After my initial reaction to the forfeit news a few days back, I told myself to take a few days time out to clear my head and try and see the situation from a more unbiased view.

It’s hard doing that. Having been following the Blue Tongues since 2004, our hearts are heavily tied to this team and anything that happens deeply affects us at the most emotional levels.  As one of the players told me last season, my wife and I have followed this team longer than anybody in the stands, on the ice or in the management, it’s only natural we react so strong to thing that happen with the team.

People are unhappy with the league for calling last Sunday’s game a forfeit, I myself was one of them. But then I stopped and thought about the situation, did some research and came to the conclusion that we should be angry, but not at the AIHL, because at the end of the day, they made the right call for the situation.

As Oscar Wilde once said, “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”, and in the absence of truth, speculation and rumours will go crazy.  Over the last few days there has been a LOT of speculation on this issue.  The “truth” in this case lies closer to home.

You should be angry. You should be upset. In fact, you should probably be seeing red, but make sure that anger is directed at the right people. Be angry at the rink for not telling the team about the problem or trying to fix it. Be angry at the team for choosing to play from a rink that is clearly below standard. But don’t be angry at the AIHL for doing their job. You don’t need to agree with them, but if you’re a fan of any sport you should know that leagues the world over make calls we don’t agree with.

The fact is, each team in the league should have a responsibility to ensure their home ice is playable, and part of that is to ensure a healthy relationship between the team and rink owners for those teams who don’t have control of their rink. It’s the same in the NHL, AHL, ECHL and many other leagues around the world (from what I can tell). In our own league we have had teams forfeit in the past because of unplayable Ice. I have been told by a few different people over the last day or so that Melbourne forfeited a game a few years back for similar reasons.   If so, a precedent was set.

Clearly the owners of the G.C. Rink don’t care about their ice or the Blue Tongues. That much is evident by the way they didn’t bother to either tell the team of the issue or try to fix it. As we’ve been told by people at the rink earlier that day, the ice was that way all day long during public skate sessions. I would have thought that’s a major public liability issue. Simply put, a national level team should not be playing in a facility that is that unprofessional and mismanaged.

The Acacia Ridge Ice Rink in Brisbane

But the team choose to play there, even though there are 2 other rinks within an hour or so drive of the Gold Coast. The problem (at least for some) is they are both in Brisbane. Boondall, where the team played prior to 2008 and Acacia Ridge are both much better locations with better ice, stands and facilities.

So be angry and upset. Feel hurt at the decision, but please make sure your anger is not misdirected.

Just something to think about before posting (like I did) about how the AIHL made a mistake with the call.

Related posts:

1. Epic AIHL Fail
2. AIHL To Determine Blue Tongues Season
3. Adrenaline Champs, Off-Seasons & the AIHL Rumour Mill

NHL free agency exploded out of the gates yesterday with an incredible number of players changing teams.

The cream of the crop this season, Brad Richards finally chose which team he would play for today, signing a 9 year deal worth an alleged $60million dollars (approx), or $6.67 mil per year according to Bob Mckenzie of TSN.

The Rangers beat out the Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs and LA Kings for Richards, who spent the last few seasons with the Dallas Stars.

Details are of course available on TSN

Related posts:

1. Top 5 Hot and Not NHL Teams

Fighting is an oft discussed topic around the Australian Ice Hockey League and one which tends to bring out some pretty strong personalities. During a recent chat with a fellow hockey fan we were talking about the role that fighting has in this league, and more importantly, the value of import players who know how to drop the gloves.

Many Blue Tongues fans will remember the events of 2008, or maybe you’re trying to forget them. It was both a high and a low year for the Blue Tongues, which ended up being tainted by the on and off ice antics of a few import players. This isn’t about that team or those players, but they are key to this discussion.

Fighting has always played a big role in the sport of hockey. Whether it’s been used to change the flow of a game or send a message to the opposition, the sport has had both it’s heroes and villains in the area of fisticuffs. Rob Ray, Tie Domi, Bob Probert, the list goes on, these guys are thought of as gladiators of the ice.

And you know what… in the leagues they played in, they were. A fight in the NHL will get you 5 minutes in the penalty box. Sure there are rules about not fighting in the closing minutes of the game which is more severe but the fact is, a 5 minute major penalty is not nearly as bad as a 5 minute major and a 10 minute misconduct you’d get here.

The thing is, down here in Australia fighting is heavily frowned upon. We play by the IIHF rulebook (ie. international / Olympic rules) which clearly states the following:

528 – FISTICUFFS OR ROUGHING
a) A player who intentionally takes off his glove/s in a fight or altercation shall be
assessed a: Misconduct penalty (10’)
b) A player who starts fisticuffs shall be assessed a: Match penalty (MP)
c) A player who, having been struck, retaliates with a blow or attempted blow, shall
be assessed a: Minor penalty (2’)
d) Any player or goalkeeper who is the first to intervene in an altercation already in progress, shall be assessed in addition to any other penalties incurred in the incident a: Game Misconduct penalty (GM)
e) If a player, after he has been ordered by the Referee to stop, continues the
altercation, attempts to continue, or resists a Linesman in the discharge of his
duties, he shall be assessed, at the discretion of the Referee, a: Double Minor penalty (2’+2’) or Major penalty + Automatic Game Misconduct penalty (5’+GM) or Match penalty (MP)
f) A player or team official who is on or off the ice and is involved in an
altercation or fisticuffs with a player or team official off the playing surface,
he shall be assessed, at the discretion of the Referee, a: Misconduct penalty (10’) or Game Misconduct penalty (GM) or Match penalty (MP)
g) If a player is deemed guilty of unnecessary roughness, he shall be assessed, at
the discretion of the Referee, a: Minor penalty (2’) or Double Minor penalty (2’+2’) or Major penalty + Automatic Game Misconduct penalty (5’+GM)
h) A player who grabs or holds the face mask or helmet or pulls the hair of an opponent shall be assessed, at the discretion of the Referee, a: Minor penalty (2’) or Major penalty + Automatic Game Misconduct penalty (5’+GM)

Lots of rules just for dropping the gloves, and these are generally considered subjective depending on the type of fight and the reason for it. In fact a fight here in the AIHL is usually going to get you a 5 minute major, and any of the following:

• Misconduct (10min)
• Game Misconduct (20min + ejection)
• Match Penalty
• Instigator

In a game with 15 minute periods, a fight means you’re out for a third of the game… AT LEAST.

Goons Vs Enforcers

Due to the strict rules in the AIHL on this issue, one could offer up a fantastic reason why the limited and valuable import spots should not be wasted on players who could be considered “goons”.

A goon IMO is one of those guys who knows how to fight and likes to fight and tends to have lapses in self-control. Goons are often not team players, and will generally end up in the penalty box or out of the game because they can’t keep their emotions in check. This should not be confused with an enforcer, who can fight the same way, but know when and how it should be done for the betterment of the team.

This is where I want to bring up the difference between the 2008 and 2009 Blue Tongues. Last season we saw one of our import spots go to Bryan Lachance, a guy who averages low point numbers and high PIMs in almost every league he’s played in. This right here should have been a warning that he’s not going to work, but alas, out he came. In the 20 games he played with the Blue Tongues he managed to put up 33 points and 188 penalty minutes. For a top 2 import, he spent 10 minutes of every single game (average) in the penalty box. For Lachance, self-control was as foreign as damper rolls and kangaroo steaks. Gaetan Royer, although better, had much the same issues. Those who were around in 2008 know of the events, so no need to talk about them here.

The 2009 Blue Tongues is a different team. They have guys who can fight (Selander, Spillane, Howell, etc) but these guys know that playing hockey is a far better way to spend the game. They will drop the gloves, as is evident in the picture above, but they wont do it for the sake of fighting.

The Fans / Game Audience

The other major factor in fighting within the sport of hockey are the people sitting in the seats. As is the goal of the Blue Tongues, and most other teams here in Australia, we want non-hockey fans to start following the sport. Each game we see more and more people come to games who have never experienced ice hockey before. As fantastic as this is, it also means they don’t know the rules or the “game”. When it comes to fighting, the impact is both positive and negative. Last year we saw many people stop coming to games, especially those with children or families. In Australia, which is still considered a non-hockey market, we must ensure we appeal to the target audience, and that audience is not necessarily going to want to see guys punching each other.

The 2008 Tongues played hard, often dirty and penalised themselves out of playoff contention. The 2009 Tongues play fast, non-goon, end-to-end hockey while keeping a strong physical game and are second on the ladder.

Keep the gloves on, scoring goals, not punches, wins championships.

Related posts:

1. Refs, Rule Books and Fans
2. How Can That Happen?
3. Ice Cold: Fan Etiquette On The Road