Conferences done right

 I was watching college basketball today, and my son and I were chatting. I noted that we are getting to the end of the season, so now teams are playing a lot of tournaments. Next week, they are starting the national championship tournament. This week, they are playing conference tournaments. My son asked a fantastic question.

"What's a conference?"

In college basketball, that's pretty fuzzy these days. but something the NHL still seems to care about, perhaps to a fault. No more has that been evident than this season, particularly when looking at the Utah Mammoth and Minnesota Wild.

Before we dig into those, let's first talk about what is good about conferences. Familiarity breeds contempt. The rivalry factor makes the regular season a little bit spicier, rather than rote. Cross conference games are interesting, playing teams you don't get to see regularly. Of course there is also the cost containment of having the conferences geographically centered.  And then, the post season enflames all those things, emphasizing rivalry, allowing for fresher teams with reduced travel in the first couple of rounds.

This season, it looks like the playoff structure will cause results that appear unfaCir. I'm a Wild fan, the team most feel is getting slighted, but I don't feel that way. The Stanley Cup, one way or another, is likely to involve a path through Colorado or Dallas, maybe both. After that, allegedly, it should be a piece of cake. But really, if winning the Cup necessarily would involve beating those teams, why does it matter WHEN you play them?

This year is a one year fluke. Anything can happen when you reach the Playoff. Utah might have a clearer path to run deeper towards the Championship. but they haven't improved their odds of winning the Cup. I'm looking forward to an intense series with the Stars, maybe more than one with a team like the Ducks. Bring it on. 

Total Eclipse of the Splash

 

All of those kids are going to be up there in their white polos and khaki pants, thinking they are going to Nationwide to get a literal blue jacket. I'm not trying to make too many generalities, but I have to believe there isn't a huge "spelling prodigy/hockey fan from central Ohio" crossover demographic. A blue jacket would be a nice touch though.

Oh, and for whatever it's worth, Isac Lundestrom would be the toughest name to spell. A lot of strong phonetics on the roster, but the one A Isac would be a real curveball. 

A tame trade deadline

Lately, trade deadlines have been wild, with flurries of major deals that make analysts from TSN to TNT lose their minds. Nowhere has that been more evident than Raleigh, where in previous years trades for Mikko Rantanen (to and from Carolina) and Jake Guentzel. This year, just like the rest of the league, the action was more muted. In response, the trade deadline has been downgraded to a tropical storm.

(This is a meteorology deep cut. My apologies if you are now thinking about Quiznos)

Everybody freeze!

The Olympics are rolling around again, and for the second Games in a row, Russia is non grata, and will not be competing in Milan for the hockey medals. Check back in 4 years, and Canada and Scandinavia might be the only teams still allowed in!

One group that might be particularly excited about the Olympics? TSN gets to have another special ahead of a trade deadline. It isn't a formal deadline, of course, but there is a roster freeze ahead of the Olympic break, and many teams will be interested in altering their roster ever so slightly to gear up for the final postseason push. There will be a sprint after the Games before the real deadline is on March 6th.

While there is an emphasis on the roster freeze, I'm not sure why. A player won't be with the team, practicing with the team for the full stretch of the Games. Why not wait until after the Games to make a more considered move? The only real concern is another team getting your guy before you are ready to move, but how is that different from the rest of the lead up to the real deadline?

I do know that one team is not looking forward to the freeze, and particularly the break afterwards. The Colorado Avalanche are one of the best teams in NHL history, having dropped only 5 games all season, which is crazy. One has to think there will be some disruption when all of their players are playing for another team, and apart for the better part of February when they are in the midst of the campaign. They gotta wish the season kept going.

Oh, and the Avs are the best team in the league, but they are being chased the next two best teams out West, the Wild and the Stars. The Wild would have enough points to lead two of the other three divisions in the League, and is only a point behind the Hurricanes for 2nd in the NHL. 

Yeah, the Avs might not be interested in the roster freeze for making a trade, and might wish the break wasn't happening, not just because of the broken rhythm for their organization. The Wild, for one, has already traded for Quinn Hughes in one of the biggest in season trades the League has seen. The Stars aren't shy about making moves in season either. The Avs might not make moves, but the Wild and Stars are going to take every advantage of the roster shuffling that is incoming.

And now St. Louis is cursed

 

The St. Louis Blues have long been one of the most under achieving franchises in the NHL. Their playoff ineptitude was the stuff of legend for many years, until in 2019, they had a breakthrough. They beat the Boston Bruins for a cathartic championship for a city that has been loyal for so long, even in the face of relentless heartbreak.

But now, the Blues are back to where they had always been. A franchise where shit like this happens. 

Total Eclipse of the Splash

 

We see athletes chomping on mouth guards all the time. They are kind of uncomfortable, so flipping them off your teeth and gnawing on them, but I am concerned that Mark Scheifele hasn't gotten out enough in Winnipeg. Despite being precariously close to North Dakota, the city has both a thriving indigenous AND immigrant community, suggesting that there are options for really good food around town (I've never been). If he were a little bit further south, though, I would say yes, absolutely, your mouthguard is probably more flavorful than anything you might eat in town. 

Total Eclipse of the Splash

 

Oooh, commemorative ticket! The next best thing to actual tickets!