Today, an NHL player was found dead in Toronto. Wait, does it seem like I already wrote one of these posts this summer? Oh that's right, it's because I did.
Wade Belak is actually the third current NHLer to pass away this summer. The second, Winnipeg forward Rick Rypien, took his own life on August 15th following a 10-year bout with depression. Boogaard (linked above) was eventually declared to have died from a fatal combination of alcohol and painkillers.
I'll tell you what, this summer can't end soon enough for the hockey world.
Here's Wyshynski's fantastic recap of the event and the immediate fallout. This write up from Adrian Dater of the Denver Post is good, too, for a more personal angle. Belak has always been what you might call a fringe NHL player, so much so that I had actually forgotten that he used to be an Av.
Nothing said about a cause of death yet. An early rumor said suicide, a later report said no, definitely not suicide, and a still later report on CBC said yes, suicide. I don't know what to make of it. After Boogaard's death, it was revealed that he'd had a history with substance abuse. Even before Rypien died, it was pretty well-known that he was dealing with a lot of personal demons. But Belak...from everything I've picked up over the course of the evening, he was happily married, a great friend, fun to hang around, well-adjusted, a proud papa, and fresh out of retirement/ready to take on a broadcast job with the Predators (his last team). He was Tweeting about how excited he was to be on the upcoming season of Battle of the Blades (sort of Dancing with the Stars, but on ice) Then today, dead.
There are so many things about this that are just terrible. He has two daughters, ages seven and five. His wife reportedly found out about the death via the news. 'Cause when you've got a scoop, you can't sit on it for thirty damn minutes while the police find a way to contact the widow...
All three of these guys were enforcers. Thugs/tough guys/policemen/fighters. They all mean pretty much the same thing. Which means there are folks who are already blaming fighting in hockey for all three deaths. Look, I don't know weather playing the tough-guy role for fifteen years had something to do with this death or not. It may have been one of those random fatal heart attacks that sometimes happen to healthy 35-year-old men. But come on, folks. Now is not the time for the argument.
For now, the hockey world just wants to mourn for a little bit. When the time's right, let the people in charge look at all the facts (which we still don't have yet) and figure out what, if anything, needs to be done to keep these things from happening. (For the record, both the Rypien and Boogaard families went on record to talk about all the help, support, and resources the NHL provided to help Rick and Derek get through their respective issues)
In the meantime, this whole thing is just sad.
Showing posts with label hockey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hockey. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
v2, d399: Chris Drury Retires
Chris Drury retired from the NHL today. He's been one of my favorite NHL players since he came on to the scene with the Avs. I still remember the day we traded him--as Dater points out in today's post, it was really the only boneheaded trade Pierre LaCroix ever made for the Avs. Even after this past season--where Chris was banged up, injured most of the year, slow and ineffective after two years of injuries and surgeries--I and a lot of other Avs fans were hoping he might re-sign for a third- or fourth-line/penalty killer role. (I think some of the Sabers fans wanted to see him back, too) However, he decided his body just couldn't do it any more, and he hung 'em up.
Robbie's middle name--Christopher--is taken from Chris Drury. I loved the way he played, but I always respected the man he was off the ice as well as on it. He played hard, but never dirty. He never responded to crap in kind. I remember an incident in Buffalo where he was hit into the board from behind with his head down and he missed some time with a serious head or neck injury (sorry, don't remember exactly which). When asked by a reporter what he thought of the guy who did it to him, he only responded that it was in the past, there was no point dwelling on it, and he was going to put in the work he needed to get back on the ice and do his job. He never sank below his own level of integrity.
I won't go on and on about the guy, because there have been much better (and more concise) tributes posted today, and I'll just give you those. First, Avs beat writer Adrian Dater's blog. Second (and more highly recommended for the uninitiated), Puck Daddy editor Greg Wyshynski.
Drury was known for scoring "clutch goals." He always seemed to come up big in the playoffs. His four playoff overtime goals puts him in the company of Hall of Famers. When Joe freaking Sakic says you're the most clutch player he's ever seen, that's saying something. Sure, people got tired of hearing that he pitched the winning game of the Little League World Series when he was 10, but that's just because every channel mentioned it every time his name came up. The man did win the LLWS. He also won a Hobey Baker Award, a Calder Trophy, two Olympic silver medals, and a Stanley Cup. He also spent his day with the Stanley Cup visiting his college teammate Travis Roy, a guy whose career ended when he was paralyzed on his first shift of college hockey. While his career was on the decline, he was named to the US Olympic Hockey Team roster in 2010. Said GM Brian Burke, "We picked Chris Drury because he's Chris Drury." And of course, he scores two clutch goals in that tournament as well.
Look, there were always better players than Drury, I know that. But if you look at how many NHL personalities today put out congratulations or "best captain I ever played with"/"one of the classiest guys I've ever known" comments on their Twitter throughout the day, how many tribute blogs and stories were posted by sports networks across North America, and how many fans who wish he could have had one last year to end his career on a higher note than his 2010-11 season, you get the feeling that the guy is special.
Incidentally, I do have a Top 7 Drury moments. I won't make it as big a deal as my usual Top 7's, but here you go:
7. Drury's response to the hit from behind in Buffalo
6. Skating around all 5 Vancouver players for a last-minute goal against the Canucks
5. Drury and his boyhood idol, Ray Bourque, throughout the 2000-01 season. Lots of great hijinks/stories there
4. Jeremy Roenick publicly apologizing for questioning the selection of Drury to the 2010 Olympic squad
3. Game 5 vs Detroit in 2002, overtime winner. (We lost the series anyway, but that was a glorious moment)
2. Telling Travis Roy's story on national TV
1. Of course, the Cup in 2001. Drury's retirement leaves only 3 guys from that team (Hejduk, Tanguay, Reinprecht) still playing in the NHL.
So, thank you, Chris, for being a role model and a leader. Thanks for the Cup in '01 and the consistent presence at USA Hockey. Thanks for being the kind of guy I'd want to name a kid after.
*sound of alone stick tapping against the ice*
Robbie's middle name--Christopher--is taken from Chris Drury. I loved the way he played, but I always respected the man he was off the ice as well as on it. He played hard, but never dirty. He never responded to crap in kind. I remember an incident in Buffalo where he was hit into the board from behind with his head down and he missed some time with a serious head or neck injury (sorry, don't remember exactly which). When asked by a reporter what he thought of the guy who did it to him, he only responded that it was in the past, there was no point dwelling on it, and he was going to put in the work he needed to get back on the ice and do his job. He never sank below his own level of integrity.
I won't go on and on about the guy, because there have been much better (and more concise) tributes posted today, and I'll just give you those. First, Avs beat writer Adrian Dater's blog. Second (and more highly recommended for the uninitiated), Puck Daddy editor Greg Wyshynski.
Drury was known for scoring "clutch goals." He always seemed to come up big in the playoffs. His four playoff overtime goals puts him in the company of Hall of Famers. When Joe freaking Sakic says you're the most clutch player he's ever seen, that's saying something. Sure, people got tired of hearing that he pitched the winning game of the Little League World Series when he was 10, but that's just because every channel mentioned it every time his name came up. The man did win the LLWS. He also won a Hobey Baker Award, a Calder Trophy, two Olympic silver medals, and a Stanley Cup. He also spent his day with the Stanley Cup visiting his college teammate Travis Roy, a guy whose career ended when he was paralyzed on his first shift of college hockey. While his career was on the decline, he was named to the US Olympic Hockey Team roster in 2010. Said GM Brian Burke, "We picked Chris Drury because he's Chris Drury." And of course, he scores two clutch goals in that tournament as well.
Look, there were always better players than Drury, I know that. But if you look at how many NHL personalities today put out congratulations or "best captain I ever played with"/"one of the classiest guys I've ever known" comments on their Twitter throughout the day, how many tribute blogs and stories were posted by sports networks across North America, and how many fans who wish he could have had one last year to end his career on a higher note than his 2010-11 season, you get the feeling that the guy is special.
Incidentally, I do have a Top 7 Drury moments. I won't make it as big a deal as my usual Top 7's, but here you go:
7. Drury's response to the hit from behind in Buffalo
6. Skating around all 5 Vancouver players for a last-minute goal against the Canucks
5. Drury and his boyhood idol, Ray Bourque, throughout the 2000-01 season. Lots of great hijinks/stories there
4. Jeremy Roenick publicly apologizing for questioning the selection of Drury to the 2010 Olympic squad
3. Game 5 vs Detroit in 2002, overtime winner. (We lost the series anyway, but that was a glorious moment)
2. Telling Travis Roy's story on national TV
1. Of course, the Cup in 2001. Drury's retirement leaves only 3 guys from that team (Hejduk, Tanguay, Reinprecht) still playing in the NHL.
So, thank you, Chris, for being a role model and a leader. Thanks for the Cup in '01 and the consistent presence at USA Hockey. Thanks for being the kind of guy I'd want to name a kid after.
*sound of alone stick tapping against the ice*
Friday, June 24, 2011
v2, d361: Ryan vs Ryan
So, this skit was really funny when they did it last year. Clearly, though, the NHL Awards people were running short on ideas this year (the whole show was pretty meh, at best), so they did it again. (Worked for The Hangover, right?)
Still, it's 1:00, and I'm trying to get back into regular blogging, and that means you get filler. And there are some chuckles in here. So here you go.
Still, it's 1:00, and I'm trying to get back into regular blogging, and that means you get filler. And there are some chuckles in here. So here you go.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
v2, d355: "They are tired; write the eulogy"
I feel the need to eulogize the Aeros a bit. With as many words as I've spent on their incredible Calder Cup run up to this point and as many hours of intense playoff memories as they've provided me this spring/early summer, I figure I owe them a couple of words.
Dave and I were at game six last night. The night the magic ran out. The Aeros took a 2-1 lead into the third period, but an early powerplay goal by the BSens tied the game at two. And somehow, at that point, I knew it was over. You could see the heart and the hustle our guys wanted to give, but they just didn't have anything left. Two series' worth of game sevens and three key injuries finally caught up to them. The tenacity with which they were somehow able to eke out clutch goals against three superb goalies in Ben Bishop, Jeremy Smith, and Drew MacIntyre wasn't enough to beat red-hot nineteen-year-old Robin Lehner. In the playoffs, you need your goalie to steal a few for you, and I think it's fair to say Lehner stole at least one game this series. That doesn't take anything away from the speed or the top-end scoring talent on the B-Sens team, but with a lesser tender between the pipes the Aeros still probably grind their way to a Calder Cup.
Grind. That's a good way to describe the Aeros this season. They were in a dogfight from day one. The West Division was probably the toughest I've ever seen it. Every team had a winning record. Through most of the season you had as many as seven teams separated by five or fewer points. At no point this year was there such a thing as a meaningless game. The Aeros were pretty much playing playoff hockey from December on. They finished with the second (or third, I can't remember) most wins in the entire league. They won a game seven on the road in Milwaukee, always a tough building for Houston to play in. They nearly blew it against the Bulldogs, letting a 3-0 lead turn into a seven-game affair. Maybe if they had taken care of business there, they would have had the legs to match the Senators' speed in the final. We'll never know. But they fought tooth and nail till the last gasp and came really freaking close to tying it with a minute left.
In the end, however, it just Binghamton's year. And you can't say enough about a team that barely made the playoffs and then rallied from down three games to one in the first round taking the rest of the playoffs by storm to win their city's first ever pro championship. That's just awesome.
But these Aeros were pretty awesome in their own right. There was something magic about the team, and it didn't rely on a Magic Shirt, Magic Baby Spit-up, a Magic Double-Overtime Pizza, or any of those other awesomely ridiculous superstitions that make being a sports fan so dang much fun. This team was special. They way they played for one another was special. The way someone different was always stepping up, taking turns being the hero, was special. That I can't point fingers and say, "This guy didn't pick up the slack" at any one of the guys on the ice is special. And, judging from sound clips from interviews, these guys knew it, too.
You know what? It sucked watching another team skate around with the Calder Cup on our ice on a night where over 10,000 fans filled the lower bowl and half of the upper bowl at the Yo. It sucked watching our guys skate back to the dressing room after the handshake line while league officials were setting up the table. It sucked to see the guys sitting on the bench or kneeling on the ice after the buzzer sounded while jubilant visiting players tossed their sticks and gloves in the air and mobbed one another. It sucked as a fan, but more than that, I was hacked off for the players. Because I thought they deserved better. All the heart and sweat they poured into this city all year, and I wanted a better ending for them. I wanted Captain D to get his first title. I wanted Sully to have something to celebrate at the end of what was a rough year for him. I wanted Hackett to have the last laugh on his critics who said he wasn't a championship caliber goalie. I wanted Noreau's five years in Houston to really pay off for him. I wanted Orts to win. I wanted Falker to win. I wanted Daoust, Marco, Rau, Earl, and Gillies to win. And they didn't. They just stood huddled to one side, waiting for the obligatory handshake, and there was nothing we could do about it. So I started up a "Thank you Aeros" chant, and it actually picked up some steam in my corner of the arena. I was glad for that.
I'm pretty certain we'll have a fairly solid team again next season. DiSalvatore and Rau are already signed for another season. So are Peters, Cuma, Kassian, McMillan. We'll have Hackett and Keumper between the pipes, and that's a solid tandem. I imagine one of Gillies or Almond will make the Wild, but we will likely have the other. A lot of guys are RFA's, and I think most of them will be back. I don't know if we'll get Coach Yeo again; the Wild have been holding off hiring a head coach until after this playoff run ended so I'm fairly certain they're seriously considering promoting him, too. And we'll get a couple of new Wild draft picks next year. I hope management brings back some of the UFA's. But no matter who is back, it'll be different next year. It always is. We probably won't make the Calder Cup Final again. It's awfully hard to repeat as conference champs, especially in the minors. But hey, whatever happens next year, we had the Calder Cup run of 2011, and folks, there's just nothing like it.
Dave and I were at game six last night. The night the magic ran out. The Aeros took a 2-1 lead into the third period, but an early powerplay goal by the BSens tied the game at two. And somehow, at that point, I knew it was over. You could see the heart and the hustle our guys wanted to give, but they just didn't have anything left. Two series' worth of game sevens and three key injuries finally caught up to them. The tenacity with which they were somehow able to eke out clutch goals against three superb goalies in Ben Bishop, Jeremy Smith, and Drew MacIntyre wasn't enough to beat red-hot nineteen-year-old Robin Lehner. In the playoffs, you need your goalie to steal a few for you, and I think it's fair to say Lehner stole at least one game this series. That doesn't take anything away from the speed or the top-end scoring talent on the B-Sens team, but with a lesser tender between the pipes the Aeros still probably grind their way to a Calder Cup.
Grind. That's a good way to describe the Aeros this season. They were in a dogfight from day one. The West Division was probably the toughest I've ever seen it. Every team had a winning record. Through most of the season you had as many as seven teams separated by five or fewer points. At no point this year was there such a thing as a meaningless game. The Aeros were pretty much playing playoff hockey from December on. They finished with the second (or third, I can't remember) most wins in the entire league. They won a game seven on the road in Milwaukee, always a tough building for Houston to play in. They nearly blew it against the Bulldogs, letting a 3-0 lead turn into a seven-game affair. Maybe if they had taken care of business there, they would have had the legs to match the Senators' speed in the final. We'll never know. But they fought tooth and nail till the last gasp and came really freaking close to tying it with a minute left.
In the end, however, it just Binghamton's year. And you can't say enough about a team that barely made the playoffs and then rallied from down three games to one in the first round taking the rest of the playoffs by storm to win their city's first ever pro championship. That's just awesome.
But these Aeros were pretty awesome in their own right. There was something magic about the team, and it didn't rely on a Magic Shirt, Magic Baby Spit-up, a Magic Double-Overtime Pizza, or any of those other awesomely ridiculous superstitions that make being a sports fan so dang much fun. This team was special. They way they played for one another was special. The way someone different was always stepping up, taking turns being the hero, was special. That I can't point fingers and say, "This guy didn't pick up the slack" at any one of the guys on the ice is special. And, judging from sound clips from interviews, these guys knew it, too.
You know what? It sucked watching another team skate around with the Calder Cup on our ice on a night where over 10,000 fans filled the lower bowl and half of the upper bowl at the Yo. It sucked watching our guys skate back to the dressing room after the handshake line while league officials were setting up the table. It sucked to see the guys sitting on the bench or kneeling on the ice after the buzzer sounded while jubilant visiting players tossed their sticks and gloves in the air and mobbed one another. It sucked as a fan, but more than that, I was hacked off for the players. Because I thought they deserved better. All the heart and sweat they poured into this city all year, and I wanted a better ending for them. I wanted Captain D to get his first title. I wanted Sully to have something to celebrate at the end of what was a rough year for him. I wanted Hackett to have the last laugh on his critics who said he wasn't a championship caliber goalie. I wanted Noreau's five years in Houston to really pay off for him. I wanted Orts to win. I wanted Falker to win. I wanted Daoust, Marco, Rau, Earl, and Gillies to win. And they didn't. They just stood huddled to one side, waiting for the obligatory handshake, and there was nothing we could do about it. So I started up a "Thank you Aeros" chant, and it actually picked up some steam in my corner of the arena. I was glad for that.
I'm pretty certain we'll have a fairly solid team again next season. DiSalvatore and Rau are already signed for another season. So are Peters, Cuma, Kassian, McMillan. We'll have Hackett and Keumper between the pipes, and that's a solid tandem. I imagine one of Gillies or Almond will make the Wild, but we will likely have the other. A lot of guys are RFA's, and I think most of them will be back. I don't know if we'll get Coach Yeo again; the Wild have been holding off hiring a head coach until after this playoff run ended so I'm fairly certain they're seriously considering promoting him, too. And we'll get a couple of new Wild draft picks next year. I hope management brings back some of the UFA's. But no matter who is back, it'll be different next year. It always is. We probably won't make the Calder Cup Final again. It's awfully hard to repeat as conference champs, especially in the minors. But hey, whatever happens next year, we had the Calder Cup run of 2011, and folks, there's just nothing like it.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
v2, d334: Magic Spit-Up
I have to admit that I found it difficult to focus all afternoon knowing that the Aeros were playing a game seven in Milwaukee tonight. Win, and we move on to the Western Conference Final for the second time in three years. Lose, and it's all over. And I realized as morning turned to noon: I didn't want it to be over! I actually lost some of my appetite around dinner time because I was so wrapped up worrying about this game.
Now, longtime readers of this blog will know that I am not above the occasional ridiculous sports superstition. The night of Game Five, I wore my Aeros vs. Admirals 2009 Division Finals T-shirt for luck, and the Aeros pulled out an improbable comeback for an OT win. Game Six, no shirt, no W. So when I was looking for something to change into after work and my 2009 shirt was clean, it was really no contest. I pulled on the shirt and turned on the radio broadcast for the game.
About this time, Kim was finishing up dinner, so it was left to me to keep the baby entertained. I had him on my left shoulder, resting his head against my chest, when suddenly the baby spewed all over the lucky shirt. (This is less disgusting than you might think; you just sorta get used to it as a parent) I calmly pulled him back to survey the damage and discovered that my boy had managed to aim the entirety of his substantial upheaval on the Milwaukee Admirals side of my shirt.
I was a proud papa.
Result? One heck of a thrilling game seven that ends with a 4-2 Aeros win. We play on, with home ice throughout the rest of the playoffs. Unfortunately, I don't own anything with the Bulldogs', Checkers', or Senators' logos, so we won't be able to recapture this particular magic. But if it's needed, I'm sure I'll figure something out :-)
Now, longtime readers of this blog will know that I am not above the occasional ridiculous sports superstition. The night of Game Five, I wore my Aeros vs. Admirals 2009 Division Finals T-shirt for luck, and the Aeros pulled out an improbable comeback for an OT win. Game Six, no shirt, no W. So when I was looking for something to change into after work and my 2009 shirt was clean, it was really no contest. I pulled on the shirt and turned on the radio broadcast for the game.
About this time, Kim was finishing up dinner, so it was left to me to keep the baby entertained. I had him on my left shoulder, resting his head against my chest, when suddenly the baby spewed all over the lucky shirt. (This is less disgusting than you might think; you just sorta get used to it as a parent) I calmly pulled him back to survey the damage and discovered that my boy had managed to aim the entirety of his substantial upheaval on the Milwaukee Admirals side of my shirt.
I was a proud papa.
Result? One heck of a thrilling game seven that ends with a 4-2 Aeros win. We play on, with home ice throughout the rest of the playoffs. Unfortunately, I don't own anything with the Bulldogs', Checkers', or Senators' logos, so we won't be able to recapture this particular magic. But if it's needed, I'm sure I'll figure something out :-)
Friday, May 6, 2011
v2, d331: Playoff bloggin
I sat down to blog last night, but all I could come up with were really gloat-y, partisan, unfair and (somewhat) inaccurate celebrations of Tampa's victory--sorry, four game sweep--of the Washington Capitals. But I'm not that guy. I don't like to gloat publicly, no matter how much I hate (note: sports hate, not real hate) the enemy. Because I've been on the other side of that coin. Every single year, when your team is knocked out it's like a punch in the gut. You think I don't remember how bad it sucks to see your team knocked out of the playoffs? This is off the top of my head:
1996: Tampa lost to Philly
1999: Colorado lost to Dallas
2000: Colorado lost to Dallas AGAIN
2001: Pittsburgh lost to New Jersey
2002: Colorado lost to Detroit
2003: Tampa Bay lost to New Jersey, Colorado lost to Minnesota
2004: Colorado lost to San Jose
2006: Houston lost to Milwaukee, Tampa lost to Ottawa
2007: Pittsburgh lost to Ottawa, Colorado lost to Anaheim
2008: Colorado lost to Detroit, Pittsburgh lost to Detroit (in the final), Houston lost to Rockford
2009: Houston lost to Manitoba
2010: Colorado lost to San Jose, Pittsburgh lost to Montreal
Others (I can't remember the year) include Colorado losing to Edmonton and Detroit, the Thunder losing to Oklahoma City (several times), Columbus, Fort Worth, Bossier City-Shreveport (more than once), and Tulsa. Now, you'll notice there are a few years I don't remember exactly who did us in, but with relatively little effort I'm able to pull up just about every playoff defeat one of my teams has endured in the past 15 years.
It's a bitter pill, folks.
So, as much as I despite the Caps organization, I can't bring myself to dance on their graves (death by choking). If you'd like to read some nice Capitals dumping, you'll have to go here, and even then you may be a bit disappointed. (Though the bit about the Ovechtrick is pretty funny, and the artwork is all pretty good)
*******
This is a fun story (Puck Daddy again) on a Tampa fan who was commanded to take down his "Go Bolts!" sign by his neighborhood's Home Owners' Association. I don't know if the HOA expected the guy's fanaticism to go down easily or not, but if they did, they just don't know hockey fans.
*******
The first round of the NHL playoffs were insane. Boston/Montreal, Vancouver/Chicago, Pittsburgh/Tampa Bay, and Buffalo/Philadelphia all went seven games. Both Tampa and Chicago had to rally from down 3-1 to get there. San Jose/Los Angeles and Nashville/Anaheim both went six games. And there were overtime games everywhere. (Last night was only the second time in sixteen straight days we did not have a game go to OT, and that may have been because there was only one game on the schedule) I've never seen such a tight, competitive round of hockey, as only Detroit/Phoenix was a sweep.
Round two has been....less competitive. Tampa swept Washington, as mentioned above. Boston is up three-nil on Philly and San Jose is up by the same margin over the Wings. The closest series of the second round currently sits at Vancouver three games to Nashville's one, with game five in Vancouver tonight. Sure, one of these "down-and-out" teams may rally to make it interesting, but there's a very real chance the second round of the playoffs could be over in the next 48 hours. It's like the true contenders shook off the rust in the first round or something. The games have almost all been tense and exciting, but wow. Contrary to the gauntlet of round one, I've never seen such a lop-sided second round, either.
*******
*******
Finally, the Aeros and Admirals are tied at two in their best of seven. After splitting in Milwaukee, the Aeros blew it in game three. Last night, they dominated the game but still found themselves in OT. Apparently, the Aeros have won 10 straight playoff OT games since 2003. Crazy stat. Anyway, Carson McMillan scored his 2nd OT winner of this playoffs (4th liners rule!) while I was driving back from Kroger. I celebrated while driving, and I wondered what people watching me drive during Aeros games must think of me. Who cares. Best-of-three starting tonight, kids.
1996: Tampa lost to Philly
1999: Colorado lost to Dallas
2000: Colorado lost to Dallas AGAIN
2001: Pittsburgh lost to New Jersey
2002: Colorado lost to Detroit
2003: Tampa Bay lost to New Jersey, Colorado lost to Minnesota
2004: Colorado lost to San Jose
2006: Houston lost to Milwaukee, Tampa lost to Ottawa
2007: Pittsburgh lost to Ottawa, Colorado lost to Anaheim
2008: Colorado lost to Detroit, Pittsburgh lost to Detroit (in the final), Houston lost to Rockford
2009: Houston lost to Manitoba
2010: Colorado lost to San Jose, Pittsburgh lost to Montreal
Others (I can't remember the year) include Colorado losing to Edmonton and Detroit, the Thunder losing to Oklahoma City (several times), Columbus, Fort Worth, Bossier City-Shreveport (more than once), and Tulsa. Now, you'll notice there are a few years I don't remember exactly who did us in, but with relatively little effort I'm able to pull up just about every playoff defeat one of my teams has endured in the past 15 years.
It's a bitter pill, folks.
So, as much as I despite the Caps organization, I can't bring myself to dance on their graves (death by choking). If you'd like to read some nice Capitals dumping, you'll have to go here, and even then you may be a bit disappointed. (Though the bit about the Ovechtrick is pretty funny, and the artwork is all pretty good)
*******
This is a fun story (Puck Daddy again) on a Tampa fan who was commanded to take down his "Go Bolts!" sign by his neighborhood's Home Owners' Association. I don't know if the HOA expected the guy's fanaticism to go down easily or not, but if they did, they just don't know hockey fans.
*******
The first round of the NHL playoffs were insane. Boston/Montreal, Vancouver/Chicago, Pittsburgh/Tampa Bay, and Buffalo/Philadelphia all went seven games. Both Tampa and Chicago had to rally from down 3-1 to get there. San Jose/Los Angeles and Nashville/Anaheim both went six games. And there were overtime games everywhere. (Last night was only the second time in sixteen straight days we did not have a game go to OT, and that may have been because there was only one game on the schedule) I've never seen such a tight, competitive round of hockey, as only Detroit/Phoenix was a sweep.
Round two has been....less competitive. Tampa swept Washington, as mentioned above. Boston is up three-nil on Philly and San Jose is up by the same margin over the Wings. The closest series of the second round currently sits at Vancouver three games to Nashville's one, with game five in Vancouver tonight. Sure, one of these "down-and-out" teams may rally to make it interesting, but there's a very real chance the second round of the playoffs could be over in the next 48 hours. It's like the true contenders shook off the rust in the first round or something. The games have almost all been tense and exciting, but wow. Contrary to the gauntlet of round one, I've never seen such a lop-sided second round, either.
*******
*******
Finally, the Aeros and Admirals are tied at two in their best of seven. After splitting in Milwaukee, the Aeros blew it in game three. Last night, they dominated the game but still found themselves in OT. Apparently, the Aeros have won 10 straight playoff OT games since 2003. Crazy stat. Anyway, Carson McMillan scored his 2nd OT winner of this playoffs (4th liners rule!) while I was driving back from Kroger. I celebrated while driving, and I wondered what people watching me drive during Aeros games must think of me. Who cares. Best-of-three starting tonight, kids.
Friday, March 25, 2011
v2, d310: Third Annual Aeros "Where Are They Now" post
Well, hockey season (regular season) is almost over, so it's time to give my annual salute to the guys I watched toil in the AHL whose hard work has paid off. It's time to check in on our beloved former-Aeros! I know most of y'all don't care, but this post is always a fun one for me. Note: these are only the guys who played in Houston since I moved here, the 2005-06 season.
We'll start off with the sad omission from this year's highlight real: my personal favorite former Aero Josh Harding. After playing himself into a season-ending injury last year, Harding rehabbed like crazy to get in game shape for this season. He took the ice for his first pre-season game feeling great...until he tore both his ACL and MCL. He's finally skating again, but he lost an entire season. Here's hoping he finds work in the NHL next year, because he's one of the great guys in the game, and it would suck to see it end this way for him.
John Scott, D, Chicago
The unlikeliest Aeros in the NHL, Scott came to Houston as an undrafted rookie with no hands (not literally), no skating ability, and a heck of a lot of work ethic. Through parts of three seasons in Houston, Scott eventually matured into an AHL vet with no hands, minimal skating ability, and a reputation as one of the league's top fighters. (Oh, did I mention he's 6'8" and 258 pounds??) And that's pretty much who he is in the NHL, too, now with the Chicago Blackhawks. He doesn't play often because, well, he's a terrible hockey player, but he's good to have on the ice if you think the other team is going to start pushing your guys around. In 40 games this year, Scott has no goals, one assist, fifteen shots, and seventy-two penalty minutes. And according to the voters at hockeyfights.com, he's never lost an NHL bout (17-0).
Odd thought: Scott is the former Aero currently most likely to win a Stanley Cup.
Here's Scott winning a fairly long bout with St. Louis's Cam Janssen:
Ryan Jones, F, Edmonton
Jones only played four games for the Aeros, and then he was a pest with the Admirals for a couple years while bouncing back up and down to Nashville. Now he's playing for the last place team in the league, but he does have 16 goals. Plus, you can follow him on Twitter.
Here's Jones going right to the net for a shorty against Dallas:
Clayton Stoner, D, Minnesota
Stoner's a guy who really took the long route getting to Minny. He'd been an Aero every year since I'd been here. And every time he started to catch a break, he'd get hurt. Glad to see him finally stick with the Wild. He's a good 6th d-man, good, tough, stay-at-home guy, and every team needs those guys to eat up some quality minutes on the back end. He doesn't score much (twice, so far), but he's been playing good defense and even getting some time on the PK.
Here's his memorable blooper-worthy first NHL goal:
Joel Ward, F, Nashville
Ward was the leading scorer on the 2007-08 team that had no business making the playoffs (but did anyway). Nevertheless, the Wild let him walk as a free agent, and he's had double digits in goals for the Predators every year since. Hm...
Ward actually has three goals against the Wild this year. This sort of thing seems to happen a lot in the NHL.
Benoit Pouliot, F, Montreal
Man, this kid has some sick hands. Sometimes. But not often enough for a kid who was picked 4th overall. Pouliot wasn't bad as an Aero, but I had really hoped he would dominate the AHL level. He didn't, and he hasn't at the NHL, either. He hasn't been bad, mind you, and he's only 24, and he's going to finish with thirty points for the first time in his career, so things are trending upward for him. Minnesota was a pretty rotten place for a skill guy like Pouliot due to the system the team played. And Pouliot never really bought in to the whole "defense" thing. Anyway, he's got some pretty goals in Montreal, including this obscene shootout winner against my Pens.
Cal Clutterbuck, F, Minnesota
Possibly my all-time favorite Aero. He just flew all over the ice, never took a shift off, dished out hit after hit (almost all of them clean), and can score. Seems like he has a lot of haters, mostly because he doesn't fight often, but that's not his game. He's an agitator, he draws penalties, he throws big hits, he gets the team and the fans fired up, and this year, he's going to top 20 goals for the first time. He also feasts on BlueJackets, as in this clip in which he will take out two BJ's with one hit before bouncing back to his feet and putting home the rebound. Awesome.
Kurtis Foster, D, Oilers
Foster had a solid rookie season and followed it up with a couple decent years for a puck-moving d-man...until he snapped his leg. He spent a full year rehabbing and actually made it back to play for the Wild (who re-signed him despite no guarantee he'd play again, which I thought was a nice gesture on their part). He also got to rehab in Houston a few games, so we got to see him again. Anyway, last season he had a solid year in Tampa, but they let him walk, too, so now the poor guy is banished to Edmonton.
He shoots the puck pretty hard.
Jared Spurgeon, D, Minnesota
Here's a guy who was told he was too small to play hockey professionally and had probably best settle on some different life goals. (He's 5'9", which is small for an NHL d-man) He signed with the Wild and was expected to play the whole year in Houston. And basically, that didn't happen. Great kid, great story. Here he is scoring (as far too many players do) against the Avs.
That's our round-up for this year. Hopefully next season we can add some new names (like Wellman, Noreau, Khudobin, Almond, Gillies) to the list. Or re-instate Robbie Earl and Patrick O'Sullivan.
We'll start off with the sad omission from this year's highlight real: my personal favorite former Aero Josh Harding. After playing himself into a season-ending injury last year, Harding rehabbed like crazy to get in game shape for this season. He took the ice for his first pre-season game feeling great...until he tore both his ACL and MCL. He's finally skating again, but he lost an entire season. Here's hoping he finds work in the NHL next year, because he's one of the great guys in the game, and it would suck to see it end this way for him.
John Scott, D, Chicago
The unlikeliest Aeros in the NHL, Scott came to Houston as an undrafted rookie with no hands (not literally), no skating ability, and a heck of a lot of work ethic. Through parts of three seasons in Houston, Scott eventually matured into an AHL vet with no hands, minimal skating ability, and a reputation as one of the league's top fighters. (Oh, did I mention he's 6'8" and 258 pounds??) And that's pretty much who he is in the NHL, too, now with the Chicago Blackhawks. He doesn't play often because, well, he's a terrible hockey player, but he's good to have on the ice if you think the other team is going to start pushing your guys around. In 40 games this year, Scott has no goals, one assist, fifteen shots, and seventy-two penalty minutes. And according to the voters at hockeyfights.com, he's never lost an NHL bout (17-0).
Odd thought: Scott is the former Aero currently most likely to win a Stanley Cup.
Here's Scott winning a fairly long bout with St. Louis's Cam Janssen:
Ryan Jones, F, Edmonton
Jones only played four games for the Aeros, and then he was a pest with the Admirals for a couple years while bouncing back up and down to Nashville. Now he's playing for the last place team in the league, but he does have 16 goals. Plus, you can follow him on Twitter.
Here's Jones going right to the net for a shorty against Dallas:
Clayton Stoner, D, Minnesota
Stoner's a guy who really took the long route getting to Minny. He'd been an Aero every year since I'd been here. And every time he started to catch a break, he'd get hurt. Glad to see him finally stick with the Wild. He's a good 6th d-man, good, tough, stay-at-home guy, and every team needs those guys to eat up some quality minutes on the back end. He doesn't score much (twice, so far), but he's been playing good defense and even getting some time on the PK.
Here's his memorable blooper-worthy first NHL goal:
Joel Ward, F, Nashville
Ward was the leading scorer on the 2007-08 team that had no business making the playoffs (but did anyway). Nevertheless, the Wild let him walk as a free agent, and he's had double digits in goals for the Predators every year since. Hm...
Ward actually has three goals against the Wild this year. This sort of thing seems to happen a lot in the NHL.
Benoit Pouliot, F, Montreal
Man, this kid has some sick hands. Sometimes. But not often enough for a kid who was picked 4th overall. Pouliot wasn't bad as an Aero, but I had really hoped he would dominate the AHL level. He didn't, and he hasn't at the NHL, either. He hasn't been bad, mind you, and he's only 24, and he's going to finish with thirty points for the first time in his career, so things are trending upward for him. Minnesota was a pretty rotten place for a skill guy like Pouliot due to the system the team played. And Pouliot never really bought in to the whole "defense" thing. Anyway, he's got some pretty goals in Montreal, including this obscene shootout winner against my Pens.
Cal Clutterbuck, F, Minnesota
Possibly my all-time favorite Aero. He just flew all over the ice, never took a shift off, dished out hit after hit (almost all of them clean), and can score. Seems like he has a lot of haters, mostly because he doesn't fight often, but that's not his game. He's an agitator, he draws penalties, he throws big hits, he gets the team and the fans fired up, and this year, he's going to top 20 goals for the first time. He also feasts on BlueJackets, as in this clip in which he will take out two BJ's with one hit before bouncing back to his feet and putting home the rebound. Awesome.
Kurtis Foster, D, Oilers
Foster had a solid rookie season and followed it up with a couple decent years for a puck-moving d-man...until he snapped his leg. He spent a full year rehabbing and actually made it back to play for the Wild (who re-signed him despite no guarantee he'd play again, which I thought was a nice gesture on their part). He also got to rehab in Houston a few games, so we got to see him again. Anyway, last season he had a solid year in Tampa, but they let him walk, too, so now the poor guy is banished to Edmonton.
He shoots the puck pretty hard.
Jared Spurgeon, D, Minnesota
Here's a guy who was told he was too small to play hockey professionally and had probably best settle on some different life goals. (He's 5'9", which is small for an NHL d-man) He signed with the Wild and was expected to play the whole year in Houston. And basically, that didn't happen. Great kid, great story. Here he is scoring (as far too many players do) against the Avs.
That's our round-up for this year. Hopefully next season we can add some new names (like Wellman, Noreau, Khudobin, Almond, Gillies) to the list. Or re-instate Robbie Earl and Patrick O'Sullivan.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
v2, d287: "No one here but us Pens fans..."
I don't think there are any of you who don't already know this, but I am a Pittsburgh Penguins fan. (Also: Colorado Avalanche, Tampa Bay Lightning, Houston Aeros, and Wichita Thunder, but none of those are relevant now) Robbie knows it and has cheered on the Pens with me on many occasions. (During the Cup run of 2009, for example, he would hear me shout "YEAH!!!" from the back room and then sprint into the living room shouting "GO PENGUINS!" There was also the famous "Thank you God Daddy, thank you God Mr. Travis, thank you God Go Penguins" prayer, after which the Pens won 4 of the last 5 games against Detroit to win the Cup) A couple weeks ago, however, the Pens were playing their arch-rival, the evil Washington Capitals. And after I said, "Go Penguins" once, Robbie countered with "Go Capitals!" and a big mischievous grin on his face. And he wanted reaction, so I gave him one. "What?" I asked. "Why would you say Go Capitals? We like the Penguins!" "I like the Capitals!" he laughed, and he spent the rest of the afternoon randomly spouting "Go Capitals!"
Playful antagonism just to get a response? Surely not from my child...
Anyway, last night the Pens and Caps were on TV again. When I turned the game on, Robbie asked what I was watching. I told him I was watching the Penguins. He asked if the Capitals were playing. (He's asked this every game since he first became a Caps fan) I told him they were, and his face lit up. "GO CAPITALS!" he shouted. "Now you say, 'Oh, man! Why do you say go Capitals?'" He had this all figured out. So, I played my part. "Oh, man," I said, "Why do you say, 'Go, Capitals!'" And he just cackled and said "GO CAPITALS!" again.
Now, I realize Robbie has no real allegiance when it comes to sports teams at this point, though he likes any team that starts with Houston and his favorite hockey player is the Aeros' Robbie Earl, so I wasn't really upset. I knew his Go Caps' were only because he thought it was a fun game. Still, you've got to curb rebellion early, before you get to the "Stone the Rebellious Child" stage from the Torah. So, as I stabbed a bite of pork chop with my fork, I said nonchalantly, "You know, Robbie, I think that only Penguins fans are going to get to have dessert in this house."
From the bedroom, I hear Kim's amused voice: "That's not nice, Daddy!"
I shrugged and called back. "Hey, that's just the way it works. I don't make the rules."
Her voice again: "Yes, you do!"
And then, Robbie calling back to her: "No he doesn't Mommy! It's just the way it is!" A brief moment passes, and then he exclaims, "GO PENGUINS!"
Just like that, we're all one big happy family once again ;-)
**************
Side note: Former Aero (briefly) Jared Spurgeon got his first NHL goal tonight. While it's not as memorable as Stoner's, it's still worth a stick tap. Great story, this kid.
Playful antagonism just to get a response? Surely not from my child...
Anyway, last night the Pens and Caps were on TV again. When I turned the game on, Robbie asked what I was watching. I told him I was watching the Penguins. He asked if the Capitals were playing. (He's asked this every game since he first became a Caps fan) I told him they were, and his face lit up. "GO CAPITALS!" he shouted. "Now you say, 'Oh, man! Why do you say go Capitals?'" He had this all figured out. So, I played my part. "Oh, man," I said, "Why do you say, 'Go, Capitals!'" And he just cackled and said "GO CAPITALS!" again.
Now, I realize Robbie has no real allegiance when it comes to sports teams at this point, though he likes any team that starts with Houston and his favorite hockey player is the Aeros' Robbie Earl, so I wasn't really upset. I knew his Go Caps' were only because he thought it was a fun game. Still, you've got to curb rebellion early, before you get to the "Stone the Rebellious Child" stage from the Torah. So, as I stabbed a bite of pork chop with my fork, I said nonchalantly, "You know, Robbie, I think that only Penguins fans are going to get to have dessert in this house."
From the bedroom, I hear Kim's amused voice: "That's not nice, Daddy!"
I shrugged and called back. "Hey, that's just the way it works. I don't make the rules."
Her voice again: "Yes, you do!"
And then, Robbie calling back to her: "No he doesn't Mommy! It's just the way it is!" A brief moment passes, and then he exclaims, "GO PENGUINS!"
Just like that, we're all one big happy family once again ;-)
**************
Side note: Former Aero (briefly) Jared Spurgeon got his first NHL goal tonight. While it's not as memorable as Stoner's, it's still worth a stick tap. Great story, this kid.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
v2, d249: In which blogger decides to be nice again
Yesterday was weird. I'm glad I get to blog again.
Just wanted to pop in quickly to share yesterday's quirky hockey happening that (by now) you may have already seen, since it's been on all the major sports networks and a few major news networks, too. Which means it was a slow news day. Which is good, considering "news" today is generally equated with "death and crap like that."
Again: this is not just noteworthy because it was fluky (like the Stoner goal) or rare (a once-every-five-years-or-so occurrence) or a major humorous choke by a highly-paid jerk or anything, it's noteworthy because I've never seen this happen. Nor have many coaches, players, and play-by-play men who have spent their entire lives breathing the sport. Check out the first 55 seconds or so of this video:
BANG! Where once there was one, now there is two.
I'm here to answer the question posed by the commentators (and one that, I'm sure, crossed many of your minds as well): If half the puck had crossed the goal line, would they have been given credit for half a goal?
No.
The rule very clearly states that the entire puck must cross the red line completely in order for a goal to count. Otherwise, this would have counted as 0.98 goals and the Sabres would have won the game 3.98-3 in regulation.
Now, had one half the puck passed the red line and the attacking team managed to beat the goalie again with the other half of the puck while the first half was still in the goal, then we might have a quandary. My theory is they'd blow play dead retroactive to when the puck split (since, obviously, the ref blew it dead as soon as it happened, but we're assuming play had continued). Wouldn't it have been cool, though, if the game were briefly played with two half-pucks instead of one whole puck?
That was really all I wanted to say last night.
Oh, and humorous update on the Russian gold medal: Living up to stereotype, the Russian team was kicked off their plane out of the U.S. because the group of 18-and-under lads was too inebriated to fly. Not making this up. Also not making up (and may have mentioned last night): the Swedes left a congratulations poster in the Russian locker room after the Junior Popinskis took down the Canadians in dramatic and stupefying fashion. Turns out, Gretz was right: when it comes to international ice hockey, it really is Canada vs. the world.
Well, now we can go back to being friends.
Just wanted to pop in quickly to share yesterday's quirky hockey happening that (by now) you may have already seen, since it's been on all the major sports networks and a few major news networks, too. Which means it was a slow news day. Which is good, considering "news" today is generally equated with "death and crap like that."
Again: this is not just noteworthy because it was fluky (like the Stoner goal) or rare (a once-every-five-years-or-so occurrence) or a major humorous choke by a highly-paid jerk or anything, it's noteworthy because I've never seen this happen. Nor have many coaches, players, and play-by-play men who have spent their entire lives breathing the sport. Check out the first 55 seconds or so of this video:
BANG! Where once there was one, now there is two.
I'm here to answer the question posed by the commentators (and one that, I'm sure, crossed many of your minds as well): If half the puck had crossed the goal line, would they have been given credit for half a goal?
No.
The rule very clearly states that the entire puck must cross the red line completely in order for a goal to count. Otherwise, this would have counted as 0.98 goals and the Sabres would have won the game 3.98-3 in regulation.
Now, had one half the puck passed the red line and the attacking team managed to beat the goalie again with the other half of the puck while the first half was still in the goal, then we might have a quandary. My theory is they'd blow play dead retroactive to when the puck split (since, obviously, the ref blew it dead as soon as it happened, but we're assuming play had continued). Wouldn't it have been cool, though, if the game were briefly played with two half-pucks instead of one whole puck?
That was really all I wanted to say last night.
Oh, and humorous update on the Russian gold medal: Living up to stereotype, the Russian team was kicked off their plane out of the U.S. because the group of 18-and-under lads was too inebriated to fly. Not making this up. Also not making up (and may have mentioned last night): the Swedes left a congratulations poster in the Russian locker room after the Junior Popinskis took down the Canadians in dramatic and stupefying fashion. Turns out, Gretz was right: when it comes to international ice hockey, it really is Canada vs. the world.
Well, now we can go back to being friends.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
v2, d204: Hat Trick
Sorry for missing last night. I got home from the grocery store (8 lbs of oranges, 10 lbs of potatoes, 16 oz of mozzarella, and 2 bags of tortilla chips for 10 bucks!) and suddenly felt awful. Still feeling pretty bad today, so trying to take it easy before the last four shows of Pooh. Also means I went to bed early last night and left the blog untouched. If it makes you feel any better, I didn't get to the dishes, either.
Gonna hit ya with three hockey-related newsworthy items from the past few days.
First: You just gotta check out Official FOMW Favorite Cal Clutterbuck's game-winning goal against Columbus from last Saturday.
BAM! Takes out two guys with one hit, bounces back to the front of the net, aaaaand game-winner. Thing o' beauty.
Second: Cal's old Minnesota teammate Derek Boogaard scored last night. Why's that such a big deal? It was Boogaard's first goal since his rookie season...the 2005-06 season. The goal was so newsworthy, every hockey blogger or analyst I follow on Twitter had to mention it. My reaction when I saw it on the box score was something like "Boogaard scored? On purpose?" I had initially thought someone must have banked it in off his head or something, but nope. Not only did the man score, he went coast-to-coast on a breakaway before ripping a slapshot by Michael Neuvirth of the Caps (who should now be ashamed of himself). In fact, the event was so monumental that Official FOMW Favorite Mike Russo felt the need to write a blog about it immediately...while his brother was in the process of asking him to be the best man in his wedding. Brother's fiance? Not thrilled.
Ah, hockey people. They're a rare breed.
Finally: The NHL is changing up the way it runs the All-Star game. A long time a go, the format was Stanley Cup Champion vs. All-Stars from the rest of the teams. Then, it switched to Conference vs Conference. Then, in an attempt to stir up Olympic hype in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it switched to North America vs. The World. After people grew tired of that, we went back to East vs West. But now....well, it's a tad complicated. See, the league will pick a pool of players who are All-Star eligible. Those players will vote for two team captains. And then, after the fans have picked the All-Star starters, the team captains will pick the teams the Friday of All-Star weekend. That's right, it's basically the ultimate pick-up game. No conference allegiance or alignment, just "You took Joe Thornton? I'll take Chris Pronger. Let's play hockey."
What's at stake here? Nothing, really. But there never really was anything at stake for the ASG. The league is looking to capture the spirit of natural competitive fun that comes out whenever you get a bunch of guys together playing a game improvisationally. So we'll see if it works. Personally, I kind of like it. They haven't released all the rules for the new format, as they just decided to try it last weekend. Players seem jazzed about the idea. Should be fun. And really, All-Star Weekend should be fun and nothing more. So, props to the league for thinking outside the box.
And because I'm hot with the links today, here's Wyshynski's early take on the announcement, along with a bit more information.
Adios, amigos!
Gonna hit ya with three hockey-related newsworthy items from the past few days.
First: You just gotta check out Official FOMW Favorite Cal Clutterbuck's game-winning goal against Columbus from last Saturday.
BAM! Takes out two guys with one hit, bounces back to the front of the net, aaaaand game-winner. Thing o' beauty.
Second: Cal's old Minnesota teammate Derek Boogaard scored last night. Why's that such a big deal? It was Boogaard's first goal since his rookie season...the 2005-06 season. The goal was so newsworthy, every hockey blogger or analyst I follow on Twitter had to mention it. My reaction when I saw it on the box score was something like "Boogaard scored? On purpose?" I had initially thought someone must have banked it in off his head or something, but nope. Not only did the man score, he went coast-to-coast on a breakaway before ripping a slapshot by Michael Neuvirth of the Caps (who should now be ashamed of himself). In fact, the event was so monumental that Official FOMW Favorite Mike Russo felt the need to write a blog about it immediately...while his brother was in the process of asking him to be the best man in his wedding. Brother's fiance? Not thrilled.
Ah, hockey people. They're a rare breed.
Finally: The NHL is changing up the way it runs the All-Star game. A long time a go, the format was Stanley Cup Champion vs. All-Stars from the rest of the teams. Then, it switched to Conference vs Conference. Then, in an attempt to stir up Olympic hype in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it switched to North America vs. The World. After people grew tired of that, we went back to East vs West. But now....well, it's a tad complicated. See, the league will pick a pool of players who are All-Star eligible. Those players will vote for two team captains. And then, after the fans have picked the All-Star starters, the team captains will pick the teams the Friday of All-Star weekend. That's right, it's basically the ultimate pick-up game. No conference allegiance or alignment, just "You took Joe Thornton? I'll take Chris Pronger. Let's play hockey."
What's at stake here? Nothing, really. But there never really was anything at stake for the ASG. The league is looking to capture the spirit of natural competitive fun that comes out whenever you get a bunch of guys together playing a game improvisationally. So we'll see if it works. Personally, I kind of like it. They haven't released all the rules for the new format, as they just decided to try it last weekend. Players seem jazzed about the idea. Should be fun. And really, All-Star Weekend should be fun and nothing more. So, props to the league for thinking outside the box.
And because I'm hot with the links today, here's Wyshynski's early take on the announcement, along with a bit more information.
Adios, amigos!
Friday, October 22, 2010
v2, d188: "Score the gooooooal, Houston!!!" Or...or not, as the case may be...
A few observations from my first Aeros game since last January.
*Dave gave me free tickets. Dave is awesome and nice.
*Okay, we've got the Kiss Cam, which I think is pretty sweet for the most part. (Don't know why it's not part of the intermission instead of the game, but whatever) And we've got the Smile Cam, which is less exciting, but I get it, because a dentist paid good money to get his name on the Jumbotron, so, smiles, teeth, brilliant. Now we've added Air Guitar Cam, and suddenly it feels like we have one Cam too many. Especially if AGC and SC are going to come so close together. Look, we need to drop a Cam. Just not the Kiss Cam. 'Cause I like that one.
*I don't understand the part of the game where we scream for which of the three song choices for the night they'll play in the second intermission. We don't hear the whole song, because they usually play it at the end of the intermission. Also, they occasionally play one of the songs we didn't vote for anyway. I don't get it. What's the point?
*Starting the "Hey Bishop! You suck!" cheer right after Bishop made three awesome saves makes you look dumb. And I'm pretty sure it doesn't do much to take the goalie off his game. But you go ahead and cheer for yourselves.
*Speaking of Bishop, he's one tall glass of water. You can't convince me that big of a man can be knocked so forcefully to the ground by having a small guy brush by him in the crease.
*That said, on the whole the officiating was pretty good tonight.
*They had the little kids scrimmage during the first intermission. It was highly awesome. The first goal was scored when a kid on the black-jersey team shot the puck and the rebound bounced out to a kid in a white jersey, who promptly put it in. Since both nets were manned by neutral coaches as goalies, I'm not sure which team was supposed to be shooting at that net, but the kid in white celebrated like he'd just won the Stanley Cup. Several of the kids in the black also celebrated. From that point on, it seemed half the kids in white were going for the opposite goal, but a few of the kids in black were targeting that goal, too. And vice versa. It was a really confusing scrimmage. At one point, the coach knocked the rebound back behind the net, and the puck never made it back into scoring position again the rest of the scrimmage. Cute as all get-out, though.
*I'm really stinking tired.
*I don't think Anton Khudobin should be credited with the loss for this game. I think the defenseman who could neither clear the rebound nor take his man out of the play on the game-ending 2-on-2 should somehow get credit for the loss. Good game, Dobby.
*I still wish Khudobin's nickname was Hootie instead of Dobby. No disrespect meant to house elves.
*The upper deck seats are actually not too bad. I wish they opened them up more often. (I realize they Aeros don't generally draw well enough to justify that, but still. Would be nice to find a seat for less than $17 regularly)
*Tonight's "Dance for your Dinner" promotion was the lamest dinner dance-off I've ever seen. Yet that seemed to be the turning point, because before DfyD the Aeros played like they were hung over, and afterward they pretty much carried most of the rest of the game.
*The loss stings, but Peoria's a really strong team. I don't understand why Aeros fans were booing after the final buzzer. The boys played a strong game and got shut down by a hot (and huge) goalie.
*I freaking hate the Bayou City Wings Minute.
*Dave gave me free tickets. Dave is awesome and nice.
*Okay, we've got the Kiss Cam, which I think is pretty sweet for the most part. (Don't know why it's not part of the intermission instead of the game, but whatever) And we've got the Smile Cam, which is less exciting, but I get it, because a dentist paid good money to get his name on the Jumbotron, so, smiles, teeth, brilliant. Now we've added Air Guitar Cam, and suddenly it feels like we have one Cam too many. Especially if AGC and SC are going to come so close together. Look, we need to drop a Cam. Just not the Kiss Cam. 'Cause I like that one.
*I don't understand the part of the game where we scream for which of the three song choices for the night they'll play in the second intermission. We don't hear the whole song, because they usually play it at the end of the intermission. Also, they occasionally play one of the songs we didn't vote for anyway. I don't get it. What's the point?
*Starting the "Hey Bishop! You suck!" cheer right after Bishop made three awesome saves makes you look dumb. And I'm pretty sure it doesn't do much to take the goalie off his game. But you go ahead and cheer for yourselves.
*Speaking of Bishop, he's one tall glass of water. You can't convince me that big of a man can be knocked so forcefully to the ground by having a small guy brush by him in the crease.
*That said, on the whole the officiating was pretty good tonight.
*They had the little kids scrimmage during the first intermission. It was highly awesome. The first goal was scored when a kid on the black-jersey team shot the puck and the rebound bounced out to a kid in a white jersey, who promptly put it in. Since both nets were manned by neutral coaches as goalies, I'm not sure which team was supposed to be shooting at that net, but the kid in white celebrated like he'd just won the Stanley Cup. Several of the kids in the black also celebrated. From that point on, it seemed half the kids in white were going for the opposite goal, but a few of the kids in black were targeting that goal, too. And vice versa. It was a really confusing scrimmage. At one point, the coach knocked the rebound back behind the net, and the puck never made it back into scoring position again the rest of the scrimmage. Cute as all get-out, though.
*I'm really stinking tired.
*I don't think Anton Khudobin should be credited with the loss for this game. I think the defenseman who could neither clear the rebound nor take his man out of the play on the game-ending 2-on-2 should somehow get credit for the loss. Good game, Dobby.
*I still wish Khudobin's nickname was Hootie instead of Dobby. No disrespect meant to house elves.
*The upper deck seats are actually not too bad. I wish they opened them up more often. (I realize they Aeros don't generally draw well enough to justify that, but still. Would be nice to find a seat for less than $17 regularly)
*Tonight's "Dance for your Dinner" promotion was the lamest dinner dance-off I've ever seen. Yet that seemed to be the turning point, because before DfyD the Aeros played like they were hung over, and afterward they pretty much carried most of the rest of the game.
*The loss stings, but Peoria's a really strong team. I don't understand why Aeros fans were booing after the final buzzer. The boys played a strong game and got shut down by a hot (and huge) goalie.
*I freaking hate the Bayou City Wings Minute.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
v2, d151: Danger, Will Robinson!!!
The NHL is selling Cup-clinching games on iTunes at 2 bucks a pop.
This is pretty unequivocally awesome. Just think, if I had an iPod with better storage capacities, I could watch Ray Bourque hoist that big shiny trophy over his head wherever I happened to be when the fancy would strike me. (And that fancy actually does strike from time to time) Ditto the Pens' glorious 2009 nail-biter in enemy territory. Or the marathon game that ended the 1996 season and forever burned the name "Uwe Krupp" in my memory. (I'd bring up the 2004 Tampa Bay Cup, but I've already got that on DVD) But oh, there's more. Both early '90s Pens Cup clinchers in their entirety. The great Oilers teams of the '80s, the Broad Street Bullies, the dynastic Habs of the '60s and '70s. Even video proof that yes, the Toronto Maple Leafs have won a Stanley Cup. The hockey history nut in me is totally geeking out about this.
And there are more than just Cup-clinchers for sale. Playoff classics, overtime legends, rivalry games, Soviet-vs-NHL matchups. Pens-Wings game 5 from 2008. Bolts-Flames game 6 from 2004.
Disappointed no Miracle on Manchester, no legendary Avs-Wings playoff brawls, no Stars-Ducks 5 OT games. But hopefully they'll add more as time goes on.
Now, two dollars doesn't sound like much, but boy can it add up quickly...spend wisely, Wordslinger...
Maybe I'll make it an end-of-the-month incentive or something. Like, "if I write a certain number of words this month, I can buy another classic hockey game."
Okay, off to finish this droll book and go to bed.
This is pretty unequivocally awesome. Just think, if I had an iPod with better storage capacities, I could watch Ray Bourque hoist that big shiny trophy over his head wherever I happened to be when the fancy would strike me. (And that fancy actually does strike from time to time) Ditto the Pens' glorious 2009 nail-biter in enemy territory. Or the marathon game that ended the 1996 season and forever burned the name "Uwe Krupp" in my memory. (I'd bring up the 2004 Tampa Bay Cup, but I've already got that on DVD) But oh, there's more. Both early '90s Pens Cup clinchers in their entirety. The great Oilers teams of the '80s, the Broad Street Bullies, the dynastic Habs of the '60s and '70s. Even video proof that yes, the Toronto Maple Leafs have won a Stanley Cup. The hockey history nut in me is totally geeking out about this.
And there are more than just Cup-clinchers for sale. Playoff classics, overtime legends, rivalry games, Soviet-vs-NHL matchups. Pens-Wings game 5 from 2008. Bolts-Flames game 6 from 2004.
Disappointed no Miracle on Manchester, no legendary Avs-Wings playoff brawls, no Stars-Ducks 5 OT games. But hopefully they'll add more as time goes on.
Now, two dollars doesn't sound like much, but boy can it add up quickly...spend wisely, Wordslinger...
Maybe I'll make it an end-of-the-month incentive or something. Like, "if I write a certain number of words this month, I can buy another classic hockey game."
Okay, off to finish this droll book and go to bed.
Friday, July 16, 2010
v2, d118: DON'T PANIC
I'm okay. I just decided my 500 words were more important that blogging last night.
I actually only got 414, but since I've been hitting at 900+ the past few nights, I think it's okay. Besides, that next paragraph just refused to start itself, and it was after 2 a.m.
Don't you hate it when that happens?
Hey, for those of you who read the last post and have been losing sleep over it, apparently Anton Khudobin realized that winter in Houston > winter in Russia, so he's back for another year. Next year, the decision will likely be money in Minnesota > money in Russia. Smart kid, and I'm happy for him.
By the way, Interlibrary Loan is weird, Jonathan Foreman's Limbs and Branches project is just beautiful, and I kind of want to go see Inception, which will almost certainly have to happen later at night. Which means I need to try to get my 500 words out of the way earlier than later on that night.
Maybe I can take my laptop to the theater and write during the pre-show trash. Would they allow that, or would they assume I was going to record the movie and sell it in China or something?
Finally, I've really got to give props to Twitter. When I signed up not terribly long ago, it was sort of a joke. It was pretty much a way of telling people what you were eating for lunch that day. A facebook status without a facebook. And then, organizations started to use it. So did newspapers and news stations. So did individual beat writers and reporters, professional athletes, authors, other celebrities. Somehow, Twitter's become an awesome place for a fairly customizable news feed plus occasional updates from friends IN ADDITION TO being a place where people can tell other people what they had for lunch! Or share a bad line from a bad book. Twitter is actually useful, and I'm kinda impressed because it was just pathetic/sad not too long ago.
I had chicken, mashed potatoes, and peas for lunch, by the way. I know you were starting to wonder. Oh, and tons of fresh pineapple left over from morning showcase!
Man, Showcase Fridays rule unequivocally.
I actually only got 414, but since I've been hitting at 900+ the past few nights, I think it's okay. Besides, that next paragraph just refused to start itself, and it was after 2 a.m.
Don't you hate it when that happens?
Hey, for those of you who read the last post and have been losing sleep over it, apparently Anton Khudobin realized that winter in Houston > winter in Russia, so he's back for another year. Next year, the decision will likely be money in Minnesota > money in Russia. Smart kid, and I'm happy for him.
By the way, Interlibrary Loan is weird, Jonathan Foreman's Limbs and Branches project is just beautiful, and I kind of want to go see Inception, which will almost certainly have to happen later at night. Which means I need to try to get my 500 words out of the way earlier than later on that night.
Maybe I can take my laptop to the theater and write during the pre-show trash. Would they allow that, or would they assume I was going to record the movie and sell it in China or something?
Finally, I've really got to give props to Twitter. When I signed up not terribly long ago, it was sort of a joke. It was pretty much a way of telling people what you were eating for lunch that day. A facebook status without a facebook. And then, organizations started to use it. So did newspapers and news stations. So did individual beat writers and reporters, professional athletes, authors, other celebrities. Somehow, Twitter's become an awesome place for a fairly customizable news feed plus occasional updates from friends IN ADDITION TO being a place where people can tell other people what they had for lunch! Or share a bad line from a bad book. Twitter is actually useful, and I'm kinda impressed because it was just pathetic/sad not too long ago.
I had chicken, mashed potatoes, and peas for lunch, by the way. I know you were starting to wonder. Oh, and tons of fresh pineapple left over from morning showcase!
Man, Showcase Fridays rule unequivocally.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
v2, d117: Minor Musings
First off, I feel the need to clarify yesterday's post. Five-hundred words is my minimum. So far, I've topped nine-hundred words each night. So I'm making more progress than it sounds like when I say I set a goal of five-hundred.
Onward to today's blog:
If you're among the throngs of my readers who don't care about the Aeros, skip to the video at the end.
For the rest of you:
I have to say I've been pretty stoked about the upcoming AHL season. The Aeros seem to alternate between good seasons and disappointing ones, at least since I've been here, so that means we're do for some good times in 2010-11. There weren't a ton of bright spots in 2009-10, but we've managed to bring most of 'em back for more. Rau, Daoust, and DiSalvatore are all back in the fold, as is vet Jamie Fraser. You've also got to figure we'll have at least two of Colton Gillies, Cody Almond, and Casey Wellman (personally, I think Wellman ends up in Minny, at least to start the year), and Robbie Earl probably bounces up and down again next year. Kassian will be playing cop again, and rookie Nate Prosser (who got a short audition in Minny last year) should see just about a full year in Houston. Max Noreau was a points-machine on the blue line, and he's still signed. Falk has been getting better by the month. And Carson MacMillan isn't great, but he's a useful 4th liner.
Now for the new guys: We signed Drew Bagnall, who is reportedly a wrecking ball on the back end. The Wild have used some pretty high picks on defense recently, and we'll (likely) finally see Tyler Cuma and Marco Scandella in H-Town. (Scandella played with us in the magical 2009 playoff run, but due to his age had to play juniors last year. Played on the Canadian national team. Should be a good one) Warren Peters is a vet who should help our faceoff skills.
Now, that's a lot of turnover from a team that finished dead last in the division, BUT I think the guys we've kept are, for the most part, going to continue to show improvement, and the guys we're bringing in are addressing specific holes we needed to fill. Now, it's impossible to tell how quickly the rookies, especially the d-men, are going to adapt to the AHL game. If Scandella and Cuma make a quick transition to pro, we've definitely got the talent to be a playoff team once again. (Unless, of course, Minnesota is decimated by injuries and we're screwed over and some key positions again, like last season)
Then, today, the Wild signs this guy. Me likey.
So now we're looking at maybe 5 guys who can score 20 or more goals, a potentially solid mix of vets and talented youngsters on the blueline, and a goaltending tandem of...
OH WAIT.
Suddenly, Anton Khudobin, the darling of the 2009 playoff run and an AHL All-Star after a superb first half last season, wants a one-way deal. And if he doesn't get it, he may bolt to play in Russia?
What???
Come on, Anton! You've only had one year of starter status in the AHL. Heck, most NHL goalies have at least 2 or 3 full seasons in the AHL before getting a regular job in the show. Besides, after this year, Harding's a UFA and the Wild probably lets him walk. You're on the fast-track to a regular NHL job.
And as excited as I am to see rookie Matt Hackett play (and I am), I want to see you in the pipes as the starter. Besides, you still have to prove you can actually play TWO decent halves of the season, because after the All-Star Break, um...not so much.
That was the whole team, though. We were in playoff contention pretty seriously until about halfway through, and then we sucked. Hard. We started slow just about every single night, and it eventually bit us in the rear. And that means: coaching change.
And here's why I'm most excited about the new coach: the guy left a pretty solid gig as an assistant with NHL Pittsburgh because he really, really WANTS to be HERE. We wasn't looking for a new job, but he wants to coach the Houston Aeros. Why? Some sentimental nonsense left over from playing nine seasons here and winning a championship. Or something like that.
He's worked with the staff in Minnesota, he's won a Cup running the Pens' powerplay, and he's really stoked to be back in Texas. His assistants are a former Aero teammate and a longtime NHL d-man with two Cup rings.
Welcome (back) to Houston, Mike Yeo, Brian Wiseman, and Darryl Sydor.
I'm proposing the official slogan for 2010-11 be "Bring Back the Good Times."
It's a heck of a lot better than "We Come to Play."
****************
And now, the video at the end.
THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T LET CANADIANS MAKE MOVIES!!!!
This is apparently leading off the Toronto film festival.
"It's Our Movie."
You can have it, Canada...
(Here's Puck Daddy's post about the trailer and the movie)
Onward to today's blog:
If you're among the throngs of my readers who don't care about the Aeros, skip to the video at the end.
For the rest of you:
I have to say I've been pretty stoked about the upcoming AHL season. The Aeros seem to alternate between good seasons and disappointing ones, at least since I've been here, so that means we're do for some good times in 2010-11. There weren't a ton of bright spots in 2009-10, but we've managed to bring most of 'em back for more. Rau, Daoust, and DiSalvatore are all back in the fold, as is vet Jamie Fraser. You've also got to figure we'll have at least two of Colton Gillies, Cody Almond, and Casey Wellman (personally, I think Wellman ends up in Minny, at least to start the year), and Robbie Earl probably bounces up and down again next year. Kassian will be playing cop again, and rookie Nate Prosser (who got a short audition in Minny last year) should see just about a full year in Houston. Max Noreau was a points-machine on the blue line, and he's still signed. Falk has been getting better by the month. And Carson MacMillan isn't great, but he's a useful 4th liner.
Now for the new guys: We signed Drew Bagnall, who is reportedly a wrecking ball on the back end. The Wild have used some pretty high picks on defense recently, and we'll (likely) finally see Tyler Cuma and Marco Scandella in H-Town. (Scandella played with us in the magical 2009 playoff run, but due to his age had to play juniors last year. Played on the Canadian national team. Should be a good one) Warren Peters is a vet who should help our faceoff skills.
Now, that's a lot of turnover from a team that finished dead last in the division, BUT I think the guys we've kept are, for the most part, going to continue to show improvement, and the guys we're bringing in are addressing specific holes we needed to fill. Now, it's impossible to tell how quickly the rookies, especially the d-men, are going to adapt to the AHL game. If Scandella and Cuma make a quick transition to pro, we've definitely got the talent to be a playoff team once again. (Unless, of course, Minnesota is decimated by injuries and we're screwed over and some key positions again, like last season)
Then, today, the Wild signs this guy. Me likey.
So now we're looking at maybe 5 guys who can score 20 or more goals, a potentially solid mix of vets and talented youngsters on the blueline, and a goaltending tandem of...
OH WAIT.
Suddenly, Anton Khudobin, the darling of the 2009 playoff run and an AHL All-Star after a superb first half last season, wants a one-way deal. And if he doesn't get it, he may bolt to play in Russia?
What???
Come on, Anton! You've only had one year of starter status in the AHL. Heck, most NHL goalies have at least 2 or 3 full seasons in the AHL before getting a regular job in the show. Besides, after this year, Harding's a UFA and the Wild probably lets him walk. You're on the fast-track to a regular NHL job.
And as excited as I am to see rookie Matt Hackett play (and I am), I want to see you in the pipes as the starter. Besides, you still have to prove you can actually play TWO decent halves of the season, because after the All-Star Break, um...not so much.
That was the whole team, though. We were in playoff contention pretty seriously until about halfway through, and then we sucked. Hard. We started slow just about every single night, and it eventually bit us in the rear. And that means: coaching change.
And here's why I'm most excited about the new coach: the guy left a pretty solid gig as an assistant with NHL Pittsburgh because he really, really WANTS to be HERE. We wasn't looking for a new job, but he wants to coach the Houston Aeros. Why? Some sentimental nonsense left over from playing nine seasons here and winning a championship. Or something like that.
He's worked with the staff in Minnesota, he's won a Cup running the Pens' powerplay, and he's really stoked to be back in Texas. His assistants are a former Aero teammate and a longtime NHL d-man with two Cup rings.
Welcome (back) to Houston, Mike Yeo, Brian Wiseman, and Darryl Sydor.
I'm proposing the official slogan for 2010-11 be "Bring Back the Good Times."
It's a heck of a lot better than "We Come to Play."
****************
And now, the video at the end.
THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T LET CANADIANS MAKE MOVIES!!!!
This is apparently leading off the Toronto film festival.
"It's Our Movie."
You can have it, Canada...
(Here's Puck Daddy's post about the trailer and the movie)
Friday, July 9, 2010
v2, d112: Major Link Plays Hockey
Gather 'round, children, and listen to the tale of Major Brad Link, a Wichita, Kansas hockey fan who got a rare chance to live a long-abandoned dream in one of many stories that ends with the phrase "Only in the CHL."
Ah, the Central Hockey League. In the mid-1990's, it was the bottom of the barrel when it came to professional hockey leagues in North America. This was not long after the first major expansion/merger (this time with the Southern Hockey League, I think). At that point, the CHL had two divisions: a Western division that went as far south as Fort Worth, Texas, and as far north as Topeka, Kansas. The Eastern division gathered five teams in Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee. Who'd have thought there would one day be professional hockey teams called the Topeka Scarecrows, Huntsville Channel Cats, and the immortal Macon Whoopee. (At one point in time, their logo featured a bird and a bee. Clever)
Major Link was a fan of Wichita's Thunder, a former two-time CHL champ that had made it to the championship series and been swept by the Columbus (GA) Cottonmouths the year before. As was the case with many Wichitans, Link was also stationed at the McConnell Air Force Base, famous for their B2 Bombers and other operational U.S. Air Force crafts. During the off-season, Link invited former Thunder player and current head coach Bryan Wells to take a ride in a fighter jet from time to time. Wells appreciated the gesture and looked for an opportunity to repay Link for his generosity.
Then, during the season, Wichita's backup goalie was called up on an emergency basis to the IHL's Kansas City Blades, leaving Wichita with only one masked man. Now, Link had played goal in college twenty years ago, so Wells thought the Major might get a kick out of traveling with the team. He'd dress for games and watch from the bench, taking some practice shots before the game and during team practices. But he'd never have to worry about getting into a game. Wichita's backup (Greg Smith, I believe. When asking about a backup Wichita netminder in the '90s, Smith is always a good guess) should be back soon, and starter Lance Leslie would be able to handle the workload until Smith got back. (Side note: In my mind, I remembered Leslie being awesome. Turns out, that wasn't until the next season, as this year he finished with an .875 save percentage)
Then came the home game against the Cottomouths. The same Cottomnouths that had not only swept, but utterly trounced the Thunder in the Final a year before. They were still pretty dang good, too. My dad and I were at the Big Brown Barn that night, and the filthy snakes were handing it to our boys pretty good again. About halfway through the second period, the Thunder were down 5-1. Our guys played like a prizefighter who is already out on his feet, waiting for the inevitable knockout blow to make it official. There wasn't much going on. And then, just when it looked like things couldn't get any worse, Leslie got hurt. He was done for the night.
(Wow. Side note: "Gonna Fly Now" from Rocky just came on my iPod. This is awesome)
The crowd grew eerily silent. Then, we realized what was coming next: The 41-year-old rookie was going to have to come in and guard the net for the last half of the game. Quiet applause became raucous cheering as #40 Link skated slowly toward the goal, wearing old beat-up practice pads and a red, white, and blue goalie mask. It was the old man against the defending champs.
One shot later, it was 6-1 Columbus. The next shot they took was technically a save, though really it just bounced off Link's mask and into the corner. The Major looked awfully slow. (Understandably, of course) The good vibes were gone, and we all just started to feel sorry for the poor guy.
Something strange happened with that mask-save, though: the old guy in the next seemed to realize that he could actually stop the puck. And he stood a little bit taller. He skated from side to side to rough up the ice around his crease. He started to look like a goalie.
And then, he started to play like one. The next save was no accident, as Link grabbed a wrist shot out of mid-air. He held the puck out, as if to show his teammates, "No worries, I have it." The crowd cheered. Thunder players tapped their sticks against the boards in salute. The game may have been out of reach, but suddenly they decided to play as if there was something at stake. The defense tightened. We started hitting again. When they pushed, we pushed back. Our defensemen kept their positions. We blocked shots. And when one got through, Major Brad Link was there. It wasn't always pretty, but he found a way to make the save. The crowd got louder and louder with every save the rookie made.
Major Link didn't let in another shot all night. According to Link's official stats page at hockeydb, he stopped 9 of 10 in 31 minutes of work. He never saw another professional hockey game. The team brought in another professional goalie to hold down the fort until Smith came back. And, since this was the minor minor leagues, we ended up using six goalies that year. Of all six, though, the only one who stopped 90 percent of the shots he faced all season, the only one who allowed fewer than 3 goals per 60 minutes, was the 41-year-old hometown rookie in the beat up pads and the red, white, and blue.
Only in the CHL.
Ah, the Central Hockey League. In the mid-1990's, it was the bottom of the barrel when it came to professional hockey leagues in North America. This was not long after the first major expansion/merger (this time with the Southern Hockey League, I think). At that point, the CHL had two divisions: a Western division that went as far south as Fort Worth, Texas, and as far north as Topeka, Kansas. The Eastern division gathered five teams in Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee. Who'd have thought there would one day be professional hockey teams called the Topeka Scarecrows, Huntsville Channel Cats, and the immortal Macon Whoopee. (At one point in time, their logo featured a bird and a bee. Clever)
Major Link was a fan of Wichita's Thunder, a former two-time CHL champ that had made it to the championship series and been swept by the Columbus (GA) Cottonmouths the year before. As was the case with many Wichitans, Link was also stationed at the McConnell Air Force Base, famous for their B2 Bombers and other operational U.S. Air Force crafts. During the off-season, Link invited former Thunder player and current head coach Bryan Wells to take a ride in a fighter jet from time to time. Wells appreciated the gesture and looked for an opportunity to repay Link for his generosity.
Then, during the season, Wichita's backup goalie was called up on an emergency basis to the IHL's Kansas City Blades, leaving Wichita with only one masked man. Now, Link had played goal in college twenty years ago, so Wells thought the Major might get a kick out of traveling with the team. He'd dress for games and watch from the bench, taking some practice shots before the game and during team practices. But he'd never have to worry about getting into a game. Wichita's backup (Greg Smith, I believe. When asking about a backup Wichita netminder in the '90s, Smith is always a good guess) should be back soon, and starter Lance Leslie would be able to handle the workload until Smith got back. (Side note: In my mind, I remembered Leslie being awesome. Turns out, that wasn't until the next season, as this year he finished with an .875 save percentage)
Then came the home game against the Cottomouths. The same Cottomnouths that had not only swept, but utterly trounced the Thunder in the Final a year before. They were still pretty dang good, too. My dad and I were at the Big Brown Barn that night, and the filthy snakes were handing it to our boys pretty good again. About halfway through the second period, the Thunder were down 5-1. Our guys played like a prizefighter who is already out on his feet, waiting for the inevitable knockout blow to make it official. There wasn't much going on. And then, just when it looked like things couldn't get any worse, Leslie got hurt. He was done for the night.
(Wow. Side note: "Gonna Fly Now" from Rocky just came on my iPod. This is awesome)
The crowd grew eerily silent. Then, we realized what was coming next: The 41-year-old rookie was going to have to come in and guard the net for the last half of the game. Quiet applause became raucous cheering as #40 Link skated slowly toward the goal, wearing old beat-up practice pads and a red, white, and blue goalie mask. It was the old man against the defending champs.
One shot later, it was 6-1 Columbus. The next shot they took was technically a save, though really it just bounced off Link's mask and into the corner. The Major looked awfully slow. (Understandably, of course) The good vibes were gone, and we all just started to feel sorry for the poor guy.
Something strange happened with that mask-save, though: the old guy in the next seemed to realize that he could actually stop the puck. And he stood a little bit taller. He skated from side to side to rough up the ice around his crease. He started to look like a goalie.
And then, he started to play like one. The next save was no accident, as Link grabbed a wrist shot out of mid-air. He held the puck out, as if to show his teammates, "No worries, I have it." The crowd cheered. Thunder players tapped their sticks against the boards in salute. The game may have been out of reach, but suddenly they decided to play as if there was something at stake. The defense tightened. We started hitting again. When they pushed, we pushed back. Our defensemen kept their positions. We blocked shots. And when one got through, Major Brad Link was there. It wasn't always pretty, but he found a way to make the save. The crowd got louder and louder with every save the rookie made.
Major Link didn't let in another shot all night. According to Link's official stats page at hockeydb, he stopped 9 of 10 in 31 minutes of work. He never saw another professional hockey game. The team brought in another professional goalie to hold down the fort until Smith came back. And, since this was the minor minor leagues, we ended up using six goalies that year. Of all six, though, the only one who stopped 90 percent of the shots he faced all season, the only one who allowed fewer than 3 goals per 60 minutes, was the 41-year-old hometown rookie in the beat up pads and the red, white, and blue.
Only in the CHL.
Monday, July 5, 2010
v2, d109: Bob Probert, RIP
Sorry to bring the room down, but one of the NHL's all-time most-feared fighters died very suddenly today. Bob Probert, who somehow endeared himself to both Blackhawks and Red Wings fans, was standing in his boat this morning when he suddenly fell over and died. He was 45.
This is kinda shocking to me because I still remember Probert playing. Former players pass all the time, but this guy was less than 20 years older than I am. Oh, he definitely had some problems during his playing days, and he made some poor choices that no doubt contributed to some longer-term health issues, but this is still a pretty big surprise.
The best quote of the night came from Tie Domi, who fought Probert thirteen times in his career. When asked if he thought he'd fought Probert more than any other player had, Domi responded that "Nobody would be stupid enough to go for a fourteenth." Don't remember where I read that. Somebody tweeted it earlier.
Puck Daddy's story features three videos of Probert highlights from hockeyfights.com. Almost 21 minutes of watching the NHL's top fighter do what he did best. (Including clocking former Wichita Thunder forward Craig Coxe back when he played for Vancouver. Crazy. Small world)
Personally, I prefer Adrian Dater's post over at denverpost.com. It features more about Probert's successes off the ice and has some good quotes from former tough-guy (and current lawyer, and one of the most outspoken Christian players of the 1990s) Stu Grimson.
Stick tap.
This is kinda shocking to me because I still remember Probert playing. Former players pass all the time, but this guy was less than 20 years older than I am. Oh, he definitely had some problems during his playing days, and he made some poor choices that no doubt contributed to some longer-term health issues, but this is still a pretty big surprise.
The best quote of the night came from Tie Domi, who fought Probert thirteen times in his career. When asked if he thought he'd fought Probert more than any other player had, Domi responded that "Nobody would be stupid enough to go for a fourteenth." Don't remember where I read that. Somebody tweeted it earlier.
Puck Daddy's story features three videos of Probert highlights from hockeyfights.com. Almost 21 minutes of watching the NHL's top fighter do what he did best. (Including clocking former Wichita Thunder forward Craig Coxe back when he played for Vancouver. Crazy. Small world)
Personally, I prefer Adrian Dater's post over at denverpost.com. It features more about Probert's successes off the ice and has some good quotes from former tough-guy (and current lawyer, and one of the most outspoken Christian players of the 1990s) Stu Grimson.
Stick tap.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
v2, d102: "You play ball like a GIRL!!!"
Or "puck," as the case may be.
The Hockey Hall of Fame announced its 2010 class of inductees today, and for the first time ever, the "Players" category included women. Two of them. Canadian Angela James and American Cammi Granato. (The only other Player inductee was Dino Cicarelli, who despite scoring over 600 NHL goals was on his eighth year of eligibility) I kept reading what a weak year this was for first-year-eligible players, so guesses were flying around the Internet as to which less-than-worthy former NHLers might get the nod. Very few people even mentioned the national heroes of the women's game, so I think today's announcement came as a surprise to a lot of people. (Also, the exclusion of former coach etc Pat Burns was a surprise to many, and not a pleasant one)
Granato and James. They were kind of the same influence in the only two powers in women's hockey. Angels James was the elder stateswoman for an entire generation of Canadian hockey players; Cammi Granato was the same for a generation of Americans. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to call them the two most dominant players in the history of women's ice hockey. (I'd throw Haley Wickenhiser in there someday) There aren't enough credible players in the world to put together a solid professional women's league (I know Canada has or had a very small league at one point) so the loftiest goal a female hockey player can aspire to is Olympic glory. (Even that's in doubt; as the rest of the world refuses to close the gap between themselves and the Big Two, there's really not much in the way of competition. American players also have a competitive NCAA program; I'm not sure what Canadian players play for) James and Granato, however, were the faces of the women's game even before the Olympics had hockey for women.
Unfortunately, Angela James never got to play in the Olympics, but she won just about everything else there was to win. She's also the only African-Canadian to captain a national team. They called her the "Wayne Gretzky of women's hockey."
Granato never received quite the fanfare that James did, mostly because she was in the U.S. and not Canada. But for many, she was the one who caused folks to start taking women's hockey seriously in America. I guarantee that just about any woman currently playing the USA Hockey program has idolized Granato at one point or another. About a week ago, I wrote a guest blog from fictional character Slapshot, who briefly recounted her reaction when her parents explained she'd never grow up to play for the Blackhawks. That story is actually Granato's. (Her older brother, Tony, went on to have a great NHL playing career and has some moderate success in coaching as well) While James campaigned all of her career for women's hockey in the Olympics, it was Granato who actually got the chance to realize the dream, leading the American women to the first ever gold medal in the event in 1998. (Last gold we've won in hockey) In 2006, in a controversial move, Granato was left off the roster, and the U.S. finished a humiliating third. (And yes, for the U.S., third in women's hockey is humiliating) I'll never forget how pissed off analyst Ray Ferraro was following the U.S. loss to Sweden (I think it was Sweden): "I am going to admit my bias right up front: Cammi Granato, the long-time captain, team leader, and best player for Team U.S.A., is my wife. That said..." Ferraro posited that the lack of Granato-leadership cost the American team a chance for the gold. Very, very strong chance he's right.
I've long thought these two ladies were worthy of admission to the HHOF. After all, it's not an NHL Hall of Fame, but a Hockey Hall of Fame. I was also pleased a couple years back when the HHOF was getting a bit more generous toward former Soviet superstars who never played an NHL game in their life. (Tretiak had been in there for awhile, but a few others have trickled in more recently) I hope that this doesn't become a mandate, however, like "Every year, we will include 3 men and 1 woman," because I think that cheapens the honor that these two ladies have earned.
I really hope I get to go to Toronto to visit the HHOF someday. At one point, they even had a couple of Wichita Thunder goodies in there. (Do Jackson and Jobe still hold the record for fastest 50 goals?) Add it to the list of things I'm going to do once I get either rich or famous ;-)
(All of this, by the way, is not to take anything away from Cicarelli's induction. Congrats, Dino! Only second former Lightning player to be enshrined in the Hall, and well-earned!)
The Hockey Hall of Fame announced its 2010 class of inductees today, and for the first time ever, the "Players" category included women. Two of them. Canadian Angela James and American Cammi Granato. (The only other Player inductee was Dino Cicarelli, who despite scoring over 600 NHL goals was on his eighth year of eligibility) I kept reading what a weak year this was for first-year-eligible players, so guesses were flying around the Internet as to which less-than-worthy former NHLers might get the nod. Very few people even mentioned the national heroes of the women's game, so I think today's announcement came as a surprise to a lot of people. (Also, the exclusion of former coach etc Pat Burns was a surprise to many, and not a pleasant one)
Granato and James. They were kind of the same influence in the only two powers in women's hockey. Angels James was the elder stateswoman for an entire generation of Canadian hockey players; Cammi Granato was the same for a generation of Americans. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to call them the two most dominant players in the history of women's ice hockey. (I'd throw Haley Wickenhiser in there someday) There aren't enough credible players in the world to put together a solid professional women's league (I know Canada has or had a very small league at one point) so the loftiest goal a female hockey player can aspire to is Olympic glory. (Even that's in doubt; as the rest of the world refuses to close the gap between themselves and the Big Two, there's really not much in the way of competition. American players also have a competitive NCAA program; I'm not sure what Canadian players play for) James and Granato, however, were the faces of the women's game even before the Olympics had hockey for women.
Unfortunately, Angela James never got to play in the Olympics, but she won just about everything else there was to win. She's also the only African-Canadian to captain a national team. They called her the "Wayne Gretzky of women's hockey."
Granato never received quite the fanfare that James did, mostly because she was in the U.S. and not Canada. But for many, she was the one who caused folks to start taking women's hockey seriously in America. I guarantee that just about any woman currently playing the USA Hockey program has idolized Granato at one point or another. About a week ago, I wrote a guest blog from fictional character Slapshot, who briefly recounted her reaction when her parents explained she'd never grow up to play for the Blackhawks. That story is actually Granato's. (Her older brother, Tony, went on to have a great NHL playing career and has some moderate success in coaching as well) While James campaigned all of her career for women's hockey in the Olympics, it was Granato who actually got the chance to realize the dream, leading the American women to the first ever gold medal in the event in 1998. (Last gold we've won in hockey) In 2006, in a controversial move, Granato was left off the roster, and the U.S. finished a humiliating third. (And yes, for the U.S., third in women's hockey is humiliating) I'll never forget how pissed off analyst Ray Ferraro was following the U.S. loss to Sweden (I think it was Sweden): "I am going to admit my bias right up front: Cammi Granato, the long-time captain, team leader, and best player for Team U.S.A., is my wife. That said..." Ferraro posited that the lack of Granato-leadership cost the American team a chance for the gold. Very, very strong chance he's right.
I've long thought these two ladies were worthy of admission to the HHOF. After all, it's not an NHL Hall of Fame, but a Hockey Hall of Fame. I was also pleased a couple years back when the HHOF was getting a bit more generous toward former Soviet superstars who never played an NHL game in their life. (Tretiak had been in there for awhile, but a few others have trickled in more recently) I hope that this doesn't become a mandate, however, like "Every year, we will include 3 men and 1 woman," because I think that cheapens the honor that these two ladies have earned.
I really hope I get to go to Toronto to visit the HHOF someday. At one point, they even had a couple of Wichita Thunder goodies in there. (Do Jackson and Jobe still hold the record for fastest 50 goals?) Add it to the list of things I'm going to do once I get either rich or famous ;-)
(All of this, by the way, is not to take anything away from Cicarelli's induction. Congrats, Dino! Only second former Lightning player to be enshrined in the Hall, and well-earned!)
Friday, June 11, 2010
v2, d92: Guest Blog #2
Watch about 10 seconds of this video and you'll get a small glimpse of the euphoric pandemonium that struck the streets of Chicago this morning as the Blackhawks held their official Stanley Cup Championship parade and victory rally. Estimates are that close to two million people showed up. Unbelievable.
(No really, watch about 10 seconds. You get the idea pretty quickly, but it's an awesome sight to behold)
One of those nearly two million people was today's guest blogger, a seventeen-year-old Blackhawks fanatic from Metro Valley, Iowa, who threatened her big brother within an inch of his life if he didn't drive with her to Chicago to take in the festivities. Her name is Stacey, but her last name is protected because it's actually a "secret identity." Her crime-fighting name is Slapshot, and she's got the low-down on the Stanley Cup from a superheroic Blackhawk fan's perspective.
(As always, views and opinions expressed by FOMW Guest Bloggers may or may not reflect that actual views of the FOMW staff)
**************
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!! I CAN'T BELIEVE WE WOOOOOOOOOONNNN!!!
It's been two days, and I swear I haven't slept more than eight hours, total, since Patty Kane went five-hole on Michael Leighton to end the most awesome series in Chicago Blackhawks history! After forty-nine years of waiting, the Stanley Cup is finally ours!!!!!!
People just don't understand how hard it is to win that thing! The last time the Hawks even played in the Stanley Cup Final, I wasn't born yet. My brother was two. The last time in my life we even had a team that was good enough to even THINK about the Stanley Cup, I was three! As you can see, I've been waiting a LOOOOOOONG time for this!!
So of COURSE I made my big brother drive me to Chi-Town for some deep dish pizza--oh, and the best parade EVER! It was CRAZY! There were SO many people, and everyone was SO happy and having SO much fun!! Most of us had given up hope we'd EVER win a Stanley Cup about five or six years ago. It was like we were all in the same huge, really awesome dream. It almost didn't feel real until the boys finally pulled up in bright red double-decker buses, with Coach Q holding that beautiful silver trophy over the crowd. I was part stoked and part terrified. I screamed as loud as I could, "DON'T DROP IT!!!" (You know, those idiots in Dallas actually DID that once?? Dropped it from the top of a house into a swimming pool and DENTED it! DENTED THE STANLEY CUP!! Hmph! Glad they haven't won it since!) Anyway, there's no way he heard me, but he didn't drop it, so it was okay.
By the way, I LOVE THIS TEAM! Like, not just the Blackhawks, but Patty, Buff, Niemi, Soapy, Soupy, Brent, Duncan, Steeg, Smoke, Johnny T, ALL of the guys! Even Hossa and Kopecky! I never DREAMED I could love any guy who used to wear a Red Wing on his chest, but I can!
Speaking of Hossa, he looked so happy to finally get his hands on that thing! It was almost cute. It probably would have been cute, if not for that BEARD!
Oh. My. Gosh. Those BEARDS! For those of you who don't know, hockey players don't shave in the playoffs!! It's so gross! You can barely recognize them when they're skating around the ice with the Cup when it's all over! I mean, it's a great tradition, and I love it, but dang it was nice to see some of my boys looking like their old selves again on the streets of Chicago!
Ugh. Hang on. My brother wants to say something. He won't leave me alone, so I'm going to let him type something.
******
Hi. I'm the Iron Lung, and I'm a super hero. And I have to say that Chicago pizza is SO GOOD! That's all. Here's my sister again.
******
Wow. Thanks for that, bro. That was a winner.
ANYWAY, I remember about six years or so ago, when Daddy sat me down and explained to me that I would probably never get a chance to be a Chicago Blackhawk. Like, ever. I was SO CRUSHED! I think I cried the rest of the day, and then I just got mad for like two months, and then eventually I realized he was right, and I kind of got used to it. Then, about two years ago, I decided that, maybe it was true that I couldn't BE a Blackhawk, but that couldn't stop me from MARRYING a Blackhawk someday! I will get my hands on that Cup one way or another, believe me!
I was convinced that I was going to be Mrs. Stacey Kane for a while, but then last summer, Patty got a little...crazy...SO I started to look at my other options. I was thinking about Steeger for awhile. Then, today, he did this:
So, yeah, that may not be happening any more. I don't know if Buff is attached to anybody or not, but that dude is tough! He and I would be such an awesome team! Taking it to 'em on the ice, then fighting crime together at night, our own dynamic duo of hockey awesomeness! We could be, like, Buff and Basher, or something. (I'd be Basher) Although I have no idea how in the world you get BUFF-glen out of "Byfuglien," LOL. (Actually, I think it's Norwegian. So there's that.) And our archenemies would probably be, like, Chris Pronger. Or Danny Carcillo. Ooh, or both of them together! I'd probably never try to tangle with Pronger, but I'm pretty sure I could take that Carcillo twerp. And Buff can obviously take Pronger. Cuz he already did.
Anyway, the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup! We're awesome! It feels SO GOOD!!! I totally can't stop smiling!
Crud. I gotta go. Some evil cowboy named Huevos Rancheros is apparently attacking people at the zoo and trying to free animals, or something like that. Sigh. Villains are so dumb. Why would you pick "Ranch Eggs" as your villain name?
I'll bet even Pronger would come up with something better than that.
(No really, watch about 10 seconds. You get the idea pretty quickly, but it's an awesome sight to behold)
One of those nearly two million people was today's guest blogger, a seventeen-year-old Blackhawks fanatic from Metro Valley, Iowa, who threatened her big brother within an inch of his life if he didn't drive with her to Chicago to take in the festivities. Her name is Stacey, but her last name is protected because it's actually a "secret identity." Her crime-fighting name is Slapshot, and she's got the low-down on the Stanley Cup from a superheroic Blackhawk fan's perspective.
(As always, views and opinions expressed by FOMW Guest Bloggers may or may not reflect that actual views of the FOMW staff)
**************
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!! I CAN'T BELIEVE WE WOOOOOOOOOONNNN!!!
It's been two days, and I swear I haven't slept more than eight hours, total, since Patty Kane went five-hole on Michael Leighton to end the most awesome series in Chicago Blackhawks history! After forty-nine years of waiting, the Stanley Cup is finally ours!!!!!!
People just don't understand how hard it is to win that thing! The last time the Hawks even played in the Stanley Cup Final, I wasn't born yet. My brother was two. The last time in my life we even had a team that was good enough to even THINK about the Stanley Cup, I was three! As you can see, I've been waiting a LOOOOOOONG time for this!!
So of COURSE I made my big brother drive me to Chi-Town for some deep dish pizza--oh, and the best parade EVER! It was CRAZY! There were SO many people, and everyone was SO happy and having SO much fun!! Most of us had given up hope we'd EVER win a Stanley Cup about five or six years ago. It was like we were all in the same huge, really awesome dream. It almost didn't feel real until the boys finally pulled up in bright red double-decker buses, with Coach Q holding that beautiful silver trophy over the crowd. I was part stoked and part terrified. I screamed as loud as I could, "DON'T DROP IT!!!" (You know, those idiots in Dallas actually DID that once?? Dropped it from the top of a house into a swimming pool and DENTED it! DENTED THE STANLEY CUP!! Hmph! Glad they haven't won it since!) Anyway, there's no way he heard me, but he didn't drop it, so it was okay.
By the way, I LOVE THIS TEAM! Like, not just the Blackhawks, but Patty, Buff, Niemi, Soapy, Soupy, Brent, Duncan, Steeg, Smoke, Johnny T, ALL of the guys! Even Hossa and Kopecky! I never DREAMED I could love any guy who used to wear a Red Wing on his chest, but I can!
Speaking of Hossa, he looked so happy to finally get his hands on that thing! It was almost cute. It probably would have been cute, if not for that BEARD!
Oh. My. Gosh. Those BEARDS! For those of you who don't know, hockey players don't shave in the playoffs!! It's so gross! You can barely recognize them when they're skating around the ice with the Cup when it's all over! I mean, it's a great tradition, and I love it, but dang it was nice to see some of my boys looking like their old selves again on the streets of Chicago!
Ugh. Hang on. My brother wants to say something. He won't leave me alone, so I'm going to let him type something.
******
Hi. I'm the Iron Lung, and I'm a super hero. And I have to say that Chicago pizza is SO GOOD! That's all. Here's my sister again.
******
Wow. Thanks for that, bro. That was a winner.
ANYWAY, I remember about six years or so ago, when Daddy sat me down and explained to me that I would probably never get a chance to be a Chicago Blackhawk. Like, ever. I was SO CRUSHED! I think I cried the rest of the day, and then I just got mad for like two months, and then eventually I realized he was right, and I kind of got used to it. Then, about two years ago, I decided that, maybe it was true that I couldn't BE a Blackhawk, but that couldn't stop me from MARRYING a Blackhawk someday! I will get my hands on that Cup one way or another, believe me!
I was convinced that I was going to be Mrs. Stacey Kane for a while, but then last summer, Patty got a little...crazy...SO I started to look at my other options. I was thinking about Steeger for awhile. Then, today, he did this:
So, yeah, that may not be happening any more. I don't know if Buff is attached to anybody or not, but that dude is tough! He and I would be such an awesome team! Taking it to 'em on the ice, then fighting crime together at night, our own dynamic duo of hockey awesomeness! We could be, like, Buff and Basher, or something. (I'd be Basher) Although I have no idea how in the world you get BUFF-glen out of "Byfuglien," LOL. (Actually, I think it's Norwegian. So there's that.) And our archenemies would probably be, like, Chris Pronger. Or Danny Carcillo. Ooh, or both of them together! I'd probably never try to tangle with Pronger, but I'm pretty sure I could take that Carcillo twerp. And Buff can obviously take Pronger. Cuz he already did.
Anyway, the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup! We're awesome! It feels SO GOOD!!! I totally can't stop smiling!
Crud. I gotta go. Some evil cowboy named Huevos Rancheros is apparently attacking people at the zoo and trying to free animals, or something like that. Sigh. Villains are so dumb. Why would you pick "Ranch Eggs" as your villain name?
I'll bet even Pronger would come up with something better than that.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
v2, d91: Montage
Our guest blogger has been put off for a day. She hasn't got access to a computer since she decided to drive from Metro Valley, IA to Chicago for tomorrow morning's victory parade.
So for filler, I'm going to share what is quickly becoming one of my favorite traditions of the last game of the Stanley Cup Final: CBC's playoffs montage! Last year was the first time I caught it (thanks, the Internet!) and it was perfect. This year is pretty spot on as well. Behold, the action, the people, the emotion, the heartbreak, and the victory of the past two months...in four minutes!
Some thoughts:
0:46 Is that actually the entrance to the Kings' locker room? I don't know how long I could take that seriously if I were a player. (This, on the other hand, is awesome, proving that it's a fine line between awesome and miniature golf course-quality)
0:52 Holy crap. Possibly the coolest pregame thing I've ever seen.
1:11 I don't know what sort of outfit that is on the hanger beside Michael Leighton, but it is without a doubt the antithesis of manly.
1:26 Wow.
1:38 Somewhat unrelated, but I just want to point out that Buffalo's Tyler Myers (the guy with his back to us) is from Katy, Texas, originally.
1:44 Easily the high point of the Avs brief post-season. (And it seems like it was so stinking long ago; has it only been six weeks?)
1:49 Awesome Crosby goal leads to poor Sens fan kid. We feel bad, but not as bad as we feel for...
2:01 Sad Avs fan kid! All together now: Awwwwww!!! (Really nice brief moment in the handshake between Foote and Blake, by the way, if you're an Avs fan of, oh, the last 10 years)
2:20 Best goal-scoring celebration of the montage. And the playoffs, for that matter.
2:32 We could have a 4-minute montage of this, and I'd probably watch it a couple of times.
2:38 Seriously! How is that "Buff-glen"???
2:42 That's just wrong.
2:47 Finally! A happy kid! Cute kid, too.
3:06 Play of the playoffs. Period.
3:30 Ha! They even fit the Chris Pronger/PuckGate controversy in here! Love it!
3:31 And, another happy cute kid!
3:38 BOOM, Pronger!
3:42 Buff-glen! How??????
That was kind of an awesome song.
So for filler, I'm going to share what is quickly becoming one of my favorite traditions of the last game of the Stanley Cup Final: CBC's playoffs montage! Last year was the first time I caught it (thanks, the Internet!) and it was perfect. This year is pretty spot on as well. Behold, the action, the people, the emotion, the heartbreak, and the victory of the past two months...in four minutes!
Some thoughts:
0:46 Is that actually the entrance to the Kings' locker room? I don't know how long I could take that seriously if I were a player. (This, on the other hand, is awesome, proving that it's a fine line between awesome and miniature golf course-quality)
0:52 Holy crap. Possibly the coolest pregame thing I've ever seen.
1:11 I don't know what sort of outfit that is on the hanger beside Michael Leighton, but it is without a doubt the antithesis of manly.
1:26 Wow.
1:38 Somewhat unrelated, but I just want to point out that Buffalo's Tyler Myers (the guy with his back to us) is from Katy, Texas, originally.
1:44 Easily the high point of the Avs brief post-season. (And it seems like it was so stinking long ago; has it only been six weeks?)
1:49 Awesome Crosby goal leads to poor Sens fan kid. We feel bad, but not as bad as we feel for...
2:01 Sad Avs fan kid! All together now: Awwwwww!!! (Really nice brief moment in the handshake between Foote and Blake, by the way, if you're an Avs fan of, oh, the last 10 years)
2:20 Best goal-scoring celebration of the montage. And the playoffs, for that matter.
2:32 We could have a 4-minute montage of this, and I'd probably watch it a couple of times.
2:38 Seriously! How is that "Buff-glen"???
2:42 That's just wrong.
2:47 Finally! A happy kid! Cute kid, too.
3:06 Play of the playoffs. Period.
3:30 Ha! They even fit the Chris Pronger/PuckGate controversy in here! Love it!
3:31 And, another happy cute kid!
3:38 BOOM, Pronger!
3:42 Buff-glen! How??????
That was kind of an awesome song.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
v2, d90: Blackhawks Win the Stanley Cup!
"Oh My God. It's like that commercial. I'm speechless." --Conn Smythe Trophy winner and Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews.
Well, that was a fantastic end to a fantastic series. Very entertaining, top-notch hockey, tight games with lots of scoring and plenty of drama, and some great stories along the way. I'm not gonna go into a ton of detail because I'm plenty tired and have a terrible headache, but here are some highlights:
--Great day for Marian Hossa. Yeah, I ragged on the guy quite a bit last year, but as a Pens fan I think I was predestined to gloat a bit. The poor guy lost the Cup in 2008 with Pittsburgh to the Wings, then signed with Detroit over the summer saying it was nothing against the Penguins, but he just thought he had a better chance to win a Stanley Cup in Detroit, and THEN lost the Cup AGAIN in 2009 with Detroit, this time to the Pens. It was pretty funny and awesome as a Pens fan, but that really had to suck for Hossa. A year later, I'm glad that third time was the charm. I can't imagine what it would have been like to lose three Stanley Cups in a row!
--The game went into overtime, which is awesome. I actually expected the Hawks to win in OT tonight. I was 6-for-6 in picking who would win what game, which is kinda eerie but kinda awesome. I expected a huge moment, a big shot followed by an explosion of 'HE SCORES!' from Doc Emmerick and the Hawks spilling over the boards to mob the goal-scorer. Instead, nobody seemed to know what had happened right away except the referee and the scorer. (The scorer always seems to know, by the way)
--I got a text early in the game from my sister, who was watching the game in a sports bar in NYC that was filled with, of all things, Penguins memorabilia. I texted back that I imagined there were plenty of temporary Blackhawks fans there tonight, and she commented that it was hard to tell. After Chicago scored the game's first goal, I got a text that said, "Yup, hawks fans! :-)"
--Byfuglien. Pronounced "BUFF-glen". I still don't get it.
--I don't think there's any way the Hawks can replicate this season. They were amazing all year and were clearly the best team in the playoffs. NOBODY took them seven games. But they're already over the salary cap for next year, and there are guys that need re-signed. Plus, it's really freaking hard to repeat as Cup champs. Nobody's done it in over a decade. Things look grim for Philly, I'm afraid. Historically, Stanley Cup losers don't fare nearly as well the next season. (Unless they're the 2009 Pens, of course. Hm...maybe the rule should be Stanley Cup losers NOT from Pennsylvania don't fare nearly as well. There may be hope yet, Flyers faithful!)
--Kudos to two goalies who were both backups at the start of the season. I'm not even sure Leighton was a backup when this year started. Also, kudos to Niemi for being the first Finnish goalie to win a Cup.
--Unexpected emotional moment from Jeremy Roenick after the Hawks won it. It's been a LONG time since he left the Windy City; never realized the Blackhawks had kept such a prominent place in his heart. The guy played on some awesome Chicago teams (as well as a few really good Philly ones and one great San Jose squad) but never got to lift the Cup. Still, didn't expect to see him break down after the game tonight. Oh, and Mike Milbury's kind of a jerk, but what else is new?
What a fun Cup Final. It was sort of nice not to have a horse in the race after the last two years. Had the chance to just sit back and enjoy the hockey and not sweat it out quite as hard. Not that I prefer that, of course. Pens, Avs, or Bolts in 2011!!
That's all for tonight. I'm going to bed. I'll try to get a real Blackhawks fan to do a guest blog tomorrow for a different perspective.
Hockey is over, kids (well, except for the Calder Cup Final, tied at 2 games apiece, and how is the AHL still playing when they didn't take an Olympic break?). Enjoy the offseason.
Well, that was a fantastic end to a fantastic series. Very entertaining, top-notch hockey, tight games with lots of scoring and plenty of drama, and some great stories along the way. I'm not gonna go into a ton of detail because I'm plenty tired and have a terrible headache, but here are some highlights:
--Great day for Marian Hossa. Yeah, I ragged on the guy quite a bit last year, but as a Pens fan I think I was predestined to gloat a bit. The poor guy lost the Cup in 2008 with Pittsburgh to the Wings, then signed with Detroit over the summer saying it was nothing against the Penguins, but he just thought he had a better chance to win a Stanley Cup in Detroit, and THEN lost the Cup AGAIN in 2009 with Detroit, this time to the Pens. It was pretty funny and awesome as a Pens fan, but that really had to suck for Hossa. A year later, I'm glad that third time was the charm. I can't imagine what it would have been like to lose three Stanley Cups in a row!
--The game went into overtime, which is awesome. I actually expected the Hawks to win in OT tonight. I was 6-for-6 in picking who would win what game, which is kinda eerie but kinda awesome. I expected a huge moment, a big shot followed by an explosion of 'HE SCORES!' from Doc Emmerick and the Hawks spilling over the boards to mob the goal-scorer. Instead, nobody seemed to know what had happened right away except the referee and the scorer. (The scorer always seems to know, by the way)
--I got a text early in the game from my sister, who was watching the game in a sports bar in NYC that was filled with, of all things, Penguins memorabilia. I texted back that I imagined there were plenty of temporary Blackhawks fans there tonight, and she commented that it was hard to tell. After Chicago scored the game's first goal, I got a text that said, "Yup, hawks fans! :-)"
--Byfuglien. Pronounced "BUFF-glen". I still don't get it.
--I don't think there's any way the Hawks can replicate this season. They were amazing all year and were clearly the best team in the playoffs. NOBODY took them seven games. But they're already over the salary cap for next year, and there are guys that need re-signed. Plus, it's really freaking hard to repeat as Cup champs. Nobody's done it in over a decade. Things look grim for Philly, I'm afraid. Historically, Stanley Cup losers don't fare nearly as well the next season. (Unless they're the 2009 Pens, of course. Hm...maybe the rule should be Stanley Cup losers NOT from Pennsylvania don't fare nearly as well. There may be hope yet, Flyers faithful!)
--Kudos to two goalies who were both backups at the start of the season. I'm not even sure Leighton was a backup when this year started. Also, kudos to Niemi for being the first Finnish goalie to win a Cup.
--Unexpected emotional moment from Jeremy Roenick after the Hawks won it. It's been a LONG time since he left the Windy City; never realized the Blackhawks had kept such a prominent place in his heart. The guy played on some awesome Chicago teams (as well as a few really good Philly ones and one great San Jose squad) but never got to lift the Cup. Still, didn't expect to see him break down after the game tonight. Oh, and Mike Milbury's kind of a jerk, but what else is new?
What a fun Cup Final. It was sort of nice not to have a horse in the race after the last two years. Had the chance to just sit back and enjoy the hockey and not sweat it out quite as hard. Not that I prefer that, of course. Pens, Avs, or Bolts in 2011!!
That's all for tonight. I'm going to bed. I'll try to get a real Blackhawks fan to do a guest blog tomorrow for a different perspective.
Hockey is over, kids (well, except for the Calder Cup Final, tied at 2 games apiece, and how is the AHL still playing when they didn't take an Olympic break?). Enjoy the offseason.
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