My weekend in junior hockey, Feb. 19-21st
Gabriel Dumont of the Drummondville Voltigeurs socred in each period Friday night.
This week junior hockey fans were treated to some great match-ups that might be previews of playoff matchups.
Friday night two of the highest seeds in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League locked up as the Drummondville Voltigeurs beat down the Quebec Remparts 8-2.
Even after absorbing the loss, the Remparts are in first in the Eastern Division. The win was more significant for the Voltigeurs who continued to put distance between themselves and the Victoriaville Tigres in the Central Division.
The game was headlined by Gabriel Dumont, who scored a hat trick for Drummondville and continues to be one of their strongest players.
On Saturday night the Barrie Colts dumped the Windsor Spitfires 8-5 in another high scoring game.
I’m not big on publicizing my predictions, but I wholly expect that this game could be a preview of the Ontario Hockey League’s playoff finals. The Colts have dominated the league’s Eastern Conference, not just clinching a playoff berth but also a title.
Meanwhile, the Spitfires have been strong in the Western Conference, putting a virtual all star team on the ice every night. They’ve also got the psychological advantage of being last year’s Canadian Hockey League champions.
Alex Hutchings and Darren Archibald both scored twice for Barrie, indicating that Windsor might not repeat as Memorical Cup Champions.
This weekend was a good indication of what the postseason has in store.
Friday, Feb. 19th2010
QMJHL – Drummondville drills Quebec in top matchup
When two top-ranked teams meet, it's supposed to be a close game.
That wasn't the case Friday night as Gabriel Dumont scored in each period and the Drummondville Voltigeurs blasted the Quebec Remparts 8-2 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. (See more...)
OHL – Luciani’s hat trick leads Erie to victory
It was a home coming of sorts for goaltender Adam Courchaine of the Erie Otters.
Anthony Luciani earned the hat trick as Erie defeated the Ottawa 67's 5-2 in Ontario Hockey League play Friday night. (See more...)
WHL – Blazers celebrate Mucha’s night with win over Seattle
Forward C.J. Stretch made sure a milestone night for goaltender Kurtis Mucha was extra special.
Stretch went end-to-end and scored the winning goal in overtime to give the Kamloops Blazers a 5-4 Western Hockey League victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds Friday night. (See more...)
Saturday, Feb. 20th 2010
QMJHL – Shawinigan upsets Saint John
Antoine Houde-Caron and the Shawinigan Cataractes had one of the biggest wins of their season Saturday night.
Houde-Caron scored the eventual winner as Shawinigan tamed the Saint John Sea Dogs 3-1 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. (See more...)
OHL – Colts take down Spitfires
In a likely preview of the John Ross Robertson Cup, the Barrie Colts downed the Windsor Spitfires.
Alex Hutchings and Darren Archibald both had a pair of goals as Barrie raced to an 8-5 win over Windsor in Ontario Hockey League action Saturday night. (See more...)
WHL – Weal leads Regina over Chilliwack
The Regina Pats kept their playoff hopes alive with a much needed win Saturday night.
Jordan Weal had two goals and two assists to lift Regina to a 5-3 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins in Western Hockey League action. (See more...)
Sunday, Feb. 21st 2010
QMJHL – Rouyn-Noranda edges Chicoutimi
Richard Martel will have to wait a week for his next chance to make history.
Sergey Ostapchuk had the eventual winner as the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies held on to beat the Chicoutimi Sagueneens 2-1 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League play Sunday afternoon. (See more...)
OHL – Plymouth cruises to 11-3 win over Sarnia; clinches berth
The Plymouth Whalers earned a playoff spot in style Sunday afternoon.
Tyler Seguin and Ryan Hayes both scored twice and added an assist as Plymouth crushed the Sarnia Sting 11-3 in Ontario Hockey League action. (See more...)
Midterm report on CTV’s Olympics coverage
TSN's Jay Onrait (left) and Dan O'Toole have been just two of the highlights of the Consortium's Olympic coverage.
Whether it’s bitter Australians or sniping Brits, the 2010 Olympics media coverage has become a story unto itself, becoming a sideshow to the actual competition.
In Canada, the media controversy du jour is that the Olympics are being covered by the Consortium - a group of companies that includes CTV, the Globe and Mail, Rogers and my employers, the Canadian Press amongst many others – and not the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Many people have criticized CTV’s coverage, saying that the CBC is the broadcaster of choice. Personally, I’m not so sure.
Student of Canadian television that I am, I think it’s time to see just how CTV’s posse has been doing.
PROS -
More channels, more sports. The CTV/CHUM/City/Rogers hydra has six channels available for Olympics broadcasting, meaning that there is no need for anyone to miss their favourite event. They’ve also done a good job of rolling a banner out informing the viewers when other events are starting on other channels.
This isn’t just good for the viewers, it’s good for the sports. Events like women’s hockey are getting more exposure than ever before, and it’s actually possible to watch an entire day’s worth of competition without the feed switching to biathlon or something.
Hopefully this means that in the long run we’ll see growth in sports that have suffered on the fringes of cable television.
APTN. One of the channels in the Consortium is the Aboriginal People’s Television Network, a channel up in the high stratosphere of cable TV. They haven’t been given the biggest events to cover, but the fact that they’re providing coverage specifically for Canada’s First Nations is admirable.
Many Canadian athletes are of native descent, and having a dedicated Olympic channel that caters to them is long overdue. Hopefully, they’ll maintain their license for the foreseeable future.
James Duthie. Okay, not just Duthie, but many members of the TSN crew. Anchors like Dan O’Toole, Bryan Mudryk and Jay Onrait have been given a bigger stage to perform on, and they’ve done a fantastic job of keeping even mundane recaps entertaining.
Too often the Olympics are sincere to the point of being maudlin and these four TSN veterans have injected a much-needed sense of fun to the proceedings.
Duthie in particular, has used his dry wit to great effect. The lead-up to the opening ceremonies stands out. When everyone else seemed dazzled by the spotlight, Duthie was quipping about Brian Williams and Lloyd Robertson doing body shots together. It’s rare that a television personality can crack up their co-host on screen.
CONs –
More channels, more problems. As I said above, having more sports available on more channels is a good thing. Unfortunately, it hasn’t always been well executed.
On the CTV Olympics website and on TV the Consortium has posted times for events without specifying which time zone. I know several people who’ve been thrown off by the start times of big matches or performances that have been wrong simply because CTV neglected to mention whether it was Eastern or Pacific time.
Canada is a big country with six time zones. CTV should make it easy on their viewers by at least throwing them a point of reference on which zone they’re talking about.
Green commentators. As strong as the TSN staff have been, there have also been some cringe-worthy commentators. A new conglomerate providing coverage for six channels, 24 hours a day means that many of the play-by-play people and colour analysts are pretty raw. They’re either new to the sport or new to broadcasting. This has created all kinds of bumps and hiccups that are distracting and sometimes confusing.
Also, with content spread significantly thinner, some commentary teams have clearly struggled to fill air time. Normally I think Jamie Campbell is a fine sportscaster, but during the men’s snowboard cross time trials he was clearly at loose ends, resorting to quoting Led Zeppelin lyrics. You can do better than that Mr. Campbell.
The preamble to the opening ceremonies was particularly rough, with everyone at loose ends trying to fill airspace. Only Duthie shone at this point, thanks to his years of experience on TSN.
MuchMusic. The weakest of the Consortium channels, my first glimpse of MuchMusic’s Olympic coverage was when CTV briefly switched to their feed in the lead up to the opening ceremonies.
VJ Tim Deegan was sitting in a hot tub with three young ladies who could have been 12 years old. In Much’s indoor set, two girls took body shots off of some guy’s chest. Then the viewer was back out with Tim-in-the-Tub, where two young men stripped off their clothes in a rousing round of “Drop your Gear for Beer”.
I don’t know who won the contest because just as one of the young men put his hand on the waistband of his boxers CTV cut back to their shell-shocked anchors at the International Broadcast Centre. I haven’t ventured back to Much since.
Not to sound like a cranky old man, but that is awful. I like the idea of dedicating a channel to the cultural events surrounding the Olympics, but, you know, how about some culture that didn’t involve getting drunk and/or naked.
SUMMARY -
All in all, I’d say that the Consortium’s television coverage got off to a rocky start but has improved each day. Many of the broadcasting hiccups, like warm weather, broken Zambonis and delayed events, are beyond their control. Their commentators are becoming more comfortable on air and the production crew is clearly finding their rhythm. Also, MuchMusic is staying on its own channel.
CTV has chosen an incredibly ambitious project to sink their teeth into, and at times it looks like they’ve bitten off more than they can chew. However, the second week promises to be a smoother ride.
What's your take? Anything you've liked about the coverage? Disliked? Please leave a comment!
McGuinty continues to miss out on mixed martial arts
Canadian Georges St. Pierre delivers a kick to the side of Matt Hughes' head.
One of the leading sports issues in Ontario came to the fore Wednesday when Premier Dalton McGuinty said that the legalisation of mixed martial arts in the province is not a priority for his government.
This is the latest development in what has been a seemingly interminable struggle. Ultimate Fighting Championship’s president Dana White has lobbying for the introduction of MMA prize fights into the province, while Ontario Athletic Commissioner Ken Hayashi has stymied him.
"We have higher priorities when it comes to developing [potential] jobs and strengthening the economy," said McGuinty on Wednesday, effectively tabling the debate in Ontario for the foreseeable future.
Although it’s a setback for the pro-MMA camp, they have time, logic and money on their side. Even a cursory examination of the facts makes it clear that hosting a UFC event in Toronto would be easy to arrange, safe for fans and athletes as well as a financial boon to the city’s tourism industry.
Although Premier McGuinty makes it sound like it would be a Herculean task to overturn the Criminal Code’s law against prize fighting, it’s really not an insurmountable problem.
Nova Scotia, Quebec and Manitoba have all approved the staging of these cards, as have municipal athletic commissions in Calgary, Edmonton, Prince George, B.C., and several other B.C. communities also sanction MMA events.
In theory, the Ontario Athletic Commission could override the law simply by approving an MMA event. However, Hayashi firmly believes that he would be charged with assault if he did that, and so UFC fans shouldn’t hold their breath.
Instead the Ontario government could conduct a thorough examination of the issue, much like the one undertaken by Vancouver’s City Council in December. In that case it only took city staff took a few months to put together a comprehensive report that came out in favour of MMA events.
Chris Parry of the Vancouver Sun highlighted most of the pertinent details, but the passage that sticks out is the section on safety:
“Injury rates in MMA competitions have been examined in several studies. The most extensive of these is a 2008 study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine that examined injuries to fighters in sanctioned bouts in Nevada State between 2002 and 2007. That study concluded that injury rates in regulated professional MMA competitions are similar to rates in other combat sports and that the overall risk of critical sports-related injury appears low. The report notes that a majority of MMA sanctioned bouts end via decision or submission (surrender of one fighter). This is thought to help explain the lower incidence of knockouts in MMA compared to boxing [Bledsoe et al, 2005]. A comparison of injury rates in MMA and boxing is shown in Table 1.”
Table 1 then contrasts boxing and MMA injuries:
“Overall injuries per 100 fight exposures: MMA 23.6, boxing 17.1 to 25
Concussion rate per 100 fight exposures: MMA 1.65, boxing 5.6
% fight ends in knockouts: MMA 3.3%, boxing 11.3%”
Clearly, if boxing is safe enough for Ontario, then MMA should be as well.
Then there’s the money: It’s expected that a major MMA event in Toronto (likely organized by the UFC) would generate millions of dollars in revenue for the cash-strapped province. Tax money and the usual influx of currency for hotels, restaurants and other trappings that stem from tourism would all stimulate the economy.
Granted, there’s always the possibility that a major sporting event will flop and not draw as well as it’s supposed to. However, Ontario as a whole is one of the biggest markets for MMA pay-per-view buys and the city of Toronto, with one of the larger populations in North America, could easily play host to a successful card.
So what’s the hold up? Political will.
McGuinty first said he’d consider the sanctioning of mixed martial arts months ago. Although he did see a swell of support for the move, it probably wasn’t enough to push the project forward.
Like most sporting events, including the Olympics and World Cup, no one can exactly predict what kind of an impact an event like a major pay-per-view will do for a city or province, and that kind of uncertainty is not attractive to an embattled premier.
It’s his loss. The debut of mixed martial arts in Ontario is inevitable. It’s too safe, popular and financially viable to be denied for long. It will happen eventually and McGuinty might as well be on board when it happens.
Cross my heart – I’ve got a new Olympic love
I have fallen in love with not one, but two sports at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. Snowboard cross and ski cross are the events for me.
Actually, I fell in love with them months ago. I was doing my internship with the CBC’s online unit and I was assigned a feature story on women’s ski cross world champion Ashleigh McIvor.
In preparation for my interviews with McIvor, her coach Eric Archer and her mother Marilyn, I read as much as I could about ski cross and watched as much video as I could find online.
I was hooked by the speed and surprisingly physical style of racing. I liked the skill and strategy needed to succeed. I loved everything about the sport after just watching a few races.
Ski cross is the newest Olympic sport. After time trials determine seeding, heats of four skiers race down a course filled with moguls, turns and jumps. It was introduced to the Games without any trial period based on the popularity of snowboard cross at Torino in 2006. That’s the beauty of these sports: they’re so simple.
Ski-cross and snowboard cross are very similar. The only real difference is what the athletes use to ride down the hill. Everything else is the same, including the course.
Unlike most Olympic sports, ski cross and snowboard cross are very objective. Sports like figure skating, ice dancing or freestyle skiing are judged by officials and, unfortunately, can be marred by corrupt decisions. Too often politics have influenced the outcome of these events.
However, with ski cross or boarder cross, anyone can understand that whoever gets to the bottom of the hill first, wins. There is much less opportunity for corruption or other subjective factors in such a straight-forward sport. They are a race, pure and simple.
Although steroids can help athletes in any sport, ski and snowboard cross rely so heavily on technique that the possibility of a win tainted by performance enhancing drugs is much smaller.
Another benefit is that Canadians are really, really good in these events. Mike Robertson won silver in men’s snowboard cross on Monday, while Maelle Ricker won gold in women’s snowboard cross on Tuesday.
Canada’s ski cross team is even stronger. As I mentioned above, McIvor is the reigning women’s champion but the rest of the women’s team is also dangerous. Kelsey Serwa, Aleisha Cline and Danielle Poleschuk are all capable of winning an Olympic medal.
Chris Del Bosco headlines the men’s team, but Stanley Hayer and Davey Barr are equally strong. Again, any one of them could leave Vancouver with a medal around their neck.
In fact, there’s a good chance that Canada will pull down multiple medals in men’s and women’s ski cross, and I know that I’ll be watching every race with anticipation, and you should too.
Australians raining on Bilodeau’s parade
As Canadians across the country celebrated Alexandre Bilodeau’s freestyle moguls victory – the first Olympic gold won by a Canadian on home soil – the Australian delegation started to pour themselves a glass of fine whine.
According to Dan Silkstone of the Sydney Morning Herald, the judges had put Bilodeau over Australian athlete Dale Begg-Smith who had to settle for silver to satisfy the Canadian hosts.
“It was the scores allocated to Bilodeau's turns - not traditionally his strong suit but Begg-Smith's undeniable strength - that had some in the Australian camp asking questions,” wrote Silkstone.
He then cited the Australian team’s high performance director, Geoff Lipshut: “My own opinion is probably that Alex is not capable of a 4.8 or 4.9 for turns. Just not capable.”
Lipshut did allow that Bilodeau out-paced Begg-Smith, an important criteria that judges always consider during competition.
“Dale could have been quicker,'' Lipshut said. “That's the bottom line: if Dale is three-tenths of a second quicker, Dale wins … You can say all the little things that you want, they are all small things. But you are probably not going to win by that. He had to be faster.”
So by the Australian delegation’s own admission, Bilodeau deserved to win, they’re just very disappointed. Silkstone, like many foreign journalists in Vancouver for the Olympics, are trying to make hay with Own the Podium and the Canadian Olympic Committee’s attempts to win as many medals as possible.
The British are also ragging on Canada’s Own the Podium program, but it comes across as just more bitterness. After all, what should Canada do? Not try to win? Not do their best? Nonsense.
Yes, Bilodeau’s win over Begg-Smith could be viewed by some as an upset, but thems the breaks. Sometimes underdogs come out on top.
Aside from some frustrated Aussies, no one has suggested that Bilodeau’s victory was anything less than legitimate.
Silkstone and his contacts on the Australian team are just chewing on sour grapes. At its core, the Olympics are about competition. Canada is finally stepping up its game and applying itself to winning as many medals as possible. Canadians can, and will, combine sportsmanship, class and athletic success at the Vancouver games.
My weekend in junior hockey, Feb. 12-14
Brandon Kozun is the most dangerous scorer on the Calgary Hitmen.
The Western Hockey League is the very picture of dichotomy. Its Eastern Conference is locked in a struggle for dominance, while the West’s playoff picture is quickly coming into focus.
In the Prairies the Saskatoon Blades and Brandon Wheat Kings both have 84 points, with Saskatoon given the advantage with two games in hand.
The Blades edge might be short lived as Brandon is rolling, earning points in the last 11 games.
The Calgary Hitmen are in charge of the Central Division with 82 points and are white hot with eight straight wins.
The Hitmen and Wheat Kings are hitting their stride at the right time of year, climbing the standings and taking momentum into hockey’s second season. They will decide who is the hottest team in the league Monday night as Brandon will visit Calgary.
The Wheat Kings will have to keep a close eye on Brandon Kozun, whose 29 goals and 54 assists has the most points in the WHL. Brandon will also have to watch out for Tyler Fiddler who had two goals Friday night against the Prince Albert Raiders.
Despite the success of the Blades, Hitmen and Wheat Kings, no team in the East has booked tickets to hockey’s second season just yet.
Compare that knot to the WHL’s Western Conference where the playoff picture is almost completely sorted out.
The Tri-City Americans, Vancouver Giants, Portland Winterhawks, Everett Silvertips and Spokane Chiefs have all clinched postseason spots.
Further, on Saturday night Portland beat Prince George 3-1, eliminating the Cougars from contention. This means that of the 12 teams in the West, half already know how they’ll be spending the playoffs.
The Seattle Thunderbirds will probably join Prince George soon, as they haven’t won a game since Jan. 9 when they, of course, earned a 3-1win over the Cougars. Since then it’s been 10 regulation losses and three in overtime.
That leaves it up to the Kelowna Rockets, Kamloops Blazers and Chilliwack Bruins to claim the final three postseason berths.
Friday, Feb. 12 2010
QMJHL – Quesnel leads Val-d’Or to win over Montreal
Alexandre Quesnel put the Val-d'Or Foreurs on his shoulders Friday night.
He scored back-to-back goals to lift the Foreurs to a 3-2 win over the Montreal Junior in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. (See more...)
OHL – Generals get pounded by Majors as Brace scores twice
Riley Brace and the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors were happy to take advantage of the slumping Oshawa Generals.
Brace scored a pair of goals and added an assist to lift Mississauga to a 6-0 win over Oshawa in the Ontario Hockey League Friday night. (See more...)
WHL – Hitmen run streak to seven straight with win over Raiders
Tyler Fiddler and the Calgary Hitmen continue to roll.
Fiddler scored twice, including the winner, to lead Calgary to a 3-1 win over the Prince Albert Raiders in Western Hockey League action on Friday night. (See more...)
Saturday, Feb. 13 2010
QMJHL – Lefrancois, Oceanic skate to 9-6 win over Mooseheads
It was a career night for Felix Lefrancois and Petr Straka.
Lefrancois scored four times and had two assists to lead the Rimouski Oceanic to a 9-6 win over the Halifax Mooseheads in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action Saturday night. (See more...)
OHL – Whalers’ Seguin scores OT winner to beat Sting
When the Plymouth Whalers are in a tight game they know they can rely on Tyler Seguin.
Seguin scored twice, including the overtime winner, as the Plymouth Whalers topped the Sarnia Sting 5-4 in Ontario Hockey League action Saturday night. (See more...)
WHL – Cougars eliminated from playoffs with loss to Winterhawks
It's no surprise to Western Hockey League fans: the Prince George Cougars won't be making the playoffs.
With a 3-1 effort the Portland Winterhawks officially knocked Prince George out of the WHL post-season Saturday night. (See more...)
QMJHL – Tigres drop Chicoutimi as Pulin earns 75th careers win
Kevin Poulin made history as the Victoriaville Tigres rolled to a win Sunday afternoon.
Poulin made 17 saves as Victoriaville dumped the Chicoutimi Sagueneens 7-1 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. (See more...)
OHL – Hodgson scores first two if season as Battalion down Petes
Cody Hodgson is getting back into the swing of things.
The Vancouver Canucks draft pick scored his first two goals of the season as the Brampton Battalion shut down the Peterborough Petes 4-0 on Sunday afternoon in Ontario Hockey League play. (See more...)
Follow Friday: Third String Goalie
As you can undoubtedly tell from this website, I spend a lot of time cruising the Internet. It’s a big part of my job and also a nice way to spend an afternoon. In the fine tradition of Twitter I figured I’d start using Fridays to spotlight websites or podcasts that I enjoy visiting.
One of my favourite blogs to check in on is Third String Goalie. The format is simple. Each day, Jeff chooses a hockey jersey from his immense collection and explains the history of the sweater. Not his personal history with the shirt, but the career of the player, the history of the team and the events that were important to the jerseys’ era.
For example, in a run up to the Olympic games Jeff has been looking at team jerseys from international competition. On Thursday he wrote about his 1998 Czech Republic Dominik Hasek jersey from the Nagano games.
Jeff outlines the history of the Czech team and then goes on to explain how they fared in the 1998 tournament. Then comes the multimedia portion where he has photos of the 1998 jersey, the designs for the 2010 Czech jersey and video of the fateful shootout between Canada and the Czech Republic where Marc Crawford inexplicably kept Wayne Gretzky and Steve Yzerman on the bench.
Every article is filled with exhaustive research and funny asides. Fortunately for the reader, Jeff is a freelance photographer, a career the affords him the time and energy to pour himself into each of these pieces daily.
That's right, you can see brand new material every day of the week. Incredible! You can also follow him on Twitter.
It’s one of my favourite reads, and Jeff was kind enough to submit himself to an email interview.
JCH - How did you get started? Where did you get the idea for Third String Goalie?
I got started doing the blog because I participate in a message board called JerseyCentral.org. On the message board is a thread entitled "What are you wearing today?" It's a place on the board to show off a jersey that is separate from the "new arrivals" thread.
I found myself posting jerseys because of a significant game being played that day or an anniversary of something noteworthy, such as the anniversary of the Miracle on Ice. My explanations were getting a bit longer each time and I realized I had even more information to share than I was posting.
In addition, I have a pretty sizable collection and a desire to share it with people beyond just posting pictures of them. I wanted to explain the significance of why I recreated that specific jersey, as most of my jerseys have some sort of story to tell.
Since just having pictures of them online wasn't satisfying and I didn't want to hijack the message board thread with overly long stories, it occurred to me that a blog was the way to go.
Even before I started the blog, I had the name filed away, having come across it while reading an article in an old issue of Baseball Digest from 1956 that was a humorous glossary of terms. One of the entries was "Third String Catcher", which meant a fan in the stands wearing a jersey. First, I thought "Well, that pretty much describes me." and thought it would be a great name for a website. When I started the hockey blog, I just changed it to "Third String Goalie".
JCH -You've been blogging since May and have over 280 posts, averaging more than one post per day. How do you keep up that pace?
The combination of being freelance and the economy being lousy has give me a lot of free time. Blogging is a great way to escape reality! I do most of my writing after my son goes to bed in the evening.
JCH - What was your first hockey jersey?
My first jersey was a white Minnesota North Stars jersey from the early 80's. I bought from the team souvenir stand. It was out of stock and took forever to arrive.
JCH - What is your favourite jersey?
Hard to pick just one, but my favorite is my early 90's Soviet Red Army jersey. It's such an icon with the hammer and sickle logos, stars and name on the back in Cyrillic.
JCH - What do you look for in a jersey?
I've always liked a jersey that tells a story of some sort. Any jersey that you can put an extra patch on is desirable in my book, be it an anniversary, memorial, Stanley Cup Finals or tournament patch.
I've bought jerseys because they used a cool font for the numbers, because they came up with a great looking design, because they came up with a horrible design, because it was a jersey of a favorite player or represents a significant occurrence, like the 1972 Summit Series.
JCH - What's the ugliest jersey you've ever seen? The nicest?
Yes, the Los Angeles Kings really wore this.
The ugliest in my book is the 1995-96 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim alternate "Wild Wing" jersey. While the Los Angeles Kings 95-96 alternate "Burger King" jersey is really weird and the Dallas Stars "Mooteurs" is mind-numbingly ugly and dumb, the "Wild Wing" lacks any dignity at all. It just reeks of being designed by people with no appreciation for NHL hockey and I can't believe they even asked NHL players to wear it. Of those three, it's the only one that's so stupid that it makes me mad just thinking about it. Of course, I own two of them!
The nicest. I really liked the Dallas Stars green and black jerseys with the star pattern first used as an alternate in 1997-98 that they won the Stanley Cup in. That was such a nice looking jersey when it first came out I was able to overlook the fact that it was my old North Stars team that was stolen from me wearing it and knew immediately I needed to buy one.
I also like the classic Boston Bruins jerseys worn from the mid 70's to the mid 90's.
JCH - On your blog you advise your readers to "never, ever tuck your jersey into your pants." Any other sweater faux-pas you want to speak out against?
I'm not a fan of putting you own name and number on a jersey, but can understand the reasoning why people do it. Those people are not the ones sitting there with Thrashers Kovalchuk or Wild Gaborik jerseys today. There's no hope of any resale value in putting your own name on the back, but many people don't plan on selling theirs.
The thing that's really starting to annoy me is the number of people who could care less that they have bought a horrible, horrible Chinese knockoff. There are some that are just dreadful. I once saw a vintage Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin jersey were all the red parts were orange. ORANGE! The fonts were off, the colors were off, Ovechkin never wore that style. Have some pride, man.
That said, the copies are getting much better and if Reebok hadn't jacked up the price on the new, ill-fitting edge jerseys (where if the body fits, the arms are way too long) by a good 50% to $120 over the wonderful CCM 550's that were $80 AND cheapened the jerseys at the same time with screen printed, brittle shoulder patches and screen printed numbers made to look like quality sewn numbers, there wouldn't be such a market for a lower priced alternative now, would there?
JCH - How do you do all that research for each blog post?
The Internets. It's all out there waiting to be found. I do have a library of hockey books to fall back on, but most of it comes from an assortment of websites I rely on like IIHF.com. One place I go out of my way not to use are other blogs. I don't want to come across as having copied their work. Perhaps we will arrive at a similar story, having found the same information, but I do find my information on my own.
I do have to go out of my way to mention NHLUniforms.com. I bet I have visited that site every day for the last eight years.
JCH - I was most impressed with your Jan. 29 post on Bob Sauve's Buffalo Sabres jersey. How did you ever get all that detail on the players' experiences combating the blizzard?
I got lucky and found an article on SIVault.com that had the quotes in it. I don't use that site as much as I should, as I often find their information concerning factual things differs at times from other websites. For example, the number of Sabres players they listed having made the plane trip to Montreal was different that other sites. Perhaps SI originally stated "Don Luce arrived at the airport and he and 14 others made the trip". Other websites will take that and repeat is as "14 players made the trip". I assume that an article written in February 1977 based on first hand interviews with the participants will be more accurate than one created in 2007 with second and third hand information.
It's funny how often I find conflicting information. I've seen Clint Benedict credited with wearing the first goalie mask for just one, four and five games on different websites.
JCH - What are you most proud of on your blog?
That I have stuck with the idea, that my work has gotten recognized somewhat and that I've tried to bring enough variety to my topics that it will catch people off guard from time to time. Like the blizzard story for example, or the one where I discovered that the entire reason the NHL was formed in 1917 was for the four owners to rid themselves of a fifth owner from their previous league who they couldn't stand!
JCH - What do you hope your readers get out of Third String Goalie?
An appreciation for a cool looking jersey, an appreciation for a player they may not have known much about before, like Stan Mikita, an appreciation for hockey beyond the NHL, especially international hockey with the Olympics on the horizon, and an appreciation for hockey prior to Wayne Gretzky.
The NHL didn't start with Gretzky and has over sixty years of history to tell that many people are not aware of. Heck, the Stanley Cup was around a quarter of a century before the NHL even came to be. Most people have no idea that is the case.
It's my hope that each day a number of people think "Well I didn't know that before" or are reminded of something from the past they hadn't thought of in a while.
JCH - And finally... How can we get more Marie-Pier on Third String Goalie?
If I ever do a story on the Montreal Canadiens, I see if she's got any relevant videos available. More Habs equals more Marie-Pier, even if I can't understand a single thing she's said.
I try not to be too English-centric and have no fear posting videos in Latvian, Finnish, Russian, Swedish or French. I've had readers from 86 different countries, so it's nice to make them feel at home from time to time. There's something universal about an excited announcer screaming his head in Czech off after a goal that we can all understand and appreciate.
Scandella’s suspension will hopefully start a new era in hockey discipline
In case you didn’t see my original post on Feb. 5, it’s worth watching the video of Val-d’Or’s Marco Scandella hitting Alexandre Durette of the Rimouski Oceanic before continuing on to this article.
Please note there are a few clips on this video of Durette’s face after it’s been stitched up that are a little unsettling.
Scandella, a defenceman with the 2009 edition of the Canadian World Junior team, was suspended on Tuesday for 15 games by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Although the video hasn’t garnered nearly as much attention as the Patrice Cormier debacle, the suspension is in some ways more significant.
It marks a shift in QMJHL policy, and hopefully a shift in Canadian Hockey League policy. In the past the intent of the offending player was strongly considered when handing down a suspension, but now it seems that any headshot is punishable regardless of the level of malice.
Try comparing the Scandella incident to Cormier’s elbow-first hit of Mikael Tam and the suspension that followed.
When Scandella hit Durette it was in an honest attempt to gain control of the puck. In fact, it was because Durette was reaching for the puck, exposing his head to the check, that the blow was possible.
Also, had Durette stayed upright instead of leaning forward, it would’ve simply been a regular body check. Instead, his head was at the same level as Scandella’s shoulder.
By comparison, the video replay clearly shows that Cormier lifted his elbow up to hit Tam in the face. Also, Cormier hit Tam seconds after Tam had made a long pass into the offensive zone.
Even worse, Durette’s injuries were exasperated by his visor shattering and lacerating his face. That equipment malfunction isn’t Scandella’s fault.
Long story short: Scandella intended to hit Durette cleanly and gain control of the puck. Cormier targeted Tam’s head after he had released the puck.
However, compared to Cormier, Scandella has drawn a relatively stiff punishment. Previously, a malicious play like Cormier’s was an offence that would earn a suspension while an incidental hit with no intent to injure like Scandella’s, would be ignored or maybe result in a shorter suspension.
It now seems that intent carries less weight then it used to, and I’m alright with that.
Dangerous head shots (clean and dirty) have kept hockey in the headlines for all the wrong reasons and QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau has to do whatever he can to protect the players in his league and maintain the game’s profile.
"We will continue to be very stern regarding hits to the head as well as towards any gestures which could compromise the well-being of our players," said Courteau in a statement regarding the suspension.
I think that a 15-game suspension is fair given the off-ice situation in Quebec. Scandella will be able to return to the Foreurs in time for the playoffs (should they make it) and resume his career. As long as Scandella learns from Cormier’s mistakes and meekly accepts his forced vacation this should be just a minor note on his resume.
Graphic Novel Review: The Best of the Spirit by Will Eisner
Amongst comic book fans, Will Eisner’s the Spirit is legendary. It’s the foundation on which modern sequential art has been built. Indeed, on the cover of the Best of the Spirit, USA Today praised it as “The Citizen Kane of Comics.”
This, of course, made me pretty sceptical. After all, one of my favourite pet theories is Citizen Kane Syndrome, which states that influential classics lose their lustre because what made them shine is now cliché. I shouldn’t have been concerned though – the Spirit easily lives up to all the hype.
The Spirit was a widely syndicated adventure comic that appeared as an insert in Sunday newspapers across the United States starting with the aptly named "Origin of the Spirit" published on June 2, 1940. The Spirit was originally Denny Colt, a criminologist killed while on a case. Reincarnated as the apparently immortal Spirit, he sought justice around the world. The original run lasted 12 years, and changed the way comic book writers and artists worked.
The introduction of "Meet P'Gell"from Oct. 6, 1946.
Eisner is often cited as an artistic genius who revolutionized pacing and layout. All of that skill is brought to life on the pages of the Best of the Spirit. His characters are cartoonish, but remain incredibly emotive. Characters that appear for only a panel or two are instantly sympathetic. And if you want to see just how groundbreaking his design is, please check out the picture on the right.
I’ve often heard it said that Eisner was not afraid to spill ink all over the page and make his work incredibly dark. This is true, he’s not afraid of filling negative space with ink. However, it’s his colouring that was striking. It is incredibly bright and vibrant – bright yellows, oranges and greens pop in comparison to the black ink.
Also, when the scene calls for it, Eisner will leave more than half a page blank with some lettering and one or two characters. His reputation for dark, moody work belied a surprisingly diverse and colourful style.
What really impressed me though, was the quality of his writing.
The stories are short – seven pages each – but cram in an entire tale that manages to include character development, action and resolution in one neat package. This is a far cry from today’s decompressed epics where it takes nearly 100 pages for anything of substance to happen.
I would love to see a monthly Batman or Spider-Man book where there are two or three of these quick stories. They could be one-and-dones where the hero handles a case in the span of one night. I think it’d be a great contrast to the longer, more involved plotlines being used today. It would also make a great jumping on point for new fans.
There are some small drawbacks to the Spirit, of course. The inadvertent racism of the Spirit strips can make the reader uncomfortable. Aside from a few brief glimpses, the highly offensive Ebony White wasn’t included in this collection. But there is still a brief appearance of an Italian landlady, Mrs. Pizza, who says things like “No sorr... She’sa keep d’apart-ement joosa like dis...” Yikes. Eisner had to create characters in shorthand to save space, and too often that means stereotypes.
What’s most impressive about this book is how well it holds up. These stories were originally published between 1940 and 1950, but they’re still quick and fun. I’m definitely going to try and pick up more editions of the Spirit to add to my collection.
The Best of the Spirit was a pleasant surprise that confounded my expectations and is definitely worth checking out if you're not familiar with Will Eisner's work.
Gainey’s departure hurts the Habs more than it helps
Bob Gainey resigned from his position as general manager of the Montreal Canadiens Monday afternoon, making way for interim GM Pierre Gauthier.
Say what you will about Gainey’s tenure as the boss in Montreal - and many people have - I think we can all agree that the timing could not be worse.
The Canadiens are currently in sixth place, at the top of the Eastern Conference’s playoff log jam. They’re one point ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers and the Tampa Bay Lightning, and, incredibly, just 13 points ahead of the last place Toronto Maple Leafs.
With 22 games left in their season, anyone could overtake Montreal. The East is wide open. As unlikely as it seems, even Toronto could wind up in the postseason.
Between now and the playoffs there is also a little event called the trade deadline, where the Habs will undoubtedly be looking to move one of either Carey Price or Jaroslav Halak. Also, prized centre Tomas Plekanec is entering into negotiations to sort out his contract for next season. Otherwise he’ll be an unrestricted free agent, able to sign with the highest bidder.
This is the time for a strong leader, one who can represent the franchise and present themselves as a powerful figure who has the support of ownership. Gauthier may be a canny negotiator, but the word “interim” in front of his title will be a handicap.
GMs from other teams will try to fleece the Canadiens for Price and Halak, knowing that Gauthier must move one of them and that he is only in charge by default. Don’t believe me? Ask John Ferguson Jr. what it’s like to try and work deals without the full, vocal support of your ownership. Ask Cliff Fletcher what it’s like trying to swing a trade when you’re just an interim GM.
Further, Plekanec’s agent will have a hard time taking Gauthier seriously. There’s more than just money at stake when you sign a free agent. They also want to be on a winner. Since Gauthier will probably be relieved of his duties in the off-season, he can’t make any kind of guarantee of what the team will look like in the 2010-11 season. He stinks of lame duck.
That cannot be appealing to the Plekanec camp.
During Monday’s press conference Gainey said he had to leave because he couldn’t take the day-to-day grind of being a GM any longer.
That may be so, but he’s left his team in the lurch. If he could have bucked up until the off-season, he would have broken ties with the Canadiens at an optimal time. Instead, his departure might distract the Habs during their playoff run and will undoubtedly hinder personnel negotiations.
Archives
- February 2014 (1)
- June 2012 (1)
- January 2012 (1)
- December 2011 (1)
- November 2011 (2)
- June 2011 (3)
- April 2011 (2)
- March 2011 (2)
- February 2011 (5)
- January 2011 (5)
- December 2010 (3)
- November 2010 (11)
- October 2010 (11)
- September 2010 (7)
- August 2010 (10)
- July 2010 (10)
- June 2010 (5)
- May 2010 (14)
- April 2010 (18)
- March 2010 (24)
- February 2010 (22)
- January 2010 (20)
Categories
- Books (18)
- Comics (15)
- Food (2)
- Movies (3)
- Music (2)
- Personal (4)
- Reading (22)
- Site administration (7)
- Sports (143)
- Television (2)
- Video Games (2)
- Writing (23)
