matthurray

Ah.. the advantages of waking up at 6am and reading the messageboard. I hold all the secrets! Hurray for sobriety!

I'll give you this: Bret Hull had one of the most amazing shots of all time. Nary a star of the 1990s could compare with that shot. But that was the 90s...how about this to stir the pot: Better shot: Bret Hull or Mike Bossy? Now there is a debate. Comparing Yzerman to Hull is comparing apples to oranges, but this is a more relevant comparison. I'd love to hear from the new NYI fan.

boo self righteous homers of an overrated player. Hooray Beer! I will go back to not watching hockey now.

You win the argument just for making this point. This was the point of the decade! I love the new NHL. Sidney Crosby is of course my new love child. But I think the mid 90's offered a lot of star quality players like Hull, Yzerman, Messier, Gretzky, Lemieux, etc, that today's NHL can't match. But give it time! The new NHL has some crazy young talent that is going to develop into a league of new crazy stars.

I'm from Pittsburgh and Mario was always my favorite, but he doens't need any ceremonies. He was inducted into the HoF after his 97 retirement, bypassing the waiting period. Then when he returned, he had a damn fine welcome back party (his 1st game back was pretty much the happiest day of my life). But the last few years, he missed most of his games with injury. Last year, he looked absolutely terrible on the ice when he did play... his skating was not up to par on any level. It was best that he left quietly, he didn't need any more fanfare. I think Stevie Y is better than Hullie. Hull had 3 terrific years with Adam Oates, but beyond that, I don't think he matches what Yzerman has done.

By chance, was hokkee himself the next 10 people in line to replace coaches? I think next season, we should have a league entirely coached by him.

I would like to be the 1st to shake his limp, singular hand.

This has nothing to do with any league format, but I just would like to inform you Magus that: you won't get your butt kicked in the B league. You have this perception that you are the scum of the NHL94 earth, and it is not true. BSDaemon makes a great point; if you join the C-league and go 40-0, you will not get any better. You will continue to flounder against A-league players. But if you are in a league like the B-league where most games will be tight, and you may only win half the games at first, you will improve your play. From what I am hearing, this is what you desire to do. Take advice from people who have been at this for a while, they know what they are talking about. And for God Sakes man, quit trying to make it sound like you are a mentally retarded one-armed pirate that can barely pick up a controller! Having played you plenty of times, it is my personal guaruntee that you are fine for the B-league. now... continue with your discussion

Then the question remains..... Steve Yzerman, or Mark Messier. CHOOSE!

A promotion / relegation system has potential to be a solid idea. How would you work it out though? Would you automatically swap the bottom 2 A leaguers and top 2 B leaguers every month? If so, would someone who is dominating the B league want to leave that success behind to be a bottom tier A leaguer? Does anyone want to leave the NHL 94 team they had ownership of? - I'm just playing devil's advocate, hoping to hear some well thought out ideas. p.s. For the most part Magus, you have been facing lower to middle (and some higher) tier A league competion in the draft league. So I have no worries that you or anyone who is familiar with the game would be able to put up a fight in the B league game. The only people that might get trounced night in and night out would be people relatively new to the game, or casual gamers that have only played against the computer. If that is the case, maybe that type of player does need a separate league, like an exhibition league for beginner players.

Are the skill levels so diverse where an actual C league is needed? I believe league commitment may be a problem if you diversify the talent too much. You might find that only small fraction of the C league teams will be available to play games on a regular basis. It looks like the talent level for B league this year was appropriate for online beginners. The more leagues you develop, the less dependable players in any league. Yet, I do not know how many individuals are interested in signing up... judging by all the new people who visit the message boards, maybe a C league will be necessary anyways? I'm intereste in knowing about that.

I'll back up hokkee. I messaged Rob B today for a game...he signed off without response. This is typical. Sorry to be impolite, but he isn't keeping up with the rest of the league. There is no reason to give him a 2nd chance, he already had it a few weeks ago. Sorry Rob.

I will most likely be unavailable from this Friday until the New Years. hopefully I have played enough games as of current so that this isn't a problem for the league. -Matt

Borque is good.. but he doesn't tear up a game like Roenick or Yzerman. Pierre Turgeon is good, but there are 20-30 players on the same level as him. Angryjay's point of the top few teams getting the relatively few 1st tier players is quite valid, but the draft league does smooth things out so that there is more balance. Despite all of the original rom H8ters, I still am a fan of it, and I enjoy the setup of Evan's leagues. Having a Chicago or Detroit is an advantage, but equalizing the playing field IS LIKE PUTTING RESTRICTOR PLATES ON NASCAR VEHICLES!!!!!!!!! oh baby, did my point come shining through?

Yo Rob... I see you online almost every day, so I got your back there, but I'm not lying about sending you IMs on 5 or so separate occasions and not getting a reply. Maybe you should try upgrading your IM, because it seems a lot of people are having the same problem with you. Anyways, I look forward to connecting with you and playing with you when your finals are over. and I hope your IM works - from some smug kid with not life and no sac

You will get tons of different advice from different people. Everyone has their own style of play and you will have to find yours. Here is some advice from me. If your oppononent can't shoot the puck, they can't score. Thus, Defense is very important. Don't switch your control from player to player all the time trying to check people, that wil just open up lanes for the offense. Choose one player, cement yourself in the center to clog up one timers, and make hits on the boards when you can. The A and B button's are very effective in getting your opponent off the puck. other bits: - goalie control, learn it to prevent skate across goals and some slappers - learn to deke the goalie on offense - slappers from the top of the circles are a high percentage shot The best advice is to just watch what your opponent does, and try to emulate it. I think I lost 12 straight or soemthing close to it when I first joined the NHL94 Online League, but I started figuring out stuff by watching my opponent. Don't get frustrated at any point, you definately will learn this stuff!

Ok thanks for the update. p.s. When will RobB speak?

I've IMed RobB probably 6 or 7 times since the league started, and have not received a response from him at all. I am wondering if this is a trend? I can see that he is playing some of his games, so he must be getting in touch with people somehow. So if you get this RobB, send me an IM so we can play our games. And JJ2k and Eddiesaurusrex, 2 guys that I don't see online much, hit me up so we can play.

Nice to have you aboard, Paul. Do you have an IM name so people can reach you to hook up some games and get you started?

moral of the story: join the gens league, where the real magic happens

seconded

Hey, it looks like I neglected to double check and we played our game incorrectly. I was supposed to be home and you were supposed to be away, so I can't upload the file. I am going to hold onto the file so I will be able to upload that game, but if you are around, we still have to play the game where I am home and you are away.

I know I'd be pretty angry if a guy ran the clock out on me... it seems like a cowardly way to get a win. However, this is just like the issue of the "skate-across" goal. It may be considered a cheap way of playing, but it is totally legitamit. Some guys will do what they have to to win, and this is one strategy that can work. Even though you won't find me skating for 2-3 minutes for the win, I would back it up as legit.

Thanks for the post Addison, I appreciate the comments. It takes a lot to warm my surly Ebenezer Scrooge heart. EricAnthony and I talked and we settled the issue. He is definately showing so far he is one of the top guys when it comes to commitment to any league he is in, and I hope more guys like him start joining the community. Our issue is dead, so there is no need to continue this discussion.

can we start the bidding at 1 million dollars?