The Rundown - Week 4

We're four weeks into the season, and it seems like five teams may already have solid grips on playoff spots. For the four teams who are on the outside looking in right now, there's still time to find their way back into the playoff mix, but things need to change now. Wins and points will matter every week as we get into November next week, so falling further behind this week doesn't help anyone's cause. There were key matchups this week when it comes to those playoff spots, so let's get into the action this week on The Rundown!

FRIDAY: We'll kick things off in Langley where the Calgary Dinos were visiting the Trinity Western Spartans. The Spartans were the only team who had yet to record a point this season, and they were looking up at the Dinos who sat seven points ahead of them for the final playoff spot in the West Division. Needless to say, the Spartans needed to take points off the Dinos to help their cause while the Dinos were looking to expand that gap in the standings.

The only thing I'll note here is that Trinity Western is getting top billing for making a highlight reel and posting it to YouTube. However, since the highlight reel is of only the goals they scored, they will not get a recap. Only doing half the work is still a failure in my books.

Spartans goals: Kara Yackel (1), Kyra McDonald (1), Jace Scott (1)
Spartans assists: Chloe Reid (1), Olivia Leier (1)
Spartans netminder: Kate Fawcett (37/38)

Dinos goals: April Klarenbach (1)
Dinos assists: Jess Martens (1), Jaecia Joyce (1)
Dinos netminder: Amelia Awad (21/24)

Result: 3-1 victory for Trinity Western over Calgary.

SATURDAY: A big victory for the Spartans on Friday had them thinking sweep at home over the Dinos. The Dinos were looking for the split to keep pace with the teams ahead of them in the standings while putting the Spartans back in the same hole they started in on Friday night. Again, I'm not crediting the Spartans for only posting their goals, so get it together, TWU. Both teams' goals will get you recaps.

Spartans goals: Kyra Anderson (1), Kara Yackel (2)
Spartans assists: Presleigh Giesbrecht (1), Olivia Leier (2), Kyra Anderson
Spartans netminder: Kate Fawcett (23/26)

Dinos goals: Sophia Zuck (2), April Klarenbach (2), Rebecca Clarke (1)
Dinos assists: Kyla Mitenko (5), Brette Kerley (3), Brooklyn Fry (2), Josie McLeod (1), Josie McLeod (2), April Klarenbach (1)
Dinos netminder: Amelia Awad (25/27)

Result: 3-2 victory for Calgary over Trinity Western.

FRIDAY: The Huskies entered the weekend without a win this season, and they'd be in tough against division-leading Mount Royal. The Huskies needed to find a way to pick up points against some of the better teams to allow them to leapfrog some of the teams they were trailing in the standings while Mount Royal was looking to continue their solid play. The Cougars still aren't doing highlights, so let's get to the scoring summary.

Cougars goals: Jerzey Watteyne (3), Aliya Jomha (4)
Cougars assists: Kiana McNinch (2), Jori Hansen-Young (2), Athena Hauck (3), Summer Fomradas (3)
Cougars netminder: Kaitlyn Ross (19/20) in 64:13

Huskies goals: Kahlen Wisener (2)
Huskies assists: Kaysah Nurani (1), Jaiyana Nurani (2)
Huskies netminder: Colby Wilson (35/37) in 64:13

Result: 2-1 overtime victory for Mount Royal over Saskatchewan.

SATURDAY: As it seems to be for the Huskies this season, a couple of mistakes resulted in pucks being fished out of their net on Friday, so they were looking to limit mistakes on Saturday to pick up their first win. The Cougars were looking for the sweep as they looked to stay atop the standings. No highlights, so here's the summary.

Cougars goals: Lyndsey Janes (3), Aliya Jomha (5), Summer Fomradas (1), Jori Hansen-Young (1)
Cougars assists: Athena Hauck (4), Julia Duke (1), Sydney Benko (4), Athena Hauck (5), Sydney Benko (5), Athena Hauck (6), Allee Gerrard (2), Jordyn Hutt (1)
Cougars netminder: Katherine Holan (21/22)

Huskies goals: Bronwyn Boucher (3)
Huskies assists: Avery Gottselig (1), Paris Oleksyn (2)
Huskies netminder: Clara Juca (24/28)

Result: 4-1 victory for Mount Royal over Saskatchewan.

FRIDAY: Manitoba and MacEwan entered the weekend tied in the standings with similar 1-2-0-1 records, so this weekend had big implications in the standings when it came to finding out which team wanted that third-place position more. With the Griffins coming off their bye, Manitoba needed to be ready for a rested team while MacEwan was looking to put what they did in practice to good use against the Bisons. Manitoba doesn't do highlights, so we're not even going to bother with the request.

Bisons goals: Julia Bird (1), Rachel Gottfried (1), Norah Collins (3), Sadie Keller (1)
Bisons assists: Julia Bilous (1), Ali Staples (2), Ashley Keller (2), Camryn Gillis (2), Ashley Keller (3), Aimee Patrick (2)
Bisons netminder: Emily Shippam (16/17)

Griffins goals: Kori Paterson (1)
Griffins assists: Robyn Short (1), Ali Macauley (2)
Griffins netminder: Lindsey Johnson (23/27)

Result: 4-1 victory for Manitoba over MacEwan.

SATURDAY: After surrendering an early goal on Friday, Manitoba imposed their will on MacEwan. Things would need to change for the Griffins if they wanted to keep pace with the Bisons in the standings while the Bisons were thinking sweep on Saturday. Again, no highlights, so here's the scoring summary.

Bisons goals: Louise Fergusson (1), Aimee Patrick (2)
Bisons assists: Aimee Patrick (3), Louise Fergusson (1), Dana Goertzen (1)
Bisons netminder: Paige Fischer (17/17)

Griffins goals: none
Griffins assists: none
Griffins netminder: Brianna Sank (41/43)

Result: 2-0 victory for Manitoba over MacEwan.

FRIDAY: In a potential Canada West Final matchup, the UBC Thunderbirds were in Edmonton to face the Alberta Pandas. Last year's finalists battled through three games before UBC claimed victory, so this weekend was a chance for Alberta to prove to everyone, including themselves, that they can skate with the Canada West champions. UBC, meanwhile, was looking to keep their winning ways going after a sweep last weekend. Alberta doesn't do highlights either, so here's your Friday scoring summary.

Pandas goals: none
Pandas assists: none
Pandas netminder: Grace Glover (25/28)

Thunderbirds goals: Jacquelyn Fleming (1), Annalise Wong (1), Grace Elliott (3)
Thunderbirds assists: Grace Elliott (4), Kailee Peppler (2), Meadow Carman (1), Sophia Gaskell (1), Annalise Wong (4)
Thunderbirds netminder: Elise Hugens (28/28)

Result: 3-0 victory for UBC over Alberta.

SATURDAY: The Thunderbirds played a solid game on Friday, and looked to continue that effort on Saturday as they aimed for the sweep. Alberta was looking to split the weekend on home ice as they looked to leap ahead of Regina in the Canada West East Division. No highlights once again because why would anyone want to watch two of the top teams in Canada West compete?

Pandas goals: Raegan Yewdall (1)
Pandas assists: Taylor Anker (1), Allison Reich (2)
Pandas netminder: Misty Rey (18/20)

Thunderbirds goals: Ashton Thorpe (1), Makenzie McCallum (2)
Thunderbirds assists: Mackenzie Kordic (4), Makenzie McCallum (5), Grace Elliott (5), Meadow Carman (2)
Thunderbirds netminder: Elise Hugens (34/35)

Result: 2-1 victory for UBC over Alberta.

No, I'm not doing the stupid East and West Divisions on the standings board. One conference, nine teams, let's see who is best.

CANADA WEST WOMEN'S HOCKEY

School	Record	Points	GF	GA	Streak	Next
Mount Royal	7-1-0-0	14	21	9	W3	BYE
UBC	5-2-1-0	12	21	13	W4	vs MAC
Regina	4-0-1-1	11	10	6	W2	vs TWU
Alberta	5-3-0-0	10	16	13	L2	BYE
Calgary	4-3-0-1	9	20	18	W1	BYE
Manitoba	3-2-0-1	7	12	8	W2	@ SAS
MacEwan	1-4-0-1	3	4	16	L2	@ UBC
Saskatchewan	0-5-0-3	3	9	21	L8	vs MAN
Trinity Western	1-5-0-0	2	6	15	L1	@ REG

Honour Roll

Each week on The Rundown, I highlight the best performances from the weekend's games. It won't always be the top scorer or the best goalie, but I'll have a reason for who gets picked each week. This week's Honour Roll candidate is actually a group of players because the UBC Thunderbirds' penalty killers are this week's honourees!

UBC went into the Pandas' den this weekend and absolutely won the special teams' battle. UBC's penalty killers were 14/14 this weekend in killing off penalties against Canada West's best power-play team. Alberta came into the weekend with a 7-for-19 streak going on the power-play, but they're now third in conference after going oh-fer this weekend. That's a huge effort by the UBC penalty killers as they were 6/6 on Friday and 8/8 on Saturday.

UBC's penalty killing efficiency went from 75.0% (18-for-24) to 84.2% (32-for-38) in one weekend thanks to their collective efforts this weekend, and that was a big reason why UBC swept Alberta in Edmonton. That kind of effort gets you noticed here, that's how the UBC penalty killers added their collective name to the Honour Roll!

My Kingdom For A Goal - Part 1

The Saskatchewan Huskies have played eight games this season, and five of them have been decided by one goal. In four of those games, the Huskies have scored one goal or less. Needless to say, they need to find a sniper quickly on their roster or this may be a tough season when it comes to lighting the lamp.

To make matters worse, in three of the five games, the Huskies have scored the first goal only to give up the lead later in the game. They did rally from a three-goal deficit against the Alberta Pandas only to fall in the shootout, but the Huskies are a younger team and they're going to have to learn how to protect a lead.

They do have three points and play Manitoba next weekend who are ahead of them by four points. If the Huskies can find some scoring, they could find themselves tied for third-place if they sweep Manitoba on home ice. Right now, it seems like a tough ask considering they've only scored more than one goal in a game once this season in eight games, but anything can happen in Canada West.

My Kingdom For A Goal - Part 2

The MacEwan Griffins have six games under their belts this season, and have just four goals to show for that effort. 360 minutes of hockey should yield more than four goals, but it seems MacEwan is still looking for an answer for their offensive woes that have carried forward from last season. Making matters worse is that half of the four goals they've scored this weekend came in one game - a 3-2 shootout win over Regina.

Two goals have come in the first period while two more have been scored in third period. I don't know if the long change in the second period is causing issues for the Griffins, but they've also surrendered seven goals in that frame as well - the most of any period this season. The fact that they have three five-on-five goals is a worry, but it's a bigger worry when you know that they have the same number of shootout goals as five-on-five goals this season.

For a team that scored 40 goals in 28 games last season, they have to find a way to generate more offence. They haven't recorded more than 17 shots in any game this season, and they're being outshot 176-87 in their six games. A shooting percentage of 4.6% needs to be better, but asking a team to score 3-4 goals per night when averaging 14.5 shots per game with a shooting percentage of 4.6% simply isn't realistic in Canada West. Something needs to change in Griff Nation in a big way if MacEwan is going to push for a playoff spot.

The Defensive Conference

With a couple more shutouts this weekend, 11 shutouts have been recorded in October this season by eight different goalies on six teams. Three goalies have two shutouts already - Alberta's Grace Glover, Mount Royal's Kaitlyn Ross, and UBC's Elise Hugens - and the 11 eleven total shutouts match the same amount as last season through the first month of play. Comparatively, 2019-20 had 12 shutouts through the first four weeks of play while 2018-19 had 16 shutouts in the first four weeks of play.

It shouldn't surprise anyone that Canada West may be the best defensive conference in U SPORTS Women's Hockey once again, but nothing is decided in October. As we saw in 2023 with Mount Royal's run to the National Championship, scoring goals is just as important as preventing them, but winning games does get a lot easier, though, when your defence is posting doughnuts regularly.

The Italian Job

Gabriella Durante has landed and had her photo taken in her new uniform, and it looks like her red-clad gear from her days with the Calgary Dinos will fit nicely with Real Torino! There isn't an update for Durante yet statistically as Real Torino hasn't played a game with her on the roster, but they'll get a shot today as they play Trentino. In their only game of the season back on October 5, Real Torino was on the wrong side of a 6-3 decision against HC 3 Zinnen Dolomites Women, so they're sitting with an 0-1-0 record. Trentino comes into the game having won their first four games, so this will be a test. If there's a goaltender on the Real Torino who can steal a win, Gabriella Durante may be that goalie! I'll keep an eye on her progress this season!

The Last Word

If you read the report published by Hockey Canada this week, you likely know the shortfalls that U SPORTS experiences every year when it comes to finding opportunities at the professional and international levels. One of the passages reads as follows:

"At the university level last season, 35 teams competed in U SPORTS women's hockey, rostering more than 800 combined student-athletes, the vast majority of whom were Canadian and stayed in Canada to keep playing hockey.

"However, in the NCAA, nearly 33% of the more than 1,100 Division I women's hockey players were Canadian, meaning that almost 400 student-athletes left Canada to play university hockey in the American system.

"All players on Canada’s National Women's Team and Canada's National Women's Development Team in 2023-24 played their university careers in the NCAA."

What the report doesn't say is that Hockey Canada sends representatives each and evry year to the National Championship, and these representatives watch for playersd they believe may have a chance to play hockey beyond their university years. The reality of the situation is that Hockey Canada identifies maybe 3-4 players per year with this potential while everyone else at the National Championship is forgotten.

One of the questions asked in the report is "Can U SPORTS women's hockey evolve to be a product that is seen as a leader around the world and a legitimate path to a professional career and further national team participation?" to which I already know can be answered with a solid "yes" thanks to the success of players playing in European leagues that I try to promote. Whether it be Sweden, Switzerland, or another European country, U SPORTS players are doing great hockey things in countries not found in North America.

Hockey Canada asked if U SPORTS hockey can evolve, but the only way it changes is if it can compete with the NCAA directly. That's simply not possible unless there's a infusion of millions of dollars annually which is entirely unrealistic. What would be more realistic and achievable, though, is the regular promotion of athletes and the airing of games for free so that more people can watch. If more people are watching, more players would get noticed and the potential for sponsorship dollars grows.

This doesn't seem like a hard concept to grasp, but check out all the highlight reels on this page showing off the amazing plays made by the women in Canada West. If you want to see U SPORTS evolve to lead to more professional hockey career options and national team participation, the easiest thing to do is to allow those teams to see your players. After all, "if you can see it, you can be it".

Why can a blogger see the first step in the path to making U SPORTS better when both Hockey Canada and U SPORTS seem baffled on how the university hockey system can be better? Sometimes, I wonder if the powers who govern this game actually know anything about it.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

A Historical Commercial

These two men likely need no introduction when it comes to their hockey legacies. If you're wondering who they are, though, the man on the right is former NHL superstar and current TV hockey analyst Wayne Gretzky who, if my memory serves me correct, set a few scoring records during his time in the NHL and on the international stage. The man on the left is legendary Soviet Union netminder Vladislav Tretiak, and these two came together in 1987 to make a little TV history to go along with the myriad of accolades and records they hold in their careers.

There's no doubt that Wayne Gretzky was one of the most recognizable athletes on the planet in 1987 thanks to his work with the Edmonton Oilers. Vladislav Tretiak was fairly well-known as well after his work in helping the Soviet Union win virtually every hockey competition they entered. These two were definitely two of the biggest hockey stars on the planet at the time, and they somehow ended up promoting deodorant for Gillette on North American TV!
Despite that YouTube video feeling dated, that was the commercial that was filmed and aired in 1987 with both Gretzky and Tretiak. The 30-second advertisement isn't revolutionary by any means, and the product they were promoting has been around for a while now. However, this commercial marked a significant historical moment in Canadian TV due not-Canadian player in the commercial!

The commercial debuted on November 8, 1987 on Canadian television networks after being filmed in Montreal in early September of that year. Gillette began negotiations with Tretiak and the Soviet Sports Committee in March to bring the two players together to introduce the new Right Guard deodorant product with Tretiak and the Soviet Sports Committee finally signing off on the endorsement deal on September 4, 1987. The commercial was reportedly filmed on Labour Day for airing later in the year (as we saw).

In any case, that November 8, 1987 date is historical because Tretiak's appearance in the Gillette commercial was the first time that a Soviet athlete had been hired to appear in a television commercial. Prior to that, no Soviet athlete had appeared on North American television in any way other than sports highlights, so Gillette made a little history by hiring Tretiak to sell their scent! And just to add a little more to the story, Tretiak was reportedly eager to do the commercial as well!

Ken Coates, Gillette's advertising manager at the time, said he expected some controversy over the hiring, stating to reporters, "It would not surprise me. It doesn't matter what idea you come up with, there's going to be some opposition to it."

It doesn't sound like much has changed in the television world as there are still controversies over who gets hired, but it's a pretty cool fact that Vladislav Tretiak was the first Soviet athlete hired for a commercial in North America. There's no doubt that both Gretzky and Tretiak will be in hockey record books for decades to come with how good they were, but both men were part of a historical television moment back on November 8, 1987.

Thanks to Right Guard, this is one TV moment that doesn't stink!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 631

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, hits the ground running tonight with a pile of stories from last week in and around the hockey world. There are some business stories, some records, some craziness, and some new ideas that will be discussed tonight as the news from a number of corners on the planet reach the UMFM airwaves. Our hosts will have to move quickly if they're going to squeeze all the discussions and stories into the hour, so get ready for a pile of news in a short time tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Being that I left this preview as a draft on HBIC, here's what the show preview would have looked like had I actually published it. Just roll with it, alright? I'm human and I was busy today.

Tonight, Teebz and Jason will kick off the show with a message backed by a statement from Minnesota Wild defender Jon Merrill that all teams and players need to hear. From there, they'll discuss the sale of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Sarah Fillier's contract dispute with PWHL New York, a peculiar NHL record that one of the hosts hates, another ECHL expansion team, an underdog in the CHL that has a U SPORTS twist, cleaning house in the KHL, and the IIHF looking to expand hockey options at the Olympics. The stories probably didn't hit the front page of the sports section, so we'll give you the 411 on all these stories and more tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The new UMFM website's online streaming player works well if you want to listen online. We also recommend Radio Garden if you need an easy-to-use online stream. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. It's a solid app.

If you have questions, you can email all show queries and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter! I'm here to listen to you, so make your voice heard!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat important messages, ownership changes, getting paid, made-up records, expansion teams, upsets and goalies, hockey chaos, more Olympic hockey, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: October 24, 2024: Episode 631

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Take It Slow, Chef

We go from 16 games and all 32 NHL teams in action on Tuesday to having just one game on tonight. I'm not making the NHL schedule or anything, but we couldn't find another two teams to play tonight so I'm not forced to watch Philadelphia and Washington? The good news is that no one actually is forcing me to watch them play, so I won't be. I may check out the ECHL game between Toledo and Idaho as both teams are gonna be good this season. However, whatever game I land on will be playing in the background because I'm embarking on a different sort of project tonight. This one might make your mouth water, but I have some vegetables to use up so my efforts will be in the kitchen tonight as I take my time and slowly craft something everyone should have on-hand!

If you're a fan of French onion soup or a way to kick a pizza up a couple of notches, caramelized onions make a world of difference if you have them on-hand. They can change the flavour profile of anything they're added to, but the magic that makes caramelized onions so good is time. Specifically, I'm talking about the amount of time that's needed to properly caramelize the allium pieces.

There are sites and authors of recipes on the internet that claim to be able to get caramelized onions done in under 30 minutes, and I'm here to tell you that if you see that claim you're likely reading about the worst caramelized onions you'll ever taste. Some renowned chefs have made the claim of being able to caramelize onions properly between 45 minutes to an hour, and I'm also telling you that whatever method they're using likely isn't going to give you the best flavours.

Tonight, as I listen to the sounds of the game from the other room, I'll be spending up to 90 minutes caramelizing onions from my own garden. You might wonder why it takes an hour and a half to caramelize onions, and there's actual science behind why the longer time works better than forcing it with baking soda or using high heat and water to speed the effort up. In short, stay calm and slow down.

The act of caramelization is the browning that happens when sugar is heated. In onions, the process is called "pyrolysis" which is the non-enzymatic browning of the onions due to heat. In order to brown the onions and make them sweet, though, the onions need to have the water removed from them, and that's not a quick-and-easy process as onions can be up to 90% water. When the water is removed, the process to starting pyrolysis can begin.

The key for pyrolysis is that it starts around 212°F. Without water, though, the onions can burn if the heat is too high. This is why the long cooking period is important: low heat plus the removal of water will allow the temperature of the onions to climb slowly, promoting the "sweating" of the water out of the onions and leading into proper pyrolysis. The longer the cooking period, the better chances of the onions coming out sweeter.

The reason that happens is that the heat without the water allows the breakdown of the sucrose in the onion's cells, turning the sucrose into simpler sugar molecules. Our tongues aren't designed to taste complex forms of sugar, so extracting these simpler forms of sugar is why caramelized onions taste sweet compared to raw or sautéed onions. The final product is almost always a delicious result, so low heat and a long time is how to make the best caramelized onions.

If you're still with me through the culinary science, let's get to the actual making of the caramelized onions. The recipe isn't complicated nor are the directions, so here it is.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of olive oil
4 medium yellow onions - peeled, halved, and sliced
½ teaspoon of salt

The salt is only used to enhance the sweetness by sprinkling it into the onions at the end. Otherwise, there are only two ingredients needed to caramelize onions.

Directions

1. Cut the onion halves into similarly-sized slices. Once sliced, break up the onions so they're left as individual half-rings.
2. Add the olive oil to a large skillet, and warm to a medium-low temperature. Don't overheat the oil!
3. Add the onions and sauté them until soft. Cover with a lid to help the sweating of the onions, but keep an eye on them. DO NOT BURN THE ONIONS!
4. Turn the heat down to low, and allow the onions to continue to sweat. Stir every five minutes to ensure that the onions on the bottom aren't burning. If they stick to the pan, remove the pan from the heat, lower the temperature again, replace the pan on the heat after 1-2 minutes, and resume the five-minute stirring intervals.
5. Continue these intervals for 60-80 minutes until the onions are brown. It may not look like the onions are doing anything in terms of colour, but keep calm and let the process continue.
6. Once browned, add a little water and turn the heat up to medium for the final two minutes to coax as much sugar out of the onions. DO NOT BURN THE ONIONS!
7. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Remember to stir the onions at least once while cooling. If you're adding the salt for taste, add it before removing from the heat.
8. Once done, put into an airtight container. These caramelized onions can be kept for up to a week in the refrigerator or two months in the freezer. If you want smaller sizes, use an ice tray to make smaller, easier to handle portions.

That's all it takes. It's not difficult at all, but it's the commitment to the time that everyone seems to ignore. Don't rush the process if you want things to turn out splendidly because the low heat and the long cooking time is how you make the science work in your favour. Once you have the caramelized onions, you're ready to add them to virtually anything - burgers, pizza, sandwiches, etc. - or can be eaten with a charcuterie board to add some nice sweetness.

For a quiet night of hockey, I ended up with some delicious food. That's not a bad trade for any evening in my books.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Everyone's In Action

I'm not certain why the NHL has decided to put 32 teams in action tonight, October 22, but we'll roll with that decision. After all, everyone loves a good playoff race and/or draft ranking possibility when it comes to games in October, so my congratulations goes out to the NHL for this wizardry. If the sarcasm is starting to bleed through in this paragraph, you have to understand that I do understand that wins in October are just as important as wins in February, but giving me all 32 teams in action on a Tuesday night before the snow flies means I'm probably not going to invest myself into these games as much as I would later in the season. How hard would this be to schedule for a Saturday in late January?

If you're wondering who is playing whom tonight, here's the schedule:

• 6:00pm: Washington Capitals at Philadelphia Flyers
• 6:30pm: Minnesota Wild at Florida Panthers
• 6:45pm: Tampa Bay Lightning at New Jersey Devils
• 7:00pm: Dallas Stars at Buffalo Sabres
• 7:15pm: New York Rangers at Montreal Canadiens
• 7:30pm: Toronto Maple Leafs at Columbus Blue Jackets
• 7:45pm: Detroit Red Wings at New York Islanders
• 8:00pm: Winnipeg Jets at St. Louis Blues
• 8:15pm: Vancouver Canucks at Chicago Blackhawks
• 8:30pm: Colorado Avalanche at Seattle Kraken
• 8:45pm: Boston Bruins at Nashville Predators
• 9:00pm: Carolina Hurricanes at Edmonton Oilers
• 9:15pm: Ottawa Senators at Utah Hockey Club
• 9:30pm: Pittsburgh Penguins at Calgary Flames
• 10:15pm: San Jose Sharks at Anaheim Ducks
• 11:00pm: Los Angeles Kings at Vegas Golden Knights
All games shown are scheduled in eastern time.

Clearly, there are some interesting matchups that the NHL has brought together tonight, but how does the NHL only have four divisional games on this night? That aside, the undefeated Winnipeg Jets and St. Louis Blues will be the game I'm watching tonight, but I will be checking in on the Hurricanes and Oilers as that could be intriguing, the Penguins and Flames could be fun, and the Avalanche and Kraken sounds like fun too.

I'm not certain I'd ever watch a Red Wings-Islanders matchup at any point, and the Kings and Golden Knights start way too late for me, so those games aren't going to attract these eyeballs. I'm hoping for a Buffalo upset over Dallas, a Panthers defeat of the Wild, and an Ottawa win over Utah, but the odds don't look good in those games. Whatever happens in those three games is completely out of my control, but watching the Jets win and those three teams lose would make for a productive Tuesday night for Jets fans.

My question is why the NHL is doing this in mid-October as opposed to later in the season. If the NHL wants ratings and advertising dollars, make this a Saturday thing where they can start games at 2pm ET, and have another kick off 30 minutes later, and so on and so forth. The NHL could run through all 16 games in eight hours, with the final games starting at 9pm and 9:30pm ET. It would be easy to do assuming there are dates free in 16 NHL arenas, but this is something that could and should happen every month in the regular season.

The only major sport the NHL is competing against is the NBA for most of their season, so they just need to find 16 arenas where this could happen. Considering that Canada only has one NBA team, there are six arenas for which they could plan pretty easily. Why are we not doing this "Frozen Frenzy" more often on days where more viewers will tune in? It's a better idea than the outdoor games!

As I alluded to in the opening paragraph, I would be doing this more often if the NHL wants to embed themselves into US TV viewers' minds. Giving me every team playing on one day would have me bouncing between games, especially when playoff spots are up for grabs. 16 games in October doesn't have the allure for a die-hard like me, however, so why not schedule this "frenzy" or one like it for later in the season?

Maybe I should apply to be an NHL scheduler-maker?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!