A revolutionary look at revitalizing the NHL
Hull wants players to speak their minds, but here's 10 ways to fix league
Phillip Maccallum / Getty Images fileFormer star Brett Hull, who is co-general manager of the Dallas Stars, wants players to show more personality, writes msnbc.com contributor Kevin Dupont.
Q: Any obvious All-Star snubs?
— John from Evanston, Ill.
A: Tough to argue with the picks in either conference, but the biggest omission I see is in the East, where the sensational sophomore Pittsburgh winger, Evgeni Malkin, didn't make the cut.
Malkin was last season's rookie of the year, and although I didn't vote for him (Paul Stastny was the pick here), he is truly an elite talent. Such a strong, exciting player, he deserves All-Star status. But again, I can't quibble with any of the forwards in the East. Frankly, if were up to me, I might have chosen him to fill in for the injured Dany Heatley, but that spot went to Boston's Marc Savard. Again, Savard is a very worthy replacement, and there are only so many available spots. I bet Malkin makes the squad for at least the next five to eight years.
Mats Sundin, having an outstanding year in Toronto, even with the Leafs self-immolating, also would have been a great addition to the East.
Out west, where Stastny was selected among the dozen forwards, three other names come to mind for consideration: Mike Ribeiro (Dallas), Kristian Huselius (Calgary) and Daniel Sedin (Vancouver). Henrik Sedin, Daniel's twin, made the cut, and I say if one goes, they both should go ... let 'em swap a sweater after 30 minutes, ya know?
If I were forced to file an ''injustice'' complaint, it might be that Detroit's Brian Rafalski wasn't included among the Western Conference defensemen. I would have gone with him over the Blackhawks' Duncan Keith. It is a very subjective science.
Oh, and one other ''injustice'' filing: Boston goalie Tim Thomas. If not for his fine work the last two years, the Bruins might have been out of any postseason contention by Christmas each season. I certainly would have chosen T-Squared over the Islanders' Rick DiPietro. It took Thomas a long time to make it to the NHL, after some major tuning up in Europe, and his lack of classic hockey pedigree, I believes, causes some to overlook him. He deserved a spot.
Q: What's happened to the Blackhawks? They started off with so much promise this season.
— Keith Greenberg from Harrisburg, Pa.
A: A couple of things, but especially injuries, have scuttled the Indian Heads again. Too bad. They were really on a roll the first six to eight weeks of the season, and so many of us desperately want to see Chicago back a prominent place in the NHL. Great city. Great fans —the few that remain. And great history, which new team president John McDonough is trying his best to plumb.
The key injuries have been to Martin Havlat (again) and sensational rookie Jonathan Toews. Havlat has battled shoulder (again) and groin woes. Toews wrenched a knee at the start of the season and was fortunate that it did not require surgery.
Had Havlat and Toews remained in top form, I suspect the Hawks would have remained hot. However, GM Dale Tallon still needs to improve the squad's defensive corps and the goaltendings. As far as the latter, as of midseason, neither No. 1 Nikolai Khabibulin nor No. 2 Patrick Lalime were able to boast a save percentage of .900 (Khabibulin was at .898, and Lalime at .893). By today's standards, that's not nearly good enough.
I suspect that if Havlat and Toews get back in top form, then the Hawks will get hot again. But chances are, it will be too late.
Q: Will anyone wake up and run away with the Southeast? Do the improving Caps have what it takes to finally get back into the playoffs?
— Neal from Orlando, Fla.
A: No one over there showed signs of running away did they? Out of the whole bunch, though, it could be Atlanta that mounts the better push in the second half, led by star winger Ilya Kovlachuk, who led the league in goal scoring (37) as of mid-January. The early season change in coach, Don Waddell moving in for Bob Hartley, certainly brought the needed charge to the Thrashers bench.
As for the Caps, they look much better since Bruce Boudreau took over the coaching duties from Glen Hanlon at Thanksgiving. But they were lean on talent to begin with, only to find out in mid-January that top center Michael Nylander needed surgery on a torn rotator cuff. He could be lost for the season. I think the Caps will hang around for a while, nibble at the No. 8 playoff spot in the East, and then fade into oblivion again — a fourth straight season of not qualifying for the playoffs.
Kevin Dupont writes regularly for msnbc.com and covers the NHL for the Boston Globe.
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