The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press have installed paywalls, offering would-be subscribers a $3-a-month rate for the first three months of a subscription that increases to $9.99 per month.
For the past two weeks, the News has posted lengthy hockey articles. Last week, Mark Falkner profiled agent Dan Milstein, and, this week, Red Wings beat writer Ted Kulfan engages in a lengthy Q and A session with Columbus Blue Jackets goaltending coach (and former Red Wing) Manny Legace.
Legace accompanied the Blue Jackets into the Toronto “Bubble” for round robin and playoff play, and he spoke with Kulfan regarding his experiences in Toronto:
“I wish I was still there,” said Legace, alluding to his team being eliminated.
“I’m glad I was a part of it. It was actually really, really cool, because how often do you see eight teams walking around a hotel, a hotel that’s closed down for just NHL teams, and your meeting rooms are right across the hall from the New York Rangers, and you have the Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto (Maple Leafs) downstairs. It was just real cool. It was amazing.”
For Legace, a hockey lifer who enjoys and appreciates every facet of the game, the entire bubble experience brought Legace back to when he was a youngster playing hockey.
“It reminded me of back when I was a kid,” Legace said. “Every hallway was set up with pingpong tables, so the guys are out in the hallways hanging out — you couldn’t go into anyone’s room — they’re hanging out and playing games in the hallways.
“It was a like big tournament, like the Quebec pee-wee tournament. You stay in the hotel, with everybody in the hallways, and it was just amazing to experience.
“The NHL has really done a great job with this.”
Kulfan continues (paywall)…
