NHL Insider

September 9, 2008

Winter Classic ’09… Kontinental Hockey League… Coaching Carousel

Gray Skies, icy cold temperatures and snow didn’t stop well over 70,000 fans pack the outdoor elements at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, New York for the first NHL Winter Classic last New Year’s Day.

The success of the event for the businesses in and around the city of Orchard Park, New York provided the NHL with plenty of ammunition to make this event an annual one.  With that, after many months the NHL on July 22^nd announced that there would be a Winter Classic II to be held at Wrigley Stadium in Chicago.

Many NHL teams in the United States and Canada wanted the opportunity to host a second classic.  There was speculation of the game being awarded to an “Original Six” (Montreal, Toronto, Boston, New York Rangers, Detroit and Chicago) team, there was speculation that cities vying for a potential NHL franchise (Kansas City, Portland) wanted the chance… One of the biggest rumors was the event as the final venue for Yankee Stadium.

It seemed Yankee Stadium was the front runner early on.  There would be no outside interference as the baseball season was long completed; football was no longer played in the Stadium, George Steinbrenner and the Yankees gave their blessings and along with the Rangers felt that having the event played in the No. 1 media market would be just what the NHL, Manhattan and the surrounding South Bronx area needed.

Yankee fans, some baseball purists and even die-hard Ranger fans didn’t care what the event would bring to the area.  They all felt that the last event to be held at the Stadium should be baseball and the Yankees… “They opened it, they should close it.”

Wrigley Field will play host to the 2009 NHL Winter Classic II

In the end, they got their wish. There were way too many extenuating circumstances, primarily the cost factor that would make it almost impossible to convert “The House that Ruth Built” for outdoor hockey. 

While Wrigley Field is no Ralph Wilson Stadium (able to hold 70,000 plus), Wrigley has hosted many sporting events since opening in 1914 and since 1916 has been the home to the Cubs. 

Over the course of Wrigley’s 94-years, it has hosted numerous concerts, two pro football teams – the Cardinals and Bears, professional soccer, professional boxing, rodeos, the circus, and the Harlem Globetrotters.  Additionally, in 1944 a ski jumping event was held inside the confines and now they’ll have the honor of hosting one of hockey’s biggest events on January 1^st, 2009.

This off-season had one of the most dramatic unrestricted free agency periods in NHL history as dozens of teams took advantage of the salary cap increase.  As well, the NHL found itself in competition with a new Russian professional league.  

The Kontinental Hockey League backed by Russian billionaire Evgeni Medvedev is actually the Old Russian Hockey League (Russian Superliga) that has been rebranded and features 24 teams not only from Russia but from other countries that were once part of the Soviet Union.

Many North American professionals have crossed the waters to play in Russia not only for the cultural experience, but for the chance to make some serious money through the many sponsorship-laden club teams in Europe. Case in point was during the NHL lockout when many NHL players bolted for the chance to play and of course earn money equal to or above what they were getting in the NHL.

The thought of playing in the NHL in the past had always seemed to draw the best player or players from European countries over to North America to fulfill their dream of playing in the NHL.  However, that is now in jeopardy because of the new KHL and the NHL could suffer even more form that.

In the past, European players playing in the European leagues was never a threat to the NHL… for most it was about playing at “home.”  For North Americans it was the opportunity to continue playing when their NHL careers seemed over.

Now, it’s a whole new hockey game.  The new league can now compete and possibly surpass the NHL with the salary offers, thus luring players away from the NHL. 

The KHL have already begun filling up the rosters and have a very respectable list of former NHL players in their line-ups, including: Ray Emery, John Graham (Carolina), Jaromir Jagr (NY Rangers), Jozef Stumpel, Trevor Letowski, Marcel Hossa (NY Rangers), Josef Vasicek and Alexander Radulov (Nashville).

Along with Medvedev and his many wealthy Russian investors, the KHL has been under scrutiny these days from the NHL. 

The NHL has no problems whatsoever with the numerous signings, but there is a major dispute over Alexander Radulov of the Nashville Predators. 

Radulov who played with Nashville in 2007-08, signed a three-year contract with Salavat Yulaev Ufa on July 11^th, one day after the NHL and all international leagues under the aegis of the International Ice Hockey Federation agreed that every league would honor existing contracts.

Radulov had one-year remaining on his Nashville contract… Nashville, the NHL, and the IIHF all released statements that Radulov’s signing with Salavat Yulaev Ufa was a violation of the agreement and that Radulov was obligated to play one more season in Nashville. 

The KHL countered that Radulov actually inked the deal on July 5^th, five days before the new agreement was signed. Meanwhile, the Predators have suspended forward Alexander Radulov without pay after he broke his contract with to sign with a KHL team.  KHL president Alexander Medvedev has maintained that Radulov’s signing was legal because it occurred before the two leagues reached a signing moratorium.

The KHL is now accusing the NHL of poaching two of its players when the Los Angeles Kings agreed to terms with two draft prospects and five others as well and that they would appeal the five other signings.

The KHL announced that it was no longer obligated to abide by a moratorium reached in July, when the leagues agreed against signing players that were under contract because of this.

The KHL said the NHL violated that agreement when the Kings signed 2008 second-round draft pick, defenseman Vjateslav Voinov, and 2008 fifth-round pick, center Andrei Loktionov, on Aug. 27^th.  The KHL said Voinov is currently under contract with Chelyabinsk while Loktionov is under contract with Yaroslavl.

The KHL withdrew its appeal Saturday on the five players who were signed away from the KHL by the NHL, including Columbus winger Nikita Filatov, the Wilds’ defenseman Tomas Mojzis, center Jason Krog of the Canucks, New Jersey center Fedor Fedorov and Coyotes center Viktor Tikhonov.

Unfortunately the though, the dispute over Alexander Radulov appears headed for court. The NHL and KHL will now go to court or arbitration to decide who owns his rights.

Coaches Carousel

The NHL coaching carousel began its movement back on April 11^th when the Florida Panthers decided they needed yet another change behind the bench.  Out was Jacques Martin and in came Peter DeBoer. 

Finally, after two months of searching for Martin’s successor, DeBoer gets his first taste as an NHL coach after 13 successful years in the OHL.

Craig Hartsburg returns to the NHL after spending the past four seasons at the junior level coaching Sault Ste. Marie of the OHL.  Hartsburg replaces Bryan Murray behind the bench in Ottawa.

It came as no big surprise when the Leafs fired Paul Maurice.  The big surprise though was the Leafs hiring of Ron Wilson, who had been fired from the San Jose Sharks a month before.  Wilson received criticism over the past few seasons for not guiding his teams deep into the playoffs, but that’s not a concern for the Leafs right now. Just getting to the postseason would be considered a huge success.

Who said you can never come home again?  Tony Granato gets that opportunity once again with the Colorado Avalanche as he heads behind the bench replacing Joel Quinneville.  Granato coached the Avalanche from 2002-04, accumulating a 72-44-17 record during that stretch. He has also served as Colorado’s assistant coach since 2004, giving him familiarity with the franchise’s inner workings and depth chart.

The San Jose Sharks hopes that Todd McLellan’s success in the AHL will rub off on the Sharks.  One month after firing Ron Wilson, the Sharks hired McLellan away from the Red Wings organization.  This will be McLellan’s first NHL head coaching job.

ESPN’s loss is Tampa Bay’s gain as Barry Melrose returns to the NHL coaching ranks after 12-years away.  With new ownership in Tampa Bay, the firing of John Tortorella was inevitable.  Melrose last coached the Los Angeles Kings and Tampa Bay is hoping that his years as a hockey analyst will bring immediate success to an overhauled Lightning team.

Terry Murray heads back behind the bench replacing Marc Crawford as Los Angeles Kings new coach.  He has a history of getting teams re-organized rather quickly by focusing on defense and team play, which is something the Kings hope to benefit from.

On Long Island, the Islanders have had a revolving door with coaches over the last eight years.  In that span, there have been seven different sheriff’s leading the way… NHL Rookie Coach Scott Gordon becomes the ninth as he replaces Ted Nolan. Gordon spent the past eight seasons with Providence, posting a 221-141-20-27 career mark with the Bruins, including a league-best 55-18-3 record last year. He’s known for his patience and communication skills, which will be crucial to the development of a young Islanders squad.

If you like this column, Althea also writes the MLB Insider, the Rays Corner and Lightning Nutz and Boltz all while serving as VP of Sports for NutzMedia.  Listen to Althea on NewsTalk1220 -WSRQ Sarasota and TBSNRadio510.com Sunday's, live from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm as Althea Co-hosts "Speaking of Sports" with Ted Fleming.