NHL Draft Rewind to 2005 the last time the draft w

Posted by seestyle on September 2nd, 2022

Note: This article was originally published on March 26, 2020.When it comes to work stoppages in profe sional sports, every sports league in the world bows down and kneels before the altar of the NHL. After never having a single season interrupted in the first 74 years of existence, the worlds premier hockey league shut down four times between 1992 and 2013 because of labor disputes, including the cancellation of the entire 2004-05 season.Of course, Chris Boswell Jersey has nothing to do with a breakdown in employer-employee relations. The NHL made the right call in ceasing operations until the time is right. But it once again begs the question for hockey fans, Why does this always happen to us?Whatever decision is made regarding the regular season, the one thing we as fans can count on is the NHL draft, which was slated for the last weekend in June in Montreal but has since been postponed. Theleague may never resume play, but history tells us it is more than willing to drive on with the draft, even if it means breaking away from tradition and standard operating procedure.Just like 2005.2020 NHL DRAFT: | It was during late July of that summer one that followed the canceled 2004-05 campaign when owners and the players a sociation, led by Bob Goodenow, finally came to an agreement to end the most infamous work stoppage in the history of the sport, with one of the key tasks that required immediate attention being the entry draft. The lockout ended officially on the morning of July 22, and it was only a few hours later when the NHL held an official pre s conference to outline the way forward for the draft lottery and the draft itself.Based on feedback and recommendations from clubs, and per the guidelines outlined in the NHLs new Collective Bargaining Agreement, the revamped draft lottery was to happen immediately. In fact, both the lottery and league commi sioner Gary Bettmans official announcement took place simultaneously in different areas of the Sheraton New Carnell Lake Jersey York Hotel and Towers. There simply wasnt a moment to spare. , which would take place in Ottawa on July 30 but was limited in scope, scale and coverage compared to previous events. The biggest difference, however, was that summer of 2005 was more than just a watershed moment because of the end of the lockout. It also marked the long-awaited chance for NHL clubs to draft Sidney Crosby, who at the time was considered the most coveted draft prospect since Eric Lindros in 1991.The fact of the matter is (the 2005 draft) is a unique circumstance. The draft and the order of the draft traditionally reflects how teams finished a particular season. We already had that draft in 2003-04. But we also wanted to take into account how some teams have performed over time and need help. But taking into account as well that nobody knows exactly what the new world is going to look like, so half the league probably wanted everybody to have an equal chance and the other half wanted all the teams that didnt make the playoffs to have the only chances weighted or unweighted. And if you look at the statistical odds of both scenarios what we did is about in the middle. Nobody was particularly thrilled, but everyone understood that on balance it was probably the fairest way to approach it. NHL Commi sioner Gary Bettman (July 22, 2005)Now that the administrative formalities surrounding the 2005 draft were addre sed, the next step was for general managers and their Mike Mitchell Jersey scouts to implement the draft strategies that they had cultivated over the previous 12 months. Unlike other years where only the non-playoff teams had a chance at the first pick, the 2005 draft lottery was designed to give all 30 teams a shot at Crosby, with the greatest odds going to four teams -- the Pittsburgh Penguins, the New York Rangers, the Buffalo Sabres, and the Columbus Blue Jackets. All four in comparison to the rest of the league were considered to have unmatched levels of ineptitude over the three seasons prior. The Penguins owned the leagues worst record in the 2003-04 season.The Crosby SweepstakesThere were no illusions as to who was going to be the first overall pick in 2005. Not only did Crosby win the Canadian Hockey Leagues Player of the Year Award in each of his two seasons leading up to the draft, but he also outperformed his closest competitors in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League by a ma sive margin his 2.71 points-per-game average in 2004-05 was the highest for a 17-year-old prospect since Mario Lemieux in 1982-83.While every organization, including perennial powerhouses like the Detroit Red Wings, Colorado Avalanche, New Jersey Devils, and even the 2004 Stanley Cup-champion Tampa Bay Lightning, would welcome the addition of a generational star like Crosby, several teams in the NHL were in desperate need of a financial boost.MORE: It was no secret back in the early 2000s that the Penguins were a struggling franchise with an uncertain future long before the cancellation of the 2004-05 Arthur Moats Jersey season. The team was purchased by Lemieux in 1999 from federal bankruptcy court,but it was a colo sal failure on the ice and was already forced to trade expensive stars like Jaromir Jagr, Alexei Kovalev and Ron Francis.Not only were the Penguins struggling to generate fan interest, but they also were in danger of being relocated. The lease to the Mellon Arena was expiring in 2007 and rumors were circling that the Penguins would eventually be sold and moved elsewhere, with Houston, Portlandand Kansas City the leading candidates.Odds-wise, the Penguins had a 6.25-percent chance at winning the lottery and drafting Crosby, who at nearly 18 was perceived to be not only NHL ready, but also capable of resurrecting the franchise from the bottom of the standings. If the city of Pittsburgh wanted to keep its hockey team, the quickest way to convince investors and season-ticket holders to remain on board was to have a franchise player to not only market, but also help make the city an attraction for prospective free agents.The even bigger piece was getting a new arena, which would have been next-to-impo sible without Crosbys star power as a selling point.The DrawingMuch like in todays NHL, the 2005 lottery drawing was held in a private room with representation from the league and all 30 teams. The setup back then was no different than what weve seen in recent years. A bunch of ping-pong balls are drawn from an air-blowing hopper to determine the draft order, with the results delivered via the opening of 30 envelopes, each with a card revealing the team logo. The team card inside the last remaining envelope would be the winner of James Conner Jersey the first pick.The biggest difference, however, was the lack of national television coverage in the United States. The lockout and subsequent decrease in interest, along with dwindling ratings during the tail end of the Dead Puck Era convinced mega sports provider ESPN to decl