Jerseys and Hockey Love » Hockey

Personal Moment

Tapeleg — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 08:40:44 +0000

This is a photo taken in Calgary of one of my favorite moments from the year (this was from the summer, before the season started) of hockey, watching the Canadian U-22 Women’s Team with Meg. From all the games I saw this season, this is a highlight. The photo was taken by a photographer for Hockey Canada, and posted on their site. Don’t tell them we aren’t Canadian.

I will post some sort of personal season recap in the next week or so. Of course, I’ve made promises before….

The End of the Pronger Mythos: Thus Spoke Byfuglien

Tapeleg — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 21:19:36 +0000

(photo was crowdsourced from Twitter, created by @KeithDotson. Thanks, Keith!)

For all the teasing and ribbing, all the bile and anger the fans have thrown, and all the pucks he has collected, Chris Pronger has been something no other player in the Stanley Cup Finals has consistently been: effective. Big hits and big elbows, the occasional post whistle jab mixed in with good positioning and minimizing the effectiveness of the top line from the Chicago Blackhawks, Pronger has been the focus of the Finals in a way usually reserved for Pittsburgh Penguins first round draft picks.

The focus on Pronger has been a boon to his teammates, who are almost invisible after the focus shift when number 20 takes to the ice. When it isn’t the media talking about the match ups, or the fans booing him for every puck possession, it’s the lines of the Blackhawks and when they play that are most affected by his presence. Pronger is owning the finals in a way only a goalie making up for the lackluster play of his team can.

Surprisingly ineffective has been Dustin Byfuglien. While everyone was waiting for Byfuglien to break out of his slump, Pronger was owning the head to head match up with a mixture of skill and pest-like antagonizing. It was the match up everyone was expecting and looking forward to, and it was being dominated by Chris Pronger.

That was, until game five.

Byfuglien finally found his game, along with the rest of his teammates, when Coach Quenneville finally returned to his own style and split up the lines, making the Flyers choose who they should match their defensemen against. That the split hadn’t occurred earlier in the series was shocking to anyone who has seen Coach Q behind the bench for a season.

Byfuglien came out swinging in game five, with two goals and two assists, but it was the big hit that had everyone talking.

Chatting with Jason Cohen on Twitter last night, I started to realize what it was about the hit that made it so significant. Jason wasn’t too impressed by the hit, and I can’t say that I blame him. The hit itself was fun to watch, but not exactly damaging. I’m sure the fans at the United Center didn’t want to see Pronger get up too quickly from the hit. But what the hit wasn’t in it’s violence, it certainly made up for in it’s significance.

Until then, Chris Pronger was a character, a villain who enjoyed playing the role. Not to diminish his effectiveness, but he was surrounded by a certain mythology we have seen before. He was unhittable, an unmovable force to be reckoned with. Much of that mythology had been earned from his previous play.

I liken it to Batman, the DC Comics character. Half of the reason Batman has the upper hand is the fear he instills in the bad guys he fights simply from being who he is. The mask, the darkness, his reputation, it all serves a purpose. He talks about it in the movies and everyone who writes the character references it at some point. It’s his most important tool. He wouldn’t be nearly as effective if he wore a jogging suit and went by the name Larry.

The impact of that hit took away the myth that was surrounding Pronger, and made him look more human. After game five, simply stepping on the ice will not be enough. Pronger will have to earn that mythology back. The post game quotes said it all. This was a person who was looking to scoop his reputation back up into his arms, carry it back to the hotel, and try to nurse it back to health. It was a hit that could have a lasting impact on the series. It’s something a team can rally behind.

Or, to put it another way, this quote from Iron Man 2, spoken by Mickey Rourke, sums things up nicely.

If you could make God bleed, people will cease to believe in Him. There will be blood in the water, and the sharks will come.

I believe those sharks will look a lot like the Blackhawks for the next two games.

Thus spoke Byfuglien.

US Hockey Hall of Fame Part One

Tapeleg — Fri, 07 May 2010 13:29:56 +0000

Eveleth, MN isn’t on the radar for most hockey fans, or the hot vacation spot that online travel websites will be pushing deals for. Eveleth is up there, 3 hours north of Minneapolis. It’s not on the way to anywhere, unless you want to see where Christian hockey sticks were made (Warroad), or are into mining (a big industry around the Eveleth area)

I’m not trying to slight Eveleth (but I probably am, so I’m sorry to the residents), as I didn’t get a chance to explore the town much. But I was there for one reason, and one reason only. To visit the USA Hockey Hall of Fame.

(click any photos for a bigger version, and if you want to use any of them, go for it, just give me credit, please)

The hall was founded in 1973, and fell on some seriously hard times, to the point that a few years ago, they were thinking about shutting down. There has also been movements to move the hall to a more populated area. The hall remains in Eveleth, though, even though it could use a few more visitors through it’s doors. Right now, the hall is trying to fix the air conditioner it has limped along with since the building was built.

The hall was actually closed for the day (call ahead for the hours, since the winter and summer hours are quite different), but a phone call to the hall was enough for the nice people who run the place to open it’s doors for me.

When you walk into the hall, it doesn’t look like much. A lobby with a few hockey jerseys in it, a small gift shop, nothing much. But it opens up when you take the stairs to the first main floor.

First, those jerseys in the main lobby. One was the jersey Bobby Ryan wore when he scored the fastest hat trick in NHL history (3 goals in 2:21). The other was a Mike Modono jersey, on display with articles about him being the highest scoring US born player.

On to the hall. Meet Zamboni #4.

I’ve been around the first Zamboni before, and this one was just as cool. Built on the frame of an old Willy’s jeep, this one dates back to the early 1950s.

Beats the hell out of the old way of resurfacing the ice:

The hall had just finished putting up their Herb Brooks exhibit, and it was full of amazing memorabilia from his legendary career, and from the 1980 gold medal winning hockey team:

These are coats from the 1980 Olympics (I believe they were both worn by Brooks):

Photos of the team at the White House:

To save bandwidth for some of you, this all continues after the jump.

Herb Brooks comes home from the Olympics:

Herb Brooks’ jersey from the 1968 Olympics:

Other memorabilia from the 1968 Olympics:

I love this picture of Brooks from the 2002 Olympics at practice, taking a shot. He was lifting the puck just fine:

More stuff from Brooks:

Brooks from the U of M years:

I doubt there will be another coach like Brooks, or another team like he coached in 1980.

Any hall of fame has to have inductees, and the US Hockey Hall of Fame has a wall dedicated to them:

They aren’t the most flattering of artists renderings:

You can find a list of everyone enshrined here.

A few other things in the main floor: Such as the scoreboard from the movie The Mighty Ducks:

The big blue banner behind it is from the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid:

A display of old skates, by which I mean oooooold:

Including this skate sharpener:

Around the back of the Great Wall of Enshrinees were more exhibits with more jerseys and hockey history. This was the display on Eveleth hockey history:

Frank Brimsek, aka Mr. Zero, and his Vezina and Calder trophies from the 1938-39 season:

More historic US Olympic memorabilia:

From the 1960 gold winning team:

There is still plenty more to show, but this is long enough for now. More photos in the next post.

Oh Say, Can You Sing

Tapeleg — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 18:21:55 +0000

It’s all the rage these days, mostly because it’s the playoffs. The recent display – and this is nothing new – of cross border agitation has taken form in the booing of the national anthem sung before a hockey game. Yes, I feel silly trying to figure out a way of phrasing that. It’s not like this is something never heard or seen at a hockey game. Previous years have shown the same behavior in arenas on both sides of the border, and the trend continues. Just like almost everything in life, one or two people is all it takes to ruin a perfectly mediocre tradition. Most of the people who practice the act wouldn’t do so outside a crowd. Cowards? Sure, why not.

As you may be able to tell, I’m not a huge fan of the anthem sung at the beginning of sporting events. While it’s tradition and great for some people, it does nothing for me (even less, sometimes, but we will get to that). And the singing of God Bless America should be banned at all sporting events, if not stricken from the Library of Congress (bad lyrics, bad tune, it’s the unofficial song of overdoing things).

But the anthem, just like a lot of public events, art, entertainment, or displays of patriotism, isn’t just for me. They don’t turn and look at me when they sing the anthem, and they don’t turn and sing it to the troops. They sing it towards the flag, and it’s a good thing to remember that it’s something that is not only bigger than me, but also for people other than me. Out of respect for those people, I don’t do anything but stand, take of my hat (if I have one, because you need a good reason to cover a beautiful bald head like mine), and listen to the song. And of course, face the flag. Frankly, it’s what you do.

Just a few thoughts on disrespecting the anthems:

- There are people who are going to be pissed of if fans boo the anthem. It’s nothing more than petty gamesmanship, but on the other side of the aisle, taking that too seriously is going to lead nowhere good, fast. Say something bad under your breath about the aggravating parties, something mean about their lineage, and move on.

- If the person next to you is doing it, tell them to be quiet. Do it nicely, but firmly. You shouldn’t be expected to be the ‘better person’ by letting it go. If it bugs you, say so. If the person is an ass after that, make your decisions accordingly.

- What is more disrespectful to the anthem: booing while it is being sung, or adding so much riffing, extra notes, and ego that is destroys the song. This isn’t American Idol. If you sing the song, you sing the song the way it was written, add a little flair if you must, but that’s it. More teams should have the guts to tell a singer that they are not welcomed back if the song is turned into the abomination most of these singers deliver. Anyone over the age of 16 should know better, and anyone under the age of 16 should be stopped mid song, and told they get one more shot to get it right. This is a choice the singer makes, but the rest of us have to suffer.

- No, it isn’t a classy thing to do, but classiness is abandoned all the time in the stands. Ever see someone throw a cup of beer on the ice, dousing the crowd in front of them along the way? Would you repeat most of the things you (or those around you) say at a hockey game outside the arena? Doubt it. Even the players are known for throwing the occasional barb out at the refs or opposition (read: all the time). It’s hockey, not a congressional debate.

- Booing the anthem is disrespectful to the singer. As though it’s easy to sing in front of 18,000 fans, it’s like the opening act for Led Zeppelin. It’s the thing that stands between you and the main event. There’s enough pressure on the singer, and the slightest screw up will make them overnight internet jokes. It’s not fair to them.

Those are just my thoughts. Really, only one or two people have to act like jackasses to get the finger pointed at an entire fan base. Don’t be that guy.

A Few Quick Things

Tapeleg — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:17:15 +0000

Just a few notes around the hockey and blogging world (most of them are a little selfish, but there you go):

- One of the funnier reviews of my podcast, The Rink I have ever seen came from Dirk Hoag, AKA The Forechecker on his excellent blog, On the Forecheck:

James “Tapeleg” Gralian and Tom Luongo break down the NHL from their perspectives in Denver and Buffalo, respectively. Tom can get a bit cranky at times, but that makes for a nice foil to James’ genial style.

Yeah, I’m a little less genial on this weeks episode. Tom and I get into it a little – not a lot – about a few things. Go and have a listen.

- I changed the theme of the site finally. It was much easier than when I first set up the blog on my own hosting three years ago, which was basically burnout point number one for me. There were more several burnout points for me, but getting this blog away from blogspot was one of them. If you only read this blog in a feed reader – which I encourage you to do – pop by the main site and take a look. I think it looks nifty, but if you have any problems with it, let me know. It would be greatly helpful.

- Jibblescribbits finally moved his blog away from Blogger. Now on the Bloguin network (I really have no idea what that really means), he has a new domain, so if you want your Avs hockey fix, update those links and feeds. He is joining some excellent blogs at Bloguin, like Cycles Like the Sedins, and Barry Melrose Rocks. Good on ya, Jib!

- I went to a San Antonio Rampage game on Sunday. The hockey was fast and fun, and much better than the game we saw in Anaheim when the Ducks gave the game to the Leafs. And it was about a third as expensive, with much better seats. As far as the live game is concerned, the minor leagues is where it’s at for me.

Technorati Tags: internet, Podcast

Thin Air: Hockey Thoughts on a Sunday Afternoon, November 15th, 2009

Tapeleg — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 18:42:59 +0000

Stuff that would normally go into the ether, were I still dealing with twitter.

- I went to a Spokane Chiefs game with Jason Cohen, author of Zamboni Rodeo, still one of my top five hockey books. Jason was a lot of fun, and I thank him for showing up. Now, if only the Kamloops Blazers had shown up.

- The Colorado Eagles are 7-0-1 so far this season, putting them first in the Conference with the least amount of games played. We will see what happens when they hit the road, but for now, things are looking pretty good in Ft. Collins.

- The same can’t be said for the Avalanche. You know, for all the crap Red Wings bloggers take for not writing after a Detroit loss, I am not seeing a lot of effort put into dissecting this latest blowout. Other than blaming the new 3rd jerseys, that is.

- Paul Kukla put this warning on his site the other day:

We really do appreciate you visiting all the blogs under the KK umbrella, but do want to remind you to keep your comments on the topic of the post and also to avoid the childish banter that does take place at times.

People want to read about the topic at hand, not how good you are at throwing out personal barbs at people.

There is a proper way to get your point across and then there is a way not to do it. If you don’t know the difference, then maybe KK is not the place for you. So either adjust or move on to another site.

Paul isn’t big on being criticized. But a warning like this seem kind of ridiculous when Kukla’s Korner plays host to the vitriol of Abel to Yzerman. Go figure. I support imposing control over your site, fostering the kind of community you want to have around, and moderating your commenters, but this is kind of funny. Actually, it’s really funny. Especially when the barbs thrown at Eklund are taken into account (Eklund is certainly not my favorite blogger). None of us are perfect, but come on.

- Hey, look at that. I’m on Puck Daddy: Five reasons why Avalanche blogger Tapeleg loves hockey.

- If you had a choice between these two jerseys, which would you choose? Go let Ryan Classic know, or tell me here. I’d lean towards the black one, partly because of the tie up in the front, and partly because I’d hate to spill food on the white one.

- Sure, I’d call a jersey a sweater….. if it were made of wool, designed to keep you warm, or worn by this guy.

Anything in the EDGE system is not a sweater. Just saying.

- Here in Spokane, they have stick and puck time (ice time to work on your hockey skills) every week day. How about that, eh?

- Do you know what RSS is, or how to use programs like Google Reader or feed catchers like endo or NetNewsWire to make your life easier? Do you know about Instapaper for saving webpages for later reading with one click? Have you every used something like Readability to make the blogs you want to read easier for your eyes to handle? I’m thinking about doing a post on all of these things, to make reading hockey blogs better for you, the reader. Because what’s the point of making it difficult.

Technorati Tags: Thin Air

Daytime Hockey Thoughts – November 5th, 2009

Tapeleg — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:45:02 +0000

Just some thoughts:

- You know what? Your incomplete theory on why attendance is low putting the blame squarely at the fans holds no interest for me. Fleshing out real reasons with actual ideas and research does interest me. Start a flame war on your own time. I don’t care.

- I know people think Tom is insane in the latest episode of The Rink. I don’t completely disagree. But it’s certainly entertaining.

- Peter Budaj won a hockey game last night, which should put a cold chill down the thousands of Avs fans thinking he was the second coming of Typhoid Mary.

- I really need to write a new manifesto. I feel a monstering coming on.

- I have a co-worker who lives in Pittsburgh. All he can do is talk about Sidney Crosby. I would remind him that familiarity breeds contempt, but it is more pleasing to tell him how much I dislike the guy. Nut punching is not for manly endeavors, unless you are about to get stabbed in the neck.

- Stabbed in the neck by a bottle, or stabbed in the back by Gary Bettman, which do you think Jerry Moyes would prefer?

- Greg Wyshynski is a good hockey writer, and Puck Daddy is a great blog, but it has to be one of the least functional blogs I have seen in a long time. We have an amazing array of tools before us as independent writers, most of which are free. Yahoo is way behind the curve. The smartest thing they did was hire a really good writer, and let him loose. But that’s it.

- I really like many of the people I met over twitter. But in the end, I had to ask myself if twitter made be a happier hockey fan. I can honestly say, it had the opposite effect. You know what makes me a happier hockey fan? NHL On The Fly.

Technorati Tags: Thin Air

Thin Air: Hockey Thoughts on a November Evening

Tapeleg — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:39:33 +0000

Haven’t done one if these in a long while. Here we… go:

- Phil Kessel took 10 shots on goal in a 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay, and managed to be minus one. Congrats to the Toronto media, who will ignore everything in the name of overzealous reporting. Go team!

- The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Ducks, with Sidney Crosby stacked the pads, taking two points from the West. Which is all I ask of them. But couldn’t they have taken two from the Wild as well? What was so hard about that?

- How do you lose nine games in a row in this league? How do you only win one game in 13? Insane.

- Context is the buzz word on the latest episode of The Rink. Context is everything.

- I haven’t been following the minor leagues enough. That needs to change.

- The Phoenix Coyotes are fifth in the conference, but last in attendance (5,855 announced attendance against the LA Kings, a division rival). Can you imagine a Stanley Cup Final in Glendale? A half filled arena?

- Corey Perry is on fire, but no one notices thanks to the din of being on an awful team right now.

- I’m going to have a hard time buying the “record setting numbers” announcement at the end of the season. It’s happened every other season since the lockout, why not this one as well?

- The Calgary Flames deserved to be at the front of the Swine Flu inoculation line. If the Flames are sick, the entire economy of Calgary would crumble. After the CFL, what do they have? Is there any other excuse for the Red Mile? Bars would close left and right. People would have to read… books. Shudder.

Technorati Tags: Thin Air

Ducks vs.Leafs: At Study in WTF

Tapeleg — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 06:46:19 +0000

I was prepared to do an entire write up of tonight’s Leafs – Ducks game. Instead, I was as inspired to recap the game as the Ducks were to play hockey tonight.

This game was one of the worst games I have ever seen live. I have been to many hockey games over the past several years, seen many levels of hockey, from juniors to the NHL, from international competitions to the low minors, and I can easily say that tonight’s tilt was the most pathetic display of hockey I have ever witnessed.

In fact, there is no reason to do a descriptive write up, or any sort of analysis. The best I can say is that the Ducks decided to honor the return of Brian Burke, Francois Beauchemin, and Francois Allaire by giving them, handing them, boxing up and tying a pretty pink bow around the Leafs first win. Because, you know, what are friends for?

Here are some pictures. All photos can be made larger. Just click on them. Nuff said.

Warmups:

“What do you think? Do we have a shot in hell?”

“Nope.”

A sea of blue.

Bow chick a wow wow. Porno-stache is looking right at you.

Even the Leafs fans have better things to do.

That’s the monster.

This one is for Eddie of the Puck Podcast. I skated with him before the Ducks game. Awesome guy. We recorded a few podcast segments, one for The Rink, and one for the Puck Podcast. I will link to them soon. But he knows what this picture is about.

Hey, it’s Brian Burke! Hey! Hey, Brian! Hey!

OK, on to the game.

See, this is where it all went wrong. The opening face off. The Ducks iced the puck immediately, and it all went downhill from there.

The sad part of the Orr – Parros fight was that I didn’t get a picture of Colton Orr shoving the linesman away from the first, and knocking said linesman down. If you don’t think refs show restraint on the ice, you would be wrong.

A nice little tribute to the returning heros. After that, it was back to the scrapping.

Hey, Whitney, you going somewhere? Are you?

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

A moment of happiness for the Ducks.

Todd Marchant didn’t make it much past this moment, and after a check into the boards later in the period, walked straight back to the dressing room, never to return.

Back to business.

As always, the equipment is the real loser.

The Ducks were…. pathetic. My ticket should be a half off coupon to the next game. I wish I had more to say, other than congrats to the Leafs. Don’t take this as a sign of better things to come. Yo didn’t play a real hockey team tonight.

Technorati Tags: Anaheim Ducks, Toronto Maple Leafs

Avalanche Bloggers Roundtable

Tapeleg — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 18:20:03 +0000

It’s that time of year again, where the Avs bloggers get together around the virtual conference table, and hash out what the season is going to look like. There were a ton of bloggers involved this year (I remember when there were 3 Avs blogs, and two were on their way out the door), and they all deserve your patronage. Look for links to all the participants at the bottom of the post (shamelessly lifted from Mile High Hockey).

On to the question I’m hosting.

What Rookie other than Duchene are you most excited to see?

Jay Vean of the excellent Avs Hockey Podcast says:

I’m actually looking forward to seeing two rookies this season. TJ Galiardi showed some promise late in the season last year. It may be fun to see him in an extended stint with the big club. And the big guys that play a power game in front of the net always get my attention, so I’m hoping that Ryan Stoa can prove to be that guy in the future for our Avs.

Past this season, I’m excited to see if David Shattenkirk can effectively make the jump to the NHL as well.

Jori from the Avs Prospects Blog said:

Ryan Stoa and TJ Galiardi are going to be more popular choices, but I’m going to go with Brandon Yip and Justin Mercier. Their paths to the NHL will be more difficult, but both are tenacious forwards who rarely take a shift off. Brandon Yip can get into penalty trouble, but he also scored some clutch goals during his tenure as a Boston University Terrier. Justin Mercier is the forgotten piece of the disastrous Tommy Salo trade. Mercier made the shift to left-wing during his college career at Miami and is a great penalty killer.

Neither player will be a star as a pro, but I’ve always been fond of underdogs. Yip may max out as a fourth line NHL forward if he makes it, and Mercier could make it up to the third line, but both are fun players to watch and are easy to root for.

DDC from Mile High Hockey:

Ryan Stoa’s potential as a big winger is tantalizing, but I have to admit I’m really intrigued by Brandon Yip. I haven’t seen him yet, but he sounds like he’s going to be a lot of fun to watch. The way he’s been described reminds me of Dan Hinote. That’s not a bad thing in my book.

Mike from Mile High Hockey:

I’m going with the boutique answers on this one: Either Galiardi or Stoa. Late rumors have Stoa not making the big club at the start of the season. I hope he’s the first forward called up for injury it that’s the case. I’m pulling for Galiardi because the other TJ isn’t in the popular group anymore and I think every hockey team needs a TJ who can contribute. It’s like a karmic rule or something.

Shane from Colorado Avalanche Talk:

Now that he’s signed a contract and it looks like he’ll be with the team for at least the first 10 games, I’m quite excited to watch Ryan O’Reilly play. He snuck in under the radar – that’s right, I went there – but has really opened a few eyes up. By the time this is posted I could look like a fool but I have a feeling that he’s got a shot at the 3rd-line center slot. With the way he works compared to the way Hensick works, I’d give him a shot there to start the season.

As far as I’m concerned, I would like to see Galiardi have the season we expect him to have in the NHL after seeing what he has done in the NHL. With Joe Sacco, his coach from Lake Erie behind the Avs bench, there SHOULDN’T be any reason he can’t perform at this level. Or we are basically looking at another Dan Hinote story. And don’t get me wrong, I love Dan Hinote, but what he was in the AHL and what he was in the NHL were two different things.

But can Tyler Weiman be considered a rookie? If so, I’m totally in the bag for him.

Your Roundtable participants:

Mike and DDC: MHH Shane Giroux: Avs Talk Jibblescribbits and thedoctor: Jibblescribbits Angelique: Colorado Avalanche Prospects GEO: Avslova Factor Jay: The Avs Hockey Podcast Justin and Zach: Avalanche Guild Adam Hersh: Avalanche of Thoughts Nic Zamora: Avaholics Anonymous  Matt Jordan: Mile High Mayhem Sean Payton: Anyone But Detroit Magnum: Disgruntled Avalanche Blogger Grant: Hockeyism Brian Thompson: Colorado Examiner Tapeleg: Jerseys and Hockey Love  Aaron Musick:HockeyBuzz
Aaron D’Albey from The Dog and Pony Show

Make sure you visit their blogs, and support the Avalanche blogging community.