Herzlich Willkommen » ke said. This tournament is no

This story was tired during round 2, but the media keeps hammering it like it has the narrative of a Philip Roth novel. The passing of St. Louis mother was tragic, as is any unexpected death. Or death in general. Death is tragic. Thats why tragedies end in death. This is a narrative trope older than the playoff beard. But did it "galvanize" the Rangers efforts? Perhaps. But when reporters answer their own questions by asking players, "Did the passing of Martys mum bring this team closer together?" the story is being written and not reported. Its one of the tragic flaws of sports journalism. Additionally, part of the story being left out is how St. Louis sulked like a petulant child when not named to Canadas Olympic team, played poorly when added to the squad justifying managements decision to leave him off in the first place as he did not fit into their system, and then forced his trade to New York. Good player and teammate? Maybe. Virtuous hero of a tragic narrative? Hardly.Celebrities(Source: FameFlynet Pictures)Welcome to TMZs NHL final. With the Stanley Cup being played in New York and Los Angeles, the opportunity presents itself for endless celeb spotting. Coverage will no doubt be tirelessly freckled with shots of Robert De Niro, Michael J. Fox, and Wayne Gretzkys daughter. "Oh hey, look! Its venerable character actor ?eljko Ivanek! He watches hockey just like a normal person!" I fully expect at least one, if not two, Scott Oake "Inside Hockey" features on Matthew Perrys beer league for displaced Canadians in L.A. If somehow Jay-Zed and Beyoncé make it rinkside, NHL media types might actually spontaneously combust, leaving a trail of iPhones and unwritten columns about who will play Marty St. Louis in the movie version of the postseason smoldering in the press box.Major Markets(Source: cgodley - Hollywood Reporter)Yes, L.A. and New York are the two largest media markets in the league, so ratings for this final should get a bump from years past, at least stateside. But in actuality, a Stanley Cup final on NBCSN 7 or whoever it is who televises hockey poorly in the United States these days still rates lower than a Reba marathon on CMT. Add in the fact that the NBA finals feature a rematch of last years epic Heat-Spurs series, a compelling Lebron as Jordan narrative, and the dichotomy of the Heats talents in South Beach and the Spurs team first philosophy, some Americans might not even find time to watch Reba. Certainly a major market clash is good for the NHL, and good for hockey. But it wont be the epic sea change in the sports national visibility and popularity that the media will portray it as.Canadians (Source: nhl.com/kings)In the absence of Canadian teams in the final, the nationalist hockey media will do its best to attach Canada to the series narrative as best they can. Theyll count the amount of Canadians on each team. Theyll do a feature on the Sutters, how theyre cheering on Darryl from Viking, but cant make it to the games because the spring crop needs a plantin. There will be mention of how many Canadian Olympians are on each team. Stephen Harper will somehow make an appearance. Therell be something about a loonie at centre ice. And, of course, the annual Bettman-MacLean smug-off where Ron will ask about Quebec City and Gary will wish he were still with the NBA. If it goes 7 games, the contrived Canadiana will get thicker than a beer commercial. The Unmentioned(Source: Dirk Shadd - Times)The final will be notable not just for the tired recycled stories of rounds past, but also the issues facing hockey that will not be mentioned. Sure, a wedding isnt the place to discuss your partners flaws, but during its second biggest moment of the year (to the inexplicably popular outdoor games) certainly some of the sports challenges could be included in the pre-game and intermission discourse. It would be interesting, and beneficial, to have the pundits debate why fighting barely exists in the playoffs yet is apparently crucial to the game, if Zenon Konopkas PED use is an isolated case or hockeys dirty little secret, or have an open dialogue about concussion protocol, or the lack thereof, especially in the postseason. And Dominic Moores story is a truly heartbreaking tale, but some moment should be found to mention how it has been ten years since Todd Bertuzzi ended his brothers career, how Dominic was at times ostracized from NHL circles because of it, and how the case has yet to go to trial. But, you know, Don Cherry trying to pronounce Anze Kopitar is interesting in its own way.The Stanley Cup final matchup promises an entertaining series. Both the Rangers and Kings are built around speed, hard forechecking, and timely goaltending. There will be plenty of stories that will grow organically. This is the beauty of sport; the story writes itself, and that story will be best told if its storytellers eschew the contrived and indulge in its evolution. Brandon Allen Rams Jersey . The Austrian ski federation said Morgenstern was "conscious and well responsive" and his condition would be monitored in the intensive care unit of a Salzburg hospital for the next 72 hours. The federation said it was "way too early" to judge Morgensterns chances of competing in Sochi, and that an update on his condition was not expected before Monday. Brandon Allen Jersey . Not bad for a defenceman. The goal, that is. Although the shuffling dance steps werent bad, either. Barrie scored 55 seconds into overtime, Semyon Varlamov stopped 29 shots, and the Avalanche moved a step closer to their first playoff berth in four years with a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night. http://www.footballramsshop.us/. A rainy day saw the former champion Djokovic handle 14th-seeded Frenchman Jo- Wilfried Tsonga 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) under the roof on the famed Centre Court. Aqib Talib Jersey .com) - P.K. Subbans power-play goal 4:08 into overtime sent the Montreal Canadiens into the All-Star break with a 2-1 win over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday. Brian Allen Rams Jersey . Pospisil, whose season-ending goal is to improve his ATP Tour ranking enough to qualify for one of the 32 seedings at Januarys Australian Open, dominated Karlovic in 59 minutes. The world No. 40 never faced a break point and limited the big mans threatening ace count to a mere eight, while striking five key aces of his own.Rob Blake remembers what it was like to get the call from Hockey Canada to play in the world championship the day after his season with the Los Angeles Kings ended. Blake donned the red-and-white Maple Leaf five times at the tournament over his career, winning gold twice. This spring hell be making those calls as Canadas general manager for the world championship that takes place in May in Minsk, Belarus. Because its an Olympic year, Blake and his staff -- Ron Hextall of the Philadelphia Flyers, Brad Treliving of the Phoenix Coyotes and Brad Pascall of Hockey Canada -- might have some different challenges convincing players to commit. But the 44-year-old Kings assistant GM knows what to sell. "I cant stress how important the opportunity to win is," Blake said in a phone interview Wednesday. "I convey to them what the world championships is all about. ... You look at your career and it goes by pretty fast. Theres not a lot of opportunities you have to win something." Blake represented Canada at the world championship in 1998, months after playing in the Nagano Olympics. "Being in that position and having won a couple of those tournaments, you can relate those stories to (potential players)," Blake said. Canada, like many other teams at the world championship, is expected to have a young roster in Minsk because its an Olympic year. Not only does that likely rule out the players who won gold in Sochi (Corey Perry was the only 2010 Olympian to play at the worlds), but Treliving said there are other complications. "Its a little bit unique in the sense not only from an Olympic year and the guys that went over and played, but even from the NHL schedule and the compactness of the NHL schedule, for everybody, including those who didnt go over and play," he said in a phone interview. Four years ago, Canadas group at the world championships included 18-year-old Evander Kane, 19-year-olds Matt Duchene and John Tavares and 20-year-old Steven Stamkos. Expect similar youth this time around. "I think its going to be very similar to the teams in the past," Blake said. "The young guys are the ones that make an easy commitment. They dont have the family commitment, the kids commitment and different things that as you get older you might have involved in this type of decision. I think, typically, younger guys are the ones and then you surround them with the right veterans and you can have some success." One thing Blake, Hextall and Treliving have in common is theyre all general managers of their organizations AHL affiliate, giving them some experience with younger players. Blake is in his first season as Kings assistant GM, replacing Hextall, who took the same job in Philadelphia. Treliving is in his seventh season as the Coyotes assistant GM. "Blakeys been around the game a long time," Hextall said. "Hes a very patient guy, hes methodical and hes very sharp. I know he had a hand in a world championship team in the past, so Im sure that little bit of experience helps him." Along with Pascall, Hockey Canadas vice president of hockey operations and national teams, those men will have conference calls over the next few weeks to discuss putting together a coaching staaff and then a projected roster.dddddddddddd That process has already begun. "I think youve got to look at teams that are not likely to make the playoffs and see whats available and at least get your mind going and start thinking about line combinations and checkers and energy guys and scorers," Hextall said in a phone interview. "Its never too early to start thinking." The immediate next step for the management team is to zero in on coaches. Ralph Krueger, who served as a coaching consultant in Sochi, and Kevin Dineen, who coached the womens team to gold and will be behind the bench for the mens under-18 world championships next month, have been speculated as possible options. Either would fit with what Blake said in general terms hes looking for. "I think part of that staff should have some experience overseas, whether it be coaching over there, coaching an international tournament at some time or being involved on a staff," he said. "Its a different tournament, its not the same as over here. I think some of that experience in scheduling wise, knowing some of the teams and tendencies of those countries and obviously with the setup and that all being different than North America, its nice to have somebody with some experience on that." Part of this tournament is getting experience, for the players, coaches and members of the management staff. Blake, Hextall and Treliving are all legitimate candidates for head GM jobs in the not-too-distant future. Experience already gained in NHL front offices is key now. "I think you learn, its one thing to build a team over a long haul and what you have to do is use everything youve learned over the long haul to try and put a team together for the short term," said Hextall, who played in the 1987 Canada Cup and the 1992 world championship. "I think its more lessons Ive learned from NHL experience that Ill be able to lend a hand in trying to help Blake and Brad build this team." Getting this job also raises the possibility that Blake could be GM of Team Canada at the 2018 Olympics, if NHL players participate. Steve Yzerman has already said its time for someone else to fill that role after winning back-to-back gold medals. "Thats a long ways down the line," Blake said. This tournament is not a long ways down the line, as Canada opens play May 9 against France. Blake already has some preliminary lists of potential players and will go through the process in the next few weeks of scouting and evaluating for those spots. Hell get some help in that regard not only from Hextall, Treliving and Pascall, but former NHL defenceman Steve Staios, who is the teams director of player development. Staios is then expected to assist the coaching staff on and off the ice in Minsk, perhaps similar to what Kruegers job was in the Olympics. Everything worked for Canada there, and even though the worlds in an Olympic year tend to be something of an afterthought, theyre far from that for those in charge of trying to win gold. "Any time you go and compete as Team Canada, the expectation is to win," Treliving said. "Obviously thats the expectation, thats the challenge for us and the goal for us putting this team together." 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