Credit Where It's Due

I'll be the first to tell you that I rarely ever celebrate anything that the IIHF does. Yes, they've done some good things to push international hockey to a better place, but they often kowtow to bigger forces like the NHL and the IOC when it comes to important moments and events. With one of those two - specifically, the IOC - allowing Russia and Belarus back into the upcoming Olympic Games, it seemed like the IOC had once again turned the screws on the IIHF who has oversight on the Olympic hockey events. Tape screech sound effect, though, because it seems the IIHF not only has teeth, but is willing to bite the hand of the IOC with their announcment today regarding the two countries.

We'll go back to 2022 when the International Ice Hockey Federation banned both Russia and Belarus from international hockey events "until further notice" after Russia invaded Ukraine, sparking a war that has lasted longer than the six weeks that Vladimir Putin had predicted. The IIHF also pulled the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship from Novosibirsk, Russia, further backing their commitment to upholding member nations participating in events as long as they were in good standing on the world stage.

2023 saw the IIHF uphold the ban as the IIHF expressed "security concerns for players, competition staff and fans" over including Russia and Belarus at international hockey events. IIHF president Luc Tardif stated bluntly, "Too many risks" when asked if the two countries would return, and I was again was relieved that the IIHF was taking its founding principles seriously. I'll give them credit.

2024 saw more of the same from the IIHF as the ban was extended again, stating in a release that "it is not yet safe to reincorporate the Russian and Belarusian teams back into IIHF competitions". Those security concerns would extend the ban through 2025's events, and it would carry into 2026 where the IIHF saw its icy stance start to thaw.

It's hard to imagine that the IIHF was going to look at Russian and Belarus as being welcomed at any event, but the IIHF was willing to look at each situation on a case-by-case basis. The IIHF made it clear that this decision "explicitly confirmed that this does not mean that Russia has automatically been reintegrated" and that the decision to "reintegrate Belarus at the under-18 men's and women's events and the women's Division IV world championship" would move forward.

With the war between Russia and Ukraine still ongoing, on what planet did the IIHF think this was close to being a good idea?

Sometimes, a bad idea just needs some real world testing to reverse the decision made, and the IIHF did that on Thursday, stating "that Russia will not be allowed to participate in... IIHF Championships during the 2026-2027 season due to ongoing safety, security and sporting integrity concerns". As much as I dislike Belarus' inclusion, keeping Russia out is the right decision considering their ongoing war with Ukraine. This was the right move based on world events.

I've seen people on social media already criticizing the IIHF over this decision, saying that hockey is less without Russia's participation. To that end, I say you're welcome to your opinion despite it being completely ignorant of what the people of Ukraine - also an IIHF member! - are going through in this war they didn't want. People claim that Russian athletes have no say in what their military is doing, but each member of Russia's hockey player will wear the Russian Ice Hockey Federation's jersey as a national symbol.

Indirectly, that's support of Russia's war efforts because of how tightly hockey is tied to Russian culture and how the federation is funded.

If Russia wanted their athletes participating in the World Juniors or World Championships, they could easily do that by abandoning their war efforts in Ukraine and leaving the Ukrainian territory immediately. It would take some time for the world to trust that the Russians were serious about their intentions to rejoin the majority of the planet in trying to be good neighbours, but at least they could find some solace in that their athletes would be back on international stages where they could compete. But that's not going to happen.

If there's one thing that today's world lacks more than anything else, it's empathy for others. When one considers the plight of the Ukrainian people who wanted nothing to do with this war, but are forced to defend themselves, we might want to take a stand against the bully known as Russia. Hockey doesn't matter when it comes to helping a country defeat evil, but keeping them out of international hockey tournaments is a good message to send to Russia that they're not welcome at the party while being bullying a smaller country.

It doesn't take a lot to be a morally-sound person, and the IIHF deserves a little credit for making the right decision here. For as profitable as future IIHF tournaments could be with Russia involved, being a better organization will have longer-lasting effects than the short-term gain of letting warmongering Russia back into the game.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 723

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is diving into the financial side of the game tonight with a significant look at what's been happening over the last week when it comes to hockey and media. You likely know about Amazon getting into Canadian hockey broadcasts, but there are a number of other money-related stories from the hockey world that need some discussion tonight. We'll dive into those stories because, as fans, our hosts see problems on the horizon in the game that need addressing tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason will take a look at the deal between Rogers and Amazon and discuss why it happened, why Amazon's day moved, and what we might be seeing as a bigger problem in hockey. Beyond that discussion, they'll chat about Columbus cutting its radio play-by-play in favour of simulcasted TV play-by-play, Hamilton Hammers ticket prices, a new Hall-of-Famer, a contest coming to a close, and the insanity that will be travel for one league this season. There's a lot of topics tonight that will have a money theme to them, so you'll want to be ready for an hockey's untrained finanical audit by two radio hosts on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The UMFM website's 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.

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! And because both Teebz and Jason are on the butterfly app where things are less noisy, you can find Teebz here and Jason here on Bluesky!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason chat about financial bubbles, bad deals, bad broadcasts, inflated prices, honoured players, elimination processes, unnecessary travel, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: July 30, 2026: Episode 723

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Another Dumb Idea

As a guy who watched a hockey team make the inexplicable decision to simply walk away from a radio contract that had brought the team some popularity in its market, it was hard to understand what the Columbus Blue Jackets were trying to achieve by not renewing the contract of radio play-by-play broadcaster Bob McElligott. McElligott had 17 years of experience calling games on the radio, and he was a trusted voice for Blue Jackets fans. Starting this season, that voice will be absent as the team looks to simulcast its TV broadcast on the radio which may lead to no radio in the future.

As per the announcement today, "all Blue Jackets game broadcasts will be simulcast across television and radio platforms, allowing fans to experience the same live game coverage whether watching on television or listening on the radio". Steve Mears and Jody Shelley will be calling the action on both mediums now, but this idea seems to forget that these two mediums are significantly different in how the actual broadcasts sound. TV is not radio, so this could go poorly.

As you likely know from watching hockey on TV, the action on the TV doesn't always have to be described because you, as the viewer, can see it. It's part of the reason why every ticket to a game doesn't come with a guy who sits besides you and describes the action. You're able to process what's happening on the ice because you can see it, and the TV broadcast will call the play and fill in the analysis gaps.

You don't get that same benefit with radio because there is no visual component. The audio hardly lends itself to knowing what's happening on the ice, so the radio play-by-play person does a lot more talking to describe what's happening on the ice at all times. There's a signficant difference in how the game sounds when there are big gaps between plays called on radio whereas TV can handle that with its visuals. That's why TV-to-radio simulcasts don't work.

If the Columbus Blue Jackets are letting Bob McElligott as a cost-cutting move, there are likely hundreds of other things they could have done to save a few bucks because there is no way their product will sound better on the radio by using the TV broadcast as its play-by-play. No longer will be there be different analysis done by different people because the single broadcast removes those other voices who bring a different perspective and different experiences to the game. Losing those voices doesn't make the game better.

My hope is that Bob McElligott gets picked up by another team because he was very good at his job. For the handful of games that I heard him call, he was always professional, sounded well-prepared, and called the game with passion. Wherever he lands, he'll bring those traits to his new job, but I really hope he finds his way back to a hockey broadcast booth. His talents make the game sound great!

Oscar Wilde wrote in The Picture of Dorian Gray, "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about." It appears that the Columbus Blue Jackets are fully prepared to test that famous quotation this season.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Pennies On The Dollar

I'll always be the last guy to credit Rogers Communications with anything intelligent based on how they spend their money, but there are certain things that happen where one has to ask the obvious questions that go with what transpired. Rogers was busy today announcing that they had reached a deal with Amazon Prime Video to have Bezos' streaming service exclusively broadcast Wednesday night, regular-season, national NHL games and early-round Stanley Cup Playoff series in both English and French for the next twelve years. And for as greedy as Rogers is know to be, this deal seems like buyer's remorse.

Amazon Prime Video will now have the exclusive rights to Wednesday night where they'll compete with TNT Sports for hockey fans' eyes, but you can add another streaming service to your collection of bills after this announcement. For $99 annually, you can watch Amazon's collection of Wednesday games they choose to show on their national broadcast which will see "at least 26 national regular-season NHL games, beginning on Wednesday, September 30, available only on Prime Video in Canada at no additional cost to Prime members."

Add that onto your $350 annual fee for Sportsnet+ and any fees to watch games that the NHL might be producing for the four teams - Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild and St. Louis Blues - who signed on with their centralized production group, and simply watching hockey on TV is becoming a thing of the past. With everything being streamed on multiple services, we're back to the cable model that everyone tried to abandon a few years ago.

The title of this article isn't about that, though. Instead, it's a question that goes to the very heart of Rogers' 12-year, $11-billion deal they signed with the NHL because you'd think a company with five network sports stations and a streaming service that recently raised its annual price would want more content that Canadians love.

If Rogers was looking to sell one night of their annual $917-million deal, it would clock in around $131 million. Of course, there were no details on the financial deal that Amazon made with Rogers to acquire the rights to Wednesday night games, but you know they aren't paying $131 million annually for those rights. If they are, they need their heads checked as much as those people making decisions for Rogers. With "at least 26 national regular-season NHL games", Amazon isn't spending $5 million per game for those rights.

Again, I have no proof that they aren't spending $5 million per game, but there's no way Amazon makes money if they are. And if they spent less than $5 million per game, that means that Rogers sold Wednesday night rights for pennies on the dollar. On the low chance that Amazon did spend more than $5 million per game, why wouldn't they just buy the regional rights to teams who need regional coverage for much less? I know at least one French-speaking province and team who doesn't have a regional broadcaster for next year.

Again, it begs the question as to why Rogers sold off Wednesday nights at all if Amazon thinks it can make money with those broadcasts. If Amazon could generate enough subscription and ad revenue from those broadcasts, Rogers wouldn't let someone else benefit from those rights when they owned them. That makes me think that they aren't seeing the returns they want, and they'll trying to recover some money by ridding themselves of one night of games per week where they generate the least revenue every week.

And let's not forget that Amazon had Monday night games last season they had bought from Rogers! Why switch nights for the next twelve years unless they discovered that Mondays can be profitable?

No one is going to come out and explain why Rogers and Amazon made this deal from each side's perspective, but if you think that Rogers is generating more than a billion dollars per year while broadcasting hockey, I have barrels of snake oil to sell you. This is the first sign that the financial bubble the hockey world lives in might be close to bursting based on how that financial model plays out.

Economist Hyman P. Minsky's research identifies five bubble phases: displacement, boom, euphoria, profit-taking, and panic, explaining the progression from excitement to market collapse. The NHL went through its displacement phase with the hirng of Gary Bettman in the 1990s as it changed rules, added new teams, and marketed everything it could. The boom phase saw more fans gain access to things to which they never had access before, pushing the NHL into its euphoria phase where everything could be monetized with the NHL forecasting that the revenue will not diminish. That leads us to the profit-taking phase where everyone is making as much money as they can as fast as they can, forgetting that money and revenue streams are finite. All that's left after this phase is panic.

Rogers owns something that should be an asset, but the value of that asset is less than what Rogers paid for it, making it a debt. The bubble formed when asset prices surged far above their intrinsic value thanks to speculative market prices that the NHL created thanks to its always-rising economic forecast. And now that the prices are far too high for most people's budgets, revenues will begin to dry up and the bubble will burst, causing significant financial losses and economic problems for years to come. Rogers should be worried.

Of course, Rogers could sell other days to networks and streaming services to cut their losses, but I get the sense that ego and pride will stand in the way of making deals with Bell Media or CraveTV. Rogers has deep enough pockets to weather the losses they may incur as long as their shareholders are ok with it, so I'd expect more price increases for Sportsnet cable channels and their streaming service before they sell off other days. After all, someone will pay their insane prices to watch hockey, right? Revenue is all that matters.

With the costs to watch hockey from the comfort of your own home skyrocketing, with ticket prices at an all-time high in all markets, with merchandise prices higher than ever before, and with equipment and ice-time pricing rising faster than the temperature in Death Valley, hockey is standing on a dangerous cliff where they are close to financially alienating the middle-class fan. The NHL isn't trying to grow the game as much as they're trying to grow their bottom line and hockey-related revenues, so don't be surprised if people start finding their entertainment elsewhere this winter.

It's hard to like the world's best hockey league when all it does is treat its fans like ATMs, so maybe it's time to move on. Like a good investor, it's better to cut your losses and get out before one falls into moral and financial ruin. Just don't say you weren't warned.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Cutting Edge

I'll be the first to admit that I've likely forgotten more about hockey than what I know. That's not to say that I should stop learning, but it does reinforce the importance to keep learning and reading about the game. I enjoy the history of the game when presented in a fun way, player biographies often bring insight, and I'm always looking for something that will give me better understanding of how the game is presented. Thanks to Arsenal Pulp Press, I was given an opportunity to read a book that has yet to hit bookstore shelves about a topic I admittedly have very little knowledge. Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture, written by Daniel Gawthrop and published by Arsenal Pulp Press. Gawthrop examines the game from every angle when it comes to LGBTQ+ culture in hockey, and I feel that this book could help the hockey world understand its own shortcomings with respect to the LGBTQ+ community that Gawthrop puts under the microscope with this book.

From the Arsenal Pulp Press website, "Daniel Gawthrop (he/him) is the author of six non-fiction books, including The Trial of Pope Benedict and The Rice Queen Diaries (both Arsenal Pulp Press), and one novel, Double Karma (Cormorant Books). A co-founder of the Cutting Edges, Vancouver's LGBTQ+ hockey association, he has written extensively about hockey for numerous publications. He lives in New Westminster, BC." Gawthrop also plays hockey with the Cutting Edges hockey team, worked as a reporter for the Hope Standard and Vancouver Sun, freelanced as a journalist, and served as a communications representative for the Canadian Union of Public Employees in his storied and illustrious career. He continues to advocate for LGBTQ+ causes and events.

Before I get into discussing Cutting Edge, I want to make it clear that I, as a cisgender, white, straight male, wasn't sure what I was going to read when I started flipping pages. My anger towards the NHL and their defence of players who spoke out about Pride Night festivities still burns when the NHL pumps its own tired about inclusivity while my exposure to women's hockey where same-sex relationships are often seen has allowed me to gain better understanding of some of the challenges that gay and lesbian hockey players face, but my depth of that understanding is barely surface deep as I haven't faced the same discrimination or had the same experiences as the LGBTQ+ community in hockey. My hope was that Cutting Edge would build on the admittedly little knowledge I had. That's where we'll begin.

Gawthrop doesn't waste any time in Cutting Edge by looking at one of the most well-known hockey figures in history in Hobey Baker by turning his story on its side by connecting the dots that could lead one to seeing Baker in a different light. While the evidence is there to possibly have one of hockey's best players as a gay man, no one has ever said that about Baker. Could Baker have been the first homosexual man in the sport's history? There's enough evidence to make one wonder based upon what's presented in Chapter One!

Gawthrop takes us through the history of hockey's whiter-than-white past, introducing the reader to where Gawthrop began to take an interest in the game. I won't give way which team's grace and beauty dazzled the young writer, but it would be two players who captured Gawthrop's attention for very different reasons, giving him enough thought-provoking material to fill early chapters in Cutting Edge!

Gawthrop does an excellent job in introducing readers to the Cutting Edges hockey team, exposing why many gay men move away from hockey while growing up, displaying the often-toxic hypermasculinity found in the game, examining the constant brutal ways masculinity is portrayed in the game, and providing enough evidence of each of these issues through the first hundred pages that you may question where else Gawthrop can go in his writing. From there, Gawthrop showed how he found his niche in the hockey world, how others navigated the hockey world despite numerous negative stereotypes shown towards the LGBTQ+ community, and how the NHL world struggled to accept the LGBTQ+ community when facing it.

I was often left amazed and, quite frankly, proud of how the LGBTQ+ community handled the gatekeeping and toxic masuclinity it faced throughout hockey's existence, particularly at the NHL level. Gawthrop himself faced a number of realizations as he also grew as a person and writer to have a better understanding of the game's nuances during this time, and his reflection upon himself is walked in-step with the reader as issues like sexual abuse, hazing, and mental health situations are better examined and understood.

Reading the chapters about women's hockey growing and having more BIPOC players in both men's and women's hockey, Gawthrop faded into the background, allowing others to have a more prominent voice. This was evident in Chapter 16: Breaking the Hockey Binary where Gawthrop shared the experiences and stories told by Harrison Browne and Jessica Platt, two transgender players, including what they had to overcome to be professional hockey players. It was here that Gawthrop realized the Cutting Edges had been describing itself as a "gay men's hockey team" despite being welcome to all, and trans player Sam Punzo didn't know if he'd be welcome, stating,

"'I think when you don't institutionalize [who the orgnaization is for] and you don't have language in it, it's left to interpretation, and it kind of creates a bit of ambiguity,' he explained. ''Gay men's hockey,' even though the intention behind it was to be inclusive, does send a message that it's not inclusive. In order to clarify, someone sould have to reach out or know somebody to be like, 'Oh, no, everyone's welcome.' Well, you'd have to know that. So, yeah, I think the [wording] change was huge, and times change. The description now, thirty years from now might not work too, right? But that's why we evolve and contonue to grow.'"

That comment from Punzo stuck with me as I finished reading Cutting Edge because Punzo is correct in that our language will change over the next thirty years as we become more knoweldgeable and have a better understanding of how to describe people who don't fit into a preconceived category. We should want to evolve, to change, and to be better so that everyone has a chance to be their best selves.

After all, aren't we told that hockey is supposed to be for everyone?

Overall, Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture is a book that doesn't shy away from the hard questions needed to be asked about sexuality, gender, and how they fit into the game of hockey. Daniel Gawthrop doesn't demand the reader abandon one's beliefs as much as he simply asks the reader to have an open mind about the discussions he generates. It took me about a week to get through Cutting Edge simply because I had to put the book down at points to process what I had read, but these moments allowed me reflect on the topics that Gawthrop framed. Because this book is another important step in understanding what hockey can do and where hockey can be better for everyone, Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture absolutely deserves the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture will be released on September 8, 2026, and you can order a copy of the book from the linked Arsenal Pulp Press site above. It took me picking this book a few times to get through all the chapters that Daniel Gawthrop wrote, and the topics in those chapters are intended for a mature audience with the occasional unsavoury word used. In saying that, Cutting Edge should be read by everyone in the game of hockey in order gain a better understanding of how to be inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Now Boarding: A Hockey Team

I'm not sure what else can be said or done for the Pederal Prospects Hockey League to save the league and its member teams from itself. The schedule was released on Friday to little fanfare despite the interest the league believes it has, and I went looking to see if the league was going to take baby steps forward with their newly-expanded map to help the financial situations of a number of teams. As stated, there are some massive distances between franchises this season that a bus ride simply won't cover based on time.

I went digging through the schedule, and one series jumped out at me almost immediately. The Danbury Hat Tricks, located in Danbury, Connecticut, host the Stockton Thunder on March 26 and 27 in a weekend series. Nothing about that should be surprising as it makes sense financially to have teams located 2930 miles apart play multiple games against one another in one trip. Crossing four time zones isn't easy, so you'd expect Stockton to get some "adjustment" time when it comes to bodies adjusting for the time difference, right?

Except you already know that's not the case with the FPHL.

Stockton inexplicably hosts the as-yet-unnamed Oceanside franchise on Wednesday, March 24 in what will be an evening-scheduled game, meaning they will likely need to charter a plane for the trip to Connecticut for the Friday contest against Danbury. There are no commercial flights that fly directly into Danbury that leave from Stockton, and the closest solution would be to Hartford. There is no direct flight from Stockton to Hartford, so the team will need to fly from San Francisco if a direct commercial flight is wanted.

Of course, it's possible that Stockton flies out to the east coast and spends a couple of weeks there playing against teams, but that's also not the case in looking at the schedule. Stockton is due back for April 2 when they host the Indiana Sentinels, and I doubt they're going to be taking a 43-hour bus trip back home after playing the Hat Tricks. The FPHL just went from a bus league to a national league that requires plane travel in one summer due to inexplicable decisions.

If you're thinking, "This is a mess," you're not alone on that.

If you're the Minnesota Northern Lights franchise, you have to hope that every game sells out with the number of California trips that the team will make. According to the schedule, Minnesota visits Oceanside on October 23 and 25. They do not visit either of Stockton or Fresno on that trip. Minnesota returns to California to play Stockton on November 25 before playing Fresno on November 27 and 28, but they don't visit Oceanside on that trip. The Northern Lights then go home to play Stockton on December 4 and 5 before going back to Fresno for games on December 11 and 12, but they don't visit Stockton or Oceanside in that visit. Who is designing this schedule?

Unless this league has a pile of new investors with deep pockets, the scheduling for the FPHL is ludicrous. Seemingly intelligent road trips are ignored and additional unnecessary travel is scheduled all over the place despite the FPHL specifically saying they'd do what they could to reduce unnecessary travel in a previous press release.

Just ignore that part of the press release because they really didn't mean it. They only published it for optics. Unnecessary travel is, apparently, necessary, especially for the Frontier Division teams.

We saw two teams leave the FPHL after the proposal of this California experiment, and I suspect there may be more teams who question the necessity of including California if it blows up their travel budgets. Minnesota makes three trips to California in three months to play seven road games, and Stockton flies across the continental US for two road games before coming home. Make it make sense.

There may be far less "unnecessary travel" next season if FPHL teams fold or abandon the league this season due to rising costs. Is that worth the cost of an expansion experiment? I guess we'll find out!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Priced Out Of The Market

As you likely know, I'm not a hockey executive. Frankly, with the state of economics in hockey right now, I'm not sure I'd want to be working in a front office at the moment because it seems like everyone is either delusional or insane. Or maybe both. Being that I'm not qualified to diagnose anyone as senile, though, it became somewhat hard to ignore that the new AHL team in Hamilton might be on a fast track to another relocation thanks to their ticket prices. Welcome to professional hockey, Hamilton! Bring your wallets!

I want you to remember that we're talking about an AHL team that finished in fourth-place in its division and lost to the fifth-place team in the qualification round. The Bridgeport Islanders were a 34-30-8 team last season, and only made the playoffs twice in the last five seasons where they didn't win a round. This will be important.

First, here's the seating map at TD Coliseum for Hammers games.

Feel free to click on the image to see it larger, but the season-ticket costs for 36 home games in Hamilton range from $875 up to $2238 per seat. If you're doing the calculations for a per-game cost, the cheapest seats are $24.31 per game while the most expensive will seat cost you $62.17 to watch the Hammers. While these prices aren't financially crippling at a per-game rate, $62 to watch a middle-of-the-road AHL team seems like the supply-and-demand pricing atrributed to hockey tickets may not be entirely true. At all.

If you go down the road to Toronto where the Calder Cup champions play, the Toronto Marlies have their season ticket prices posted.

How is it that the Calder Cup champions have less expensive tickets than an AHL who has done nothing except change its name and logo six times in its existence? One can argue that Toronto's saturated professional sports market forces the Marlies to keep their prices lower, but that doesn't explain why Hamilton's tickets cost more.

If supply-and-demand is the factor for AHL tickets, the Belleville Senators are the only professional team in Belleville, Ontario which sits two hours east of Toronto. You'd expect them to follow Hamilton's idea of charging a little more to come and see them due to the demand for their tickets, yet, as you can see to the right, that's not the case. The cheapest ticket in Belleville is $4.31 less than Hamilton's cheapest ticket, yet the B-Sens have just as many Calder Cup playoff appearances and series wins as the Hammers. If you're scratching your head over these AHL ticket prices, you're not the only one.

I want to call your attention to the sections on Hamilton's seat map to emphasize just how insane this pricing model is that the Hammers conjured. Sections 105-107 are priced at $1808 for the season if you sit there ($50.22 per ticket). However, if you want to sit in an aisle seat, that's going to cost you more. In fact, $328 more ($9.11 per game more). An aisle seat in that section will set you back $2136 ($59.33/game) as opposed to the guy sitting next to you who paid $1808. Since when did sports teams adopt airline pricing for seats?

I like an aisle seat as much as the next person, but there is no way I'm paying more for an aisle seat when I'm already paying for the most expensive seats in the building. I get that's how the supply-and-demand model works, but this is taking it a step beyond acceptable. If I want to sit with my friends in seats 1-4 in row 12 in section 107, why am I paying more than my three friends? How is that fair?

NHL ticket prices are ridiculous to begin with, so I'm not making those comparisons. We have a total of one ECHL team in Canada, so comparing AHL and ECHL prices won't make much sense to Canadian hockey fans either. Comparing the AHL markets across this country to one another does make sense when it comes to supply-and-demand theories, and there are a total of zero AHL teams adjusting their pricing for tickets to see the Hamilton Hammers play. Belleville's home opener is against Hamilton, and they didn't raise their prices because tickets to see the Hammers simply aren't in demand.

Congratulations to the City of Hamilton on getting an AHL team whose ticket prices are higher than any other AHL team in the country including the defending Calder Cup champions. Enjoy your fourth-place team at premium prices while you can because I suspect there won't be many people in the stands at these prices. And I say that because the Hammers likely won't be in Hamilton long unless the team's profit-driven philosophy changes... which doesn't seem likely.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Benny, Mick E., and Icy?

Virtually every team on the planet has a mascot. They usually have the role of being an ambassador for the team while entertaining fans, but mascots are usually in a one-to-one relationship with a team. Rarely do we see mascots moving between teams, but there have been a handful who have made the transition from one team to another like Youppi! in Montreal and Sparky the Dragon on Long Island. There is one mascot in hockey, however, who has worked for a number of teams in his career, and one of those teams was the Winnipeg Jets despite him not being listed as an official mascot in the team's history nor being credited for his work!

The mascot pictured above is Icy D. Eagle who appears at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum for every Fort Wayne Komets game. What's cool about Icy is that he didn't start out as the Komets' mascot, but moved to join the Komets after the Salt Lake Golden Eagles moved following the 1993-94 season to become the Detroit Vipers. It's reported that Icy made the trip to Fort Wayne for the 1994 IHL All-Star Game and fell in love with the Komets and the fans, but he officially became the Komets' mascot in the 1994-95 season!

I'll tip my cap to Friend of the Blog Fiona Quinn who is doing exemplary work in compiling the full history of the Fort Wayne Komets. Fiona's been working at this project for a few years now, and she reached out to me with an interesting question. It reads,

"Hi Teebz!!! I have a question. In 1994-95, Icy was in Winnipeg for a game and we were wondering if there was any way you could find a picture of him up in Winnipeg?"

At first, this question had me confused because the 1994-95 season would still be when the Winnipeg Jets were playing here before their move to Arizona. As we know, the Jets had a mascot in Benny, so having a second mascot in the arena who wasn't affiliated with the team didn't make much sense. However, I trust Fiona's research skills, so this sounded like something that needed a little investigating.

According to what she could find, she believed the games where Icy appeared in Winnipeg happened on March 10 and 11, 1995. After a quick check online, the Jets did indeed have back-to-back games that weekend against the Dallas Stars and the Los Angeles Kings, so the possibility of Icy being in Winnipeg became a little more real.

The next place I went to check for evidence of Icy's visit and appearance in Winnipeg was the newspaper archive. 1995 was long before the internet became what it is today, so the newspaper archive likely held the answer. As you can see to the right, Tim Campbell had documented Icy's visit to Winnipeg at the two games on Thursday, March 9, 1995, so we got one step closer to seeing some sort of visual evidence that Icy was at the Winnipeg Arena. 1995 was a tough era for images being online, so this is where I hit a wall.

Despite me looking for any and all newspapers who would have covered the Jets, Stars, and Kings, none of them seemingly had photographers who captured the work done by Icy in Winnipeg. I get that an opposing team's mascot wouldn't likely appeal to Stars fans or Kings fans, so I can understand why they wouldn't have made a big deal out of Icy being in Winnipeg. However, you'd think the Winnipeg newspapers would make some mention or grab a pciture of Icy being there outside of the small blurb above, right? Apparently not.

Not all hope was lost of finding an image of Icy, though, as I hit YouTube to see if the full games were posted to their site. The March 11 game against Los Angeles came up first, and it was produced by Prime Sports which covered the Los Angeles Kings. I had my doubts that a Kings-backed broadcast would show anything other than Kings content, and those doubts were confirmed as there was no mention nor video evidence of Icy on the Kings' broadcast that day.

My last hope was the January 10 game against the Dallas Stars, and this one gave me more hope as Winnipeg-based CKND produced this broadcast! I scrolled through the action as I watched for any sort of crowd shot that may include Icy, and my faith in local broadcasting was restored at the 19:06 mark as John Garrett was speaking!
We now have visual evidence that Icy D. Eagle was in Winnipeg for the Jets-Stars game on March 10, 1995 while wearing a Winnipeg Jets jersey with #0 on it and working as a Jets mascot! Fiona is correct!

Honestly, I didn't even know this happened. Benny was the only mascot I ever associated with the Jets, and Mick E. Moose only came about thanks to the Manitoba Moose who played in the IHL and AHL. At no point was I aware that Icy D. Eagle had a two-game stint as a Winnipeg Jets mascot if it wasn't for Fiona's dedication to the Fort Wayne Komets' history. I'm not sure if the Jets are even aware about Icy's appearance as I can't find any information that links Icy and Winnipeg outside of that Winnipeg Free Press blurb posted above.

Major stick-tap to Fiona Quinn and her outstanding work as the Fort Wayne Komets' team historian for sending me down this path. Not only would I have not looked for this piece of hockey history had it not been for Fiona's prompt, but I wouldn't even have associated Icy with the Winnipeg Jets. Her effort in researching this led me to Icy being a Winnipeg Jets mascot which has blown my mind because I had no idea this even happened! Was Icy the only mascot who got this opportunity? Where was Benny in all of this? How many other mascots got this kind of opportunity with the Jets? These questions may go unanswered thanks to time, but we can officially say, thanks to Fiona's relentless research on all things Komets, that Icy D. Eagle was a Jets mascot for at least one game!

Don't be fooled by other ornithological mascots like Gulliver in San Diego or Swoop in Philadelphia when it comes to which bird mascot is the best. Icy D. Eagle holds that title, and is a regular in the nominations for the annual ECHL Mascot of the Year award. He's beloved for his antics at Komets games, he's an outstanding ambassador for the Komets' brand, and he's clearly good enough for an NHL team as the Winnipeg Jets wanted him for two games in 1995!

Because she is entirely responsible for me doing a deep dive into Icy's time in Winnipeg, please check out the Komets all-time record book edited by Fiona and Komets' radio play-by-play broadcaster Shane Albahrani. And when I say edited, I really mean "did all the research and compiled all the information". These two are vitally important cogs in the Komets organization considering all they do for the team and Komets fans, and I'm forever grateful to call Fiona a friend!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 722

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is back in the confines of the UMFM studios tonight for some chatter about the state of hockey once more! Usually, you expect the summer to be a little slower when it comes to news stories, but there seems to be significant news happening each and every week this summer so we're going to keep talking about it! We'll get into more stories tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason will attempt to make sense of a number of stories from the hockey world including the City of Ottawa potentially changing directions with respect to the Charge, the NHL taking over production of game broadcasts and why that's a terrible idea, the FPHL going completely insane, some new logos, the Aquilinis making more crazy demands, and anything else we can get into the hour. It's a busy show with lots to discuss, so make sure you're ready 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 UMFM website's 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.

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! And because both Teebz and Jason are on the butterfly app where things are less noisy, you can find Teebz here and Jason here on Bluesky!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason talk big mistakes, bad broadcasts, league madness, new looks, bad teams, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: July 23, 2026: Episode 722

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Final Day

The HBIC Music Festival comes to a close today on this third day of looking at musicians wearing or holding hockey jerseys, and it's a day where every other league outside of the NHL gets to shine. Honestly, if I were a touring musician, I'd want more of these lesser-known teams in my closet because that's the sign of a true hockey fan. In saying that, though, these musicians seen today are doing their part in supporting the lesser-seen teams! Of course, if you know of a band or artist I've missed, please send the image(s) through to me via email! Don't forget to check out all the jerseys over at the HBIC Musicians in Jerseys database, but let's get into the final day of music fun at this summer's HBIC Music Festival!

We'll start on the international stage where we find two Canadian artists sporting the maple leaf! Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau looks like he's ready to take the ice in his Team Canada jersey, and Our Lady Peace's Raine Maida shows his support for Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off! Hands up for those good ol' Canadian boys!

We move to the EIHL who has a couple of acts at the festival. The Sheffield Steelers gifted Def Leppard with personalized jerseys for each band member while Rod Stewart shows his support for the Coventry Blaze! For those that are unaware, Liam Stewart, Rod's son from his marriage with model Rachel Hunter, played as a forward for the Blaze in the 2016-17 season and has represented Great Britain internationally! In that 2017 season with Coventry, Liam scored nine goals and 20 points in 49 games before moving to Guildford in 2018!

We'll move to the AHL who sent two musicians to the festival as well. Rapper Trippie Redd might be the only musician I've seen in a Bridgeport Islanders jersey while Dan Campbell of rock band The Wonder Years shows off another AHL team who no longer exists in his Philadelphia Phantoms jersey! Two former teams for one league!

We'll get to see the PWHL debut their first acts at the HBIC Music Festival as well this year! PVRIS vocalist Lynn Gunn took the stage in a Boston Fleet jersey, guitarist and keyboardist Leandra Earl of Beaches was spotted in a PWHL Toronto jersey from the Sceptres' first season, and Jonathan Cain of Journey took the stage and played the keyboard in an Emma Greco Vancouver Goldeneyes jersey!

Of course, there were some musicians sporting jerseys from CHL and USHL teams this year. Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau was on the ice in an autographed Quebec Remparts jersey while also sporting a black Quebec Remparts jersey, Shockwire wore a Peterborough Petes jersey in a video, Cape Breton's own Sunsetto took the stage in a Cape Breton Screaming Eagles jersey, Mitchell Tenpenny took the stage in a Calgary Hitmen jersey, Bailey Zimmerman was on stage in a Sioux Falls Stampede jersey, and, in one of the most awesome photos ever, Jon Bon Jovi showed his support for the Sudbury Wolves by wearing one of their jerseys! How awesome is that last image?

We have a strange jersey that was seen at the festival as guitarist Greg Leskiw of The Guess Who was on stage beside Burton Cummings in what looks like a WHA Winnipeg Jets jersey, but the WHA Jets never wore that design! Further to this, the Johnstown Jets never wore a diagonal "Jets" sweater either. I have no idea whose jersey it is, but he's wearing #25 on the back as well. If you want to take a closer look, the footage of the concert can be seen here. If you know whose jersey Leskiw is wearing, drop the info in the comments!

We have a couple of SPHL jerseys making appearances at the HBIC Music Festival this year! Journey's Jonathan Cain sported an Evansville Thunderbolts jersey on stage as he played guitar, and Bailey Zimmerman was on stage in a Huntsville Havoc "Retro Rush" jersey! That Huntsville specialty jersey is awesome!

The ECHL had one act on the HBIC Music Festival stage as Journey's Jonathan Cain was on stage wearing a Worcester Railers jersey!

The BCHL makes a rare appearance on the HBIC Music Festival stage, but Shockwire was wearing a Chilliwack Chiefs jersey in a video!

And the final act for the HBIC Music Festival takes us to the NCAA world where Jonathan Cain of Journey was on stage in a University of South Carolina Gamecocks jersey! For those unaware, the Gamecocks are the defending AAU College Hockey Division 1 Champions after being ranked fourth in the nation last season! Winning the national championship and having Journey on your side? That's a great season!

That officially clears out the folder on my desktop of all the musicians in jerseys! I'll start looking for and collecting new images once again, but that's a big job off the checklist. Again, if you want to send in a band or musician for the database, please send the image(s) through to me via email! Just be sure you check the HBIC Musicians in Jerseys database first so we're not duplicating work!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Middle Day

After a solid first day in the books headlined by 25 different images of bands and musicians wearing Edmonton Oilers jerseys, we're back for the second day of the HBIC Music Festival! We're not going to waste much time with the chatter here, so if you know of a band or artist I've missed, please send the image(s) through to me via email! We'll tackle the back half alphabetically of the NHL, so let's get rocking and rolling on Day Two of the HBIC Music Festival!

The Minnesota North Stars are back with an artist who made a previous appearance! Andy Gibb, brother of the Gibb brothers comprising the Bee Gees, makes his second appearance on the list in a variation of a North Stars sweater! There's nothing wrong with more North Stars at any event and that includes the HBIC Music Festival!

The other Minnesota team is also on the set list this year as country star Keith Urban makes an appearance in a white Wild jersey!

The festival's second day is headlined by the Montreal Canadiens as the bleu-blanc-et-rouge saw a number of artists wear those colours! Charlotte Cardin on the left and Patrick Watson on the right attended a Montreal Canadiens playoff game, Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau snapped a picture with Guy Lafleur and was on the ice in a practice jersey, Queensryche's Joe Elliott was rocking in a Habs jersey, Nelly went sleeveless in his Canadiens jersey, Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons wore a Canadiens jersey on stage, Canadian James LaBrie showed his support of Les Canadiens while touring with American band Dream Theater, Gail Greenwood of both L7 and Belly wore a Canadiens jersey on stage, and David Lee Roth was on stage in a Habs jersey! Hockey's oldest team has quite the musical following!

The Nashville Predators have three acts who hit the stage at the HBIC Music Festival! Maddox Batson was in the crowd wearing a Roman Josi jersey, Carrie Underwood is back on the list with a new Predators jersey, and Bailey Zimmerman wore a Predators jersey on stage!

The New Jersey Devils came to town with a solid roster of musicians who are sporting their colours. Cardi B got her own personalized, bedazzled Devils jersey, we can finally add Taylor Swift to the Devils' roster, Brandy got herself a personalized "Jersey" jersey, Burna Boy wore a white Devils jersey on stage, and rapper Lil Yachty also wore a white Devils jersey on stage! Are the Devils becoming popular?

The New York Islanders had one act for the festival this year as the Beach Boys' keyboardist Bruce Johnson wore his Islanders jersey on stage! There's zero wrong with a classic Islanders jersey!

The Philadelphia Flyers boasted four acts at the festival this year. Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau was on stage in his Flyers jersey, rapper Lil Peep got his own personalized jersey, Jon Bon Jovi got himself a Flyers jersey, and Canadian rock musician John Whitten, better known as Shockwire, was also rocking a Flyers jersey!

The Pittsburgh Penguins sent two very different acts to the HBIC Music Festival, but both have solid followings. Who else can boast Yanni as a fan as he wore a Penguins jersey? And who else can say that 5 Seconds of Summer are fans as they received Penguins jerseys?

The San Jose Sharks saw Chuck Comeau of Simple Plan play in a charity game wearing their jersey! How cool is that?

The Seattle Kraken are being booed off the stage for their disrespect towards a band. I don't know what they were thinking, but if Three Days Grace is in town to play a concert and all they get is t-shirts when they attend a game, something's not right there. Seattle won't have Three Days Grace on their list of musical acts who support them because they deserve better than generic t-shirts! C'mon, Kraken!

The Tampa Bay Lightning have one singer in their corner at the festival as K-Pop star Jin from BTS was on stage in a Lightning jersey!

The Toronto Maple Leafs always seem to have big names in their corner as Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau and David Desrosiers got themselves Maple Leafs jerseys, Triumph's Rik Emmett and Gil Moore got themselves Maple Leafs jerseys, David Lee Roth wore a Maple Leafs jersey, and Post Malone wore a Maple Leafs jersey on stage!

For the very first time, we have a Utah Mammoth musical act! NBA YoungBoy is the first musical act to wear a Utah Mammoth jersey that I could find, and he'll lead the way under their section in the HBIC Musicians in Jerseys database! Who will be the next Mammoth act?

The Vancouver Canucks come to town with a solid lineup of musical acts as Michael Buble donned a vintage Canucks jersey, Mike Reno of Loverboy also wore a vintage Canucks jersey on stage, and Shockwire returns again in a Canucks jersey! How about those vintage threads?

If one team sees a pile of musical acts come through town, it's the Vegas Golden Knights and they're well-represented at the HBIC Music Festival. Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau wore the 2022-23 Reverse Retro jersey and wore the gold Golden Knights jersey, three members - Nick Carter, AJ McLean, and Howie Dorough - of the Backstreet Boys received Golden Knights jerseys, Wayne Newton got his gold Golden Knights jersey, and Flavor Flav sat rinkside in his gold Golden Knights jersey while Jon Bon Jovi showed off his personalized gold jersey!

The Washington Capitals have one act to boast at the HBIC Music Festival, but he's a big star as Ozzy Osbourne wore a Capitals jersey!

The Winnipeg Jets are also represented by one artist at the festival, and it's Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau wearing the Jets' Heritage jersey! Clearly, Comeau has good taste in jerseys with that one!

That will wrap up all the NHL teams who had musicians in jerseys, but we're far from done as there are a pile of international, minor-professional, and junior hockey jerseys still be seen on musicians. We even have our first PWHL jerseys worn in concert to be seen, so I'll get all those posted as the HBIC Music Festival comes to a close tomorrow. And remember that you can always see all the musicians and teams over at the HBIC Musicians in Jerseys database!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Opening Day

Having been to a handful of music festivals in my time, I can honestly say that one stumbles across a great opening band only once in a while. It's not that these bands can't play or don't know how to write music, but it's just that they usually haven't found that sound that makes the crowd sit up and take notice of what they're doing. The first day of the HBIC Music Festival has none of that as there are well-known artists that will appear below for nearly every team. Again, not every team will be represented, but that's ok too. If you know of a band or artist I've missed, please send the image(s) through to me via email!

I'll step aside here, though, as we kick things off with our first teams!

The Anaheim Ducks have three new entries as their musically-talented guests include The Offspring in orange and in white, Thrice with their second appearance in white and orange, and Green Day's Tre Cool was able to score himself both an orange jersey and a white jersey as the Ducks brought an all-rock lineup this year!

The Boston Bruins always seem to have big artists pass through their arena, and this year was no different. Chuck Comeau of Simple Plan makes his first appearance, Eric Church got himself a jersey in Boston, and the Guess Who's Burton Cummings wore a Bobby Orr jersey in a March 2, 1973 concert! Jackie Miclau of rock band Mt. Joy got herself a personalized Bruins jersey, new lead singer Emily Armstrong of Linkin Park sported a Bruins jersey during their concert, and Lionel Richie got himself a personalized Bruins jersey as well!

The Buffalo Sabres brought a strong group of artists with them to the HBIC Music Festival as country crooner Cody Johnson got a personalized Sabres jersey, all of Disturbed got personalized jerseys, Eric Church got a personalized black Sabres jersey, bassist Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls got a personalized black Sabres jerseys, and country singer MaRynn Taylor got herself a blue Sabres jersey and a black Sabres jersey too! Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox wore a Sabres jersey on stage, and hip hop artist West Side Gunn wore a white 1999 Buffalo Sabres jersey with scorpions embroidered on it!

The Calgary Flames have music from a number of genres on their set list. The Arkells got to share one jersey, Bailey Zimmerman wore a Flames jersey on stage, the Beach Boys got Flames jerseys for each band member, Ja Rule took the stage in a Flames alternate jersey, Mt. Joy received Calgary Flames jerseys much to the delight of Jackie Miclau, Nelly made a statement with his sleeveless Flames jersey, Our Lady Peace received personalized jerseys, and former NHL goaltender Jamie McLennan posted this image of Ozzy Osbourne receiving a personalized Flames jersey! How awesome is that photo?

The defending Stanley Cup champions have five artists on their stage as the Carolina Hurricanes gave rapper Rod Wave his own personalized jersey, NBA YoungBoy modified his Hurricanes jersey into a short-sleeved version, Journey's Jonathan Cain wore a Hurricanes jersey on stage, Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox wore his Hurricanes jersey on stage, and Darius Rucker, formerly of Hootie and the Blowfish, fired the crowd up in Raleigh by sounding the siren last year!

The Chicago Blackhawks showed up to the festival with a handful of artists representing them as Benson Boone met the Folignos and got a jersey, K-Pop boy band P1Harmony received Blackhawks jerseys when they attended a game, Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau wore a Connor Bedard jersey on stage, Carlos Santana appears to be a Blackhawks fan, and, in one of the coolest musical moments, Italian conductor Riccardo Muti conducted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in a Blackhawks jersey! I believe he's the first conductor on the list!

The Colorado Avalanche only have one musical act to boast at the HBIC Music Festival, and that act is none other than Chuck Comeau of Simple Plan who is wearing the Avalanche alternate jersey!

The Dallas Stars took the same approach with just one act to boast at the HBIC Music Festival, but Post Malone seems pretty pumped about his personalized Stars jersey! For those wondering, Post Malone has ties to the #77 as his 2016 debut album, Stoney, spent 77 weeks in the Top 10 of the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart!

The Detroit Red Wings have two acts at the festival with Chuck Comeau of Simple Plan wearing a Red Wings jersey on stage, and long-time rocker Gail Greenwood of L7 and Belly wore a Red Wings jersey as well! We'll see both of these artists with another team too!

The Edmonton Oilers, by sheer volume, are your headliners at the HBIC Music Festival. Creed received personalized blue Oilers jerseys, Darius Rucker got himself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, Finger Eleven received personalized blue Oilers jerseys, the Headstones received personalized blue Oilers jerseys, Dylan Marlowe got himself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, Mother Mother received personalized blue Oilers jerseys, Warren Zeiders got himself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, Sarah McLachlan got herself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, half of Nate Ratlieff and the Night Sweats received personalized blue Oilers jerseys in one photo with the other half of the band getting them in a second photo, Papa Roach received personalized blue Oilers jerseys, Dasha got herself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, Hardy got himself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, Josh Ross got himself a personalized blue Oilers jersey, and Kane Brown got himself a personalized blue Oilers jersey! But we're not even close to being done with the Oilers just yet!

Alex Howard of Jelly Roll's band wore an Oilers jersey on stage, Chuck Comeau of Simple Plan wore an Oilers alternate jersey, Todd Kerns of Triumph wore an Oilers jersey, Sum 41 got jerseys with the band name on the back, Bailey Zimmerman wore a blue Oilers jersey on stage and a white Oilers jersey on stage, Chelsea "Peaches" West of Jelly Roll's band wore an Oilers jersey on stage, Meghan Patrick wore an Oilers jersey on stage, Scott McCreery received a personalized white Oilers jersey, and Nelly received a personalized white Oilers jersey. I'm pretty sure half the music world has an Oilers jersey now!

The Florida Panthers brought their musical influences to the festival as they gave Ariana Grande a new Panthers jersey, Frankie Grande wore a Panthers jersey, Anthony Criss - better known as Treach from Naughty by Nature - performed in a Panthers jersey, Joe Jonas received a personalized Panthers jersey, and Mexican singer-songwriter Carín León received a jersey with his album's name on it!

The Hartford Whalers were well-represented by Noah Kahan who appeared on stage wearing a Whalers jersey. You can't go wrong with that jersey! And no, the Hurricanes don't get credit for it either.

The last team on the opening day of the HBIC Music Festival are the Los Angeles Kings, and they're represented by Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau and son, London! Comeau's wife, Jacquelin Napal, gets a nod for the Team Canada jersey she's wearing, but she won't appear on her own on this blog as she's not a musician. It's still awesome to see the whole Comeau family dressed up in one theme for Halloween!

There are the first sixteen NHL teams covered in terms of which bands and musicians wore those teams' colours and logos. Honestly, I love seeing these images simply because it's cool knowing all of these people are fans in some way of the same teams we like. Tomorrow, we'll finish off the NHL teams before moving into Wednesday with all the non-NHL jerseys. It should be a fun couple of days, so make sure you come back tomorrow and Wednesday for musicians in jerseys!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

HBIC Music Festival

With it being relatively slower in the hockey world at this moment, I have started to purge my laptop of things that I've simply held onto for far too long. One of those includes the idea to the left as I have, as of last count, 130 new images of musicians either holding or wearing some sort of hockey jersey in a folder on my desktop. Clearly, this is just eating up space that could be used for something else, and when is there a better time for a music festival than in the middle of summer? With a little creativity, I came up with a simple poster that will highlight the three-day event that will run on Monday through Wednesday with the intent of removing these images from my desktop. Be ready to see a number of popular bands and musicians in hockey jerseys that may surprise or thrill you, but the Musicians in Jerseys database will grow this week by 130 images!

You might be thinking, "How much time do you waste looking for these pictures, Teebz?" and I can tell you that I happen to stumble on a lot of them thanks to social media. Both teams and artists will post these pictures, and those images lead me down rabbit holes of Instagram and Facebook looking for other images of artists in jerseys. Honestly, I spend no more than ten minutes down these rabbit holes, but I usually find more images that are added to the file.

If you looked at the poster above, you'll see artists like Post Malone, 5 Seconds of Summer, and Brandy who have very few, if any, images in the database. Of course, there are returning artists like Eric Church, Chuck Comeau of Simple Plan, and Journey's Jonathan Cain who will make a handful of appearances as we work through the teams, and it's crazy to think that musicians and bands are getting these jerseys for free just for showing up and playing music. That's the life!

I don't know if every NHL team is represented in the 130 images, but I do know there are a lot. That means lots of additions to the Musicians in Jerseys database, so make sure you get over there and check out all the bands and musicians who have appeared in your team's favorite jersey. Chuck Comeau may be giving Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber a run for their money when it comes to total appearances in the image database, but that's why this is fun!

I'll kick things off tomorrow with the first sixteen teams in alphabetical order. If your team isn't on the list, it's either because I couldn't find any images or none came through any of the social media rounds I make. If you know of a band or artist I've missed, please send the image(s) through to me via email and I'll credit you with the find! Just make sure you check the database first!

Sound checks are done, the band is ready, and the curtain will rise tomorrow as the HBIC Musical Festival gets underway!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Icemen Evolved

Some may see this title and think that I've gone into human anthropology, but I assure you that I have zero training in that subject. That's not to say I wouldn't be interested in it, but I simply have no claim to being any sort of subject matter expert. It won't matter here, though, because this article is about the ECHL's Jacksonville Icemen and not ancient ancestors. The ECHL Icemen have been busy thus far this summer as they're going to look different next season with an assortment of new logos to prepare for the franchise's upcoming 10th Anniversary Season in Jacksonville, Florida! So what do these new Icemen look like?

"This rebrand is about more than a new look - it's a reflection of how much this community has embraced the Icemen over the last decade," Icemen Owner and CEO Andy Kaufmann said on Thursday. "Jacksonville has given us so much, and as we head into our 10th Anniversary Season, we wanted a brand that truly represents the city and the fans who've supported us every step of the way."

Personally, it never made much sense to have a parka-clad hockey player as a logo for a team that plays in Florida. Those two things - parkas and Florida - just don't go together normally, and it looks like this rebrand will take the Icemen in a whole new direction visually!

The Icemen are now yetis rather than being parka-clad hockey players, and one has to wonder how much effort The Barn Creative put in when coming up with this "new idea". I get that abominable snowman are known for existing in cold climates, but the legend came from the Himalayas where they lived in mountains. The last time I checked, there are no moutains in and around Jacksonville.

However, it seems that one needs to notice the details for this redesign to make sense. The Barn Creative's Nick Matarese explained that the "Yeti foot transforms into the shape of the state of Florida" while ECHL Commissioner Ryan Crelin pointed out that "the prior logo was carried forward from the membership in Evansville, Indiana before relocating to Jacksonville."

The fun part is that no one has ever complained about the Icemen being in Jacksonville with that name, and that's what makes minor-professional hockey so fun. For a state that has ECHL teams called the Solar Bears and the Everblades, having a team that regularly sees 80F days in December and January embracing the cold and ice is fun. And minor-pro hockey should be completely about having fun.

The team will likely have newly-coloured jerseys at the very least as iceberg blue, black, and snow white at the new colour palette with gray and navy blue being removed. With a newer, fiercer logo, there likely will be a mascot update at some point as well, but the Icemen can improve their marketing and visual recognition with this fun redesign. It doesn't fit Jacksonville's persona as a city, but that's why it works so well. It's fun, it's modern, and it belongs to Jacksonville.

Overall, I don't hate it, but I appreciate the Icemen putting their own spin on the logos to make it Jacksonville's own. The Barn Creative did good work updating the logo and converting the old logo into the new yeti while coming up with the state-shaped footprint. I'm curious to see what the jerseys will look like in the new colour palette, but the Icemen should look pretty good with their new logos next season!

And we didn't need an anthropology degree to explain this evolution!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!