Faceoff Factor

Hump-day Hater Report 12-3-08

Mike Wilson | Faceoff Factor News

Dec 3, 04:31 PM | Hype this story!

The Penguins hate early whistles

Now we all remember back a few weeks ago when I put the Devorski brothers on the hater list for this exact same reason after the Pens/Sabres game in Pittsburgh…well it continues against the Penguins, only this time in Buffalo.

In last week’s game at HSBC Arena, Referee Eric Furlatt blew an early whistle whilst the puck was in wide open view in front of Miller at the edge of the crease. The play was blown dead and the Penguins lose by one in the end. That tough break cost them at least one point, possibly two…but oh well.

NHL.com hates Pittsburgh

This one came with a little help from one of our FF faithful, theoneandonlysurge.

Two weeks ago, I mentioned how Jordan Staal was snubbed for player of the week with his performances in the Detroit and Philadelphia games. Last Wednesday, Malkin got his share of snubbing for a three star position on NHL.com’s daily section coming from a 4 point (3 goals, 1 assist) night on Long Island.

Not only that, but also all the talk around the league was how the Islanders blew yet another lead (which, granted, is pathetic) and there was no hype about what a great comeback the game was, regardless of who was playing in it.

Then, to take the proverbial cake, after Buffalo’s whistle-frenzy win over Pittsburgh, Paul Gaustad was named one of the stars by scoring only two goals. They did get at least one thing right in getting Crosby on there after his hat-trick night, but that can’t make up for everything else they’ve messed up so far.

The Dallas Stars hate Sean Avery

Well, Dallas, you wanted Sean Avery, and you got Sean Avery. When we say he comes with baggage, we don’t just mean any carry-on accessories he may have designed. No, we also mean that sometimes…and this is just a rumor…he acts like an idiot.

In a report by NHL.com (who we shouldn’t even use since they’re on the hater list…but what else can I do?), Avery made “inappropriate public comments about the personal lives of opposing players, and not pertaining to the game.”

Stars’ owner Tom Hicks responded, “I completely support the League’s decision to suspend Sean Avery. Had the League not have suspended him, the Dallas Stars would have. This organization will not tolerate such behavior, especially from a member of our hockey team. We hold our team to a higher standard and will continue to do so.”

I applaud you Mr. Hicks. Besides, Avery’s not that important…just ask Marty Brodeur, he wouldn’t even shake his hand after his playoff loss to New York last season.

Ron Wilson hates San Jose

This is really a tale of two cities. San Jose, a talented team with a combination of young talent and experienced veterans (that’s a little redundant isn’t it?), thrived under Ron Wilson until their heartbreaking loss in the playoffs.

Toronto, arguably the biggest disappointment since the lockout, can’t buy a win to save their season. So they decided to bring in Wilson (no relation) to teach them the art of winning that they seemed to have forgotten from so long ago. The return to San Jose last night “bit” the Leafs as they fell to the Sharks 5-2.

And even though I said Ron Wilson hates San Jose, the feeling isn’t mutual. When they showed Wilson and former assistants Rob Zettler and Tim Hunter on the jumbo-tron, they received standing ovations from the fans in the Shark Tank. I think someone wishes they wouldn’t have moved north of the boarder.

Crosby and Malkin hate trailing Montreal

Two of the arguably hottest hands in the Eastern Conference are fighting back against the Canadien regime that has stormed the All-Star Game voting. The top two scorers in the NHL are currently ranked fourth and fifth in the polls, but are gaining ground. NHL.com (who, remember, hates the Penguins) reports that Crosby is 65,000 votes away from getting one of the starting positions. Malkin, however, is still 40,000 votes behind Crosby.

Do we fully gauge what this means? The way things look right now, the top scorer in the ENTIRE NHL won’t even start in the All-Star Game.

As for Carey Price, he has twice as many points as his nearest competitor, Marc-Andre Fleury. Price has given up 46 goals in 19 games, has a save percentage of .920 and a GAA of 2.40. Correct me if I’m wrong, but those are hardly ASG starting goaltender figures. And I’m not just saying this because I feel Fleury should start, because he shouldn’t either.

The Chicago Blackhawks hate the NHL

…for picking them to play in the Winter Classic. Has anyone noticed that no one cares too much about the ’09 Winter Classic at Wrigley Field? Maybe it’s because of the fact that the NHL picked the most uneven teams in the league to play in it. Let me make clear that this is nothing against either of these teams, and, in fact, I would love to see Detroit play someone competitive in an outdoor showing. But Chicago?

Another reason the Blackhawks will hate the league is because of the thousands of disappointed fans who will have frozen for no reason. Believe me, I was at the 2008 Winter Classic and it was shocking to see 73,000 Sabres’ fans down in the pits as if the Bills had lost yet another Super Bowl.

I would love to see Chicago win, but I fear that won’t happen. And I also fear that the only thing lower than Blackhawk’s fans disappointment in this game will be NBC’s ratings on New Year’s Day. Now the Blackhawks have fought back from a sad start to a 10-6-6 record so here’s hoping I’m wrong.

Upon that, we conclude this week’s HH Report. As always, look for more haters in hump-days to come.

Happy hating!