Chris Pronger

[Sandpiper3]

Oh, dont get me wrong, finishing checks is the key, and watching it now, the best teams are doing it (ie- ducks last year, beat teams with their physical play).

I think the obstruction and the watchamacallit (player cant defend other players, cant remember wat its called) rules are messing up the game. Theyre too finicky about penalties now... Although the game is still great.

I cant stop getting annoyed with the league's obsession with trying to get more goals... If they make the nets bigger im going to have a spaz attack.

[JEFF4i]

Can we get video of that?

Some nerdy canadian spazzing, drooling, and mumbling about bigger goals.

[DVS]

Originally Posted by VtDivot

The hit he was suspended for in the Cup Final was an open ice hit, harmless,

it gave the guy a concussion....thats hardly "harmless".

[DVS]

Originally Posted by King Par

From my standpoint, pre-lock out hockey was phenomenal.

By pre-lockout, if you mean the 80s and maybe early 90s, sure....but if you mean the seasons just before the lockout, then i disagree.

hooking, holding, interference, clutcing, grabbing etc. How can that be "phenomenal" ? Totally sucked the life out of the game.

There is a difference between hard hitting (which is fun and exciting to watch) and surfing in tow by hooking on to the guy's jock strap.

pre-lockout was great for talentless players.....but now players have to be able to skate and keep up. Hitting has not gone away, its still there, and Id say it even more so there since now forecheckers arent hindered when going in for the check....and they have more speed going into it.

You look at a guy like Darian Hatcher....before the lockout, he was a "standout" defenseman because even though he was big and slow, he could hook and hold hold on to forwards. But what happened with the crack down? A speedy team like Buffalo made him look like a minor league player as they skated circles around him in the playoffs two years ago. The reason why Pronger, Neidermayer, Lidstroom etc are still elite defensemen now is because they can skate and have managed to adapt to the "new NHL".

[Sandpiper3]

Well said DVS. I like how there isnt the clutching and grabbing anymore, but still hard hitting, you see all the winning teams already this season have outworked the other team along the boards.

I for one miss the hockey of the mid 90s. That was great hockey. I remember being glued to the TV with my friend and dad watching every minute when I was young.

[King Par]

Sorry for the late response, haven't been around much as of late.

DVS, I said "from my standpoint"...reason being - I love physical hockey. You are over exaggerating the hooking as hooking was a penalty then, just like it is now. Today's hockey is alright, but I prefer hockey between 2000-2003. I caught an older game of the Devils...playoffs in 2002, I loved every minute of it. Everyone was finishing their checks, small players couldn't skate around everyone, otherwise they'd be on their ass in a second.