Local
The big news right now is the hiring of George Gwozdecky as an assistant coach.
“One of the biggest things for us and our organization is we have a lot of young guys coming up,” said Carle, who played for Gwozdecky from 2003-06. “As a college coach that’s all you’re dealing with is young guys and trying to turn them into I don’t want to say pros, but he did a really good job with a lot of guys developing them into men. I think that’s really good for our team. We have all these guys down in the minors who had a lot of success down there. For us to be successful as a team in Tampa, we need these guys to develop as well, so I think it’s going to be a huge help for the younger guys.”
Tampa Bay Lightning add former Denver coach George Gwozdecky to coaching staff – Western College Hockey Blog
Gwozdecky resurrected the Pioneers hockey program, leading Denver to the 2004 and 2005 NCAA Championships. In addition, he produced numerous NHL players and countless trips to the NCAA Tournament.
Lightning’s Purcell ‘Humbled’ by Hosting Charity Golf Classic – Features
His golf tournament raised over $100,000 for kids charities in Newfoundland this year and has raised $500,000 in its five-year existence.
Why The Tampa Bay Lightning Defense May Be Better In 2013-14 | Mariotti Show
Mike Corcoran wants to see how the defense does this year before we get all up in Yzerman’s grill.
National
Here’s where the ice will be at Yankee Stadium | ProHockeyTalk
This whole outdoor game thing is strange to me. Strange in that I don’t get all that excited about them, but I’m legitimately gaga over the Olympics. I don’t know why that is.
Dave Lozo’s Bag Skate: The NHL is a wasteland in August, but some valuable pieces can still be added | Backhand Shelf | Blogs | theScore.com
Yes, Dave. It is a wasteland.
How we’d fix the NHL – Grantland
DGB goes to work.
How We’d Keep It the Same: 15 Things That Should Never Change in the NHL – The Triangle Blog – Grantland
So does Katie Baker.
The Fourth Period :: Anaheim Ducks :: Selanne expected to play one final season
Looking more and more like we’ll get at least one more season of Teemu.
The 10 best restricted free agents that have yet to be re-signed | Backhand Shelf | Blogs | theScore.com
If you’re into that sort of thing.
NHL Goalies Balk at New Thigh Rise Restrictions – The Goalie Magazine – InGoalMag.com
A slightly misleading title. The “balking’ consists of the same negotiations the NHLPA and the NHL have been working on since June. There hasn’t been an official announcement, but it seems like the 10% reduction in the thigh rise has been accepted, but other reductions–like on knee pads–are on hold, possibly until the 2013-15 season.
The problem with “team toughness”
Corey Sznajder talks about the difference between “tough” and “tough to play against.”
Keep Calm and Don’t Breathe: The country’s only high school underwater hockey team fights its way through the U.S. National Tournament – SBNation.com
I don’t…wut? [Long read]
International
Finnish SM-Liiga will be changing its name to Liiga
It will be “The League,” because everyone should just know who you are.
Russian LGBT Group Urges ‘Do Not Boycott The Olympics – Boycott Homophobia!’| Gay News | Towleroad
The Russian LGBT Network says “Participation and attendance of the Games in Sochi will not indicate endorsement of injustice and discrimination; they will only if they are silent.”
Farm Report (Prospects and the Minors)
Erne makes the difference for U.S. – Features
Lightning draft pick Adam Erne scored the tying goal in regulation and the shootout winner to give the United States a 4-3 victory against Finland.
Prospect Adam Erne has big day at world junior evaluation camp | Tampa Bay Times
Steve Yzerman was at the evaluation camp to..well…evaluate players.
Syracuse Crunch prospects Tanner Richard and Nikita Kucherov going through summer school together | syracuse.com
“All I can say is Nikita isn’t choosing movies for us anymore; he somehow finds a way to choose bad movies.”
Business
NHL Takeover Of New Jersey Devils Looming – Forbes
Oh goody.
NHL to take control of Devils; Philadelphia 76ers owners eying purchase: Reports | Puck Daddy – Yahoo! Sports
Gary Bettman has since said the league won’t be taking the team over. Then again, he’s Gary Bettman. He says a lot of things.
Reflecting on a much-maligned 2009 column about poor attendance in Phoenix | Backhand Shelf | Blogs | theScore.com
An interesting exploration of Phoenix’s attendance issues.
The Market (Numbers)
Corsi & Fenwick Game-by-Game ’12-13 | McKeen’s Hockey
Interested in seeing the Lightning’s 2012-2013 season Fenwick data over time? You can do it here. Just choose “Team Fenwick by Situation” then choose “TBL” under Team and “Close” under situation. From the FAQ: “Metrics available are for teams, individual players, even strength goals against and then the cumulative Fenwick by date throughout the season – starting from February 18, 2013.” The date issue means that the first month is not part of this data, so keep that in mind. (Guy Boucher’s last game was March 23rd. Jon Cooper’s first game was March 29th.)
Meanwhile, BoltStatistics.com has debuted their searchable “statcaps’ in their ongoing work backwards through the 2012-2013 season. Pretty cool. You can see how individual players are doing in various areas.
Funnies
richcluneshow
Rich Clune wrote us a poem OK
And Kyle Alexander (@kalexanderSM101) tweeted out the following the other night.
Watch your faceoffs, people.
