Oh, We Got A Problem

I promised you, readers, that I would never write about a specific hockey league this Christmas past after they decided it would be a wise move to block me on Twitter. I am going to go back on that word today because I can't sit here with a clear conscience regarding this league after an egregiously-ridiculous decision was made today that not only puts player safety at risk, but goes to prove that this league has absolutely zero teeth when it comes to the Chinese teams the league includes in its membership. If you thought I had a bone to pick with the league before, it's time for me to step my game up in a big way after today's announcement.

Let's start with the problem. In a game between the Markham Thunder and the Kunlun Red Star, there was an incident that occurred that was dangerous and scary. The video is posted below, and I'll break down the incidentals after you watch this short clip that was posted by CWHLPA member Liz Knox.

Last year I got 22 PIMs and a game suspension for leaving my crease but THIS isn’t a concern for players’ safety? pic.twitter.com/8wSAtQiNk5

— Liz Knox (@27Knoxy) January 27, 2018

Liz Knox has every right to question this play because the league decided today that there would be no suspension for Kunlun Red Star's Taylor Marchin after she swung her stick up high and hit Markham's Nicole Kosta in the helmet. All she would get is a warning and a slap on the wrist for using her stick like a broad sword in battle.

Yes, I'm laughing as I write this.

I'm laughing because this women's league is turning into an absolute joke when it comes to anything to do with the Chinese teams. I'm laughing because this league's Department of Player Safety has zero regard for players or their safety with an absolute joke of a ruling like this. I'm laughing because no matter how much outrage is shown by players across the league about this decision, the league simply doesn't seem to give a rat's ass about its most marketable assets.

Enough laughing. Let's get into the evisceration.

First, this is a suspension in any other league regardless of level. Taylor Marchin has played high-level hockey her entire life with a four-year stint at Yale in the NCAA before jumping over to China to play for Kunlun Red Star. Taylor Marchin knows she can't swing her stick like this because it's extremely dangerous and completely unacceptable at any level, and that point has been reinforced for her entire career wearing skates. I don't care what league we're talking about - NHL, AHL, SEL, beer league, atom minor hockey - this is a severely punishable offence.

But not in this joke of a league. Not here. Nope. Just a warning.

Second, it's very clear to me that this stick-swinging incident was retaliation for the bump that Kosta threw on Marchin. That is not only reprehensible by Marchin, but it's absolutely disgusting. I don't know how this so-called "Department of Player Safety" can't see that Marchin swung the stick after Kosta bumped her and was in no way an attempt to play a puck that had already been played past the two players, but apparently that's not visible to whomever occupies this farce of a department. Not only is the intent clearly there, but there isn't even a question of this potentially being a hockey play gone wrong.

But not to this joke of a league. Nope. Just an honest mistake.

Third, Miss Knox makes an excellent point that she was suspended while receiving 27 minutes - not the 22 as she indicated - in penalties for leaving her crease. FOR LEAVING HER CREASE. Not for fighting. Not for slashing someone across the throat. Not for swinging a stick in retaliation that caught an opponent in the head. No, she got it for leaving the crease - LEAVING HER CREASE - and this gets a warning?

This league and its Department of Player Safety is a ridiculous farce.

I decided to do a little searching for someone who might be able to provide an answer on how the Department of Player Safety arrived at this decision. I stumbled upon this page that shows Claire Biafore as "Player Safety and Head Medical Trainer". She could probably provide answers, but here's the rub: I'm not emailing her.

I want nothing to do with this league. They cut me off, and I'm fine with that decision because they can't answer simple tweets - looking at you, Jordon Hall, Supervisor of Communications. If I were a player, I'd want nothing to do with this league either because it seems that unless you play for one of the precious Chinese teams, you're a second-class citizen in this league regardless of years of service.

Before I address the second-class citizen comment I just made, I wanted to know more about Miss Biafore, and it seems that Miss Biafore is a fairly accomplished professional. She completed her Specialized Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology and Health Sciences and earned a diploma in the Sport Therapy Certificate Program. She attained her national certification, she earned a designation as a Osteopathic Manual Practitioners and the latest information I could find had her attending York University to attain her Master's Desgree in Kinesiology and Health Sciences.

All those framed documents on her wall are fine and dandy, but I just want to know if she's ever had her vision tested. Because it appears that despite being "appointed as the Manger of Player Health and Safety for the Canadian Women's Hockey League" and "treating numerous Olympic level hockey players" while overseeing "all medical aspects of the league," she's seeing the same optometrist as Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles.

And how does one who is not a medical doctor of any kind oversee "all medical aspects of the league"? An Osteopathic Manual Practitioner works "to maintain, improve and restore the normal physiological function of interrelated body structures and systems, enhancing the body's natural ability to heal itself," according to Google. Why would the Department of Player Safety need someone who is glorified athletic trainer as its leader? It's pretty clear she has zero concern for a player's health and/or safety by allowing Marchin to swing her stick at Kosta's head like she's attacking a piñata, so what exactly does she do in her position?

Y'know what? Let's pump the brakes for a second. Maybe there's something else that needs to be addressed and, since I'm already banned by the league on social media, I say let's go for broke. Ready for the big, $100,000 question?

Why is this league so afraid of any criticism of the Chinese teams? If this is about having those who hold the money and potentially future monies being unhappy with the league, there's a fairly easy justification for what should have been a suspension.

YOU CANNOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE, SWING YOUR STICK AT AN OPPONENT.

This is the league that puffed out its chest and proclaimed how it was going to help the Chinese players on their two new teams become Olympians. This is the league that patted itself on the back by bragging about how much it was growing the game for these new players. This is the league that allows an American "hockey ambassador" to swing her stick like a baseball bat at an opponent's head while asking that "hockey ambassador" to teach hockey neophytes to "play the right way".

What a disgraceful and embarrassing joke.

If this decision came from higher up than Claire Biafore, Miss Biafore should have resigned the moment that this decision was passed down to her. If this decision came from outside her office and outside her department, she should have walked out then and there because there is zero justification for just a warning in this case. If Miss Biafore remains as the head of the Department of Player Safety, she should wear this disgrace like it's a facial tattoo because not only does her silence on this matter indicate that the league and her department don't see a problem here, but that the league and its Department of Player Safety condone what Taylor Marchin did to Nicole Kosta by only issuing a warning.

Hear that, players of this farce of a league? It's open season on stick-swinging incidents because the precedent has been set by the league and this department. All you'll get for trying to decapitate your opponent is a warning not to do it again.

Nicole Kosta deserves better than "Taylor, please don't swing your stick at an opponent's head." In fact, the entire league deserves better than having the league and its Department of Player Safety slap Taylor Marchin on the wrist for this assault because she knows it was done in retaliation and wasn't just an errant stick that hit Kosta. I couldn't care less if Marchin reads this and thinks I'm a douche, either, because if she tries to claim it was anything else than a retaliatory swing at Kosta's head, she's a bold-faced liar as well. Sorry, I'm just calling it as the video shows it unlike the league who doesn't have the testicular fortitude to bring the hammer down on a Chinese team's player.

This should have been a suspension for at least five games. Then again, I would have gone as far as having Marchin sit for the remainder of the regular season. There is nothing that could justify swinging her stick in that manner and not being punished harshly for it.

Well, apparently, I'm wrong. Because there is something that can justify that kind of assault: the CWHL.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

How Sweet It Is

That, ladies and gentlemen, is Brandon Reid, head coach of the Danish Metal Ligaen's Aalborg Pirates, hoisting the Metal Cup after the Pirates captured the trophy a week ago on January 20 for the first time in the team's history. The Metal Cup isn't the league championship, though, but rather an in-season challenge for all the teams of the Metal Ligaen. I'll explain what the Metal Cup is below and how a team goes about winning it, but this is one of the big steps that Brandon Reid has been aiming for with his team, and he can now put that on his resumé as a head coach. With Aalborg playing well towards the end of the season and being bolstered by this Metal Cup win, the Pirates are looking to make a pile of noise in the Metal Ligaen Playoffs in March!

Originally, the Metal Cup tournament featured all ten Metal Ligaen teams plus two teams from the Danish first division. The top-four teams from the previous year used to advance automatically to the quarterfinals, and the remaining eight teams would play to see who advanced to meet those four teams. Games were an aggregate two-game series, similar to soccer, with teams being eliminated as they move forward. The winning team who outlasted everyone else won the Metal Cup.

In 2017, however, the Metal Cup format was changed when the expansion Hvidovre Fighters joined the league. The tournament would only consist of teams from the Metal Ligaen and, rather than having the two-game aggregate system, the top-four teams after 20 regular season games would be invited to a final-four tournament. The final four teams this season included the Herning Blue Fox, the Odense Bulldogs, the Rungsted Seier Capital, and the Aalborg Pirates in that order.

Obviously, the fourth-ranked team out of the four teams would have an uphill battle against Herning, but Pirates played a solid game over the entire sixty minutes in taking the 4-1 victory from Herning! With the top-ranked team in the four-team tournament ousted, the Pirates kept their eyes on the scoreboard to see who they would play between Odense and Rungsted!

It would be the third-ranked Rungsted Seier Capital who would emerge as the victors, and the Aalborg Pirates would play another incredible game against Rungsted last Saturday as they skated to the 5-2 victory at Jyske Bank Box in Herning! Henry Hardarsson, not normally known as a sniper, scored 4 goals in the two-game tournament as he earned MVP honours skating on a line with Mikkel Højbjerg and Julian Jakobsen!

To the victors go the spoils!

Congratulations to Brandon Reid and the Aalborg Pirates on their Metal Cup win as the first benchmark on their way to a Metal Ligaen championship! All of the hard work that is going into building this team by Brandon is really proving fruitful with the last couple of successful seasons! Congrats on the "pokalvinder"!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 279

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, returns tonight with a number of things on the agenda. There were more Olympic rosters released for the men's tournament, the NHL All-Star Game looms, and the Manitoba Bisons women's team continues to roll in their quest for a national championship. Oh, and I was away for a few days and I got to hang out with some incredible people! Beans and I will have a chat about all of this tonight on The Hockey Show on UMFM at 5:30pm CT!

Beans and I will sit down tonight and have a serious discussion on the NHL's Player Safety Department and whether or not five games for Brad Marchand's elbow to the head of Marcus Johansson was the right call regarding the length of the suspension with respect to some of the other suspensions we've seen this season. We'll also chat about the Finnish, German, and Norwegian men's Olympic rosters, the Jets and Golden Knights continue to collect points, the NHL All-Star Game's Skills Competition makes changes again, what the Manitoba Bisons women's team has to do in their final six games, and what Teebz was up to earlier this week. It's going to be another busy night on the show, so get yourself to a radio or internet-enabled device and tune in!

This sounds cool, you say, so how do I tune in, you ask? We suggest that you download the UMFM app on your phone or tablet. It's the easiest and most convenient way to listen to any of UMFM's great shows any time of the day, so go get it! Just follow this link on your iDevice or this link for your Android device and get the UMFM app! It's never been easier to tune into The Hockey Show or UMFM! Download the UMFM app today, and don't miss any of our great programming or shows! Of course, you can do the radio thing at 101.5 on the FM dial and you can always listen online via the UMFM website!

If you prefer social media, we try to remain up-to-speed there as well! Email all show questions and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter. You can also post some stuff to Facebook if you use the "Like" feature, and I always have crazy stuff posted there that doesn't make it to the blog or show.

Tonight, Teebz and Beans talk elbows and suspensions, European Olympic rosters, the NHL at the All-Star Game break, the first-place Bisons, and where in the world Teebz was on The Hockey Show found only on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM app!

PODCAST: January 25, 2018: Episode 279

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

House Of Furies

My trip to Toronto wouldn't be complete if I went to one pro women's hockey practice and not the other team's practice. I had been in contact with the always-amazing Sami Jo Small before heading to the GTA, and she graciously invited me to the Toronto Furies' practice this evening! After spending time at the Thunder practice one night earlier and seeing how much hard work was on display there, I had a feeling that I was in for another treat on this evening as I would witness the likes of Small, Amanda Makela, Hayley Williams, Cassidy Delainey, and Carolyne Prevost run through a full practice at the Mastercard Centre!

With the Calgary Inferno on the schedule this weekend, the Furies needed a solid practice in preparation for one of the best women's teams on the planet. The other reason I would have stressed that this practice was important? The Furies will be on national television in Canada against the Inferno when Sportsnet broadcasts the game this Sunday afternoon at 1pm ET. The Furies will also be hosting their annual You Can Play Game, so there's a lot to be prepared for this weekend!

I really thought the pace of the Furies practice was a good tempo. In fact, Teri and I spent most of the first portion of practice talking about goaltending techniques in watching both Small and Makela participate in a goaltending drill. I'm of the old-school techniques where the glove and blocker are held higher off the pads while in the butterfly to be able to make saves up high, and Teri was telling me that Sami is of the same thinking despite current goaltending standards suggesting the glove and blocker be held lower. In watching the drill, you could see Sami trying to use the new techniques in her game despite learning differently while Amanda Makela was much more comfortable having learned those techniques. It was a great conversation, and I definitely learned a few things in watching the netminders play.

The second-half of the practice saw the players work on possession and scoring, and I have to admit that the players looked like they were having a really good time in the drill. Carolyne Prevost looked strong, Jessica Platt played really well, and I liked the effort from Michelle Saunders. Overall, it seemed like it was a very good practice turned in by the players.

After practice, Teri and I met up with Sami Jo Small, and we had a great chat about everything. She's such a great person and is always so positive when it comes to the sport, and it was great to chat with her. Honestly, I don't think Sami gets enough credit in how much she enjoys interacting with fans. She also gave us an update on Billy Bridges' training as he prepares for the 2018 Winter Olympics, we got an update on the always-cute Kensi, and we found out that Sami and Billy's house is more like a hostel with some of the Paralympians staying there and Megan Bozek currently camped out in their basement!

And then we got to meet Charlie, Amanda Makela's dog! Charlie is a gorgeous dog and so well-mannered, and it's pretty evident that Amanda is doing amazing work in training Charlie to be a fantastic ambassador. I'm pretty certain that this goaltending thing is going well for Amanda, but if she ever wanted to retire and become a dog trainer, Charlie is evidence that Miss Makela is exceptional at that work. Amanda and Charlie are a heckuva pair, and I was grateful and felt privileged to have met them both! If she's starting this weekend on Sportsnet's broadcast, I'll be watching as I want nothing but success for Amanda. She's a new favorite player!

I feel like I owe Sami Jo Small a pile of thanks, so I want to say thanks here and now as well as pledging that The Hockey Show will return to her hockey school this summer for another live show and some additional interviews with all the talent she brings out to the school. If you have a chance to meet Sami - who I consider a legend in not only the women's hockey world, but in all of hockey - she will give you all the time in the world and sign everything kids put in front of her. She's just that awesome, and I feel honoured and humbled to call her a friend. She is everything hockey players should strive to be when they make it to the big leagues.

Catch the Toronto Furies on Sunday at 1pm ET against the Calgary Inferno on Sportsnet during the Furies' You Can Play Game. It's going to be a great game with an important message, and one that should never be forgotten. If you can play, you can play. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Thunderstruck!

With apologies to rock band AC/DC, I had the opportunity to get thunderstruck tonight as I went with my good friend, Teri, to the Markham Thunder practice! I had no idea what to expect as Teri briefed me that the Thunder, who are on a bye week, would most likely just play a fun scrimmage game, but any time you can watch professional players do what they do best with an added element of fun? Yup, you sold me on it being a good idea. So away we went as Teri had a job to do in taking photos of the practice for the team. Me? I was just going out of curiosity and with the hopes of meeting some of the Thunder players!

I will honestly tell you that I don't get starstruck. Seeing the players on the ice is, to me, like watching a bantam team in that they're playing and learning and having fun, and the Thunder were no exception in this practice. Granted, the skill level is quite a bit higher than bantam-level hockey out on the ice, but the players simply look like they're enjoying playing the game. There were a lot of laughs, some intense battles between friends as bragging rights were on the line, and some standout performances including a monster glove save by Liz Knox at one point during the scrimmage!

Of note, I should mention that watching Megan Bozek play in this scrimmage was rather surreal. The former US Olympian just sees the game differently than the vast majority of players, and this is most evident in the offensive zone where she legitimately should be quarterbacking the Thunder power-play. She skates extremely well, the puck seems to stick to her blade, and she makes solid, crisp passes that often wind-up as scoring chances when received by her target. If Megan Bozek is representative of the type of player cut by the US Olympic team, her replacement on Team USA has enormous skates to fill. The Thunder should be doing everything in their power to ensure she sticks around longer than the remainder of this year if her contract doesn't extend past the end of this season.

Other players who caught my eye included Jenna McParland, Jamie Lee Rattray, Dania Simmonds, and Taylor Woods.

McParland is a pure shooter with moves for days out there, but she sometimes tries one dangle too many rather than just shooting and using the defender as a screen. Regardless, there's a ton of shots in her stick, and her one-timer, when she connects fully and completely, might be one of the best in the league. If I'm the coaching staff, her new office is the left face-off circle. If she can let the one-timer fly off a cross-ice pass from there, there will be a pile of goals to be celebrated.

Rattray is the engine that drives this team as she does it all - pass, skate, shoot, and backcheck. I don't know if Rattray has the best shot on the team, but she certainly had the best shot on this night as her wrist shot continually found ways through traffic to end up on net. The only thing that I didn't like about Rattray's game tonight? She often found herself either below the goal line or shooting from ridiculous angles that won't end up in the back of the net. Rattray either needs to station herself in the slot area or nearer to the face-off dot to get better shooting angles with that shot.

I had seen Dania Simmonds play via the online streams, and I admit I was kinda "meh" towards her overall game. Having seen what she does in person, though, I now have a greater respect for how important she is to the Thunder blue line. Defensively, she's a beast in terms of blocking shots, fighting for position, and simply being a pain in the butt for opposing forwards. Offensively, she was a possession machine, blocking clearing attempts and finding her teammates with smart, safe passes at the point. Dania does what every team needs - she plays tenacious defence, she does the dirty work in her own zone, and she's a handful in a puck battle. I'd take two Dania Simmonds-es on my team if I could.

Taylor Woods, who was a guest on The Hockey Show, never seemed to stop moving out on the ice. She has some explosive speed up the ice which certainly is a must-have when it comes to the penalty kill, her shot is deceivingly quick and on-target, she doesn't take unnecessary risks with the puck, and she forechecks like a demon. Along with Fielding Montgomery and Melissa Wronzberg, the speed from these three players should give the opposition fits when they're on the ice. Woods was good in all three zones on this night.

I was confused by some of the coaching tactics employed by the coaching staff in this practice when it came to working on specific things, but I'm just an observer. I'm not paid to stand behind the bench. If I were, there would be more work done with the special teams as there's more than enough talent for this team than what their fifth-place power-play shows. The penalty kill, which sits seventh-place out of seven teams, should also be much better with the players assembled on this roster, but I'm sitting in a hotel room and not standing behind the bench.

Regardless, the pace was up-tempo, the battles were fierce, and the goals were earned on this night as both Erica Howe and Liz Knox showed why they're one of the best one-two punches in the entire circuit. I was very impressed with how this team played in a fun scrimmage setting, and that should translate to good results on the ice.

After practice, I did get a chance to chat with both Taylor Woods and Melissa Wronzberg, and these two women are absolutely awesome. Taylor will be a returning guest at some point in the future while Melissa will definitely be an upcoming guest. I had too many laughs at their stories, and that's a pretty good indicator that I'd like them back on the show. Keep up the great work, ladies. You're two of the best in my books!

I'd like to thank Teri for allowing me to tag along to see the Thunder practice. I also want to thank Maria, the social media guru for the Thunder, for welcoming me and allowing me to take in the practice for the purpose of chatting it up here. Both women do yeoman's work for the Thunder in a variety of capacities, and the passion they have for this team is evident in everything they produce. Keep up the amazing work, ladies. You're two of the unsung heroes on this squad!

If you get a chance, go see the Markham Thunder play. They're a talented group of players who play an exciting brand of hockey. While you're there, keep an eye out for Maria and Teri as well as they're doing all they can to market this team to the masses. To you. So buy a ticket and check them out. It's well worth the price of admission!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!