September 13, 2022We should all remember what happened in Nashville Tuesday night the next time NHL commissioner Gary Bettman insists that the on-ice officials employed by his league are the best in the world. Because if this is what the best in the world has to offer, the league should be very concerned.The NHL, of course, did what it had to do when it came to the Tim Peel situation. It simply could not allow an official who had been caught imposing himself on a game to ever step on the ice again. Full stop. And in that sense, it dealt with Peel harshly. The 53-year-old Peel was scheduled...…September 13, 2022We should all remember what happened in Nashville Tuesday night the next time NHL commissioner Gary Bettman insists that the on-ice officials employed by his league are the best in the world. Because if this is what the best in the world has to offer, the league should be very concerned.The NHL, of course, did what it had to do when it came to the Tim Peel situation. It simply could not allow an official who had been caught imposing himself on a game to ever step on the ice again. Full stop. And in that sense, it dealt with Peel harshly. The 53-year-old Peel was scheduled...WW…

September 13, 2022By the time Tom Wilson returns to playing hockey in two weeks, the cherry blossoms will almost be ready to bloom in Washington. When he steps on the ice to face the New York Rangers March 20, Wilson will have been suspended for a total of 30 regular-season, playoff and pre-season games and been fined in excess of $1.2 million in his career. And that doesn’t even take into account the fact that the NHL has given him more mulligans than the world’s most dishonest golfer gives himself on a Sunday afternoon.And judging by his past behavior, Tom Wilson will have learned...…September 13, 2022By the time Tom Wilson returns to playing hockey in two weeks, the cherry blossoms will almost be ready to bloom in Washington. When he steps on the ice to face the New York Rangers March 20, Wilson will have been suspended for a total of 30 regular-season, playoff and pre-season games and been fined in excess of $1.2 million in his career. And that doesn’t even take into account the fact that the NHL has given him more mulligans than the world’s most dishonest golfer gives himself on a Sunday afternoon.And judging by his past behavior, Tom Wilson will have learned...WW…

September 13, 2022When you peruse the top five scorers in the NHL this season, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl occupy the top two spots. And, of course, they have each other. Occupying Nos. 3 and 5 are Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, who also have each other. And all four of them play in the North Division, where they really, really like their goals.Wedged in at No. 4 is Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks, who it could be argued is putting together the most remarkable season of his career. And (checks notes...) that’s saying something. At the age of 32, the alpha dog on a young and...…September 13, 2022When you peruse the top five scorers in the NHL this season, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl occupy the top two spots. And, of course, they have each other. Occupying Nos. 3 and 5 are Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, who also have each other. And all four of them play in the North Division, where they really, really like their goals.Wedged in at No. 4 is Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks, who it could be argued is putting together the most remarkable season of his career. And (checks notes...) that’s saying something. At the age of 32, the alpha dog on a young and...WW…

September 13, 2022Since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, more than 260,000 people have died in North America. On Thursday, a mind-boggling 1,962 people died in the United States alone. That’s 1,962 families that lost a loved one. The job losses have been staggering. Businesses are closing and people are facing a fearful and uncertain future. Twelve million Americans – 12 million! – face the possibility of losing their pandemic unemployment benefits the day after Christmas. According to modeling charts prepared by the Public Health Agency, Canada could face a worst-case scenario of 60,000...…September 13, 2022Since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, more than 260,000 people have died in North America. On Thursday, a mind-boggling 1,962 people died in the United States alone. That’s 1,962 families that lost a loved one. The job losses have been staggering. Businesses are closing and people are facing a fearful and uncertain future. Twelve million Americans – 12 million! – face the possibility of losing their pandemic unemployment benefits the day after Christmas. According to modeling charts prepared by the Public Health Agency, Canada could face a worst-case scenario of 60,000...WW…

September 13, 2022One year ago today, Rogers Sportsnet fired Don Cherry over a rant that singled out immigrants for not honoring Canada’s fallen soldiers by buying poppies. Forget that Cherry had not one shred of tangible evidence to back up his claim, his rant about “you people that come here…you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey…these guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada,” was divisive and, at best xenophobic, at worst racist.Hockey Night in Canada, meanwhile, has survived. Ratings dropped slightly for a short time, not enough to alarm executives at...…September 13, 2022One year ago today, Rogers Sportsnet fired Don Cherry over a rant that singled out immigrants for not honoring Canada’s fallen soldiers by buying poppies. Forget that Cherry had not one shred of tangible evidence to back up his claim, his rant about “you people that come here…you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey…these guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada,” was divisive and, at best xenophobic, at worst racist.Hockey Night in Canada, meanwhile, has survived. Ratings dropped slightly for a short time, not enough to alarm executives at...WW…

September 13, 2022Back in 1968, Howie Meeker was in Montreal for a sporting goods convention when a chance meeting with Ted Darling, then the play-by-play man for a local television station, changed the landscape of hockey broadcasting forever. Darling took the liberty of booking Meeker as a between-periods guest analyst for the Montreal Canadiens game that Saturday night, unbeknownst to producer Ralph Mellanby, who had already booked legendary Montreal writer Red Fisher for the broadcast.Mellanby bumped Fisher for Meeker, who joined Dick Irvin in the studio that night, and a star was born....…September 13, 2022Back in 1968, Howie Meeker was in Montreal for a sporting goods convention when a chance meeting with Ted Darling, then the play-by-play man for a local television station, changed the landscape of hockey broadcasting forever. Darling took the liberty of booking Meeker as a between-periods guest analyst for the Montreal Canadiens game that Saturday night, unbeknownst to producer Ralph Mellanby, who had already booked legendary Montreal writer Red Fisher for the broadcast.Mellanby bumped Fisher for Meeker, who joined Dick Irvin in the studio that night, and a star was born....WW…

September 13, 2022If not for the small thatch of facial hair that became his signature, there’s a good chance the only Jeopardy! that would have been part of Alex Trebek’s television career was when Game 7 of a Stanley Cup playoff series went into overtime. And he would have spent his career talking about who won the Jennings Trophy instead of presiding over Ken Jennings and his 74 consecutive wins on the iconic game show.The year was 1971 and Hockey Night in Canada had just fired Ward Cornell and was looking for a younger and more dynamic replacement. The way former executive producer...…September 13, 2022If not for the small thatch of facial hair that became his signature, there’s a good chance the only Jeopardy! that would have been part of Alex Trebek’s television career was when Game 7 of a Stanley Cup playoff series went into overtime. And he would have spent his career talking about who won the Jennings Trophy instead of presiding over Ken Jennings and his 74 consecutive wins on the iconic game show.The year was 1971 and Hockey Night in Canada had just fired Ward Cornell and was looking for a younger and more dynamic replacement. The way former executive producer...WW…

September 13, 2022When it comes to the Mitch Miller saga – and I sincerely hope this is the last time I write about it – it’s important to note that there is, has been and always will be only one victim in all of this. And that is a young man by the name of Isaiah Meyer-Crothers. For him to endure what he did at the hands of Miller and another boy and come out the other side is remarkable.That being said, there have been a whole lot of people in the hockey world who failed Mitch Miller, the two most prominent being the Arizona Coyotes and the University of North Dakota, with USA Hockey...…September 13, 2022When it comes to the Mitch Miller saga – and I sincerely hope this is the last time I write about it – it’s important to note that there is, has been and always will be only one victim in all of this. And that is a young man by the name of Isaiah Meyer-Crothers. For him to endure what he did at the hands of Miller and another boy and come out the other side is remarkable.That being said, there have been a whole lot of people in the hockey world who failed Mitch Miller, the two most prominent being the Arizona Coyotes and the University of North Dakota, with USA Hockey...WW…

September 13, 2022The Quebec League, which recently convinced four provinces to change their employee standards laws to keep it from paying its players minimum wage, has its hand out again and is looking for millions of dollars in relief money from the Quebec government to cover the cost of playing next season in empty arenas. And the government is listening, but there’s a caveat. If junior hockey operators want the money, they’re going to have to do a better job of protecting the young players to whom they pay poverty wages by changing their fighting rules.According to the excellent...…September 13, 2022The Quebec League, which recently convinced four provinces to change their employee standards laws to keep it from paying its players minimum wage, has its hand out again and is looking for millions of dollars in relief money from the Quebec government to cover the cost of playing next season in empty arenas. And the government is listening, but there’s a caveat. If junior hockey operators want the money, they’re going to have to do a better job of protecting the young players to whom they pay poverty wages by changing their fighting rules.According to the excellent...WW…

September 13, 2022Over the past decade, you’ve probably come to realize that Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper doesn’t often struggle to find the right words. But on Thursday night, he did. He struggled with a lot of things, not the least of which were his emotions. Grief will do that to a person.And Jon Cooper is grieving. Heavily. So is one of his players, Lightning veteran Pat Maroon. That’s because they learned Thursday morning that the night before, just a few hours before Cooper’s triple fist pump celebrating Nikita Kucherov’s goal with 7.8 seconds remaining in Game 2 of the...…September 13, 2022Over the past decade, you’ve probably come to realize that Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper doesn’t often struggle to find the right words. But on Thursday night, he did. He struggled with a lot of things, not the least of which were his emotions. Grief will do that to a person.And Jon Cooper is grieving. Heavily. So is one of his players, Lightning veteran Pat Maroon. That’s because they learned Thursday morning that the night before, just a few hours before Cooper’s triple fist pump celebrating Nikita Kucherov’s goal with 7.8 seconds remaining in Game 2 of the...WW…