127.0.0.1 In Tech Speak

Nearly 5000 kilometers, six stops, two countries and more gas station coffee consumed than one should admit to drinking later, I am finally home after twelve days of being on the road. I cannot tell you how much I was craving being home as the days wound down on this road trip because I was tired of hauling all my bags out of the car to a hotel room and back. Tonight, I arrived home around 7PM, and I think I got all the road trip desires out of me for a while. Yes, it's good to be home.

I'm taking the night off to unpack, unwind, and completely pass out in my own bed, so don't expect any hockey chatter today. While I am grateful to have had this opportunity to cross Ontario and swing through the US on the way back while seeing an OHL, an OUA, and an ECHL game, the drive felt heavy on the way back as I put 25 hours of distance on the car's odometer. I won't deny that I had fun, but I'm tuckered out entirely. In saying that, HBIC is closed today.

I will likely turn some hockey on tonight as there are Canada West games that I should be watching, but I fear I may pass out if I settle down on the couch. If I do, I likely need the sleep, so I'm not apologizing for that. I just may be sorry that I missed some solid performances from players who deserve some spotlight. Fear not, however, as The Rundown will appear tomorrow.

For tonight, though, I'm calling it an evening. Even as I write this quick post, I can feel my body just wanting to call it a day, so I'm choosing to do that. Watch for tomorrow's article as there are some things I will highlight such as the OUA game I took in on my trip that featured the York Lions hosting the Waterloo Warriors. On Monday, life starts again, so I'm taking this one night to prepare for my normal life that doesn't involves circling the Great Lakes in a car.

It is very good to be home, though. To see snow. To sleep in my own bed again. Take it easy tonight, folks, and I'll be back tomorrow.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Welcome To The ECHL

Thursday night is usually booked for The Hockey Show, but Jason and I prerecorded the show on Wednesday because I was booked for another event on Thursday with me being in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The Fort Wayne Komets are one of the premiere minor-league teams on the planet, and they've crossed paths with Winnipeg a few times before I made my way to the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum last night. Having seen them win Turner Cups in the IHL when the Manitoba Moose were part of that circuit, I knew I was in for a good time at the game on American Thanksgiving. The final verdict certainly held true!

While there were more than enough black-and-orange jerseys in the crowd, the Fort Wayne Komets use their annual Thanksgiving game to honour the late Bob Chase, their longtime radio broadcaster who called Komets games for 63 years before retiring on May 15, 2016. Chase was always a fan of the Thanksgiving Day game, and the voice of the Komets passed on in the early morning hours of Thanksgiving Day back on November 24, 2016. As a result, the Komets honour Chase on each Thanksgiving Day, and they took to the ice in throwback jerseys from the early 1980s as part of the celebration for Bob's memory! I have to admit that the blue-and-orange looks good, but it's far different from the splashes of orange, black, and white that were seen throughout the crowd as fans sported the jerseys of their heroes!

Nevertheless, my first impression of Allen County War Memorial Coliseum was that it looked old from the outside, but things changed once I passed through the doors of the main entrance. While the arena was opened in 1952, there has been a significant effort to modernize the interior while keeping that historic aesthetic intact. The result is a modern arena with all the amenities placed inside a historic building with many stories contained within its walls. It's an excellent venue that deserves to mentioned with other hallowed theatres such as Maple Leaf Gardens and the Montreal Forum.

As I made my way to my seat, the scents of concourse food options filled the air while excited fans found their entrance to the section containing their chosen seats. I sat in Section 209 which allowed me to witness the Komets in the offensive zone twice, but the layout of the seats in the arena meant there were no bad seats that one could find. While it seats more than 10,000 fans for hockey, smaller crowds sound as loud as a full house thanks to the acoustics. I can only imagine what it sounds like on the ice when the fans are most vocal.

With the defending ECHL champions in town, the Florida Everblades were looking to extend their winning streak to four games while the Komets were looking to start a winning streak after dropping their last game against Wheeling. The vocal crowd would be into this one almost immediately as gloves, helmets, and sticks were on the ice just seven seconds after the puck was dropped. As shown in the lede photo above, Yanick Turcotte and Kyle Neuber got acquainted with some early fisticuffs, but neither gained enough of an advantage for a decisive win. Regardless of the outcome, it was very clear that the crowd loved every second of the scrap!

Both teams looked to use their physical skills to find an edge as speed and some thunderous checks were evident throughout the opening frame. The Komets, though, began to impose their will towards the end of the period, and their offensive zone time paid off. Brandon McManus deflected a Connor Corcoran shot past Cam Johnson at 17:11 to give the home side the 1-0 lead, and they'd double the lead when Ethan Keppen banked a shot into the net off Cam Johnson following an Odeen Tufto redirection at 19:20. The fans were rocking inside the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum with the Komets leading 2-0 over Florida. Brett Brochu stopped all seven shots he faced in the frame as Fort Wayne held a 16-7 edge in shots.

I should probably interject here that the ECHL is a developmental league not only for players, but for officials as well. I say this because there were a number of missed calls that seemed pretty obvious to me, but the officials deemed them not to be penalties. This will be a running theme throughout the evening for both teams, but it needs to be said: whatever standard of officiating that the ECHL is demanding seemed to be missing in this game.

A rather questionable holding call was assessed to the Komets just 1:59 into the middle frame, and the Everblades made them pay when Anton Malmström shot from the point beat a partially-screen Brochu at 2:30 to cut the Komets' lead to 2-1. The goal didn't slow down the physicality, though, as both teams continued to punish each other when the opportunities arose. Despite a pile of penalties in the later stages of this frame, the Komets would take the 2-1 lead to the second break with the Komets holding a 25-16 edge in shots.

Time would begin to look like the enemy of the Everblades as the first half of the period went by without any goals, but Oliver Chau would score after it appeared that Brett Brochu was the victim of interference. From the overhead review, it seemed one of the Everblades in the pile of humanity in front of the net grabbed his stick which left him unable to slide to his right to stop Chau. After conferring, the officials went to the review, but ultimately determined the goal to be a good goal despite the fans clearly disagreeing. Chau's goal tied the game at 2-2 at the 12:40 mark.

That seemed to fire up the Komets because they'd respond 45 seconds later when Connor Corcoran stepped into an Odeen Tufto feed, hammering the puck past Cam Johnson to make it 3-2 for the home side. 37 seconds after that, Justin Taylor would bank a rebound into the net off Johnson to put the Komets up by a pair of goals again, but this time saw just 5:58 remaining in the game. A few fans started down the stairs towards the concourse as they believed the Komets were in the driver's seat, but the three-time defending champs know all about how to score late in a game.

Sean Allen would notch his first goal with the Everblades when he teed up a one-timer from the point off a Kade Landry pass that hit Brochu, but ended up behind him across the goal line at 16:18 to make it a 4-3 game. If that wasn't bad enough, a defensive switch allowed Olver Chau to get open in front where he converted an Alex Kile feed from behind the net at 17:26, and we were tied at 4-4. As time ticked down, neither side could dent any more twine, and we would have some free hockey on Thanksgiving! Fort Wayne still held a 34-30 edge in shots at the end of regulation.

Despite some back-and-forth action in the three-on-three overtime which is seven minutes long in the ECHL, a power-play was awarded to Fort Wayne after Florida sent four players onto the ice. Despite both sides having chances, neither side would score on the Komets' advantage. The extra player came into play on the game-winner, though, so let's go to the highlight and see how this one ended!
Carson Gicewicz scores the overtime winner at 5:41 of the extra frame as Florida takes this one by a 5-4 score. Anton Malmström and Alex Kile, who served the bench minor, earned the assists as Brochu couldn't stop the shot from Gicewicz, and the Everblades grab the extra points and their fourth-straight win on Gicewicz's game-winner.

Despite the score, I have to say that ECHL hockey is something I would definitely support if it moved into my market. It's a fun outing, it's affordable as my ticket set me back just $28.25 USD plus $8 for parking, and there is enough talent for the ECHL to be a solid entertainment choice that doesn't break the bank. In that vein, the Fort Wayne Komets do hockey right in keeping things fun, entertaining, and affordable, and their fans repay them with unparalleled support at the box office and with merchandise sales.

I want to give the fans the proper respect they deserve because I'd estimate that 20% of the crowd on Thanksgiving showed up wearing some sort of Komets jersey while it seemed like more than half were wearing the Komets logo on whatever clothing they wore - hats, t-shirts, hoodies, and more. There a lot of teams who claim to have the best fans in the world, but seeing the devotion the Komets have from their fans was nothing short of mind-blowing. I felt out of place not wearing their colours, so I had to correct that by adding a t-shirt to my wardrobe! Consider me a Komets fan now!

Overall, I'm definitely going to another ECHL game if and when I get the chance. The price point is easy to justify, the atmosphere was so much fun in Fort Wayne, the fans were passionate and knowledgeable about their team, and the game itself was solid entertainment as the teams went back and forth before finally finding a winner in overtime. Yes, I realize that not every night at an ECHL rink will be like this, but I'm willing to bet more are like this than less and that would make me a fan in quick order!

For my first ECHL game, I feel like I picked a beauty of a night to experience the action as the Fort Wayne Komets put on a show despite the Florida Everblades coming away with the win!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 636

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, returns tonight with our hosts still not in the studio as Teebz is still criss-crossing the continent. That being said, the show tonight is happening on American Thanksgiving so there may be less US-based listeners than we normally get, but we do want to say Happy Thanksgiving! Of course, that means tomorrow is Black Friday which means the Christmas holiday season unofficially gets underway! We'll start with a new Christmas tune before getting into all the hockey news tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Perhaps there will be some in the United States who put The Hockey Show on while enjoying some turkey this evening, but Teebz and Jason tackle why U SPORTS can't do what junior hockey does for game experience, what Teebz has been up to on his travels, Paul Bissonnette's night out in Phoenix, Jim Montgomery winning and the Bruins still floundering, the New York Rangers making their roster available for the right price, Brandon gets some bad news, Hockey Canada prepares for the Spengler Cup, Gabriel Gagne's legal problems, and Hockey Canada letting U SPORTS down once again. It's a busy show with a number of topics covered, so make sure you're ready to go tonight for The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

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

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

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat about hockey experiences, scraps in parking lots, Boston's missteps, Rangers being available, the Wheat Kings refocusing, Hockey Canada news, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: November 28, 2024: Episode 636

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Long Overdue

For years, there has been a void in the sports world in Winnipeg when it came to the Bisons being a viable source of entertainment while being a premiere destination for athletes to study and compete. Anyone who denies that the Bisons are an afterthought in the city or across the province clearly hasn't been to an event at the university where, in most cases, great seats are always available. That may begin to change in the near future, though, thanks to an email sent in late October that announced that the university was beginning a "major initiative to re-evaluate its sports and recreation brands, including the Bisons". If we're being honest, this was long overdue.

According to a report in The Manitoban by Taycie Adeoti, "the review process will assess the relevance of the sports and recreation brands to today's students and the university's community, while ensuring alignment with the institutional brand introduced in 2019". You may be wondering what this will entail, but Dr. Douglas Brown, dean of the faculty of kinesiology and recreation management, made it very clear that the Bisons logo and brand would not be going away.

"We are not changing the brand," Dr. Brown told Adeoti. "You can't simply change a brand, overnight, so we're really viewing this as a sort of an exploration of how impactful our current branding is. I don't want people to be confused that the Bison logo is the brand — the brand is about the people, the values and about what we do."

I fully agree and support this idea as I don't think the University of Manitoba needs a dramatic overhaul of its logo nor it branding, but there should be a review of how far the Bisons logo reaches within the community. This is vital for the health of the varsity athletic programs when it comes to attracting fans, donors, and sponsors as well as making connections within the community and with alumni.

Brown expressed thoughts on this, though, stating, "[I]f there are adaptations or changes to the current logo or other symbols associated with it — I'd like it to make sense within the context of what the university is doing as a whole."

Again, the image of the Bisons logo isn't the problem here. It's the efforts, or lack thereof, to be part of the community and the failure to honour alumni for their commitments to the school where this program has fallen short so many times. When was the last time an alumna was honoured prior to a game for length of service? When was the last time the Bisons honoured a distinctive alumna by honouring or retiring the number he or she wore? When's the last time the Bisons have gone out to practices in the city and spent time with some of the younger athletes?

I'm not saying the Bisons don't do good charitable work already, but there's always a question of doing more, especially when it comes to attracting more people to come to their games. The problem, though, is there is almost zero connection for most people when it comes to knowing athletes or team staff, so selling tickets is hard. There's also zero sponsors for the team when you look around Wayne Fleming Arena, and we know that sponsors often get tickets they can distribute. This is where a strong media strategy would be necessary, but it seems Dr. Brown is looking in a different direction when it comes to this "re-evaluation".

"I'd like students to go, 'I love the way the University of Manitoba is being represented,'" he stated. "'I love this, or I love that, or I feel connected to this.'"

Considering that students have free admission to games and not many of them use that benefit, I'm not certain any of them "feel connected" to the logo. Some will certainly take pride in being a student at the school, but that's not reflected in any of the athletic programs or recreation programs. There needs to be a reason to come down to the stadium or arena, and it's been very clear for a number of years that the university isn't giving its students a reason to spend a few evenings watching the Bisons.

When asked by Adeoti how this re-evaluation will measure success, Dr. Brown responded, "[I]t will be a measure that we get from the community, people who are either thumbs up, 'we like that,' or 'we don't get it,' or ambivalence. I think the worst thing would be ambivalence, that people [have] no reaction. It's hard to work with ambivalence."

The ambivalence is the entire problem with this re-evaluation because that feeling of apathy towards the Bisons has existed for years. We can talk about the 2018 National Women's Hockey Championship captured by the Bisons, but crowds only increased when the Bisons were winning in the playoffs and media outlets were talking about them. The following season saw them back to the regular crowd sizes of 250 people per game as the media completely forgot about them. Talking about the team and having them on TV and radio made a huge difference when it came to reducing the ambivalence about which Dr. Brown is speaking.

I respect this re-evaluation for trying to ensure that the Bisons brand and logo evolves alongside the university's logo and brand, but the depth to which the brand permeates the market is surface deep. That won't change until more people are talking about the Bisons, and that comes with media coverage, volunteerism, and student engagement. None of that happens currently, so the ambivalence will certainly be in the results that Dr. Brown receives.

Until the university wants to address its lack of presence in the city, I feel like this re-evaluation will reveal that people don't feel connected to the Bisons in any meaningful way. That's a shame considering all the talent that Bisons Athletics boasts, but it's never been a priority in the past, and it seems even less of a priority today.

This re-evaluation was long overdue, but it ultimately misses the larger problems when it comes to the brand and logo: people know the Bisons, but do they care about the Bisons?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

An Invalid Offer Sheet?

The image to the left is one that I mocked up, that picture shows longtime Edmonton Oilers forward Craig Simpson as a San Jose Shark. You migh be wondering why I would spend any time doing that, but I was looking up some info on Oilers of the 1980s and Simpson's Wikipedia page had a whole paragraph about the San Jose Sharks giving him an offer sheet in 1993. Of course, Simpson ended up playing in Buffalo in 1993 after the Oilers traded him there, but it was San Jose who kicked off the war for the rights to Craig Simpson only to have the NHL - specifically Gary Bettman - declare that the offer sheet was invalid due to how it was structured. With all the weirdly-structured deals we see now, how much crazy was San Jose's offer that Simpson accepted?

Simpson's Wikipedia article has incorrect information on how Simpson became a free agent. The Oilers were required to offer him a 15% raise on his previous contract's salary of $690,000 in order to keep his rights and they refused to do so. Because they didn't honour the contract's required raise, Simpson declared himself a free agent and would listen to any offer from any team. The NHL and Edmonton weren't convinced that Simpson was a legitimate free agent, but San Jose stepped in with an offer sheet for $3.09 million over three years on July 15, 1993, leaving Edmonton to match their offer.

Being the savvy GM that he was, Glen Sather demanded compensation for San Jose signing away one of the Oilers' better forwards, but San Jose basically told him to kick rocks because Simpson was being paid the league's minimum salary amount of $130,000 for each of the years he would play for the Sharks. The vast majority of the money of the $3.09 million was to be paid as a signing bonus as he'd receive $2.7 million just for wearing the jersey. As Sather dug into San Jose's contract offer to Simpson, he became incensed at losing Simpson for nothing.

Sather's next step was to file a complaint with the NHL about how this signing bonus basically made the contract worthless which went outside the spirit of the offer sheet rules. The NHL began an investigation into the contract that pitted the Sharks, Simpson, and the NHLPA on one side as they all felt the contract was valid as per the CBA rules while the NHL and the other 23 GMs and teams argued that the Sharks purposely structured the contract so that Edmonton would receive no compensation.

The Sharks even drew ire from one NHL GM who decided to call out the Sharks for their offer sheet. New York Rangers general manager Neil Smith sent an open letter that was copied to every other NHL GM about the offer sheet which only added more gasoline to the fire. As The Hockey News reported, Sharks' director of player personnel Chuck Grillo "said Smith 'needs a good kick in the ass' while kindly offering to fulfill that need personally". Clearly, the NHL needed a resolution on this matter before things got worse, and, after eleven days, the investigation finally concluded.

We go to Tuesday, July 27, 1993's edition of the Medicine Hat News.

As per NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, the Sharks' offer sheet needed to include the signing bonus as part of the total AAV when it came to compensation. Therefore, the offer sheet is invalid as per the Commissioner, and Craig Simpson still remained somewhat tied to the Edmonton Oilers despite his claims of being a free agent.

Obviously, Craig Simpson wasn't on Glen Sather's Christmas card list any longer, and there were rumours that the Buffalo Sabres were going to follow San Jose's lead by offer sheeting Simpson after Bettman's ruling. Not wanting to risk another offer sheet fiasco, Sather just pulled the trigger on a trade with Buffalo, sending Simpson to the Sabres in exchange for Slovakian forward Jozef Cierny and future considerations. Those future considerations eventually became a 1994 fourth-round pick which Edmonton used to select Finnish forward Jussi Tarvainen at 95th-overall.

Just for fun, the Sharks were busy with offer sheets in the summer of 1993 as the day after offering a contract to Simpson, the Sharks went ahead and offer-sheeted Kelly Miller of the Washington Capitals. Wisely, "San Jose would not disclose the dollar amount or the length of time of the offer, other than to confirm that it was a multi-year bid", but it The Washington Post was certain he was going to more-than-double his $450,000 contract in 1992.

There was far less drama in this battle over Miller as the Washington Capitals would match San Jose's offer sheet and re-sign Miller. From The Washington Post's reporting, "According to the Capitals, San Jose offered Miller a $1 million signing bonus, an $800,000 salary for the first season and $850,000 for the second season," so Miller got a sizable raise from his $450,000 salary. Needless to say, the Sharks missed on both players they aimed to sign in the summer of 1993.

I hadn't seen an "invalid offer sheet" before, but there's a little history on one as Craig Simpson was almost a San Jose Sharks forward before that offer sheet was killed and he was traded to Buffalo. Would that have made a difference in their season?

Well, they did add some considerable talent as Sergei Makarov, Todd Elik, Igor Larionov, Ulf Dahlen, and Jimmy Waite all donned the teal while Arturs Irbe became the starter for the Sharks. They had one of the biggest upsets in the playoffs when they knocked off the Detroit Red Wings in seven games that spring, but would Simpson and Miller have helped them get past the Toronto Maple Leafs?

Maybe in an alternate universe, they did. But not in this one.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Denied In Florida

It may be hard to believe, but Sunrise, Florida may never have had the Florida Panthers had an ownership group convinced the AHL that their community was the right place for an AHL affiliate. In the league's history, there have only been two seasons where they've had a team in Florida, so there isn't a long history of AHL hockey anywhere in the state. However, an ownership group with an affiliation possibility approached the league for a team to potentially be put in Dania, Florida, just 25 miles southeast of Sunrise, the eventual expansion home of the NHL's Florida Panthers.

Historically, the only time that the AHL has called Florida home was 1972-74 when the Jacksonville Barons played there. Nick Mileti, owner of the WHA's Cleveland Barons, decided to move the AHL team of the same name that he owned to a new city after determining that Cleveland could only support one hockey team.

Mileti originally wanted to fold the AHL team, but he was stopped by the development agreement he had with the Minnesota North Stars. After landing on Lewiston, Maine as the potential new home for the Barons, the AHL stopped in at the urging of the NHL and voted this relocation down. Mileti turned to Jacksonville, and he convinced the AHL to vote for this relocation after he promise to pay for the costs of the teams that travelled to Jacksonville.

In the summer of 1971, though, Recreation Inc. approached the AHL with the desire to own an AHL franchise after coming to some sort of agreement to be the affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres who were founded in 1970. There was no mention if the team would be based in Dania, Florida per se, but one has to imagine that the group would want its AHL team near to where its ownership lives and does business. Dania is right near Miami and Fort Lauderdale, so either of those cities could have been the landing spot for this team, but it was never clear as to where exactly this team would play.

By June 11, 1971, the AHL had reviewed the application and decided that they weren't awarding an expansion franchise to that group for the following season. It might have been for the best because there were a pile of changes coming down the pipe that the AHL needed to manage including adding three expansion teams that had already been approved and two team relocations that saw the AHL reduced to one Canadian team. Having an eleventh team so far away from the ten teams that existed would have been difficult at best.

Of the changes that the AHL went through that summer, they added the Boston Braves, the Cincinnati Swords, and the Tidewater Wings (Norfolk, Virginia) as expansion teams while the Quebec Aces moved to Richmond, Virginia to become the Richmond Robins, and the Montreal Voyageurs moved east to Halifax where they became the Halifax Voyageurs. Needless to say, five teams in new cities would be a huge task for any league to coordinate, but the AHL somehow made it happen for the 1971-72 season.

Would we have seen a "Florida Panthers" in the AHL if the expansion bid had been successful? It's hard to say considering that the WHA tried to establish the Miami Screaming Eagles in 1972, so maybe we'd be talking about the AHL Miami Screaming Eagles instead. I can't say if Herb Martin, owner of the WHA franchise, was involved in the Recreation Inc. ownership group, but I do know that there was an expansion proposal that looked to establish an AHL likely in Florida!

The Sunrise Scimitars? That could have been the AHL affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres in 1971 had expansion occurred!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Rundown - Week 8

I may be in a non-Canada West province, but the games were still worth checking out despite me being a long way away from where they were being played. UBC had the weekend off after being the only team to hit 14 games through the first seven weeks, so they may have felt they deserved a break. Nonetheless, eight other teams were back at it this week as teams looked to improve their standings while the top team sat idle. Let's get to this week's hockey action as I tuned in from afar in a different time zone here on The Rundown!

FRIDAY: We'll start in southern Saskatchewan where this weekend series featured two teams moving in different directions as the Regina Cougars were hosting the MacEwan Griffins. One win this weekend would see Regina match their total wins from last season while surpassing their point total from last year as well. MacEwan, meanwhile, was looking to score three goals for the first time in regulation play this season as they looked to double their win total. Only one of these things would happen on Friday, but there aren't any highlights of this contest because Regina doesn't believe in them. The scoring summary for this one is below.

Cougars goals: Tessa Stewart (1), Kaylee Dyer (2), Lauren Focht (2), Paige Hubbard (5), Megan Long (2)
Cougars assists: Kaitlyn Gilroy (1), Raea Gilroy (1), Megan Long (2), Pippy Pritchard (2), Cassidy Peters (2), Shaylee Scraba (4), Julianne Girardin (2), Kaitlyn Gilroy (2)
Cougars netminder: Arden Kliewer (14/16)

Griffins goals: Ali Macauley (1), Allee Isley (2)
Griffins assists: Robyn Short (2), Jennifer Andrash (4), Kori Paterson (4), Ali Macauley (3)
Griffins netminder: Lindsey Johnson (31/35)

Result: 5-2 victory for Regina over MacEwan.

SATURDAY: MacEwan recorded a 1-0 win in Regina on January 27 last season and are 2-3 in Regina all-time, so it's not like they haven't had some success in the Cougars' den. Getting more than 16 shots on net would help if they shoot like they did on Friday. Regina was looking to push their win streak to two games as they looked to remain in the hunt for top spot of Canada West's East Division. Again, no highlights of the great things happening on the ice, so here's the scoring summary once more.

Cougars goals: Tessa Stewart (2)
Cougars assists: Shaylee Scraba (5), Olivia Leggett (1)
Cougars shootout scorers: Cassidy Peters
Cougars netminder: Natalie Williamson (24/25)

Griffins goals: Kori Paterson (2)
Griffins assists: Claire Hobbs (1), Tess Collier (2)
Griffins shootout scorers: Claire Hobbs, Jennifer Andrash
Griffins netminder: Brianna Sank (20/21)

Result: 2-1 shootout victory for MacEwan over Regina.

FRIDAY: Mount Royal headed west to Langley where the Trinity Western Spartans were waiting as this weekend series had all sorts of intrigue thanks to the Spartans' win streak which put them within striking distance of the Cougars. Of course, that streak would have to continue if they were to catch the Cougars, and Mount Royal was a perfect 11-0 in regular season play against Trinity Western. One streak would fall tonight - which would it be? I'd like to show you, but Trinity Western only does their own goal highlights which isn't good enough. The scoring summary will have to suffice.

Spartans goals: Chayce Kullman (1), Charlotte Swanton (3)
Spartans assists: Kasey Ditner (6), Kara Yackel (4), Kasey Ditner (7)
Spartans netminder: Kate Fawcett (19/21)

Cougars goals: Jordyn Hutt (4), Aliya Jomha (7), Allee Gerrard (2)
Cougars assists: Abigail Borbandy (3), Lyvia Butz (2), Jori Hansen-Young (5), Sydney Benko (5)
Cougars netminder: Kaitlyn Ross (22/24)

Result: 3-2 victory for Mount Royal over Trinity Western.

SATURDAY: The gap between Mount Royal and Trinity Western was wide enough that there was no danger of the Cougars getting bumped from their spot, but the Cougars were looking to move within a point of top spot in the West Division. Trinity Western needed the split to keep Mount Royal from opening a wide gap prior to the December break, so this one was all set for intensity between these two teams. I've linked Trinity Western's personal highlights here again, but the scoring summary is the full story.

Spartans goals: Kelsey Ledoux (2)
Spartans assists: Kyra McDonald (4), Jordyn Matthews (2)
Spartans netminder: Mabel Maltais (29/31)

Cougars goals: Lyndsey Janes (4), Lyndsey Janes (5)
Cougars assists: Alexandria Spence (3), Dara Thompson (4)
Cougars netminder: Katherine Holan (23/24)

Result: 2-1 victory for Mount Royal over Trinity Western.

FRIDAY: After Manitoba rallied to split with the Mount Royal Cougars last week, one would hope the Bisons could keep the good times rolling with a home sweep of the other Calgary team this week as the Dinos visited Winnipeg. Calgary came to Winnipeg after pulling off their own magic against UBC, so they were looking to keep thr winning going as well. If there's one thing I've learned, the good teams win consistently so both were hunting for wins. Again, no highlights because Manitoba is allergic to showing the world its talent, so here's the scoring summary for this one.

Bisons goals: Rachel Gottfried (2), Brenna Nicol (1), Aimee Patrick (4)
Bisons assists: Aimee Patrick (4), Camille Enns (3)
Bisons netminder: Paige Fischer (17/18)

Dinos goals: Josie McLeod (2)
Dinos assists: Emma Tait (2), Kate Wagner (2)
Dinos netminder: Amelia Awad (23/26)

Result: 3-1 victory for Manitoba over Calgary.

SATURDAY: With everyone above them winning on Friday, Manitoba needed to find the sweep this weekend if they wanted to keep pace and/or put the pressure on Alberta and Regina since they still have two games in-hand. Calgary needed to find the split so they could leap past Trinity Western and force them to chase again. Because highlights are as rare as shooting stars in these parts, you're stuck with the scoring summary.

Bisons goals: Aimee Patrick (5), Julia Bird (3), Norah Collins (7), Norah Collins (8)
Bisons assists: Dana Goertzen (3), Louise Fergusson (3), Camille Enns (4), Evangeline Hill (1), Seanna Price (1), Ashley Keller (4), Aimee Patrick (5)
Bisons netminder: Emily Shippam (21/22)

Dinos goals: Rebecca Clarke (4)
Dinos assists: Emma Tait (3)
Dinos netminder: Amelia Awad (35/39)

Result: 4-1 victory for Manitoba over Calgary.

FRIDAY: The Huskies needed a win this season, but seem to keep coming up short despite them being in a number of games. While they've brought home four extra-time points, they were looking to get two regulation-time points on Friday as the Alberta Pandas visited Saskatoon. The Pandas rolled in on a four-game winning streak, and they had no interest in helping the Huskies get off their winless streak. I'd be happy to post highlights, but the Huskies opted for the text-only plan this season. Here's the scoring summary.

Huskies goals: none
Huskies assists: none
Huskies netminder: Emma Backman (33/35)

Pandas goals: Madison Willan (2), Brooklyn Tews (2), Maia Ehmann (5)
Pandas assists: Jadynn Morden (4), Izzy Lajoie (4), Sara Kazeil (7), Izzy Lajoie (5)
Pandas netminder: Grace Glover (14/14)

Result: 3-0 victory for Alberta over Saskatchewan.

SATURDAY: The Alberta Pandas haven't officially clinched a playoff spot yet, but it seems almost inevitable as they picked up their 20th point on Friday. Saskatchewan's young team is learning valuable lessons as they battle good teams, but they desperately need that first win to start building on the positives. Zero highlights means nothing to post here except the scoring summary.

Huskies goals: McKenna Bolger (1)
Huskies assists: Bronwyn Boucher (3), Jayde Cadieux (3)
Huskies netminder: Colby Wilson (31/33)

Pandas goals: Holly Magnus (1), Jadynn Morden (4)
Pandas assists: Chayse Melnyk (1), Abby Soyko (2), Payton Laumbach (4)
Pandas netminder: Misty Rey (11/12)

Result: 2-1 victory for Alberta over Saskatchewan.

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

CANADA WEST WOMEN'S HOCKEY

School	Record	Points	GF	GA	Streak	Next
UBC	9-2-2-1	23	43	22	L1	@ MAN
Mount Royal	9-2-1-2	22	38	20	W2	@ ALB
Alberta	8-3-3-0	22	33	16	W6	vs MRU
Regina	3-3-4-4	18	23	27	L1	BYE
Manitoba	6-3-2-1	17	29	21	W3	vs UBC
Trinity Western	6-7-1-0	14	29	25	L2	vs CAL
Calgary	5-6-1-2	14	30	34	L2	@ TWU
MacEwan	0-10-2-2	6	12	46	W1	vs SAS
Saskatchewan	0-10-0-4	4	14	40	L14	@ MAC

Honour Roll

Each week on The Rundown, I highlight the best performances from the weekend's games. It won't always be the top scorer or the best goalie, but I'll have a reason for who gets picked each week. This week's Honour Roll candidate will be a player who set the new standard for standing in the blue paint for her school as MacEwan Griffins netminder Brianna Sank adds her name to the list!

I know things haven't gone so well this season or even in the last couple of seasons when one considers how often the Griffins won in the ACAC, but consider this: since 2021-22 when the Griffins joined Canada West, Sank has 15 of the 19 wins that MacEwan has recorded in Canada West play. In her sixty games, she faces an average of 31 shots per game, yet she still has a .907 save percentage and four shutouts. There are no quiet nights in the net for Sank - she has to be on her game to give MacEwan a chance.

On Saturday at the 3:04 mark of the first period in Regina, the Ardrossan, Alberta netminder broke Sandy Heim's program record for minutes logged in the blue paint. Heim recorded 4184:11 in the crease for MacEwan, but the new program leader is Brianna Sank as she picked up her fifteenth win in Canada West with the shootout win on Saturday. Playing in over 4200 minutes as well as she has is how Brianna Sank added her name to the Honour Roll!

Shameless (Self)Promotion

We're back this week with another interview from The Hockey Show featuring a specific Canada West personality. As stated, Canada West hockey is more than just hockey; it's joining a new school, finding new friends, discovering one's passions, and playing a little puck. On The Hockey Show, we talk about all this cool stuff going on in athletes' lives, so let's introduce you to another great person!

We're going to continue the MacEwan theme this week as we introduce you to the woman who led the Griffins into Canada West in former head coach Lindsay McAlpine who is now MacEwan University's associate director of athletics. Before she got the promotion to the big office, Lindsay was at home behind the bench as she helped MacEwan find all sorts of success in the ACAC, but her own hockey career saw her play on one of the most dominant women's university teams on either side of the border as she skated with the Alberta Pandas during their incredible run at the turn of the millennium. Lindsay had an incredible hockey career that's almost unbelievable if we hadn't talked, and she was incredibly proud of the Griffins joining Canada West after the success they had in the ACAC. This interview is from April 2, 2020 so a few things may have changed, but one thing that has remained the same throughout the course of time is that Lindsay McAlpine is a fantastic person! Enjoy the chat!

Checking Out The Competition

I'll be at a hockey game today, and at least one of the two teams I'll be watching will be playing in Nationals in Kitchener, Ontario this March. The York Lions are hosting the Waterloo Warriors, and I'll be doing a little pre-Nationals scouting on Waterloo to see just how good they are. Waterloo lost in the bronze medal game to the Montreal Carabins last season in Saskatoon, so I'm curious to see how they've improved or changed since experiencing Nationals for the first time.

Of course, they're hosting the tournament this season, so they better be ready for the intensity that comes their way. Waterloo is in first-place in the OUA West Division with an 8-2 record, and they are the conference's highest-scoring team at 43 goals. That should improve today if they continue to play well as they meet York for the first time this season. Led by Carly Orth's 16 points and Leah Herrfort's 13 points, the Warriors are a solid team that should fare well at Nationals once again.

York, however, has its work cut out for it after starting the season with a 4-7 record. They are the lowest-scoring team in the conference with 19 goals, but they're also one of the conference's best defensive teams, surrendering just 28 goals. Emma Wedgewood hasn't stolen games like she did in last season's playoffs, though, and York leading scorer in Alexa Giantsopoulos is tied for 34th-overall in scoring with seven points. She's the only player with more than two goals on York's roster this season, so York needs a big effort today.

I'll have more on this game next week on The Rundown!

Major Credit Is Due

It might be time to remove the "interim" tag on Regina coach Brandy West-McMaster. For someone who had to step in quickly after Sarah Hodges left, West-McMaster is showing that she's just as good behind the bench as she was on the ice the for Cougars. I don't know if anyone would have predicted this turnaround for the Cougars, but they're in a pretty impressive position right now.

Regina's 18 points is the most for that program since 2019-20 when they had 38 points for the whole season. They equalled the 2021-22 season's total of 18 points in 20 games, but West-McMaster has them at 18 points in 14 games. While there's still a pile of games to be played, it seems almost impossible for the Cougars not to post their best season in five years this season, and Brandy West-McMaster has been a big part of that.

We can talk about the job that Graham Thomas and Scott Rivett are doing once more, and Howie Draper's return to the Alberta bench meant that the Pandas would be a machine once again. If you had asked anyone if they foresaw the Cougars being where they are at this point in the season, I think you'd get a "no" every single time. While Jordy Zacharias has done a wonderful job with Manitoba, it's hard to not look at Brandy West-McMaster as the early favorite to be named as the Canada West Coach of the Year.

There's still a lot of time in the season, but Brandy West-McMaster has earned that accolade by having the Cougars play some opportunistic hockey. And based on the Canada West standings, it seems almost certain the Cougars are heading back to the playoffs!

The Last Word

There are some big games next week when it comes to playoff opportunities. Regina is off so they get to watch, but the other eight teams are what could playoff previews for February! Who doesn't like those series for the final weekend of November?

UBC is in Winnipeg to play Manitoba, and that could be a crossover series that could happen. Mount Royal and Alberta will meet in a home-and-home series, and that could also be a crossover series that could happen. Both of those series could be considered "prove it" series when it comes to which teams are serious about making a run for the banner. It should be fun watching those four games.

The Calgary-Trinity Western battle out in Langley could very well determine the fate of one team's season based on results. Both teams are tied with 14 points, but Trinity Western holds the tie-breaker due to having one more regulation win right now. There's no second-place for these two teams as one of the two will miss the playoffs, so this series could have lasting effects on the rest of the season.

Even the MacEwan-Saskatchewan series in Edmonton will be interesting to watch. Both teams need wins, but this series might be more about pride than it is about the playoffs. Both MacEwan and Saskatchewan will need minor miracles to get back into the playoff race, but wins build confidence and positives can be found. Both teams need large helpings of confidence and positives, so their series next week could help in that regard.

We don't normally get playoff hockey in November, but the Canada West schedule seems to have delivered that this season. With two weeks left in the first half of the season, there's no better time to check out the action in Canada West women's hockey!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The First OHL Game

Friday night was the first time I have ever set foot inside an arena to watch an OHL game. No, I didn't arrive early enough to get a denim hat as there had to be about 4000 people already at the arena at 6pm when I arrived, but I was treated to a heck of a hockey game between the visiting Guelph Storm and the Sudbury Wolves! Both sides have a few NHL prospects that they can boast, but none of them seem to be on a fast-track to The Show, so I was hoping we might see some dangles from the guys who are trying to work their way up depth charts and from guys who want to be on depth charts. Let's find out what I saw!

The first thing I noticed during warmups was Guelph backup netminder Colin Ellsworth thanks to the number he was wearing. As seen to the right, Ellsworth wears #55 for the Storm which, from my research, has been worn by two NHL goalies: Ken Appleby with Devils in 2018 and Felix Potvin with the Islanders in 1999. With Ellsworth being a rookie, he still has lots of time to impress an NHL team if he's hoping to be drafted, but he could be the third goalie to wear #55 in the NHL if he continues to wear that non-goalie number by traditional hockey standards. Kind of cool, right? And just as a note, please excuse the photo as my iPhone kept focusing on the netting, not Ellsworth. Sometimes, technology works against me.

As the game got underway, it was clear that the Wolves were the more aggressive team as they peppered Guelph's Brayden Gillespie with shots. That would pay off midway through the period when Winnipeg Jets prospect Kieron Walton picked the pocket of a defender, skated in on a partial breakaway, and dented twine!
Walton looked dangerous on this night, and it wouldn't be the last time his name is announced over the public address system. For those wondering, the Jets drafted Walton 187th-overall in the sixth round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, but he looked like he should have gone much higher with his play tonight. Again, it's just one game, but colour me impressed with how he played.

We'd get a second Wolves at the 15:47 mark when undrafted Luca Blonda used some speed down the wing before throwing a quick, high shot at the net that got inside the far post to make it a 2-0 game. And just to cap off an entertaining first period, I was treated to the new OHL rule where players who fight are given the rest of the game off as Washington Capitals prospect Cam Allen dropped the mitts with Seattle Kraken prospect Nathan Villeneuve, and Villeneuve had the home crowd on its feet as he landed a big punch that wobbled Allen before the linesmen jumped into the fray. Needless to say, it was a happy crowd through one period as Sudbury led 2-0.

It was a bit of a different period in the middle frame as Guelph turned up the intensity, but Wolves netminder Nate Krawchuk stood his ground. It would take a power-play later in the frame for the Storm to finally solve Krawchuk as 6'6" Vancouver Canucks prospect Vilmer Alriksson finished off a gorgeous goalmouth pass from Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jett Luchanko at 14:12 to cut the deficit to one. That lead would evaporate three minutes later when Quinn Beauchesne threw a puck at the net that somehow found a seam through Krawchuk to get into the net, and we'd have a 2-2 game at 17:43. However, the Wolves marched back down the ice where Alex Pharand chipped a rebound off Ethan Dean's shot past Gillespie at 18:45, and the Wolves carried the 3-2 lead into the third period!

The Wolves continued to pressure the Storm in the third period as they looked for more, and it was clear that time was becoming the enemy of the Storm. About seven minutes into the frame, though, there was a prolonged stoppage as Brayden Gillespie needed his helmet fixed or adjusted which drew the ire of the referee who, after a couple of minutes, told the Guelph bench to either swap goalies or give Gillespie a mask so he could continue. Ellsworth handed Gillespie his mask so Gillespie could return to the crease, but one had to wonder if it would affect Gillespie since the cage was different and Ellsworth's mask wasn't adjusted for Gillespie's head.

From my vantage point, the Wolves got a few shots away on a rush where it looked like Gillespie was fighting to see the puck clearly, possibly due to the different cage configuration. A couple of minutes after the mask swap, Gillespie had it resting on top of his head once more as he fished the puck out of the net for a fourth time.
Kieron Walton hammers home the one-timer off the feed from Kocha Delic at 9:48 for his second goal of the game, and the Wolves went ahead by a 4-2 score. While there was still ten minutes to play and Guelph has scored two goals in 3:31 earlier, would this lead hold up?

The answer was a resounding "yes" as Guelph opted to pull Gillespie while on the power-play with five minutes to play, and it would be Quentin Musty who found the back of the vacant Storm net with a shot at 17:03 to make it 5-2. Just for good measure, Alex Pharand scored his second goal of the game as he one-timed a great centering pass from Wilton who was behind the net, and that goal with 28 seconds to play put the icing on a 6-2 victory for the Sudbury Wolves!

Take nothing away from the crowd of 4258 who showed up to cheer on the Wolves and sounded more like 8000 fans when the Wolves added to their total on the scoreboard. They were loud, they were raucous, and they made sure the Wolves knew they appreciated the effort. With a large number of fans in their denim hats and their Wolves jerseys, it was hard not to be impressed with the turnout on Friday night. Sudbury gets a solid thumbs-up!

For me, it was a fun time at my first OHL game. I would like to suggest that the Wolves introduce their fans to honey dill sauce for the chicken fingers they serve because the plum sauce they gave me just isn't the same. I know honey dill sauce is a Manitoba thing, but it could be a distinctly Sudbury thing if fans took to it. Of course, they may not embrace it like Manitobans have, but I'm just making a suggestion that likely will never come to light.

If you happen to get to a game, the Sudbury Community Arena looks and feels old from the outside, but there's some charm and history in those four walls as you start walking around the concourse. For example, there's a picture of Queen Elizabeth II on one wall like the Winnipeg Jets once had. There's a stuffed wolf that is sent out over the north part of the ice via a suspended wire when the Wolves score, and I found it more creepy than charming. There weren't any food or beverage selections that made one want to come back to the rink, but the food and drink served was certainly good enough for a hockey game. The banners hung from the ceiling show history from 1932 through to today, but there are only a handful of them.

None of the above paragraph took anything away from the action on the ice or the result, though, and the total for the night cost me less than $50 for my ticket, parking, and dinner. Frankly, that's a heckuva deal, and I hope people realize that junior hockey is still entirely affordable compared to other leagues. If you were to ask me if I'd go again, my answer would be a definite yes.

I didn't get a hat, but a win on a Friday night while watching a player who could be a future Winnipeg Jets forward have himself a night on the ice wasn't a bad way to close out the work week. I'll be working again today before hitting the road to my next destination, but my lone night in Sudbury was definitely worth it!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Sudbury: A Green And Gold City?

When shopping online for hockey jerseys through various auction sites, there's always a "caveat emptor" feeling that one should have. The number of fake jerseys that are seen online outnumber the authentics exponentially, and today's jersey to the left felt like one of those jerseys. Of course, that photo comes from a legitimate auction house in Classic Auctions, but my first thought when I saw this photo was that this was some beer league jersey using the Sudbury Wolves' logo. As I found out, this is the 1986-87 jersey worn by Paul DiPietro during his time with the OHL club!

The history of the green Sudbury Wolves begins before the OHL team was in the Ontario city as Sudbury won the Gordon Cup in 1915 while wearing white and green sweaters. The prevailing thought is that those sweaters were worn as some of the players on that championship team were on a local club with the same colour scheme according to Scott Miller, author of Leading the Pack: 50 Years of Sudbury Wolves History. With the victory of the top championship trophy in Ontario, Sudbury teams, specifically Wolves teams, began wearing green for high-level games and tournaments.

What isn't mentioned above is that the Wolves earned berths in Allan Cups, Dominion Junior Hockey Championships, winter carnival exhibitions, and world championships. That last one might be more surprising to people, but the Wolves represented Canada on the international stage in 1938 at the World Ice Hockey Championship in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Fourteen teams participated in this World Championship with rounds reducing the number of teams participating at each stage. Canada/Sudbury would win their preliminary pool over Czechoslovakia, Sweden, and Austria before beating Germany and Hungary to set up the final pool.

Canada beat Germany (again) and Great Britain defeated Czechoslovakia to set up the gold medal final, and Canada/Sudbury used three first-period goals to pace themselves to a 3-1 over the British to claim Canada's tenth World Hockey Championship gold medal. The fun part of this story, though, is that the Sudbury team went on a European tour where they played teams from a number of countries. Starting January 1938, they toured Germany, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Austria, Belgium, England, and Scotland where they compiled a 19-2-5 record! The two games they lost were to the British team after the World Championship on March 8 and 10 when their trip was ending!

That wouldn't be the only time that the Sudbury Wolves skated under the "Canada" name as the Wolves competed at the 1949 World Hockey Championship in Stockholm, Sweden as Canada's entry into the event. They'd come home after finishing in second-place, but the boys in in green certainly showed the world that Canada was there to play, beating Denmark 47-0 and Austria 7-0 in the preliminary round. The round-robin saw Canada lose to Czechoslovkia and tie Sweden before hammering the US and Austria. They'd tie Switzerland in the final game, but it wasn't enough to catch Czechoslovakia who ended the round-robin portion with a 4-1-0 record.

It should be noted that there was some concern heading into the 1949 championship as the Wolves took some losses in Great Britain where they played exhibition games, but the Wolves found their game and won a few contests as the World Championship neared!

Of course, if you think that criticism of Canadian teams who go to the World Championship is a new thing, here's a newspaper article from 1949 that says this has been happening in Canada for decades!

Jokes aside, seeing the Wolves with one World Championship gold medal while appearing at two World Championships to its name is pretty cool! That legacy, though, was something that Bud Burke wanted to create when the OHL offered membership in their league. Ralph Connor, named as Team President, helped an interested Sudbury party to purchase the Niagara Falls Flyers from Leighton "Hap" Emms and move the team to Sudbury. On May 6, 1972, the OHA approved the sale from Emms to the group fronted by Bud Burke as the OHA's Sudbury Wolves would begin play in 1972-73 wearing the green and yellow to which hockey fans in Sudbury had become accustomed! Fans would see some amazing players don the green and gold including Randy Carlyle, Ron Duguay, Mike Foligno, Don Beaupre, Pat Verbeek, and Jeff Brown, but success would elude the Wolves as they never brought home a Memorial Cup nor a J. Ross Robertson Cup.

Of course, the green-and-yellow colour scheme made these early Wolves a favorite of Uni Watch founder Paul Lukas, but the green jerseys would be retired in the 1988-89 season for the current blue-white-and-gray look that the OHL's Sudbury Wolves wear. It was Ken Burgess, who owned the OHL team in 1988, who once asked, "Who ever heard of a green wolf?" before changing the Wolves' colours to a similar scheme as his Burgess Power Train and Manufacturing company, now known as Burgess-Norton Manufacturing. Since the change, there have been some smaller modifications made to the jerseys, but the blue colour scheme has stayed intact.

It's pretty cool to know that Sudbury, Ontario has a long history with a colour scheme other than the one they currently wear, and it almost feels like the current OHL Wolves should honour that history with an alternate jersey that pays homage to its own history as well as the hockey history of the city. Of course, the green-and-gold colour scheme makes complete sense with the 1939 Sudbury Wolves winning the World Championship gold medal while wearing green, but who am I to demand any team honour the history of its city? That would almost make too much sense.

They wore green and they brought home gold - it sure sounds like Sudbury had the right colours through their history!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 635

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, returns tonight with our hosts outside of the studio. With Teebz on a cross-Canada work tour, the boys settled into a recording on Wednesday night to get the hockey chatter going. Everything is relevant from the last week of hockey news and action, but anything that happens on Thursday may be included next week. Last week's news will get the full hour of attention from our hosts, and that all goes down tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight on the program, Teebz and Jason will discuss why the firing of Jim Montgomery was the wrong move to make for the Bruins, some new broadcast partners and rules in the PWHL, the Champions Hockey League having their quarterfinalists, Utah being the best-selling team for merchandise ever, and we touch on the 16-3 Winnipeg Jets who will finish the month on the road. As always, our hosts will do their best at breaking down these stories and whatever else comes up tonight so you have the latest on what's happening in hockey! Get your audio device set up tonight for The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

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

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

Tonight, Teebz and Jason talk the mess the Bruins are in, the offence the PWHL is creating, the elite eight in Europe, the dollar signs in Salt Lake City, the Jets flying high, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: November 21, 2024: Episode 635

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Asterisked Championship?

It should be no surprise that if someone mentions Sault Ste. Marie, the first hockey team that comes to mind is the OHL's Soo Greyhounds. Based on their longevity in the city, that's completely understandable, but there is another team that plays in Sault Ste. Marie despite them being in another country. As you may know, Sault Ste. Marie straddles the Canada-US border, so half of the city resides in Michigan rather than Ontario. That's where the NCAA's Lake Superior State University Lakers call home, and the Lakers have put their name on the hockey map a few times thanks to winning the NCAA National Men's Hockey Championship!

From their website, the Lakers play in Taffy Abel Arena, a 4000-seat rink with a 200x85-foot ice surface. Taffy Abel was established in 1976, and, in 1995, the arena was renovated to its current size which happened after Laker Hockey won their fifth National Championship. It was named after American ice hockey player Clarence "Taffy" Abel who was born in Sault Ste. Marie. It is the only on-campus hockey arena in the United States which has a seating capacity greater than the enrollment of the school for which it's used, and the arena serves a number of purposes in the community including hosting youth hockey games and practices, community events, and summer camps.

You may have noticed that little detail above where it says "fifth National Championship". That is factual as the Lakers own the 1972 and 1974 NAIA championships along with the 1988, 1992, and 1994 NCAA championships. There is also an unofficial asterisk on that total, however, because the 1993 NCAA Men's Hockey Championship apparently ended prematurely thanks to some video footage that should have been reviewed long ago. Could Lake Superior State have been a three-peat champion in NCAA's men's hockey?

Apparently, the answer is yes. According to Flo Hockey's Tim Rappleye, Lake Superior State University head coach Jeff Jackson was given a plaque following the 1993 NCAA championship game that reads, "1993 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championships National Champion". The only problem with that plaque is that the Maine Black Bears are the 1993 NCAA champions based on all historical records. So how did Jackson end up with this plaque from the NCAA if Maine has the trophy?

In Rappleye's article, he frames the final moments of the game where a "point-blank scoring chance by Lake State junior Sean Tallaire with 50 seconds remaining appeared to bank off the crossbar" in a documentary called "Out of the Woods". Let's run that clip here.

I have watched this clip over and over again, and I still can't figure out if Tallaire scores on that move to the front of the net while goaltender Garth Snow scrambled in the crease. Yes, the puck goes up and looks like it hit the crossbar, but I can't tell if it pinged off the iron or went under the bar and into the net.

In 1993, the NCAA had yet to institute video review, so the option to go to the film wasn't there. The official's call on the ice would be the only call that the NCAA would accept, and the lone referee on the ice ruled that the puck had gone off the crossbar. If you watch the clip again, the referee isn't even in the picture or standing near the net to make an accurate call, so the 5-4 finish would stand and Maine would be crowned the 1993 champion.

Except we still have that plaque that makes no sense if Maine won.

What we need is another angle or a more definitive look at the goal. I went hunting for more evidence, and I discovered that a YouTube user named TJ Rogers had uploaded the highlights from this game. In that 26-minute highlight package is this moment from a number of different angles. Let's take a look at this moment again with different angles included as we try to figure out if Tallaire actually scored. Two different looks and a third replay at the same broadcast angle while slowed down doesn't give us anything definitive except that the puck appears to disappear for fractions of a second in that final replay under the bar as opposed to ricocheting off the iron. To be fair, I have never seen netting cause a bounce-back like that, so the puck may have hit the back crossbar and come back out. Again, the quality of the replay doesn't have enough definition to say that it happened like that, but it seems that it could be plausible.

Jeff Jackson recalls the moment still, telling Rappleye, "I remember Sean came back to the bench and said, 'That puck was in, Coach!'"

Perhaps this is simply a moment of wanting to believe that Tallaire scored, but Jackson claims he has other evidence. He told Rappleye, "Every time I watched the clip, I noticed something was weird, so I kept on rewinding it back on the old VHS systems and trying to determine. You couldn't see the puck go in the net. But what I did see was the skate lace tying down the water bottle on the top of the net, flying in the air. That's when I knew the puck had gone in."

This is the part that becomes hard to explain because Jackson is right in noticing the skate lace move. If you watch the angle from behind the net, you can see the skate lace on top of the net that was used to tie the water bottle down securely move as the puck appears to either hit the bar or go in the net. In the video above, it's just to the left of the water bottle, and its position clearly changes. Is that enough proof to change the outcome? I'd say no, but it seems to lend credence to the idea that Tallaire did score.

Rappleye added this nugget in his article as well.

"Unlike the low-resolution analog footage that Jackson was using to edit his piece, a clean tape, one generation removed from the original footage, was rescued from ESPN's tape truck an hour after their championship telecast went off the air. Four replay angles of Tallaire's tying goal, images that were never broadcast, were dubbed off onto a digital cassette, a relic that was last seen buried in the NHL's video archives.

"The cassette got into the hands of a college hockey producer in November of 1993 and was employed during an intermission feature during a live broadcast of a Lake Superior/Vermont clash from Burlington, Vermont. It was there that the end-zone camera angle of Tallaire's shot finally made air on the now defunct Prime Network, rolled in slo-mo, allowing the viewers to see incontrovertible evidence: the 1993 NCAA championship game—the game that would have secured Lake Superior's bid for a historic three-peat—had been tied up in the final minute."

By this measure, it seems that Tallaire did indeed score on that shot, and it should have sent the 1993 NCAA Men's Hockey Championship towards overtime with Maine and Lake Superior State tied 5-5. Of course, that video would need to be seen and verified to become the smoking gun in this dispute, so Maine remains as the rightful winner of the 1993 NCAA Men's Hockey Championship until that time.

I won't deny that Lake Superior State has a case to be made, but it makes one appreciate the high-definition reviews we get in hockey today that much more. I can't explain why the NCAA gave that championship plaque to Lake Superior State when it seems that there is no definitive evidence to change the results, but perhaps the NCAA saw the same Prime Network video that was aired in November 1993.

I'm not suggesting that anyone change history at this time, but this may be one of those moments that will be lost to time if that Prime Network video never surfaces. The Maine Black Bears will always be the 1993 NCAA Men's Hockey Champions, but it seems clear that the Lake Superior State Lakers have a valid reason to contest that result. Until the evidence is found, though, Lake Superior State will have to be content with their championship plaque that isn't an NCAA Men's Hockey Championship trophy.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!