That Aud Smell

Yep, yep, and yep.

Peters spoke to the incident on-air today, sort of. The clip of his audio is apparently here: http://media.wben.com/a/118547587/andrew-peters-addresses-youth-hockey-brawl.htm I didn't listen twice, but it's clear that he did not apologize for anything he actually did in terms of laying hands on opposing players. From a legal standpoint, that is understandable. From a PR standpoint, it is a total sh1t show. Peters spoke about how fighting has no place in youth sports, that the game in question involved a lot of penalties, and that, apparently, he did not adequately instruct/prepare his players with regard to how to conduct themselves in the context of a game.

Gotcha. Thanks for the clarification. I'll say this: I'd never have a kid of mine playing for a buffoon like that. Never. I'll add this for context: Ray coaches rec-level soccer at his kid's school, and, in my experience in the league, he is a very good and decent sort of coach in that setting. (Disclaimer: It's rec level soccer, and it's not the sport that Ray played. But, even so.)

To be clear: You're talking "abuse" along the lines of Lindy's helmet whacks on Luke Adam (during a practice - with other player around), right?

Here's the footage of the game involving ECC: Awful. The kid faces criminal charges. Rightly so. I, for one, am shocked, SHOCKED, that a team of 15 year olds coached by Andrew Peters would be engaged in a line brawl.

Related to Buffalo no less!

Saw it Tweeted, and it stung: Sabres are closer to being Colorado than they are to becoming Chicago. Those last two losses hurt. Badly.

Gotta be injured. Gotta be.

Are you saying you don't independently recall him winning some memorable fights, where he fought beyond his weight class?

Sir. In retrospect, I'm a little ashamed of how loudly I cheered for Ray during his heyday. But, let us not disrespect the fact that he gave all to the team. I could post dozens of clips where he gave as good as (or better than) he got with his jersey tied down. Also, there are just a few guys who threw heavier and more freely than him in Sabres history - tie-down trick or no. I'd venture to say that the tie-down technique extended his pugilistic efficacy - it didn't create it. Having met the man, it truly seems like his torso and hands are made of cement.

Ugh. It's purely charity that leads me to allow for the d.b. characterization. I have had a few personal experiences with/near him, and I am firmly in the POS camp. I have listened to his show a few times. He's actually somewhat serviceable in that role of hockey talker. A weird hang-up of mine. Not sure.

At best, Delta Bravos, at worst, POS's.

Oy. Good point. Forgot about that. And Milbury is, from what I can tell, in a league similar to Peters in terms of mentality.

Btw, I do sorta wonder whether Peters' (mis)conduct will prompt WGR to reflect on the name of that show (assuming Peters continues in his role there). There's a part of the world of hockey that wants to continue to wink and nod at the game's Neanderthal past.

Hey Oh! I've typed it here before: Peters is, at best, a Delta Bravo, and, at worst, a POS.

@LTS: I don't think anyone disputes that there's more high end talent in major juniors. I think you're unduly discounting the effect of age and player development, though. The NCAA may be closer to the AHL than it is to Major Juniors. As for the percentages of where players come from in the draft: Is that adjusted for the relative numbers of top flight teams/programs in each league? If I had to guess, I'd peg that ratio at 2:1 (favouring the juniors). In any case, the deeper (and younger) talent pool in Juniors would be in line with a discrepancy of some significance.

8 pm start, mountain time? Denver likes to party.

Let's Go, Buffalo!

Surely you can't be serious.

Flagg. Keep at it. Engage with others like you in the 'sphere (blogs, Twitter). That sort of stuff has real value.

Context!

^ per fenwick (and fwiw), they're pretty similar possession players.

Not sure why you'd have a hard time with that - those point-predictions, on their face, suggest that it's just tougher sledding in the NCAA. I would also agree that there's most likely better "talent" in major juniors, top to bottom. But I think it does make a difference to be skating against a fleet 17 year-old (who may be destined for a middle-6 career in the NHL), versus skating against a savvy 21 year-old (who's going to top out as an AHLer). Some of this may also owe to styles of play in the two leagues.

(j/k - I just miss PA!)

Right. And those point-predictor quotients bear that out. I cannot recall what they are (and never know where to find them), but they're very roughly to the effect of, say, 1.0 PPG in a major junior season predicts .45 PPG by year X in the NHL (or whatever), whereas 1.0 PPG in certain NCAA conferences would predict .65 PPG by year X in the NHL (again - those values are purely notional).