From The Hockey World

John Ondrasik from Sports Illustrated’s Five For Fighting had this to say about declining NHL attendance so far this season. Given the problems of OLN/VERSUS not being in a lot of markets, it doesn't surpise me much that interest is down. We are a very visual society. I hope the NHL finds solutions for that...quickly.

SI also reports that the jury is still out on the Flyers. The consensus is Hitchcock will land somewhere--he is a good coach, actually, even if he is inflexible in his systems. The new Flyers coach? And, the roster?...Well...The Hockey News had this report on the Flyers first win since the change. After their start this year, it can't get much worse...can it?

And, then there was this article from The Hockey News slamming the NHL practice of rushing European players into the game. Well...is that really a surprise? With the diluted talent pool here in North America from major and minor ice hockey expansion, is it really a surprise that such a problem would affect the European players, too? Actually, I probably shouldn't have said "slamming the NHL". The NHL teams and scouts and recruiters deserve the rebuke. Hopefully, expansion is done with for a long while. At most, teams will just move around (...can you say Pittsburgh Penguins...).

And, since we’re over at The Hockey News, you might visit their NHL Season Primer. It was a lot of interesting thoughts. (…if you’re interested, you might stop over at ESPN and compare John Buccigross’s predictions for the West and the East…)

Of course…WAY TO GO BUFFALO! Ten straight wins to tie the NHL record for season starts! The Ducks are still undefeated, too. Interesting stuff…

By the way, the Philadelphia Flyers are making moves in the minors. NHL veteran Joe Mullen has been named the new head coach of their AHL affiliate the Philadelphia Phantoms.

Born in New York City, Mullen scored 502 goals and totaled 1,063 points in 1,062 career NHL games played from 1981-97. He won Stanley Cup championships in Calgary (1989) and Pittsburgh (1991, 1992), and was a two-time recipient of the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for gentlemanly play.

And, he has a good coaching resume, too.

And, how about those San Jose Sharks? You might want to read This article about their recruiting and development program success.
(…71% from within is pretty good…says a lot for commitment to your players…and future possibilities...)

Lastly, in other minor league news, here’s a heartwarmer from the CHL.
(…this is how it should be done…)