Around the NHL 2024-2025

[Bluesnatic27]

I think Joel was wrong but I can understand the mindset of focusing on the task at hand. Would you want your coach to have a mindset of winning at all costs? In this case we found out you can take that too far? Win at most costs?

I think these guys push everything to the outside during the playoffs and they shouldn’t have pushed this situation? Was there a way to simultaneously play hockey and also properly handle a situation? Sure there was. But I bet a whole bunch of people told q to win at all costs along the way. Hard to program somebody to do something then delete them when they do it.

IMO, He served his time. Round 2 is acceptable. It’s okay to be wrong and be punished then recover.

If I were Betman I’d have required him to coach a year in the ahl to absorb some of the pr and also just to dig in the pain a little with all the bus rides and such.

Win at all costs crowd forgot the asterisk.

Usually this applies to making trades, or signings, or other matters relating to sport.

Win at all costs does not justify covering up a sexual assault case. Hockey is a game. Someone’s life should be valued more than winning a game.

 

[LogosBlue]

I'm alot late to this discussion and missed everything that was already discussed but if Kyle Beach was sexually assaulted by Aldrich then why didn't he just go straight to the police and file criminal charges immediately. Is Aldrich in jail for his actions?

 

[STL fan in MN]

I'm alot late to this discussion and missed everything that was already discussed but if Kyle Beach was sexually assaulted by Aldrich then why didn't he just go straight to the police and file criminal charges immediately. Is Aldrich in jail for his actions?

Beach did not go to the police. He’s apparently a straight dude that got coerced/blackmailed into being sexually assaulted by the video coach with the coach threatening to end his career. So he feared for his career and his reputation.

Since the Hawks covered it up and just let Aldrich go, Aldrich went on to coach college and HS hockey. He then assaulted a HS player in Michigan and was eventually convicted for it, serving a 9 month prison sentence. Yes, 9 months. And 5 years probation. There’s been rumors he did inappropriate things at Miami University too but he was never charged with anything. It’s not an illogical leap to suggest that if the Blackhawks hadn’t covered it up, Aldrich never would’ve had the opportunity to sexually assault the HS boy.

Last I heard, Aldrich is now running a glass etching business…with the help of college interns.
After jail for sex offence, former Blackhawks video coach uses interns to build business - TSN.ca

 

[Majorityof1]

I'm alot late to this discussion and missed everything that was already discussed but if Kyle Beach was sexually assaulted by Aldrich then why didn't he just go straight to the police and file criminal charges immediately. Is Aldrich in jail for his actions?

Cause the police have such a sterling track record of punishing sexual assault perpetrators? If you didn't want to have sex with a coach, but he threatened your career to coerce you to do so, are you really going to trust the police to punish him and protect your career?

Plus as Stl fan in MN said, the team was helping to cover it up. All his proof could have been covered up, and he would have feared the team coming down on him.

 

[Memento]

Beach did not go to the police. He’s apparently a straight dude that got coerced/blackmailed into being sexually assaulted by the video coach with the coach threatening to end his career. So he feared for his career and his reputation.

Since the Hawks covered it up and just let Aldrich go, Aldrich went on to coach college and HS hockey. He then assaulted a HS player in Michigan and was eventually convicted for it, serving a 9 month prison sentence. Yes, 9 months. And 5 years probation. There’s been rumors he did inappropriate things at Miami University too but he was never charged with anything. It’s not an illogical leap to suggest that if the Blackhawks hadn’t covered it up, Aldrich never would’ve had the opportunity to sexually assault the HS boy.

Last I heard, Aldrich is now running a glass etching business…with the help of college interns.
After jail for sex offence, former Blackhawks video coach uses interns to build business - TSN.ca

It's a lot worse than that. Aldrich got Beach drunk first and then pressured him into sex by threatening to bury him and his career. Apparently did the same thing with Black Ace #1 (who has not revealed himself) and sexually harassed a male intern, but it was not a secret to players and the coaches. Beach only came out with his story after it was revealed that Aldrich raped the HS player, blaming himself for it (which, of course, it's not his fault, and it still makes me angry that he apologized to the HS player, even though he absolutely didn't need to, while the others still haven't for giving Aldrich a glowing recommendation).

Quenneville, Bowman, and everyone who oversaw that travesty should've never had another job in hockey. Aldrich should still be in prison, let alone out and running a business where he can exploit more young men.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

It's a lot worse than that. Aldrich got Beach drunk first and then pressured him into sex by threatening to bury him and his career. Apparently did the same thing with Black Ace #1 (who has not revealed himself) and sexually harassed a male intern, but it was not a secret to players and the coaches. Beach only came out with his story after it was revealed that Aldrich raped the HS player, blaming himself for it (which, of course, it's not his fault, and it still makes me angry that he apologized to the HS player, even though he absolutely didn't need to, while the others still haven't for giving Aldrich a glowing recommendation).

Quenneville, Bowman, and everyone who oversaw that travesty should've never had another job in hockey. Aldrich should still be in prison, let alone out and running a business where he can exploit more young men.

Which tells you what?

 

[Xerloris]

Plus as Stl fan in MN said, the team was helping to cover it up. All his proof could have been covered up, and he would have feared the team coming down on him.

How did they cover it up? Did they hide evidence? Did they lie to police? Or did they just ignore it? One is not the same as the others.

 

[Robb_K]

This is the year the cup returns to Canada

Jets or Oilers ? Or dare I say..... ugggh..... The Maple Leafs.....?

 

[Mike Liut]

This is the year the cup returns to Canada

Dallas vs Florida in the finals

 

[Vladys Gumption]

How did they cover it up? Did they hide evidence? Did they lie to police? Or did they just ignore it? One is not the same as the others.

Are you serious? Failing to report is covering it up. You’re actually trying to defend an organization which wrote a letter of recommendation for a known (to the team) sexual predator so he could work in hockey again?

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Dallas vs Florida in the finals

I think Chief is going to get Toronto past Florida.

 

[Beninnola]

Dallas vs Florida in the finals

This is bettmans nightmare.

Owners are whining about the taxation disparity.

Putting 2 tax free teams in the finals after they’ve won or been runner up the last 5 would be a potential final nail in the coffin.

Conversely, if a single Canadian team sneaks in they may be able to point at it and kick the can on the issue.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

This is bettmans nightmare.

Owners are whining about the taxation disparity.

Putting 2 tax free teams in the finals after they’ve won or been runner up the last 5 would be a potential final nail in the coffin.

Conversely, if a single Canadian team sneaks in they may be able to point at it and kick the can on the issue.

Where are you seeing owners complaining about the salary cap? I’ve only ever seen it from posters.

 

[Beninnola]

Where are you seeing owners complaining about the salary cap? I’ve only ever seen it from posters.

when gms are saying things publicly I assume that means the owners have either told them to do so or are doing it themselves internally so often that it leaks out through the gm. I think if it were an issue the owners wanted to keep to themselves they would tell their gms not to comment on it.

Bill daly also gave public comments on it and that dude isn’t bringing stuff up unless it’s on a short list of stuff to bring up.

We’ve had comments on it publicly from the Sabres, flames…I can’t recall the handful of others but a few more, even Armstrong has brought it up, although he hasn’t been whining like some of the others. Doug has brought it up matter-of-fact-ly

If you google this issue you get basically all news sites reporting the imbalance last year. Hundreds of articles. One more year and it gets loud enough that a shift may be forced.

 

[MissouriMook]

If Edmonton blows this series against Vegas, their Game 3 may be a bigger story this playoff year than our Game 7 blowup. Giving up an own goal by one of your highest paid players with 0.4 seconds left to lose the game when you had a chance to get to OT and potentially take a 3-0 series lead? Ouch!

 

[TheOrganist]

Edmonton is such a flawed team. That would be a shame if they went on a run. Pretty undeserved. Glad Vegas came back. Bouchard finally overtook Fowler for pts by a D.

 

[The Note]

I’m hoping for a Leafs-Oilers SCF. But I always pull for the Leafs and it’s largely a fruitless endeavor. Florida can kick rocks.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

when gms are saying things publicly I assume that means the owners have either told them to do so or are doing it themselves internally so often that it leaks out through the gm. I think if it were an issue the owners wanted to keep to themselves they would tell their gms not to comment on it.

Bill daly also gave public comments on it and that dude isn’t bringing stuff up unless it’s on a short list of stuff to bring up.

We’ve had comments on it publicly from the Sabres, flames…I can’t recall the handful of others but a few more, even Armstrong has brought it up, although he hasn’t been whining like some of the others. Doug has brought it up matter-of-fact-ly

If you google this issue you get basically all news sites reporting the imbalance last year. Hundreds of articles. One more year and it gets loud enough that a shift may be forced.

So you’re extrapolating that some owners feel the salary cap is unfair? Or are these comments hints that they want to move their franchise to Houston? I am not sure the playoff teams this year provide much of an argument that local taxes correlate with competitive balance.

 

[Beninnola]

So you’re extrapolating that some owners feel the salary cap is unfair? Or are these comments hints that they want to move their franchise to Houston? I am not sure the playoff teams this year provide much of an argument that local taxes correlate with competitive balance.

I’d imagine there are owners who feel it is unfair and their perspective is that they have to pay more for the same free agent, but cannot choose to just spend more because the hard cap stops them. Fundamentally there is no counter strategy to this situation; the system is damaging them.

I’d imagine a few other owners don’t want a cap, others who think those people are going to ruin everything.

Probably a bunch of opinions in between.

The league is prescedent based. Now we’ve got splintered salary negotiations depending on taxation, teams who get all the free agents versus teams who get none, it’s bad, inefficient, and is just manufactured complication.

4 of the 6 no tax teams make the playoffs (of those who didn’t make it, 1 is an expansion and the other got every greedy free agent last year then they sucked), then the only one eliminated so far is because they had to play each other.

If next round consists of 3/4 no tax teams, then the final round consists of 2/2, on top of 4/5 last winners being from the group, the runner up the time it wasn’t….it just makes more headlines and bigger font

I believe there always will and should be imbalance. It’s okay for things to be uneven. The system has to be designed so it cannot tilt this far. The magnitude of the imbalance is strong imo. We’re now in the territory of “which no tax team will be the current dynasty”. Then the gm (Yz) of one of those dynasties goes to a real team and it’s absolutely ass.

 

[Stelmacki]

If Edmonton blows this series against Vegas, their Game 3 may be a bigger story this playoff year than our Game 7 blowup. Giving up an own goal by one of your highest paid players with 0.4 seconds left to lose the game when you had a chance to get to OT and potentially take a 3-0 series lead? Ouch!

Ours is still worse. Edmonton hasn’t knocked themselves out of the playoffs (yet) like we did.

 

[Robb_K]

Meanwhile, Dallas leads The Jets 2-1 in The 1st Period of today's game.

 

[Robb_K]

Winnipeg tired it up on a goal by Niederreiter. It's 2-2 at the end of 2 periods.

 

[AVictoryDive]

Man, Rantanen’s goal was sick. Definitely feeling it.

 

[The Note]

Obviously this isn’t fair or an apples to apples comparison, but Rantenen now has as many points in this playoffs as one of the players he was traded for (Jack Drury) had this entire season.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Obviously this isn’t fair or an apples to apples comparison, but Rantenen now has as many points in this playoffs as one of the players he was traded for (Jack Drury) had this entire season.

The whole Rants saga stinks. There’s a lot happening there that we will never know.