Friday Updates

HBIC has been busy this week as I've introduced a new feature, I'm reading like a madman, and I've been in contact with a number of potential guests for The Hockey Show. Needless to say, I've been busy. Hockey has been great thus far outside of a few suspend-able offences committed by players, and we've seen some players and teams step up and show of some talent. Today is a grab bag of stuff, so settle in and let's have some fun.

That Radio Thing

If you noticed the little animated equalizer to the right, you can now click that at any time to tune into HBIC Radio. I have tested it extensively, and it works on PCs, Macs, iPhones, Blackberries, Androids, and it even worked on an iPod. Give the equalizer on the menu to the right a click, listen to the two latest shows and some archaic commercials, and have a laugh.

If you want to broadcast on HBIC Radio, contact me here. As long as you talk hockey, I'll give your podcast or show a spot on HBIC's stream. If you want to advertise, contact me here. Advertisers can advertise anything they like, so if you want more exposure for your show, your product, or anything in between, contact me.

Upcoming Guests

I am excited and honoured to be able to speak about two guests who will be appearing on The Hockey Show. We have been in contact with musician, author, and journalist Dave Bidini, and he will be appearing in the coming weeks on The Hockey Show to promote his new book Keon and Me. Mr. Bidini is highly respected around these parts thanks in large part to his excellent writing in Tropic of Hockey, and we'll be talking all things hockey with him. If you're interested in his musical talents, I encourage you to look up his former band in The Rheostatics or search for the Bidiniband on Google and/or YouTube. I am really excited about Mr. Bidini's appearance, and we'll nail down a date shortly!

Secondly, we are working on having CBC Radio personality Grant Lawrence on the show to promote his new book The Lonely End of the Rink! Mr. Lawrence is part of a musician-built amateur hockey team based in Vancouver called the Vancouver Flying Vees, and he certainly knows his hockey. Being a radio personality, he's also a great entertainer, and I am really excited to have him on The Hockey Show in the coming weeks as well. I'm sure we'll grill him on the Canucks and hockey in Vancouver in general, but we'll have some fun with Mr. Lawrence as we delve into his story about tending nets at the "lonely end of the rink".

Jets Hit The Skids

After starting the season 2-0, the Jets have now officially discovered that the Western Conference is a bigger, meaner place to play than the Eastern Conference. After downing Edmonton and Los Angeles in their first two games raising the hopes of all Jets fans, the team has been brought down to Earth by some stifling defensive performances by the Anaheim Ducks, the Minnesota Wild, and the Dallas Stars. Perhaps the worst part of that last statement is that two of those three games were losses to division rivals. I'm not sure if there is one specific thing that the Jets can change, but rather it appears that there may have to be a systemic change in the way things are done. Being outshot in five straight games is bad, but that recipe will be disastrous for the season. Claude Noel needs to sit down and watch film because this Jets team is struggling in all zones.

The next game is Sunday night at MTS Centre against the New Jersey Devils who are also struggling. The Jets need to take advantage of the Devils if they want to stay in the race for the playoffs. But it will be an emotional night as long-time former Manitoba Moose goaltender Cory Schneider returns to the Phone Booth. There should be a few cheers for the former Moose MVP.

Avalanche Look Good

Speaking of division rivals, the Colorado Avalanche look impressive. After defeating the Boston Bruins by a 2-0 score, the Avalanche have officially started off this season with the best record since the franchise moved to Denver from Quebec City. Patrick Roy has his troops playing up-tempo hockey, and they appear to legitimately have three solid scoring lines. Getting big games from his two goaltenders - Semyon Varlamov and JS Giguere - doesn't hurt either, but it looks like the Avalanche players would go through a wall from Patrick Roy at this point. Things may settle down later in the season, but this team looks solid. Kudos to Patrick Roy for getting the most, and maybe more, out of his young squad.

Colorado may not be on many dance cards for the playoffs, but they could be a darkhorse in the race this season.

Where In The World Is Bryz?

I received an email from a lady who delivered an update on everyone's favorite personality in Ilya Bryzgalov. It was rumoured that Bryzgalov was going to take a goaltending position with the ECHL's Las Vegas Wranglers, and now it appears that he is settling into Las Vegas life quite nicely. Miss Laura Bucklin, an account coordinator for Kirvin Doak Communications, wrote,

Professional hockey player Ilya Bryzgalov was spotted enjoying Blue Man Group's one year anniversary performance at Monte Carlo Resort and Casino on Thursday, Oct. 10. Bryzgalov is a former Olympian, won the Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in the 2006 – 2007 NHL season and currently serves as goaltender for the Las Vegas Wranglers. The athlete was accompanied by his wife and two kids and attended a private VIP meet-and-greet with cast members following the show.

Wow. The Bryzgalov clan took in the show at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino and then went and met the Blue Man Group? It's a little touristy, but the man is in a new town with his family, so why not? Now some of you might be saying "pics or it didn't happen", so I checked the attachments. Lo and behold...

Uh, yeah. There you go. Maybe he'll have a Blue Man goalie mask design this season? That would be cool!

Anyway, lots of hockey action tomorrow, kids, so settle in and get ready to rumble! I need some big performances from my goaltenders in my ESPN Fantasy Pool, but things are going extremely well there. Let's keep it rolling, boys!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!