performance in the playoffs.
There are a lot of guys on both teams I would enjoy see winning a Cup. Guys like Ryan Smyth, Jason Smith, Mike Peca, Doug Weight, Rod Brind'Amour and Glen Wesley to name a few.
01 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
Game 7, Razor still whining
Game 7 tonight between the Hurricanes and Sabres. It should be a good one. At least the pre-game hype is good with the two coaches trading barbs.
The problems for Buffalo's defense continue. Jay McKee is apparently out tonight.
I thought one of the benefits of the Stars getting bounced from the playoffs was I wouldn't have to endure anymore of Daryl "Razor" Reaugh's whining about the officiating. I thought too soon.
Razor's whining again. This time via his blog over at dallastars.com. And he calls Lindy Ruff the "head whiner." I didn't see Ruff whining after the call on J.P Dumont in Game 5 that led to Carolina's game-winner in OT.
Razor's got a problem with the boarding call on Doug Weight in OT of Game 6 of the Buffalo-Carolina series. That call led to Buffalo's game-winner that forced tonight's Game 7.
Here's a good look at the issues surrounding the Weight call from the Raleigh Newspaper. Keep in mind this is the local paper covering the Hurricanes, who came up on the short end of this call. It remarkably refrains from calling Buffalo a "rancid city" and describing Jason Pominville as a "gutless twit."
By the way, I wouldn't knock Pominville. He's got five goals and five assists in the playoffs. He's the top rookie scorer in the playoffs. He also notched that great shorthanded goal in overtime that eliminated Ottawa in the second round. We all know the Stars could have used an OT goal in this season's playoffs.
Back to the call. It was for Boarding, not Checking from Behind. Here's a tidbit from the NHL's 2005-06 Officiating Casebook. This is an expanded look at the rules and describes what should be called under various scenarios.
Here's a section that seems to apply to the Weight-Pominville incident.
Situations
48.2
A player from Team A is in possession of the puck along the boards. He sees an opponent about to check him, so he turns his back to create contact with his back. Should the referee assess a Checking from Behind penalty to the player applying the check?
Answer
No. The Team A player put himself into this position intentionally and was aware of the impending hit. However, despite placing himself in this vulnerable position, this does not necessarily provide immunity to the player applying the check to do so illegally. Other infractions may apply.
What are the other infractions that may apply? Charging and Boarding, according to the Casebook. And what did Weight get called for? Boarding.
If you want to argue that Pominville embellished, fine. But turning and intentionally putting his back to Weight is meaningless because it wasn't a Checking from Behind call. If in the ref's mind Pominville did deliberately turn to draw the call, that didn't take Weight off the hook for another infraction.
If you can get your hand on the Casebook, it's a good reference manual when you have a question about a call. It includes all the NHL rules and then expands on them by describing various situations and how they should be called.
01 June '06 - - default| - § ¶
