Thursday 30 June 2022

The Hockey Show - Episode 510

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, returns to the UMFM studios tonight with the last update from the Survivor: NHL Playoffs contest as we can finally award the Vegas Golden Knights Retro Reverse jersey to one of the entrants! We'll close off that fun, get everyone ready for what's happening over the summer, and talk about all sorts of awards and accolades that were handed out this past week as three leagues and one major tournament wrapped up! Get settled by the radio because we have some hockey chatter to do!

As stated above, trophies and medals were handed out all week as the Calder Cup, Stanley Cup, Memorial Cup and the ISBHF World Championships all came to an end. There were some Manitobans and former U SPORTS people who made an impact on those rosters this year, so Teebz and Jason will chat about that. Beyond that, they'll talk about Hockey Canada's looming problems with sponsorship thanks to their horrendous handling of the recent sexual assault settlement, a former Panda has a new home this fall, a former MJHL star re-signs with a pro team, the HHOF will induct six more people while largely ignoring the vast number of women who should be inducted, another coach is off the unemployment line as the Jets continue to sit idly after Barry Trotz decided to spend more time with family, and UND games may be heard and seen by more people after a new media rights agreement was reached. There's a lot to discuss tonight, so grab a beverage, kick your feet up, and open up the Canada Day long weekend with The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on 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 is pretty awesome if you want to listen online so you cnn call in for the contest as well. If you're using an Apple device, the player doesn't seem to like Safari yet, so if you want to stream the show I'd recommend Radio Garden to do that as it works nicely with Safari. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. If you do use the TuneIn app, you won't be disappointed. 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 talk champions, being socially responsible, players signing, coaches signing, new inductees, new media options, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: June 30, 2022: Episode 510

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Wednesday 29 June 2022

To The Hosts Go The Spoils!

I was on the road today as I visited the bustling metropolis of Neepawa, Manitoba for work. While Neepawa is known for the Krzyzaniak sisters, Shane Hnidy, and the MJHL's Neepawa Titans in the hockey world, there's great pride in the city as everyone is quick with a hockey story whenever a relevant player or fact is mentioned. Seeing the QMJHL's Saint John Sea Dogs and the OHL's Hamilton Bulldogs battle for Canadian junior hockey supremacy in the Memorial Cup Final tonight made me realize how important these hockey identities are to their communities.

Since 1983 when the format for the Memorial Cup tournament changed, the host teams have won Memorial Cup 11 times - 28.9% of the time. Of those 11 host teams who won, only three won their respective league's championship prior to hosting the Memorial Cup tournament. It's almost as if hosting the tournament matters more than being one of the three league champions when it comes to a team's chances of winning the Memorial Cup, so we'll have to see if this format continues to favour good teams that get some rest thanks to an early playoff exit.

Saint John became the 11th host team to win the Memorial Cup after they defeated the Hamilton Bulldogs tonight as they were cheered on by a raucous Saint John crowd. It should be noted that the Sea Dogs were expected to challenge for the QMJHL title this season, but were unexpectedly upset in the opening round of the QMJHL playoffs. As they lied in wait for the rest of the CHL to crown its winners, they got healthy, they practiced, and they prepared well.

Head coach Gordie Dwyer was fired on May 22, replaced by long-time UNB Varsity Reds head coach Gardiner MacDougall, and the Sea Dogs went to work as they looked to erase the stinging memory of their upset at the hands of the Rimouski Oceanic. MacDougall admitted that he worked the Sea Dogs "as hard as I have ever worked a team", but it seems the buy-in and the effort were both immensely present as Saint John looked to erase that playoff failure.

Captain Vincent Sevigny scored early and Cam MacDonald doubled the lead minutes later as Saint John used the "score early and score often" idea in the final just as they had throughout the tournament. Hamilton's Mason McTavish cut the lead to one goal when he scored 7:45 into the opening frame, but Saint John goaltender Nikolas Hurtubise, acquired from the Victoriaville Tigres at the trade deadline, steadied the Sea Dogs after surrendering the goal.

Sant John used the "score early" idea in the second period again as Riley Bezeau's shot found room past Marco Costantini with all sorts of traffic going to the net after a turnover at the Saint John blue line.

You can't tell me that playing in front of that very pro-Saint John crowd wouldn't fire you up if you were a member of the Sea Dogs. Look at the support and listen to the cheering. That's a fantastic showing by the host city, but it also might be why host teams do so well - firing up the home team isn't hard with a great community like Saint John behind them!

34 seconds later, it was 4-1 when William Dufour teed up a Ryan Francis pass, hammering it past Costantini as the early goals once again took the wind out of Hamilton's sails. They'd finally respond with nine seconds left in the frame as Jan Mysak found room past Hurtubise, but the damage was done as Saint John was twenty minutes from their second Memorial Cup celebration as they held a 4-2 lead.

Josh Lawrence scored six minutes into the third period to make it a 5-2 Saint John lead before McTavish added his second goal of the final to cut the lead to two goals. However, Peter Reynolds iced the game with 1:17 left as he scored on Hamilton's empty net to make it a 6-3 game as the Saint John Sea Dogs earned their second Memorial Cup in franchise history!

"It is amazing," Sevigny said after the game. "It was a lot of hard work and the work paid off. To have this is the best day of our lives."

"We have worked so hard and I am so, so proud," Hurtubise added. "We knew that we worked too hard in the past month to not win it. We earned it."

Saint John certainly did earn it, and it speaks volumes about their preparation in the month they had prior to the Memorial Cup starting. Gardiner MacDougall certainly had his players playing their best hockey in some time, and it's not easy to institute new systems and a new attitude in a month. Credit needs to be given to both the coaching staff and the players for coming together so quickly to be able to do something special at Canadian junior hockey's biggest tournament.

Something that shouldn't be forgotten, though, is that the fans in Saint John were incredible all week whenever the Sea Dogs took the ice. Not unlike Neepawa, a strong, passionate, loud arena can do more to fire up a team than one may realize, so this Memorial Cup win is certainly a championship that was earned by the community as much as the players. The city of Saint John should be proud of its efforts in helping their team to victory!

Congratulations to the Saint John Sea Dogs, your 2022 Memorial Cup champions!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Tuesday 28 June 2022

Double Gold For Canada

Thanks to a couple of work colleagues who live near the area, I'd had been informed of the major hockey tournaments happening in Laval, Quebec. I've never been to an ISBHF event, but the 2022 ISBHF Men's and Women's World Championships were being played at the Place Bell as Canada welcomed the world's bets ball hockey teams and players to La Belle Province. 17 countries featuring 23 men's and women's teams will visit Canada as the Great White North hosts its third ISBHF World Championships as the 14th Men's World Championship and 8th Women's World Championship got underway on June 21! 17 men's teams and six women's teams looked to capture the gold medal as Laval was set to host the most prestigious international ball hockey tournaments on the planet!

The men were split up into two groups with Canada playing in the more elite Group A that featured the USA, four-time defending champion Slovakia, 2019 runner-up Finland, Armenia, Czechia, Greece, Haiti, Italy, and the United Kingdom. It wouldn't be an easy task for the Canadians as that Group A was broken into two pools, and Canada ended up in the preliminary round with the USA, Greece, Armenia, and Finland.

June 21 saw Canada down the US by a 6-5 score as Jonathan Tanguay's goal at 29:33 stood up as the game-winner. Canada would shutout the Greeks on June 22 by a 4-0 score as Christian Lantin made ten saves for the blank sheet. The Canadians thumped Armenia by a 16-0 score on June 23 that saw former Manitoba Bisons forward Remi Laurencelle score a hat trick. The final preliminary round game was against Finland, and Canada would emerge 4-0 in pool play after downing the Finns by a 5-2 score that saw Danick Martel score the game-winner while adding an assist.

Canada would advance to the quarterfinals as the top-seeded team in Group A2, and they met the fourth-place team from Group A1 in Haiti. After a tense first period that saw Canada lead 1-0, the Canadians got themselves back on their game as they took over for the remaining 30 minutes before recording a 10-1 win over the Haitians. Martel was outstanding for the Canadians as the 2017 tournament's best forward looked every bit the part in scoring four of Canada's goals.

Canada would advance to the Pool A semifinals where Greece was their opponent. The 4-0 preliminary round game was nothing but an afterthought at the conclusion of the semifinal as Canada hung an 8-1 loss on the Greeks to advance to the gold medal final. Trevor Mainman scored a goal and added three helpers, Remi Laurencelle scored his fourth goal against the Greeks, and Christian Lantin stopped six of seven shots he faced to help Canada move to the biggest game of the week!

Canada would meet Czechia in the final, and they'd battle through a first period with no goals scored. The second period saw Canada score goals 47 seconds apart to take a 2-0 lead, but the Czechs would rally to make it a 3-2 game after two periods. The Czechs would tie the game early in the third period, but three-straight goals from Marc-André Trudeau, Karl Léveillé, and Nelson Vargas Dias would seal the deal for Canada as they downed the Czechs by a 6-3 score to earn their first gold medal since 2007!

Celebrate the victory, boys! You're World Champs!

Canadian forward Danick Martel was named as the tournament's best scorer after finishing with seven goals and ten assists. Czech forward Adam Kubík was named as the tournament's best forward, Canada's Bill Marshall was named as the tournament's best defenceman, and Canadian Christian Lantin was the tournament's best netminder. Martel was also named the MVP of the tournament.

On the women's side of the tournament, Canada opened the tournament on June 21 against the Americans, and Carol Ann Upshall scored the game-winner with ten minutes remaining to give Canada the 2-1 win over the USA. Canada met Great Britain on June 22, and the Canadians trounced the British by a 12-0 score as Chelsea Karpenko recorded two goals and two assists and Julianna Thomson made the five-save shutout. June 23 had the Canadians in battle with Czechia, and Czech forward Denisa Křížová scored the shootout winner to push the Czechs to a 4-3 victory. Canada bounced back on June 24 with an 8-2 victory over Slovakia as Genevieve Bannon had a pair of goals in the win. Canada would get some help as the Americans defeated the Czechs 1-0 on June 25, and the Canadians ran roughshod over Lebanon with a 13-0 win on the strength of five Upshall goals to finish first in the pool at 4-0-0-1.

Canada would meet up with Slovakia in the semifinal game, and it would be Slovakia who was ahead after the first period by a 1-0 score thanks to an Alexandra Čorňáková goal. Angie Cerilli and Genevieve Bannon would score for Canada in the second period as they took the lead, and Chelsea Karpenko made it a 3-1 game in favour of the Canadians just 39 seconds into the third period. Nela Lopušanová would score with 53 seconds remaining to make it a 3-2 game, but Julianna Thomson stood tall to help Canada secure the 3-2 win and a berth in the gold medal final!

Similar to the men's final, the Canadian women would face-off against the Czech women for ISBHF gold as the Canadians looked for a little revenge for the preliminary round loss they suffered at the hands of the Czechs. Canada would fall behind by a pair of goals before the game was five minutes old as Karolína Kosinová and Michaela Krásová struck 55 seconds apart as the Czechs went into the first break up 2-0. Reagan Fischer and Shae-Lynn Clarke would rally for the Canadians as they brought the game back to a 2-2 score with power-play goals before the second period ended. Only one goal was scored in the third period, and Kristen Cooze also scored on the power-play to give Canada the 3-2 lead! Julianna Thomson made 22 stops, including several late in the game, and the Canadians emerged victorious with the 3-2 win as they defended their 2019 gold medal successfully!

For the victors, let's hear the anthem!

Canadian forward Carol Ann Upshall was named as the tournament's best scorer after finishing with nine goals and ten assists. Czech forward Lucie Manhartová was named as the tournament's best forward, Canada's Melanie Jue was named as the tournament's best defenceman, and Slovakian Andrea Pastorková Rišová was the tournament's best netminder. Upshall was also named the MVP of the tournament.

The 2024 ISBHF World Championships have yet to be announced as to where and when they'll be played, but Canada will enter those tournaments as the defending champions on the men's side while the women will be the two-time defending champs.

The Canadian men tied Slovakia for the most gold medals all-time with their fifth championship title in Laval, and moved into a tie for second-place with Czechia as both countries have 11 medal finishes overall, trailing only Slovakia's 13 total medals. The Canadian women lead all countries with five gold medals over the eight Women's World Championships played, and both Canada and Czechia have seven medals overall with their respective medals this year.

Congratulations to the Canadian men and women who captured gold in Laval, Quebec! You did a country proud with your floor hockey efforts, and I'm already looking forward to the next World Championship tournaments! Go Canada!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Monday 27 June 2022

Eight Is Not Enough

The building to the left is supposed to be a place where the legends of hockey live. There's no denying that there are some hallowed and noteworthy names already lining the halls inside that institution, but it might be time for the Hockey Hall of Fame to peer directly into the mirror and give itself a thorough examination as to what its purpose is. With the announcement of a ninth woman entering the Hall of Fame, the growing gap between the male inductees and the female inductees is becoming hard to ignore.

It's hard to argue with the names who have already been inducted when one looks at the very short list of female players. The eight names include Cammi Granato and Angela James (2010), Geraldine Heaney (2013), Angela Ruggiero (2014), Danielle Goyette (2017), Jayna Hefford (2018), Hayley Wickenheiser (2019), and Kim St-Pierre (2020), and no one will argue against any of those choices when it comes to players who changed the game through their play and the honours they amassed as players.

Do you notice anything about those names, though? All eight of those women are players who learned their craft in North America. There isn't one European player in the list until Riikka Sallinen joins them this year. The first Finnish-born and trained female player will join the Hockey Hall of Fame as its first European woman, and it's so ridiculously overdue that Sallinen should receive more than just a plaque for her efforts.

Sallinen played against both Angela James and Cammi Granato at the first Women's World Championship tournament in 1990 before the IIHF wrapped its clammy hands around the tournament. She was everything to Finnish hockey in the same vein that Grantao was to USA Hockey and James was to Canadian hockey. Perhaps you're not convinced since you don't recall the name, so let's make the case.

Her list of accolades includes being named as the best player at the 1994 tournament, leading the 1997 tournament in scoring, still being the all-time leading scorer among Europeans at both the World Championships and Olympics, earning one silver medal and six bronze medals at World Championships, earning two Olympic bronze medals, being one of two women first named to the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame in 1997 (defender Marianne Ihalainen was the other), being inducted in the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2010 as the fourth woman and first European woman, and is the oldest hockey player to win a medal at the Olympics at age 44 after winning a bronze medal in 2018.

Still not convinced based on her international successes?

Sallinen is also a five-time champion in Finland's Naisten Liiga where she scored 395 points in 135 games. She joined HV71 in the SDHL in 2016, and captained the squad from 2017-19 where she continued to score at an amazing pace - 119 points in 92 games - despite retiring in 2019 at the age of 46. If Finland had an equivalent player to Gordie Howe, Hanna-Riikka Sallinen is that player.

Long overdue? That timeline doesn't even scratch the surface. This woman is a hockey pioneer who should have been inducted alongside Granato and James back in 2010 based on her list of accolades. This is a woman who has been inducted into her own country's Hockey Hall of Fame 25 years ago, and the Hockey Hall of Fame is finally getting around to recognizing her greatness. Not including her in the initial class of women is pretty incredible after reading the paragraphs above, so getting her in this year is an egregious oversight corrected.

Thanks for taking your time, though, Hall of Fame committee. Glad to see you're interested in honouring the game's best players. Excuse my sarcasm.

Every year, there are two spots to induct women into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Every year since 2010, we've seen one or none inducted annually. Something is seriously broken within the walls of the Hockey Hall of Fame if we aren't inducting two women every year from the plethora of women who have played this game and pushed it to what it is today. There simply is no excuse that can be given for this ignorance of the women's game when it is so prominent in today's society.

I don't think I have to make a case for Caroline Ouellette's inclusion into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and she was in her first year of eligibility to be added this year. Her name is somehow not on the inductee list despite her owning six World Championship gold medals, six World Championship silver medals, and is one of five Olympians to win gold medals at four consecutive Olympiads. Those accolades alone are better than nearly all the men whose plaques line the walls of the Hockey Hall of Fame, yet Ouellette's not going in this year despite not even mentioning her accomplishments in the NCAA and CWHL. Maybe next year, I guess?

At what point do we start considering the likes of Julie Chu, Florence Schelling, Shannon Szabados, Kim Martin Hasson, Maria Rooth, Pernilla Winberg, Jennifer Botterill, Liisa-Maria Sneck, Hilda and Nellie Ranscombe, Meghan Duggan, Cassie Campbell-Pascall, Tiia Reima, Jocelyn and Monique Lamoureux, and so many other women who laid the groundwork for women's hockey domestically in their own countries and together on the international stages for everyone who followed? When will the women listed above be inducted if one of the greatest offensive forces in hockey - men's or women's - in Caroline Ouellette can't be elected to the Hall in her first year of eligibility?

We've constantly heard women's hockey advocates using the line "If you can see it, you can be it"or some variation on that statement. If you took a young girl to the Hockey Hall of Fame right now, there isn't much backing to that statement when it comes to seeing who the best women's hockey players of all-time are. Eight plaques are in the Hall of Fame for women out of the 289 plaques that are displayed - 2.8% of the total players represented despite there being decades of women's hockey from which to draw.

Let me be very clear: the Hockey Hall of Fame is not and has never been the NHL Hall of Fame. Yes, there is a large number of NHL players who are in the Hockey Hall of Fame, but that's mostly because the Hall of Fame committee has been made up of former NHL players and executives and its original founding had the NHL's backing. This has led to the problem of having the Hockey Hall of Fame heavily favouring NHL players simply because the NHL promoted it, so perhaps its time to start having a more global, diverse committee choose players than the current NHL-centric committee.

If you're still not convinced that the Hockey Hall of Fame does a lousy job in promoting the game on a global basis, let's not forget that European players weren't part of the Hall of Fame until 1996 when Swedish legend Borje Salming was finally inducted. Of course, we had to wait until 2010 when the first women's hockey players were inducted, so there evidence is pretty damning when one considers how much hockey history has been written outside of North American borders.

History lessons aside, the Hockey Hall of Fame should be obligated to make up for lost time in inducting two women per year in every year until the criteria for induction is exhausted. Some will want to redefine the criteria when it comes to certain players being included, but this is the same argument the men's side of the Hall has: what are the requirements needed?

I'm not here to define those requirements. If Daniel Alfredsson, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, and Roberto Luongo have done enough to warrant inclusion into the Hockey Hall of Fame, so be it. I'd argue there are still dozens of European players who should be in the Hockey Hall of Fame alongside those four and the other 289 members of the Hall of Fame, but I'm only concerned about having the women's hockey world represented by a greater percentage than 2.8% of the Hall's inductees.

If the Hockey Hall of Fame ever wants to claim that it's the best place to see all of hockey's legends in one place, it needs to do a better job at representing the game globally for both men and women. It can start correcting the problem by using those two spots for inductees annually until further notice.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Sunday 26 June 2022

An Avalanche Of Wins

As the Colorado Avalanche emerged as the Western Conference's best team throughout the regular season, many wondered whether they had the necessary playoff experience needed to march to sixteen wins. Those doubts were laid to rest tonight after the Avalanche became the first team to hit the sixteen-win mark in downing the Tampa Lightning 2-1 in Game Six of the Stanley Cup Final to claim the Stanley Cup as 2022 NHL champions.

Yes, this team is blessed with all sorts of goal-scoring talent, but let's not overlook the obvious in that they can play with grit, they can play physical, and they can play with speed. They showed resilience, a killer instinct, some dogged determination, and a do-anything-to-win attitude in these playoffs at times, and their reward was sport's ultimate trophy as they put together a 16-4 record in these playoffs.

It won't be hard to point at the likes of MacKinnon, Makar, Landeskog, Rantanen, Toews, and Kadri as the cogs that drove the offence this season, but one would be remiss in not mentioning players like Valeri Nichuskin, JT Compher, Andre Burakovsky, and Artturi Lehkonen who stepped up in big ways at times when the Avalanche needed a boost. It would also be a mistake to forget some of the veterans like Andrew Cogliano, Darren Helm, Erik Johnson, Jack Johnson, and Darcy Kuemper who all had impacts on this season's ending. And, without doubt, players like Sam Girard, Pavel Francouz, Bowen Byram, and Alex Newhook played important roles when given opportunities.

It's not hard to see that the youth movement in Colorado will likely spark a number of copycat GMs to start looking for younger, offensively-gifted defenders who can drive the play like the Avalanche had all season. Cale Makar won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP, so we'll see teams look for the next Makar in this summer's draft.

Of course, there's no guarantee anyone will find the same magic, but it should be written in ink on every GM's whiteboard in their offices that young defenders should be encouraged to play to their strengths rather trying to wedge square pegs into round holes. If the puck's hardly ever in your end, you're likely not surrendering goals.

There were concerns about Darcy Kuemper's play this season after posting the third-highest GAA in his career. His save percentage, though, was the fourth-highest of his career, so the stats may not tell the whole truth. As I wrote on Twitter, he made the saves when called upon, and that's what mattered at the end of the day. By keeping the puck out of their own end, Kuemper's struggles weren't magnified by prolonged stretches where the opposition had him flailing.Kuemper benefitted by making a few keys saves behind a defence that moved the puck well.

It has to be stated that goaltending still does matter. Where it matters most, though, is how the goaltending fits in as part of the overall system the teams plays. The Avalanche didn't have to overspend on or trade assets away for a top-tier netminder because both Kuemper and Francouz played well enough within their system that goaltending didn't emerge as the team's Achilles' heel. It should be noted that other teams cannot do this, so this again speaks volumes to overall structure in the system employed by the Avalanche.

That structure was built by Jared Bednar, and he becomes the only coach in hockey history and just the second person in hockey history to have won a Kelly Cup, a Calder Cup, and a Stanley Cup. There's no denying that Bednar's system works - the results speak for themselves.

What should be isolated from that system, though, is that he assigns responsibility and demands accountability for each player to every other player, not to Bednar. You can see the flexibility that players had when guys like Makar, Toews, and Byram jump into the rush to create an odd-player situation while the trailing forward remains in position defensively. In short, his system works if everyone has bought into it, and the Avalanche showed all season long that they were a twenty-man unit.

We shouldn't forget the front office as well in that Joe Sakic orhestrated a number of key moves to bolster his team to get them to the promised land. The Devon Toews deal looks like pure larceny right now. Giving up Justin Barron for Artturi Lehkonen seemed like a lot, but Lehkonen rewarded his GM with a handful of big goals including the game-winner tonight. Bringing in Nazem Kadri for Alex Kerfoot and Tyson Barrie is another savvy move, and signing Valeri Nichuskin just as the big 6'4" winger was growing into his frame was an understated move at the time.

Beyond that, the contracts that looked to handcuff the Avalanche - Rantanen and Landeskog, most notably - worked out in Colorado's favour in that they have gone from wide-eyed NHL youngsters to reliable points producers over the last few seasons. While there's always going to be work to do for Joe Sakic when it comes to building a roster that will see nine players in unstrictred free agency and two players in restricted status, winning a Stanley Cup with his core intact for at least two more seasons may attract players to sign for less. Sakic could build another juggernaut next season if the cards land right.

Let's not discount the effort from the Tampa Bay Lightning, though. This modern-day dynasty has shown everyone that smart player management, a sound gameplan, some key contributors, and everyone pulling in the same direction can make magic happen. While they may have fallen short in adding a third-straight panel on the Stanley Cup, there's no doubt that counting out the Lightning is a fool's folly. They'll be back, and I suspect they'll be just as determined to correct the loss this season.

To the victors go the spoils, though, and Colorado earned this Stanley Cup with series wins over Nashville, St. Louis, Edmonton, and Tampa Bay. I suspect that the images and stories from this Avalanche's team's parties and celebrations will be fun and wild if they make the light of day as this group is young, cohesive, and prone to fits of incredible moments.

Tonight was the first incredible moment. Let's see how many more this Avalanche team can make. Congratulations to the 2022 Stanley Cup Champions, the Colorado Avalache!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Saturday 25 June 2022

The Top Dogs

As a guy who lived in an IHL city for a long time, you never quite lose the animosity that you held for a former rival. That's not to say that the Chicago Wolves aren't still a thorn in the sides of the other AHL teams, but the amount of success that they've had in both the IHL and AHL makes one a little envious of that franchise. Tonight, they added to their legacy as the Chicago Wolves earned their third Calder Cup since joining the AHL in 2001 by downing the Springfield Thunderbirds in five games. To the victors go the spoils, but this was an exceptional season by a very good team.

This was the first time since 2019 that the Calder Cup was awarded after the league decided to cancel both the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons due to the pandemic, and it was the first time new AHL President and CEO Scott Howson was able to present the Calder Cup as well. The Carolina Hurricanes will celebrate a second-straight Calder Cup championship thanks to the Charlotte Checkers winning in 2019, so there were a number of changes since the last time the Calder Cup was awarded despite the Wolves still exhibiting championship-quality hockey as they seem to do annually.

Alex Lyon was stellar once more in the Chicago net, making 28 stops for his second shutout in the 4-0 win as his playoff record improved to 9-3 while sporting a 2.03 GAA and a .923 save percentage. He allowed just 25 goals in the 12 games he played as the former Philadelphia Flyers netminder looked impressive throughout the postseason. Chicago was bolstered by the arrival of Pyotr Kochetkov after Carolina was eliminated in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and he went 5-1 with a 1.65 GAA and a .950 save percentage to give the Wolves an impressive netminding tandem.

Former Maple Leafs forward Josh Leivo was named as the Jack A Butterfield Trophy winner as playoff MVP as his 15 goals and 29 points in postseason were tops in the AHL. Leivo scored in the Game Five victory and was one of the best players on the ice every night that Chicago took the ice, so being named as the AHL's best player in the playoffs wasn't surprising. While Leivo's opportunities with the Hurricanes were limited, I suspect a handful of teams will come calling this summer during free agency.

Another free agent that may entice NHL general managers is Wolves captain Andrew Poturalski. Poturalski recorded 101 points in 71 AHL games this season before tacking on another 23 points in the playoffs, and he was noticeable throughout the entire playoffs. Alongside him is former Devils and Sharks forward Stefan Noesen whose 85-point regular season was followed by another 25 points in the playoffs. Both Poturalski and Noesen are free agents this summer, and they too should be fielding calls from NHL general managers.

I'd expect Carolina to promote Jack Drury next season after his impressive playoff showing. The 22 year-old centerman had a solid 52 points in the regular season, but kicked it into another gear in the Calder Cup Playoffs as he scored 24 points. Drury might only be scratching the surface of his potential with his breakout postseason performance, but it would seem he's made for the run-and-gun Hurricanes if they needed a replacement for a player like Martin Necas or Vincent Trochek. This could be his time after winning the Calder Cup.

Defensively, Max Lajoie led the way in goals with four from the blue line while Joey Keane led the way with 12 points. Both are restricted free agents for the Hurricanes, but I'd suspect that Don Waddell may want to start clearing space for them as both players looked more like seasoned veterans rather a 24 year-old and a 22 year-old, respectively. Both players could step in nicely in place of outgoing free agents Ian Cole and Brendan Smith.

I can't imagine head coach Ryan Warsofsky not being contacted after leading the Wolves to the Calder Cup and the AHL's best record this season. After 50 wins and 115 points this season, Warsofsky has amassed a record of 105-47-18 over three seasons with the Wolves as he's proven time and again he's one of the brightest head coaches in the AHL. His resumé also includes a trip to the Kelly Cup Final in the ECHL with the South Carolina Stingrays in 2016-17, so it's pretty clear that Warsofsky knows how to get the most out of his players. Because of this, I suspect Warsofsky will be a target for teams needing a change behind the bench.

Chicago's fifth championship in the IHL and AHL and third exclusively in the AHL saw them defeat Rockford, Milwaukee, Stockton, and Springfield to capture this year's Calder Cup. Oddly enough, Chicago defeated Milwaukee and Rockford - in that order - to advance to the Conference Finals in 2008. Milwaukee missed the playoffs in 2001 and Rockford didn't exist until 2007, so the similarities between 2001 and 2022 are non-existant, but it's kind of weird to see the same two teams defeated, albeit in different rounds, in both of Chicago's most recent championships.

In any case, congratulations to the Chicago Wolves, your 2022 Calder Cup Champions, and I suspect that a number of these players will either be in Carolina's lineup in the near future or some other NHL team's lineup for the unrestricted free agents! If you're looking for quality players, the AHL is where to look and the Chicago Wolves have a pile of them who can all be called 2022 AHL Champions!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Friday 24 June 2022

Updating The Crown

I normally have nothing to write about when it comes to the ACAC being that HBIC Headquarters is two provinces to the east. The Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference is a significantly important league when it comes to Canada West hockey history, though, as that league has graduated the likes of the Lethbridge Pronghorns, the Mount Royal Cougars, and, most recently, the MacEwan Griffins to the U SPORTS level. To say that ACAC hasn't had an effect on U SPORTS and Canada West hockey would be similar to saying that the IHL had no effect on the AHL: it's simply not true.

One team that had applied for university status, like the three listed in the previous paragraph, was Red Deer College as they looked to elevate their status across the nation by applying to become a university one year ago. They were instead granted the status of a "polytechnic school" by the Alberta government through this reclassification process. As a result, Red Deer College changed its name last summer to Red Deer Polytechnic, but their sports teams still needed an update to reflect their new school status.

While we await the Red Deer Polytechnic Queens hockey team to update their look, the men debuted their new look yesterday and it seems that the Kings will look good in their new threads next season!


Ok, there's a lot to unpack on the new look for the Kings, but this Dallas Stars-esque design works fairly nicely. It's clean, the jerseys look like hockey jerseys, and the logo isn't some overly elaborate design. If the Red Deer Polytechnic was following the KISS concept - "Keep It Simple, Stupid" - they achieved a good look in their new design according to this writer.

According to the release put out by Red Deer Polytechnic, "[f]eedback from two virtual Red Deer Polytechnic Athletics Engagement Sessions, along with responses from a public online survey during Winter 2022 Term were used to help shape the creation of the updated logo, which remains a Crown."

As the title of this article states, if your sports teams are called the "Kings" and Queens", a crown would be a very good choice of a logo. Not changing the logo, in this case, means a update would be needed and Red Deer Polytechnic went far simpler without abandoning the important elements. As you can see on the old logo, the detailing would make recreating the logo a bit of an effort if there were layouts needed for silk screening on merchandise. The new logo, though, is fairly easy to recreate, and the three points still create a crown-like design. Is it perfect? No, but it accomplishes the job with far less intricate design. If we're keeping it simple, Red Deer Polytechnic hits the mark with the logo redesign.

"The new Red Deer Polytechnic brand was unveiled on October 1, 2021, and this included a new logo," Kristine Plastow, Dean of Students, said in the release. "As a result of the changes, the brands of the Polytechnic and Red Deer Polytechnic Athletics were not aligned, so we engaged with stakeholders to better connect the two. With the bold and modern features of the updated Crown, along with the single green colour, the relationship between the two brands is now strongly correlated."

Design rhetoric aside, the jerseys follow the same green colour idea as Red Deer Polytechnic goes from a primarily white-and-black uniform design to one that is white-and-green. Automatically, this gets a massive thumbs-up from me due to my wanting more green on uniforms along with the retirement of the black uniforms as primary uniforms, but the new home and road uniforms look more like traditional hockey sweaters with their hem stripes, sleeve stripes, and the shoulder yoke on the white jersey. These upgrades to the design of the jersey along with the colour change are a positive upgrade in my books.

The only thing I don't like? That number font. That doesn't fit the uniforms at all, so let's hope they come up with something a little more regal for the Kings and Queens on these uniforms.

What shouldn't be forgotten, though, is that Red Deer Polytechnic can keep the black uniforms as an alternate or throwback uniform if they wish. Being that the Kings have played in some special games, the alternates black uniform can be brought out for those games if they wish, giving the Kings a complete hockey closet of jerseys. They have options here with the new uniform set, so why not use them all?

If you have a couple minutes to spare, Red Deer Polytechnic Athletics also made a quick video that shows all of their logos and history. There are some rather terrible designs in their history, but there are some that are good too. In short, they have a fun history with their sports teams, and this video highlights some of that fun!


Overall, I think this is an excellent rebranding for the Red Deer Polytechnic Kings men's hockey program. They didn't go overboard, they went more colourful, and they look like traditional hockey uniforms. One has to wonder if the women will wear the same design as the men, but they wouldn't lose any points if they did since this is a solid rebrand for Red Deer. Thumbs-up from this writer, and I can't wait to see the Kings on the ice in their new uniforms for the 2022-23 ACAC hockey season!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Thursday 23 June 2022

The Hockey Show - Episode 509

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is back on the UMFM airwaves tonight with some splendiferous hockey talk! Ok, that was simply an excuse to use the word "splendiferous" in a blog post, but, now that I've accomplished that feat, we'll get into some serious hockey talk tonight based on what's been happening in Ottawa this week. No, it has nothing to do with the Senators or their quest for a downtown arena, but that may get mentioned as well. Hockey Canada's in front of the House of Commons, and we'll break down all the legal manoeuvring!

With Hockey Canada under investigation, Teebz and Jason will look at what was said, what was alleged, and some of the fall-out already seen from the Canadian government's examination of Hockey Canada's handling and settlement of a sexual assault case. Needless to say, there were a lot of things revealed by Hockey Canada in the past week that were unsettling, so we'll unpackage all of that. Beyond that serious discussion, there was a CanWest signing in Sweden, the Stanley Cup Final continues, we're looking for a winner in the "Guess The Bison" contest, we'll attempt an exit interview with Bryan S. once again, the Canada West hockey schedule was released, and we'll try to squeeze in a pile of other news. It's another crazy show, so tune in at 5:30pm CT so you can hear The Hockey Show on 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 is pretty awesome if you want to listen online so you cnn call in for the contest as well. If you're using an Apple device, the player doesn't seem to like Safari yet, so if you want to stream the show I'd recommend Radio Garden to do that as it works nicely with Safari. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. If you do use the TuneIn app, you won't be disappointed. 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 about being in hot water, being down in a series, moving halfway around the world, getting set to travel, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: June 23, 2022: Episode 509

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Wednesday 22 June 2022

The Most Canadian Grand Prix

If you haven't been following trends in the sports world, you might be surprised to see HBIC writing about the F1 racing world today. As per ESPN's numbers, 2021 saw the most fans tune into an F1 season ever on American television with some 934,000 viewers per race - a 54 percent increase over 2020. Those viewership numbers are staggering in terms of the overall growth, but it speaks volumes in the power of marketing and investing in the coverage of the sport. With the Canadian Grand Prix being raced this past Sunday, today is all about the most Canadian method of racing starring a guy who was a big star in La Belle Province!

Max Verstappen won this past weekend's race in Montreal with a time of 1:36:21.757 in completing 70-laps of the 4.361-kilometre Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. He wasn't involved in the most Canadian of races, though, as former Canadiens defenceman PK Subban invited drivers Sergio "Checo" Perez and Yuki Tsunoda along with Olympic Gold medalist and snowboard legend Seb Toots to run a time trial in a vehicle very familiar to Canadians: a Zamboni ice resurfacer!

Red Bull Racing sponsored this fun exercise deemed "the slowest time trial ever" as the three men navigated the race course on a Zamboni ice resurfacing machine. Settle in for some laughs because this race is all about maximum speed - 9 miles per hour as per Zamboni's information - and expert steering through some tight turns!

Obviously, this is a fun way to sell the F1 racing scene to hockey fans, but I have no idea what accolades Sergio "Checo" Perez and Yuki Tsunoda have accumulated in their careers. I also didn't watch this past weekend's race, and, if we're going for full disclosure, I didn't even know it was being held this past weekend. My total knowledge of F1 racing can be held within a thimble, and there'd still be room left over.

What I do know is that this a fun way to promote the Canadian Grand Prix in a city that loves its hockey and its hockey heroes. What I do know is that both Sergio Perez and Yuki Tsunoda did not finish the race on Sunday, so there was no celebrating two victories in Montreal for Sergio Perez. Both men will leave Montreal empty-handed after Tsunoda finished off the top of the podium and Perez's trophy mishap.

Red Bull won't leave Montreal too disappointed, though, as Max Verstappen is a Red Bull Racing driver, and he claimed the checkered flag this past weekend! Beyond that, I'd say they also successfully pulled off the first-ever Canadian Grand Prix time trial on Zamboni ice resurfacing machines in F1 history!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Tuesday 21 June 2022

Body Contact Is Hazardous

For years, Don Cherry made a ton of cash off packaging and selling physicality in the form of Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Hockey videos. One has to wonder how many of those teeth-rattling and bone-crushing hits rattled teeth, broke bones, and resulted in concussions, but there's no way to know unless we can examine those players' brains for CTE and their bodies and skeletons for scars. I've heard the arguments that hitting in hockey should start earlier, should start later, should be banned altogether, and every variation in between, but we may now have conclusive evidence that one of those opinions is correct thanks to work done by the University of Calgary.

From 2015-16 until 2017-28, the University of Calgary's Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre ran a study that followed 608 non-elite minor hockey players from bodychecking divisions in Calgary, Airdrie, and Edmonton to track injuries and concussions in players who engaged in three-or-more years of bodychecking compared to 396 players from Calgary, Vancouver, and Kelowna who had two years or less of checking. One may think that exposing players earlier to checking would result in better preparation and less injuries after learning how to throw and receive a bodycheck, but anyone thinking that would be very wrong.

According to the study, "[t]he rate of injury was 62% lower and rate of concussion was 51% lower in leagues not permitting body checking." That's a significant statistic when one considers the developing brains and bodies of players between the ages of 15-17, and it's one that's hard to ignore when it comes to minor hockey and the age when players start to throw checks. If parents of players knew they could reduce the rate of injuries by 62% simply by removing hitting, why would anyone vote to have players throwing checks?

"This is just further evidence in support of removing body checking in youth ice hockey to help prevent injuries," Paul Eliason, a post-doctoral fellow in the Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre, told the CBC.

The study was actually started after Hockey Canada had removed hitting in the U13 level of hockey, and they were worried that more players were being injured from bodychecks as they got older by not having that experience. Based on the findings that players with three-or-more years of hitting experience suffered a much higher rate of injuries and concussions, I'd say that Hockey Canada's decision was the right one.

The study itself broke down the numbers even further as "it looked at the rates of all types of injuries, injuries that resulted in more than seven days off the ice, and concussions." The findings show that "players who had more checking experience were injured or concussed more than 2½ times the rate of the less experienced players. And the most common injury was a concussion — regardless of experience — making up more than a third of the injuries."

You might think player size or weight or position would factor into the results, but the study "didn't find any notable difference in injuries or concussions based on weight, or player position". In short, it doesn't matter whether players are tall, small, big, little, forwards, defenders, or goalies when it comes to bodychecking and the high rate of injuries for those who start earlier.

The only attribute that seemed to matter when it came to the rate of injuries was hockey skill. The study found that "lesser skilled players were injured nearly 1½ times more often than the better skilled, elite players who represented the top 20 per cent." A lot of that skill is based on the ability to skate well, so it might be more important to ensure that your son can skate better than he hits.

Eliason is quick to point out that we shouldn't cherry-pick from the findings when it comes to the safety of players.

"The take home still needs to be that really we're just showing here that more experience isn't protective, which is what the belief is in the hockey community," said Eliason.

If checking is removed from bantam hockey altogether, the end result would be less injuries and less concussions. If we're talking about players who are 15-17 years of age, these are important years where grades can matter when it comes to academic scholarships and stats on the ice can matter when it comes to athletic scholarships. Injuries, specifically concussions, can derail both of those opportunities, so it might be a good idea if we hold off exposing players to bodychecking at the bantam level if injuries occur 62% less and concussions happen 51% less.

I'm not in charge of any provincial hockey associations, but this study should be something that all associations should be reading. If they want kids to remain in hockey longer, reducing the potential for injuries and concussions is an easy fix that can be made and it might lead to more elite hockey players competing at higher levels. That last segment - "more elite hockey players" - is what every hockey association wants.

I doubt this study will land on the desks of those who make these decisions, though. Instead, it will be debated and dismissed by those who believe that teaching bodychecking earlier does, in fact, make the game safer despite the study conclusively proving it does not. No one is suggesting that hitting be removed from the game, but just starting it later in players' careers once they leave bantam hockey.

It seems pretty elementary to me. But I'm a nobody.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Monday 20 June 2022

Sweden Is Looking Very Canadian

There are certain moments in life that one always remembers, and they differ from person to person based on experience. Some may remember their first day at school or at a new job. Others may remember getting one's driver's license or graduating university. For elite athletes, signing one's first professional contract has to be one of those moments, and it's one that former Mount Royal Cougars sniper Anna Purschke can add to her resumé after inking a deal with Leksands IF of the SDHL! While Anna likely had a number of choices as to what she did next when it came to hockey and life, the opportunity to play professionally in Sweden for at least one season - likely longer based on her talent - was one she couldn't pass up. With her signing, the U SPORTS contingent in the SDHL gets a little stronger once again!

Purschke will join former Mount Royal Cougars coach Jordan Colliton in Dalarna for the upcoming season, and I get the sense that Colliton may have wanted a player like Purschke around whom she can build. Colliton is familiar with how Purschke plays the game from their time at Mount Royal University, and I suspect that Purschke's skill set will benefit her and Leksands IF in a big way.

Alexander Bröms, general manager for the Leksands IF women's team, was impressed with what Anna can bring to his squad, stating, "Anna is a smart player who can play at high speed, she has a good shot and is a player who puts the team first. We see Anna as a really good new acquisition for the coming season."

Having had the privilege of seeing Anna play with Mount Royal over the last five seasons in Canada West, I would say that Mr. Bröms barely scratched the surface of the talent they've signed in Anna Purschke. We've seen her lethal shot and excellent playmaking abilities on display. We've seen her blow past defenders with her speed and acceleration, and her leadership on and off the ice is more than apparent. She forechecks like there's no tomorrow, she plays with her head up in all zones, and she's good at finding open ice.

Perhaps what is understated due to the Cougars relying on her offensive skill, though, is her incredible defensive play. She wins face-offs, she blankets her check thanks to her speed, and she has an excellent stick which is often in passing or shooting lanes. Away from the puck, she has an uncanny ability to read the play so that she can help teammates who may get beat, and she can turn a game around in a hurry with her excellent ability to transition to offence off a turnover.

In short, Colliton and Leksands are getting a solid 200-foot player who doesn't take a shift off. That will help Leksands IF immensely if they're to eclipse their 39-point season they logged in 2021-22. Of course, we'll see how well Anna settles into playing professional hockey in Sweden, but I suspect she'll look like her old self after a few games of figuring out the big ice and new teams.

What makes this signing great is that a number of U SPORTS teams are represented in the SDHL with Anna joining Leksands. Mathea Fischer (SDE), Kelly Murray (SDE), Hannah Clayton-Carroll (SDE), and Celine Tardif (Leksands) all skated with UBC. Lindsey Post (SDE) stopped pucks for the University of Alberta. Jaycee Magwood (MoDo) played for the University of Regina. Alexa McMillan (Göteborg) skated with the Saint Mary's Huskies in the AUS while new teammates Jessica Bélanger (Göteborg) captained the RSEQ's Bishop's Gaiters last season and Marissa Graham (Göteborg) skated with Brock in the OUA.

Beyond those players, former Saskatchewan Huskies forward Danielle Stone could return to HV71 while former Bisons defender-turned-forward Alex Anderson could rejoin SDE for another campaign. Former Montreal Carabins forwards Marion Allemoz and Lore Baudrit could return to MoDo as well, but one player who won't be back unless something dramatic changes is former U SPORTS Player of the Year Sarah Bujold as the X-Women standout signed a deal with the PHF's Metropolitan Riveters this offseason.

The vast number of Canadian players who dot the rosters in the SDHL is one of the reasons I keep an eye on the league. There are good Canadian players who went to NCAA schools who also play in the league that I haven't even mentioned - Kaitlyn Tougas and Jaycee Gebhard, for example - that keep the Canadian contingent very well represented.

I'll have my eye on the league again this season as the ladies prepare for another fantastic season of hockey, but I'll be keeping a closer eye on Leksands as we watch for a couple more of those moments I described at the start: Anna Purschke's first point and first goal as a professional hockey player. It was always an absolute privilege to watch her play, and I'll be cheering her on all season long as we await those two magical moments in her career!

Congratulations on the opportunity, Anna, and here's hoping you have a "rookie season" for the ages!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Sunday 19 June 2022

Your AHL Frequencies

After spending most of the day relaxing and nursing a bit of a sunburn, I realized that I had pledged to do something and never got it done. Having already pulled all the radio stations where one can find NHL games, I needed to do the same for the American Hockey League at some point. I do enjoy AHL broadcasts as the guys on the radio do a fantastic job in the hopes of one day landing an NHL gig, so the calls they make are always great. Beyond that, though, the hockey is fantastic as well, so it was time that I got off my butt and put together a similar article with all the radio stations carrying AHL games.

What I should note before we get any further into this is that the AHL clubs seemingly do their own thing more often than not. While I get that some markets can carry games thanks to a strong radio presence, it seems that other clubs have chosen to venture out on their own so that they control the broadcast from start to finish. I'm not against this idea, but it makes tracking down where to hear games a wee bit harder.

Like the NHL radio streams, all you have to do is click the link for the team whose broadcast to which to want to listen. The link nearest the top n cases where there is more than one is the link I use due to there being a lack of ads required to listen, and this is usually a Radio Garden link. The other links are alternate links in case there's an issue with Radio Garden connecting, and some are strictly one-link, team-controlled streams.

American Hockey League

As far as I can tell, the Abbotsford Canucks have no radio stream to which one can listen. Unbelievable.

Fox Sports 800AM
Fox Sports 800AM
Fox Sports 970AM

CJBQ 800AM
TSN 1200AM
All games carried on CJBQ 800AM.

Bridgeport Islanders Mixlr
Mixlr is an online audio platform with content the Islanders control.

With Stockton moving north to Calgary, no announcements have been made on radio partners.

ESPN 730AM
The Checkers also broadcast on their smartphone app.

Chicago Wolves Mixlr
Mixlr is an online audio platform with content the Wolves control.

Fox Sports 1350AM The Gambler
Fox Sports 1350AM The Gambler
1350AM carries all Monsters games.

There have been no official announcements for the Firebirds, but maybe ESPN 103.1FM?

The Point 99.9FM
All games are carried on 99.9FM and on The Point smartphone apps.

Wood Radio 106.9FM & 1300AM
Wood Radio 106.9FM & 1300AM
Wood Radio has all Griffins games.

Hartford Wolfpack Mixlr
Mixlr is an online audio platform with content the Wolfpack controls.

KLAV The Game 1230AM
KLAV The Game 1230AM
KLAV The Game 1230AM

Froggy Valley 100.1FM
Fox Sports 1460AM - Harrisburg
Sports Radio 98.9FM

KNXO 1460AM
KNXO 1460AM
KNXO 1460AM

Sports 91.9FM - French
TSN 690 - English
Sports 91.9FM - French

Phantoms 24/7 Radio
WAEB 790AM
Phantoms Radio has every game!

CJOB 680AM
CJOB 680AM
CJOB 680AM

The Big 920AM
The Big 920AM
The Big 920AM

Ontario Reign Mixlr
Mixlr is an online audio platform with content the Reign controls.

ESPN The Team 104.5FM
WEEI 93.7FM
Neither has exclusive coverage.

The Fan 95.7FM
All other streams did not work for Rochester Americans games.

Rockford IceHogs Mixlr
Mixlr is an online audio platform with content the IceHogs control.

San Diego Gulls Radio
San Diego Gulls Radio has hockey content on 24/7 every day!

San Jose Barracuda Radio
San Jose Barracuda Radio
San Jose Sharks Radio

WHYN 560AM
WHYN 560AM
WHYN 560AM

ESPN 1200AM
ESPN 1200AM
ESPN 1200AM

Texas Stars Radio
All games are carried on the Texas Stars smartphone apps.

Toronto Marlies Mixlr
Mixlr is an online audio platform with content the Marlies control.

KZTR Fox Sports 1450AM
KZTR Fox Sports 1450AM
KZTR has all Roadrunners games!

KROCK 94.9FM
KROCK 94.9FM
KROCK 94.9FM

WILK 103.1FM
All other streams did not work for WBS Penguins games.

I'll work on more leagues and add them here as I complete each league's radio-partner roster. For now, you can literally tune into any broadcast whether your favorite team is at home or on the road, unless you cheer for Abbotsford who has no radio and the Americans and Penguins whose streams played nothing. In any case, have some fun going through the different radio broadcasts!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!