NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman confirmed today that the Rangers will open next season with two games against the Lightning in Prague's Saska Arena.
For the first time in NHL history, on Saturday, Oct. 4 and Sunday, Oct. 5, two NHL games will be played in Europe on the same day.
The Penguins and Senators will play home-and-home games in Stockholm at the Globe Arena. The league also said that the Rangers would face European club champion Metallurg Magnitogorsk (Russia) in the first-ever Victoria Cup in Bern, Switzerland on Oct. 1 and SC Bern on Sept. 30
Comments (8)
NHLPA may not support game in Europe
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=228256&hubname=nhl
http://rangerjoe7.wordpress.com
Good for the NHLPA for standing up to buttman and his flying monkeys. Unless it's just a ploy to get more money and nothing else.
Bryan,
Of course the NHLPA "may" not support the game.
This is classic labor-management bluster.
The gauntlet was thrown down 2 years ago. bettman and the hacks jumped the gun on announcing this and Kelly MUST respond.
"Kelly says the players may not agree to play in the Victoria Cup, "There is a chance we wouldn't consent," Kelly added."
They will.
$$$$$$ -or a bargaining chip at the next negotiation session.
Zip, pay attention to how Kelly, the new BOSS of the union, handles this.
Both sides need to make this happen. It's in EVERYONE'S best interest. What a cool prime time TV show this could be.
Think back......Jim McKay and Roone Arledge and Wide World of Sports.
It worked then, no one has seen anything like it since.
Habs playing in Moscow.
Calgary playing in St. Petersburg.
Boston playing in Dublin(?).
Minnesota playing in Lutefiskland (Finland).
ISLES IN CHINA?!?!?
It's good stuff.
I can see why your an islander fan if you think this is good stuff. Yea put the players on an airplane for 8 hrs to play in another country wow how smart is that. They should be worrying about the markets here that are in trouble instead of trying to build a fan base half way across the world. Great idea yea for an islander fan and buttman.
Updates
http://rangerjoe7.wordpress.com/
any idea when tickets go on sale for the prague games? probably via this website, but it never says when..
http://www.sazkaticket.cz/default.asp
This is asenine. Sure, they are going to open in Prague. Maybe the next season they will open in Dublin. Yay!!!! Woopeee! What is going to happen? The NHL and Gary Bettman will drop the ball. It won't be on live. It will be on a time delay. Heck, maybe it won't even be on. The problem with this is that Bettman and the NHL are TOO WORRIED about what the other leagues are doing, and not what SPORTS FANS RESPOND TO. They are trying to expand into markets before the NBA, NFL, and MLB get there, when they haven't taken care of their HOME MARKET first. When are they going to get it?!?!
Why hasn't the NHL caught on?
1. It's not conventional tv friendly. Invest in getting widescreen, HD tvs in every home. Invest in equipment that allows more of the ice to be picked up and broadcast. You need to be able to SEE the action, and the average Joe has a hard time seeing it on conventional tv, and even HDTV. You have to watch several games live, and on tv in combination before you actually understand what is going on. Until there is an adequate broadcast medium, the ONLY people that will watch hockey religiously will be established hockey fans.
2. It's expensive to play. All you need to play basketball is a highschool gym, or play yard and a ball. All you need to play baseball is a glove, ball, bat and 4 sandbags. All you need to play football is an open field and a pigskin. The ONLY people that will become real fans are those that can afford to play (ie they bother to learn the game b/c they want to win), or people that spend the time to learn the game through attending games or watching them on tv...see #1. Sink more money into funding youth hockey programs, rather than marketing Sidney Crosby as the next coming of TGO.
3. The availability of playing fields are not all that good unless it's January, or February, or you live in Canada. Get people interested in ice skating alone, and you will create fans. If enough people skate for fun, more ice rinks will open, and you will automatically create players and fans.
4. Market more players than just Sidney Crosby. People identify with players. They really like to identify with two types of players. Star players AND hometown heros. INVEST IN THE MINOR LEAGUES. People around here like to talk about how they watched Adam Graves play in Glens Falls, they like to talk about how they saw Brian Gionta, and Patrick Elias play before they were stars, and they like to talk about local guys that have made pro teams. You don't know how many Devils fans, and more importantly, HOCKEY FANS, the minor league team here has created. The Binghamton Rangers created this Ranger fan. I went to every home game from my sophmore year at school until Mitchell sold them off, lost them, didn't get the option year, or whatever the hell happened.
5. There aren't enough games on tv, and the broadcasts that are on, STINK. Quit the crap with the exclusive contracts. Get games back on ESPN, ESPN2, keep them on VS, and hometown sports channels. Also, QUIT BLACKING OUT GAMES FOR COMPETITIVE REASONS...(if someone gets FSNY, PITT, SW, or whatever don't blackout all the other games). How does that make sense? Do you want you want more fans? Morons, give them more CHOICE. If the only game on is one that is occuring at an arena that is 500 miles away, who the hell is going to watch the game rather than the football or baseball game that WON'T GET BLACKED OUT. Not many.