Let's put it this way: I would consider my skiing ability to be far superior to my skating ability. And, in fact, my 10-year-old grandson, who's a AAA squirt, can skate circles around me.
There are a couple people who have complained on other teams about some of the things that Pittsburgh players have done. Some of that goes in the category of gamesmanship. Some of that goes to the fact that we need to be vigilant as a league to make sure that players aren't unnecessarily and inappropriately hurt.
I think it's very difficult to generalize as to why, in a particular league or a particular industry, somebody has or has not come out. We certainly don't want a player to come out for our sake. It should be what's right for him and something that he has to be comfortable with.
We went from journalism, in newspapers that gets heavily edited, to blogs, where you can express your opinions, to tweeting, where you can say anything, and it gets repeated and becomes fact when it isn't. It's something the entire world is going to have to come to grips with.
The issue of how the game is played is something that's constantly being reviewed internally with the Players' Association, with the general managers, and it's something that we continue to monitor on a daily basis.
All have used the economic opportunity of a new arena project to transform their cities into the future.
There are lots of come-from-behind wins, games getting tied in the last period, teams going on to win. That, I think, tells the best story. Whether or not some teams have more grit, better chemistry, or more luck or more skill, it's still within the parameters. I think that makes for great storytelling and great interest for our fans.
Market size, particularly when you're dealing with major media markets, has an impact in terms of gathering attention.
We just want to see entertaining, exciting games, and we want the officials to do a good job.
The Steelers run a great organization.
My message to the kids and our fans is hockey's a great game. There's a lot of hockey being played at all levels. Get involved, do it. We will be back and we will be back better than ever and hopefully as soon as possible. Don't give up on the game. It's too good.
It takes two sides to make a deal, two sides to negotiate and two sides to make it go bad.
The Canadian franchises and Canada as a market for NHL hockey has always been a priority for us.
There's no question that the Kings have been, are, and can be great hosts for any major events.
You can have the biggest markets in the world, but if the game isn't exciting, compelling, and competitive, it's not going to generate a lot of interest.
Fighting is one of those things that gets tons of attention, far more than it deserves.
The Olympics are very proprietary about letting others promote and market what's going on, so we shut down for 17 days, and they don't let us do a whole lot in return for giving our players to them. We don't get compensated, and we've never looked for compensation.
I don't feel that it's either necessary or appropriate for me to comment on what the NFL either says or does.
Eliminating fighting would mean eliminating the jobs of the 'fighters,' meaning these guys would not have NHL careers.
My rooting interest these days is first and foremost competitive hockey, and secondly in officials not making a mistake.
