I Hope You’re Happy, Bettman
Of course, I don’t actually mean that.
Before I go on, I want to say congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins and your fans. You fought hard and didn’t quit when you were down 2-0 in the series and again after a 5-0 loss in game five. It’s not your fault that you won.
There’s really no reason to sugarcoat this, so I am simply going to just say it: This series was rigged in favor of the Pen’s. Not to take anything away from them. They played hard, fought hard and persevered. But they shouldn’t have won this series.
After Detroit won games one and two convincingly, the performance of the officiating changed drastically for the worse. Detroit was whistled for the touchiest of penalties, while Pittsburgh got away with murder. At the end of game two, Evgeni Malkin literally attacked Henrik Zetterberg at the end of the game. What should have been a minor, frustration laden skirmish ended up in a full-on fight, with referees only intervening when it became apparent that Malkin was about to get his ass kicked. The NHL reversed a fight instigator penalty that would have resulted in a mandatory one-game suspension. Why would Bettman take such action? Because it’s in the best interest of the league to have the series go as long as possible, especially after both conference finals were duds. Having Pittburgh’s best player out for game three with the series already at 2-0 would have made for a short series for certain. As the saying goes, rules were made to be broken. Without Malkin’s three points in game three, Detroit would have won handily and closed the series in five.
I haven’t been this disappointed since April 5th, 1993.
But this time it is more than just disappointment. Sixteen years ago, Michigan lost largely in part because of a blunder by it’s superstar. This is different. The Detroit Red Wings didn’t lose this series. It was taken from them. It was taken away by officials both on the ice and in the commissioner’s office. From game three forward, Detroit was called for the most minor of penalties while Pittsburgh was afforded the luxury of having multiple offsides, icing and too many men on the ice non-calls when the infraction was obvious. Honestly, how do multiple professionally trained officials, with years upon years of experience, miss so many simple, easy to spot violations in a championship series? Aren’t these referees and linesmen supposed to be the best of the best? Isn’t that why they’re officiating the finals in the first place? You seriously cannot chalk up that many no-calls to simple human error. There is something else going on here.
I cannot recall a time in my life where the outcome of a title game or series was manipulated so blatantly to influence the outcome. It was as if Bettman had a wager with his bookie riding in the balance.
The final seconds ticked off. The Detroit Red Wings tried to fight through the bias. In a series that should not have exceeded five games, they pulled the goaltender and attempted to play through it, as professionals do – against the Penguins and against the officials. But in the end they fell short. And how did they react? Did they fight and complain as they could have justifiably done? No. They lined up and shook the hands of the winners, as champions and sportsmen do. But, as sour as that must have been, they still lined up, which is more than I can say for Bettman’s golden boy, one Sidnet Crosby, who will undoubtedly say that he was too injured to participate in the handshakes, yet still found the strength to take the Stanley Cup from the commissioner and effortlessly lift it his head as if he’d actually earned it.
Wow, you are a dick. Your site is so witty and funny, and this is the best you could come up with? Pathetic, just like the team I’m sure you wish you were sucking off right now (Red Dicks).
You sir are one of the MOST biased writers I have ever met. You just can’t give then Pens their win. We outplayed Detroit, simple as that. There were just as many, if not more, penalties that should have been called against Detroit, but were ignored. Officials let certain penalties go in the finals, for both teams.
You love to completely ignore/disregard/leave out all penalties that should have gone against Detroit, in an effort to “strengthen” your argument.
In short, I completely disregard you blatantly biased opinion.
Penguins win because they outplayed Detroit in 4 games, just as they did to us last year. Simple as that.
http://www.fanhouse.com/news/main/penguins-malkin-wont-be-suspended/505644
Also, Malkin should not have been suspended. Quote that pretty much sums it up:
“Penguins forward Bill Guerin said if Carolina’s Scott Walker wasn’t suspended for sucker punching Boston’s Aaron Ward during the Eastern Conference semifinals, Malkin certainly shouldn’t be suspended.”
You simply have a extremely biased view of the game, against Pittsburgh. You wanted Detroit to win so badly, it clouded your judgment of the game.
I hope you can leave such rampant, blatant bias out of future posts.
What I don’t understand is how Bettman got Brad Stuart to go along with the plan. I mean, Stuart is one of Detroit’s better defenseman. And yet he just turned the puck over twice to insure Pitt would have two cheap goals. They could have faked that one better.
And another thing. Bettman should have done a better job and got the Detroit fans on board with the “Crosby is the face of the NHL” theme. I mean, to boo a player when he is hurt and then to boo during the trophy presentation, it just doesn’t look convincing. If you’re going to rig a series, do it right!
Oh well, there’s always football season…here we go Steelers, here we go!
I have said that for a long time. You could see by the way NBC would only show Pens or Rangers on the Sunday Game of the Week. Once the Rangers were gone, it became a Sid show. Sid the man who saved Pittsburgh. I wonder if they are going to put big “S” on his shirt and give him a red cape?
Thanks, LJ
Hey guys, thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. I appreciate it.
I don’t recall ever saying anything negative about the Penguins or how they played specifically.
Judging by the comments and emails I’ve been getting about this, I didn’t make myself clear enough in the 1st paragraph. PITTSBURGH OUTPLAYED DETROIT IN GAMES SIX AND SEVEN – THEY CLEARLY WERE THE HUNGRIER, MORE MOTIVATED, BETTER COACHED TEAM AND BY THAT VIRTUE I SALUTE THEM. The whole point of everything I’ve posted this week that seems to be lost is that there never should have been a game six or seven.
@PensFan: Hey man, that quote is fallacious. You can’t justify bad decisions by pointing out the bad decisions in the past. IMO, Walker should have been suspended, too. I am less familiar with that situation, though. Was Walker suspended and then reinstated? If not, it isn’t the same thing. Malkin deserved the punishment that the league established long ago: A fight instigator penalty that occurs in the last five minutes of the game results in a game misconduct and a one-game suspension. The NHL literally bent the rules so Malkin could play in game 3.
As far as bias goes, I never claimed to be objective, and I have no obligation to be. Most of my posts are skewed on some level. I just try to be entertaining and well written. I don’t care if anyone agrees with what I say or not. I do enjoy the interaction with the people who take the time to email or comment – which is mainly why I have blogs in the first place.
Later
…hey dick…are those crow feathers surrounding yer pie hole ???…they sure as hell oughta be !!!…
Playing Devil’s Advocate and writing as a sports polemicist is neither inventive or interesting.
As a (much better) writer than you, try a different angle. You may get site hits and you may get feedback (such as this), but that doesn’t mean you’re writing good material.
@Michael: I do not consider myself to be a polemicist – a polemicist is someone who presents an opposing argument (usually to popular opinion) just for the sake of doing so. I am not trying to be inventive. I find it ironic that you found my content so uninteresting yet you took the time to let me know how you feel? Do you leave comments on every shitty blog you encounter?
My articles are nothing more than my opinion. I don’t care who agrees or disagrees. Those who don’t find the content engaging will move on.
The first sentence in your second paragraph makes no sense. I assume that you’re implying that you’re a ‘much better’ writer than I am? While this could be true, you’ve provided no support of this. You didn’t even provide a link to your blog.
You are wrong about the last part. The fact that traffic is growing does mean that I am creating good material, otherwise why would people return to read my updates? Just because of the fact that you didn’t like it doesn’t mean that you speak for most people. And even though you’ve already declared my work unworthy of your attention, something tells me you’ll be back.
@bikesgonewild: Indeed they are. You should be proud of your team – they played hard and never gave up.
Mike,
“pending a review of the incident. The director of hockey operations will review every such incident and may rescind the suspension based on a number of criteria. The criteria for the review shall include, but not be limited to, the score, previous incidents, etc”
No punches were thrown, just end game frustrations. Not really deserving of a suspension.
another quote
“”None of the criteria in this rule applied in this situation,” NHL director of hockey operations Colin Campbell said in a statement issued by the league about an hour after the game ended. “Suspensions are applied under this rule when a team attempts to send a message in the last five minutes by having a player instigate a fight. A suspension could also be applied when a player seeks retribution for a prior incident. Neither was the case here and therefore the one game suspension is rescinded.”"
The NHL did not bend any rules, the rules say there is a suspension if it happens in the last 5 minutes, but also says it CAN BE RESCINDED, pending a review. It was not just so the could play. No punches thrown, he wasn’t attempting to send a message, or seek retribution. It’s all in the rules which you love to point out.
Fair enough – but which is worse, throwing punches or whacking away at the back of someone’s head with your stick?
Here’s a link to the fight in case you missed it:
http://thesportsdick.com/2009/06/01/evgeni-malkin-is-lucky-he-didnt-lose-more-than-just-the-game/
Malkin lost his head at the end of a frustrating loss and WENT OFF. It started as a typical stoppage of play skirmish. The level of malice on the part of Malkin is subjective, but the refs who watched it live called it as they saw it. I am not saying necessarily that I agree with the call that was made.
Now the league has rules in place to overturn such a call when warranted. I can only speculate that they would not have been so quick to overturn the suspension if this were say a regular season game, or maybe a different, less crucial player involved.
In any event, you made some good points, and I respect your opinion. But I don’t really care to debate it any longer, as it is kind of irrelevant at this point. It’s been a whole day now and it’s time to move on.
Enjoy your parade.
How did the NHL pull of rigging an entire season? Are we all part of a huge “Truman Show” type scheme? If this is the case, Gary Bettman should head to Hollywood.
“Okay, let’s have the Penguins spiral out of control in the first half of the season. We’ll make the playoffs look unattainable. Hmm, we need something dramatic- a coaching change! Not with an NHL coaching vet though, a rookie interim coach will be a nice story. Let all the other teams know that we need Pittsburgh to make the playoffs, so start losing! Make sure the Red Wings get their bonuses early, too. We don’t want another slip up like last year. Finally, let’s throw the scent off the conspiracy trail by having Crosby get injured in the 2nd period (but how are we ever going to get Osgood to realize that he isn’t a good goalie, he’s been a coat-tail rider his whole career???). Boys, this is brilliant! Eat your heart out, Disney!”
Gary is probably wondering how you saw through this plan, Sports Dick.
Thank you Mike, I will enjoy it haha. here’s hopin we can full it off again next year. I kind of want to see pittsburgh face off against a different team in the finals though. Perhaps the Ducks, hmmm. Penguins vs Ducks for the finals, I like it.
Good luck with the blog.
Johnny,
I’ve never said that the NHL rigged the entire season – not directly or otherwise implied. Did you even read what I’ve written?
Yaknow, I’ve heard the argument that Osgood isn’t as good as advertised – but your comment might be the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard anyone say about him. Coattail rider? Osgood gave up 13 goals in seven games in the Stanley Cup Finals against the team with the most firepower in the league. That’s less than two goals per game including a shutout. Last year, had the Wings stuck with Dominik Hasek in the first round, they’d have gotten beat. They switched to Osgood in game four of that series and rode HIS play all the way to the cup.
And, why does he even need to realize it? So he’ll start playing at the level you think he should?
@PensFan: I don’t like the Ducks in ‘10. You’ve got a better shot at the getting the Blackhawks next year than Anaheim. Besides, Ducks fans suck: http://thesportsdick.com/2009/05/14/ducks-hockey-fans-in-california-fail/
Thanks man. Hopefully you’ll subscribe and check back. I am not done ruffling feathers, be it Ducks, Blackhawks, Penguins or what-have-you.
Later
Us wings fans are, on average, about 50-85% sure there’s a conspiracy against Detroit.
It could have been some really bad officiating but the 6 on 5 with the refs acknowledging it and not giving a penalty is suspect.
Need more proof? Re-watch the Stanley Cup presentation in 08. Bettman literally walks out with a frown on, then, with disdain in his voice says a quick congrats and come and get it. He lingers his hold on the trophy as if he was going to take it back. He then fakes a smile and walks off.
Then re-watch 09’s presentation. Bettman’s huge smile might as well have been an erection. He smiles and talks and talks so much i was sure he was going to start reading the love poem he wrote for Crosby. His head bobble was uncontrollably filled with excitement. Then, he repeats his holding the trophy too long most likely figuring everyone including the Wings players would want to come take pictures of them together at last.
Best blog ive read so far when it comes to the red wings getting CHEATED out of their 5th cup in 12 years. good job
@Shane:
@WingsGotRobbed:
Thanks for the comments, guys. I appreciate it.
Later
Dude, you are not only entirely wrong, but I think you may even be borderline retarded and need to be seen by a medical professional. As it seems that you obviously pay zero attention to hockey, yet feel compelled to write about it, I would like to point several things out to you:
1. Detroit interferes with a player on EVERY rush up and down the ice. Watch the tape. EVERY time a player is chasing a dumped puck, or going to the corner, or trying to cross a line, someone on your beloved rag-wings takes a piece of a player without the puck. Again, watch the tape. EVERY time. Now, admittedly your team is exceptionally good at doing it subtly, but it still NEVER gets called. And the fact of the matter is that Refs putting their whistles away is par for the course in playoff hockey, so quit crying about non-calls against Pittsburgh when there are plenty not called against Detroit as well.
2. The power plays in the last 2 games went in favor of detroit (2 in each game versus 3 total for Pittsburgh). Further, in 3 of 4 the games that Detroit lost, they had as many or more PPs than did the Penguins. It could also be argued that since Detroit got the last power plays in both games 6 & 7, in the third period while trailing no less, that they were actually given an advantage by the officials.
3. Do your homework and look at the penalty minutes and powerplays (Yahoo Sports has good stats, not just a good search engine for you to find some hot man on man action on those lonely nights). Through the series, Detroit had 23 Powerplays to the Penguins 15 and Detroit had a total of 47 minutes of penalties called against them to 95 minutes against Pittsburgh. Even taking away the ridiculous numbers from game 5 for both teams (Pitt 2 PPs, 48 PIMs ; D- 9 PPs, 14 PIMs), the Pens were still called for 47 minutes in penalties to the Wings’ 33 and Detroit had a 14-13 edge in power plays. And please don’t forget that among your power plays were back to back calls in game 4 that resulted in a (very brief) 5 on 3 advantage and almost 4 consecutive minutes on the PP while LEADING 2-1, only to give up a short handed goal and completely fall apart.
Overall, all the Detroit people who are crying about this loss just really makes those of us who are pure HOCKEY fans lose respect for a team and a city that has truly earned that respect through hard work, solid hockey and a love of the game. Please don’t forget that last year, when you lifted The Cup on Pittsburgh ice, the vast majority of the fans in the stands (myself included) remained in the arena to congratulate not only our own team for a hard fought season, but also your team for a series well played and a Cup well deserved. The disgusting fans in “The Joe” not only cheered when Crosby went out injured in the 2nd period of game 7, but also at the presentation of The Cup to a team that undoubtedly earned and deserved it. As for the Crosby bashing that has occurred before, during and now after the season, this kid is simply amazing and most are just pissed that he’s not on their team. Sid plays with heart, passion and a respect for the game that is paralelled by few others. And don’t forget, he is only 21 years old yet faces more pressure to perform and be a role model and be subjected to media daily than most grizzled veterans could even imagine. So before people start complaining about him, realized that he EARNED the right to lift The Cup and think back to how you might have handled even a fraction of that pressure at an age when many are still not even close to graduating college.
All I ask is that all the Detroit fans simply acknowledge that a better team, who was obviously hungrier and wanted it more, won the series. You have earned more Cups in the past decade than most teams have since their inception. Relish the fact that you have a solid organization and legendary team. But please also realize that, from time to time, you will inevitably lose, as all legendary teams have.
And I was the second gunman on the grassy knoll.
Look at this, another whining, complaining, sore-losing Detroit fan. All of this talk of conspiracy, rigging, and anything else in correlation is really unwarranted. I’m pretty sure Detroit fans have come to top Philly fans in the “classless” department.
Hey guys,
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. Unfortunately, there isn’t much more to add so I am closing comments on this post. If you want to keep piling on, that’s fine – you’ll just have to send me an email instead.
Later