Here you have a intervju with former Rangerplayer and Stanley Cup winner A.Kovalev
He sais that NHL has changed and becomed boring.
Its from Sweedish tv, but al the talk with Kovalev is in english. http://svtplay.se/v/2599660/kovalev_...akigare_an_khl
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"Trust me I'm an expert, I watched 13 rangers games on NHL center Ice this year through streaming." -Starburst
"I don't even understand what the point of all this arguing is. Are you guys hoping that the other side is going to have an epiphany and go 'Oh, OH! You're right, we ARE going to lose this series!'" -Crease
It was all a downhill bore after Keenan gave him the Endless Shift.
That 6 minute shift... he thought Keenan was rewarding him, not teaching him a lesson. Totally backfired.
He kept on taking 2 minute shifts on a regular basis like he did before this Keenan incident. It took him years to figure out that NHLers don't do 2 minute shifts every time they go on the ice.
He's not completely right. Sounds like back checking and good defensive positioning are boring to him. I'm also sure he meant "boring compared to the KHL" and not the NHL is boring as the thread title would suggest.
It is boring compared to when Kovalev entered the league. It has become a league that focuses less on great and creative players than defensive systems.
It is boring compared to when Kovalev entered the league. It has become a league that focuses less on great and creative players than defensive systems.
It hasn't been that since the Debbies ruined creativity beginning in 1995. Their success was bad for the league.
I remember when Steve Larmer retired in 1995, he mentioned that hockey got boring and wasn't fun anymore.
Over the years, I always wondered how the 1995-96 season would have went had he stayed. The one thing we were missing that year (where we spent weeks on end during the winter leading the league in points) was two-way veteran presence on the second or third line.
That's why we gave up so much to get Kurri, who was washed up by then.
If Larmer stayed, I really think there's a good chance we'd have won the Cup that year, especially if Robitaille didn't have his two worst seasons in Ranger uniform, but even with Robitaille struggling, I still say we could have won it all with Larmer still in the lineup.
Haven't listened to the interview, but do agree that the NHL is much more boring than before the latest round of expansion started (with San Jose). It's all a chess match now, with defensive systems and players grinding it out. Plus, given the increase in the size of the players, the ice surface seems smaller every year. And with expansion, there are a lot more players with less talent playing more minutes.
I agree with Kovalev. Bettman has wussified the game. from the hooking calls when the hand is just tapped to the instigator penalty. Lucic took liberties on Miller last week because he knew no one was going to jump him. this is one of the reasons why there are more head injuries because players dont care because they know they wont pay a price.take away the instigator penalty and let the players police themselves and you will see alot less cheap shots.
I agree with Kovalev. Bettman has wussified the game. from the hooking calls when the hand is just tapped to the instigator penalty. Lucic took liberties on Miller last week because he knew no one was going to jump him. this is one of the reasons why there are more head injuries because players dont care because they know they wont pay a price.take away the instigator penalty and let the players police themselves and you will see alot less cheap shots.
I'm pretty sure the instigator penalty was enacted before Bettman. And in any case, Bettman is just the mouth piece for the owners (and their Presidents/GMs)--he's just following what his masters tell him.
I don't know what he means by boring. Does he mean there's not enough scoring? Not enough hitting? Not enough bad blood or rivalries between the teams?
I'll tell you though, there are a couple of factors that certainly aren't helping the "entertainment" factor.
1. Crosby being out indefinitely and Malkin being in and out of the lineup with injuries. Those are two top 5 scorers we're missing out on.
2. Ovechkin not being the dominant and electrifying player he was the first couple of seasons.
