That criticism didn't seem that harsh to me. He basically said Davidson was a good guy, but he didn't feel like Wison or Bill D were really into hockey. So they felt neglected down there.
You know the expression "do not bite the hand that feeds you"? I think this is more along those lines.
Tortella is a notorious hot head. He gets carried away and takes his anger out on his players, his bosses, the beat writers, you name it. He's a poor man's Mike Keenan IMO.
He also probably assumes that Bill Davidson does not use the internet and that he has no friends that will relay his rude quotes.
Davidson incurred a 70 million loss over the last several seasons. Seems like Davidson should have ripped the coach.
Hockey doesn't sell in the south. First you don't have the tradition, and two, a lot of those teams are expansion franchises. Tough to build a ticket base with a diluted talent pool and poor finishes in the formative years of the franchise.
I don't believe you can sell Hockey consistently in warm weather climates. The kids don't grow up playing it, and with the advent now of satellite television and the internet, being a long distance fan of a league that doesn't exist in your city or state gets easier and easier. Hockey is a niche sport. Like Nascar. I wish the boneheads at the League Office would show some humility, recognize it for what it is, and play to those strengths (like Nascar). Maybe they could partner with Nascar and offer a northern circuit with bobsleds, and Nascar could make their southern drivers wear Dominik Hasek masks when they drive.
What kind of moron complains about his bosses' bosses to the media? Anywhere in the world, this gets you fired. LB would have been canned before such words had time to leave his mouth.
Always believed the NHL shoulda been limited to about 12-15 teams. Included would be Canada, The Northeastern United States, St. Louis, and <Denver>
I'd love to see something like this: EAST Group 1 Boston Buffalo New Jersey NY Islanders NY Rangers Group 2 Montreal Philadelphia Pittsburgh Quebec Washington WEST Group 1 Chicago Detroit Minnesota Ottawa Toronto Group 2 Calgary Edmonton St. Louis Vancouver Winnipeg 8 games against the teams in your group - 32 games 6 games against the teams in your division - 20 games 2 games against the team in other division - 20 games Total - 72 games Problem is when we come to the playoffs. If we to have 16 teams make it to the post season, it renders the regular season practically useless since only 1 team out of the group won't make it. Cutting down to 8 teams will make for the more competitive regular season, but will shorten the playoffs.
You really thought this one out................looks good. Have a playoff with 12 teams. The division winners get a first round Bye. Teams would play hard for that................
You'd have to make the first round the best-of-3, otherwise the break for the winners would be too great. It could be best-of-5, but it would be stretching it. Even if you start playoffs with 1-day break after the regular season, the division winner could be sitting for 10 days if the series goes all 5.
