where they're from?I would love that. Those are the teams i am rooting to make it. Florida is just fun. Nothing to really hate about them.
Maybe the rats! That might grind on me. No issue with Sunrise/FLL.where they're from?
Ever know any addicts? Nuke was in, what, Phase 3? of the PA program. Like Kuzy, that’s not just some dumb recreational drug use. That’s a guy with a problem that can’t get sober. Imagine having all of what you listed on the line (money, teammates, Cups) and still not being able to control yourself b/c of the way your brain is wired.Wow Nicushkin failed a drug test. He f***ed the team last year and has done it again.
I find it weird when people say "I hope he gets the help he needs. Thoughts are with him".
Isn't there an alternative view, such as "What a selfish asshole. He has let his teammates down." Especially if this is a recreational drug thing.
When Kuzy got busted doing coke there was zero sympathy shown. People on HF Boards still make jokes about it.
These are very strange time we are living in.
One of my brothers was a heroin addict and was living on the streets in Canada. He managed to get clean and has been for years. I had a great deal of compassion for him at the time and I am proud of him for overcoming his addiction.Ever know any addicts? Nuke was in, what, Phase 3? of the PA program. Like Kuzy, that’s not just some dumb recreational drug use. That’s a guy with a problem that can’t get sober. Imagine having all of what you listed on the line (money, teammates, Cups) and still not being able to control yourself b/c of the way your brain is wired.
I do get where you’re coming from - the behavior itself shouldn’t make them out to be some courageous hero. But, it’s a really hard road to go for people dealing with it. Most relapse many, many times. So scorn and ridicule is like the least helpful thing for someone in recovery.
Thanks for sharing that. I’m really glad to hear he’s doing well.One of my brothers was a heroin addict and was living on the streets in Canada. He managed to get clean and has been for years. I had a great deal of compassion for him at the time and I am proud of him for overcoming his addiction.
What makes me less compassionate with regards to Nicushkin is the circumstances he found himself in back in April 2023, in a Seattle hotel room with an Eastern European prostitute who was so intoxicated an ambulance had to be called. Meanwhile Nicushkin's pregnant wife was back home in Denver. I think that's a shitty thing to do, and it makes it more difficult for me to feel bad for the guy.
But everybody has different levels of empathy / compassion etc. I am probably a bit more selective than most people, and for that reason this was probably a stupid thing for me to comment on.
Thanks re: my brother.Thanks for sharing that. I’m really glad to hear he’s doing well.
Yea that whole thing last year was extremely sketchy and it seemed like the powers that be did everything to cover it up. So, yea - he might be a bad guy, bad husband, and a prick as a teammate - we have no idea. I imagine the Avs will try to move on from him somehow.
Someone can be all those bad things, but one can still feel empathy if they have a disease that may kill them (plus hurt those closest to them in the process). To hope, if nothing else, that they get healthy. Even if only for the sake of his young family.
Anyways, I’m not trying to be a self-righteous internet blowhard telling others how to think. Like you said, everyone will have different reactions, and levels of compassion in these complicated situations.
I'm here for a Dallas/Florida checkfest.
Props to your brother. Once you’re that far down, that’s a really difficult hole to crawl out of.One of my brothers was a heroin addict and was living on the streets in Canada. He managed to get clean and has been for years. I had a great deal of compassion for him at the time and I am proud of him for overcoming his addiction.
What makes me less compassionate with regards to Nicushkin is the circumstances he found himself in back in April 2023, in a Seattle hotel room with an Eastern European prostitute who was so intoxicated an ambulance had to be called. Meanwhile Nicushkin's pregnant wife was back home in Denver. I think that's a shitty thing to do, and it makes it more difficult for me to feel bad for the guy.
But everybody has different levels of empathy / compassion etc. I am probably a bit more selective than most people, and for that reason this was probably a stupid thing for me to comment on.
Yeah came back from the brink. He was - by his own admission - lucky he got the chance (almost OD'ed). Made him realize the whole thing was insane and he needed to get his shit together.Props to your brother. Once you’re that far down, that’s a really difficult hole to crawl out of.
The personification of this meme.I’m sure Rod is totally confused at this point. Kuzy takes a lot of floater shifts, commits dumb and lazy penalties, and scores big goals at key times using his superior skill-set - the exact thing the Canes have lacked in prior years. He must be hearing 2 different voices in his bellowing with conviction - “you must play him” and “you can’t play him”.
So did NichuskinLeast Kuzy kept his shit together long enough to win the cup.
Don't know for certain, but I'd be 100% shocked if a team was allowed to terminate a guy who's in the program. If that's allowed, the NHLPA should just quit as a union.I hate hypocrisy.
Every time Kuzy was brought up in a trade thread with Colorado, the cocaine jokes and "We don't want that drama here" were rampant.
And now there's a whole lot of "Hope he gets the help needs, thoughts and prayers" coming out of Colorado.
If Nuke wants to continue playing in the NHL he needs to get his shit together. Yes, I know, easier said than done. But given his resources, for example ability to afford high end rehab clinics, he has a leg up.
Anyone know if the Avs are allowed to buy him out or terminate the contract for this, while he's suspended? (Buyout is unlikely, just based on the cap results from doing so.)
Does he still count as "in the program" if he violates its terms by failing a drug test?So did Nichuskin
Don't know for certain, but I'd be 100% shocked if a team was allowed to terminate a guy who's in the program. If that's allowed, the NHLPA should just quit as a union.
The release says he's been placed in level 3. Relapses are common so any drug program that kicks you out for relapsing isn't very well designed.Does he still count as "in the program" if he violates its terms by failing a drug test?
Fair enough. The Kings did manage to get out of Mike Richards' contract when he was caught with oxy though, so there's definitely a precedent for terminating over drug use. The NHLPA filed a grievance over it and the parties settled, with the termination going through and Mike getting about 2/3 of what he would've in a normal buyout. Maybe Mike refused the enter the program? I can't find any references to him being in it at any point.The release says he's been placed in level 3. Relapses are common so any drug program that kicks you out for relapsing isn't very well designed.
Was it that he was using or that he got caught moving it? Because I thought I remembered something about him being caught coming back in from Canada and that could technically be a different offense as far as termination goes.Fair enough. The Kings did manage to get out of Mike Richards' contract when he was caught with oxy though, so there's definitely a precedent for terminating over drug use. The NHLPA filed a grievance over it and the parties settled, with the termination going through and Mike getting about 2/3 of what he would've in a normal buyout. Maybe Mike refused the enter the program? I can't find any references to him being in it at any point.
Also, does a player need an active contract to be allowed in the program? If he could stay in after being terminated, that'd let the Avs do it without the backlash. I would really hope the program's available to guys who've already washed out of the league because of whatever they need help with.