This story upsets my stomach. Lisa Dillman, staff writer for the Los Angeles Times, believes the Devils never left their old arena in East Rutherford. A professional writer, who does not even cover hockey, mistake is worthy of a fine, suspension and possibly temporary leave of absence. This is a perfect reason for the league to hire bloggers, allow bloggers into the media rooms, locker rooms, etc. People like James Mirtle, Greg Wyshynski, Eric McErlain, Paul Kukla and many others cover the league as professionals. Traditional writers like Dillman, whose name I never heard of around a hockey puck, should stick to covering her beat (apparently tennis).

"The Kings were two games into an eight-game trip through the East and Midwest when Blake left the team to return to Los Angeles for treatment. On Saturday, the Kings fell to the New Jersey Devils, 6-3, at East Rutherford."

The Devils DO NOT play in East Rutherford anymore. In fact, they have not played there since last season playoffs. That's about nine months ago, if my math is accurate.

I have not begun to edit the rest of her article lest I find many other mistakes. James pointed out to me that Dillman is not a beat writer for the Kings. Rather, she did the interview over the phone from Los Angeles.

I understand the Times may not want to send a reporter cross-country to New Jersey to cover the Kings. But, at least, find a local stringer (Bergen Record, Star Ledger, etc.) to hand in a game story. This might cost 20 dollars, maybe 50 at most.

A junior in college, I am on track to become a sports writer/reporter. I would have covered the team free.

Furthermore, even if Dillman covers tennis, she should know how to cover other sports. It’s part of the profession.

The time for the NHL to allow bloggers into the media room is now. This would permit teams to receive more coverage and, hopefully, improve their ratings and revenue.

In Oct. ‘06, McErlain wrote, “Guidelines for Granting Media Credentials to Bloggers and Other Online Media Representatives.” He outlined rules on obtaining media credentials. Hockey teams could easily read a free copy of his constitution and decide for themselves.

The Sports Law Blog discussed bloggers in May ’07, explaining both sides of the issue. The main problem is that there are too many people blogging and drawing the line is rather difficult.

The simplest answer is hits. If a website draws thousands of readers, a professional most likely writes the content. Metsblog.com, Thebiglead.com, Deadspin.com and many others fall into this category.

Additionally, we have the issue of determining who is a journalist. Many bloggers are not journalist majors in college. Instead, they are masters of search engine marketing and optimization strategies.

Nevertheless, every NHL team should follow the Capitals and Islanders (Blog Box), who have recently granted non-traditional media personnel (aka bloggers) access to their postgame press conferences, locker room interviews, etc.

I believe the New Jersey Devils deserve more coverage than two or three news agencies (excluding AP, Sports Network and Reuters). With three Stanley Cup Trophies, a goaltender who has won over 500 career games, and a well-respected organization, they have earned the right.

Unfortunately, not everyone agrees with my philosophy.

At least, correctly identify their city.

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