Interview with San Jose State hockey coach Ron Glasow

San Jose State hockey coach Ron Glasow was nice enough to take a few questions about his team. Make sure to visit the official website SJSUhockey.com, and click here for more information on opening night against CAL this Saturday [8PM, at Logitech Ice].

[Q] How long have you been coaching this SJSU team?

[RG] I have been coaching SJSU since its first season in 1991.

[Q] Who are some of the SJSU players fans should keep an eye on this season [Jon Barney was the player that jumped out at me the most last year].

[RG] Players to watch are Jon Barney for his open ice hits. Ray Kellam for his speed and intensity on the ice. Mason Nave for his creativity with the puck.

[Q] How does the schedule look this year and which games stand out? Who is the biggest SJSU rival?

[RG] This years schedule is the toughest we have ever had. Out of 29 games there will only be two that we should have no problem with. Every other game will be a war, and will be won by the team that makes the least mistakes. The competition gets stronger every year. Our biggest rivals are probably USC and Cal.

[Q] What goals does the SJSU team have for this season?

[RG] Our goal this season is to finish first in the Western Region of the ACHA. The top 4 go to Nationals in Detroit in March. There are over 20 teams in the West. We plan to make it to Detroit.

[Q] Last question, what would you tell Sharks fans who come to an SJSU game for the first time, to see hockey with the NHL locked out? How is the game different or similar to hockey they may have seen at the SJ arena? I noticed a lot more hitting when I watched a game last year.

[RG] I think fans will be very surprised at the quality and speed of the College game. We dont use the center red line like they do in the NHL, and that helps open up the game a little more. The hitting is hard and the competition is there, so it becomes very entertaining for the fans.

I honestly believe our games are more entertaining today than the pro game. The pro game is so structured and systematic that the creativity has been taken out of it. Our games obviously have more mistakes, but that makes for more goals and more action. You have to see this hockey to know what I'm talking about.

And I would add that the college crowds, and the college music in the background also make for a very entertaining atmosphere. Thanks for taking the time to answer questions.

It would be nice if someone from the Sharks organization, and a Sharks player or two still in the San Jose area, came out for SJSU's first game of the season. The NHL lockout may last a year, but showing support for the fans and local hockey would go a long way.

[Update] To Russia with trepidation - Toronto Star.

[Update2] Adieu Monteal. I guess revenue sharing was not the answer.


JONATHAN TREMBLAY AT THE NHL ROOKIE TOURNAMENT

[Update3] The Cleveland Barons training camp is underway. The official Cleveland website has a review of the first day of camp, a roster of those attending, and more on Sharks Assistant Coach Tim Hunter instructing Glenn Olson and Jonathan Tremblay on hockey pugilism.

San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales sends a letter to the NHL and the NHLPA

San Jose mayor Ron Gonzales released a letter Tuesday to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, NHLPA Executive Director Robert W. Goodenow, and Sharks President and CEO Greg Jamison.

According to the Mercury News, this letter was forwarded to mayors of 29 other NHL cities. Sharkspage forwarded it to the op-ed page of the NY Times.

Mayor Gonzales wrote on behalf of his city, the people and businesses of downtown San Jose, and NHL fans. He called for the two sides to come to an agreement before more is lost.



Visit the mayor's website for more information about San Jose, www.sjmayor.org.

Thanks to Morning Buzz columnist John Ryan for passing along the letter. His Morning Buzz column in the Mercury News sports section is well worth the read. He has been on a roll of late.

Also thanks for the mention. Advice for NHL free, arbitration costs extra - San Jose Mercury News.

The mayor sent copies of the letters to mayors of the other 29 NHL cities, hoping similar pressure can spur an agreement.

Morning Buzz likes the effort. But the originality is lacking. For that we turn to our friend Jon Swenson, who runs the Sharkspage Web site (http://sharkspage.com). The 12-point Swenson Plan includes some fairly reasonable solutions (a $60 million hard salary cap and escalating luxury taxes beginning at $35 million).

And it features one idea we heartily endorse: a one-year gag order from Goodenow and Bettman.

My suggestion for the NHL and NHLPA to solve the lockout: The Swenson Plan.

[Note] Also take a look at my recent interviews with ESPN's John Buccigross, with the founder of Hockey Gladiators Darryl Wolski, with Gladiator rink girl Amelie Paul, with Sharks goaltending prospect Patrick Ehelechner, and with SF Chronicle columnist Ross McKeon. More on the way, stay tuned.

[Update] Coach's stormy times - SF Chronicle. One last post about hockey before the storm - Sharkspage.

[Update2] Locked out Rink Notes from Offwing.

The Swenson Plan

Sometimes you can over think a problem. Here is my solution to the NHL and NHLPA collective bargaining impasse with as little thought as possible.

The owners want a salary cap, the players want a luxury tax. Both will get what they want under the Swenson Plan. A hard cap will prevent the NY Rangers from blowing the curve for everyone else, and a scaled luxury tax will make sure smaller market teams get extra funds. How is a $31 million hard salary cap going to help a team who can not afford to pay that amount in salary?

This plan is only good for a limited time, so act now.

The Swenson Plan includes:

- A $60 million hard salary cap.

- A Luxury tax from $50-60 million [2-3 dollars for every dollar you are over].

- Luxury tax from $35-50 million [1 dollar for every dollar you are over].

- A team willing to pay $60 million in salary, would put up to $45 million back into the league. Seven teams would have reached that $60 million salary cap using last years payroll. Eleven teams with payrolls under $35 million would have received money from the luxury tax.

- Trade deadline moved up, arbitration revamped, rookie salaries capped at a lower figure.

- Here is the kicker, fans will get no financial incentive from the Swenson Plan, fans will get no cost certainty. Fans will get 5 feet, or 2 rows of seating, removed from all 4 sides of an NHL hockey rink. Luxury tax money can also be used to install seamless glass.

- There will also be a small section in the lower bowl of every arena that is standing room only. $10 dollars a ticket, sold an hour before the puck is dropped with a lottery at the front door. This will ensure fans in Toronto and Montreal have at least a chance to see one game a year.

- Fans will also get complimentary plastic wiffle ball bats, and NHL referees will have to walk a gauntlet of NHL fans in order to leave the arena. I suggest NHL refs call clutching and grabbing under the Swenson Plan.

- Fans under the Swenson Plan will demand a one year gag order for Gary Bettman and Bob Goodenow. Owners and players are free to speak their minds even if it differs from the party line. Players must sign autographs for every child under 12 before the game starts, and owners have to buy a hotdog and drink for every fan if their team loses 4 straight games. Pickup hockey will also be played in the parking lot at every arena 3 hours before game time, and for 3 hours after game time.

- All NHL teams will have ice girls. And the Swenson Plan scoffs at women who object to this fundamental concept. For 5 years, emails from female fans to me are 100-1 asking for photos of only male hockey players. Coincidence? I think not.

- Hockey on TV is in trouble. The Swenson plan invites Hollywood to film a half dozen NHL games a year. Make it a big event. Leafs-Bruins by the man who brought you A Few Good Men. Game broadcasts will also be streamed online for 99 cents a game, it worked for Apple. One game is free each week. The Swenson Plan will also start a new television channel. A 24hr-a-day station with nothing but footage from the goal cam. GCNN, the Goal Cam News Network.

- And finally, the Swenson Plan will order players and owners fighting over $2 billion in revenue to each sponsor one fan website for one year. Hell hath no fury like a hockey fan scorned. Or is that a Philly fan scorned? I am not sure. It does not matter if the website talks about what color Jagr's socks are from game to game, if they post pictures of cupcakes with portraits of players in icing, or if the site is in Japanese and you spend a year just trying to figure out where the email link is. Support the fans.

In addition to developing economic systems, I am also available as an arbitrator.

[Update] Here is HNIC Brian Burke's 15 point proposal.

[Update2] Andrews Starspage has a breakdown of NHL revenues and expenses detailed in the Levitt and Forbes reports. I am sure in the future he will add numbers from a third report on the leagues finances:

National Hockey League review and outlook - Moag and Company.

There will be concerns about these numbers, but three reports by three reputable entities should at least give us ballpark numbers to work with. But I like hockey, not numbers. Unless they are goal numbers, and Cam Neely has 50.

San Jose State hockey opening night Oct 2nd

San Jose State hockey starts their season Oct 2nd at 8PM with a game against Pac-8 champion Berkeley. Visit SJSUhockey.com for more information.

Here is a photo gallery from a 2002 SJSU-Davis hockey game, and a photo essay "Hot off the ice" from the SJSU Spartan Daily newspaper to get a feel for what the games are like. Last year admission was $5.

Thanks to Thresher for the photo links, and to SJSU team captain and PR director Ray Kellam for the flyer. Also take a look at my San Jose State, Berkeley, and Stanford hockey pages. There are links to the college papers on each so you can find more information. If anyone knows a player from Stanford, tell them to send me a schedule.

The teams play on a club level, and they are affiliated with the American Collegiate Hockey Association. The local teams are below:

DII West as part of the Pac-8 Conference:

University of California Berkeley
Stanford University
Palmer Chiropractic West
San Jose State University

[Update] Berkeley checks in about their home opener. Visit the official CALicehockey.com website for more information. From Cal Ice Hockey General Manager William Tsai:

The Berkeley hockey season starts in two weeks, on Oct. 14, with our season home opener vs. SJSU at 8:30PM. It should be a good one. I'll look forward to seeing you out here.

Cal Hockey also has a very cool online store. I am not sure if any of those items would go over well when I am studying at the Stanford bookstore.

[Update2] I just visited broadstreetbully.com for the first time. Very cool.