Awards Show Preview!

As tonight's NHL Awards show draws near (6pm on VS), two things are certain: bad comedians hosting, and horrible rock bands most Americans outside of Buffalo, Minnesota, Michigan and Washington haven't heard of.

One thing is certain though, Alexander Ovechkin has already won two awards, and those shiny trophies will be on display at the Kettler Capital Iceplex on Friday during your lunch break. As far as the other trophies, well, here's my predictions.

Hart Trophy (Most Valuable Player, as voted on by the writers)
Nominees:
Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
Jaromie Iginla, Calgary Flames
Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins

My prediction: Ovechkin
Who should win: Ovechkin

Really isn't a question. Malkin was great for a few months when the team needed him, but the MVP of that team was Conklin, not Malkin. Iginla doesn't feel like an MVP candidate, more like a token Western Conference guy.

Vezina Trophy (Best goaltender)
Nominees:
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils
Evgeni Nabokov, San Jose Sharks
Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers

My prediction: Nabokov
Who should win: Brodeur

Brodeur is the best goalie in league history. Even if he doesn't win the Vezina, he should win a special award for playing so well behind a defense that had Johnny Oduya seeing top pair minutes. Unfortunately, the Vezina is a tricky trophy to predict since it is the only award voted on by the GMs. My gut just tells me that Nabokov finally wins it this year.

Norris Trophy (best defenseman)
Nominees:
Nick Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings
Zdeno Chara, Boston Bruins
Dion Phaneuf, Calgary Flames

My prediction: Nick Lidstrom
Who should win: Lidstrom

Lidstrom is a living legend on the blue line. He may not have had the most goals, but he had the most points and was an amazing shut down defenseman at the same time. Simply look no further than the skid Detroit hit with him out of the lineup for further proof. He probably should have been a finalist for the Hart Trophy as well.

Calder Memorial Trophy (rookie of the year)
Nominees:
Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
Johnathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks
Nicklas Backstrom, Washington Capitals

My prediction: Patrick Kane
Who should win: Patrick Kane

Toews was in the hunt for winning until he missed time with an injury. In a year with no standout, the guy that didn't get points playing on a line with Alexander Ovechkin is going to be win the award.

Lady Bing Award (most gentlemanly/best sportsmanship)
Nominees:
Jason Pominvile, Buffalo Sabres
Pavel Datsuyk, Detroit Red Wings
Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lighting

My prediction: Martin St. Louis
Who should win: Jason Pominville

I don't really understand why St. Louis is up for this. He's just as whiny as any of a number of players in the league. Datsuyk certainly is a class act, but it's easier to show class when you win every game. Things weren't so easy for Jason Pominville this year, missing out on the playoffs after his team made consecutive trips to the Eastern Conference finals. This award is extremely difficult to predict.

Jack Adams Trophy (best Coach)
Nominees:
Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings
Bruce Boudreau, Washington Capitals
Guy Carbonneau, Montreal Canadiens

Who will win: Mike Babcock
Who should win: Bruce Boudreau

The word going around is that Mike Babcock is walking away with it. And if it wasn't for that stretch when they went 1-8-2, I'd agree with you. But when you take a team from last place in the league at Thanksgiving, and steer them to the division title, well that to me is how you say "Jack Adams."

Bill Masterton Trophy (perseverance, dedication to hockey)
Nominees:
Chris Chelios, Detroit Red Wings
Jason Blake, Toronto Maple Leafs
Fernando Pisani, Edmonton Oilers

Who should win: Fernando Pisani
Who will win: Jason Blake

Without taking anything away from the gentlemen who are up for the award, there are 3 easy ways to get nominated for this award: get cancer, get a weird disease that no one has heard of, get old. And all three are demonstrated this year.

Lester B. Pearson Award (best player as voted on by the NHLPA),
Nominees:
Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames
Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins

Who should win: Ovechkin
Who will win: Ovechkin

See the arguments above for Hart.


Tomorrow we'll talk about how my predictions are. If I guess correctly on every trophy except the Lady Bing, I'll consider that a win.

Did someone say it wouldn't end . . .

Today's lesson is: How to be a whiny elitist.

Let's look at the Toronto Star's article about the Ovechkin signing.

Step 1.

Mention erroneous facts.

A quick scan of the Washington Post's front-page stories yesterday:

-President Bush was in Israel helping broker Middle East peace talks.
-A look at Hillary Clinton's popularity among women voters.
-An obituary of mountain climber Sir Edmund Hillary.
-A local woman says she killed her four children because they were possessed by demons.

Not a single mention that Washington Capitals star forward Alex Ovechkin had signed a watershed $124 million (U.S.) contract extension – the biggest pro sports contract in the city's history.

I don't know about you, but a presidential election, world peace, a quadruple murder, and the death of someone FAR more famous Alex Ovechkin all qualify as bigger news. This is newspaper that sells far more copies in a single day than the "Toronto Star" will sell in a year.

Step 2
Leave out facts that counter act your argument.

Look at the Washington Post's Sports section from last Friday. It's a giant picture of Alex Ovechkin on the front page. Above the fold. Big article. The largest Caps story since the team was dissasembled in 2004. Below the picture, a nice infographic of the largest contracts signing in Washington Sports history to help people put this in perspective. No mention of the amount of space the article was given, but hey, that's counter productive.

Step 3
Make a different argument because you don't have enough made up facts to fill up an argument with your first point. Bonus points for faulty logic!

Nevertheless, the unsavoury facts about hockey in the U.S. capital are inescapable. The Capitals have been a perennial money loser and, unless owner Ted Leonsis opens his wallet to build a supporting cast around Ovechkin, little will change.

So lets get this straight. The Caps lose a lot of money. They must spend a ton more money, or else they will lose even MORE money. Remember when the Caps were losing $20 million a year before the lockout? They had Bondra and Gonchar and Olie. They brought in Jagr and Lang to support. Top 5 payroll, bottom 5 result. Cut the team dow and the team did BETTER at half the payroll,and lost a whopping $4m. So the logic given in this article, before we start looking at future scenarios, already fails.

Step 3
Attack the fanbase.
In 1997-98, led by Peter Bondra, Joe Juneau and Adam Oates, the Capitals advanced to the Stanley Cup final to play Detroit, even though the Red Wings won in four straight.

"I remember the sea of red in our seats," said Hudgins. He paused. "Maybe that speaks to the passion of the Detroit fans."

Sadly, it also speaks to the indifference with which Washington views its NHL franchise.

His argument, the Caps made the finals, and it was all Red Wings fans that showed up. No mention of the reasons why.

The owner of the Caps sold the tickets to travel agencies long before they ever went on sale to the public. So people in Detroit were able to buy tickets before Caps fans. Do you know how many tickets to the finals ever went on sale to the public in Washington? ZERO.

I know Toronto is extremely jealous of the great team the Capitals are building, but you need to look no further than your own inept management and ownership as to why you can't one day get back in the playoffs, too.

A Memo to Larry Brooks . . .

. . .Eat it.


Let's backtrack. I like going after members of the hockey media.

Let's backtrack further. I like going after members of the hockey media that deserve it. I like to call the professionals on their mistakes, and the professionals that behave unprofessionally get less respect from me. Members of the hockey media that act professionally, I treat with respect, no matter how much I may disagree with them on something. Earlier this year, Adam Proteau made a moderate sized mistake in a column in regards to the CBA, I brought it up as politely as I could, and he responded with grace and class in my blog. He's a good person in my eyes.

Then there's the other end of the spectrum.
There's the Bruce Garrioch, the Eklund, and at the very bottom of the ladder, Larry Brooks.
Let's dig up some golden nuggets from Mr. Brooks.

MAYBE someone can provide one good reason for Alex Ovechkin to sign a new contract with the before becoming a restricted free agent on July 1, because we sure can't think of any.

Ovechkin does not belong to the Caps. Through no desire of his own, he merely is playing for Washington under a three-year, entry-level capped lease that will expire at the end of this season.

Well Mr. Brooks, Alex Ovechkin decided he liked the area enough to hang around another 13 years. And he found $124 million reasons to do so.