let's get this out of the way first.
All Star Games are not for me.
and while it sounds like this year's All Star Weekend was way way better than in recent years, that doesn't sway me at all. It's still exhibition hockey; but at least they found a way to get players to try.
The ASG is mostly good for two things; marketing the game to little kids and giving about 40-50 players Atta Boys.
So the big story this year was John Scott, for a weekend, became the king of hockey. I read his Player's Tribune article and it turned me around about his playing. I went from indifferent to glad he suited up. And he did nothing to disappoint! Scoring 2 goals, winning the 3v3 tourney and the ASG MVP!
Now I happen to think this was his last NHL game. Not because he's black balled, but because there's really no market for 33 year old enforcers.
It got me thinking. Like I said, the ASG is great for giving Atta Boys. Why can't John Scott be the standard bearer for a new type of All Star? How about a well respected veteran player always makes the team?
One of my favorite players to never wear the Blue Note is Stephane Yelle.
Stephane Yelle was a checking forward, almost always on the 4th line and rarely above the 3rd. His best offensive season was 13 goals and 14 assists. He finished with less than 100 career goals and 300 points.
But the thing is, I think he was a great player.
He played fast, he played smart and he was an integral part to Colorado's two Stanley Cup wins. Was he more important than Sakic or Forsberg? Of course not. But he anchored their penalty kill and shut down the opponents forwards.
Stephane Yelle is not going to the Hall of Fame, never played in an All Star Game. But maybe on the home stretch of his career he deserved an Atta Boy.
So NHL, I know you're going to change the All Star voting so this write in campaign won't happen again. But please consider giving David Legwand, Jay McClement, Michal Rozsival, Francois Beauchemin, Greg Campbell, Johnny Oduya, Willie Mitchell, Mike Fisher, Barret Jackman, Chris Phillips, Matt Cullen, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, or Dan Hamhuis an Atta Boy for long, productive careers.
Why did you put Chris Phillips last on that list?
ReplyDeletehe's not last. he's 4th to last.
DeleteAlso, I'm pretty sure the NHL will try to bottle what it was that happened here, but I'm also pretty sure they could never do that. ESPECIALLY the NHL that tried to squash this whole thing to begin with.
ReplyDeleteScott Pellerin! Craig Conroy! Adam Creighton (ok maybe I am getting carried away with that one)!
ReplyDeleteThey could totally add a guy like this though. Guys like Craig Adams or Mike Sillinger who played their guts out for a lot of years and never even approached a total career earnings of that a guy like Patrick Kane makes in a year.
Jagr made the comment that the difference between the top player in the league and the bottom player in the league is a small difference, smaller than it was in the past. Scott's smart plays in the ASG showed that--he checked, he stopped play so people go get a change, he protected the puck on his breakaway, her went to the scoring areas...he is a high quality player. But compared with the other high quality players there, he would always come up short. To your point, Darren, the Vote for Rory campaign was to me a vote from the fans to reward the qualities THEY admire: hard work and perserverance, and dedication to the game. I definitely think they deserve an atta boy.
ReplyDelete