...about Codey Burki, for whom everyone had such high hopes when he played in Brandon and was drafted by the Avs. Nowadays, not so much.

Also in the article is a painful (but unfortunately hard-to-argue-with) shot at the support the Monsters receive in Cleveland.

Here's the link:
http://www.winnipegfreepress.c...le-man-64689802.html

i agree and disagree on most of that b.s., first of all if burki was so good why is he being scratched hmmm.... interesting.
about the fact that most people don't know about hockey in cleveland i can agree with some of that, yes you will always have the casual fan who fell into tickets or got them from someone else, but you also have the diehards there for mostly all the games, so i will agree and disagree. would i like to see that place packed nightly he** yes i would and to have it loud would be nice but most fans in cleveland don't care about the monsters, with the exception of the fans who live and die with this team.
i personally would love to see the "LET'S GO MONSTERS" get more attention, i mean even 2,000 people can make that place sound loud and make it a hard place for the oppostion to play in.
this team has to start winning then i think the crowds will come, look at the indians dismal season i went to one game and they could barely fill the lower bowl or tier or whatever, so what does that tell you and in a place where hockey plays second fiddle to the cav's, browns, it's hard to get people to watch them (monsters) when they are constantly losing.
if burki was so **** good then show it, show up early for practice, prove to the coaches that you deserve you're shot, don't just think that because you played major junior and excelled at that you are automatically going to be gold in the eyes of the coaches and organization, he has to prove himself.
sorry it's a little long.

Sad but true

Apparently there are 2 reporters up in Winnipeg who have issues and who both need to get a clue, especially when it comes to announced crowds:

4/12/09 - 17,627 in attendance
http://www.winnipegfreepress.c...e-west-42868872.html

Writer: gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca


10/18/09 - 3,806 in attendance
http://www.winnipegfreepress.c...le-man-64689802.html


Writer: paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca

Bah... NHL games don't have great weekday attendance either. People don't want to fight traffic to get home and then run right back downtown. It's too much of a hassle, especially with these 7pm games.

maybe in certain places in america, say like atlanta, florida, and phoenix but most of the games i've seen (centre ice) have good crowds for the 7pm. games.

I think Burki summed up his issue when he said it himself: He feels ENTITLED to a shot. You have to earn your shots Sparkey. This ain't Juniors. If you don't perform and put the puck in the net, or EARN the coaches trust to be on the ice in more situations, don't expect it to be given to you. Grow up, suck it up and do the work...EVERY DAY.

At the same time, how does a player get put in the position to score if he only gets a handful of shifts a night playing with the team bully and an ECHLer? When paired with players at AV's camp who had ability, he showed he could play. He put up decent numbers last year with no PP time. He has not been given the opportunity to put up numbers.

The Winnipeg press has no room to complain. We have had 4 home games this season and average 5, 166 fans per game. Manitoba has had 6 home games and only averages 6, 447. The only reason their's is higher, is because they have had 2 more home games. We support our team just fine. I seem to remember us having one of the AHL's largest crowds last season against the Moose. The only reason Manitoba might have averaged more than we did in the past, is because they have made the playoffs. We are a young team, and continue to improve, I am confident that if not this year, next year, we will make a name for ourselves and put Lake Erie on the map. I think that this is the year that we make our move.

while i don't believe he has been given a 'fair' shot considering his draft position and numbers in junior, this is the professional game.

if duchene and o'reilly weren't working their *** off in COL, do you think they would still feel entitled to hold a roster spot over someone who has already 'paid their dues'? the answer of course is no.

my comments on the winnipeg free press' site were taken down. probably not being too harsh, they weren't, but because i questioned their home town pride's work ethic. as was alluded to before...there is no such thing as a free lunch. if you want it, go EARN it!

pat rissmiller, former baron, looked like he was skating through mud when he played here. somehow though, he got his name on the score sheet every night. he decided to specialize what he thought could be his NHL role, a penalty killer. he earned a lot of money because of that.

my advice to codey would be to find what you excel in and do it better than anyone else...

i'm sorry, is that a bit too capitalistic of me? LOL!