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Defending Big D has an in-depth article about the Avalanche.
The Avalanche likely won't see a drastic improvement this season and could once again have a top pick on their plate next summer. It's all going to depend on Patrick Roy and Joe Sakic, however; two former players with very limited experience working in the front office in the NHL are going to be relied upon to make the smart decisions necessary to continue to improve moving forward.
That's certainly going to be the big test.
In the meantime, a rekindling of the rivalry between the Avs and Stars will depend solely on how quickly these two teams battle it out in the postseason. It could be that, with two young teams trying to forge a new identity in a new division, that the rivalry develops naturally as the Avs and Stars battle it out for positioning in the Central. The intense battles of the past, however, are likely a bit further down the road.
Some doctors don't like the violence in hockey.
Canada’s doctors delivered a body blow to National Hockey League owners, saying they are too accepting of violence in the sport.
Delegates to the Canadian Medical Association’s annual meeting on Wednesday voted to “condemn the complacency” of NHL team owners.
“What we want to do is make it crystal clear that violence must be addressed,” said Louis Francescutti, an injury-prevention expert and president of the CMA.
The Leafs get into the playoffs and now the ticket prices will be higher.
Clearly, the appetite for Toronto’s hockey beloveds is insatiable. Price no object. So, while many will in fact object to the team’s newly bruited ticket costing formula, the disgruntlement will not affect sales one iota.
Toronto already soaks the public with the most expensive tickets in the league and only recently has the on-ice product been remotely enticing, at least since the flare-out of the Ron Wilson debacle. According to an evaluation by U.S.-based Team Market Reporting this past February, the average Leaf ticket costs $124.69 last season, compared to the average Coyotes ticket at $40.32.