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The 24 team format gives those teams with a potential to have won their way into the playoffs a chance to do so. It makes deadline deals mean something for those bubble teams. It makes conditional picks mean something. We already lost that potential last week surge, the win and you're in on the final day of the season excitement. We lost the excitement of watching that unlikely bubble team claw their way in. The 24 team format gives some of that back. It isn't perfect but it is better than than just calling the season at 70. It forces those teams just in at the break to earn their way into the playoffs, just like the last 3-4 weeks of the season would have done. Could there be some freak Cinderella story where a 12 team shocks everybody and turns the whole thing upside down? Sure. The "purists" will rail and cry and the rest of us will relish in the fun and excitement that it creates.

I've only used a couple of indoor wheels but the Konixx Pure (+2) wheels are my favorite ones thus far. I'm currently using them and look forward to using the Pure X's when the time comes to replacing my current wheels.

I have used a lot of different indoor wheels over the years and Konixx Pure +2 are by far my favourites. They're fast, durable and grip well. I haven't tried the new Pure X yet, but look forward to doing so in the future.

One thing the league is wrestling with is how to deal with all of the salty language that will be a lot easier to hear without fan noise to drown it out. It will be fun for those of us that play to hear the chirps and such but they're worried about the "family fun".

Well, the NHL is nothing more than a business. If there weren't fans to reach that appealed to advertisers in addition to attendance, it would be on the same tier as less popular sports. I disagree about smaller rinks and camera angles, the closer you get the more extreme the angles unless you have multiple cameras and switching which is weird for hockey. This format is fine, you can't please everyone. There will always be bubble teams that people could play woulda coulda with.

@Cavs019 my mind isn't as sharp as it used to be, it actually might've been on the OG Easton Hockey Message board! But yeah the original composite full length Tapered blades for the T-flex were otherworldly in terms of puck feel and release/kickpoint. Once Easton went with the short hosel tapered blades for the blade/shaft combo they lost all feel and kick. I even remember when HockeyMonkey cleaned out the Warrior stash of Pro Stock shafts & blades, the Warrior blades had a slightly longer hosel than the typical short hosel blades and the responsiveness and kick on those were great. I always keep my eyes peeled for old school blades but they never seem to pop up.