Congrats Olie!

Here at BHH, we want to congratulate Olaf Kolzig on his 300th win, joining Martin Brodeur and Mike Richter as goaltenders with 300 wins with one organization.

Sadly, in the postgame interviews, Olie made it sound like this might be his last season. We want to implore Olie to hang around a few more years so we can have more memories like this one.



Besides, who will be there swearing a storm in front of children at practices?

Ask FS! 10/6/07

Welcome back boys and girls! It's time for another edition of the only online column that can count to e, It's "Ask FS!" Today's question comes to us from Dan, down in Lynchburg, VA! Dan asks

Do you think Olie is good enough to carry the Caps to the playoffs?

Well Dan, I do think Olie is good enough. Heck, we're a week into the season now, and Olaf Kolzig is the only starting goaltender in the NHL yet to give up a single goal! With an actual defense in front of him, I predict Olaf Kolzig will simply have to be decent, not great, to get this team to the postseason. Thanks for the question, Dan!

And remember, if you have a question you'd like to see answered in a future edition of "Ask FS!," you can email it to me via the link provided in the profile, or leave it in the comments section below. Until next time, let's go Caps!

Hot and Cold for the Week of February 14!

Ok, I'm trying to get back to running this on Sundays like I originally intended, so let's see what's cooking and what's chilling in the NHL this week!


Hot:

1. Jaromir Jagr - I hate you like a cancer. Because you are one. But you pulled off your 1500th career point this week, and that's commendable. You may not have any heart. You may not be any type of leader. You may be a bigger baby than everyone of the Muppet Babies combined. You do have talent, and for that, I commend you.
2. Rick DiPietro - Has a GAA of 1.5 in his last 5 starts. Unfortunately, the Islanders have only won two of those games. If that team makes the playoffs, it'll be entirely up to the Rick.
3. Calgary Flames - Taking over first in the NW division makes them hot. Their logo makes them flaming.
4. Bryan Murray - Closing in soon on 600 wins, this former Capitals, Red Wings, Panthers, and Ducks Coach, and current Senators coach is also rapidly closing in on his 6th career playoff win.
5. Dallas Stars - The Fallopian Tubes (no really, they used to use that logo) are climbing up on the rest of their division contenders, the Sharks and the Ducks. Of course . . .

Not:

1. Ladislav Nagy - Why does one acquire someone underachieving this horribly in a contract season? Isn't their any concern his moodiness will throw off the rest of the team? I know they were desperate for scoring, but wasn't Petr Nedved on waivers just a month ago?
2. The NHL Schedule - Weeks with one game are boring. Why does a team have 4 games in 7 days, and then one game in 7 days? This is my way of shifting the blame for a lack of updates.
3. Anaheim Ducks - Going 3-7 in their last 10 makes one wonder if they should go back to being "Mighty?"
4. Red Wings Goaltending - Osgood? Injured. Hassek? Injured. So they've got two guys in there that have less experience than your average 15 year old. Do I need to link to another pic of the Muppet Babies, or do we get the point?
5. Olie Kolzig - A knee injury has him out for three weeks. Caps fans officially cancel parade that they never really got around to start planning.

People are Talking. Talking about people.

I have a gripe, if I may, with the way NHL players conduct themselves in public. After attending practice last week, the Caps were very loose out on the ice, with players cracking jokes and smiling all practice. This was highlighted by a "brawl" between Alexander Semin, and Olie Kolzig, with Johnson coming over to help his partner out. This of course lead to Alexander Ovechkin coming over to help out. As a result we had a mid-ice scrum between Alexander Ovechkin and Olie Kolzig. Words cannot describe the comedy of seeing Alex trying to pull Olie's jersey up over his goalie mask to block his vision. So it was good to see the players relaxed and happy in front of the fans.

Jump forward 20 minutes, the players are coming out of the locker room to sign autographs. They are cold and distant to the fans. Signing everything politely, but not smiling, not even for photographs, warily suspicious of their own fans. Even jovial characters like Olie Kolzig and Alex Ovechkin remain stoic in the face of their autograph seeking fans, even after these fans have waited over an hour to get their signature.

Now I completely understand why the players are reserved. It's easy for one of these fans to go home, take a quote out of context, post it on a blog or message board, and suddenly someone is very upset. Take the following quote said by an imaginary player: "Teammate Y plays a great game in the open ice, but if there's an area he needs to work on, it's his toughness in the corners and along the boards." Now, suppose some ignorant person goes home and posts on a message board, "OMG! I was just at practice, and Player X said Teammate Y isn't very tough!!!!1 LOL!" I'm sure it's happened before, I'm sure something like that will happen again, and it's unfortunate.

There are certainly fans that the players will open up in front of, those that are able to build a relationship with the players, those that the players can trust, much in the same way reporters have to build their relationship with their contacts, but these fans are few and far between.

I don't like that players are afraid to talk in front of the fans, looking grim and emotionless, but I'm sure they are taught to act that way by someone, be it their agents, veterans on the team, the NHLPA, or even management. It's far too easy for some idiot fan to go home, and post something for the world to see that isn't quite true. And the fact that the players aren't even allowed to be themselves in front of their own fans makes me cry inside.

Ask FS! 12/19

Salutations loyal readers, and welcome to another editoin of the advice column that is breaking the internet in half, "Ask FS!" I have to say, in light of Bettman Hates Hockey being the internet home of the grassroots sunglasses/Brodeur campaign, readership is at an all time high! FOUR people came by yesterday to see what is happening! I'd like to ask the dozens and dozens of readers out there to spread the word about this lovely little corner of the internet we've created together!

Today's question came via email from Victor! Victor ponders

Let's say you could get only one more autograph for the rest of your life. Which one would you get: Dale Hunter, Olaf Kolzig, or Alexander Ovechkin, and why?

Great question Victor! For me, that's the easiest question ever, I already have autographs of all three! I've got autographed hockey cards from all three, and I have an autographed authentic Alexander Ovechkin jersey! But if I was forced to give up the others and only hold on to one, it would the autograph of Mr. Capital himself, Dale Hunter. Dale represents everything a hockey player should be to me. He had offensive skill (1,000 points) and was aggressive, chippy, stood up for his teammates, and wasn't afraid to get his nose bloody (3,000 PIMs). In my opinion, the only player in my lifetime to be such a complete well rounded player is Mark Messier. Unlike Messier though, Dale Hunter was an angel off the ice, supporting the community, and helping bring media attention to a sport in a town where it was desperately needed.

That wraps up another edition of "Ask FS!" If you've got a question that you'd like to see answered in this fine publication, just drop me a line in the comments, or send me an email. LET'S GO CAPS!