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Of ice and men

By Tom Jones, Times Staff Writer
Published October 3, 2007

The NHL season starts tonight! (Yeah, yeah, we know there were two games in London last weekend, but we didn't see them and it was England, for crying out loud.) So here's a Two Cents worth look at the 2007-08 season, which, in our mind, opens tonight.

Three teams you should root for

New York Rangers
Listen, the NHL is always more interesting when the Rangers are good. The better they are, the more attention they get in the USA and that can only be good for hockey in general.

Pittsburgh Penguins
They took their lumps, built the team the right way through the draft and have a tremendous fan base.

New Jersey Devils
They might have the nicest, most down-to-earth players in the league and their model of consistency should be recognized and admired.

Three teams you should not root for

Buffalo Sabres
Yes, it's a small market, but how can they look their fans in the face after letting go of both Chris Drury and Daniel Briere.

FloridaPanthers
Bad building with obnoxious in-game entertainment. And it is just a flat-out bad, boring team.

TorontoMaple Leafs
They think the NHL revolves around them and they haven't even won a Stanley Cup in 40 years. When they get humble, you can maybe think about rooting for them.

Three players you should root for

Martin Brodeur,Devils
He might be the greatest goalie of all time and yet he might be the nicest player of all time.

Sidney Crosby, Penguins
This kid eats, sleeps and breathes hockey. He respects the game and understands his role as a spokesman. He's the closest thing since Gretzky.

Jarome Iginla, Flames
It's hard to find a combination of incredible skill and sincere humility. But Iginla has that rare combination.

Three players you should hate (but secretly love)

Darcy Tucker, Maple Leafs
He's annoying, a pest, a tad dirty. But if he played for your team, you'd love him.

Sean Avery, Rangers
See Darcy Tucker. This guy turned the Rangers around last season.

Jaromir Jagr, Rangers
Everyone calls him a dog, but he still might be the best player in the game when he wants to be.

Three coaches to love

John Tortorella,Lightning
He is brutally honest. That can be a good thing.

Ted Nolan, Islanders
Making fools of all the teams that never gave him a shot all those years.

Jacques Lemaire,Wild
Criticized for his neutral-zone trap, but the smartest man in hockey.

Three coaches to not love

John Tortorella, Lightning
He is brutally honest. That can be a bad thing.

Ken Hitchcock,Blue Jackets
As a person, he's a great guy. But his style of play is like watching grass grow.

Bob Hartley, Thrashers
More than once he has been accused of sending out players to injure an opponent.

Three things to watch this season

1. The Sabres and Penguins will play outdoors on New Year's Day at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo. The game is expected to break the NHL's single-game attendance record set on Nov. 22, 2003, when 57,167 showed up to watch an outdoor game between the Canadiens and Oilers. The Sabres-Pens game will be broadcast by NBC.

2. The 56th NHL All-Star Game will be played on a Sunday again - Jan. 27 at Philips Arena in Atlanta. Hey, it's only a seven-hour drive up I-75.

3. Any game between the Maple Leafs and Canadiens. Still the best rivalry in hockey.

Three things to love about the NHL

1. The playoffs: Still the absolute best and most passionate postseason in any sport and any level.

2. Every game really does count: Last season, all six divisions, both conference titles and the best overall record were still up for grabs with less than a week remaining.

3. Hockey Night in Canada: It's worth getting the Center Ice cable package just to watch this classic broadcast every Saturday night.

Three things to hate about the NHL

1. The schedule: It still stinks. You play some teams eight times and some teams not at all. Does that make sense?

2. The penalties: The league's players and referees are still trying to find that balance between physical play and clutching-and-grabbing.

3. The schedule: Yeah, we already mentioned it. But that just shows you how much we really hate it.

Tom Jones' predictions

Hart Trophy (MVP)
Sidney Crosby, Penguins

Calder Trophy (rookie)
Erik Johnson, Blues

 Norris Trophy (defenseman)
Niklas Lidstrom,Red Wings

Vezina Trophy (goalie)
Roberto Luongo, Canucks

Jack Adams Award (coach)
Tom Renney, Rangers

Comeback player
Michael Peca, Blue Jacket

First coach to be fired
Bob Hartley,Thrashers

Team that will be better than you think
Carolina Hurricanes

Team that will be worse than you think
Nashville Predators

Stanley Cup
Rangers over the Sharks

Three crazy predictions

1. The Washington Capitals will make the playoffs.

2. The Nashville Predators will not make the playoffs.

3. Nikolai Khabibulin will play in the All-Star Game.

[Last modified October 2, 2007, 23:57:42]