Don't change the subject; Franzen with the hat trick. <--

By the way, the Oklahoma City Barons are the Edmonton Oilers' farm team. I went to one game late last year (when they played Detroit's farm team, the Grand Rapids Griffins), and plan on going to my first of this season over the weekend.

AHL is some good hockey. The previous OKC team (the Blazers) were CHL...which was really boring, except for more fighting.

Hahaa. You know that it's a pretty fucking awesome fight when the goalies are going at it!

It also helps to know the history behind that fight; it was Lemieux's first trip back to Detroit, after smashing Draper's face into the boards in the previous year's playoffs, which broke his jaw and destroyed his face. Colorado went on to put the Wings out of the playoffs (after the Wings had set the regular-season record for most wins in a season), and win the Stanley Cup that year. Wings fans were salivating at him getting pummeled; I watched that live, and was jumping around the room, celebrating like a giddy schoolgirl.

The Wings went on to get revenge in this game and in the finals that year, winning the Stanley Cup that year and the next one; the last time a team won the Cup two years in a row.

I have to say of all the canadian teams I hate Edmonton the least.


Also fuck the Wings.

Really? whats with all of the Claude Lem hating? That dude was great. One of the best pests ever, scored more goals in playoffs then in the season AND spawned off one of the greatest rivalries in NHL history.

I would argue he brought the rivalry to a boiling point, but there's history before that (Roy in particular). But....he was a pest, so you can't really be all that shocked that there's some haters. Myself included...except when he was on my team.

Red Wings fans hate Claude Lemieux more than any player I am aware of. It mainly stems from his cheap shot on Draper in the '96 playoffs where he smashed his face against the dasher, breaking his jaw, shattering his cheek and orbital bone (requiring reconstructive surgery) and putting him out of the series. Here it is:




On top of that, the dude would constantly try to fight little guys, and refuse challenges by people his own size. Watch him follow Kozlov (who was a little guy that never fought) around in this clip from the following year, even taking a swipe at him with the stick. The announcers even remark at the time that he won't ever take on anyone his own size:




Yeah, he was a hell of a playoff performer, but he was also a dirty player that only wanted to fuck with little guys or non-fighters.

I remember this fight. The Wings-Avs rivalry was one of the best in the late 90's.

But now the Wings have Bertuzzi.


The hatred continues.

Thanks for the context! I didn't know the context at the time, but thought it was an awesome brawl.

Claude Lemieux was one of the dirtiest players to play hockey in quite some time. It's fitting that Lemieux turtled when McCarty was pummeling him, because the thing about Lemieux is that he was a physical player, but when it came down to it, all he was really was just an agitator that couldn't back up his actions when it went too far. I seem to remember him getting wailed in more than a few fights, and you'd think that he'd be up for a good scrap, but really, he could dish it out and couldn't handle it usually when it came back on him. What a fucking pussy. If you want to be physical, that's great. But if you make dirty hits and injure people intentionally, don't suddenly get cold feet and play dumb when someone wants to kick your ass.

Yep. This. And this is coming from an Av's fan.

Shit. Crutch is making me want to respect an Avalanche fan. COGNITIVE DISSONANCE SUCKS

Enjoy Bertuzzi fuck ass! ;)

See, plenty of hatred without Claude the turtle boy.

I like Bertuzzi!

Granted, I can never defend his actions on that one night, but unlike Claude...he doesn't have a history of cheap-shots and cowardice. Let's see Claude do this:

How many games did Draper play after the Lemieux hit?

How many games did Moore play after the Bertuzzi hit?

I'll take Claude over Todd any day.

Loved the flyers response to tampa...just wow.

Not a bad point for sure, and Bertuzzi's actions on that night were undeniably ugly. However, I definitely don't think his intentions were to paralyze the guy, nor was he as consistently as dirty and dishonorable as Lemieux, so take that as you wish. It was more of a one-time thing that went really wrong, but still can't be easily dismissed. But Bertuzzi has fought some tough customers, and didn't have a habit of chasing little Europeans around while refusing fights with dudes his own size.

The hit on Draper could have just as easily been a career-ender as the hit on Moore. Both were cheap shots from behind, and it's not just the outcome that determines how dishonorable the hit was. If Draper were paralyzed right now (which is a distinct possibility if you watch that clip), then there would be no distinction.

It was a smart way to beat the 1-3-1 zone defense Tampa uses. Unfortunately it wasn't enough since they lost in overtime.

Seriously? and was?..he still does questionable stuff. He boarded one of the caps players after the whistle just a month ago.

My point is that people can call these types of players disgrace to hockey or whatever, but they make/made spectacles of games building up passions and everything else, which to me, is better entertainment. I was realllll upset when they sent avery to the minors, just because he's sean fucking avery. Those guys bring in a crazy element that I think is good for the game, not a bad thing.

I feel ya there man. Claude isn't a disgrace to hockey, I just don't care for the guy.

But yeah, it's all entertaining.

Sean Avery, on the other hand, is a horse of a difference color. He's content to play the villain and knows god damn well what he is doing and is far better at it that Claude was.

To each their own, but I think Avery belongs in the minors. He's already earned the title of circus clown long ago, and I don't think he helps the game (at least not in the way I want it to be seen). I don't think 'any attention is good attention' in regard to NHL hockey. I don't want it to turn into the spectacle that some other pro sports are.

A couple of other facts I remember about that Wings-Avs game that Lemiux got pummeled in:
McCarty scored the OT winner, and he probably should have been thrown out of the game for attacking Lemiux, or at least giving him the knee.
After McCarty scored the goal, Roy slid the puck down to Vernon, 'cause it was his 300th win.
If memory serves, it was Larionov that got the fighting started, maybe against Forsberg? Maybe Kozlov? It wasn't one of Detroit's tough guys.
Back then, I was a huge Konstantinov fan, but I don't think he mixed it up much in that game, or had any earthshaking hits?

I remember all the events leading up to that game, and we all gathered around my TV to watch the rematch that night. We figured something would happen, but we didn't think it would be as spectacular as it was.

Also remember a couple years prior to that when Cam Neely gave Lemiux the bum rush into the boards. I think Lemiux had given Neely a cheap shot to the knee a year before, which essentially ended his career early.

A while back I posted a link to a show that McCarty and Lemiux were together talking about the fight and all. They basically have made up and are on good terms with each other. I think Lemiux reached out to McCarty when his dad died, and that laid the groundwork for their friendship.

If memory serves correctly, not only did McCarty get the game-winner, but Detroit came back TWICE from 2-goal deficits to finally win that game.




I did not know that. I have always hated Roy, but that's a classy move if he did it.




Larionov and Forsberg, and it was because Forsberg took some liberties with him. It really wasn't much of anything...Larionov tried to punch him once they were tied up, and then Forsberg took him to the ice and that was it.

This is going to be one long fucking Avs season.