Is it too hard to play in Canada?

[GIN ANTONIC]

I think it's a top down problem for the most part. Ownership groups in Canada run their organizations more as old boys club it would seem. Not that the rest of the league is terribly open to new ideas and fresh faces but you see it a lot more often. It feels like for most Canadian teams the hires for President of Hockey Ops, then GM, AGM and Head coach have to be more of a name brand because they are selling to fans and media that are going to be more critical so nothing can be too outside of the box. Dubas is probably one of the only outliers here and well, he was an idiot in disguise.

The other issue I see is an accountability self preservation thing. Coaches, GMs, get far too much rope when they underperform because firing them would be an indictment on the boss who hired them. There's no good reason why Shanahan should still have a job. Rutherford is a complete merchant of chaos.

Basically for the most part I think it's dumb people making dumb decisions.

 

[MrHeiskanen]

how come the only good teams are in the Sun Belt then?

Did you post this when Pittsburgh, Chicago, Boston etc. were winning Cup after Cup?

 

[KeyserSoze81]

The salary cap should be higher for the highest revenue teams even if its just a little bit. But I am not an owner and didn't sign up for this nonsense.

Were you not around for the late 90s/early 00s no cap garbage and the fun lockouts? Why would anyone want to sign up for that again, other than maybe the modern Bobby Holik?

The current structure allows any well managed team the ability to compete. There is cost certainty with player contracts. If the wealthier teams and owners want to get an advantage, pay for better management. Expand scouting departments.

Stop proposing terrible half-measures. There are already weird discrepancies with variable income tax rates. As far as the owners, they are too busy collecting expansion fees to give a damn about salary cap advantages.

 

[IWantSakicAsMyGM]

Did you even look at these trades before you posted?

Tkachuk was traded for:
- Weegar (1D and former 7th Rounder)
- Huberdeau (Elite Winger and former 3rd OA)
- Schwindt (Former 4th Rounder)
- First Rounder

Jones was traded for:
- Knight (Backup Goalie and former 10th OA)
- First Rounder

Reinhart was traded for:
- First Rounder

Bennett was trade for:
- Heineman (Former 2nd Rounder)
- 2nd Rounder

I did, and you're missing Florida's former 7th round pick Devon Levi from the Reinhart return.

And my point is that if they didn't suck enough to draft Huberdeau with the 3OA pick in the first place, they most likely don't have the assets to pull off the Tkachuk trade. Same with if they don't get lucky and end up with Weegar with a 7th round pick. Therefore, to me, the draft is where they got the assets to get Tkachuk. They didn't tempt a UFA to sign in Florida for the great weather and no state income tax, they drafted guys who they traded for what they needed.

 

[Turin]

No, unless hockey players are the most bitch made athletes in the world.

 

[LeafGrief]

I could also run through the risks I've taken, adversity I've faced, tragedies, disappointments, and all that.
Still, the most difficult, demotivating thing in my life BY FAR, has always been dealing with annoying, unpleasant people who are always wrong and make my job/life more stressful than it should be.

Honestly man, if you find your prick of a coworker is harder to deal with than mom's cancer... Maybe caring less about what other people think or say would be really healthy for you.

 

[KirkAlbuquerque]

Did you post this when Pittsburgh, Chicago, Boston etc. were winning Cup after Cup?

stop living in the past.

Its been nearly a decade since Pittsburgh won. Longer for the others.

Sunbelt is the new meta.

 

[KrisLetAngry]

No.

Did Tom Brady wilt under the pressure?
How about LeBron James in Miami or LA?

If it's too hard in Canada for NHL players then they are not as tough as we think

 

[MrHeiskanen]

stop living in the past.

Its been nearly a decade since Pittsburgh won. Longer for the others.

Sunbelt is the new meta.

It's not about living in the past, it's about understanding that teams are usually cyclical in terms of winning and that has nothing to do with location, taxes, or whatever nonsense Canadian fans constantly throw around.

Dallas, Florida, Tampa were all ass at different points in time not that long ago.

 

[lettuceAA]

It's not "harder" except for maybe Toronto and Montreal where the media is ruthless but I think people put too much stock into that mattering. USA is just a better place live, especially if you are a millionaire professional athlete. How many American players who play in Canada, retire and stay in Canada? How many Canadians that play in the US retire and stay in US?

 

[Cleatus]

No, unless hockey players are the most bitch made athletes in the world.

Wouldn't say they're bitch-made, but most hockey players seem to be alot different than other pro sport athletes, in that they prefer being out of the spotlight, and wanna avoid all the BS that comes with it.

And even though most of them are Canadian, they prefer American cities for various reasons.

 

[The Macho King]

Soft. Baseball players somehow function on the Yankees. Basketball players function on the Lakers. Football players can handle pressure in Dall... okay that one is a bad example.

 

[Brookbank]

Were you not around for the late 90s/early 00s no cap garbage and the fun lockouts? Why would anyone want to sign up for that again, other than maybe the modern Bobby Holik?

The current structure allows any well managed team the ability to compete. There is cost certainty with player contracts. If the wealthier teams and owners want to get an advantage, pay for better management. Expand scouting departments.

Stop proposing terrible half-measures. There are already weird discrepancies with variable income tax rates. As far as the owners, they are too busy collecting expansion fees to give a damn about salary cap advantages.

Who said we had to go back to no cap ? The highest revenue teams should get even just a 5% leg up on the teams that lose money. Keep it small but make it something.

Real hockey fans in Canada shouldn't be completely subsidizing country clubs in the state of Florida who happen to have hockey teams. There was probably less revenue sharing in the Soviet league.

 

[Colezuki]

In the last 15 years or so,

Jets - have gone to the third round
Van - has gotten to the finals game 7 in the early 2010’s and had multiple high end seasons after that
Ott - conference finals in 2017 before a rebuild
Mtl - has been to the 3rd round twice I believe, and a cup finals
Edm - currently in a peak, multiple deep runs last few years
Calgary - up and down
Toronto - enough said

One team has consistently been Dogshit at doing anything come playoff time for the last decade and rather than own up to it they’re now trying to say “its a Canada problem”

 

[Saga of the Elk]

Seems like many guys actually want to play in Toronto and Montreal, and be part of the legend-making that would accompany a Cup win.

For the Leafs, they have suffered idiotic management decisions like hiring incompetent people like Dubas when they had a chance to build an amazing winning team. For Montreal, it's been a slow build but signs are bright.

Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, and Vancouver have all won Cups or made finals in recent years, and Winnipeg won the President's trophy this very season while being one of the least desirable cities to play in for most guys.

Just don't think it's a matter of external factors, so much as it is the internal makeup of certain players.

 

[Turin]

Wouldn't say they're bitch-made, but most hockey players seem to be alot different than other pro sport athletes, in that they prefer being out of the spotlight, and wanna avoid all the BS that comes with it.

And even though most of them are Canadian, they prefer American cities for various reasons.

I understand the appeal but if it becomes a deal breaker then they should ask for lower salaries because fan interest is the only reason they’re rich.

 

[Hull2Roenick2Kane]

No.

Did Tom Brady wilt under the pressure?
How about LeBron James in Miami or LA?

If it's too hard in Canada for NHL players then they are not as tough as we think

Yes, Yes, and Yes.

The people you are looking for is Michael Jordan and Joe Montana.

 

[Brookbank]

Wouldn't say they're bitch-made, but most hockey players seem to be alot different than other pro sport athletes, in that they prefer being out of the spotlight, and wanna avoid all the BS that comes with it.

And even though most of them are Canadian, they prefer American cities for various reasons.

North America is unique in that hockey is the national sport for 7 teams and a small counterculture in the rest of the cities except maybe Minnesota.

The Premier league players probably wouldn't be different if 7 teams were in England and the rest were in the US. And the money you could make was the same. You have the option of playing in Florida where nobody bothers you or playing in rainy England where you the center of attention.

Or if there were NFL teams in Spain. And players could make the same money living in the Spanish Riviera as they did playing in New England.

These other players would probably be worse

 

[BeranekAndNeck]

If you have the mental fortitude of a digestive cookie left in a glass of water for three days, then yes absolutely it’d be tough. Why the Leafs actively chose to build around four such personalities is a mystery to one and all.

 

[eojsmada]

Like Berube said...it's in between the ears for the Leafs players. Montreal didn't succumb to the "market" when they went to the Cup final a couple of years ago....they embraced it. Same with Edmonton. The issue is a matter of personalities and team makeup. Sometimes (probably most of the time) the problem is with management and not the players.

 

[kerrabria]

Honestly man, if you find your prick of a coworker is harder to deal with than mom's cancer... Maybe caring less about what other people think or say would be really healthy for you.

Spoken like somebody who is more irritating than cancer.

 

[Melrose Munch]

It's not about living in the past, it's about understanding that teams are usually cyclical in terms of winning and that has nothing to do with location, taxes, or whatever nonsense Canadian fans constantly throw around.

Dallas, Florida, Tampa were all ass at different points in time not that long ago.

Dallas was winning a lot in the 90s, they do not belong on this list.

 

[RedHawkDown]

What is this supposed to mean ? The pressure in Toronto or Vancouver is the same as it is for Manchester United or the Dallas Cowboys.

It’s not even close lol. Nobody cares about hockey nearly as much as European football fans care about their sports. Hockey isn’t even the dominant sport in toronto anymore…

 

[Melrose Munch]

Were you not around for the late 90s/early 00s no cap garbage and the fun lockouts? Why would anyone want to sign up for that again, other than maybe the modern Bobby Holik?

The current structure allows any well managed team the ability to compete. There is cost certainty with player contracts. If the wealthier teams and owners want to get an advantage, pay for better management. Expand scouting departments.

Stop proposing terrible half-measures. There are already weird discrepancies with variable income tax rates. As far as the owners, they are too busy collecting expansion fees to give a damn about salary cap advantages.

Funny, other than the play on ice, most fans liked that era (especially big-market teams). Reality is, cap or no cap, some teams will never have the ability to get UFAs.

 

[Melrose Munch]

In the last 15 years or so,

Jets - have gone to the third round
Van - has gotten to the finals game 7 in the early 2010’s and had multiple high end seasons after that
Ott - conference finals in 2017 before a rebuild
Mtl - has been to the 3rd round twice I believe, and a cup finals
Edm - currently in a peak, multiple deep runs last few years
Calgary - up and down
Toronto - enough said

One team has consistently been Dogshit at doing anything come playoff time for the last decade and rather than own up to it they’re now trying to say “its a Canada problem”

Ok but

Jets - locker room issues and a lull between Ladd era/Scheifele era
Van - Blew a rebuild and then are looking to blow another one
Ott - real bad for almost 10 years now
Mtl - worst media and have not had a 100 point player in forever
Edm - we'll see. Next year is make or break, not this year
Calgary - never actually replaced Iginla and Regehr and it shows.
Toronto - agreed, sadly.