Why The All-Star Ballots are a Joke
Posted 12:41 PM ET | Comments 15
This is my first blog on this site, and will be one of many more into the future... I hope.
The players for the All-star Fan Ballots have been announced, and already there are a few notables left off...
Martin Gerber, Rod Brind'amour.... etc.
Now, using these two as prime examples, statistically they are among the best players in the league. Gerber leads the league in wins, Brind'amour is among the top 5 point getters. So how is it even possible that they can be passed up on the ballots?
The primary reason, I believe, is name recognition. While there are players such as Ray Emery (who has solidified himself as Gerber's backup with a couple shoddy performances) on the ballot, premier players in the league are not.
But this is just a minor situation on why the fan balloting process is flawed. By allowing the fans to vote as many times as they want, not only is it useful to hide the number of people that actually voted, but it becomes a popularity contest of the grandest scale. Expect to see another Sidney Crosby, Ovechkin, (insert big name player here) line starting for the east. Despite better the fact that there are far more deserving players of recognition out there.
At this point in time, In my opinion, Olli Jokinen is the best center in the Eastern conference, but when it comes down to fan voting time, if I had to guess, he won't even come close.
The all-star ballot's do a great injustice to some of the premier players in the league, and will continue to do so unless something is drastically changed.
The players for the All-star Fan Ballots have been announced, and already there are a few notables left off...
Martin Gerber, Rod Brind'amour.... etc.
Now, using these two as prime examples, statistically they are among the best players in the league. Gerber leads the league in wins, Brind'amour is among the top 5 point getters. So how is it even possible that they can be passed up on the ballots?
The primary reason, I believe, is name recognition. While there are players such as Ray Emery (who has solidified himself as Gerber's backup with a couple shoddy performances) on the ballot, premier players in the league are not.
But this is just a minor situation on why the fan balloting process is flawed. By allowing the fans to vote as many times as they want, not only is it useful to hide the number of people that actually voted, but it becomes a popularity contest of the grandest scale. Expect to see another Sidney Crosby, Ovechkin, (insert big name player here) line starting for the east. Despite better the fact that there are far more deserving players of recognition out there.
At this point in time, In my opinion, Olli Jokinen is the best center in the Eastern conference, but when it comes down to fan voting time, if I had to guess, he won't even come close.
The all-star ballot's do a great injustice to some of the premier players in the league, and will continue to do so unless something is drastically changed.
Yeah, I noticed. There's another reason they're a joke though: the fact that you can only write in one person.Wait, aren't there 5 spots? Yeah, but you can only write in for one of them- and you have to vote for all 5.pointless exercise. A better way to do it would be to pick 5 from each team- not neccicarally one per position, but just 5. And write in options for all 5.
Who cares? Isn't the All-Star game on another Wednesday night? lol
PwozNYR -> WELL PUT!
the fan voting is flawed and there was a perfect example of this last season. rory fitzpatrick was not even close to an allstar last season. he was the canucks like 4 5 or 6th defenseman. he was voted in by the canucks fans because they kept voting for him. and the nhl had to step in and disqualify him because they knew what the canucks fans were doing. with gerber, the ballots are created before the season starts i believe. emery was the starter and gerber was backup. you will rarely see backups on there. thats why they have the write in feature. and lundquist will be the starter for the east anyway. gerber will have to be selected by the coaches.
fans only vote for the starting lineups anyway. easy way to fix this would be to have the coaches and players choose the all-stars THEN have the fans select the starters from the list already chosen by the coaches. at least the guys who were supposed to be there would be.
Will this be Rory's year?
hahaha.... How much ya'll wanna bet that every sabre on the ballot makes the game again.
not very much...most of your all-stars are long gone
The only real All-stars on buffalo are Campbell and Miller. Maybe somebody else would be too if they ever decide to actually play...
Vote for Rory!In some respects, the all star game SHOULD be a popularity contest because it's a game for the fans to enjoy and it should be the players they want to see. If they want to nominate a joke like Rory, then let 'em go. It's not like the All-Star game is actually used to market the talent (as it should be) seeing as how the game is on an obscure cable channel that no on gets on a night no one's watching. So, what's the harm in letting the fans pick? And why can't we write in more than one?
I want an All Leaf game please.
The lack of respect for Rod Brind'Amour is a fucking joke. I love the guy, a lot. In 2006 he was robbed of a team Canada Olympic spot, last year, he was robbed of an all-star spot, and you know... I would have put him as my Hart trophy pick.He was over a point per game, even with such Hurricanes as Eric Staal underperforming all year, and was the best defensive forward in the league (again). The guy is a warrior.The reason he's not an all-star? Because of the lack of flash. The all-star votes go to the big power forwards and the flashy skaters. Brind'Amour relies A LOT on his heart and intelligence, and sadly, despite being a top performer, he won't make it to the all-star game this year.
Actually Leafy, Brind'Amour had a spot- the one that went to Staal- he turned it down because he had a bum foot that he wanted to rest at the time.Never flashy...
Vote for Andy Wozniewski
All-Star Weekend In Atlanta Jan. 26-27, 2008 You can get your name on the waiting list for tickets at the thrashers website.http://thrashers.atlantaspirit.com/info.aspx?CID01=ebc4aceb-bd95-4053-ba77-c0a6176e5513