Reading material, mostly hockey related

I've been poking around the far corners of the internet lately -- with a purpose, though you won't be able to tell from this smattering of what I happened across.

First, there's a good rumor that the AHL will use the same web streaming company that the NHL used last year, NeuLion, which is owned at least partially by Charles Wang of the Islanders. This is good news because the former provider, B2 Networks, left a lot to be desired. I'm interested to see if you have to pay per game, per year, or if it's ad supported. Here's an announcement PDF from the NHL last year that gives some background on what they do.

I've been watching more of the Olympics than I expected. I was fortunate to see the swimming relay win live, which was amazing. Also saw Latvia beat the US in beach volleyball. I'm sure Artie Kulda & Co. were happy about that one. Going in, I was most looking forward to Joe Posnanski's blog posts from Beijing. They've been good, but I wish he didn't talk baseball in the last one. He can do that anytime.

Talking about Beijing leads us right back to Canada, where China's pollution is melting Canada's arctic. Besides pollution, lots of immigrants are also coming to Canada. The country admits plans to brainwash them upon arrival.

"The majority of people who come here want to become Canadians and we have to convince them that playing hockey is part of being Canadian."

In America, we want immigrants to learn English. In Canada, they want them to play hockey. Speaking is optional.

A Belfast couple bought half of their local hockey team, the Belfast Giants. Yes, that's Belfast, Northern Ireland. If you've never read anything about the team, I recommend doing so. It's heartwarming how sports can bring disparate groups together.

Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis has a blog, and I found this entry interesting.

When the NHL was in lockout, I had a debate with a well-respected newspaper editor. The debate focused on whether it was better to own a professional sports team or a newspaper in the town that you lived in. At the time, this editor basically posited to me that the NHL was “dead as a doornail” and that there was no real consumer interest in hockey. I posited that we were getting our game restructured and that hockey was a global game. Its interest level was growing with young people and that we would lead in digital delivery of our content and services. I bet him that in less than five years that all of our growth arrows would be green and all of his growth arrows would be in the red.

I'd say Ted wins this one walking away.

Good thing the Thrashers third jerseys are rumored to be a dark red. A story came out today where psychologists found that red-clad sportmen are favored by referees. Any team spending close to the salary floor needs all the help it can get.

In case you haven't heard, men wearing pantyhose -- mantyhose -- is catching on. I ask how come this puck fan headgear never caught on?