Back In The USSR, and Anyone Up For Some Pool?

Hey gang. So I got my first set of concepts to post on HJC for Thursday, and I'm really excited to get this post out already.

In the meantime, here's a couple of jerseys I'd like to share.

This was for a contest I entered for HJC, where you had to submit jersey designs for the Anaheim Ducks, using the colours they proposed to use before going with black, bronze and orange. Orange was one of the colours involved in this contest as well, but I left it out because I thought the green and orange looked awful together.  Anyways, I picked out one of the old secondary logos, and gave the jersey a unique wing style to it. I wasn't sure how it would be received, but I came 7th out of 24 designs, so it must not have been too bad.

Here's one that I made today for the current HJC contest, asking for a new design for the Soviet Union. Really cool contest idea, so I gave it a go. I really like how it turned out, looking like their classic jerseys and staying simple, while having its own style.

What do you guys think?  I'd love to know your thoughts on these.

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I don't exactly have much to talk about today, but I do want to point out that it didn't take long for Toronto's new contract for Nazem Kadri to look like a bargain deal.  Early in the preseason game against the Flyers, he absolutely undressed Hal Gill and scored a brilliant goal for Toronto.  He showed signs of stardom last season, and I think he has nowhere to go but up this season.  For a player under the microscope so much in Toronto, its nice to see for sure!

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Theres only a few more days to vote on my poll for the worst Buffalo jersey of all time. For the few votes I'm getting, I'm not overly surprised how it's shaping up so far, although I'm disappointed how bad the Goat-head jersey is doing, as those were always my favourites.  Expect a discussion on these jerseys in a few days.

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Now, just wanna give a quick question to those who read my blog.  I'm thinking about starting a hockey pool.  Would anyone be interesting in something like that?  Depending on interest, we'll figure out the rules and stuff later, if it does happen.  Its just a thought for now. 

Thanks for reading!

Game On!

Its almost time for the NHL pre-season, and you know what that means?

NHL 14 is here!

Yes, I am a huge fan of EA's NHL series. I've played pretty much every title since NHL99, and still try to boot that one up on my computer, for old times sake.  I'm usually the first person in the summer-time to admit that "the updates aren't really that different from last years and I probably wont buy it", but I usually end up getting the game anyway, or at least sharing a copy with a friend.

So for today's topic, I thought that I could name the top 50 players in NHL 14 by player rating.  EA is usually pretty good with player ratings, but every year there's a few players who seem to get misplaced, badly.  Remember in 2006 when Robyn Regher was a 95, or something like that?  They tend to over-sensationalize the playoff heroes, and demote the defensive players in the game, with a few exceptions (Datsyuk).

Anyways, lets have a look:

50. D. Girardi (NYR) – OVR 88

So brief note, to make this list, you have to be better than Dan Girardi. He wouldn't have been the first name I thought of, but it's not a total shocker either.

49. J. Voracek (PHI) – OVR 88

48, M. Pacioretty (MTL) – OVR 88

Pacioretty I'm actually surprised isn't higher on this list.  He's not a very glamorous player, I guess. But he has one of the best hands in the league, and also one of the fastest skaters.

47. D. Byfuglien (WPG) – OVR 88

Would probably be in the mid-90's if he could just stay in shape. Speed is a killer to his rating, but what can you expect from a guy this big. I'm glad EA actually gave an enforcer a good rating for a change.

46. D. Doughty (LAK) – OVR 88

45. P. Sharp (CHI) – OVR 88

44. J. Benn (DAL) – OVR 88

I'm one of the few people that think Benn is just slightly overrated. He will be an 88+ player, but he's not yet, in my eyes anyway. Looking ahead, is he as good as Staal and Getzlaf? Umm...no.

43. R. Getzlaf (ANA) – OVR 88

42. J. Carter (LAK) – OVR 88

41. E. Staal (CAR) – OVR 88

40. J. Spezza (OTT) – OVR 88

Spezza is really underrated in my eyes. He's one of the best playmakers of the last decade, and if he could have a healthy season next year, I have a slight feeling he could contend for the Hart next season.

39. J. Neal (PIT) – OVR 88

38. P.K. Subban (MTL) – OVR 88

On any given night, Subban is either a 85 player or a 95 player. If he was more consistent  he could become an elite defenceman.

37. T. Hall (EDM) – OVR 88

36. P. Kessel (TOR) – OVR 88

35. P. Kane (CHI) – OVR 88

Kane < Seabrook? I love Seabrook, and have said some big things about him in the past. But 1v1, Kane would win 9 times out of 10.

34. E. Karlsson (OTT) – OVR 88

Strangely for EA, they overlook his offensive talents and focus more on his defensive game with this rating, and I actually agree with this.

33. B. Burns (SJS) – OVR 89

Since when?

32. N. Kronwall (DET) – OVR 89

He's huge for Detroit. I wasn't expecting him to be up here, but I'm glad he is.

31. B. Seabrook (CHI) – OVR 89

Again, love Seabrook, but is he really better than Kane, Staal, and Getzlaf? I'd have him at ~85.

30. P. Rinne (NSH) – OVR 89

The first goalie I've come across so far. At quick count, he's 4th according to EA. That seems fair to me.

29. K. Letang (PIT) – OVR 89

28. H. Sedin (VAN) – OVR 89

Would it be taboo to say Henrik should be higher than Daniel? Just asking.

27. D. Sedin (VAN) – OVR 89

26. C. Perry (ANA) – OVR 89

25. L. Couture (SJS) – OVR 89

He's one of the best shooters in the game.  Unfortunately, the other flaws in his game have me thinking this is somewhat too high for him.

24. M. Hossa (CHI) – OVR 89

I'm gonna say he needs to be higher.  For the last 5 years or so, how significant has he been on strong playoff teams?  And how much did that team miss him if he was hurt? One of the most dynamic players in the league.

23. P. Bergeron (BOS) – OVR 89

See above, except just for one team. Should be higher.

22. Z. Parise (MIN) – OVR 89

21. A. Kopitar (LAK) – OVR 89

20. J. Tavares (NYI) – OVR 89

19. J. Thornton (SJS) – OVR 90

I've heard quite a bit of discussion over Jumbo Joe's rating, saying its too high. He can hit and pass better than most of the guys on this list. Deserves AT LEAST 90.

18. M. Gaborik (CBJ) – OVR 90

17. R. Nash (NYR) – OVR 90

90 seems fair up to this point, but I have a feeling he's going to really shine in New York this season under AV.

16. C. Price (MTL) – OVR 90

3rd best goalie? Okay sure. Just as good as Lundqvist, but a little more shaky at times. 

15. A. Pietrangelo (STL) – OVR 90

He's good. He's not 90 good.

14. H. Zetterberg (DET) – OVR 90

He's good, he's better than 90 good. 

13. C. Giroux (PHI) – OVR 90

12. D. Keith (CHI) – OVR 90

11. H. Lundqvist (NYR) – OVR 91

So theoretically Lundqvist and Quick are tied for the best goalies in the league. I think I'd knock Quick back 1 point, or give King Henrik an extra point, but I say he's the NHL's best goalie right now.

10. J. Quick (LAK) – OVR 91

Read above.

09. R. Suter (MIN) – OVR 92

Is Suter the 3rd best D-man in the league? Maybe, but I don't see it. I see him around ~89.

08. S. Weber (NSH) – OVR 92

Fairly the 2nd best defenceman in the league.

07. J. Toews (CHI) – OVR 92

06. E. Malkin (PIT) – OVR 92

I'd say he deserves an extra point or two, just from how dynamic and dominant he is as a player.

05. S. Stamkos (TBL) – OVR 92

I almost want to say he deserves to be higher, but I don't know if he was helped by the play-making wizard in St. Louis, or if Stamkos was the one who made St. Louis look good. Either way, 92 is fine.

04. Z. Chara (BOS) – OVR 94

Toe-to-toe against Ovie for 3rd? I agree with this 100%.  He is a monster player, the league's best defenceman by far, and one of the best leaders in the game right now, because he leads by example.

03. A. Ovechkin (WSH) – OVR 94

While I'm saddened he got beat out by Crosby, I understand where EA would have given Crosby and Datsyuk a point where Ovie got none.  However, if Washington did more in the playoffs, I think he would have topped this list, seeing how EA always seems to trend towards the players on successful teams.

02. P. Datsyuk (DET) – OVR 95

01. S. Crosby (PIT) – OVR 95

So we can't say who is better on the ice between Crosby and Datsyuk.  That is a very fair statement, both are dominant players in the game.  While Crosby is a bit better of a playmaker and goal scorer, Datsyuk is undeniably better defensively. I would also argue that, if Datsyuk's linemates were equal to Crosby's, than Datsyuk would likely be the better player. But it's too close to really call. Now that they're conference rivals, maybe we'll get a better indication of that this year.

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One thing that strikes me odd in this ranking is that, unlike Madden, no one has a perfect rating. At first, I was kind of offended, but it does make sense on 2nd look. Crosby, while near perfect offensively, isn't perfect defensively. Datsyuk, while being the best 2-way player in the league, doesn't have the aggressiveness as one would expect from a "perfect" hockey player. 

Still, the parity of the players in the game is something extremely notable, compared to other sports.

So thats my post for today, if you have any comments on the player's ratings or my take on them, please don't hesitate to let me know. Thanks for reading.

Exciting News For All

Well, mostly exciting news for me, and Toronto fans, but I'll get to that in a second.

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First of all, I've reached 1000 total views on my blog. I'm really excited to reach that milestone, and I can't thank you, the readers of this blog, enough for getting to this point.  My posts are, honestly, very sporadic lately because of my schedule, but I'll continue trying to write some interesting stories for you and keep this blog going for the foreseeable future.  Having said that...

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In some more exciting personal news, I've been signed on as the Thursday Writer for HockeyJerseyConcepts.com, the very jersey concepts site I've mentioned before that has been reviewing some of my work.  This is an absolute honour for me to be part of this blog, as it's fed my interest in jersey design and hockey in general.  Of course, that doesn't mean this blog isn't my main blog anymore, it still is. But on Thursday's my posts will likely be a recap of the post I made for HJC.

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Want more good news? Live in Toronto? Excellent. Nazem Kadri has finally signed a deal with Toronto. Who is this good news to? Everybody! The Leafs have locked up a player that will be huge in their future, and probably this season. Kadri gets a very nice paycheque (even though it isn't as much as he wanted, its still better than I'd even say he deserves). The fans have just a little more reason to be optimistic next season, and everyone else doesn't have to hear about the contract dispute between the Leafs and Kadri anymore. Its a win-win all around.

By the way, Franson is apparently still unsigned in Toronto. You'll probably hear a lot about it now. Just a heads-up.

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Bryzgalov fan? Tim Thomas fan? You're also in luck. The Florida Panthers have given both a Pro Tryout Contract for training camp.  Its hard to see either of these guys sticking around in a back-up role, and competition isn't too fierce besides themselves. Wouldn't it be interesting if you had these two guys on the same lineup?

HBO is filming the sitcom as we speak.

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Everyone else? Training camps started today, that means the season is getting close! It wont be long until puck drop for the opening game, and I'm already getting really excited. 

What are you getting excited for? Let me know on the comments or send me a message on Twitter (or Facebook, or wherever you can find me). 

And again, I have to thank you guys for helping me get to 1000 views.  If it wasn't for your interest in my blog, I wouldn't have an interest in blogging anymore.  If I didn't have that, I wouldn't get the opportunity with HJC like I did. It all starts with you, the readers. So thank you for reading, and have a good evening.

What Happens at WBHockeyTalk, Stays at WBHockeyTalk

So I seen an interesting article showing the Vegas over/under odds for the next NHL season.  They predicted the point totals for all the teams.  I'm not a gambling person (because I'm awful at it), but its interesting to see predictions like this.

I made my own predictions a few months ago, if one would like to compare, go here. But for your convenience, I'll put my rank of the teams in parenthesis in these rankings.

Without further ado: (from CBSSports.com)

Metropolitan Division

Pittsburgh Penguins -- 108.5(1)

New York Rangers -- 98.5(3)

Washington Capitals -- 93.5(8)

Philadelphia Flyers -- 92.5(2)

New York Islanders -- 89.5(4)

Columbus Blue Jackets -- 85.5(7)

Carolina Hurricanes -- 84.5(6)

New Jersey Devils -- 79.5(5)

Really? Carolina AND Columbus ahead of New Jersey? I think New Jersey deserves much more credit than last here. Columbus is banking on a repeat performance from their young starter in Bobrovski. If Brodeur can't live up to expectations in New Jersey, Schneider surely will. Neither have a great team ahead of them, but NJ shouldn't be in the basement.  Also, I guess Washington warrants more love than I gave them. I want Ovie to succeed, but in this division he's going to have a difficult time getting open compared to when he regularly played against Florida, Tampa, and Winnipeg. Maybe I'm wrong though.

Atlantic Division

Boston Bruins -- 102.5(4)

Detroit Red Wings -- 97.5(1)

Toronto Maple Leafs -- 96.5(2)

Montreal Canadiens -- 94.5(3)

Ottawa Senators -- 93.5(5)

Tampa Bay Lightning -- 88.5(7)

Buffalo Sabres -- 83.5(6)

Florida Panthers -- 75.5(8)

Fairly close to mine, I'll take it.  I gave Boston less of a chance because they lost some key pieces this off-season.  But I think any team 1-4 has a good shot of winning the division this year.  This will easily be the most exciting division in hockey.  I think everyone can agree that Florida is the worst team in the division, Tampa Bay and Buffalo will struggle, and Ottawa will be one of the dark horse teams that could very well sneak into the playoffs.

Central Division

Chicago Blackhawks -- 105.5(1)

St. Louis Blues -- 99.5(2)

Minnesota Wild -- 94.5(4)

Colorado Avalanche -- 86.5(3)

Dallas Stars -- 86.5(5)

Nashville Predators -- 84.5(6)

Winnipeg Jets -- 82.5(7)

Besides switching Colorado and Minnesota, I pretty much called this division 100%, according to Vegas. Chicago should easily win the division, but it will be interesting to see how the rest of the division shapes up, because each team in here besides Chicago and Winnipeg are filled with question marks that will determine their season. This division could be flipped upside down by the end of the year.  I still think Winnipeg is missing a few parts to be a contender though.

Pacific Division

Los Angeles Kings -- 98.5(1)

Vancouver Canucks -- 95.5(2)

San Jose Sharks -- 94.5(3)

Anaheim Ducks -- 90.5(5)

Edmonton Oilers -- 89.5(4)

Phoenix Coyotes -- 85.5(6)

Calgary Flames -- 74.5(7)

Gah, so close again! Vegas switched Anaheim and Edmonton, putting them only 1 point apart. That's a fair assessment, both teams are young with lots of firepower that could have an excellent season or fizzle out if not handled correctly. LA should win the division this year, but Vancouver has a good enough team to keep close. Unfortunately, Flames fans are once again given the bad news for next year by being predicted to have the lowest point total in the league.  Embarrassing, but probably accurate. 

Nike, Staaaaahp (Part 2)

I didn't think my rant on the Olympic jerseys was going to garner it's own series, but here we are.

Although it's only speculation to this point as to whether or not it is the official Canada Olympic jersey, a picture was revealed yesterday with potential Canadian captain Jonathan Toews wearing what appears to be Nike's next attempt at Olympic hockey design.

3rd time isn't the charm, Nike.

Yes, I know, another rant on jerseys. Lately that is all I've been talking about. Its a slow off-season news wise, but jersey reveals have definitely taken over. With a few more NHL and apparently more Nike Olympic jerseys left to be revealed, its probably going to continue until preseason.

But right now, lets just take a look at what our nation will look like on the ice in Sochi:

Alright, so right off the bat, I'll say its much better than the American ones, about on par with the white Russian double-dragon one. 

What I like: Simplicity on the chest. Canadian maple leaf on white background stripe, with the word Canada below.  And one one arm, there is a Canadian flag, subtle but patriotic. I like it so far.

What I don't like: Sadly more than what I like. First, as if I didn't see this coming, we get another dose of Nike fake laces and glossy shoulder designs (I assume maple leaves). I've already said how cheap and tacky this looks, so I'll leave it as such.

But even worse, and correct me if I'm wrong, but why does one arm have a white stripe pattern, and one arm is blank?  Hopefully a better picture surfaces soon, so we get a better idea of what is going on, but if that is the case, then why has Nike gone to the book of Atlanta Thrasher design tips to make arguably the most important jersey in the world in 2013-14?  I don't like where this is going, but I'll leave it until better evidence is given.

One more thing, although the crest looks nice, the jersey as a whole looks really plain, as if it belongs on a practice jersey. Assuming the priority to keep the maple leaf red on the white jersey, this has the potential to be even more plain and open if they keep the design, unless like Russia they get a whole new style for their white set. I don't see that happening.

Overall, the jersey isn't awful, but if this is truly what Canada will be represented with, I'll be pretty disappointed.

I'll stop ranting for now. I'm thinking talking about either Vegas or Kadri tomorrow, we'll see. I promise no more jersey rants for a few posts at least. Thanks for reading.