Rich

I don't know if its the way they did his hair or the greying they added to it, but when I see Ben Affleck, I actually think George Clooney, and that is a bad Batman history to resurrect. I think it is the shot 33 seconds into that youtube video above that does it.

Teams aren't as likely to trade for Stafford, Perreault and Thorburn as they aren't rentals and it means they need cap room next year and beyond. The salary ramifications make the trade much more complicated to make. There is a reason it is rare to see trades for these types of players at the deadline. Man does it get tiring reading the constant posts about trading the whole team this year. If you trade all the vets and replace them with picks and rookies next year, guess what? The team is going to suck again next year and the cycle will return where everyone wants to trade every ageing player again. Picks and prospects are nice but they don't payoff until 2 - 4 years down the road.

Roster bonuses were put in to avoid teams bringing a player to training camp, even if they knew he wasn't going to make the team, only to cut him at the end of it knowing full well it would be harder for another team to pick him up at that time of the year. By putting a roster bonus at the beginning of the year, the team is committing to the player to be there throughout the season. Yes, it sucks to get cut, but at least with a roster bonus, if the date of it is done properly (hello Muamba), there is a good chance you can get signed with another team. Can't see the agents and players giving these up so easily.

So by this logic, There is no issue with TBURGESS using his own name. He just needs to change the number. Personal preference, but I wouldn't put my own name on a jersey, but I have no issue with people who do. I do find as I get older, I find it tougher and tougher to put the name of a current Bomber on my jersey. Not sure if it is because it seems weird when they are all now younger then me, or because there is no "long term" player to spend that kind of money on. Last Bomber jersey I bought was Muamba in his rookie season. Since he left, I've been wearing a retro Walby. No idea who I would get if I were to buy a new one.

Any professional organization should have a QA process that reviews changes like this on their website before they are released to the public. Unless of course the schedule the web people were given was flawed to begin with, then your QA process is kind of meaningless.

What is weird is his NMC didn't kick in until this season started. They could have traded him last off season.

Not a fan of it either. The new formatting makes it very difficult to highlight to copy and paste the details of the schedule. The formatting separates everything too much to really compare and look at a global view of it. It is similar to the new NHL.com. I think they wanted to format the websites in such a way that it presents well on both mobile and desktop. Unfortunately, that makes the desktop experience poorer.

I don't think that stops them from shrinking. That may stop wear and tear on the logo and lettering. The amount of water and heat will be the same if they are inside out or not. Let them air dry instead of putting them in the dryer and washing them in cold water will stop them from shrinking (ie. stay away from heat).

Big difference between Stamkos and Ladd in their age. in 6 years Stamkos will be 32 and well within that range where experience can make up for whatever declines age starts to give you. Hell, Stamkos is really just entering his prime as he just turned 26. in 6 years Ladd will be on the wrong side of 35.

http://www.torontosun.com/2015/12/19/stamkos-slams-rumors-about-leaving-tampa

Maybe I'm jaded but I don't put any faith into anything a public person says to the media. You keep getting hung up on this "I want to help the team" quote and using that as the foundation of why you think he is in the wrong here. And to me, that is just such a small part of the whole thing. Maybe it was a poor choice of words to say instead of blurting out whatever is really going on there. But to me, that is just keeping what is private and behind closed doors out of the media, which it should be.

I never said he was a wonderful person either. I've never met him. I really don't know one way or the other. Though I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt and assume they are wonderful people until proven otherwise. There are some athletes who are always in the media for the wrong reasons and you get the feeling that you can somewhat judge their character over repeated patterns. I've never seen or heard any of that with Stamkos. I would think if there were character issues there, they would have come out at some point before for an athlete of his stature and the spotlight he gets put under. So when something like this comes up, it seems like a more likely scenario to me that something has transpired behind the scenes between both parties that has soured the relationship. And without knowing what that is, I'm not quite so quick to put the 'jerk' tag on him. Maybe more information will come into light down the road on other things he has done or why their relationship has come to this point. But until then, in my opinion calling him a jerk isn't warranted.

Just in case it flew over your head, yes I tried to "judge" you in that post in the exact same way you are doing to Stamkos to illustrate the point of it. Didn't feel very good. Did it?

Disagree completely on him being a jerk. Tampa is a legit contender this year. It isn't like they are cellar dwellers. Maybe he wants one last shot to win it with current teammates As for the rest. I believe it to be pretty ignorant to pass judgement on someone's character without walking in his shoes or really knowing the situation. You May be right. Maybe he really wants to be vindictive for no reason. Maybe they've screwed with him or disrespected him in ways where he feels justified in what he is doing. You would never take a legal opportunity to mess with an employer who has wronged you in the past? I don't know why but you strike me as the vindictive type when someone wrongs you. I've never heard of any character issues with him in the past and I don't find it right to slap the jerk label on him for this one incident when we have no idea what has gone on behind closed doors. Pretty easy to judge and stand on a pedestal when you are this far away from the situation without really knowing what has gone on.

The thing is, even practice roster players in the NFL make a minimum of $6,600 US per week. Over and 18 week schedule, that is $119,00 ($162,000 Canadian). That number goes way up if he gets on a roster or negotiates a higher practice roster salary. The downside (if he gets signed) is about the same or a little less then he would make in the CFL. The upside is huge compared to what he could get in the CFL. Sometimes players need to ask themselves if they want to be a big fish in a small pond or see what they can do against the best of the best. I can't fault anyone for chasing the NFL. He needs to judge how realistic a chance he has of actually getting a roster or PR spot.

TB didn't have to give him a NM clause. They did. Stamkos is well within his right to exercise it. Having the NHL mandate NMC out of the final year is silly. It doesn't affect the whole league like the front loaded or 15 year contracts were, so it makes no sense for a league wide ban. GM's and teams have to be accountable for their own decisions and actions. You shouldn't need league wide rules to prevent you from being stupid. Being stupid should get you fired and not re-hired somewhere else. As for Stamkos being classless, I don't agree. He negotiated that clause into his contract in good faith. We have no idea what or if he conceded anything to get it. The way contract negotiations go, I'm going to assume he did, because that is typically how they work. You give, they give. So I don't begrudge him to exercise what he negotiated to get. With the draft, restricted free agency, arbitration, the decision on how and who gets traded, and all of that, teams hold much more power in the life of an NHL player then the player themselves. In this case the player holds the power. That is rare. Maybe this is a negotiation ploy to get more money from Tampa Bay to sign there. In which case, good on him. Maybe he has already made up his mind that he is going to be leaving Tampa Bay, in which case Tampa Bay will become an opposition team next year. Why would he want to do anything to help strengthen an opponent next year? Once a team decides they are moving on from a player, they don't give him a bonus for a job well done. He is cut / traded / or not re-signed. Professional sports is a cut throat business. Players get can get left out in the cold mercilessly. No one calls the team classless when this happens. They are applauded because a player was replaced with someone younger or better. This is a rare case where the player holds more power then the team. Would I hate it if a player did this to the Jets? Yes. Would I think and call him classless? No. It is really just business and it would be the fault of the GM who gave him the contract. Not the player. There I explained it.

I don't think they are mutually exclusive. I would be ecstatic if we won the Grey Cup in our current jerseys (or any jersey). I would still be happier if we won the Grey Cup in the Royal Blues. And the other issue here that no one is talking about is merchandising sales. I personally will not buy another jersey in the current colour scheme. I wouldn't but a new jersey if they chose puke colours. I would probably buy a new jersey if they went back to the Royal Blues. And that matters to the club whether they win the Grey Cup or not.

Unfortunately the current NHL and NCAA rules regarding these players are not conducive to this. First because NCAA athletes are not allowed to accept professional money in any capacity, they can't even be given a plane ticket and lodging to attend NHL training camp. They basically need to pay their way to training camps themselves, even if they are going "for the experience" and have little chance to make the team. Second, an NHL team is at risk of losing the rights to an NCAA player if they go unsigned for too long. It is something like if they aren't signed a year after their 4th year (or when they get their degree or something like that), then the player becomes a free agent. So a player who stays at College to finish his degree doesn't have to wait very long to circumvent all the RFA rules and gets to pick where he wants to play, and for more money then a typical RGA contract. So this puts NHL clubs in a position to pressure these players to sign early and before they finish their degrees. The NHL teams want them in their system, with their trainers and training camp to make sure their development progresses. Also they will dangle NHL contracts / money to have them leave college early so they don't risk losing their draft picks for nothing. As more and more NCAA players make their way to the NHL, both the NHL and NCAA need to revamp these rules for the benefit of the young players.

Apparently Kane spoke to the media today. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/video/kane-it-was-irresponsible-and-i-take-full-accountability~809411 At this point your actions speak louder than your words.

His last stint here he was also HC which brings with it a whole bunch of other responsibilities during and in between the game. The last time he was OC, his team made it to the Grey Cup and he ran the 2nd best offence in the league by points per game.

Trade Pavs if you can get a decent return. And if you aren't comfortable with Helle / Comrie / Hutch next season, sign a vet as a backup for a year or two. I would personally be fine with Helle Hutch next season and let Comrie continue to get experience with the Moose.

1-11-2 since Jan 10 and currently sitting outside a playoff spot.

Yes.