In 1996..

[feivelclark]

I'm watching the 1996 world cup of hockey...

and it seems like the refs are blind.

No not because they arent call happy like in today's NHL

but because the players get away with such ridiculous blatant things that it is silly to call anything.

Smolinsky freaking jumps onto Shanahan's back and pulls him down to the ice in game 1 and there is no call.

On Claude Lemeuix's go ahead goal to make it three two the defenseman is quite blatantly slashing him across the chest.

There is also alot of ON and OFF the play hooking, and straight up holding and sometimes even crosschecking which gets no calls.

Was this something that was common in all of the NHL or was this just in the tournament?

How can you have rules and not call blatant violations against them?

[TruePensFan1981]

It was worse in the days of Gordie Howe and Maurice "Rocket" Richard. The stickwork players did to one another was gruesome.

Now, as for what you see in 1996? It was quite common in the NHL; in fact, TOO COMMON. Some of the more memorable ones are Svehla cross-checking Lemieux (Mario) in the face after a whistle. Players were hooking and slashing each other all the time with the sticks.

The most disgusting act I saw was Gary Suter delivering a flying cross-check into Paul Kariya's face... roughly about 4-5 seconds (no, I'm NOT exaggerating) after Kariya scored his goal! After that despicable act, Kariya suffered post-concussion syndrome.

It was amazing what the refs allowed players to get away with. It was no wonder that players such as Gretzky, Lemieux, Hull, and Roenick hated the officiating! The NHL was a garage league that wanted hockey to become a combination of mud-wrestling and mobster-bat-swinging.

Of course, idiot fans in those days called those superstars "babies" for complaining about the officiating. But the reality is that the NHL let players nearly get away with murder on the ice on a frequent basis. Those players didn't complain about the physicality of the game, as they were always good at shaking off checks (Lemieux with his strength to drag defenders on his back and Gretzky with his ability to roll off checks and also make people miss him). Those star players could deal with the checks; they just didn't like the extra bullshit that the league let everybody get away with. The NHL's players swung more wood than the MLB that season!

I liked the NHL better in the 80s and early 90s. Back in those days, goalie pads had GOALIE PADS, not sumo wrestling gear. The game was more physical and had less stick-swinging than what you saw in the mid-90s. Nowadays, it's almost a crime to hit anybody (unless you're Ovechkin, in which case it's okay to take runs at players with your constant charging). If anybody other than Ovechkin hits you today, then you are babied by the league.

I say the NHL's glory years are between 1981-1993. It's a shame those days might be gone forever.

It's a shame to see the NHL go from what once was a great game into today's garbage. The inconsistency with the officiating and the discipline is just downright horrid. I was blown away by the fact that Ryan Bayda did not get suspended after those deliberate cross-checks to Letang's face in the playoffs; however, the NHL wasted no time in suspending Daniel Carcillo and Milan Lucic for what were LOVE TAPS compared to what Bayda did. The NHL should apologize to Carcillo and Lucic for being hypocrites.

I'm also sick and tired of seeing so many people dive in the NHL today. Sure, diving has always been a part of the sport, but it's more prevalent today than ever before (Crosby bashers need not participate in this thread, and should just shut up rather than spewing their mindless garbage).

I hate seeing a guy like Crosby get his nose dirty by hustling for the puck with his in-your-face style of play, only to get penalized because somebody decides to HOLD HIS STICK and act like they were hooked. I hate moronic fans who think Crosby is a diver just because he draws penalties (he draws penalties because he gets in your face and takes an awful lot of abuse in games). If you want to talk about divers, then look no further than Alexander Semin, Darcy Tucker, and Scott Hartnell. Take note that I did not mention Ovechkin, as he isn't a diver. Semin, on the other hand, IS a diver.

Even more laughable is that the NHL is very apprehensive about officially stating that there should be a ban on blows to the head!

I still shake my head in disbelief and laugh whenever a ref penalizes a player for hooking, and then penalizes the hooking victim for diving! I see moments in games nowadays that have me convinced the refs make "makeup calls". I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but the refs nowadays make the dumbest non-calls and the dumbest calls!

I will continue to watch NHL hockey, as I love hockey. I always will love hockey! But nevertheless, I am saddened by what garbage the NHL has become. It is still a fun and entertaining sport, but with many serious flaws today.

[feivelclark]

I hear you.

But he freaking jumped onto his back and the announcer says "Shanahan picks it up. Gets bulldogged by Smolinski"

as if that is what is supposed to happen.

If I had been Shanahan I would have decked Smolinski and then decked the ref.

[The Russian Rocket]

well... Pens fan... i'm sorry but before this season... i think Crosby wasn't as much as in your face as he is. Tough he truly was that in these playoffs. As for the Bayda thing, it was penalized for Lucic, because Boston in that game was trying to really intimitade the habs, and the play had nothing worth even shoving lapierre, as for Carcillo, it was because it's in late game, useless, game is over, and most proeminent, both of these guys are reputed for that kind of stuff, a thing bayda isn't. But i still get the point.

As for a player myself, i've been enjoying hockey more than ever since the new rules, as it affected the minor leagues also. As a power forward, i no longer get butchered up net, or getting slashed/hooked/cross checked in the process of driving the net. Now even Goalies get penalized for slashing guys, something that would have never ever happened a few years ago. So i say it's a good thing, having trigger happy referees, the KEY tough is CONSISTANCY. I don't mind seeing the whistle disapear OT playoff time, just be constant in the no-calls.

As for the Diving+Hooking combination. Sometimes, a guy hooks the other guy, but the other guy, just lets himself fall. So he was still hooked, but fell down like a sissy to trigger a penalty. I think it's alright

[clockwise]

It's a sport where men have knives laced to their feet and are armed with clubs.. It's a miracle no ones killed every game. Having read a lot of literature about the game from the 40's and 50's the last 15 years or so are velvet glove.

Anyone who want's to know about the stone age of hockey should have Dale Hunter on speed dial.. He set hockey back ten years every time he took the ice.. Pretty sure his commode has a penalty box around it at home so he feels comfortable.

As I type this Pierre Turgeon's ears are probably ringing.

[TruePensFan1981]

well... Pens fan... i'm sorry but before this season... i think Crosby wasn't as much as in your face as he is. Tough he truly was that in these playoffs. As for the Bayda thing, it was penalized for Lucic, because Boston in that game was trying to really intimitade the habs, and the play had nothing worth even shoving lapierre, as for Carcillo, it was because it's in late game, useless, game is over, and most proeminent, both of these guys are reputed for that kind of stuff, a thing bayda isn't. But i still get the point.

As for a player myself, i've been enjoying hockey more than ever since the new rules, as it affected the minor leagues also. As a power forward, i no longer get butchered up net, or getting slashed/hooked/cross checked in the process of driving the net. Now even Goalies get penalized for slashing guys, something that would have never ever happened a few years ago. So i say it's a good thing, having trigger happy referees, the KEY tough is CONSISTANCY. I don't mind seeing the whistle disapear OT playoff time, just be constant in the no-calls.

As for the Diving+Hooking combination. Sometimes, a guy hooks the other guy, but the other guy, just lets himself fall. So he was still hooked, but fell down like a sissy to trigger a penalty. I think it's alright

I agree that the game is making progress in the instances you say it is; however, I still feel that it's taking a step backwards in the grand scheme of things. The lack of consistency in the officiating is ruining the game. Sure, it might not be ruining the game for a common/casual fan who doesn't understand all the intricacies of hockey; however, it drives people like myself nuts! As a player, a coach, an instructor, and avid fan of the game who lives/eats/drinks/breathes hockey... just makes you want to ask Scotty Bowman to spear Fraser all over again.

As a goaltender, I am disgusted with how large the equipment is nowadays. It's not just the leg pads, either! The chest protectors, shoulder pads, arms, blockers, and even the gloves are huge today! It's getting out of hand. If Vladislav Tretiak were in his prime today and playing with today's pads, he'd easily post a GAA under 1.00 every season.

One thing I do appreciate in today's game is the ability of the power forwards to battle for position at the top of the crease without getting cross-checked in the back all the time. Imagine how many more goals guys like Kevin Stevens, Gary Roberts, and Cam Neely would have scored if they had it that easy! This forces the d-men to actually play defense and be in position to prevent the forward from taking up that space, rather than just hacking them out of it. It's a nice change.

As for my comments about Crosby, I wasn't saying that he was always tough or anything of the sort. When I say in-your-face, I mean his style of play. Like Gilmour, Crosby was always getting into traffic to try to win loose puck battles and taking the puck away from other players, and wasn't afraid to take the body to do so. Major differences between Crosby and Gilmour, however, are that Gilmour would probably shoot your dog and Crosby has a higher skill level.

His demeanor towards other players is tougher now than what it used to be, but his style of play itself was always tough.

Jesus... no kidding about the stone age of hockey. Dale Hunter is one of the biggest crimes against humanity in the history of western civilization. Like I said before, the game was much worse in the days of Howe/Richard in regards to stickwork. Nevertheless, Hunter did crap that would make Howe and Richard blush. Hunter was lucky he didn't play in Bobby Hull's day; I bet Hull would've intentionally shot a slap shot at Hunter's face to do us all a favor.

[The Russian Rocket]

Well for the equipment... not necesarily, that big stuff, really lowers your speed and dexterity... seriously. Sometimes, we usually put in old shoulder pads and stuff (As a player and Goalie) so that we get better arms dexterity... and it really works. So normally i pratice without shoulder pads.

[metzgerism]

It's kinda interesting because the stufff you usually wouldn't see in International tournaments tended to be allowed during the World Cups - it was a lot more like hardcore NHL playoff hockey (and remember the timeframe of the tournament both times as well).

That's my one cent.

[TruePensFan1981]

ANARCHY! ANARCHY!

[purplehaze]

I say the NHL's glory years are between 1981-1993.

The 1994 playoffs were mabye the best in the leage history, did you miss that year? 1995 (post-lockout) is when the league went to sh*t. 94 finals were the highest rated ever in league history, that was the leagues high water mark.