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Post by SuperMouse on Feb 8, 2005 18:34:45 GMT 1
I only know those from this season so yeah bare with me,
Jody Lehman
Steve Carpenter(I know hes not this season but i'm totally biased as he always speaks to me when I see him in school)
Chris McNamara
Andre Payette
Russ Cowley
I so could have had a longer list but meh...
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Post by Dave on Feb 8, 2005 19:03:24 GMT 1
actually carpo, I'd like to correct you. Neal Martin never had an NHL shot because one of his coaches when he was a rookie advised him he'd never make it to the NHL because of his size. He said, if he was bigger he'd make it as he is an awesome player, just not good enough to be his size and still make it- fact knowledge is the bomb!  |
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Post by JP on Feb 8, 2005 20:36:30 GMT 1
actually carpo, I'd like to correct you. Neal Martin never had an NHL shot because one of his coaches when he was a rookie advised him he'd never make it to the NHL because of his size. He said, if he was bigger he'd make it as he is an awesome player, just not good enough to be his size and still make it- fact knowledge is the bomb! Why would it matter how big he is when he's an amazing player? I found that hard to believe if it is true  |
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Post by Claret & Blue Army on Feb 8, 2005 21:12:46 GMT 1
I find it hard to believe someones talent would be overlooked purely because of their size
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Post by King Rich on Feb 9, 2005 11:16:34 GMT 1
I find it hard to believe someones talent would be overlooked purely because of their size What about Paul London? |
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SallyMahers
Wow, I Can Post
Anyone for a puck in the burgoynes? That's got to hurt!
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Post by SallyMahers on Feb 9, 2005 11:27:02 GMT 1
actually carpo, I'd like to correct you. Neal Martin never had an NHL shot because one of his coaches when he was a rookie advised him he'd never make it to the NHL because of his size. He said, if he was bigger he'd make it as he is an awesome player, just not good enough to be his size and still make it- fact knowledge is the bomb! I think you'll find that's right, size does matter in the NHL apparently! |
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Carpo
Post-Happy
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Post by Carpo on Feb 9, 2005 11:38:17 GMT 1
actually carpo, I'd like to correct you. Neal Martin never had an NHL shot because one of his coaches when he was a rookie advised him he'd never make it to the NHL because of his size. He said, if he was bigger he'd make it as he is an awesome player, just not good enough to be his size and still make it- fact knowledge is the bomb! It's a fair point that Martin is small for an NHL d'man, but what i've said is accurate as well he did suffer a back injury in his career. Put it like this. Why do you think Martin plays in Europe and not the AHL? It's got nothing to do with size. It's just that he's not going to get bashed around as much in the DEL/EIHL and therefore the chance of injury is less. |
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Post by Dave on Feb 9, 2005 12:13:09 GMT 1
You probably have a point, plus the fact that in the DEL he was on a very nice deal.
Just to be as small as Neal Martin is, to make it in the NHL, you'd have to be literally exceptional. I mean, we all agree that Neal Martin is an awesome player, possibly the best in the EIHL, however in comparison to the NHL, he with his ability would probably make it as just about a 5th d-man and these slots are often covered by tough cookie's, who when on the ice are very unlikely to conceed. Players that won't let the opposition forward's power to the net.
It is a FACT that Neal Martin was advised by a former north american coach that he should go to Europe and make some money, and he got him in touch with Chris McSorley the current GB coach. He was at the time the coach of the London Knights and he signed a two year deal with the Knights. However after one awesome year with the Knight's top European sides were knocking on his door, and McSorley accepted that it was in the players interest to make some REAL good money in Europe.
However as for the less physical idea, I'd like to remind you that in the Superleague days, when Martin first joined Europe the Superleague was probably nearly as physical as the AHL etc, due to teams prefering the North American style even more than they do now (gets bums in the seats). With the likes of Gosselin, Schulte, Ware, Wood, Clarke all in the superleague at this time, it would be no easy ride, especially as the better the player the bigger the target for the tough guys of each team.
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Carpo
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Post by Carpo on Feb 9, 2005 13:13:06 GMT 1
You probably have a point, plus the fact that in the DEL he was on a very nice deal. Just to be as small as Neal Martin is, to make it in the NHL, you'd have to be literally exceptional. I mean, we all agree that Neal Martin is an awesome player, possibly the best in the EIHL, however in comparison to the NHL, he with his ability would probably make it as just about a 5th d-man and these slots are often covered by tough cookie's, who when on the ice are very unlikely to conceed. Players that won't let the opposition forward's power to the net. It is a FACT that Neal Martin was advised by a former north american coach that he should go to Europe and make some money, and he got him in touch with Chris McSorley the current GB coach. He was at the time the coach of the London Knights and he signed a two year deal with the Knights. However after one awesome year with the Knight's top European sides were knocking on his door, and McSorley accepted that it was in the players interest to make some REAL good money in Europe. However as for the less physical idea, I'd like to remind you that in the Superleague days, when Martin first joined Europe the Superleague was probably nearly as physical as the AHL etc, due to teams prefering the North American style even more than they do now (gets bums in the seats). With the likes of Gosselin, Schulte, Ware, Wood, Clarke all in the superleague at this time, it would be no easy ride, especially as the better the player the bigger the target for the tough guys of each team. PbP: Very nice deal in the DEL without a doubt. I'll conceed your point about having to be exceptional at 5'10" to make it in TODAY's NHL. (if it was actually playing of course, but let's forget that for a moment). To be honest that a player like Martin cannot make it to the show, probably shows one of the major problems with the hockey in the NHL. There's nothing fun about watching two teams both play a trap against each other, whether it's NHL or Under 10 and it's something that i think the league should look at because when hockey is attacking it an amazing game. When you have two teams defend perminatly, it can be one of the most boring games known to man. The NHL has got to take a stance and allow the skill players to play. There's nothing wrong with having enforcers, but as you rightly point out the 3rd d pairing and i'd say the 4th forward line, at NHL level is turning into a bit of a joke, players without the skill playing at that level just because they are big, can skate well and can clutch and grab. I've kinda got offtopic here so moving back on... Yep, coming to europe is was a perfect move for Martin, but i belive i've covered that before. Two points about the ISL. 1) Bums on seats. Every single season in the ISL, the attendances dropped across the board by about 5-6% with the exception of the seasons when Belfast came on board (which with 7,000 sellouts every week propped the league up) and when Nottingham 'moved' into the NIC from the Ice Stadium. Like it or not the highest attedances in hockey was in the HPL which was three-import. And no where as near as physical as the ISL. 2) I've watched a fair bit of ISL hockey and while there's no doubt about it that was more physical than EIHL hockey, i don't accept the comparison with the AHL. The ISL was never as good as the AHL and would have never been able to cope against an AHL side playing at full strength. ECHL maybe, but there's a reason why AHL is AAA and ECHL is AA Finally, while Martin was at London, your spot it it was an excellent side, but also it was a side where any player like Martin had an enourmous amount of protection with Knights having a couple of bona fide tough guys in their team at that time. |
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Post by Bruinsnut22 on Feb 9, 2005 13:45:50 GMT 1
1 Craig Chapman for sure ! 2 frenchie. 3 Dumas. 4 Pally as a Solihull Blaze ! 5 Ruggs  |
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Post by Claret & Blue Army on Feb 9, 2005 15:25:46 GMT 1
What about Paul London? What team does he play for? |
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Post by Dave on Feb 10, 2005 21:45:28 GMT 1
nice posting carpo.
i agree about your comment on that the NHL needs to help less physical, but more skilled players such as neal martin progress, even if it is only as a 3rd line d-man, surely faster flowing hockey would make better viewing.
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Post by Claret & Blue Army on Feb 10, 2005 21:56:55 GMT 1
Surely any viewing at the moment as far as the NHL goes |
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Carpo
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Post by Carpo on Feb 11, 2005 9:28:15 GMT 1
Surely any viewing at the moment as far as the NHL goes Couldn't agree more, but often a stoppage can be a great chance to push for change in the whole product, not in just how much players are getting paid. |
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Post by Claret & Blue Army on Feb 11, 2005 17:51:47 GMT 1
It would be nice to thing the common ground will be the utopia we all dream of, but I have a feeling that once the lock out is over it will go back to exactly the way it was prior. In these days sports are governed by a win-at-all-costs mentality on the whole
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